On the use of high-assay low-enriched uranium–thorium fuel cycles in pressurised heavy water reactors.

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Bibliographic Details
Title:	On the use of high-assay low-enriched uranium–thorium fuel cycles in pressurised heavy water reactors.
Authors:	Singh, K. P.¹ kpsingh@barc.gov.in, Thakur, Amit¹, Gupta, Anurag¹
Source:	Current Science (00113891). 1/25/2026, Vol. 130 Issue 2, p126-135. 10p.
Subjects:	Fuel cycle, Mixed oxide fuels (Nuclear engineering), Spent reactor fuels, Burnup (Nuclear chemistry), Nuclear fuels, Pressurized water reactors, Uranium enrichment
Abstract:	High-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel has a 235U enrichment range of 5% to 20%. The Indian 220 MWe pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR-220) uses natural uranium (0.7% 235U and 99.3% 238U) as fuel. The energy extracted per unit mass of fuel or burn-up in these PHWRs is ∼7 GWd/t. In the case of pressurised water reactors (PWRs), which use close to 5% enriched 235U fuel, the burn-up is ∼50 GWd/t. Therefore, the irradiated spent fuel discharged from PHWRs is ∼7 times more than that of PWRs. To reduce the annual spent fuel generation, a HALEU-Th based fuel is being suggested, where HALEU is mixed with Thorium to make a mixed oxide fuel with an average fissile 235U content in the range of 3-4% and with a target discharge burn-up of ∼50 GWd/t, similar to the one attained in standard PWRs. The present article explores the features of the HALEU-Th fuel cycle in 220 MWe PHWRs, based on core-level analysis, to determine the benefits and challenges of transitioning from the NU fuel cycle to HALEU-Th. In addition, the use of slightly enriched uranium (SEU, with ∼1.1% of 235U in U) in PHWRs has also been studied for comparison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database:	Engineering Source

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Abstract:	High-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) fuel has a 235U enrichment range of 5% to 20%. The Indian 220 MWe pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR-220) uses natural uranium (0.7% 235U and 99.3% 238U) as fuel. The energy extracted per unit mass of fuel or burn-up in these PHWRs is ∼7 GWd/t. In the case of pressurised water reactors (PWRs), which use close to 5% enriched 235U fuel, the burn-up is ∼50 GWd/t. Therefore, the irradiated spent fuel discharged from PHWRs is ∼7 times more than that of PWRs. To reduce the annual spent fuel generation, a HALEU-Th based fuel is being suggested, where HALEU is mixed with Thorium to make a mixed oxide fuel with an average fissile 235U content in the range of 3-4% and with a target discharge burn-up of ∼50 GWd/t, similar to the one attained in standard PWRs. The present article explores the features of the HALEU-Th fuel cycle in 220 MWe PHWRs, based on core-level analysis, to determine the benefits and challenges of transitioning from the NU fuel cycle to HALEU-Th. In addition, the use of slightly enriched uranium (SEU, with ∼1.1% of 235U in U) in PHWRs has also been studied for comparison. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:	00113891
DOI:	10.18520/cs/v130/i2/126-135