Initial estimates of the economical attractiveness of a nuclear closed Brayton combined cycle operating with firebrick resistance-heated energy storage

Abstract

Abstract The Firebrick Resistance-Heated Energy Storage (FIRES) concept developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology aims to enhance profitability of the nuclear power industry in the next decades. Studies carried out at Massachusetts Institute of Technology already provide estimates of the potential revenue from FIRES system when it is applied to industrial heat supply, the likely first application. Here, we investigate the possibility of operating a power plant (PP) with a fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor and a closed Brayton cycle. This variant offers features such as enhanced nuclear safety as well as flexibility in design of the PP but also radically changes the way of operating the PP. This exploratory study provides estimates of the revenue generated by FIRES in addition to the nominal revenue of the stand-alone fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor, which are useful for defining an initial design. The electricity price data is based on the day-ahead markets of Germany/Austria and the United States (Iowa). The proposed method derives from the equation of revenue introduced in this study and involves simple computations using MatLab to compute the estimates. Results show variable economic potential depending on the host grid but stress a high profitability in both regions.