Date of Award:

8-2024

Document Type:

Thesis

Degree Name:

Master of Science (MS)

Department:

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

Committee Chair(s)

Heilei Wang

Committee

Heilei Wang

Committee

Nick Roberts

Committee

Tiyani He

Abstract

Historically, nuclear reactors have used water for cooling and moderating the nuclear reaction within the core. Advanced generation IV nuclear reactors currently under development are designed with different coolants which enable operation at higher temperatures. A higher operating temperature makes nuclear power suitable for co-located hydrogen production via high temperature electrolysis. Natrium, an advanced reactor design by TerraPower and GE Hitachi, combines a sodium fast reactor with molten salt thermal energy storage. The work presented in this thesis models and analyzes three Natrium systems which integrate hydrogen production with the Natrium nuclear power plant. The first two configurations focus on improving thermal efficiency of the electricity generation while the third and final configuration improves hydrogen production efficiency. A techno-economic analysis of the Natrium system with co-located hydrogen production in three US locations (California, Texas, and Midwest states) determines the economic benefits of hydrogen production and storage coupled with the Natrium design. Results indicate that coupling the Natrium system with hydrogen production can boost thermal efficiency of the Natrium steam cycle by 1%, and using steam from the steam cycle as feedstock for hydrogen production increases overall system efficiency by 3%. The economic analysis demonstrates that integrating the Natrium system with hydrogen production enhances the economic viability, particularly in regions with less volatile and lower electricity prices. Incorporating hydrogen storage into the system enhances plant flexibly, which is advantageous in volatile electricity markets. In addition, hydrogen production and storage offer economic stability in markets with volatile electricity prices due to its constant price and production rate.

Checksum

2e32cb4a7ed145fbcfc5df3d3d60bf47

Download

Share

COinS

Copyright for this work is retained by the student. If you have any questions regarding the inclusion of this work in the Digital Commons, please email us at .