Capacity optimization of nuclear power integration to meet dynamic industrial demand
Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: • A nuclear integrated energy system (IES) was designed to provide heat and power to a chemical plant, with microreactors and a thermal energy storage (TES) system. • Synthetic history data was generated using real plant data. • Reactor and thermal energy storage capacities were optimized for this system. • Balance of plant configuration was optimized for a set of microreactors. To decarbonize their industrial facilities, The Dow Chemical Company has collaborated with Idaho National Laboratory (INL) to study the integration of nuclear power with an industrial chemical facility. Using Holistic Energy and Resource Optimization Network developed at INL for optimizing and analyzing integrated energy systems, a nuclear microreactor system was sized and evaluated for dynamic dispatch to Dow Silicones Corporation’s Carrollton, KY (USA) site for siloxane production. It was found that a 180 MW th system (12 × 15MW th ) with 75.1 MWh th of thermal energy storage could provide heat and power to the chemical facilities. In the process, this would reduce electricity imports by 99.9 % and reduce the Scope 1 and 2 emissions of the site by 292,100 t o n n e s C O 2 /yr (98.8 %). The primary novelty of this work is a first of a kind design and optimization of a microreactor powered integrated energy system to provide heat and power to a chemical plant using real plant data. This analysis will pave the way for future studies using dispatchable clean energy sources to reduce carbon emissions and commodity industries’ reliance on fossil fuels.
Authors: Logan Williams, Daniel Mikkelson, Aidan Rigby, Sarah Creasman, Michael Curtis
Institutions: Idaho National Laboratory, Dow Chemical (United States)
Language: English
Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,170
Award: G1187630603
OpenAlex ID: W4409150384