OVERVIEW OF FUTURE-DEVELOPMENT OF FAST-NEUTRON REACTORS

The sustainability of nuclear power generation is an important objecti ve for world energy development. This goal requires maintaining the op tion of fast neutron breeder reactors. The main challenge is to have b reeder technology ready for the day when massive deployment maybe need ed. To this purpose, the construction of several prototypes is likely to be insufficient. More extensive operating experience with fast neut ron reactors is necessary. This may be achieved by promoting near-term applications of fast neutron reactors, using their remarkable flexibi lity which makes it possible to burn, store, or breed plutonium. These applications, the CAPRA project and the CAPTURE concept, in addition to accomplishing specific near-term objectives, can yield indispensabl e experience for reliable future breeder deployment. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.