An experimental test facility to support development of the fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor

• Published in: Annals of nuclear energy Vol. 64; pp. 511 - 517
• Main Authors: Yoder, Graydon L., Aaron, Adam, Cunningham, Burns, Fugate, David, Holcomb, David, Kisner, Roger, Peretz, Fred, Robb, Kevin, Wilgen, John, Wilson, Dane
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2014
• Subjects: AHTR; Experiment; FHR; Fluoride salt; fluoride salt reactor FLiNaK; Liquid salt; Molten salt; FHR; AHTR; Liquid salt; Experiment; Fluoride salt; Molten salt
• ISSN: 0306-4549; 1873-2100
• DOI: 10.1016/j.anucene.2013.08.008

•• A forced convection test loop using FLiNaK salt was constructed to support development of the FHR.•The loop is built of alloy 600, and operating conditions are prototypic of expected FHR operation.•The initial test article is designed to study pebble bed heat transfer cooled by FLiNaK salt.•The test facility includes silicon carbide test components as salt boundaries.•Salt testing with silicon carbide and alloy 600 confirmed acceptable loop component lifetime. The need for high-temperature (greater than 600°C) energy transport systems is significantly increasing as the world strives to improve energy efficiency and develop alternatives to petroleum-based fuels. Liquid fluoride salts are one of the few energy transport fluids that have the capability of operating at high temperatures in combination with low system pressures. The fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor design uses fluoride salt to remove core heat and interface with a power conversion system. Although a significant amount of experimentation has been performed with these salts, specific aspects of this reactor concept will require experimental confirmation during the development process. The experimental facility described here has been constructed to support the development of the fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor concept. The facility is capable of operating at up to 700°C and incorporates a centrifugal pump to circulate FLiNaK salt through a removable test section. A unique inductive heating technique is used to apply heat to the test section, allowing heat transfer testing to be performed. An air-cooled heat exchanger removes added heat. Supporting loop infrastructure includes a pressure control system, a trace heating system, and a complement of instrumentation to measure salt flow, temperatures, and pressures around the loop. The initial experiment is aimed at measuring fluoride-salt heat transfer inside a heated pebble bed similar to that used for the core of the pebble-bed advanced high-temperature reactor. This paper describes the details of the loop design, auxiliary systems used to support the facility, inductive heating system, and facility capabilities.