Recently, as carbon-neutral energy sources become increasingly important worldwide, SMRs (Small Modular Reactors), which offer significantly enhanced safety, versatility, and mobility compared to conventional nuclear reactors, are gaining attention as a viable alternative. SMR generally refers to small modular reactors with a power output of 300 MWe or less. Unlike conventional reactors, SMRs are characterized by an all-in-one design where peripheral systems and equipment are all integrated into the reactor itself, leading to enhanced reliability and durability. Additionally, the nuclear fuel reloading cycle is significantly extended compared to traditional reactors, resulting in a substantial reduction in maintenance difficulty and costs. Researchers have taken note of these characteristics of SMRs, particularly the extended fuel reloading cycle. Therefore, we have initiated the initial design of an ultra-small Micro Modular Reactor with an electricity generation capacity of 10 MWe and a fuel cycle of up to 55 years, with the goal of using it as a propulsion power source for various transportation modes, especially ships. Our design of MMR, called ‘ARA,’ is primarily distinguished by its use of U233 and Th232 fuels instead of conventional UO2 fuel. Due to various features of ‘ARA,’ including different fuel compositions, ARA is predicted to exhibit several characteristic features compared to conventional PWRs. In this study, among these characteristics, we focused on predicting changes in material composition within the fuel rod during the extended cycle operation of high-enriched fuel, rather than short-cycle operation using low-enriched fuel, unlike conventional reactors. The primary goal of this research is to observe the behavior of the composition of the materials used in the fuel cycle of the MMR, which utilizes U233 and Th232 fuels instead of UO2. Considering the difficulties in the spent nuclear fuel disposal process, many different trials were made to minimize the fission products of ARA, which differs from conventional reactors in terms of fuel type, size, and fuel cycle, in relation to waste generation.

To rationalize the protection of spent nuclear fuel transport storage cask, we intend to investigate the status of domestic and foreign safety regulations and related technologies to develop sabotage scenarios and analyze the protection performance and radiation impact of transport storage cask. It is essential to conduct an aircraft collision safety evaluation on spent nuclear fuel transportation and storage casks in Korea due to changes in laws and regulations related to nuclear power plant design and demand for enhanced safety. Domestic and foreign research on the protection performance of spent nuclear fuel transport storage cask was based on 9.11 events, and the results of all studies show that the speed of the aircraft and leakage of nuclear materials are insignificant. The Sandia National Laboratory (SNL) calculates Aerosol emissions from spent fuel damage in the event of sabotage and calculates Source Term based on the Durbin-Luna model. In this paper, radiation sensitivity analysis was performed due to damage to the carrier according to the size of the accident, assuming that there was a hole enough to basket from the external shell among the collision scenarios identified for domestic cask models.

본 연구에서는 향후 역삼투식 해수담수화 기술의 에너지 효율을 개선하기 위한 3가지 방법을 제안한다. 그리고 제안된 방법이 적용되었을 때, 이론적인 최대 에너지 소모량 감소를 엑서지 분석을 통해 산출하고 현재 개발되고 있는 기술을 분석해서 실질적으로 각 방법에서 에너지 소모량이 얼마나 감소될 수 있는지를 비교하고 분석한다. 이러한 논의를 통해서 향후 역삼투 공정의 에너지 소모량이 얼마나 더 감소할 수 있을지에 대한 가능성을 평가할 수 있고 나아가서 역삼투 해수담수화 플랜트의 에너지 소모량을 낮추는 명확한 아이디어를 제공할 수 있다.

본 연구는 역삼투 해수담수화 플랜트의 실 데이터 분석을 통해 에너지 소모를 줄이는 방안을 제안한다. 이를 위해 10,000m3/d 이상의 플랜트를 대상으로 70여개의 데이터를 수집하고 분석하였다. 역삼투 해수담수화 플랜트의 에너지 소모는 에너지회수장치 발전으로 인해 크게 감소하였으나 각 요인에 따라 다른 값을 보였다. 에너지 소모는 유입수 수질에 영향을 받고, 높은 수질의 생산수를 얻기 위해선 더 많은 에너지가 소모됨을 확인하였다. 또한, 플랜트 규모가 커지면 에너지 소모가 줄어든다고 알려져 있으나 반드시 그런 것은 아니며, 역삼투시스템 운영 시 에너지 소모가 최소가 되는 회수율이 있음을 알아냈다. 마지막으로 에너지 소모와 관련된 요인을 정리하고 이를 바탕으로 저에너지 소모를 위한 3가지 방안을 제시한다.