Nuclear Power Engineering
The research activity focuses on the design and development of innovative technologies for nuclear power of the future, namely in the following key areas:
- Optimization of spent nuclear fuel storage
- Thermal energy storage systems
- Development of advanced neutron flux measurement instrumentation for GEN IV reactors
- TEPLATOR nuclear heating plant concept
- Neutron-physics calculations and models of nuclear fuel burn-up
All the activities result from collaboration with industrial partners and other research organizations. In the following years, research in nuclear engineering will be supported by the Centre of Advanced Nuclear Technologies, namely in the areas of:
- Coupling thermohydraulic and neutron calculations
- Design of automatized fuel exchange systems for new reactors
- Analysis of nuclear fuel behavior in severe nuclear reactor accidents
The most important currently carried out projects
TEPLATOR
A concept of a small modular reactor for district heating purposes with the possibility of using already irradiated nuclear fuel from commercial light water reactors. UWB, in cooperation with CIIRC CTU, is involved in the complex design of the facility - neutronic characteristics, thermohydraulic calculations, design of individual components, and reactivity control system. The outcome will be the design of a nuclear heating plant with a variable thermal output of 50-150 MWt, which will find application in district heating networks in the Czech Republic and abroad.
Ex-Core neutron flux measurements for GEN IV reactors
The project aims to develop the design and manufacture of a working sample of neutron instrumentation for GEN IV graphite-moderated nuclear reactors. The project's output will also find application in current small modular reactor projects as a contribution of the Czech Republic to developing the world nuclear power industry. Within the frame of the project, a model graphite environment of a research reactor is being developed and tested, thanks to which a physically identical environment of the final Generation IV reactor is used to develop the apparatus requirements.
Optimization of spent nuclear fuel storage
An innovative system for spent nuclear fuel storage using an appropriate neutron absorber inserted into the fuel assembly after removing it from the reactor. The absorber significantly increases the sub-criticality of the system and thus substantially increases the safety of spent fuel storage. It also leads to a potential reduction of the cost of the spent fuel casks by the possibility of using a smaller fuel pitch, reducing the size of the cask, or replacing expensive boron steel with a more suitable and cheaper option.
