Root Cause Analysis of a Molten Salt Pump in FLUSTFA
In November 2022, the primary salt pump installed in the high-temperature FLUoride Salt Test FAcility (FLUSTFA) was successfully operated, including starting and stopping 20 times and running the pump at 0-928 RPM controlled by a variable frequency drive (VFD) for a total of about 20 hours. Subsequent attempts to operate the pump in May 2023 […]
Expanding Market Opportunities: Cogeneration Strategies for Integrated PWR and Thermal Energy Storage Systems
We assess the economic viability of nuclear cogeneration by investigating three different modes—fixed dispatch, fully flexible dispatch, and flexible dispatch with minimum heat supply requirements. The analysis focuses on an existing pressurized water reactor (PWR) integrated with thermal energy storage (TES). Heat production costs are estimated under these modes for two U.S. electricity markets, the […]
Insights into Methodologies and Stochastic Optimization of Thermal Energy Storage-Coupled Advanced Reactor Systems: A Comparison of Methods for Accessing Long-Term Sub-System Sizing Adequacy
This paper investigates the potential of coupling Thermal Energy Storage (TES) with Advanced Reactors (ARs) to address uncertainties posed by climate change in deep decarbonized power systems. The TES Use-case Team at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has examined the potential of storing thermal energy from ARs during low demand periods and optimizing discharge during peak-priced […]
Monte Carlo Analysis of Coolant Stream Impurity Gamma Emissions in Gas-Cooled Fast Reactors
It is well established that a rapid increase in the concentration of fission products in the reactor coolant stream can serve as an early indication of fuel failure. We use Monte Carlo simulations to investigate the feasibility of using several gamma detectors as diagnostic equipment to monitor the presence of major fission product isotopes in […]