Nuclear demonstration program of hydrogen production using the HTTR; HTTR-IS program

Sakaba, Nariaki ; Sato, Hiroyuki  ; Ohashi, Hirofumi ; Tachibana, Yukio ; Kunitomi, Kazuhiko 

Japan Atomic Energy Agency launched the HTTR-IS program which is a nuclear hydrogen production demonstration program using the Japan's first high-temperature gas-cooled reactor HTTR in 2005. It is expected to be the world's first demonstration of nuclear hydrogen. The candidate system of the hydrogen production is a thermochemical water splitting iodine sulphur process (IS process). The thermochemical water splitting process can produce massive quantity of hydrogen without carbon dioxide greenhouse gas emission. This paper focused on the key issues to be developed for the IS process to couple with the HTTR (HTTR-IS system). The key issues to be established are the safety philosophy for non-nuclear grade system as a conventional chemical system and simplification of the plant for an economic competitiveness. The conceptual safety study for non-nuclear system was carried out. The key elements were proposed which can exempt the IS process from "Prevention System 3" and identify abnormal events initiated from the IS process as external events. Also, the conceptual design study for integration of the components such as a Bunsen reactor and a sulphuric acid decomposer was carried out. Reduction of number of components was proposed by coupling with some of equipment. The proposed philosophy and its supporting technologies are expected to contribute economically for the commercialization of nuclear hydrogen.