High-temperature nuclear heat source for hydrogen production

Abstract

Abstract The combination of nuclear breeder reactors and thermal converters can efficiently utilize uranium and thorium reserves and is a worldwide energy source which is potentially 20 times greater than coal. The very high temperature reactor (VHTR), a thermal converter, can be coupled to open and closed cycle processes to produce hydrogen in large quantities. Current work in the U.S. is focused on the design of a VHTR of about 850 MW(t). The thermal rating and the design are similar to those of the steam cycle Fort St Vrain (FSV) reactor built in Colorado, U.S., but an intermediate helium circuit and a core outlet temperature of 925–950°C are used. Hydrogen production using this reactor would be approximately 10 kg/sec with a carbon-based process or 3 kg/sec with a closed-loop thermochemical process.