Terrestrial Energy’s molten salt reactor passes Canadian vendor design review

Terrestrial Energy’s Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) has accomplished Phase 2 of the Canadian Nuclear Protection Fee (CNSC) vendor structure overview (VDR). CNSC discovered no elementary obstacles to licensing the little modular reactor design. The VDR is not a demanded aspect of the licensing process and is an optional company provided by the CNSC. It presents an evaluation of a nuclear electric power plant structure dependent on a vendor’s reactor know-how.

“It is the initially know-how critique concluded by a important regulator of a nuclear plant layout that makes use of a Technology IV reactor technological know-how to provide heat at significant temperature, and the to start with time for molten salt reactor know-how,” explained Terrestrial Strength CEO Simon Irish. “This evaluation is a significant move to convey molten salt technology to industrial marketplaces and IMSR crops to significant industrial corporations searching for practicable high-impression remedies to decarbonize industrial manufacturing.”

The VDR involved a extensive overview of the IMSR nuclear electricity plant masking 19 “focus areas” defined by CNSC and needed Terrestrial Electrical power to put together hundreds of specialized submissions. Its scope bundled a systematic assessment of engineering management procedures, confirmatory tests programme for IMSR parts and programs, reactor controls and security methods, defence-in-depth method, basic safety evaluation, and the necessities for safeguards, protection, hearth safety and radiation security. Pursuing an extensive multi-year evaluate, CNSC workers concluded that there are no fundamental barriers to licensing the IMSR plant.

Terrestrial mentioned the IMSR plant materials substantial-top quality warmth (585 levels C), which drinking water-cooled reactor engineering can’t. This will increase the performance of electrical electricity generation by nearly 50 {64d42ef84185fe650eef13e078a399812999bbd8b8ee84343ab535e62a252847} and expands the use of nuclear strength to zero-carbon industrial cogeneration (warmth and electricity) for the first time.

The IMSR plant is designed to use conventional assay Lower Enriched Uranium (LEU) civilian nuclear gasoline, enriched to much less than 5 {64d42ef84185fe650eef13e078a399812999bbd8b8ee84343ab535e62a252847}, therefore averting the need for Superior Assay LEU (HALEU) gas. This assures a secure offer of gasoline essential for a fleet of IMSR vegetation functioning in the 2030s and will increase the IMSR’s intercontinental regulatory acceptance. Terrestrial Electricity is advancing its gas source programme with Springfields Gas (Westinghouse) in the United kingdom and Orano in France.

Picture: Artist’s impression of an IMSR plant (courtesy of Terrestrial Power)