Chemical-looping combustion (CLC) is a promising process for power generation with low energy penalty and in-situ CO2 capture. In this work, we focus on the integration of high-pressure, fixed-bed CLC reactors with combined cycle (CC) power plants. We deal with the discontinuous operation of fixedbed reactors and the dynamic simulation of CLC-CC power plants, which is nontrivial. Modern power p...

The Advanced High-Temperature Reactor is a new reactor concept that combines four existing technologies in a new way: (1) coated-particle graphite-matrix nuclear fuels (traditionally used for helium-cooled reactors), (2) Brayton power cycles, (3) passive safety systems and plant designs from liquid-metal-cooled fast reactors, and (4) low-pressure molten-salt coolants with boiling points far abo...

For the assessment of both tokamak and helical reactors, the base case reactor models are introduced, and parameter scan analyses on plasma beta, electric power output, maximum magnetic field strength and neutron wall loading are carried out. The assessment shows that high temperature operation is appropriate in tokamak reactors to increase bootstrap current fraction and current-drive (CD) effi...

Inductively coupled plasma ~ICP! reactors are being developed for low gas pressure ~,10s mTorr! and high plasma density ~[e].10 cm! microelectronics fabrication. In these reactors, the plasma is generated by the inductively coupled electric field while an additional radio frequency ~rf! bias is applied to the substrate. One of the goals of these systems is to independently control the magnitude...

Commercial nuclear reactors and storage facilities for their spent fuel contain large amounts of radioactive material, and are not designed to resist attack. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has determined, however, that these facilities require only a light defense. This paper shows, without disclosing any sensitive information, that reactors and spent-fuelstorage facilities have vul...

On March 11, 2011 (hereafter 3.11), a magnitude nine earthquake hit the northeast part of Japan’s main island. The earthquake and subsequent tsunami damaged the cooling systems of the Fukushima No. 1 plant’s reactors operated by Tokyo Electric Company (TEPCO). Ranked seven (the most severe) on a seven-step scale by the International Atomic Energy Agency, comparable to the Chernobyl accident in ...

MIT has been developing a conceptual design for pebble bed reactors since approximately 1998, when a student design project concluded that in order to resurrect the nuclear power industry a new, innovative approach was needed, not only in reactor design but also in construction and operation. In their quest to identify the appropriate technology several key conclusions were reached. First was t...

A number of scientific discoveries regarding the nature of atoms and their characteristics were made over a relatively short period of time. These lead to the splitting of the atom and the realization that potentially large amounts of energy could be released in the fissioning of certain nuclides. Work on this was expedited in secret during the Second World War during which time the first nucle...

The sudden surge toward nuclear power throughout the world has given rise to some serious questions about its potential effect on many facets of our complex civilization. The social, economic, military, and geopolitical implications are staggering and far beyond the comprehension of most of us. Of immediate and practical concern to all, however, is the impact of nuclear power on our local envir...