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welds removed. These cooling pipes will be replaced. In the Assembly Hall, other workers are assembling the platform used to support the 440-tonne vacuum vessel sectors prior to their installation. The issue with the thermal shield panels is one of stress corrosion cracking. The problem was identified on three, as yet-uninstalled vacuum vessel panels. “When you find three instances of cracks, it is a red alarm because there could be hundreds of locations where cracks could develop,” says Barabaschi. The decision was taken to replace all 23 kilometres of cooling pipes from the panels. The other component issue relates to the dimensional non-conformities discovered in three vacuum vessel sectors. The duration and cost of the repairs cannot, at this stage, be precisely estimated. “A substantial amount of time is required, and time always costs money,” says Barabaschi. “But we can take advantage of the present situation to reorganise and increase the experimental content of the operational phase and reach full- power operation – our real and final objective – with minimum delay.” The situation will finally become clear only by the end of 2023 or in 2024.
United States Fast reactor fuel testing deal The US and Japan are undertaking a joint project to perform transient tests on fast reactor fuels. The experiments are part of a four-year initiative between the US Department of Energy (DOE) and Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). The experiments will use a device developed by the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) that can test advanced reactor fuel experiments in its Transient Reactor Test (TREAT) Facility. INL recently completed initial testing on the
specialised device that houses fuel experiments in TREAT where it can mimic the conditions of fast reactors during postulated accident conditions. The device is equipped with the instrumentation required to monitor the fuel’s real-time response to these conditions. DOE says the irradiated transient experiments will be the first of their kind in more than 20 years. INL’s capsule also brings new testing capabilities to TREAT that will help advance fuel research for sodium-cooled fast reactors. TREAT is one of just a handful of reactors in the world designed specifically to bring nuclear fuels to failure in a controlled environment. INL is currently working to load the first of
four irradiated fuel experiments into TREAT. The first test is expected to start in February. The lab expects to complete the first three DOE/JAEA experiments by early spring.
Sweden
New build legislation underway Sweden is preparing legislation to allow the construction of more nuclear capacity. The proposed new legislation, which still needs to be passed by parliament, would allow
new reactors to be constructed at additional locations. “We have an obvious need for more electricity production in Sweden,” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said. In 1980, the government decided to phase out nuclear power, but parliament repealed this policy in 2010. The current proposal will remove the cap of
10 reactors in Sweden, as well as reverse the prohibition on reactor construction in locations other than where such facilities already exist. If approved by the parliament, the new law will take effect in March 2024. Kristersson has made expanding nuclear
power generation a key policy for his government, seeking to reverse the phase out.
France Flamanville 3 closure change plan France’s Framatome has asked for more time to change the nuclear vessel closure head at the EPR nuclear reactor under construction at unit 3 of the Flamanville NPP. Flamanville 3, which is already some 10
years behind schedule, is expected to start operations in the first quarter of 2024. However, the Autorité de Sûreté Nucléaire (ASN) nuclear safety authority had requested replacement of the reactor’s vessel closure head by the end of 2024. This would mean the reactor would only operate for a few months before having to shut again for the work to be done. Framatome has now asked ASN to delay replacement of the cover so it will coincide with the first fuel reloading. In December, plant owner/operator
Electricite de France (EDF) said the schedule for construction of Flamanville 3 had been further delayed and that its estimated cost had also increased. The 1,600 MWe Flamanville 3 EPR, which started construction in 2007, was originally expected to cost €3bn and to be ready in four years. However, it faced a series of delays and technical issues. EDF said nuclear fuel loading is now scheduled for the first quarter of 2024
United States Fuel recycling proposal floated Oklo has submitted a Licensing Project Plan (LPP) to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), outlining its plans for of a first-of-a-kind fuel recycling facility. In early 2022, Oklo and Argonne National
Laboratory signed an agreement to commercialise advanced fuel recycling technology. The commercial-scale facility is intended to underpin the deployment of Oklo’s 1.5MWe Aurora microreactor. Oklo claims to have a unique position within the nuclear fuel cycle by being able to recycle used fuel from other reactors as well as its own reactors. “The ability to economically recycle fuel is an important attribute for developing domestic fuel supplies, and offering recycling services also presents a sizeable opportunity,” said Oklo co-founder & CEO Jacob DeWitte. ■
round up
SMRS SOUTH KOREA’S DL E&C and Doosan Enerbility are to invest $25m in US-based X-energy to advance the deployment of its Xe-100 advanced small modular reactor. In addition to the $25m, X-energy is continuing to negotiate the terms of a potential incremental investment from other Korean investors.
EDF HAS SIGNED an Exclusive Cooperation Agreement with energy trader Respect Energy to develop nuclear power projects in Poland using its Nuward SMR technology. EDF and Respect Energy will jointly begin evaluation of specific new greenfield sites.
ROLLS-ROYCE SMR has visited the sites of the decommissioned Oldbury and Berkeley NPPs reactor in southwest UK for talks with stakeholders from communities around the plants. The Berkely NPP, closed in 1988-89, and the Oldbury plant, closed in 2011-12, are now the responsibility of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority .
US-BASED HOLTEC International has announced a technical breakthrough that it says would preserve most of the physical assets of coal plants by replacing their boilers with Holtec’s SMR-160 nuclear steam supply system. The breakthrough involves the use of multi-stage compressors capable of uprating the SMR-160’s relatively low enthalpy steam.
SHIPPING THE RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT is investing RUB70bn ($1bn) in the construction of two nuclear-powered icebreakers and a nuclear maintenance vessel. These will be the fifth and sixth serial icebreakers of project 22220, as well as the lead multifunctional nuclear maintenance vessel.
NUCLEAR MEDICINE US-BASED NORTHSTAR Medical Radioisotopes is pressing ahead with developing non-uranium-based production of molybdenum-99 (Mo-99) using its recently completed Accelerator Production facility in Wisconsin. NorthStar expects this to almost double its commercial-scale Mo-99 capability and augment its domestic Mo-99 production,.
SPACE SCIENTISTS AT THE Bauman Moscow State Technical University and the All-Russian Research Institute of Aviation Materials, part of the Kurchatov Institute, have proposed using a hybrid unit as a power plant for Russia’s planned lunar base. This will comprise a nuclear plant and an energy conversion system.
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