The work was completed in partnership with Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) at the US Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC) in Nevada.
As well as reaching zero-power high-temperature criticality at 663 degrees Celsius, Westinghouse researchers also made a subcritical reactivity measurement at a peak core temperature of 1,011 degrees C, a record high temperature for a reactivity measurement at NCERC. These achievements generated high-quality, temperature-dependent data to further strengthen analytical models and accelerate prototype design, the company said, continuing experimental work which started with eVinci zero-power criticality testing earlier this year and advancing understanding of how the reactor design behaves as representative materials are heated toward operating conditions.
“For nearly a century, Westinghouse pioneers have not waited for the future of nuclear energy – they have engineered it. This milestone brings that same spirit to the eVinci programme,” said Dan Sumner, Westinghouse President and Chief Executive Officer. “Our teams are rapidly building, testing, learning and improving advanced nuclear technologies, turning uncertainty into validated evidence and strengthening the design for a highly-deployable advanced microreactor solution for our customers. We appreciate the strong support of the US Department of Energy, NNSA, Los Alamos National Laboratory and NNSS in helping us advance this important work.”
The eVinci is a heat pipe-cooled microreactor which can produce up to 5 MWe with a 15 MWt core design. The TRISO-fuelled reactor core is designed to run for eight or more full-power years before refuelling, and the factory-built and assembled reactor can be shipped in a container to provide versatile, scalable energy for a variety of applications, including defence and in space.
