Development of Lead-Based Reactor Marine Nuclear Power

Yican Wu; Yunqing Bai; Chunjing Li; Yang Li; Shaojun Liu; Fang Wang; Jieqiong Jiang; Qingsheng Wu; Chao Liu; Danna Zhou; FDS Consortium

doi:10.15302/J-SSCAE-2024.02.015

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Strategic Study of CAE ›› 2024, Vol. 26 ›› Issue (2) : 63-73. DOI: 10.15302/J-SSCAE-2024.02.015

Research on Deep-Sea Equipment Technology System and Development Strategy

Development of Lead-Based Reactor Marine Nuclear Power

Yican Wu¹^,²^,³^,⁴ ,
Yunqing Bai¹^,²^,³ ,
Chunjing Li³^,⁵ ,
Yang Li³^,⁵ ,
Shaojun Liu¹^,²^,³ ,
Fang Wang¹^,²^,³ ,
Jieqiong Jiang¹^,²^,³ ,
Qingsheng Wu¹ ,
Chao Liu¹^,⁴ ,
Danna Zhou³^,⁵ ,
FDS Consortium

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Abstract

Lead-based reactor nuclear power has the advantages of inherent safety, compact size, light weight, long service life, and high efficiency, and it is widely applied to advanced marine equipment, unmanned underwater vehicles, and deep-sea space stations for energy and power purposes. Conducting research on lead-based reactor marine nuclear power is key to the technological innovation of energy and power for marine equipment in China. This study clarifies the application scenarios and development demands of marine nuclear power, summarizes the development status of lead-based reactor nuclear power from the aspects of technical characteristics, representative applications, and research status, and analyzes corresponding key technologies including nuclear fuel and cladding materials, key components in the primary loop, coolant processes and oxygen control, and advanced power generation technologies. Moreover, the study explores the development challenges for lead-based reactor marine nuclear power and proposes there feasible technical routes: low-temperature lead-based reactor marine nuclear power, high-temperature and high-efficiency lead-based reactor marine nuclear power, and integrated natural-circulation lead-based reactor marine nuclear power. Furthermore, we propose the following suggestions to promote the leapfrog development of marine nuclear power in China: (1) strengthening research and development (R&D) of specialized technologies for the lead-based reactor marine nuclear power and accelerating the deployment of demonstrative projects; (2) incorporating lead-based reactors into the country's major energy strategies and creating a standards system; (3) establishing national joint R&D centers and creating new models for technological innovation and industrial development.

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Keywords

lead-based reactor / marine nuclear power / marine equipment / deep-sea nuclear power station / unmanned underwater vehicle

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Yican Wu, Yunqing Bai, Chunjing Li, Yang Li, Shaojun Liu, Fang Wang, Jieqiong Jiang, Qingsheng Wu, Chao Liu, Danna Zhou, FDS Consortium. Development of Lead-Based Reactor Marine Nuclear Power. Strategic Study of CAE, 2024, 26(2): 63‒73 https://doi.org/10.15302/J-SSCAE-2024.02.015

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Funding

Funding project: Laoshan Laboratory Science and Technology Innovation Project(LSKJ202205200); Shandong Province Taishan Scholars Project(TSTP20231246)