Reactors, processing facilities

Department of Energy - has sponsored analyses of its reactors and process facilities, the risks of the breeder reactor, the risk of nuclear material transportation and disposal, and the risks of several fuel cycles. 

Large-scale plutonium recovery/processing facilities originated at Los Alamos and Hanford as part of the Manhattan Project in 1943. Hanford Operations separated plutonium from irradiated reactor fuel, whereas Los Alamos purified plutonium, as well as recovered the plutonium from scrap and residues. In the 1950 s, similar processing facilities were constructed at Rocky Flats and Savannah River. 

The facilities at Savannah River(j)) consist of five heavy-water-moderated and cooled production reactors, two chemical separations areas as a heavy water extraction plant, several test reactors, reactor fuel and target processing facilities, the Savannah River Laboratory, and many other facilities necessary to support the operations. During the 1960 s, two of the... 

Loss of heat load (process facility) Damage of SSC Loss of heat sink to reactor... 

Power or thermal transients initiated in nuclear reactor SSC, stress on heat exchanger or other component in contact with balance of plant Transient causes stress on SSC induces possible transient in process facility... 

The initial ACR experimental program proposed to test the scale-up criteria called for the construction of a 50 MM lb ethylene/year prototype reactor with its associated downstream gas processing facilities. This scale was originally thought to be the minimum size needed to assure the smooth start-up of a world-scale olefin plant. When the technology and economics of this proposed ACR plant were examined, the cost of the total facility was found to be extremely high. 

When changing crude type, certain operational changes would be required. For example the optimum catalyst will vary with different crudes and for high metals stocks such as Venezuelan, the first reactor would be used for the demetallization procedure. These changes, however, would not require extensive shutdown and, apart from the change of catalyst type, the rest of the processing facility is completely adequate for all of the services. 

Process facilities consist of two major sections reaction and product recovery. The reaction section includes a preheater, interheaters, and reactors. The recovery section includes separator, atmospheric fractionator. ... 

Table 4 presents the direct construction costs for the two plants. Equipment costs must be adjusted to account for hydrogen production these costs include the intermediate heat exchanger ( 56 M), reactor-process piping ( 38 M), primary helium circulator ( 33 M), and intermediate loop circulator ( 22 M) (for a total of 149 M). These costs are added to Account 22. On the other hand, 84% of the Fixed Capital Investment of the S-I hydrogen production facility ( 571.53 IM x 0.84 = 480 M) in account 23 (Chemical Facility) replaces account 23 (Turbine-Generator). Also, the initial chemical inventory (primarily iodine) is equal to 114.8 M x 0.84 = 96 M. (Although there is an implicit assumption in [13] that all iodine is recycled, this assumption is challenged in [14].)... 

The plan describing the final condition of the EBR-II, was implemented in October 2000. By this time many important steps had been performed, forming the basis for the plan. Specifically, defueling of the reactor, the design and construction of the sodium process facility and initial sodium processing had taken place. 

Performed in parallel to reactor defueling was the design and construction of the Sodium Process Facility. The design and construction of the Sodium Process Facility is an application of known and demonstrated technology. The conversion of alkali metal to alkali hydroxide compounds by reaction with alkali hydroxide is routinely performed around the world, e.g. DFR/PFR, at Dounreay and as planned at Superphenix. 

Requires dedicated processing facility Requires high flux nuclear reactor... 

The design of the reactor auxiliary facilities, machines and electric systems has at least reached the status of system and process engineering. As the final design step, the remaining structural and mechanical engineering is to be done. 

Methods, procedures, and check lists for process operations with nuclear hazard potential eu e prepcured to ensure that execution of maintenance work, process functions, inspections, functional tests of critical equipment, reactor startup preparations, and reactor operations are conducted In accordance with Process Standards and Equipment Maintenance Standards. Special operating and maintenance procedures are provided for in-reactor test facilities. 

Streams on the SRS site may overflow from a local intense predpitation. A studytvas performed for Defense Waste Processing Facility WPF) which is within S miles of K-, L, and P-Reactors and on similar terrain. The 6 hour, 10 square-mile probable maximum predpitation (PMP) is 31... 

The second reactor reference design is a large sodium-cooled reactor with a power output capability between 500 and 1500 MWe that utilizes uranium-plutonium oxide fuel. This reactor design is supported by a fuel cycle based on an advanced aqueous process that would include a centrally located processing facility supporting a number of reactors. 

In routine use, element determinations can be used to check the surface saturation and scale-up without the need for strict dose control makes the process facile. The pressure of the reaction chamber had no effect on the surface saturation, which is as expected since the saturation density is determined by the number of bonding sites and the energy available to produce chemisorption to these sites. The transport of the reactant into the reaction chamber is determined by the vapour pressure, and the flow rate of the vapour to the support bed. Once the reactant is inside a pore it will continue to react so long as bonding sites are still available. The same surface saturation was achieved by using three different reactor set-ups and either a lower pressure of 6-10 kPa or ambient pressure in nitrogen flow. 

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