Ammonia: A New Business for Nuclear Energy

Richard Boardman, Ph.D. ChE

Summary❑ Advanced Nuclear Reactors

− Small, Medium, and Large

− Coolant: Light Water: ~325 °C; Liquid Metal: ~450-550 °C,

− Molten Salt ~600-750 °C; High Temperature Gas 750 - 900°C

❑ Hydrogen production at an existing nuclear plant: Electrical AND Thermal power integration

❑ Four demonstration projects announced with cost-share from

US Department of Energy

− Small-scale demonstrations

− Technical & Economic Assessment (TEA)

− Scale up to commercial operations

❑ Integration of nuclear reactors with ammonia plants

− Conventional ammonia plant

− Electrolysis for production of hydrogen (two options)

Business Sensitive2

Advanced Reactor Design Concepts

Benefits:

• Enhanced safety

• Versatile applications

• Reduce waste

• Use advanced manufacturing to save money

3

60+ private sector projects under development

Accelerating advanced reactor demonstration and deployment

MARVELDOE

2022-2023

DOME Test BedNRIC2023-2024

Project Pele MicroreactorDoD

2023-2024

MCRESouthern Co. & TerraPower

2025

SMRUAMPS & NuScale2029

Natrium Reactor

TerraPower & General Electric

2028

LOTUS Test BedNRIC2024

HermesKairos

2026

AuroraOklo Inc.TBD

Xe-100

X-energy

2027

2030

4

Electrolysis while dispatching as spinning or non-spinning reserves

Pressurized Water

Reactor

AC

DC

Electricity

Grid

Steam

Electrolysis

O2H2

De-ionized

Water

500 kV

Switchyard

Main

Steam

Ste

am

Slip

str

eam

Power

Inverter

Power

Offtake Line

Extraction Heat

ExchangersThermal Energy

Delivery Loop

Hydrogen

Plant

Delivery Heat

Exchangers

Condenser

Turbine/Gen Set

Condensate

Return

Dynamic Energy Transport and Integration Laboratory (DETAIL)

Power

Hardware

and Grid-in-

the-Loop

Integrated Plant Simulator with

Human-in-the-Loop

Thermal Energy

Generation and Transport

Dynamic

Hydrogen

production

6

Two paths to H2 Earthshot Target ($1/kg-H2 within a decade)

7

Improve stacks and reduce BOP costs

Reduce cost of LWR power production

Oxygen sales offset

Joint EERE-NE H2 Production Demonstration Projects

8

Four projects have been selected for demonstration of hydrogen production at nuclear power plants

• Demonstrate hydrogen production using direct electrical power offtake from a nuclear power plant

• Develop monitoring and controls procedures for scaleup to large commercial-scale hydrogen plants

• Evaluate power offtake dynamics on NPP power transmission stations to avoid NPP flexible operations

• Produce hydrogen for captive use by NPPs and first movers of clean hydrogen

Davis-Besse

Nuclear Power Plant

LTE-PEM

Thermal & Electrical Integration at

an Xcel Energy Nuclear PlantProjects:

• Exelon: Nine-Mile Point NPP; LTE/PEM Vendor 1; using “house load” power; PEM skid testing is underway at NREL; H2 production beginning ~Jan. 2022

• Energy Harbor; LTE/PEM Power provided by completing plant upgrade with new switch gear at the plant transmission station; installation to be made at next plant outage; contract start anticipated by Oct. 2022

• Xcel Energy: HTE/SOEC Project negotiations are being finalized. Tie into plant thermal line engineering is being planned; Project start anticipated around Jan. 2022.

• Pinnacle West Hydrogen: LTE/PEM with hydrogen combustion; demonstration of synfuels production.

Nine Mile Point

Nuclear Power Plant

LTE/PEM

Prairie Island Monticello

Hydrogen Production

for Combustion and

Synthetic Fuels

9

Water

High Temperature

Heat

Reformer

Hydrogen

CO2

Sequestration

Nuclear Power Plant

Heator Steam

Steam

O-SOECElectrolysis

or Co-Electrolysis

Synergies between nuclear and steam-methane reforming

❑ Oxygen from high

temperature steam

electrolysis

❑ Power for CO2 compression

and sequestration

❑ Steam generation

❑ Preheat natural gas

❑ Flameless reformer with

very high temperature

gas-cooled reactor

(>900°C ROT)

❑ GAPS:

- Heat integration

- Efficient CO2 separation

Ammonia Production with a Very High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor / Steam Methane Reforming Process Block-Flow Diagram

Business Sensitive10

High Temperature Steam Electrolysis for Hydrogen Production

Business Sensitive11

HTSE with Traditional Air Separation Unit HTSE with Hydrogen Combustion for

Nitrogen Production

Comparison of Inputs and Outputs

12

Urea Production Cost Comparison

❑ Cost of HTGR $ kW-1 thermal (600 MWt total)

❑ HTGR supported hydrogen production is cost competitive when supplying heat for traditional ammonia synthesis processes

❑ High Temperature Steam Electrolysis is competitive with:

− (a) low-cost manufacturing of a high temperature gas-cooled reactor

− or (b) high price of natural gas

❑ Avoided CO2 cost is a key consideration for “flameless” ammonia and urea production

13

CO2 Tax 50 $∙t-1 100 $∙t-1 200 $∙t-1

High NG 378 408 467

Mini Ammonia Plant Design

Objective of Research

❑ Evaluate a novel configuration for small-scale production of ammonia using low temperature electrolysis

❑ Local ammonia production

❑ Use locally sourced heat and electricity (i.e. small nuclear reactor)

❑ Eliminate the need for storage of large amounts of ammonia (ammonia on demand)

Electrolysis Options

Production FactorAmmonia Production

Efficiency (Tons / Day-MW)

Low Temperature Electrolysis: Electrolyte Solution

1.5 2.4

High Temperature Steam Electrolysis* 2.23 3.6

* ~10% to 15% Heat, 85% to 90% Electricity

Outcomes of Aspen Model of Mini-Ammonia Plant Concept(1 MWe input)

Modular Ammonia Plants

3.0 tonne/day skid-mounted production system

• Hydrogen production from electrolysis

• Small scale application ~ 1 MW

• Simplify process to minimize capital costs

Can Nuclear Compete? Natural Gas vs Nuclear LWR

Cost of Natural Gas Steam Reforming

19

59%

51%47%

7%

8%

9%

22%

27%

29%

6%

8%

8%

6%

7%

7%

$0.00

$0.20

$0.40

$0.60

$0.80

$1.00

$1.20

$1.40

$1.60

$1.80

Low Oil & GasSupply

AEO ReferenceCase

High Oil & GasSupply

Nat

ura

l Gas

SM

R L

evel

ized

Co

st o

f H

ydro

gen

($

/kg)

Variable O&M (non-energy)

Fixed O&M

Capital Cost

Electricity & Water

Natural Gas Feedstock70%

62%58%

7%

9%

10%

13%

17%

19%

5%

6%

7%

5%

5%

5%

$0.00

$0.20

$0.40

$0.60

$0.80

$1.00

$1.20

$1.40

$1.60

Low Oil & GasSupply

AEO ReferenceCase

High Oil & GasSupply

Nat

ura

l Gas

SM

R L

evel

ized

Co

st o

f H

ydro

gen

($

/kg)

Variable O&M (non-energy)

Fixed O&M

Capital Cost

Electricity & Water

Natural Gas Feedstock

Natural Gas Steam Methane Reforming LCOH for selected EIA 2021

AEO NG Price Projection Cases based on SMR plant capital costs

reported in NETL Hydrogen Production Facilities Plant Performance and

Cost Comparisons

Natural Gas Steam Methane Reforming LCOH for selected EIA 2021

AEO NG Price Projection Cases based on SMR plant capital costs

reported in INL TEV-954

Conventional Auto-thermal

Hydrogen purification

for ammonia production

Capital Cost Increases

for gas clean-up

How to produce clean hydrogen

20

Low-TemperatureElectrolysis (LTE)

High-TemperatureElectrolysis (HTE)

Water Hydrogen

Steam

More Heat

Reformer

Hydrogen

CO2

Sequestration

Steam / Methane

Reforming

Electrolysis

21

Battery Testing(out of picture)

WirelessCharging High Temperature

Electrolysis

FastCharging

Thermal Energy Distribution SystemIncludes Thermal Energy Storage

Distributed Energy & Microgrid

MAGNETMicroreactor Agile Nonnuclear

Experimental Testbed

Human Systems Simulation Lab

(out of picture)

Digital, Real-Time Grid Simulation

Power Emulation

Energy Storage

Vehicles HydrogenPower Plant Operations Power Systems

Integrating systems for the nation’s net-zero future

Switching between electricity and hydrogen markets

Market Arbitrage: Buy low, Sell high

Cost of producing hydrogen with conventional steam/methane reforming

Business Sensitive25

0

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050

Industr

ial N

atu

ral G

as D

eliv

ere

d P

rice

(2020 $

/MM

Btu

)

Year

Low Oil & Gas Supply

Reference Case

High Oil & Gas Supply

$1.02

$1.13

$1.09

$1.10

$1.11

$1.42

$1.38

$1.18

$1.18

$1.15

$1.13

$0.95 $1.00 $1.05 $1.10 $1.15 $1.20 $1.25 $1.30 $1.35 $1.40 $1.45 $1.50

NG feedstock cost (case)[1 2 3]

SMR Plant CAPEX (case)[1 2]

After-tax Real IRR (%)± 30% [0.07 0.1 0.13]

Plant Design Capacity (tonne/day)± 30% [423 325 228]

Capacity Factor (%)± 6% [0.95 0.9 0.85]

Levelized Cost of Hydrogen ($/kg)