An Introduction to

Nuclear Power and Resources

by

Lars Husdal

June 2009
2
Abstract

With a continuation of today’s nuclear policy the present resources of uranium are esti-
mated to last for abound 40-50 years. By including fertile elements, both uranium and
thorium, in the fuel-cycle, the potential nuclear fuel can be multiplied considerably.
The first part of this paper tries go the give the general reader a introduction to the
concepts and the physics behind nuclear power. The second part is dedicated to nuclear
resources - present and future, with analyses and discussing about the different fuel types,
”peaking” in their consumption and new fuel cycles. Some mathematical models have
been studied, developed and applied to particular cases. This paper is based on my master
thesis ”On prerequisites and Inventory for a Nuclear Renaissance” [1]

i
ii
Contents

Abstract i

1 Introduction 1
1.1 Global Energy Situation and Projections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2 Greenhouse Gases and the Kyoto Protocol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.3 Short History of Nuclear Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.4 Nuclear Activity in Norway . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

2 An Introduction to Nuclear Physics and Power Plants 7

2.1 A Short Nuclear Physics’ Primer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1.1 Nomenclature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1.2 Flux and Cross Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.1.3 The Nucleus’ Mass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2.1.4 Conservation of Energy (Q-value) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1.5 Radiation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
2.1.6 Fission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2 Reactor Physics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.2.1 Basic Criteria for Nuclear Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
2.2.2 Fission Products and Released Neutrons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.2.3 Neutron Balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.2.4 Criticality and Delayed Neutrons . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
2.2.5 Moderator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2.2.6 Coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.2.7 Control Rods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.2.8 Void Coefficient . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
2.3 Nuclear Power Plants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.3.1 Types of Reactors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.3.2 Future reactors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

3 Evaluation of Resources and Fuel 25

3.1 Mathematical Model for Consumption of Finite Resources . . . . . . . . . 25
3.1.1 Use and Interpretation of the Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
3.2 Nuclear Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

iii
 3.2.1 Fissile Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
3.2.2 Uranium Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
3.2.3 Thorium Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
3.2.4 Qualitative Picture of Nuclear Fuel Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
3.3 Nuclear Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
3.3.1 The Open Fuel Cycle (Once-Through) for Uranium . . . . . . . . . 39
3.3.2 Reprocessing, Closed Fuel Cycles and Radioactive Waste . . . . . . 42
3.3.3 Mixed Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
3.3.4 Benefits of Using Thorium Fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Conclusion 47

iv
Chapter 1

Introduction

Nuclear power is already here, and will continue to play an important role in the global
energy-situation in times to come, whether its role is expanded or reduced. To maintain
and build up new knowledge and competence in the field is essential to secure a safe and
responsible future. What fraction the nuclear option could, or should, have in the future
energy mix is a subject open for debate, and there are arguments, both pro and con for a
nuclear renaissance.
The trend in the nuclear industry is going from being a domestic issue to more inter-
national cooperation, in which the European Pressurized Reactor (EPR), developed by
French Areva and German Siemens, and the American initiated ”Generation IV Interna-
tional forum (GIF) are good examples. The EPR being built in Olkiluoto, Finland, is the
first generation III+ reactor being built1 , featuring among other things enhanced safety
and operating conditions. The next (fourth) generation reactors which will be a huge leap,
both regarding reactor design and international cooperation. As an example (GIF) has
gathered all the major nuclear powers2 , of which 9 have signed a framework agreement.
On the Norwegian side, the Halden-project has been running for 51 years. This is an OECD
(Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) project focused on operation
safety studies. It has a good record of wide international collaboration and hopefully will
be maintained as an international resource in the time to come.

1
Initially scheduled to be commissioned in 2009, the project has been postponed several times and is
now expected to be commissioned in 2012.
2
Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Euratom, France, Japan, People’s Republic of China, Republic of Korea,
Republic of South Africa, Russian Federation, Switzerland, United Kingdom and United States.

1
1.1 Global Energy Situation and Projections
The global energy consumption is increasing rapidly, electricity in particular. According to
the International Energy Agency (IEA)[2] and the American Energy Information Admin-
istration (EIA)[3] the worlds energy demand will be between 50% and 55% higher in 2030
compared to that of 2005. The biggest increases will come in developing countries (non-
OECD). Coal is currently the energy source witch experiences the most rapid increase, and
is estimated to be so for many decades. Electricity produced from coal-fired power stations
is estimated to double production between 2005 and 2030. As a concrete example: China
opens a new coal power plant every second week [4]).
In today’s electricity-mix nuclear power is already a significant contributor, with a share
of 16%, equal to that of hydro and comparable to natural gas. Projections estimate an
increase of nuclear power by around 25% by 2030. Current and estimated energy- and
electricity consumption given by regions and energy source is given in Fig.1.1.

Figure 1.1: Energy (top) and electricity (bottom) consumption and projections by regions (left)
and energy source (right). Source: ”International Energy Outlook 2008” [3]. (1 Btu = 1.055
joule).

2
1.2 Greenhouse Gases and the Kyoto Protocol
The atmosphere has always contained a variety of greenhouse gasses. The natural green-
house gasses are responsible for increasing the global temperature by more than 30 degrees
Celsius [4], thus making life on Earth possible. After the industrial revolution started
in the middle of the 18th century, measurements have shown that the greenhouse gasses
content in the atmosphere is increasing. CO2 in the atmosphere went from an estimated
concentration of around 280 ppm (parts per million) in pre industrial time to 384 ppm at
present time [5], an increase of 37%. Other greenhouse gas, in particular methane, nitrous
oxide and CFC-gasses, have had a significant increase as well.
To address the treat of global warming the UN Convention on Environment and De-
velopment (UNCED) was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. One objective stated at the
convention was that the developed world should not emit any more CO2 in 2000 than in
1990. Most countries did not manage to reach this goal. In 1997 a new conference was held
in Kyoto, leading to the Kyoto Protocol in which developed countries committed them-
selves to reduce their CO2 emissions. The U.S., being responsible for one quarter of the
global CO2 emission, however did not sign the agreement. Some main concerns as viewed
by the U.S. were: No emission targets for the developing countries, that the focus was to
strong on short-term reduction and the framework on emission trading. In December 2009
a new UN climate summit will be held in Copenhagen.
The total global energy use in 2005 was 135000 TWh [6] of which 85 % was from fossil
fuels. The annual CO2 emission in the world in 2004 was more than 27 billion tons [7] and
the amount is growing every year.

1.3 Short History of Nuclear Power

Nuclear fission was first seen and explained in the late 1930’s. It was soon realized that
since neutrons were released in the fission reaction, a self-substaining chain-reaction could
occur. Several countries increased their research in the field, among them Nazi-Germany
and the U.S. The research received an acceleration with the outbreak of the second world
war. In Chicago the worlds first (man-made3 ) reactor, the Chicago Pile-1, was built by
Enrico Fermi and his team. It reached criticality on December 2, 1942. On July 16, 1945
the first nuclear bomb was tested in New Mexico, and a few weeks later two bombs were
dropped over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
In the first period after the second world war the research was dominated by government
control. In 1953 President Dwight D. Eisenhower held the famous ”Atoms for peace” speech
at the U.N. urging for a more peaceful use of nuclear power. Two years earlier electricity
was first made from a nuclear reactor, and connection to the electric grid came in the
mid-fifties. The Calder Hall reactor in England became the first commercial power plant
and opened in 1956. Expectations for this new form of harnessing energy was big, and
some said that the cost of electricity in the future would be ”to cheap to meter” [9].
3
A natural fission reactor were located in Oklo, Gabon 1.5 billion years ago.

3
 Figure 1.2: Timeline of the different generations of nuclear power plants [8].

In the 1960’s several nuclear power plants emerged in the U.S., Europe, Japan and
the Soviet Union. After the oil crises of 1973 and 1979-80 many industrialized nations
turned to nuclear power to ensure a more secure and stable energy market. Two of these
were Sweden and France, which today have around 50% and 80% respectively of their
electricity production from nuclear power. Then in 1986 the Chernobyl accident, together
with falling oil prices, decreased the interest for both nuclear power and renewable energy
forms significantly.
The fear of global warming due to greenhouse gases, the increased safety features and
improvements to plant design, and yet an increase of oil- and energy prices are all reasons
why nuclear power has received more supporters over the last years. And indeed it seems
like nuclear power may have its renaissance.
As of June 30, 2009, there are 436 commercial reactors in operation world-wide, di-
vided between 31 different countries. The U.S. (104 plants), France (59 plants) and Japan
(53 plants) are the largest contributors. Another 48 new plants are under construction
in 15 different countries, and the majority of these (79%) are pressurized water reactors
(PWR)[10]. It is also worth mentioning that China, which had 6 reactors under construc-
tion back in October 2008, increased this number to 13 by June 2009. Iran is also in the
process of building their first one.

4
1.4 Nuclear Activity in Norway
The Norwegian experience starts back in post-war 1945 when the young astro-physisist
Gunnar Randers was chosen to lead a committee to investigate the possibilities for nuclear
activities in Norway. Together with the experienced accelerator builder Odd Dahl and
the politician Jens Christian Hauge an initiative was taken and the Institute For Atomic
energy (IFA) was established in 1948. Thus already in 1951, Norway had its first research
reactor, the JEEP-I4 reactor at Kjeller. A second research reactor was decided to be built
in Halden - The Halden Boiling Water Reactor (HBWR). In 1958 IFA and OECD (named
OEEC at the time) signed an agreement for international research - The Halden project.
The next year (1959) the Halden reactor was operational[11]. In 1967 the reactor at Kjeller
was replaced by the JEEP-II reactor.
After the government in 1979 decided to
neglect nuclear power as an opportunity for
Norway for the next 20 years, IFA changed
their name to ”Insitutt for Energiteknikk”
(IFE) in 1980. Today IFE operates both
the research reactors in Kjeller and Halden,
the only nuclear reactors in Norway, with a
turnover of NOK 533.5 million in 2006 [12].
The reactor at Kjeller is a small reactor
with a maximum thermal output of 2 MW,
using heavy water (D2 O) as both moderator
and coolant. The fuel is 250 kg of low en-
riched uranium (LEU) in the form of UO2 .
The JEEP-II reactor is used as a neutron
source, and the three primary tasks are the
production of radioactive medicaments, ba-
sic scientific research in physics and radia-
tion of materials for technical and industrial
needs [13].
The HBWR is a little bigger and has a
maximum thermal output of a 25 MW. It
uses 14 tons of heavy water for both moder- Figure 1.3: From the left: Gunnar Randers, HM
ator and coolant. The operational temper- King Olav V, Odd Dahl and Major Arne Haugli.
ature is 240 ◦ C. The core has between 110 Photo: IFE
and 120 fuel assemblies. HBWR is versatile
when it comes to fuel and materials. It uses low enriched uranium. Reactor safety and
fuel are important tasks at the HBWR research reactor.

4
Joint Establishment Experimental Pile.

5
6
Chapter 2

An Introduction to Nuclear Physics

and Power Plants

2.1 A Short Nuclear Physics’ Primer

2.1.1 Nomenclature
Atoms consist of a nucleus with a surrounding cloud of electrons. The nucleus itself is
made up of two types of nucleons, the positively charged proton and the neutral neutron.
To keep order of the different compositions, a chemical element is given subscripts. For a
given element, X, the number of protons (Z), neutrons (N) and nucleons (A) is typically
given in one of these three expressions.
A
Z XN ⇐⇒ A X ⇐⇒ X-A,

E.g. for thorium with 90 protons and 142 neutrons:

232
90 Th142 ⇐⇒ 232 Th ⇐⇒ Th-232.

Since Z is given by the name of the element, and N is given by A-Z, all the three expressions
are equally good.
A chart with the different compositions of nuclei is given in a nuclide map. An example
given by the National Nuclear Data Center (NNDC) [14] is shown in Fig.2.1. Nuclei with
the same number of protons are called isotopes, nuclei with the same number of neutrons
are called isotones and nuclei with the same number of nucleons called isobars. If the
nucleus has a semi-stable excited state, then this is called an isomer state.

2.1.2 Flux and Cross Section

Two important parameters in nuclear- and reactor physics is the flux and cross sections.
The flux is simply the number of particles passing through an unit area per unit time.

7
 Figure 2.1: A nuclide chart as given by the National Nuclear Data Center [14].

The cross section, σ, is an expression of the likelihood of an interaction between two

particles, and has dimension of area:

reactions per unit time

σ= (2.1)
incoming particles per unit time × targets per unit area

In a classical model the cross section would be the same as two objects projected area,
but on the atomic scale and below, this is a quantum mechanical quantity. An important
property of the cross section is that it may depend heavily on the energies involved.

2.1.3 The Nucleus’ Mass

The mass of a nucleus is given by the sum of its components, minus a binding energy.
It turns out that the average binding energy per nucleon is largest for elements in the
neighbourhood of iron (A≈56). It is this property which makes it possible to harness
energy by adding together(fusion) light nuclei, or splitting (fission) a heavy nuclei.
In the 1930’s the German physicist Weizsäcker concluded that the binding energy could
be given quite accurate using 5 correctional terms; A volume-, a surface-, a coulomb-, a
symmetry- and a paring-term. The average binding energy per nucleon is shown in Fig.2.2.

8
 Figure 2.2: A graph of the average binding energy per nucleon for the different nuclei.

2.1.4 Conservation of Energy (Q-value)

The total energy of any reaction is always conserved, meaning that the sum of all the initial
energies must equal the sum of all the final energies, keeping in mind that E=mc2 :
X X
Ti + Mi c2 = Tf + Mf c2 (2.2)
i f

where Mi , Mf , Ti and Tf are the initial and final masses and kinetic energies of the nuclei
involved in the reaction. By subtracting the mass of the particle(s) after the reaction from
the mass of the particle(s) before the reaction, the Q-value, being the energy gain or loss,
is found:
X X
Q≡ Mi c2 − Mf c2 = Tf − Ti (2.3)
i f

This is important in nuclear decay, as a nucleus can only decay if the Q-value is positive.
The Q-value for fission of the nuclei U-233, U-235 and Pu-239 is just below 200 MeV.

2.1.5 Radiation
Radiation is the emission of energy from an atom or any other subatomic particle, in the
form of electromagnetic waves or moving particles. Historically radiation were grouped
as alpha(α), beta(β) and gamma(γ) particles. The α particle turned out to be a helium
nucleus, the β was an electron (or it’s anti-particle, the positron), and the gamma were
very high frequency photons, with energies about two million times that of visible light.
Other types of radiation is e.g. neutron- and proton- radiation.

9
 Figure 2.3: a) Main modes of decay. b) Half-life for the nuclei [14].

Of more than 3000 known isotopes1 ’only’ around 250 of these are stable. The rest
will eventually decay until those as well becomes stable. The time for a particular element
to decay varies greatly, from billionths of a second, to billions of years. For decay to
be possible the Q-value must have a positive value. The main mode of decay and their
respective half-lives is given in Fig.2.3.
Radioactive decay itself is a stochastic process where the number of nuclei of a given
element which decays per unit time is proportional to the number of nuclei by a decay
constant λ. It is common to measure radioactive decay as the half-life of the elements:
ln(2)
t1/2 = , (2.4)
λ

Radiation Poisoning and Protection

Large amounts of radiation are dangerous. Its toxicity is related to the amount of radiation
that is absorbed in the body, and the damage the absorbed radiation can cause. Absorbed
radiation dose is measured in Gray (Gy)2 and is the energy absorbed in 1 kg of matter

J m2
1Gy ≡ 1 =1 2. (2.5)
kg s
Since some kinds of radiation are more dangerous than others, another measurement is
used - the dose equivalent. The type of radiation is given a weighing factor according to
its biological effect it has. The dose equivalent is measured in Sievert (Sv). The different
weighting factors can be found in textbooks and booklets from e.g. radiation protection
agency’s.
The annual radiation a human receives each year from background radiation is around
3.7 mSv. In Norway, the allowed dose for a normal person is an additional 1 mSv/yr (on
average over a 5-year period) [15]. Personnel working in a radiating environment can be
1
in which around 340 occurs naturally on Earth
2
Other units for radiation are: rad = Gy/100 and rem = Sv/100.

10
 Dose Effect
6 → Sv Small chances of survival
3-5 Sv 50 % chance of death
2 Sv Bone marrow failure
500 mSv Significant changes in the blood
150 mSv Temporary sterility in men
Table 2.1: Effects of radiation [15].

given a clearance to receive a maximum dose of 20 mSv/yr. The Norwegian Radiation

Protection Agency (NRPA) operates with the dosages given in 2.1 for effects received from
radiation poisoning [15]:

2.1.6 Fission
Nuclear fission is a reaction in which a nu-
cleus is split, and at least two of its parts are
of comparable size. It most often refers to
the splitting of a heavy nucleus from which,
in addition to the fission fragments and free
neutrons, energy is released in the form of
heat (kinetic energy of the fragments) and
radiation. For heavy nuclei like uranium
and plutonium the energy released by fis-
sion is just below 200 MeV.
Fission can be spontaneous or induced.
If a nucleus fissions without any external in-
fluence it is called spontaneous fission (SF).
This is a rare event for most nuclei, and the
few isotopes that undergo SF as their pri-
mary mode of decay are heavy nuclei and
lie close to the so-called neutron or proton
driplines (marked as green in Fig.2.3a).
Most fission reactions are induced. This
may e.g. be high energy photons, but most
commonly reactions with other particles. In
nuclear reactors, neutrons are the source of
the induced fission. When a nucleus gets
excited this energy is put into deformation Figure 2.4: Induced fission [16]
(e.g. rotations and vibrations) of the nu-
cleus, with the energy given by Eq.(2.3).

11
 The energy that is put into rotation,
makes the nucleus stretch along its symme-
try axis. If the nucleus is stretched enough,
the nucleus will split up and a fission reac-
tion will occur. At first, energy is needed
to deform the nucleus, but after reaching a
saddle point, the Q-value for fission will be
positive. A qualitative picture of the pro-
cess is given in Fig.2.5. The deformation
can be described by its two centers of mass,
the distance between them (r) and the ra-
dius of the two fragments (R). An analogy
to get the nucleus to fission would be to
imagine trying to roll a ball down from the
top. In order to roll the way down it needs
enough energy to roll over the saddle point.
So if the excitation energy is low, the nu- Figure 2.5: Deformation of the nucleus.
cleus will send out a photon, and go to its
ground state. If the excitation energy, and hence the deformation (r/R), is larger than
the saddle point, the coulomb force will repel the two fragments - the nucleus can fission.
Because of quantum tunnelling, the nucleus can still fission even if the energy is lower than
that of the saddle point (which is also why some nuclei in their ground state can fission).

Fissile Nuclei
A fissile nucleus is defined as a nucleus capable of undergoing fission when hit by a neutron
of any energy, i.e. fission can occur even if the kinetic energy of the incident neutron
is negligible. The percentage of nuclei that fission when hit by a thermal neutron must
be high enough to sustain a chain reaction. There are three fissile elements suitable for
power productions: uranium-233, uranium-235 and plutonium-239 (other elements like
neptunium-237 and plutonium-241 are fissile as well, but are both rare, and difficult to
produce). A chart of some nuclei with their respective gained excitation energy received
by the captured neutron, and the excitation energy needed for fission to occur, is given in
Fig.2.6. In order to make nuclear bombs, a high concentration of fissile material is needed.

Fertile Nuclei
Fertile nuclei are not fissile themselves, but can be transmuted thereto by absorption of a
neutron (and the following decays). The transmutation of fertile material to fissile material
is called breeding. The two most important fertile elements with regards to nuclear power
is uranium-238 and thorium-232. These two elements are much more abundant in nature
than any fissile counterpart (e.g. natural uranium consists of 99.3% fertile U-238, compared
to 0.7% fissile U-235. Th-232 and U-238 go through the following processes after a neutron-

12
 Figure 2.6: Kinetic energy of neutrons in MeV needed for fission to occur [17].

capture:
232 − −
90 T h + n → 233 −−−→ 233
90 T h −
233
91 P a + e + ν¯e −−−→ 92 U + e + ν¯e , (2.6)
21.83m 26.98d

238 − −
92 U + n → 239 −−−→ 239
92 U − −−→ 239
93 N p + e + ν¯e − 94 P u + e + ν¯e , (2.7)
23.45m 2.35d

Fertile elements may still fission as long as the energy of the incident neutron is large
enough. Actually the neutrons which is released from a fission reaction have an average
energy which is high enough to fission most fertile nuclei.

2.2 Reactor Physics

In a nuclear reactor the chain-reaction of fissions is being initiated and controlled. As
these nuclear chain reactions only has a small margin of error before getting out of control,
a thorough understanding of the different reactions is necessary. Several safety measures
have been installed in most of the worlds nuclear power plants during the years, in order
to reduce the probability of uncontrolled reactor failures.
The concept of the a nuclear reactor is to keep the chain reactions of fissions going at
a constant rate. This is done by controlling the neutrons released in a fission, and making
sure that each fission leads to exactly one new fission. It turns out that a small fraction of
the neutrons released from a fission reaction are delayed, and these play an important role
in reactor control.

2.2.1 Basic Criteria for Nuclear Fuel

There are three criteria for nuclear fuel:

13
Availability: The fuel has to be available in large enough amounts and concentrations
suitable for extraction.

High cross section for fission (σf ): The fuel needs to have a sufficiently large cross
section for fission when hit by neutrons.

Sustain chain reaction: A nucleus fissioned in the fuel has to release enough neutrons
so that at least one them induces a new fission in an other nucleus.

2.2.2 Fission Products and Released Neutrons

Figure 2.7: Fission products from different fissile nuclei when induced by thermal neutrons [18].

When a nucleus fissions it will split into two fragments. If thermal neutrons are used
for induction, the fragments tend to consist of one slightly lighter and one slightly heavier
nucleus (Fig.2.7). If the kinetic energy of the inducing neutron is increased, the two
daughter-nuclei will be closer in size (more symmetric).
After the fission process is started, the fragments are separated on a time scale of 10−17
s. In addition to the two fission fragments, gamma rays and free neutrons will be released
as well. The neutrons which are emitted in the fission reaction, or immediately there after,
are called prompt neutrons [19].
The neutron-to-proton ratio increases for heavier nuclei, so the fission fragments tend
to be neutron rich. Most of the these will disintegrate by beta decay. A small fraction
however, will disintegrate by emitting a neutron. The latter decay mode is very important
when it comes to controlling the reactor, since the process works on a much longer time
scale (microseconds to minutes). The terms fission fragments and fission products are a
bit hard to distinguish. The term fission fragments is used for the two parts immediately
after the fission, while the term fission products is used for the two rest products in the
aftermath.

14
 Fraction of
−
Nucleus cE (MeV 1) ν0 delayed neutrons
U-233 0.115 2.50 0.0026
U-235 0.135 2.43 0.0065
Pu-239 0.111 2.90 0.0021
Table 2.2: Data for released neutrons after fission [19].

The average number of neutrons, ν, re-

leased by a single fission is proportional to
the kinetic energy of the incoming neutron,
En :
ν(En ) = ν0 + cE En , (2.8)
where cE is a coefficient related to the fissile
element. The different coefficients for the
three fissile nuclei (U-233, U-235, Pu-239)
is given in Tab.2.2, and the complementary
graph showing the number of released neu-
trons as a function of incident neutron en-
ergy is given in Fig.2.8. Figure 2.8: ν vs. En for fissile nuclei.

2.2.3 Neutron Balance

So in order to keep a chain reaction going, there must at least an equal number of neutrons
created at a given time interval as there was during the previous time interval. The neutron
multiplication factor, k, is the number of neutrons created from one fission that will lead
to another fission.
number on neutrons in one generation
k= (2.9)
number of neutrons in previous generation
To keep the chain reaction stable, k has to be one, which means it is critical (balanced).
If k is larger than one, the number of reactions will increase exponentially, and so will
the temperature. Several safety measures are installed in today’s power plants to prevent
k from exceeding 1 uncontrolled. If k is below 1, or sub critical, then the chain reaction
will eventually ”die out” unless another source of neutrons is provided. Accelerator driven
systems, examined in section 2.3.2, are examples of subcritical reactors, where the extra
neutrons are added from an accelerated driven spallation.
A relatively large fraction of the released neutrons, ν, from a fission reaction do not
cause fission in other fissile nuclei, but gets absorbed in other elements. In the case of
thermal reactors, the neutrons can escape in several different reactions and stages before
eventually inducing a new fission reaction. The neutron multiplication factor, k, can be
written as
k = k∞ P = ηpf P, (2.10)

15
Figure 2.9: The rightmost graph shows the fissile cross section, σf , for thermal and epithermal
En , for U-233, U-235, Pu-239. The leftmost graph shows the absorption cross section, σnγ , for
Th-2323 , [20].

where
η: is the number of fission neutrons produced per neutron absorbed in the fuel. When
the fissile element absorbs a neutron, other reactions than fission are possible, mainly
(n,γ) reactions, where the the nucleus de-excites by gamma decay. η for U-233, U-235
and Pu-239 are given in Fig.2.10
σf
η=ν . (2.11)
σa
: is the fast fission factor, and is defined by:
Number of fast neutrons generated in a nuclear reactor by all fissions
= (2.12)
Number of fast neutrons generated by thermal fission
This term comes from the fact that the fast neutrons released after fission have a
probability of causing fission in other nuclei than the fissile fuel. For normal uranium
fuelled reactors, this would normally mean fission of U-238. In reactors using thorium
or a mixed fuel, this could be fission of Th-232 or other elements present in the fuel
like U-236, Pu-240, etc.
p: is the resonance escape probability. When the neutrons reach temperatures in what
is called the resonance area of the non-fissile fuel (U-238, Th-232 etc) they have
a higher probability of being absorbed. (The leftmost graph in Fig.2.9 shows the
resonance area for Th. 232). The probability that this absorption happens, p, is
defined by:
Number of neutrons that reach thermal energy
p= . (2.13)
Number of fast neutrons that starts to slow down

16
f: is the thermal utilization factor. This is the probability that an absorbed neutron
has been absorbed in the fuel, and not somewhere else:

ΣaF issile
f= . (2.14)
Σa

P: is the non-leakage probability. Some of the neutrons will escape from the reactor.
Those who do not, make up this factor.

Figure 2.10: η vs En for the fissile nuclei U-233, U-235 and Pu-239 [20].

The first four factors (ηpf) make up k∞ , which indicates how the reactor would work if
no neutrons escaped from the reactor (e.g. if it was infinite large). While η just depends on
the energy of the incident neutron, the other factors depend on the reactor construction.
η for respectively U-233, U-235 and Pu-239 is shown in Fig.2.10 [20].

2.2.4 Criticality and Delayed Neutrons

Prompt Criticality
Prompt criticality means that for each fission, a released prompt neutron will cause a new
fission. Because of the time-scale this can lead to a rapid exponential growth of fissions
if a reactor goes prompt supercritical. In fast reactors this time-window is even smaller
because the neutron lifetime is so much shorter.

Delayed neutrons
The time period in which the prompt neutrons operate are very small. And since the
growth or reduction is exponential, controlling a reactor with only prompt neutrons would

17
be very difficult. A small fraction of the released neutrons from a fission reaction are
delayed4 . This time delay is important when it comes to controlling the reactor.

Criticality when delayed neutrons are involved

The neutron multiplication factor, k, can be written as a sum of prompt neutrons and
delayed neutrons:
k = (1 − β)k + βk, (2.15)
where β is the fraction of delayed neutrons. A prompt critical reactor has (1 − β)k = 1 →
β = k−1
k
. The reactivity, ρ, is given by:

(k − 1)
ρ= . (2.16)
k

2.2.5 Moderator
The majority of today’s reactors use a thermal neutron spectrum. A moderator is then
needed to slow down the fission neutrons, and thus reach an energy/temperature where
the probability of absorption by the fissile material is higher. This is done by transfer
of momentum and kinetic energy. In fast reactors, moderators are excluded. A good
moderator should have the following properties:
• Low neutron absorption cross section.

• High scattering cross section.

• Small mass.

• Good chemical properties.

• Availability / Economics.
The first property is quite obvious - If the neutrons are absorbed in the moderator, then
they can not be used to induce fission in the fissile fuel. However, it should have a large
probability for scattering, which is how it reduces the neutrons kinetic energy. To prevent
the neutrons from escaping or reacting in other unwanted reactions while they are being
slowed down, a good moderator should make the neutrons need as few collisions as possible
before thermal energy is reached. How much energy is transferred to the moderator (which
equals the energy lost from the neutron) depends on the mass of the moderator. A heavy
nucleus tends to just bounce the neutron back with almost no energy transfer, whereas a
4
The origin of delayed neutrons has to do with the energy involved in the beta-decay of the precursor
nuclei. When a neutron rich nucleus beta-decays it might be left in an excited state. Normally the nuclei
would fall to its ground state through a subsequent gamma decay. If however the excited state is above a
certain element depending threshold then a neutron-decay is possible. Since the time-scale of the neutron
decay is very short as compared to the half-life of the precursor nucleus, it appears to be emitted with the
half life of the precursor nucleus.

18
lighter one transfers more energy. Optimally one would prefer to have a particle of the
same size. Differing in mass by only 0.14%, the proton is ideal for absorbing kinetic energy.
From this angle hydrogen would seem as a very good moderator. Hydrogen could be used
in the form H2 . But hydrogen gas is very reactive and has a low density, excluding it from
being a candidate. But hydrogen makes up a good portion of water, H2 O. In fact ordinary
water (light water) is the most common moderator in today’s power plants. Water is also
a good coolant.
Instead of using ordinary water, where the hydrogen is made up of a single proton (1 H),
the heavier hydrogen isotope, deuterium (2 H or D), could be used in the form of heavy water
(D2 O). The extra neutron in the hydrogen atom, making it heavier, will not slow down the
neutrons as efficiently on impact, but has the feature of very low neutron absorption. A
heavy water moderator is used at the Norwegian reactors at Kjeller and Halden. A third
type of moderator in commercial use is solid graphite (carbon). Beryllium has been used
in experimental reactors.

2.2.6 Coolant
The coolant is responsible for transferring the heat away from the reactor. This is done
in a two-circuit loop (e.g. boiling water reactors, BWR) or in a three-circuit loop (e.g.
pressurized water reactors, PWR). Coolants should have a high heat capacity and low
viscosity, thus transporting the heat away more efficiently. Another good property for
the coolant is a low melting point, thus avoiding local cold spots (slugs), which can cause
problems (lead (Pb), which is considered in ADS and the 4th generation LFR, has good
cooling properties). The coolant should also be chemically inert to avoid corrosion and
other reactions within the reactor.

2.2.7 Control Rods

Control rods are used for controlling the neutron flux, Φ, in the reactor. They are made of
neutron absorbing materials. The control rods can be lowered or raised, thus affecting the
criticality in the reactor. Boron is a common element used in control rods in both BWR
and PWR reactors.

2.2.8 Void Coefficient

The void coefficient is a measure of how the reactor reacts when steam bubbles (voids)
appear in the coolant or the moderator. If the void coefficient is positive then the reaction
rate increases with the temperature. If the void coefficient is negative on the other hand,
the reaction rate will decrease with increasing temperature. Keeping the void coefficient
negative is an important passive safety feature, which most of today’s reactors have. The
Chernobyl reactor had a positive void coefficient.

19
2.3 Nuclear Power Plants
The basic principle behind a nuclear power plant is the same as a coal-fired or oil-fired
power plant: To heat up water to steam which drives a turbine connected to a electricity
generator. The difference lies in the way the water is heated. The basic principles is given
in Fig.2.11

Figure 2.11: Scheme of a nuclear power plant. (Figure from Wikipedia.)

2.3.1 Types of Reactors

Nuclear power plants can be divided into two groups according to their reactor technology:
Fast reactors and thermal reactors. They are classified by the neutron-energy which the
reactor operates, i.e. at which energy (the majority of) the neutrons are absorbed. For
breeding purposes fast reactors are superior as the neutron yield, η, is higher. But by using
thorium fuel (consists of the fertile Th-232 and bred U-233) which has a high neutron yield
even at thermal energies, breeding can be done in thermal reactors. Almost all of today’s
commercial reactors are thermal (434 of 436) [10].

20
Thermal Reactors

As of June 2009 there are five different classes of thermal reactors in operation. The
most common one is the Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), contributing with 60% of the
total share, and will be given a short description: PWR uses light water as both coolant
and moderator. PWR uses a 3-loop configuration, as can be seen in Fig.2.12. In the
reactor the temperature of the coolant water is heated to 320 - 330 ◦ C. By using high
pressure of about 160 bars the water do not boil [21]. The heat is transferred through heat
exchangers to a secondary loop where water is heated to steam which drives the turbine.
This is again connected to a third
loop bringing in water from a
river or another cool water source.
Because PWR uses light water,
which absorbs neutrons, for mod-
eration and cooling, the concen-
tration of fissile material has to
be increased. While natural ura-
nium has about 0.7% fissile mate-
rial, PWR needs around 2-3% [19].
The European pressurized reactor
is a generation 3+ PWR. Figure 2.12: Concept of a pressurized water reactor
Other types of thermal reac- (PWR).
tors are: Pressurized Heavy Water
Reactors (PHWR), Gas-Cooled Reactors (GCR), Light Water cooled Graphite moderated
Reactors (LWGR) and Boiling Water Reactor (BWR). As the names might reveal, the
difference in design between these classes can be quite large (e.g. different moderators,
coolants, system design).

Fast Reactors

As mentioned previously, the neutrons are not slowed down in fast reactors. By operating in
the high energy neutron spectrum three advantages arise. Firstly, the number of neutrons
released per fission is larger. This makes the breeding of new fissile material more efficient.
All reactors, as long the fuel contains fertile material, breed new fissile material to some
degree. A breeder reactor is defined as a reactor which breeds more fuel than it burns. In
thermal reactors only Th-232 is suitable as a fuel for breeding (as can be seen in Fig.2.10).
In order to breed plutonium, a fast reactor is needed. Since the amount of fertile U-238
is a hundred times larger than that of the fissile U-235, this creates up a huge potential
source for new nuclear fuel ...and weapons.
The second advantage of using fast neutrons is that they can cause fission in more than
just the fissile material. As mentioned in section 2.1.6, a fissile isotope is defined as a
nucleus which can fission when hit by a thermal neutron. The Q-value for neutron capture
for the actinide elements is around 4-6 MeV. With the kinetic energy of the fast neutrons

21
included, which is around 2 MeV, this increases the Q-value so that fission becomes a
competitive mode of decay for a great many more isotopes. This imply that a higher part
of the fertile isotopes like Th-232 and U-238 can be fissioned directly, but just as interesting
is the opportunity to fission other unwanted elements, like nuclear waste.
Fast reactors also operates with a higher power density, meaning that the physical size
of the reactor can be reduced. Smaller size means reduction of construction time and
investments. One concept of a fast reactor is given below in Fig.2.13.

Figure 2.13: Concept of a fast breeder reactor (FBR). Drawing by [22].

2.3.2 Future reactors

The future of nuclear power will rely more on international cooperation. Common for
the next generation reactors are higher temperatures and higher efficiency, both fuel vice
and thermal-to-electric. The latter envisioned up towards 48% against today’s average of
around 31-33%. Several of the proposed designs will have a closed fuel cycle and actinide
burn-up capability and all will have an increased burn-up of fertile material. The high out-
let temperature opens for thermochemical production of hydrogen in some of the suggested
reactor-designs.

22
Accelerator Driven Systems
The concept of Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS) is to use an external neutron source
to run a subcritical reactor. The subcritical reactor has a neutron multiplication number
kef f < 1, and receives the remaining part needed to reach criticality from a spallation
source, e.g. lead (Pb) or lead-bismuth (Pb/Bi). The spallation is caused by a high intensity
particle beam provided by a particle accelerator. The particle beam consists of protons5
with an energy of 500 to 1000 MeV.
The ADS is a fast reactor, meaning that it does not have a moderator. The fast
neutron spectrum makes it ideal for transmutation of actinides and burning of plutonium.
The high neutron flux also increases the probability of neutron capture. This allows burn-
up of unwanted nuclear waste, like minor actinides (MA) and fission products (FP). The
cross section for both capture, σnγ , and fission, σf , is low for fast neutrons so the flux, Φ,
needs to be much higher in fast reactors than in thermal reactors.
The ADS vessel will be high and fairly narrow. This will enable a natural circulation of
the coolant, thus reducing the importance of the pumps. Control rods are absent in ADS.
Instead the reactivity is controlled through the beam power. This gives a much faster
response time.

Figure 2.14: Concept of accelerator driven systems (ADS).

5
In principle any ion could be used, e.g. deuterons is in many way a better particle regarding the
number of neutrons released in the spallation source. The production of deuterons are however expensive
compared to protons (which only needs to ionize ordinary hydrogen).

23
24
Chapter 3

Evaluation of Resources and Fuel

3.1 Mathematical Model for Consumption of Finite

Resources
It is useful to have a mathematical model for the consumption of a finite resource. An
often used model is the logistic model which expresses the consumption rate, P(t), as a
function of the spent resource, Q(t) [19]:

dQ
P (t) ≡
dt
(3.1)
Q(t)[Q∞ − Q(t)]
= P0 .
Q0 [Q∞ − Q0 ]

Here P0 is the initial consumption

rate, given at time t0 for the model.
The other initial condition, Q0 , and
the boundary condition, Q∞ , is the
amount of the resource which has been
consumed at t0 and the total amount
of the resource, respectively. The nu-
merator of Eq.(3.1) is the amount of re-
source, Q(t), spent at time t, times the
amount of resource left, (Q∞ - Q(t)).
The denominator part is the product at
the start (t = t0 ). From this equation
it is easy to see that P has a parabolic Figure 3.1: Consumption, P as function of used re-
dependence of Q as shown in Fig.3.1. source, Q. The maximum rate, Pmax = Q4β∞ is reached
The maximum value of P, the peak at Q = Q∞ /2.
value, occurs at the time when half of

25
the known resource is spent (confirmed by derivation of Eq.(3.1):
Q∞
Q(tm ) = (3.2)
2
Putting this value for Q into Eq.(3.1) gives us:

Q2∞
Pmax = P (tm ) = P0
4Q0 [Q∞ − Q0 ]
(3.3)
Q∞
= ,
4β
where β is an often used reduction of the initial/boundary conditions, defined as:

Q0 (Q∞ − Q0 )
β=
Q P
 ∞ 0  (3.4)
Q0 (Q∞ /Q0 ) − 1
=
P0 Q∞ /Q0

The last expression is in terms of the ratios (Q0 /P0 ) and (Q∞ /Q0 ). If the latter is large,
(Q∞ /Q0 )  1 , β → (Q0 /P0 ) and only depends on the initial conditions, while Pmax →
¼P0 (Q∞ /Q0 ). Notice that Pmax increases monotonically with (Q∞ /Q0 ).

Adding Time
Q(t) can be found by integrating Eq.(3.1) (setting t0 = 0):
Q∞
Q(t) = , (3.5)
1 + Ae−t/β
where A is an integration constant given by:
Q∞ − Q0
A=
Q0
(3.6)
Q∞
= − 1.
Q0
The consumption as a function of time, P(t), is found by insertion in Eq.(3.1), or derivation
of Eq.(3.5):
2
e−t/β

Q∞
P (t) = P0 , (3.7)
Q0 (1 + Ae−t/β )2
The time it takes before a certain amount of resource is spent can now by found using Q(t)
as a fraction of Q∞ , (Q(t)/Q∞ ) which gives the time it takes to reach this fraction:
 
Q(t)/Q∞
t = βln A . (3.8)
1 − Q(t)/Q∞

26
The time it takes before consumption peaks, can then be found by setting Q(tm ) equal to
Q∞ /2 as given in Eq.(3.2), giving:

tm = βln(A)
(3.9)
 
1 Q∞
= ln(A),
4 Pmax
Q0
Thus tm decreases with increasing Pmax and tm → P0
ln(A) when (Q∞ /Q0 )  1.

What about Q∞
The formulas given in the start of the chapter are good if we know all the numbers,
being the initial and boundary conditions. The consumption and spent resource at a
given time are easily obtained data. The total resource, Q∞ , however is more difficult to
predict. It is worth to know that a resource is not the total amount of e.g. uranium-
atoms/molecules/mineral etc, but the total amount of which is extractable. ...or to be
correct estimated to be extractable. New resources can be found, new technology can
improve the extraction ratio, etc. A more thorough guide and some examples of how to
expand the model is given in this section.

Increasing Q∞
When more resources is found, so that Q∞ increases, the model has to be adjusted. A new
Q∞ can not simply be put into the old model with the other initial conditions (Q0 , and
P0 ) unchanged, as this would change the data from before the extra resources were found.
A better way would be to use the previous model for the past until the new resource is
found. When the new resource is found, a new model has to to made: Since Q(t) and P(t)
can be found at any given time by Eq.(3.5) and Eq.(3.7) and the new Q∞ is estimated at
the time t, we use this data as a new reference point. Given new Q∞ , called Q∗∞ , at time
t1 , the new Q1 will be:
Q∞
Q1 = , (3.10)
1 + Ae−t1 /β
and P will be 2
e−t1 /β

Q∞
P1 = P 0 . (3.11)
Q0 (1 + Ae−t1 /β )2
After the new resource has been found, at time t1 , the new model will be given by:
Q∗∞
Q(t > t1) = , (3.12)
1 + A1 e−(t−t1)/β1
If the time is not reset at the new starting point then, as has been done here, t has to be
changed to (t-t1 ). The new P(t) will be:
 ∗ 2
Q∞ e−(t−t1)/β1
P (t > t1) = P1 , (3.13)
Q1 (1 + A1 e−(t−t1)/β1 )2

27
where the new β1 and A1 is found by using the new starting conditions in Eq.(3.6) and
Eq.(3.4).

Figure 3.2: Consumption, P(t), and spent resource, Q(t), with the original initial conditions in
blue, and the new model after a new resource (Qnew ∞ ) is found at a time t1 in green. The red
dotted line marks how a wrong model, using P0 , Q0 and the new Q∞ , would look like. This figure
shows how the consumption evolves when the new resource is taking into account before (upper
left graph), after (upper right graph) and as (lower graph) it has reached its maximum.

Case Study - Returning to Consumption Peak

As a case study an we can examine an interesting scenario: Let us say that the consumption,
P(t), for a certain resource has already peaked and has started to decline. How much new
resources is then needed to get a new consumption peak with as least the same value
as the previous? That is: How large will the new Q∞ need to be? If we have reached
the consumption peak and are on a declining path, then we can compare the current
consumption towards the peak consumptions. First the new initial conditions is found by

28
setting P equal to a fraction, p ∈ (0,1], of the peak value:
P = Pmax p
1 Q2∞
= P0 p (3.14)
4 Q0 (Q∞ − Q0 )
1 Q∞
= p
4 β
By putting this into Eq.(3.1), and using β, Q becomes:
1 Q∞ Q(t)[Q∞ − Q(t)]
p = P0
4 β Q [Q − Q ]
 0 ∞ 0 (3.15)
1 Q
= 1− Q,
β Q∞
and by setting up as a 2nd degree equation, Q becomes:
Q∞2
Q2 − Q∞Q + p=0
4 p
Q∞ ± Q2∞ − Q2∞ p
Q= (3.16)
p 2
Q∞ ± Q∞ (1 − p)
Q=
2
Eq.(3.15) gives the value of Q(t) when P(t) is at the given value, which could be both when
P(t) is increasing and decreasing. Since the consumption has passed its peak the value for
the new initial point is found by adding the square root of Eq.(3.15):
p
Q∞ + Q∞ (1 − p)
Q1 = (3.17)
2
By finding the spent resource according to the consumption rate as a fraction of the peak,
the needed new resource roof, Q∞ , can be found by setting the new Pmax equal to the
previous using the new conditions:
Q∗∞ Q∞
= (3.18)
4β1 β0
where β1 and β0 represent the new and old β’s for the model. Solving on behalf of the new
resource roof, Q∗∞ we get:
r 2
Q1 Q∞ Q1 Q∞ Q2 Q
P 1 β0
+ P1 β0
− 4 P11 β∞
0
Q∗∞ = (3.19)
2
Plotting for some different scenarios gives us the graphs shown in Fig.3.3. The graphs
clearly shows that the amount of new resources needed to get the consumption rate back
the the previous peak, grows rapid as time passes by. As can be seen from the different
scenarios the new amount of resources needed to get the consumption rate back to the
same value as an earlier peak (Pmax ) gets big quite fast. It is therefore important how to
estimate and interpret the amount of a resource ( Q∞ ).

29
Figure 3.3: Graphs for different starting time for discovery of a new resource. The four graphs
represents new resources found at, from upper left to lower right, P = 82%, 70%, 50% and 30%
of Pmax .

3.1.1 Use and Interpretation of the Model

M. King Hubberts Model for Consumption of Oil
The model was first described in detail and
published in 1956 by M. King Hubbert [23]
and was used to estimate remaining oil re-
serves. As can be seen from Fig.3.4, having
been used by Hubbert in the previous two
decades the model gives a very good picture
of the rate of consumption until the P(t)
reaches about 70% of Pmax . This model
estimated the peak-oil to come just before
year 2000, but as can be seen the actual rate
of consumption started to diverge from the
model around 1980. Economical and log-
ical arguments could explain why a rapid Figure 3.4: Oil depletion curve.
increase and decrease in the consumption

30
rate would be unfavourable. It should be noted that Hubbert, in his paper suggested an
alternative curve, with a constant consumption rate from the time P(t) reached about 55%
of the models Pmax [23].

Rate of discovery vs. rate of consumption

It turns out that a clever way estimate Q∞ can be found by examining the rate of discovery
for new resources. This rate follows the exact same curve, only it is time shifted by amount
∆t[23], as shown in Fig 3.5.

Figure 3.5: Rate of discovery vs. consumption and the proved reserves - that is what has been
discovered, and not yet been consumed.

Using the Model for Nuclear Fuel

This is a pure mathematical model,
and as mentioned, it is based on only
three initial conditions. It may how-
ever give a rough estimate for the fu-
ture. For the situation with fossil fuel
the predictions have compared remark-
ably well with extracted quantities [24]
The situation for the nuclear power
however is another. First of all it is
important to recognize that the costs
of producing energy from oil, gas and
coal rely heavy on the availability and Figure 3.6: A consumption model for uranium using
prize of the resource (fuel), while for three different scenarios.
the nuclear option the total expenses

31
relies not as much much on the uranium fuel (in today’s reactors), but rather on its capital
costs. Still the model gave a good picture of the situation until the 1980’s when reasons
other than that of the availability of uranium flattened the increase in the sector. But
if more effort is put into the nuclear option in the future this model may at least give a
picture of the different alternatives concerning fuel and recycling. From the graph it is
seen that if nuclear fission as a energy source is to play a role in the long-term, recycling
of spent fuel will be crucial.

Use on renewable resources

The same model can be used for the expansion of renewable resources. Then the maximum
consumption Pm ax is the equivalent to former Q∞ , and a parameter for rate of expansion
would replace P(t).

3.2 Nuclear Resources

3.2.1 Fissile Elements

Uranium Thorium Plutonium

Chemical symbol U Th Pu
Atomic number: 92 90 94
Atomic weight: 238.029 u 232.0381 u (244) u
3
Density (300K): 18.95 g/cm 11.72 g/cm3 19.84 g/cm3
Melting point: 1135 ◦ C 1755 ◦ C 640 ◦ C
Boiling point: 4134 ◦ C 4787 ◦ C 3232 ◦ C
Half-life(s): 159 000 y (U-233) 14 billion y (Th-232) 24 110 y (Pu-239)
704 million y (U-235) 6 561 y (Pu-240)
4.5 billion y (U-238) 14 290 y (Pu-241)
80 million y (Pu-244)
Table 3.1: Data for uranium, thorium and plutonium. [14],[25].

The use of uranium dates back to Roman times, when it was used to add yellow colour
to ceramic glazes, but it was first classified as a chemical element in 1789. Uranium is the
heaviest natural-occurring element. There are three different natural-occurring uranium
isotopes, namely: U-234 (0.0054%), U-235 (0.7204%) and U-238 (99.2742%). Of these, U-
235 is the only fissile isotope1 . Both U-234 and U-238 are fertile, but being almost 20000
times more abundant, only the latter is practical as a fuel in breeder reactors. U-233 does
not appear naturally, but may be produced from thorium in reactors.
Thorium was discovered in 1823 by amateur mineralogist M.Thr. Esmark in Lange-
sundfjorden in Norway [26]. It was sent to Jöns Jakob Berzelius, a Swedish chemist who
1
In fact U-235 is the only fissile isotope found in reasonable amounts in nature.

32
Figure 3.7: Left: Neutron capture cross section σnγ of thermal Th-232 and U-238 [20]. Right:
Neutrons released, η, for U-233, U-235, Pu-239.

in 1829 analysed it and named it after Thor, the Norse God of thunder [27]. The isotope
that makes up almost all of the natural thorium is Th-232, which is a fertile nuclide. It is
capable of becoming a fissile nuclide (U-233) through neutron-capture
Plutonium was first produced and detected in 1941 by Glenn T. Seaborg, Joseph W.
Kennedy, and Arthur C. Wahl by bombarding U-238 with deuterons [28]. The fissile Pu-
239 isotope is made in nuclear reactors by neutron capture in U-238. Plutonium is a very
potent material for nuclear weapons, which historically has been its main area of use.
Plutonium has and will play an important role as nuclear fuel in breeder reactors.

Nuclear Properties of Thorium-232 and Uranium-233

The following quotation was given in the 2005 IAEA report: Thorium fuel cycle - Potential
benefits and challenges”[29]:

”233 U is by far the best ’fissile’ isotope for thermal neutron spectrum and can
be used for breeding in both thermal and fast reactors.”

And indeed the nuclear characteristics of Th-232 and U-233 are good. First of all, as can
be seen in the left graph of Fig.3.7, Th-232 has a higher cross section for neutron capture,
σnγ , compared to that of U-238. This makes the breeding process of Th-232 → U-233 more
efficient than the U-238 → Pu-239, even though the resonance spectrum of U-238 is three
times bigger than that of Th-232.
The fissile U-233 has a very good neutron yield when it absorbs neutrons, with η above
2 for a wide range of the neutron energy spectrum. The right graph of Fig.3.7 shows
that U-233 has much better neutron yield in the thermal energy spectrum than its two
counterparts, U-235 and Pu-239. Keeping η above 2 is essential in breeding, as for every
fission one neutron has to hit another fissile nuclei, thus keeping the chain reaction going,

33
 Isotope σnγ (Capture) σf (Fission)
U-233 46 b 525 b
U-235 101 b 577 b
Pu-239 271 b 742 b
Table 3.2: Capture and fission cross sections for U-233, U-235, and Pu-239 for thermal energies.

and at least one other neutron to be absorbed in a fertile nuclei, thus keeping the fissile
fuel constant or increasing. The capture and fission cross section for thermal energies is
given in Tab.3.2 [29]. For U-233 this means that one in every eleventh thermal neutron
absorbed will lead to a heavier isotope instead of fission. This is twice as efficient as for
U-235 and four times as efficient as for Pu-239, making it better from a recycling point of
view as well.

3.2.2 Uranium Resources

Uranium makes up approximately 2 parts per million (ppm) in the Earth’s crust, making
it 500 times more abundant than gold, 40 times more abundant than silver and even more
abundant than tin [30].

Classifications

There is a big difference in the amount of a resource present in the Earth’s crust and that
which is suitable for extraction. The vast majority of minerals are in such low concen-
trations that profitable extraction is unlikely. As a resource becomes more scarce and the
cost involved in getting new supplies increases, so will the effort to find other alternatives.
This is also the case for uranium. Instead of putting an absolute number on the future
resources, analysts rather divide the resources into groups, depending on the extraction
costs, and expected future discoveries. The terminology used by the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA) is given in Fig.3.8.

Figure 3.8: Different classifications of resources [31].

34
 This paper uses the latest (2006) NEA/IAEA terminology. The difference between a
resource and a reserve as given in the Thorium Report is [21]:
”A resource refers to a situation where metals or minerals are enriched. The
resources can be developed to a reserve (or deposit) when further investigations
prove that the enrichment can be economically exploitable. This also implies
that the metal or the mineral can be recovered using a viable process.”

Current and Future Uranium Extraction

As commercial reactors today
are almost solely being fueled
by uranium, we here give a
quick look at its global re-
sources. According to the En-
ergy Watch Group [31], which
has used data from the jointly
IAEA/NEA ’Red Book’, there
has as of 2006 been extracted 2.3
million tonnes uranium. Annual
production in 2008 was 42 000
tonnes, while the supply was 67
000 tonnes. The rest of the de-
mand comes from earlier stock-
piles, built up prior to 1990.
During the first decades after the
second world war the uranium
production was strongly driven
by military use [31]. This re-
sulted in the first peak around
1960 (as seen in Fig.3.9), which
is mainly due to the arms race
during the cold war.
After a fall in production
around 1990, the annual produc-
tion has had a slight increase the
last years. The current produc-
tion is about two thirds that of
the annual fuel demand, which
Figure 3.9: Produced, RAR and IR of uranium. Fuel de-
means that a significant increase
mand and projections [31].
is needed if production is to
equal demand, even if the capacity is kept constant.
The reference scenario given by the World Energy Outlook (WEO) in 2006 estimated
an increase in fuel demand by around 15% by 2030. Fig.3.9 gives a good look at different

35
scenarios. The one including the costlier, reasonably assured resources, and furthermore
inferred resources estimates a peak in production around 2035.
Logically, sites with the highest ore content are mined out first. Today only Canada
have reasonable amounts of high ore-grade (larger than 1%). Most countries only have
mines with an ore grade below 0.1% and two thirds only have concentrations below 0.06%
[31]. Together with Australia and Kazakhstan, Canada has the largest reserves of cheap
uranium (below 40 $/kgU), as can be seen in Fig 3.10. From the same figure it is seen that
several countries have already fully exploited their national uranium resources, including
Germany and France, the latter being the second largest producer of nuclear power in the
world. In 2006 the Canadian Cigar Lake uranium mine was flooded, and has yet to be
reopened. The Cigar Lake mine would have been the second largest high grade uranium
producing mine in the world, had it still been operational.

Figure 3.10: Produced and remaining uranium by country.

Uranium from Decommissioned Nuclear Weapons

In 1993 the U.S. and Russia agreed on a program to convert highly enriched uranium
(HEU) from nuclear warheads to low enriched uranium (LEU) usable as nuclear fuel, the
so-called ”Megawatts for Megatons” project. By June 2009, more than 14000 warheads
had been dismantled [32]; 367 tonnes of weapons grade uranium (HEU) had been converted
to 10621 tonnes of LEU, which is equivalent to around 100000 tonnes of natural uranium.
When the program is ended in 2013, 500 tonnes of Russian HEU will have been converted
to nuclear fuel. This amount is enough to cover the global fuel demand for two full years.
In 2000 the same two countries agreed to dispose of 34 tonnes of weapons grade plu-
tonium. This is either to be immobilized or to be used as MOX-fuel (Mixed OXide fuel)
[33]. It should however be noted that the uranium and plutonium used in these weapons

36
are not a new source of uranium as they are already included in the data for the extracted
resource.

Unconventional Resources

Seawater An estimated 4 billion tonnes of uranium is found in seawater, roughly two

thousand times the amount of produced uranium as of today. The concentration is, how-
ever, very low: 3.3 ppb2 . According to the Analytical Center for Non-proliferation [34],
the cost of extracting uranium directly from seawater would be between five and ten times
that of land based uranium mining (as of 2004). The technology has only been tested on
a laboratory scale.

Phosphates According to the World Nuclear Organization (WNA) there are 22 million
tonnes of uranium in phosphate deposits [35]. Although in a low concentration (estimated
at 100ppm), this uranium can be extracted as a by-product from the phosphate needed in
agriculture.

3.2.3 Thorium Resources

Thorium is a fairly abundant element,
with an average concentration of 10 ppm
in the Earth’s crust [29], which is about
4-6 time more abundant than uranium.
Thorium is found in many minerals, of
which monazite is the most important.
Monazite is a phosphate containing rare
earth elements, with two thirds of the
worlds resource situated in India.
Global reserves is estimated at 1.4 mil-
lion tonnes and an additional 1.2 million
tonnes of reserve base (resources). The Figure 3.11: Global reserves and resources of tho-
largest reserves are found in Australia, In- rium.
dia and Norway. Including the reasonably
assured resources (RAR) and inferred re-
sources (IR) will add another 2.23 million and 2.13 million tonnes respectably [29]. The
Norwegian numbers are additional 132000 tonnes for both RAR and IR.
The current thorium production is limited, being almost entirely a by-product from
extraction of rare earth elements (REE) in monozite sand.

2
ppb = Parts Per Billion. (3.3 ppb = 3.3 grams of uranium per m3 of water).

37
3.2.4 Qualitative Picture of Nuclear Fuel Resources
To give a picture of the total resources of nuclear fuel we have to divide between fissile fuel
(available) and fertile (potential) fuel. The amount of fertile uranium compared to fissile
is large (100 to 1) and thorium is almost in its entirety made up of fertile Th-232. In a
power-production view it is the fissile isotopes which are interesting, as it is the fission of
these nuclei that generates power. As explained earlier the fertile isotopes can themselves
become fissile by capturing a neutron and the process of converting fertile elements to
fissile elements is called breeding. Fig.3.12 shows four alternatives for use of fuels, each
with different amount of breeding:
1. No breeding of new fuel. The amount of the fissile material available is thus limited
to its original quantity.
2. The fuel is a mixture of fissile and fertile nucleus. For every 10 fissions, 3 fertile
nuclei will breed to a fissile nuclei, which can then undergo fission.
3. For every fission, one fertile nucleus breeds into a fissile nucleus. With this scenario
the the amount of fissile material remains the same.
4. If for each fission, more than one fertile nucleus converts to a fissile nucleus, the result
will be a reactor that makes more fuel than it uses - a breeder reactor.

Figure 3.12: The amounts of fissile and fertile elements and fission products.

38
3.3 Nuclear Fuel
3.3.1 The Open Fuel Cycle (Once-Through) for Uranium
The uranium goes through a range of different stages from
it is extracted at a mine until it ends up as spent fuel.
In an open fuel cycle, also called a once-through cycle,
the fuel is used once in the reactor and then stored away,
treated as radioactive waste.

Mining
The mining of uranium does not differ much from that of
ordinary mining of minerals and is extracted both from
open pits and underground sites using conventional meth-
ods. The uranium found in the ore is in the form of differ-
ent uranium oxides, in which UO2 and U3 O8 are the most
common. Uranium ore is usually defined as a mineral with
uranium-concentrations higher than 0.05% (500ppm).

Ore Processing
The ore is processed at a mill which grinds the ore to a uni-
form particle size, and then extracts the uranium through
chemical leaching. The extracted uranium, consisting of
around 70-90% U3 O8 , is in a dry powder form, called yel-
lowcake. As common with mineral mining, the uranium
only makes up a small part of the extracted ore. From the
process, large piles of uranium-poor tailings are formed.
These often have rich concentrations of other minerals
though, suitable for extraction in the future. This works
both ways, and indeed a small fraction of the uranium
extracted is from tailings formed from previous mining.
Figure 3.13: Uranium open fuel
Conversion cycle.

Uranium comes in several different chemical forms. There

is two kinds of uranium conversion. That to UO2 and that to UF6 . Uranium dioxide (UO2 )
has good chemical properties and is the preferred form for nuclear fuel. In reactors using
natural uranium (e.g. CANDU reactors), the uranium oxides can be directly converted
to UO2 . If, on the other hand, the uranium needs to be enriched, a conversion to UF6 is
needed first. The uranium hexafluoride is changed to a gaseous form at 57 ◦ C, which is
suitable for enrichment processes. After the enrichment process, UF6 is converted to UO2 .

39
Enrichment
The larger part of today’s reactors
need a higher concentration of the
fissile U-235 isotope than the 0.72%
found in natural uranium. The U-
235 and U-238 isotopes contained
in the UF6 must be separated. Two
common methods are gaseous diffu-
sion and use of gas centrifugation.
All the molecules have the same
temperature (on average), hence
the same energy. This means
that lighter molecules, being the
UF6 containing U-2353 , will have
a higher velocity than its heav-
ier counterpart. The idea behind
gaseous diffusion is to use this prin- Figure 3.14: Caskade of gas centrifuges. Picture from
ciple. Being otherwise enclosed, Piketon, Ohio.
the gas can leak through a mem-
brane. Since the lighter molecules
are travelling faster they will hit the membrane more often, thus making the gas on the
other side slightly more enriched with U-235. The rate of effusion (diffusion to outside of
container) is:
1
Effusion ∝ 2 , (3.20)
m
making the difference between the UF6 containing U-235 and U-238:
235
Effusion U m(235 U F6 )2
238 =
Effusion U m(236 U F6 )2 (3.21)
= 1.0173

As can be seen from Eq.(3.21), many stages of diffusers are needed to reach wanted en-
richment levels. In enrichment plants using this technology, several thousand diffusers are
connected in a cascade.
A newer technique uses a gas centrifuges which separates the two isotopes by using
the principle of centripetal acceleration, thus separating the heavier molecules, which will
gather towards the edges, from the lighter ones, which will gather towards the center. Just
as gaseous diffusion needs several stages, so does the gas centrifuges. The energy put into
the gas centrifuge is however smaller, and yields higher concentrations of U-235.
The enrichment grade is specified by the customer and depends on which application
the fuel is intended for. The normal concentration in PWR’s lies somewhere between 2-5%
3
Fluorine consists of 100% F-19 isotopes.

40
U-235, while some naval propulsion systems need concentrations as high as 96% [36]. The
rest product is depleted uranium (DU) which has its own areas of use, e.g. armour, ballast,
radiation shielding and armour piercing weapons.

Fuel Production
As mentioned, both natural and enriched fuel is
eventually converted to uranium dioxide (UO2 ).
Through high temperature and high pressure
the UO2 is made into hard small pellets, which
then again are grinded to a uniform size. The
pellets have a hard ceramic substance with a
high melting point of 2800 ◦ C. The pellets are
then into fuel rods made of corrosion resistant
metals (Fig.3.15). The fuel rods completely en-
capsulate the radioactive fuel, and make up the
first barrier in containing the radioactive ele-
ments. The fuel rods themselves are grouped
into assemblies with between 100 and 200 fuel
rods per fuel assembly4 . The reactor core nor-
mally consists of a few hundred fuel assemblies, Figure 3.15: Fuel pellets and rods [16].
depending on the reactor size5 .

Reactor Period
How long the fuel stays in the reactor depends on the reactor type. Most reactors (BWR,
PWR etc.) need to shut down before refuelling. About one third of the fuel assemblies
are replaced, and the new and former assemblies are then reorganized in order to opti-
mize efficiency. A few reactor types, like the RMBK and CANDU reactors, are refuelled
continuously. The fuel assemblies are extracted at the end of their lifetime.

Used Fuel Storage

After the spent fuel has been extracted from the reactor, the fuel rods are removed from
the assemblies. To cool down the spent fuel, in which a lot of radioactive decay is still
taking place, it is normally stored on-site in a spent fuel pool. The fuel rods are normally
surrounded by water or boric acid, which acts both as a coolant and as shielding from
ionizing radiation. The storage time in the pool is usually several years.
Some of the fuel can then go through a recycling process, in which the spent fuel is
transported to a reprocessing plant (e.g. La Hague in France and Sellafield in the U.K.).
Many countries, like the U.S., Sweden and Finland do not have a reprocessing program. In
4
Another name for fuel assemblies are fuel bundles.
5
E.g. the Halden reactor (HBWR) has between 110 and 120 fuel assemblies [37].

41
the U.S. this has its background in the ban on reprocessing in commercial reactors in order
to reduce proliferation, which was issued by president Ford and confirmed by president
Carter.
After the cool-down time the
spent fuel is moved to dry cask
storage, and eventually permanent
storage. The plans in Sweden and
Finland (shown in Fig.3.16) are
to store the waste in deep un-
derground structures, several hun-
dred meters below the surface. In
the U.S. the Yucca Mountains has
been chosen as the final resting
place for their high level waste.
There have however, been several
delays and continuous discussions
about this decision.
Today, only the fissile isotopes
are recycled and used as new
fuel. The recovered uranium and
plutonium6 is mixed together by
a method called PUREX (Pluto-
nium and uranium recovery by
EXtraction). In future breeder re-
actors the much more abundant
fertile isotopes can be used. A
Figure 3.16: Onkalo, the final disposal site for high level
large part of the stored away spent
waste in Finland [38].
fuel has a high percentage of fertile
isotopes, usable in these reactors.
This means that today’s waste can be used as fuel in the future, thus both reducing the
waste problem and supplying the energy need.

3.3.2 Reprocessing, Closed Fuel Cycles and Radioactive Waste

The storage time for the radioactive waste depends on the elements and material. Ra-
dioactive waste is categorized in three levels: Low level waste (LLW), medium level waste
and high level waste (HLW). When it comes to a nuclear reactor; the spent fuel is HLW,
while the other components of the reactor are considered MLW or LLW depending on the
6
The extracted plutonium can also be used as bomb material, which is why the U.S. banned reprocessing.
Weapons grade plutonium needs a high purity of Pu-239. The plutonium recovered from spent fuel also
contains the contaminating Pu-240 isotope, which is unwanted. This problem can however, be reduced by
more frequent refuelling and reprocessing.

42
 Nuclide Amount (g/ton) Nuclide Amount (g/ton)
Np-236 5.3 × 10−4 Am-242m 2.5
Np-237 6.5 × 102 Am-243 1.4 × 102
Pu-238 2.3 × 102 Cm-242 5.9 × 10−3
Pu-239 5.9 × 103 Cm-243 4.3 × 10−1
Pu-240 2.6 × 103 Cm-244 3.1 × 10
Pu-241 6.8 × 102 Cm-245 2.3
Pu-242 6.0 × 102 Cm-246 3.2 × 10−1
Pu-244 4.2 × 10−2 Cm-247 3.7 × 10−3
Am-241 7.7 × 102 Cm-248 2.4 × 10−4
Table 3.3: Transuranics in LWR spent fuel (40 GWd/ton U) after 15 years decay [40].

exposion of radiation. The rules concerning LLW and MLW are not as strict as HLW, and
these need less shielding and storage time.
In a thermal reactors more than 95% of the spent fuel is U-238. There is also a fair
amount of U-235 left, and new Pu-239 which has been bread from U-238. With a closed
fuel cycle the spent fuel is sent to reprocessing after it has cooled down. There the fuel
elements are cut and dissolved in nitric acid (HNO3 ). The resulting solution then undergoes
solvent extraction and ion exchange steps to separate the elements [39]. The reprocessing
is chemically easy, but because of the harsh radioactivity of the elements, the technical
process is difficult and remote handling is needed.
The reprocessed uranium and plutonium can then be used as new fuel (section 3.3.3).
The rest products are all sent to permanent storage or separated. The remains of the
chopped off fuel rods can be stored as MLW, while the rest products from the spent fuel
consisting of minor actinides (MA) and fission products (FP) are stored as HLW. In ADS
and some generation IV reactors the MA’s may be stacked in separate rods, or as a mixture
in the fuel rods, and put into the reactor in order to burn them up through fission. The
incineration of a MA requires fast neutrons, as only a small fraction of MA isotopes are
fissile. Several neutron captures might be necessary before a fission reaction takes occurs.
When extracted from the reactor, the MA-rods are again reprocessed, separating the FA
and MA. Actinide burning will be discussed in more detail in chapter 2.3.2.
Untreated high level waste from reactors will stay highly radioactive for a long time,
and will be dangerous for hundreds of thousands of years [19]. From a storage point of view
it might therefore favourable to use the aforementioned reprocessing methods as much as
possible. A table of transuranic elements present in the spent fuel in a light water reactor
is given in Tab. 3.3.

3.3.3 Mixed Fuel

Many of today’s reactor either use or have the possibility to use a mix of different fuels.
MOX (Mixed OXide) fuel is a mixture of different kinds of uranium and plutonium oxides.
The most common mixture is (U, Pu)O2 , originating either from nuclear warheads or re-

43
processed from spent fuel. The latter is also called PUREX, an acronym for Plutonium
- URanium EXtraction. Thorium can be mixed with both uranium (Th, U)O2 and plu-
tonium (Th, Pu)O2 . Even though the two latter oxides are mixed fuels, it is common to
refer to them as thorium-uranium and thorium-plutonium instead of MOX to avoid being
confused with the uranium-plutonium mixture.
Since thorium is not fissile, pure thorium can not be used as a fuel when the reactor
starts up. Normally this would be solved by using U-235 in the start-up period. After a
while the reactor will breed its own fissile material, U-233, from the thorium. So future
fuel can in principle just consist of Th-232.

3.3.4 Benefits of Using Thorium Fuel

Thorium has been used in fuel, as a thorium-uranium mix in several experiments, starting
in the mid-50’s and lasting for roughly three decades. All projects regarding the thorium
fuel cycle were terminated in the 80’s [21]. The IAEA report: ”Thorium fuel cycle -
Potential benefits and challenges” [29] states that the reason why the thorium fuel cycle
has not been introduced commercially is that, at the moment, the uranium resources are
sufficient. Underlying here is the fact that it is cheaper to run a reactor on the already
established and well-known uranium cycle.
The view by the Norwegian Thorium Report Committee is that the thorium cycle
projects were abandoned in the 80’s for three reasons [21]:

1. The thorium fuel cycle could not compete economically with the more well-known
uranium cycle.

2. In many countries there was a lack of political support for the development of nuclear
technology in the aftermath of the Chernobyl accident.

3. An increased worldwide concern regarding the proliferation risk associated with the
reprocessing of spent fuel.

In the latter years there has been increased interest in the use of thorium because
of several interesting qualities. The IAEA lists the following 5 properties as reasons to
consider thorium [29] (my comments and discussion):

Intrinsic Proliferation
As a bomb-material pure U-233 is theoretically very suitable. There are however some
practical problems. First of all there will always be U-232 present in thorium reactors.
U-232 is formed by U-233(n,2n)U-232. The U-232 has a short half-life of 69 years and
has strong gamma emitting daughter products. From a weapons point of view this is
undesirable because it can cause a pre-initiation of the bomb. The presence of U-232
also makes it difficult to fabricate weapons grade U-233 because of the harsh radiation
environment. While the protection needed to handle U-235 and Pu-239 is gloves and a

44
suit, the U-232 and U-233 has to be handled remotely. Separation of U-233 from U-232 is
also more difficult because of the small difference in mass of the two.
Still, the aforementioned arguments do not exclude the construction of a nuclear bomb
based on the U-233-isotope. Less than a third of the mass compared to U-235 is needed,
and about 60% more than that of Pu-239 [41]. But there is no doubt that the effort needed,
by far disfavours U-233 compared to the other alternatives.

Better Thermo-physical Properties

The chemical properties of ThO2 has some promising features compared to those of UO2 .
First off, it is more stable and have a higher melting point. The amount of fission products
which escapes the confinement of the fuel rods, the so-called fission product release rate,
for ThO2 is one order of magnitude smaller then that of UO2 [29]. Other advantages of
ThO2 are higher thermal conductivity and radiation resistance.

Fewer Long Lived Actinides

The use of ThO2 fuel hardly produces any minor actinides (Np, Am, Cm) or plutonium.
The U-233 isotope has to capture neutrons all the way to U-237 before it has any real
chance of beta-decaying to Neptunium. And on this way, fission has to be avoided in
the fissile isotopes, U-233 and U-235. The reduction of long-lived high atomic mass minor
actinides in the thorium fuel makes it favourable compared to uranium and U-Pu (PUREX)
fuel concerning long-term nuclear waste. There are however, other unwanted elements
connected with thorium fuel, e.g. Th-228, Th-229, U-230, Pa-231, and U-232 [29], as well
as the fission products.

Superior Plutonium Incineration

In regard to plutonium incineration, it is much better to do so using (Th, Pu)O2 fuel,
compared to (U, Pu)O2 fuel, as the former does not breed any additional plutonium. By
incinerating plutonium in normal uranium reactors, the U-238 isotope which is always
present can be bred into plutonium itself.

Attractive for Use in Accelerator Driven Systems (ADS)

Based on the above discussion, thorium seems like a good candidate for accelerator driven
systems. As one of the objectives in ADS is the transmutation of actinides, the use of
thorium seems beneficial since the thorium virtually does not produce any TUE itself.

45
46
Conclusion

Already the uranium resources are getting scarce. The best uranium mines are almost all
depleted. More than a dozen countries have already depleted their mines. By a continu-
ation of today’s nuclear policy where the once-through uranium cycle is dominating, the
peak production in nuclear power will be a reality in just a few decades.
The global interest in nuclear power has been at an incline for several years, and both
old and new members of the nuclear club are planning a substantial expansion in the
sector. With almost all of today’s existing and planned reactors being of the thermal
kind, a short-term change in fuel-policy seems unlikely. Still, many of these reactors are
capable of switching to thorium, with minor changes to the nuclear plant. The global
energy resources which lies in the fertile isotopes U-238 and Th-232 are substantial, and a
nuclear energy future based on the breeding of these has tremendous potential with enough
resources to last hundreds of years. For those who want to take part of this expansion,
those actors, being both the governments and the nuclear industry needs to take their part
in securing a safe and responsible development.

47
48
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