Those looking for an overview of nuclear reactors with greater detail about small and micro modular reactors (SMRs and MMRs) and Saskatchewan’s role in the supply chain and fuel cycle learned a lot from
the presentation done by Dr. Esam Hussein, P.Eng.
He is a Professor and former Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Regina.
Nuclear reactors are considered carbon-free and provide reliable baseload power, making them attractive options for places, such as Saskatchewan, which are considered small to medium energy jurisdictions.
Before describing the types of reactors that exist, Hussein provided some basic knowledge about fission splitting the uranium atom, criticality as well as the types of reactors – thermal and fast fission. He said there are 422 nuclear reactors in operation in the world and 56 reactors under construction in China and India, according to the Power Reactor Information System (PRIS) database.
Hussein explained that how much energy small reactors (SMRs), Micro Modular Reactors (MMR) or very small modular reactors (vSMR) generate. He also explained that modular reactors aim to reduce the cost and construction time of developing a nuclear reactor. In March 2022, the Saskatchewan government announced a joint strategic plan along with the governments of Ontario, New Brunswick and Alberta outlining the path forward on small modular reactors (SMRs).
He provided information about the eleven SMR/MMR systems for which vendors currently have pre-licensing engagements with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. These 11 include the GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy MWRX-300, which SaskPower announced in June 2022 it had selected for potential deployment in Saskatchewan in the mid-2030s after completing a thorough assessment of several Small Modular Reactor (SMR) technologies. Ontario Power Generation (OPG) also selected the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 for their Darlington New Nuclear Project in Ontario. He explained it is a boiling water reactor (BWR) with a light water coolant and neutron moderator that is inherently safe. He said there are a good number of these types of reactors in the world, so there is a lot of operating experience available to those who choose them.
Another system he explained was the eVinci micro-reactor. In May 2022, the Saskatchewan Research Council (SRC) and Westinghouse Electric Canada signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to advance very small modular reactors (vSMRs), also known as micro-reactors, in Saskatchewan. They said at that time they would jointly develop a project to locate that type of reactor in Saskatchewan for the development and testing of industrial, research, and energy use applications.
Hussein explained the applications for SMRs and MMRs. These applications include being used as part of the grid or off-grid to generate electricity for remote communities. They can be used for district heating or process heat for industry. They can be used to produce hydrogen or desalinate seawater. They can be nuclear spent-fuel burners or nuclear-fuel breeders. They can provide baseload energy for renewables and serve as a backup to them. They can become part of a microgrid or an aggregation that a community chooses.
He explained that all nuclear power plants in Canada require a license from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission proving that they meet requirements, provide safety measures, that their safety systems are technically and scientifically sound and undertake appropriate measures to protect people, security the environment and meeting international obligations. He reviewed the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s Design requirements for new nuclear power plants, outlining the three phrases.
To conclude, he went through what he sees as Saskatchewan role in the supply chain and fuel cycle, particularly northern Saskatchewan. The province is the world’s second largest uranium producer (Kazakhstan is first) but produces the world’s highest grade triuranium octoxide (U3O8). Saskatchewan has a role in the frontend of the fuel cycle (which is mining and milling, conversion, enrichment, and fabrication) as well as the backend (which is the temporary storage, reprocessing, and recycling before the waste produced is disposed.)
He said reactors could benefit northern Saskatchewan. Indigenous communities. MMRs are an application that can be used for remote communities and mining operations, such as those in Northern Saskatchewan, where the Canadian Shield could be used to locate spent fuels.
