ALFRED reactor coolant system design

Abstract Lead-cooled fast reactors represent the forefront of Generation IV reactor concepts thanks to the technological development that has taken place over the last 20 years. Lead technology is object of steady attention in many Countries thanks to several development projects and an exponentially increasing industrial interest in recent years. One of the most advanced European projects is focused on the development of ALFRED (Advanced Lead-cooled Fast Reactor European Demonstrator) and is supported by the FALCON (Fostering ALfred CONstruction) international consortium. The goal is to construct a technology demonstrator which is also prototypic for a lead-cooled-based small modular reactor. To reach this ambitious goal, an important research, development and qualification infrastructure is planned in Romania, leveraging on the know-how cumulated within European and nationally funded endeavors. In particular, the infrastructure will support the scientific program with experimental campaigns dedicated to bridging the technological and scientific gaps, as well as to support the design and licensing of the reactor. This paper presents the configuration of the ALFRED reactor coolant system showing its present state of development and technological innovations. The current plant architecture provides for a thermal power up to 300 MWth and a coolant temperature range from a minimum of 390 °C to a maximum of 520 °C.