Why are molten salt reactors better?

High temperatures possible — Molten salts were first looked at for their ability to go to very high temperatures. At high temperatures, power cycles convert heat to electricity with much less loss, giving you more money for a given amount of heat.

What is the problem with molten salt reactors?

The molten salts can easily corrode steel and melt aluminum, so non-traditional manufacturing methods must be used contain the highly corrosive, radioactive materials.

Why thorium reactors are better?

Thorium-based reactors are safer because the reaction can easily be stopped and because the operation does not have to take place under extreme pressures. Compared to uranium reactors, thorium reactors produce far less waste and the waste that is generated is much less radioactive and much shorter-lived.

Are molten salt reactors more efficient?

The design uses liquid chloride salts as a coolant and fuel that flow through the reactor core—allowing the fission to directly heat the salts. Because the reactor operates at a high temperature, the process is more efficient at producing electricity than light water reactors.

Has there ever been a molten salt reactor in this country?

The MSR program closed down in the early 1970s in favor of the liquid metal fast-breeder reactor (LMFBR), after which research stagnated in the United States. As of 2011, ARE and MSRE remained the only molten-salt reactors ever operated.

Why dont we use molten salt reactors?

Such a reactor couldn’t possibly suffer a meltdown, even in an accident: The molten salt core was liquid already. The fission-product heat would simply cause the salt mix to expand and move the fuel nuclei farther apart, which would dampen the chain reaction.

Can molten salt reactors explode?

Due to the nature of molten salt reactors, the risk of either a steam explosion, a hydrogen explosion or a meltdown is effectively eliminated. Light water reactors (LWR) are today’s most commonly used nuclear reactors.

Why do we not use thorium?

Thorium cannot in itself power a reactor; unlike natural uranium, it does not contain enough fissile material to initiate a nuclear chain reaction. As a result it must first be bombarded with neutrons to produce the highly radioactive isotope uranium-233 – ‘so these are really U-233 reactors,’ says Karamoskos.

Why don’t we use molten salt reactors?

Can molten salt reactors use nuclear waste?

These reactors can adapt to a variety of nuclear fuel cycles (such as Uranium-Plutonium and Thorium-Uranium cycles), which allow for the extension of fuel resources. They can also be designed as nuclear waste “burners” or breeders.

Which is better a molten salt reactor or a thorium reactor?

Molten Salt Reactors have tremendous safety, waste and proliferation virtues, which translate into substantial commercial virtues. The following is a non-exhaustive list: A liquid fuel is inherently easier and cheaper to chemically process, thereby creating a pathway for total nuclear waste elimination. There are many others.

How is thorium used in a nuclear reactor?

A thorium reactor is a form of nuclear energy, proposed for use as a molten salt reactor. It is fueled by the uranium-233 isotope that is taken from the element thorium. Thorium is weakly radioactive, has a high melting point, and is available with more abundance than uranium as an element.

Can a molten salt reactor be a breeder reactor?

Considering liquid-fuel MSR designs, thorium can be dissolved with the uranium in a single fluid MSR, known as a homogeneous design. Two-fluid, or heterogeneous MSRs, would have fertile salt containing thorium in a second loop separate from the fuel salt containing fissile uranium or plutonium and could operate as a breeder reactor (MSBR).

What’s the fuel life of a molten salt reactor?

Batch reprocessing is likely in the short term, and fuel life is quoted at 4-7 years, with high burn-up. Intermediate designs and the AHTR have fuel particles in solid graphite and have less potential for thorium use.

Why are molten salt reactors better? High temperatures possible — Molten salts were first looked at for their ability to go to very high temperatures. At high temperatures, power cycles convert heat to electricity with much less loss, giving you more money for a given amount of heat. What is the problem with molten salt…