Molten-salt reactors: new possibilities, problems and solutions

The possibilities of competitive development of a liquid-salt reactor with a cavity-type core for developing thorium-uranium breeder reactor and for burning transuranium elements from the spent fuel of power reactors are described. Such a reactor is characterized by fuel-cycle flexibility, since it is capable of operating with a wide spectrum of fuel and raw-materials loads without being stopped or structurally altered. Compared with thermal liquid-salt reactors with a graphite moderator, these reactors have deeply negative temperature coefficients of reactivity (–7·10–5°C–1), and the fuel salt is completely processed in 3–4 years. Such a reactor facility can be incorporated into any strategy for the development of nuclear power.