MSR Research Program
- MSR tailored irradiations
- Broad and ambitious public R&D and dedicated research for MSR developers
- From concept design to irradiation experiments
Our Research Program helps bringing the MSR technology closer to reality by accurate reproduction of in-use conditions. NRG is your partner for the development and qualification of materials and fuels for Molten Salt Reactors.
About NRG’s Molten Salt Reactor Research Program
NRG has a long history of testing materials and fuels for current and advanced nuclear reactors for civil nuclear energy generation using its complete nuclear infrastructure.
With the global resurgence of interest in MSRs, NRG decided to set up an ambitious research program that would target the specific needs of Molten Salt Technologies.
The idea behind the program is to perform experiments that mimic the physico-chemical mechanisms occurring during molten salt reactor operation. Some examples of such phenomena are the corrosion of metallic components in radioactive molten salt, the weakening of structural parts due to a combination of temperature and radiation, deposition of salt on walls of pipes (f.i. clogging), formation of gases, treatment of residual (waste) products and much more.
The projects of the program are coordinated from Petten, where most of the activities are performed. To complement our capabilities, diverse collaborations were established with a number of expertise centers, such as: the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, the Technical University in Delft (Netherlands), CV Rez (Czech Republic) and SINAP (China).
The MSR program is developed within the R&D framework of the Dutch government to reduce CO2 emissions, which is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs. Additional funding comes from the European Horizon 2020 Project SAMOSAFER, under coordination of the TU Delft.
Projects of the Molten Salt Research Program
The program is built from a diverse set of technically challenging projects. Here are some highlights on each of them.
Salient-01
SALIENT-01 was the world’s first MSR-specific fuel salt irradiation experiment in 45 years and has gained notoriety in the MSR community.
The main objective of SALIENT-01 is to acquire knowledge and experience with performing a molten salt irradiation, including the design of a rig containing liquid fuel and the handling of fresh and irradiated fuel salts in inert environments.
In a nutshell, mixtures of lithium fluoride and thorium fluoride salts contained in graphite crucibles are exposed to high neutron and gamma radiation levels in the High Flux Reactor in Petten. The radiation starts fission reactions in the sample that provide the heat for the salt sample to melt. For more information on Salient-01 please see.
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Salient-03
SALIENT-01 was the world’s first MSR-specific fuel salt irradiation experiment in 45 years and has gained notoriety in the MSR community.
The main objective of SALIENT-01 is to acquire knowledge and experience with performing a molten salt irradiation, including the design of a rig containing liquid fuel and the handling of fresh and irradiated fuel salts in inert environments.
In a nutshell, mixtures of lithium fluoride and thorium fluoride salts contained in graphite crucibles are exposed to high neutron and gamma radiation levels in the High Flux Reactor in Petten. The radiation starts fission reactions in the sample that provide the heat for the salt sample to melt. For more information on Salient-01 please see.
Enickma
SALIENT-01 was the world’s first MSR-specific fuel salt irradiation experiment in 45 years and has gained notoriety in the MSR community.
The main objective of SALIENT-01 is to acquire knowledge and experience with performing a molten salt irradiation, including the design of a rig containing liquid fuel and the handling of fresh and irradiated fuel salts in inert environments.
In a nutshell, mixtures of lithium fluoride and thorium fluoride salts contained in graphite crucibles are exposed to high neutron and gamma radiation levels in the High Flux Reactor in Petten. The radiation starts fission reactions in the sample that provide the heat for the salt sample to melt. For more information on Salient-01 please see.
SAGA
SALIENT-01 was the world’s first MSR-specific fuel salt irradiation experiment in 45 years and has gained notoriety in the MSR community.
The main objective of SALIENT-01 is to acquire knowledge and experience with performing a molten salt irradiation, including the design of a rig containing liquid fuel and the handling of fresh and irradiated fuel salts in inert environments.
In a nutshell, mixtures of lithium fluoride and thorium fluoride salts contained in graphite crucibles are exposed to high neutron and gamma radiation levels in the High Flux Reactor in Petten. The radiation starts fission reactions in the sample that provide the heat for the salt sample to melt. For more information on Salient-01 please see.
Salt Waste Treatment
SALIENT-01 was the world’s first MSR-specific fuel salt irradiation experiment in 45 years and has gained notoriety in the MSR community.
The main objective of SALIENT-01 is to acquire knowledge and experience with performing a molten salt irradiation, including the design of a rig containing liquid fuel and the handling of fresh and irradiated fuel salts in inert environments.
In a nutshell, mixtures of lithium fluoride and thorium fluoride salts contained in graphite crucibles are exposed to high neutron and gamma radiation levels in the High Flux Reactor in Petten. The radiation starts fission reactions in the sample that provide the heat for the salt sample to melt. For more information on Salient-01 please see.
Partnerships & collaboration
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Meet the irradiation team
