Conceptual Design and Neutronics Analysis of Lithium Heat Pipe-Cooled Reactor

The sustainability and environmental friendliness of energy development have been an ongoing global focus since the 21st century. As an emerging energy source, nuclear energy has become one of the indispensable solutions to energy issues. Featuring with compact structure, high specific power, excellent environmental adaptability, and operational lifetime, Heat Pipe Reactor (HPR) has received more and more attention due to its potential to replace the conventional energy such as solar energy and chemical battery in occasions. In this paper, a lithium heat pipe-cooled nuclear reactor scheme with a thermal power of 250 kW is proposed, and Nb-1Zr is selected as the reactor structural material, UO2 as the fuel and BeO as the reflector material. The Monte Carlo method is employed to establish the core model. By optimizing the reflector and control absorber of drum parameters, a systematic design of the core physics scheme is completed, and an in-depth analysis of the neutronic characteristics is conducted. The results suggest that the optimized core meets the design requirements in terms of criticality safety accidents. Meanwhile, it exhibits ideal control drum worth, reasonable power distribution characteristics, and enough engineering feasibility.