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Nuclear Energy Conversion Systems

A special issue of Energies (ISSN 1996-1073). This special issue belongs to the section "B4: Nuclear Energy".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2021) | Viewed by 4490

Special Issue Editor

Department of Nuclear Engineering, Texas A & M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Interests: system analysis and optimization methods; complex engineered systems; system design; symbiotic nuclear energy systems; waste minimization; sustainability; advanced nuclear reactors, direct nuclear energy conversion systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

I am pleased to announce our intent to publish a Special Issue on advancements in nuclear energy conversion systems. We are seeking contributions on all aspects of the development, design, analysis, and applications of nuclear energy conversion systems. Papers on fission and fusion systems and relevant energy conversion approaches and systems are welcome. Papers on induced and spontaneous reactions as an energy source and the relevant energy conversion methods are welcome. We would like to see papers on a broad range of nuclear energy conversion topics from energy sources, such as induced and spontaneous nuclear reactions, radioactive decay, fusion and fission, to conventional energy conversion approaches to novel energy conversion approaches such as direct nuclear energy conversion. We welcome papers on energy conversion technologies as well as on design and analysis methods including optimization strategies and attainable efficiencies. Applications and environmental impact of various energy conversion technologies are within the scope of this Special Issue as well.

Prof. Dr. Pavel Tsvetkov
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Energies is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Fission energy
  • Fusion energy
  • Radioactive decay
  • Spontaneous reactions
  • Induced reactions
  • Energy conversion
  • Energy products
  • Thermodynamic cycles
  • Process heat applications
  • Energy conversion efficiency
  • Nuclear energy systems
  • Heat rejection
  • Direct energy conversion

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 3043 KiB  
Article
Simulation of 15% and 50% Thermal Power Dispatch to an Industrial Facility Using a Flexible Generic Full-Scope Pressurized Water Reactor Plant Simulator
by Stephen Hancock and Tyler Westover
Energies 2022, 15(3), 1151; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15031151 - 04 Feb 2022
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2299
Abstract
Nuclear power plants in the United States are increasingly challenged to compete in wholesale electricity markets due to the low electricity costs and increasingly dynamic grid conditions from competing generation sources. An alternative market for nuclear power is industrial facilities that can use [...] Read more.
Nuclear power plants in the United States are increasingly challenged to compete in wholesale electricity markets due to the low electricity costs and increasingly dynamic grid conditions from competing generation sources. An alternative market for nuclear power is industrial facilities that can use the thermal and/or electrical power generated by a nuclear power plant to offset the economic losses incurred by electricity market challenges. A generic pressurized water reactor (PWR) simulator was used to show the results of a basic design for a generic thermal power extraction system and tests were run using a set of procedures to show what happens when a nuclear power plant transitions from full electrical power dispatch to 15% and 50% thermal power dispatch. This type of operation leads to losses in turbine performance efficiency due to the deviation from the design operating point, but because the thermal power is also used by the industry load without conversion losses, the combined thermal efficiency of the PWR increases. For the 15% case, the thermal efficiency increased from 32% to 41.9%, while for the 50% case, the efficiency increased up to 60.1%. In addition, for 50% thermal power dispatch, the power dissipated by the condenser decreased from approximately 2000 to approximately 1300 MW (thermal), indicating a substantially diminished impact on the environment in terms of releasing heat into the cooling water reservoir. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nuclear Energy Conversion Systems)
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21 pages, 4052 KiB  
Article
Development of a Performance Analysis Model for Free-Piston Stirling Power Convertor in Space Nuclear Reactor Power Systems
by Huaqi Li, Xiaoyan Tian, Li Ge, Xiaoya Kang, Lei Zhu, Sen Chen, Lixin Chen, Xinbiao Jiang and Jianqiang Shan
Energies 2022, 15(3), 915; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/en15030915 - 27 Jan 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 1683
Abstract
Space nuclear reactor power system (SNRPS) is a priority technical solution to meet the future space power requirement of high-power, low-mass, and long-life. The thermoelectric conversion subsystem is the key component of SNRPS, which greatly affects the performance, quality, and volume of SNRPS. [...] Read more.
Space nuclear reactor power system (SNRPS) is a priority technical solution to meet the future space power requirement of high-power, low-mass, and long-life. The thermoelectric conversion subsystem is the key component of SNRPS, which greatly affects the performance, quality, and volume of SNRPS. Among all kinds of proposed thermoelectric conversion technologies, the free-piston Stirling power converter (FPSPC) has become a preferred conversion technology for small-scale advanced SNPRS due to its moderate waste heat emission temperature and high conversion efficiency, mainly composed of a linear alternator and free-piston Stirling engine (FPSE). For studying the performance of FPSPC, a quasi-steady flow thermodynamic cycle analysis model considering parasitic heat losses has been developed for FPSE. And then the performance analysis model for FPSPC has been established by coupling the thermodynamic cycle analysis model with the mechanical motion model of the piston and volt-ampere characteristic model of the linear alternator. Furthermore, the analysis model was compared and validated by the GPU-3 Stirling engine’s experimental data. The performance parameters of Component Test Power Converter (CTPT) FPSPC designed by NASA for SNRPS were also analyzed. The results show that the amplitudes position of CTPC displacer and piston are 15.1 mm and 11.2 mm, respectively. The corresponding average electric power output of CTPC is 17.316 kW. The input thermal power to the CTPT heater is 66.1 kW, leading to the converter efficiency of 26.2%. The average current and voltage of the CTPC alternator are 86.38 A and 193.15 V, respectively. Among all kinds of parasitic energy losses, the regenerator heat loss accounts for the largest proportion, with an average of about 12.7 kW. The effects of cooler and heater temperature on the performance of CTPC FPSPC were also studied. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nuclear Energy Conversion Systems)
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