BGU receives first US - Israel energy independence grant for light water reactor research

July 15th, 2010

Dr. Eugene Shwageraus, a researcher from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) in Israel, has been awarded a U.S.-Israel Energy Independence Partnership Grant by the U. S.--Israel Binational Science Foundation (BSF). Dr. Shwageraus, along with his research partner Dr. Michael Todosow of the Brookhaven National Laboratory in Long Island, New York, are working on developing a self-sustainable fuel cycle for light water reactors.

The use of nuclear energy will inevitably need to be expanded as a part of the balanced, carbon-emissions-constrained future energy mix alongside the use of renewable energy sources. Current generation light water-cooled nuclear reactors (LWRs) that are cooled and moderated using ordinary water tend to be simpler and cheaper to build than other types of nuclear reactors. They make up the vast majority of civil nuclear reactors and naval propulsion reactors in service throughout the world.

Currently, in order to improve utilization of natural resources, nuclear energy is generated by complex and costly fast breeder reactors (FBR) that can produce new fissile fuel at a rate equal to or higher than that at which the reactor consumes it. "Implementing this kind of self-sustainable operation would eliminate the need for uranium enrichment and would greatly improve the resource utilization," said Dr. Eugene Shwageraus.

The project will address the issue of global energy resource availability by investigating the potential of using known LWR technology in combination with a self-sustainable thorium fuel cycle. Reactors that operate in a self-sustainable thorium fuel cycle can be designed by using existing and well-proven LWR technology. The abundance of thorium in the Earth's crust is estimated to be at least three times that of uranium and will, therefore; extend the available energy resources.

Provided by American Associates, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev