MA Transmutation Core Concept for a Metal-Fueled Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor

We have developed a conceptual framework for a minor actinide (MA) transmutation core for a metal-fueled sodium-cooled fast reactor (FR) that is suitable for a scenario in which light water reactors (LWRs) and FRs coexist.First, a target value was established for the amount of MA transmutation that would eliminate the transfer of MA to high-level radioactive waste (HLW) under the assumption of a coexistence scenario.Subsequently, a conceptual framework was established for a metal-fueled FR core that could achieve the desired MA transmutation target.MAs extracted from LWR spent fuels were loaded into the axial blanket (AB) in order to mitigate the impact of MAs on reactivity feedback.By setting the MA enrichment of the AB to 20 wt%, a transmutation amount of 185 kg/GWe/year was achieved, which satisfied the target.Ultimately, the fuel integrity during an unprotected transient over power (UTOP), was validated through transient analysis.