It's time to focus again on fast reactors: an innovative technology that extracts much more energy from uranium and recycles nuclear waste over and over again, helping to preserve natural resources while reducing the environmental impact of waste, said IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, opening the IAEA International Conference on Fast Reactors and Related Fuel Cycles: Sustainable Clean Energy for the Future.
"Besides being low carbon like all nuclear reactors, fast reactor systems tick key boxes when it comes to sustainability: they shrink the environmental footprint of the waste while extracting significantly more energy from the fuel. They can be a bridge to even safer and more efficient nuclear power, providing sustainable clean energy for generations," he said.
Operating without a moderator such as water to sustain the fission chain reaction, fast reactors are more efficient and can extract up to 70 times more energy from the fuel than existing thermal reactors. Fast reactors can produce or 'breed' more fuel than they consume. And they can burn off some of the waste contained in spent fuel, which thermal reactors cannot do efficiently. Burning them off greatly reduces the volume, toxicity and lifespan of the high-level radioactive waste.
In his opening remarks to the conference, where leading nuclear scientists and engineers are gathering in Vienna this week as well as online from around the world, Mr Grossi said fast reactors and related fuel cycles are among several nuclear technologies needed to tackle major challenges, from climate change to sustainable development. He said he would make that case again at COP27 in Egypt in November, as he had done at COP26 in Glasgow last year.
"Finding a more sustainable way to fuel global growth and prosperity is of course one of the greatest challenges we are facing," Mr Grossi said in opening remarks to the conference, which follows previous editions of the event held in Kyoto (2009), Paris (2013) and Yekaterinburg (2017). "To make this transition without major disruptions or price spikes like the one we are experiencing now, we will need all low carbon energy sources, including nuclear. In fact, we are going to need more-indeed, a lot more-nuclear if we are going to power economic growth and at the same time achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions."
Fast reactor systems enable a fully closed nuclear fuel cycle, where irradiated nuclear fuel is reprocessed and reused. Such an energy system could potentially be sustainable for thousands of years. Several countries have developed significant experience in reprocessing and recycling, which can contribute to building the basis for future nuclear energy systems where fast reactors play an important role.
Finding a more sustainable way to fuel global growth and prosperity is of course one of the greatest challenges we are facing. To make this transition without major disruptions or price spikes like the one we are experiencing now, we will need all low carbon energy sources, including nuclear.
The International Conference on Fast Reactors and Related Fuel Cycles is providing participants a forum to exchange information on national and international programmes, and more generally new developments and experiences, in the field of fast reactors and related fuel and fuel cycle technologies. (Photo: D. Calma/IAEA)
Fast reactors were among the first technologies deployed during the early days of nuclear power, as it was clear that using only 1% of the potential energy stored in natural uranium cannot guarantee the sustainable development of nuclear energy. Now, new concepts, technologies and advances in materials research, combined with a long-term vision of nuclear power with increased sustainability, are reviving the fast reactor option.
China, India and Russia currently operate fast reactors. Several other countries are developing them for medium-term deployment, including using coolants such as sodium, lead, lead-bismuth, gas and molten salt.
Noting all technological advantages during his opening remarks, Conference Chair Arun Kumar Bhaduri of the Department of Atomic Energy of India urged Mr Grossi "to flag fast reactors as a renewable energy source, like solar or wind" when he travels to COP27, to be held in Sharm El-Sheik on 7-18 November.
The conference, which runs through 22 April, seeks to promote the development and deployment of fast reactors and related fuel cycle technologies in a safe, proliferation resistant and cost-effective manner. A "Young Generation Event" has engaged students and young professionals to present their innovative ideas and discuss ways to work together to advance the technology, improve gender balance and empower the next generation of professionals.
The IAEA plays a key role in supporting the development and deployment of fast reactors through sharing information and experience, coordinated research projects, technical publications, technical working groups and international conferences. The Agency's International Project on Innovative Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) also helps catalyze development and deployment of fast reactors and related fuel cycles by supporting countries in planning and collaboration.
