Flow investment places Leeds at the nuclear cutting edge
6 May 2024
The University of Leeds has established itself as a UK leader in the application of nuclear technology in multiphase fluid flow with the creation of the first facility dedicated to the sector.
Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the £3 million facility will play a pioneering role in the development of clean energy systems and the training of the next generation of scientists specialising in this area.
It features a test rig equipped with a molten-salt loop that can reach temperatures of up to 550oC, allowing users to conduct experiments with modern nuclear technology. The pilot system will allow students to carry out research at a scale that equates to a real system, says the university.
They will be able to measure performances for reactors, transportation and separation units and access test bed based on both water and molten chloride flow systems. The university describes its water loop – capable of working with liquid, solids and gas phases, as well as utilising acid – as “probably the most sophisticated in the UK.
Other highlights include the molten-salt loop containing the largest quantity of molten salt of any such facility in the UK, with a window for laser instruments made of sapphire. Second to diamond in terms of hardest natural substance ratings, sapphire withstands temperatures up to 2030 oC with high thermal conductivity.
Associate professor David Harbottle from Leeds’ school of chemical and process engineering remarked:
“As a zero-emission clean energy source, nuclear will be a growing part of the energy mix.
These facilities allow us to train the next generation of scientists and engineers, conducting exciting new research that could help combat climate change, as well as supporting the growing nuclear energy sector.”
His colleague, leadership chair in nuclear process engineering professor Bruce Hanson said: the technology cemented Leeds’ role as the UK’s leading experimental nuclear institution in the field and advancing new-era nuclear research.
Hanson added: “It’s not just cost that is a barrier to building one of these facilities. Very few institutions could do it as it requires extraordinary levels of engineering knowledge and skill.
“Our research team are world experts but there are universities that do not have that expertise, who would still want to use a facility like this, and we can support them with that.”
The EPSRC investment is part of the National Nuclear User Facility (NNUF) project to provide state-of-the-art experimental facilities for research and development in nuclear science and technology.
Pic: Gamuchirai Sibanda
