Next and last generation of nuclear power plants paul howarth exec director, dalton nuclear institute. The pebble bed modular reactor pbmr, like most new reactor ideas, is a reincarnation of an old reactor idea. The reactor core neutronic model for the pebble bed modular reactor. The economic impact of the proposed demonstration plant. Slides pebble bed modular reactor design and operation. The fuel would essentially be the same as was produced for the previous pbmr project in south africa. South african utility eskom yesterday published a request for an expression of interest in reviving all or parts of the pebble bed modular reactor project. The pebble bed modular reactor pbmr is a particular design of pebble bed reactor under development by south african company pbmr pty ltd since 1994. For batch reactors, conversion is a function of time whereas for. The impact of these challenges on the structural design of the reactor and its subsystems are discussed.
The pbmr is a heliumcooled, high temperature reactor htr. The pebble bed modular reactor pbmr power plant is a helium cooled, graphitemoderated high temperature reactor htr. The basic design of pebblebed reactors features spherical fuel elements called pebbles. Schematic overview of the pbmr400 designcontaining an annular pebble bed and a. Terry october 2004 idaho national engineering and environmental laboratory idaho falls, idaho 83415 prepared for the u. The south african government has taken the tough decision to cut its losses and cancel further investment in the pebble bed modular reactor project. Pdf advanced core design and fuel management for pebblebed.
Reactor design lectures notes university of technology, iraq. The project entails the construction of a demonstration power plant at koeberg near cape town now postponed indefinitely and a fuel plant at pelindaba near pretoria reactor design. The cola is presently scheduled for submittal in fy 20. This separation is made so that a numerical solution is possible. Testing a nuclear pebblebed reactor model in openfoam. Selected results of vhtr600 manual and automated design runs 186. Status report 70 pebble bed modular reactor pbmr aris iaea.
Sa mothballs pebble bed reactor brand south africa. The only modifications made to the dpp reactor model were the inlet flow. In this case the old idea is the high temperature gas reactor or htgr, that then was proposed in a modular version, known as the mhtgr. Steady state and transient benchmark exercises for this design are organized by the nuclearenergy agency nea. In searching for the optimum it is not just the cost of the reactor that must be minimized. Pebble bed reactors offer a future for new nuclear energy plants. Koeberg site in the western cape, using the pebble bed modular reactor pbmr 2 3.
The south african pebble bed modular reactor pbmr and. Nuclear engineering and design 238 2008 30023012 3003 fig. Ngb18 graphite blocks form the pbmr outer reflector. It is a type of veryhightemperature reactor vhtr, one of the six classes of nuclear reactors in the generation iv initiative. The ability of the pbmr system to ride through a total loss of cooling incident is attributable to the fuel design and to the relatively small module size 165 mwe. Introduction the pebble bed modular reactor pbmr is an advanced reactor design that is intended to operate at high temperature and is helium cooled, with graphite moderator. The economic impact of the proposed demonstration plant for the pebble bed modular reactor design by steve thomas senior research fellow, public service international research unit.
South africa, the pebble bed modular reactor pbmr has been under design and development for approximately ten years. The pbmr is characterised by inherent safety features. This paper describes the technical aspects of the reactor core neutronic model for the pebble bed modular reactor pbmr. The design and burnup analysis of iterpbr are based on a 1d neutronic analysis. Explore pebble bed reactor with free download of seminar report and ppt in pdf and doc format. Ingersoll, in handbook of small modular nuclear reactors, 2015. Design applicant international reactor innovative and secure iris westinghouse electric company nuscale nuscale power inc. The pebble bed reactor technology allows for online refuelling of the reactor by inserting fresh fuel at the. Pebble bed modular reactor soc pbmr was established in 1999 with the intention to develop and market smallscale, hightemperature reactors both locally and internationally. The pebblebed reactor pbr is a design for a graphitemoderated, gascooled nuclear reactor. The pbmr was clasified as a strategic national project due to its significance to south africa and its potential in international markets, as a prospective provider of safe, clean energy. Currently, it is a 250 mwt cylindrical core design with an outlet temperature of 750 c coupled to an indirect rankine cycle with cogeneration capability for. General description the pebble bed modular reactor pbmr being developed by the south african utility eskom together with international partners is a 400 mwt nuclear reactor that uses the. Pbmr400 reactor layout with accompanying 2d, vsopa model.
Pdf technical achievements of the pbmr project in south africa. Advanced core design and fuel management for pebblebed reactors hans d. The pbmr program gave the opportunity to influence the nuclear engineering design processes of future nuclear power plant designs. Advanced core design and fuel management for pebblebed reactors. High efficiency and attractive economics are possible without compromising the high levels of passive safety expected of advanced nuclear designs. Sa pbmr reactor university of pretoria sa pbmr reactor improvement ofdi if german design 21 years running outlet working temperatureoutlet working temperature 950oc td efficiency higher than conventional nucltslflear reactors.
Preliminary design of a fusionfission tokamak pebble bed. As is nowadays the norm for modular htrs that are seen as gen iv designs, the pbmr design has the following attributes that contribute to. Pbmr core with mixing of graphite and fuel pebbles 48. Pebble bed modular reactor soc is a publicprivate partnership comprising the south african government, nuclear industry players and utilities. High reactor availability due to online refuelling. Pbmr fuel design fuel sphere half section coated particle fuel dia. Pebble bed modular reactor basics high temperature graphite moderated graphite core and graphite core support structures helium coolant brayton cycle gas turbines in power conversion system spherical ceramic fuel elements continuous online refueling passive response to design. The reactor core neutronic model for the pebble bed. In addition to designing and analyzing iterpbr, the characteristics of more general fusionfission tokamak pebble bed reactors are also discussed. They are small, modular, inherently safe, flexible in design and operation, use a demonstrated nuclear technology and can be competitive with fossil fuels.
Pebble bed modular reactor pbmr pbmr, westinghouse electric company toshiba 4s toshibawestinghouse design certification preapplication westinghouse is currently iterating with nrc on design changes from. Main components and processes the reactor has a vertical steel reactor pressure vessel which contains and supports a metallic core barrel, which in turn supports the cylindrical pebble fuel core. While technologically sound, and potentially ideal for developing countries, the pbmr has been. Design of the reactor is no routine matter, and many alternatives can be proposed for a process. In this reactor the fuel is contained in pebbles, which form a randomly packed bed through which helium coolant ows. Many desirable locations for pebble bed modular reactors are currently out of consideration as construction sites for current designs due to limitations on the mode of transportation for large rpvs. Pebble bed reactors are helium cooled reactors that use small tennis ball size fuel balls. The development company, pebble bed modular reactor pbmr, based near pretoria, says that it is now considering axing threequarters of its 800 staff, about half of. Pebble bed reactor seminar report, ppt, pdf for electrical. Pdf on nov 1, 2004, hans d gougar and others published advanced core design and fuel. In the usa, the 150 mwe gas turbine modular helium reactor gtmhr is a conceptual design that has the potential to produce hydrogen by high temperature electrolysis or thermochemical water splitting.
The pbmr reactor is the first pebble bed reactor that will be utilised in a high temperature direct brayton cycle. The pebble bed modular reactor institute for energy and. Very high efficiency and attractive economics are possible without compromising the high levels of passive safety expected of advanced. The application of mcbend to the shielding analysis of the pbmr is described, with particular attention being paid to the regions below the core. It is seeking investors to take stakes in pbmr ltd, the development and deployment of the reactor design, and in triso fuel manufacturing. Pdf the reactor core neutronic model for the pebble bed.
Pebble bed modular reactors an overview sciencedirect. The project entails the construction of a demonstration power plant at koeberg near cape town now postponed indefinitely and a fuel plant at pelindaba near pretoria. It also presents results of benchmark analyses performed for the htr10 experimental reactor in china, and the pebble bed micromodel test facility in south africa. Pbmr has built up much expertise in the field of nuclear engineering and thus the capability to design pebble bed reactors, manufacture the associated fuel. Teuchert nuclear engineering and design 238 2008 28932897 2895 table 2 reactor speci. In particular, the pbmr400 design developed by pbmr pty of south africa uses an rpv with an outer diameter of 6. The pebble bed modular reactor pbmr design began in 1996 as a 400 mwt annular core design with an outlet temperature of 900 c coupled to a direct brayton power conversion cycle. Department of energy office of nuclear science and engineering under doe idaho operations office. One design may have low reactor cost, but the materials leaving the unit. The pbmr is a high temperature gas cooled reactor htgr, with a closedcycle, gas turbine or brayton power conversion system. Department of energy, office of nuclear energy january 25, 2017. Advanced core design and fuel management for pebble bed. Phase 2 also includes finalizing the design of all safety systems in order to facilitate the preparation and submittal of a cola to the nrc in accordance with the licensing strategy recommended in the ngnp licensing strategy report to congress 2008.