Stable startup system for a nuclear reactor

摘要

A stable startup system includes a reactor vessel containing coolant, a reactor core submerged in the coolant, and a heat exchanger configured to remove heat from the coolant. The stable startup system further includes one or more heaters configured to add heat to the coolant during a startup operation and prior to the reactor core going critical.

主权项

1. A stable startup system, comprising:
a nuclear reactor vessel; a reactor core housed in the nuclear reactor vessel, wherein the reactor core is submerged in a primary coolant of the nuclear reactor vessel; a riser located at least partially above the reactor core; a heat sink configured to remove heat from the primary coolant after the primary coolant has passed through the riser; and a heating system configured to introduce heat to the primary coolant prior to an initialization of the reactor core, wherein the initialization comprises at least a partial withdrawal of one or more control rods from the reactor core, and wherein the heat is introduced at one or more insertion points located within the riser at an elevation between the heat sink and the reactor core.