HTR Process Heat Applications

Japan Atomic Energy Agency

Training Course on

High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor Technology

October 19-23, Serpong, Indonesia

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HTR Heat Applications

HTGR

Intermediate

heat exchanger Steam

generator

Efficient heat utilization

Waste heat utilization

Process steam supply

High-temperature steam

supply system

Electricity supply

Electric generation system

(Using gas & steam turbine)

950℃～

750℃

Hydrogen supply

950℃

・District heating

・Desalination

・Hot water aquaculture

・Heating cultivation

Hydrogen production

・Fuel-cell vehicle

・Hydrogen reduction

ironmaking

・Chemical production

・People’s livelihood

・Private electric generation

・Chemical industry

・Petroleum refining

750℃～

550℃

500℃～

600℃

Cooler

200℃

150℃

Fuel:

U, Pu, Th, MOX

900℃～

850℃

H2 potentially substitutes for fossil fuels in heat utilization field

H2 production process converts nuclear energy into H2

Heat source for various heat applications

p.3

Contribution to Heat

27% 18% 13% 11% 23%

Electricity

40%

Heat

60%

Fossil resource

CO2 output 1.2 billion ton CO2

(2008 year)

Energy form (Secondary energy)

Resources (Primary energy)

1) Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, FY 2010 Annual Energy Report, 2011.,

Ministry of Environment, 2008 Volume of greenhouse gas emissions, 2010.

83%

Chemical industry 4%

Cement, paper 4%

Electricity generation

Transportation

Civil area sector Steel manufacturing

Miscellaneous

Heat utilization field

Nuclear 11%

Natural energy 6%

Green house gas emissions in Japan (2008) 1)

Current energy systems

heavily depends on fossil resource. H2 is expected to

substitute fossil

resource in heat

utilization field.

Nuclear H2 production from

H2O offers Mass production capability

with competitive cost

Superior energy security

Reduction of CO2 emission in

heat utilization field

Reduction of fossil resource

usage

p.4

Why Hydrogen ?

Energy +

2H2(g) + O2(g) = 2H2O(l) + 572 kJ

Hydrogen acts as energy carrier

Advantages

Can be produced from H2O

—no limitations of feedstock

Changes into water by combustion

—no environmental pollution

Small loss in transport

—pipe lines, tankers

Various storage technologies

—high pressure gas, liquefied hydrogen,

metal/organic hydride

Wide range of usage

—fuel, reducer for chemical industry and

ironmaking, power conversion for electricity

H2 Production with Nuclear Energy

p.5

Heat

Fossil fuels

Water

Hydrocarbon Water Water

Electricity

Heat

Water

Heat

Water

Electricity

Heat

Steam reforming Electrolysis

High-

temperature

Steam electrolysis

Thermochemical

water-splitting

Hybrid

thermochemical

water-splitting

(Hybrid-TC)

Energy

forms

Feed-

stocks

Methods

Light-water reactor

(LWR)

< 325oC

Electricity

Fast breeder reactor

(FBR)

< 550oC

Electricity

Heat

High temperature gas-cooled reactor

(HTGR)

750-950oC

Electricity

Heat

Primary

energy

Nuclear energy

Hydrogen

Electricity

Methane Steam Reforming using Fossil Fuel

p.6

Steam reforming reaction (endothermic)

CH4 + H2O → CO + 3H2, ΔH=206 kJ/mol

Water gas shift reaction (exothermic)

CO + H2O → CO2 + H2, ΔH=−41 kJ/mol

Commercialized method and

widely use in the world

Produce greater part of

worldwide H2 production

Use combustion heat

of methane Energy

Methane

HTGR coupled steam methane

reforming plant can Early deployable because the

technology in H2 production

section is matured

Can save methane and reduce Co2

emission by supplying

heat by nuclear reactor

Steam reforming plant

p.7

Alkaline Water Electrolysis

Industrialized, mature technology

Operating temperature, 70–80oC

Alkali solution (KOH 20–30%)

Theoretical decomposition voltage,

1.3 V at 25oC

Alternative to asbestos diaphragm

Challenges for further improvements

Overvoltage reduction by catalyst electrode

Corrosion-resistant materials

in high conc. KOH soln. over 100oC

Mitigation of limitation of operating current

density by resistance from gas existence

p.8

High Temperature Steam Electrolysis

Higher temperature, lower

voltage (=smaller electric energy)

Theoretical decomposition voltage,

ca. 0.9 V at 1000oC

Solid oxide electrolyte

(oxygen ion conductive; e.g. yttria stabilized

zirconia (YSZ))

Cells are built mostly of ceramics material

Plate type cell or cylindrical type cell

External heating (higher eff.) or autothermal

Challenges

Upsizing ceramics parts

Reduction of performance degradation

Durability against thermal cycle

p.9

Thermochemical Cycle

Chemical process for water splitting

Suitable for on-site production

in large volume

Advantages

Smaller electricity demand

than electrolysis

Realistic operating temperature well

suited for industrial plant

Possibility of higher thermal efficiency

Possibility of higher scale merit

in economic terms

Thermochemical water-splitting cycle has

the same function as heat engine

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Desirable thermochemical cycle

Small number of chemical reactions

Small number of elements

Temperature range consistent with heat source temperature

Liquid/gas phase operation

High thermal efficiency and low cost

Desirable features

p.11

Copper-chlorine cycle

Number of reactions: 3

Number of element: 4

Maximum temperature: 500oC

(matching Super-Critical Water

Reactor)

Including solid handling

One electrochemical reaction

Practicability for elemental reactions

were demonstrated separately

on lab-scale

p.12

Iodine-sulfur (Sulfur-iodine) process

Number of reaction: 3

Number of element: 4

Maximum temperature:

900oC

Full liquid/gas phase

operation

Not including

electrochemical reaction

(May use electricity in

concentration of HI) Widely investigated in the world

(Japan, USA, France, Korea, China….)

Lab-scale integrated cycle was demonstrated

p.13

Technical challenges for thermochemical cycles

Construction materials

—Thermal, corrosion resistance

Chemical engineering

—Separation of object substances from reactants, by-products

—Purification to remove minor components

—Solid substance handling

Process thermal efficiency

—Low conversion in reactions

—Difficulty in separations

Hydrogen production cost

— Need breakthrough to improve thermal efficiency

— Construction material is expensive

p.14

High Efficient Power Generation

1) X. Yan et al., Nucl. Eng. Des., 222 (2003) 247-262.

Heat (He)

Reactor Gas turbine

Elec.

Electricity generation Key process parameters1) (design example)

High generating efficiency (46.8%)

is expected

Simplicity of equipments

configuration (no water handling,

no secondary system)

Closed regenerative Brayton cycle High-T and high-P Helium gas circulates through a

loop composed of

gas turbine, recuperator, precooler, compressor

and reactor.

p.15

HTGR-GTL Combined Process

Gas to liquids (GTL) is a refinery process to convert natural gas into liquid synthetic fuels such as gasoline or diesel fuel.

HTGR (High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor) produces high temperature steam to be used mainly for the gas synthesis process.

Gas Synthesis

FT(Fischer-Tropsch) process

Upgrading Process

Diesel Naphtha Parafin

Air Separation

Air

Gas Processing

Natural Gas

850 degrees

200-350 degrees

200-350 degrees

GTL process

HTGR

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H2 Reduction Steel Making Process

1) World Steel Association, Overview of the steelmaking process, 2011.

2) World Steel Association, Steel Statistical Yearbook 2013. (Data in 2012)

Present Blast furnace steelmaking

(70% of crude steel production) 2)

Price fluctuation of material coal

Direct reduction steelmaking No CO2 emission in reduction

Material coal free

Iron ore

Sintering

Scrap

Coal Coke

Lime

Blast furnace

Converter Refining

Casting

Refining Electric arc

furnace

Pelletization

Scrap

Iron ore

Coal

Direct reduction

Slab Billet Bloom

Natural gas etc.

Reduction of iron ore by material coal

{(2n+0.5m)/3}Fe2O3 + CnHm

→ {(4n+m)/3}Fe + nCO2 + 0.5mH2O

Hydrogen steelmaking (future)

Reduction of iron ore by hydrogen

Fe2O3 + 3H2 → 2Fe + 3H2O

Pelletization

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Concept of HTGR Steelmaking Plant

Hydrogen

Electricity

High quality

steel

Direct

reduced

iron

Electricity

Heat

Heat

Heat, electricity

Material

HTGR

IS process

Helium gas

turbine

Shaft

furnace

Electric arc

furnace

IS process produces H2

HTGR can provide all necessities (heat, electricity, and H2)

Iron ore

Water

p.18

Desalination with HTGR

Precooler

Gas turbine

Reactor

Waste heat

Cooling water

Large amount of waste heat

(248 MWt for 600 MWt reactor power)

MSF is provided with power generating

installations in the Middle East

Fresh water by evaporation

incorporating latent heat recovery

Considerable economy

by upsizing of MSF plants

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HTTR Heat Application Demonstration

Project goal

1. Licensing

License acquisition of world’s

first nuclear GT/H2 cogeneration

plant

2. Operability

Confirm safe & reliable operation

3. Complete system technology

HTTR demonstration test system layout

Reactor

IHX

Helium

gas turbine H2 plant

HTTR Heat utilization system

HTTR demonstration test system configuration

Project plan

• Design, construction & operation for HTTR-

GT/H2 plant

• Establish new licensing framework for coupling

GT/chemical plant to nuclear reactor

• Demonstration of key technology (e.g. shaft

seal) reliability in system performance

IHX

Gas turbine

Recuperator Precooler

Reactor

H2 plant

Cooler

Isolation

valve

2nd IHX

HTTR-GT/H2 Plant Outline

GTHTR300 HTTR-GT/H2 plant

H2 plant

Cooling

tower Cooler

10MW

850oC

950oC

395oC

950oC

594oC

Reactor 600MW

360oC

150oC

850oC 〜650oC

170MW 0.7MW 650oC

850oC

HTTR-GT/H2 is designed

to simulate commercial

GTHTR300 system design and

operation modes

H2 plant

Fo

r H

2 p

rod

uct

ion

2nd IHX

Gas turbine

Recuperator Precooler Recuperator Precooler

Gas turbine

Reactor

Cooling

tower

IHX IHX

Thermal power (IHX) 10 MWt

IHX heat supply temperature 900oC

GT inlet temperature 650oC

GT pressure ratio 1.3

Turbine flow rate 6-12 kg/s

H2 plant heat load 0.7MWt

p.20