SMALL & ADVANCED REACTORS | MICROGRID DEPLOYMENT
Microgrids & small reactor deployment
A new report from Idaho National Laboratory (INL) presents a detailed cost and characteristics model for the deployment of small reactors in microgrid settings. The model can be used for analysing multiple scenarios to establish cost-competitive and zero carbon microgrids
ALTHOUGH PRACTICAL EXPERIENCE OF DEPLOYING small reactors is thin on the ground, an analysis tool presented by INL in a new report aims to reveal the economic case for deployment in microgrid applications. The Net-Zero Microgrid Program Project report: Small
Reactors in Microgrids, details the most important technical and economic considerations for can assessment of the costs and operational characteristics that inform the investment case for small reactors. As a result, the model can be used for analysing multiple scenarios to establish metrics for cost-competitive and zero carbon microgrids that are either connected to the grid or islanded systems. The INL model is a product of the NZM Program at Idaho
National Laboratory, supported by the Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Electricity (OE). It allows developers to explore the capabilities, constraints, and nuances of small reactors by incorporating parameters related to plant economics, design efficiency and performance, plant operation, and fuel supply. Reactor technology qualities include parameters such as electricity, heat extraction, and thermal storage, while other factors include items such as financial costs and incentives. The goal of the model is to provide guidance for the selection of small reactor technology suitable for different applications and deployment scenarios and as a path forward for techno-
economic studies of small reactors that are integrated with generation using renewable energy and storage in microgrids.
Modelling small reactors The INL assessment notes that small reactors have unique cost and operational characteristics that differentiate them from other generation technologies commonly employed in microgrids. These characteristic features include, but are not limited to, extended refuelling cycles, decommissioning costs, modes of power variation, and combined heat and power (CHP) operations. The INL authors says these need to be recognised when modeling them as generators in microgrids. These characteristics must be accounted for in microgrid dispatch and planning decisions as they interact with loads, storage, and other generation technologies. To model these interactions within a microgrid decision- support platform, a small reactor model has been added to the existing Xendee platform, which can model and control more than 25 technologies and 14 distinct value streams such as electric vehicle charging and demand charge reduction. An informed technoeconomic decision-making platform built on scientific models, Xendee captures steps needed to optimise the design and implementation microgrids,
Above: The small reactor microgrid model includes elements like storage 30 | September 2023 |
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