A Comprehensive Review on the Use of Nanoparticles in Nuclear Power Plants

The power generation from nuclear power plants requires high heat transfer from the fuel rods to a fluid that runs through a turbine to generate power. The addition of nanoparticles as heat transfer enhancement agent has been studied to review their performance impacts. Increasing the heat transfer rate lowers the fuel temperature, increases the fluid outlet temperature, and increases the safety margin. The use of nanoparticles has been vastly reported for operational cooling, accident management, and surface modifications. The operational cooling includes internal subchannel flow and annual fuel flow, while pool boiling is reported for external cooling. The accident management studies focus on emergency cooling due to the loss of coolant applications. The surface modification includes nanostructures or particle deposition that increases the area, wettability, and nucleation sites. The stability and impact of nanoparticles on the neutronic operation are also reviewed to ensure that nuclear fission reactions are not disrupted. In general, lower particle concentration has shown to have negligible impact on the neutronic operation while improving the operational performance as well as emergency management.