ML21145A259

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Advanced Reactors GEIS Docs - INL - INL HALEU Capabilities
ML21145A259
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Issue date: 05/25/2021
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NRC
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Download: ML21145A259 (14)


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From:

Giacinto, Joseph Sent:

Tuesday, May 25, 2021 2:05 PM To:

AdvancedReactors-GEISDocsPEm Resource

Subject:

INL - INL HALEU Capabilities Attachments:

Todd 2020 INL_Capabilities.pdf

INL HALEU Capabilities Terry Todd, Laboratory Fellow NEI/GAIN/EPRI HALEU Video Workshop April 28, 2020

Outline

- Recast-metal product

- Small-scale polishing-oxide product

- Headend treatment (ZIRCEX)

- Processing (pilot-scale and engineering-scale) 2

EBR-II Driver fuel processing 3

3 Electrorefined uranium dendrite product Cast uranium product ingot

Pyroprocessing - EBR II Driver Fuel Spent Driver Electrorefined Uranium Ingot

HALEU EBR-II Metal Feedstock Progress HALEU as metal from EBR-II is the nearest term feedstock available to support fast-spectrum advanced reactor concepts Processing of EBR-II driver fuel will continue until all driver fuel is processed Production of EBR-II HALEU reguli will continue until all EBR-II driver fuel has been treated Operations ramp up to 7 day/wk, 12 hr/day 0.365 MT produced in 2019 2nd furnace available 2020 - 1 MT/year 5 MT forecast to be available by 2024 5

Recovered U metal Novel Multi-function furnace Large metallic ingot New graphite crucible Low dose rate, small size HALEU metal regulus

HALEU EBR-II Oxide Feedstock Demonstration Polished EBR-II uranium product suitable for thermal spectrum reactors Demonstrated U Polishing in small-scale equipment (using equipment on-hand)

Dissolution of EBR II uranium metal regulus Uranium purification from residual fission products by solvent extraction Precipitation of uranium using peroxide process Uranium oxide produced by calcination 6

Low dose rate, small size HALEU metal regulus U metal dissolution U purification Uranyl Peroxide Uranium Trioxide Uranium Oxide

Uranyl Peroxide - UO2(O2).4H2O UO2 pellets U metal regulus

EBR-II oxide product characteristics

  • All metal species except uranium were below analytical detection limits
  • Uranium isotopic analysis (same as metal)

- U-235: 19.77%

- U-238: 79.5 %

- U-234: 0.18%

- U-236: 0.55 %

  • Dose rates (theoretical dose for unirradiated 20% U-235 HALEU) 8

Dry headend for zirconium or aluminum clad fuels 9

ZIRCEX Headend Progress

  • Pilot plant operational on October 3, 2019
  • Zirconium decladding testing initiated (10 completed runs to date)
  • 2020 test schedule to include Zr and Al
  • Receipt of unirradiated HEU fuel elements was completed in November 2019 Simulated Zircaloy-2 clad fuel Zirconium sample after dry ZIRCEX decladding process Instantaneous and overall reaction rate with HCl gas and zirconium

Process scale-up

  • Design of pilot-scale processing glove box line for clean or lightly irradiated materials - in progress

- Dissolution/solvent extraction/

conversion/waste vitrification

  • EBR-II product (19.7% HALEU)
  • ZIRCEX pilot plant product (unirradiated HEU)
  • Other fuel/orphan materials
  • Engineering-scale demonstration conceptual design in progress
  • Projected 1-2 MT/yr of HALEU based on EBR-II and ATR recycled fuels 11

Projected INL HALEU Production Rates 12 0

0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1

1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2

2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 2034 2035 HALEU (MT)

Year HALEU Production EBR II Production HZD Production

2021 - Planned Activities

  • EBR-II

- Continue processing EBR-II driver fuel

- Continue to recast previously processed EBR-II uranium product into reguli

- A total of 1 MT of HALEU reguli will be produced per year

  • ZIRCEX

- Complete testing of Zr and Al simulated fuels

- Initiate testing of unirradiated HEU fuel

- Complete design of pilot-scale glovebox line for polishing EBR-II product and ZIRCEX HEU product

- Complete conceptual design of Hybrid-ZIRCEX Engineering-Scale Demonstration

- Initiate NEPA (Environmental Assessment) for Hybrid-ZIRCEX Engineering-Scale Demonstration

- Complete construction of in-can vitrification pilot plant 13