- #1
essenmein
- 657
- 294
I've been thinking about molten salt reactors a fair bit here and there, and one thing that I keep wondering about is how do they start?
Ie How does one take a system of pipes, pumps heat exhangers etc, filled with a solid salt at room temp, to melt that salt, and then operate?
Or is the thing drained before shut down and to start it a vat heated up and then the reactor refiled?
Either way just the CTE stresses must be crazy.
My google foo has failed me... Any insight into how this is done and how they mitigate for example problems from thermal gradients would be interesting to know about!
Ie How does one take a system of pipes, pumps heat exhangers etc, filled with a solid salt at room temp, to melt that salt, and then operate?
Or is the thing drained before shut down and to start it a vat heated up and then the reactor refiled?
Either way just the CTE stresses must be crazy.
My google foo has failed me... Any insight into how this is done and how they mitigate for example problems from thermal gradients would be interesting to know about!