China well underway building 210 MWe Pebble Bed module and has path to cost effective pebble bed reactors

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A 54 page presentation describes the status of China’s pebble bed reactor project, which we have been following. The foundation has been laid and most components have been ordered.

DONG, Yujie of the Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology (INET), Tsinghua University, Beijing, China. Presented at the

Interregional Workshop on Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technology for Near Term Deployment in Vienna, Austria on 4-8 July 2011

The cost issue is one of the focus in the project.

The conclusion which was accepted is: with partial support of the capital cost and 100% of the R and D cost from government, the HTR-PM demonstration plant will achieve the specific capital cost and generation costs similar to the current PWR in the Chinese market.

Key components
* RPVs

* Steam generators
* Graphite reactor internals
* Carbon reactor internals
* Metallic reactor internals
* Helium blowers

Over 90% of components in price has been ordered

The way to cost effective HTR-PM plants

* Adopt multiple NSSS modules and one turbine generator for one plant to achieve large capacity;
* Reduce the costs of RPVs and reactor internals through mass production;
* Share auxiliary systems in one plant;
* Reduce the workload of design and engineering management;
* Shorten construction schedule.

The Next Step

* A 600 MWe Multi-Module HTR-PM Super- critical Steam Turbine Plant, (6 250 MWt
HTR-PM module+ 1 660 MWe steam turbine)
* standardize the reactor module,
* is inherently safe and competitive,
* and usable for co-generation.

Summary

* HTR-PM possesses inherent safety, broad application, not only electricity, but also non-electricity
* The HTR-PM demonstration plant project is on the track as planned.
* However challenges still exist: 1st of its kind components, verification tests, fuel element, risk management……
* We will keep on our unremitting effort to achieve the commercialization of HTR-PM.

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