7/23/2019 Graduate Seminar Report

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Report on Liquid fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR)

The Liquid fluoride thorium reactor (LFTR)is a Molten Salt Reactors and it produces energy

using a liquid (molten) nuclear fuel, not a solid fuel. MSRs also use a coolant that remains liquidat atmospheric pressure.LFTRs are designed to convert Thorium (Th!"!), an ine#pensive and

a$undant material, into %ranium!"" &hich can then undergo nuclear fission. 'ther types of

MSR can use spent uranium, depleted uranium, or plutonium, eliminating nuclear &aste from

solidfueled reactors.

uring earlier days MSRs &ere a$andoned ( The decision &as to go &ith the liquidmetalcooled

fast $reeder reactor (LMFR) &hich produced reactor fuel faster).Later LMFR &as dropped

due to proliferation concerns and reactor control issues, $ut never came $ac* to MSR, political

inertia.

+ demonstration Molten Salt Reactor (MSR) &as developed at Tennessees 'a* Ridge -ational

La$oratory in the early /01s and ran for a total of !!,111 hours $et&een /02 and /0/.

+lvin 3ein$erg, &ho ran 'a* Ridge -ational La$oratory ('R-L) &hile the Molten Salt Reactor

4#periment &as conducted, &as also the original inventor of the 5ressuri6ed3ater

ReactorPWRused today.

3ith liquid fuel and atmospheric pressures, LFTRs solve the safety and &aste disposal pro$lemsour current (/71s design) light &ater reactor (L3R) have. 3ith all the attention lately on

nuclear &aste, nuclear accidents li*e Fu*ushima, and producing energy &ithout climate change,

&e need to loo* at nuclear energy not from our current type of reactors. Most safety concerns of

L3Rs are from using &ater coolant8 LFTR is a molten salt reactor(uses special salt as coolant).

+ll the nuclear &aste pro$lems are from L3Rs using solid fuel (less than !9 of the fuel gets

used)8 MSR uses molten fuel, so can consume all the fuel leaving only shortterm &aste.3ith a

reactor design that is inherently safer, the e#pensive :engineered in depth; safety equipment of

L3Rs is not needed, ma*ing LFTR smaller and dramatically less e#pensive than L3Rs.