Nuclear Fission Energy Systems to be explored for the Future

NPO Nuclear Salon

Representative Director Yoichi Fuji-ie

International Symposium on “Present Status and Future Perspective for Reducing Radioactive Wastes ~ Challenge for the Relief in the Next-generation ~,” February 17, 2016

A Wide Perspective on Nuclear Energy What has Civilization required from Science & Technology ?

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A Wide Perspective on Nuclear Energy Evolution of Natural Science in Civilizational theory

Urban society of energy dependency

Natural Uranium

Spent fuel 30 tons

Vitrified HLW 5 tons

Ash 0.05 million ton

Annual Resource Consumption

Annual Waste Production

Coal 2.2 million tons

FBR Cycle 90 ton-HM

CO2 6 million tons

Oil 1.4 million tons

Once-through LWR

Pu use in LWR

From Environment- to Energy-dominated society

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SOx 1.2 million tons

CO2 5 million tons

SOx 0.04 million tons

Vitrified HLW 5 tons 1 ton-HM

170 ton-HM

In cases where a plant of 1GWe is operated for one year

Manifestation of the environmental problems caused by fossil fuel use

Di Fi

Firewood & Cattle Watermill & Windmill

Coal Oil & LNG

Nuclear

CO2 concentration in atmosphere

280 ppm in 1750 (Before Industrial

Revolution)

400 ppm in 2014

R&D philosophy Shifting from “Utilization” to “Harmonization”

Industrial Revolution

・Diversification of resources

・Mass consumption of energy

By-Products : NOx, SOx, etc.

Global warming by CO2 emission

Turning Point of

Fossil Fuel Based Civilization

Restricting Unlimited Use of Fossil Resources

• Ethics based on harmonization • Regulation • Technical countermeasures

•to provide new knowledge to the human society •to develop new fields of science and technology •to accept and support the civilization •to harmonize with the environment and society

Requirements for Future Science & Technology Will it be a balanced and comprehensive science &

technology ?

A Wide Perspective on Nuclear Energy Requirements for Science & Technology in the 21 century

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A Wide Perspective on Nuclear Energy -To equate a big space and a small space Space from quark: Nuclear energy is connecting the world

(Micro-world and Macro-world)

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Space and Galaxy (1021-1019m)

Solar system (1014m)

Earth (107m)

(103m)

(1m) Cell

(10-5m)

DNA (10-9m)

Protein (10-8m)

Crystal

Nucleon (10-15m) (Proton, Neutron)

Quark (<10-17m) Lepton

(Electron, Neutrino) Nuclide (10-14m) Atom (10-10m) Molecule (10-9m)

~ Decades, Centuries and Millennia on Nuclear Utilization ~

Radioactive Waste Disposal

Energy Application

Medical Application

FR Cycle System Accelerator

Industrial Application

Fusion

Partitioning & Transmutation

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A Wide Perspective on Nuclear Energy -To equate a big space and a small space

Cosmic time and human race time

Why did Japan choose nuclear energy?

Securement of long-tem stable energy resources is indispensable as a basis of the existence of the country

Japan’s geographical fate (limited resources and small land） The reflection of the tragic history:

• The Pacific War in search of resources • The conclusion of Atomic Bomb Rescue and Relief Report by Dr. Takashi

Nagai Adoption of nuclear energy as a “technology-oriented nation” (A science and

technology oriented nation) The Atomic Energy Basic Act (1955) Necessary for Japan, which experienced the tragedy of the atomic bombing,

to declare the strong will to oppose atomic bombs and to commit to the peaceful use of nuclear energy when it embarked for the unknown world of nuclear fission reaction

Gradual shift from the civilization based on chemical reactions to one based on nuclear energy (Nuclear energy should develop as a comprehensive science and technology that produces and provides human civilization not only with energy but also with materials, technologies and even information) 6

Immediately after the atomic bomb was dropped in Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945, Associate Professor, Nagasaki Medical University Takashi Nagai who had rescued the victims as captain of the 11th Medical Corps, reported the President of the Nagasaki Medical University “Atomic-bomb rescue and relief report (August-October 1945)." The following sentences come from the conclusion of the report. Dr. Takashi Nagai

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Excerpt from Conclusion of “Atomic-bomb rescue and relief report” (Oct., 1945)

Everything was finished. Our mother land was defeated. Our university had collapsed and classrooms were reduced to ashes. We, one by one, were wounded and fell. The houses we lived in were burned down, the clothes we wore were blown up, and our families were either dead or injured. What are we going to say? We only wish to never repeat this tragedy with the human race.

We should utilize the principle of the atomic bomb. Go forward in the

research of atomic energy contributing to the progress of civilization. A misfortune will then be transformed to good fortune. The world civilization will change with the utilization of atomic energy. If a new and fortunate world can be made, the souls of so many victims will rest in peace.

Atomic Energy Basic Law （Enacted on December 19, 1955）

Objective of this Law (Atomic energy development): 1) to secure energy resources in the future, 2) to achieve the progress of science and technology and the promotion of

industries by fostering the research, development and utilization of atomic energy, and

3) thereby to contribute to the welfare of mankind and to the elevation of the national living standard.

Basic policy: The research, development and utilization of atomic energy shall be 1) limited to peaceful purposes, 2) aimed at ensuring safety, 3) obliged to contribute to international cooperation.

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Issues to be addressed in Nuclear Development and Promotion

Looking back the past 70 years, how much progress did we make in solving issues and what are challenged left in light of the purpose of Atomic Energy Basic Act and it’s basic policies? We should think about how we take the following issues in today’s term. 1) Commercialization of light water reactors (LWRs) 2) Establishment of nuclear fuel cycles using fast reactors 3) Recommendation on how nuclear energy system should be and

development of next-generation nuclear energy systems 4) Aiming for the civilization based on nuclear energy 5) To what extent has nuclear energy been developed to be able to contribute

to society and personal life? 6) What has Japan achieved for the objectives of the Atomic Energy Basic Law? What has been appealed to the world? 7) Can we say with confidence that safety has been assured in nuclear use? How about severe accident measures and re-criticality free concept? 8) What is international cooperation? How about the relationship between the

developed countries like Europe and the United States in nuclear energy and Japan? What is the role of Japan as a developed country in Asia in nuclear energy? 9

Uranium

Zero release of radioactive

wastes

Fuel resources (Fuel recycling)

Safety (Elimination of

recriticality issues)

Energy (Electricity or

chemical energy)

Energy

Nuclear fuel cycle

System Boundary

Fast Reactor

Reprocessing Fuel

fabrication

Spent fuel

Long-lived FPs Accelerator, Laser

Stable elements

Nuclear Fission Energy Systems to be explored for the Future Self-Consistent Nuclear Energy System (SCNES)

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Energy balance

Neutron balance

Recovering of recycle materials

Energy/fuel production and radionuclide transmutation

by neutron reaction

1. Energy

4. Safety assurance

2. Fuel

Effective use of the resources

3. Wastes management

(Electric energy, hydrogen energy,

etc.)

Environmental protection

5. Non-defense use

Fuel production (Full use of natural

resources)

Plutonium Denaturalization

(Non-proliferation)

(Re-criticality free core, blanket-less

of depleted uranium)

Nuclear transmutation of radioactive wastes

(Zero release of radioactive wastes)

Nuclear Fission Energy Systems to be explored for the Future Five functions required for Nuclear Energy System

Should be realized simultaneously

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Nuclear Fission Energy Systems to be explored for the Future Phased approach toward SCNES

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MA：minor actinide（TRU except for Pu） 5LLFP：5 species of Long-Lived Fission Products （Tc-99, I-129, Cs-135, Zr-93, Sn-126） All radioactive FP： Half life > 1 year（28FP）

U+Pu+MA Recycle（99.9%） ＋5 LLFP（99%）Recovery & Storage (same reduction of radioactivity in wastes with Step 2)

U+Pu+MA Recycle（99.9%） ＋5 LLFP （99%）Recovery –Transmutation ---> In several hundred years radioactivity in wastes will be about the same with natural U.

U+Pu+MA Recycle（99.99%） ＋all RadioactiveFP（99.99%）Recovery – Transmutation ---> In 100 years radioactivity in wastes will be about the same with natural U.

Once-through LWR

U+Pu Recycle LWR

Current Status

Monju

Ohma（Full MOX）

Laser Isotope Separation

Metal Fuel Pyro Process

SCNES Step 2

SCNES Step 1

U+Pu+MA Recycle Fast Reactor

Ultimate Objectives SCNES Step 3

U+Pu Recycle Fast Reactor

From Phenix to Monju

Speech at the closing ceremony for the Phenix reactor on Sep. 12, 2009

Prototype FR “Phenix” in France 13

Electric output：250MWe

Operation period: 1973-2009

Electric output：280MWe

Prototype FR “Monju” in Japan

Message to the World at the Closing Ceremony of French Prototype Fast Reactor Phenix (Sep. 2009)

I never believe and agree that Phenix is phased out of our nuclear community. Phenix, you will surely come back because you are Phenix, a world famous fire bird who is reborn. In this occasion I would like to ask you to fly over to the continent to Japan where Monju is waiting to welcome you. You can take a rest and make a nap for a while on a shoulder or hand of Monju Bosatsu. Monju Bosatsu is the bodhisattva of wisdom. She will do her best to bring the Monju to achieve criticality again and return to operation in this fiscal year (May 2010) and lead the Japanese fast reactor program asking bilateral collaboration between France and Japan as well as international collaborations. After years on the shoulder or hand of Monju Bosatsu, you will wake up again and find sufficient data accumulated for the commercialization of fast reactors. Phenix, when you fly back to France, you take such a plenty of data with you and then drop such data to the countries involved in the Monju project on the way. The purpose of Japan’s nuclear R&Ds lies in abolishing nuclear weapons and focusing entirely on the peaceful use. We can engage in this kind of international collaboration because we commit to the peaceful use of nuclear energy.

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Prototype Fast Reactor “Monju”

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Restart of Monju (1/2) Fast reactors and related nuclear fuel cycles (fast reactor cycle) has significance

in the next step after the commercialization of LWRs and their nuclear fuel cycles.

The importance of nuclear energy is increasing in terms of energy security at the initial stage of development and even in terms of global environment conservation in recent years.

The energy (incl. nuclear) self-sufficiency of Japan, a resource poor country, was about 20% before the TEPCO’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident, but it is about 6%, the lowest in the developed countries, in 2012; The food self-sufficiency is about 40% (calorie basis), which is low but higher by an order of magnitude.

Japan can get over its geographic fate of small land with poor resources only if the fast reactor cycle is realized, which allow us to ensure the stable energy supply with high ratio of uranium utilization, reduce the volume and radiotoxicity of radioactive wastes and shorten the time of exposure to their risk.

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Restart of Monju (2/2)

The fast reactor cycle is vital for securing resources and saving the environment simultaneously and Monju is a linchpin of the R&Ds.

We should make efforts not only for our generation but also for further generations; putting off or freezing the policy decision means making further generations to pay a price as well as being dependent on R&Ds efforts made by other countries.

Countries and international organizations engaged in fast reactor R&D activities have a keen interest in the restart of Monju.

With cooperation from Academia, Electric utilities, manufacturers, and so on formerly involved in Monju, JAEA should attain the early restart of Monju and lead to international R&Ds as an international research center for technological development such as reducing the amount and toxic level of radioactive waste and technologies related to nuclear nonproliferation, which is described in the Strategic Energy Plan (Cabinet approval on Apr. 11, 2014). This effort should be achieved since Japan has to pursue a science- and technology-oriented nation.

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Oklo Natural Reactors (2 billion-years ago)

X Ray (1895) Radioactivity (1896)

Chicago Pile （1942）

Cutting-edge Nuclear Science

Synthesize with Conventional Technology

Self-Consistent Nuclear Energy System (SCNES)

Energy, Material, Information, Technology

Laser, Accelerator

Fusion Reactor

LWR Pu use in LWR

Fast Reactor

Nuclear Energy as Comprehensive Science and Technology

Radiation Application

Mobilization of cutting-edge science and technology is essential for innovative nuclear development.

Light science and particle science are leading key technology in the 21st century.

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