The concept of proliferation-resistant, environment-friendly, accident-tolerant, continual and economical reactor (PEACER)

In an effort to ameliorate generic concerns with current power reactors such as the risk of proliferation, radiological hazard of the spent fuel, and the vulnerability to core-melt accidents, the concept of a revolutionary reactor, named PEACER, has been developed as a proliferation-resistant waste transmutation reactor based on the unique combination of technologies of a proven fast reactor and the heavy liquid metal coolant. In this paper, results of the PLACER conceptual design are presented by focusing on the estimated performance of the PEACER system. The proliferation resistance of PEACER is based upon both institutional and technical issues. The latter includes denaturing of fissile materials, Pu in particular, as well as the intense radiation field associated with the pyrochemical partitioning method. When the fuel volume fraction and the core aspect ratio(L/D) are optimized, the transmutation capability of PEACER for long-lived wastes from LWR spent fuels is found to exceed the production rate of two LWR's with the same electric rating. In contrast with current power reactor design principles, the lower power density and the higher neutron leakage rate lead to higher performance with respect to proliferation-resistance, transmutation capability and the accident-tolerance. Results of the present conceptual design show promising characteristics in all the five targets proposed by its name PEACER, which warrants more detailed study. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.