The Liquid Metal Thorium Breeder Reactor Page: 5-16
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Because of the unknowns, a poison fraction of 0. 01 was
used in determining the breeding ratio for the reference reactors.
3. Core Fluid Processing by Salt Extraction
The LMTBR circulating fuel offers opportunity for continuous
removal of fission products from the fluid by chemical and physical
means. The poisoning effect of the fission products may be kept at a
low level, making possible a good breeding ratio. A continuously
operated chemical plant also helps the doubling time by withholding a
minimum or uranium from the reactor system.
A pyrometallurgical process, operating at substantially the
same temperature as the fuel, would be an ideal way to treat the
molten bismuth from the core for the removal of fission product
poisons. Furthermore, this process should either leave the uranium
fuel in the bismuth or treat it in such a way that it would be relatively
easy to recharge it as a metal into the bismuth stream for reuse. The
LMTBR thus offers a good opportunity for application of pyrometallur-
gical chemical reprocessing methods. From a procedural standpoint,
such methods should be cheaper than presently known aqueous proc-
essing methods. It is necessary, however, to compare the aqueous
and pyrometallurgical processes economically before choosing one
for use with the LMTBR.
In this section a fused chloride salt process for the removal
of fission product poisons is described. The flowsheets are based on
the following conditions.
Number of reactors per station 2
Total heat rate of each reactor, MW 1130
Heat rate of core fluid, MW 935
Heat rate of blanket fluid, MW 195
U-233 concentration in core fluid, atoms per million 1542
U-233 concentration in core fluid, ppm 1720
Total U concentration in core fluid, atoms per million 2100
Total U concentration in core fluid, ppm 2346
Mg concentration in core fluid, ppm 330
Zr concentration in core fluid, ppm 254
Volume of fuel in core system, cu ft 707
Total FPS concentration in core fluid, ppm 35. 7
Total FPN concentration in core fluid, ppm 111
The parameters of the final reference design will differ slightly from
those listed above, but the flow rate and chemical processing plant5-16
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The Liquid Metal Thorium Breeder Reactor, report, February 1960; (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc101002/m1/88/: accessed March 29, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.