Nuclear microreactor

Russian nuclear microreactor Shelf-M.

A nuclear microreactor is a plug-and-play type of nuclear reactor which can be easily assembled and transported by road, rail or air.[1] Microreactors are 100 to 1,000 times smaller than conventional nuclear reactors, and range in capacity from 1 to 20 megawatts, compared to 20 to 300 megawatts for small modular reactors (SMRs).[2] Due to their size, they can be deployed to locations such as isolated military bases or communities affected by natural disasters. It can operate as part of the grid, independent of the grid, or as part of a small grid for electricity generation and heat treatment.[3] They are designed to provide resilient, non-carbon emitting, and independent power in challenging environments.[4] The nuclear fuel source for the majority of the designs is "High-Assay Low-Enriched Uranium", or HALEU.[5]

  1. ^ "What is a Nuclear Microreactor?". Energy.gov. Retrieved 2020-11-21.
  2. ^ "Microreactors". Idaho National Laboratory. Retrieved 2020-11-21.
  3. ^ Testoni, Raffaella; Bersano, Andrea; Segantin, Stefano (2021-08-01). "Review of nuclear microreactors: Status, potentialities and challenges". Progress in Nuclear Energy. 138: 103822. doi:10.1016/j.pnucene.2021.103822. ISSN 0149-1970.
  4. ^ Office, U. S. Government Accountability (2020-02-26). "Science & Tech Spotlight: Nuclear Microreactors" (GAO-20-380SP). {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. ^ "What is High-Assay Low-Enriched Uranium (HALEU)?". Office of Nuclear Energy. April 7, 2020. Retrieved 2022-04-26.