Small Reactors to Meet a Diversity of Energy Needs

Call for Papers

The nuclear energy currently being produced throughout the world is supplied primarily to population and industrial centers in developed or large developing countries. In this situation, the principle of economy of scale has led to the current global fleet of large reactors, typically with individual unit outputs of 1,000 MWe or more. To meet future demand for nuclear energy, especially considering possible deployment in developing countries or remote locations with small populations as well as requirements for smaller increments of additional supply for well-developed grids, a different set of needs can be envisioned. In such cases, the demand for additional energy supply may be in relatively small increments, and the necessary infrastructures and existence of a large power grid cannot be assured.

Small reactors have been investigated for many years in several countries throughout the world and by the IAEA, but they have yet to be widely utilized. However, recently in Russia, a floating power station was launched, and construction will soon begin on a LBE-cooled small fast reactor. Small reactor designs have also been pursued by many different countries including Japan, Korea, Argentina, and South Africa. In the USA, several small reactor initiatives, with both industrial and governmental support, have been pursued. Most recently, there have been numerous meetings and conferences on small reactors held in both developed and developing countries.

We invite authors to submit papers describing original research as well as review articles regarding the development of small reactors to meet the broad diversity of needs and applications. We are particularly interested in papers describing new ideas for small simple and safe reactor concepts as well as for new plans for innovative small reactor developments. Potential topics include, but are not limited to:

• New ideas and/or design of small simple and safe reactors
• Small long-life reactors without on-site refueling
• Modular nuclear reactor systems
• Application for district heating, desalination, and other new demands
• Safety and control of small reactors
• Management of small long-life reactors
• Fuel cycle system for small reactors
• Physical protection and nonproliferation implications of small reactors
• Market assessment, deployment, and commercialization plans for small reactors
• Economic viability of small reactors

Before submission authors should carefully read over the journal's Author Guidelines, which are located at http://www.hindawi.com/journals/stni/guidelines/. Prospective authors should submit an electronic copy of their complete manuscript through the journal Manuscript Tracking System at http://mts.hindawi.com/submit/journals/stni/react/ according to the following timetable:

Lead Guest Editor

• Hiroshi Sekimoto, Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, 4173 Etcheverry Hall, MC 1730, Berkeley, CA 94720-1730, USA

Guest Editors

• Vladimir Kuznetsov, International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna International Centre, Wagramerstraße 5, P.O. Box 100, 1400 Vienna, Austria
• Akio Minato, Nuclear Technology Research Laboratory, Central Research Institute of Electric Power Industry, 2-11-1, Iwado-kita, Komae-shi, Tokyo 201-8511, Japan
• Craig F. Smith, Department of Physics, Naval Postgraduate School, 1 University Circle, Monterey, CA 93940, USA