摘要
高通量堆是核科技工业领域重要的辐照试验平台和基础研究设施,在工业、农业、医疗等领域发挥着不可替代的作用。中国高通量堆设计研发始于20世纪60年代,高通量工程试验堆(HFETR)、中国先进研究堆(CARR)、中国绵阳研究堆(CMRR)等高通量堆为核能与核技术发展、国民经济建设作出了重要贡献。然而,中国现有高通量堆与国际先进水平仍存在显著差距,主要体现在中子注量率、辐照能力、配套设施、应用领域等方面,制约了战略关键技术的发展。该文归纳了高通量堆的主要技术特征,分析了中国高通量堆的设计研发和应用现状,并从创新驱动、统筹规划、开放共享3个方面对中国高通量堆的发展战略进行了展望。最后指出,通过技术改造升级和资源整合,同步开展新型高通量堆设计研发,可进一步提升中国高通量堆的技术水平和先进性,为核能与核技术发展提供有力支撑。
[Significance]High flux reactors are research reactors characterized by ultrahigh neutron flux levels(typically ranging from 10^(14) to 10^(15) n/(cm^(2)·s)or higher).These devices primarily generate neutron irradiation for fundamental and applied research,including nuclear fuel and material irradiation testing,radioisotope production,and neutron science experimentation.They serve as critical irradiation testing platforms and fundamental research devices in nuclear science and technology,playing an indispensable role in industry,agriculture,and medical applications.This study systematically examined the technical attributes of high flux reactors and comprehensively reviewed China's achievements in high flux reactor design,technological development,and multipurpose utilization.[Progress]Diverging from nuclear power reactor designs that focus on optimizing energy conversion efficiency and operational stability,high flux reactors aim to maximize neutron fluxes in irradiation channels,providing a technical foundation for fundamental and applied research while achieving optimal neutron economy.Key technical domains in high flux reactor development include reactor core configuration design,primary process system engineering,irradiation facility integration,and auxiliary system optimization.China's activities of high flux reactor development commenced in the 1960s,leading to landmark achievements,including the development of the High Flux Engineering Test Reactor,China Advanced Research Reactor,and China Mianyang Research Reactor.These facilities have achieved critical technological breakthroughs and diversified applications,contributing considerably to national nuclear energy advancement and socioeconomic development.The modern design philosophy of high flux reactors emphasizes advanced technology integration,functional versatility,and environmental sustainability.Design optimization focuses on enhancing reactor performance metrics while maintaining safety-economy balance and operational flexibility.Nevertheless,China's current high flux reactor designs show discernible limitations compared with international benchmarks,particularly in neutron flux intensity.For instance,the current maximum thermal neutron flux generated is≤1.5×10^(15) n/(cm^(2)·s),which limits the production of rare nuclides,such as 252Cf,249Bk,and 253Es,through long transmutation chains and Pu/Am/Cm target irradiation.Further,insufficient irradiation testing capabilities in representative fast-neutron spectrums hinder the development and qualification of nuclear fuel and materials for Gen-IV advanced nuclear energy systems.Limitations are also observed in terms of irradiation capacity,auxiliary systems(e.g.,deficiency in post-irradiation processing and radiochemical separation facilities),and application diversity.These limitations constrain the progress of strategic nuclear science and technology frontiers,including advanced nuclear material development,high-specific-activity radioisotope production,and cutting-edge neutron science research.[Conclusions and Prospects]Strategic recommendations for China's high flux reactor development activities are proposed considering three aspects:innovation-driven technological upgrading to improve pivotal technical parameters and reactor performances,coordinated infrastructure planning to achieve the efficient utilization of irradiation resources,and open-resource sharing mechanisms to better drive the development of nuclear technology and related industries.Through technical upgrading and resource integration along with parallel research efforts in next-generation high flux reactor designs,which can substantially enhance technological sophistication and competitiveness,such initiatives are expected to provide robust support for nuclear energy innovation and nuclear technology advancement.
作者
李健
徐伟
解衡
石磊
LI Jian;XU Wei;XIE Heng;SHI Lei(Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology,Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Nuclear Energy Technology,Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education,Tsinghua University,Beijing 100084,China;School of Nuclear Science and Engineering,Beijing Key Laboratory of Passive Safety Technology for Nuclear Energy,North China Electric Power University,Beijing 102206,China)
出处
《清华大学学报(自然科学版)》
北大核心
2026年第2期388-397,共10页
Journal of Tsinghua University(Science and Technology)
基金
“十四五”国家重大科技基础设施宽能谱超高通量试验堆项目。
关键词
高通量堆
设计研发
辐照应用
现状与展望
high flux reactor
design and development
irradiation utilization
current status and prospects
