From conventional nuclear power reactors to accelerator-driven systems

Due to many factors, there is again increase in trend to use the nuclear power for energy production. But spent fuel from nuclear power plants has become one of the crucial problems of nuclear energy exploitation. Some problems attributed to the conventional nuclear power reactors along with their solutions and a historical transition from nuclear power reactors to accelerator-driven systems are briefly reviewed in the present work. It is argued that accelerator-driven systems (ADS), for transmutation of nuclear waste and energy production, are good alternatives to the conventional nuclear power plants. Important differences between the conventional nuclear reactors and the ADS along with the ADS physics are discussed. The ADS is considered to be relatively safe as compared to the other nuclear power reactors commonly in use. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.