COMPARISON OF ALFRED ADVANCED LEAD COOLED REACTOR AND SODIUM COOLED REACTORS

A large number of new fast reactors may be needed earlier than foreseen in the Generation IV plans. According to the Special Report on Emission Scenarios commissioned by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Control nuclear power will increase by a factor of four by 2050. Th e drivers for this boost are the increasing energy demand in developing countries, energy security, but also climate concerns. However, if one stays with a once-through cycle the amount of high-level nuclear waste will increase substantially and there will be an upward pressure on the price of uranium in the next few decades. Th erefore, it appears wise to accelerate the development of fast reactors and efficient reprocessing technologies. In this paper, two fast reactor systems are discussed – the sodium-cooled fast reactor, which has already been built and can be further improved, and the lead-cooled fast reactor that could be developed relatively soon.