Thorium fuel cycle is a potential way to produce long term nuclear energy with low radio-

toxicity waste. In addition, the transition to thorium could be done through the incineration of
weapons grade plutonium (WPu) or civilian plutonium.
Thorium is three times more abundant in nature compared to uranium and occurs mainly as
‘fertile’ 232Th isotope. From the inception of nuclear power programme, the immense potential of
232
Th for breeding human-made ‘fissile’ isotope 233U efficiently in a thermal neutron reactor has
been recognized.

A nuclear reactor consumes certain specific fissile isotopes to produce energy. The three most
common types of nuclear reactor fuel are:

• Uranium-235, purified (i.e. "enriched") by reducing the amount of uranium-238 in natural

mined uranium. Most nuclear power has been generated using low-enriched uranium (LEU),
whereas high-enriched uranium (HEU) is necessary for weapons.
• Plutonium-239, transmuted from uranium-238 obtained from natural mined uranium.
• Uranium-233, transmuted from thorium-232, derived from natural mined thorium, which is
the subject of this article.

IMPLEMENTATION SCENARIOS AND OPTIONS

3.1. Open and closed thorium fuel cycles

Large scale utilization of thorium for nuclear power is possible only with the introduction of an
additional step of first converting the ‘fertile’ 232Th into the ‘fissile’ 233U.

• ‘Open’ fuel cycle based on irradiation of 232Th and in situ fission of 233U, without involving
chemical separation of 233U.

• ‘Closed’ fuel cycle based on chemical reprocessing of irradiated thorium or thorium based fuels
for recovery of 233U and refabrication and recycling of 233U bearing fuels.

3.1.1. Open fuel cycle

The open fuel cycle avoids the engineering processes and other complications associated with
reprocessing and refabrication of highly radiotoxic 233U–based fuels. An example of thorium
utilization in the once-through mode is the Radkowsky concept of light water reactor (LWR),
which is also applicable to fit the Russian WWER–T (thorium) reactor concept. The essence of
the core layout of such a concept is that each fuel assembly (FA) is made up of a central seed
with fissile material (medium enriched uranium, plutonium) and thorium blanket. Separation of
seed and blanket, optimization of moderator (water) to fuel ratio and the very long fuel campaign
(900 and 2620 effective for seed and blanket respectively) offer possibility of such a system up
to ~40 % of power to be defined by fission of 233U. Such ‘open’ fuel cycle concept for
introducing thorium in nuclear power reactor is very attractive. A direct replacement of low
enriched uranium oxide fuel is possible by mixed thorium plutonium oxide fuel without any
major modifications of core and reactor operation. The 240Pu isotope, present in significant
quantities in civilian grade plutonium, is a good burnable absorber.

3.1.2. Closed fuel cycle

Reprocessing of irradiated Th–based fuels and separation of converted 233U are necessary steps
of closed fuel cycle. In this case, LWRs like WWER-1000 using mixed thorium plutonium oxide
fuel can be considered as a converter for 233U. For recycling the 233U thus formed in LWRs (like
WWER 1000), an important factor is the 232U content in 233U. The two recycling options are as
follows:

• The use of (232Th–233U)O2 fuel.

• The use of (Depleted U–233U)O2 or (Reprocessed U from WWER–233U)O2.

In the first option, there will be build-up of 232U in 233U in subsequent cycles whereas with the
use of reprocessed uranium, two ‘dirty’ uraniums would be utilized in the same technology.

Second, the use of depleted/reprocessed uranium in combination with 233U is strictly speaking
not pure thorium cycles since 235U is also being used along with 233U and there is a build up of
239
Pu from the conversion of 238U. In addition, recycling of 233U with 232U does not utilize the
main advantages of thorium fuel cycle

The thorium fuel cycle is a nuclear fuel cycle that uses an isotope of thorium, 232Th, as
the fertile material. In the reactor, 232Th is transmuted into
the fissile artificial uranium isotope 233U which is the nuclear fuel. Unlike natural uranium,
natural thorium contains only trace amounts of fissile material (such as 231Th), which are
insufficient to initiate a nuclear chain reaction. Additional fissile material or another neutron
source is necessary to initiate the fuel cycle. In a thorium-fuelled
reactor, 232Th absorbs neutrons to produce 233U. This parallels the process in uranium breeder
reactors whereby fertile 238U absorbs neutrons to form fissile 239Pu. Depending on the design of
the reactor and fuel cycle, the generated 233U either fissions in situ or is chemically separated
from the used nuclear fuel and formed into new nuclear fuel.
The thorium fuel cycle has several potential advantages over a uranium fuel cycle, including
thorium's greater abundance, superior physical and nuclear properties,
reduced plutonium and actinide production,and better resistance to nuclear weapons
proliferation when used in a traditional light water reactor though not in a molten salt reactor

Thorium as an energy source

Thorium As Nuclear Fuel.

Thorium is a basic element of nature, like Iron and Uranium. Like Uranium, its properties allow
it to be used to fuel a nuclear chain reaction that can run a power plant and make electricity
(among other things). Thorium itself will not split and release energy.

Types of thorium-based reactors

Reactors able to use thorium

There are seven types of reactor into which thorium can be introduced as a nuclear fuel. The first
five of these have all entered into operational service at some point. The last two are still
conceptual:
Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs): These are well suited for thorium fuels due to their
combination of: (i) excellent neutron economy (their low parasitic neutron absorption means
more neutrons can be absorbed by thorium to produce useful U-233), (ii) slightly faster average
neutron energy which favours conversion to U-233, (iii) flexible on-line refueling capability.
Furthermore, heavy water reactors (especially CANDU) are well established and widely-
deployed commercial technology for which there is extensive licensing experience.
High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors (HTRs): These are well suited for thorium-based
fuels in the form of robust ‘TRISO’ coated particles of thorium mixed with plutonium or
enriched uranium, coated with pyrolytic carbon and silicon carbide layers which retain fission
gases. The fuel particles are embedded in a graphite matrix that is very stable at high
temperatures.
Boiling (Light) Water Reactors (BWRs): BWR fuel assemblies can be flexibly designed in
terms of rods with varying compositions (fissile content), and structural features enabling the
fuel to experience more or less moderation (eg, half-length fuel rods). This design flexibility is
very good for being able to come up with suitable heterogeneous arrangements and create well-
optimised thorium fuels.
Pressurised (Light) Water Reactors (PWRs): Viable thorium fuels can be designed for a
PWR, though with less flexibility than for BWRs. Fuel needs to be in heterogeneous
arrangements in order to achieve satisfactory fuel burn-up.
Fast Neutron Reactors (FNRs): Thorium can serve as a fuel component for reactors operating
with a fast neutron spectrum – in which a wider range of heavy nuclides are fissionable and may
potentially drive a thorium fuel.
Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs): These reactors are still at the design stage but are likely to be
very well suited for using thorium as a fuel. This liquid serves as both heat transfer fluid and the
matrix for the fissioning fuel. The fluid circulates through a core region and then through a
chemical processing circuit that removes various fission products (poisons) and/or the valuable
U-233.
Accelerator Driven Reactors (ADS): The sub-critical ADS system is an unconventional
nuclear fission energy concept that is potentially ‘thorium capable. Spallation neutrons are
produced when high-energy protons from an accelerator strike a heavy target like lead. These
neutrons are directed at a region containing a thorium fuel.
Possible benefits
The World Nuclear Association explains some of the possible benefits

• Thorium is three times as abundant as uranium and nearly as abundant as lead and gallium in
the Earth's crust.
• The thorium fuel cycle offers enormous energy security benefits in the long-term – due to its
potential for being a self-sustaining fuel without the need for fast neutron reactors.
• Separating the uranium-232 from the uranium-233 proved very difficult, although
newer laser techniques could facilitate that process.
• There is much less nuclear waste—up to two orders of magnitude less. The radioactivity of
the resulting waste also drops down to safe levels after just a one or a few hundred years
• Thorium fuel cycle is a potential way to produce long term nuclear energy with low radio-
toxicity waste. In addition, the transition to thorium could be done through the incineration
of weapons grade plutonium (WPu) or civilian plutonium.
• Since all natural thorium can be used as fuel no expensive fuel enrichment is
needed. However the same is true for U-238 as fertile fuel in the uranium-plutonium cycle.
• Liquid fluoride thorium reactors are designed to be meltdown proof.
• Mining thorium is safer and more efficient than mining uranium. Thorium's
ore monazite generally contains higher concentrations of thorium than the percentage of
uranium found in its respective ore
• Thorium mining is also easier and less dangerous than uranium mining, as the mine is an
open pit—which requires no ventilation, unlike underground uranium mines,
where radon levels can be potentially harmful.

Possible disadvantages
Some experts note possible specific disadvantages of thorium nuclear power:

• Breeding in a thermal neutron spectrum is slow and requires extensive reprocessing. The
feasibility of reprocessing is still open.
• Significant and expensive testing, analysis and licensing work is first required, requiring
business and government support.
• There is a higher cost of fuel fabrication and reprocessing than in plants using traditional
solid fuel rods.
• Thorium, when being irradiated for use in reactors, makes uranium-232, which emits
dangerous gamma rays.