![]() Most “breeder” reactors must be fuelled with uranium-235, but most fourth generation reactors only need uranium-238 to operate. Plutonium is formed when uranium-238 captures neutrons from nuclear fission reactions. ![]() Uranium used in nuclear reactors is composed of two isotopes: uranium-235, which can be used as fuel, and uranium-238, which makes up 99.3% of natural uranium and which must be converted to plutonium before it can be used as fuel. Another requirement for Generation IV reactors is that they must produce more fuel than they consume as well as destroy the long-lived radioelements created in the reactor during operation. Reactor operators are therefore endeavouring to extend the operation of this fleet through long-term investments, with new standards having been adopted following the Fukushima accident. In 2020, the average age of the world’s nuclear fleet was 30 years, with 25% of the fleet being over 40 years old 2. Most of the reactors currently in operation are of the second and third generation, but China successfully started up a first fourth generation reactor with its high-temperature gas-cooled modular pebble bed (HTR-PM) demonstration project in late December 2021. The Generation IV International Forum 1, which is dedicated to future reactor research and was launched in 2001, has defined four generations of nuclear fission reactors, each with a certain set of objectives. Different generations have specific requirements at a given point in time. In the nuclear industry, the term “generation” is distinct from “reactor technology”, and a generation may comprise several types of technology. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |