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TOMSK, Dec 17 – RIA Tomsk. Scientists of Tomsk Polytechnic University will create the pilot heat-allocating element – a fuel briquette - for small thorium reactors in 2016, which will be able to provide remote settlements and mines with cheap heat and the electric power in the future, TASS reports.
It was reported earlier that scientists of the higher education institution develop the concept of nuclear and hydrogen power with use of reactor installations on thorium fuel, but not on uranium, which is used now in nuclear power. The uranium power has shortcomings, including expensive technology and utilization of the spent nuclear fuel (SNF).
© РИА Томск. Павел Стефанский
"We developed technology of release of thorium from ore raw materials and calculated physical and dimensional parameters of thorium installation. We plan to make a fuel briquette next year – thorium fuel element – and to test its neutron physical properties on the basis of our research nuclear reactor", – vice rector of TPU for scientific work and innovations Alexander Dyachenko is quoted.
The vice rector told that small reactor installations on thorium fuel with power about 10 MW could provide the remote settlements and production objects, for example, mines, with warm and the electric power in the long term. And such installation can work without fuel reset about 10 years and even more. "It is, in fact, a huge nuclear battery", – he explained.
As one of perspective fields of rare-earth elements for production of thorium Tuganskoye zircon-ilmenite field near Tomsk is considered. In particular, the first fuel briquette will also be made of thorium from this field.