燃料从“铀”到“钍”！我国实现钍基熔盐堆研发突破

Core Insights - The 2 megawatt liquid fuel thorium-based molten salt experimental reactor, led by the Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences, has achieved thorium-uranium fuel conversion, marking the first time in the world that experimental data has been obtained from a thorium molten salt reactor after operation, establishing it as the only operational molten salt reactor utilizing thorium fuel globally [1][4] Group 1 - Thorium is a weakly radioactive silver metal that naturally occurs in rocks, and the thorium-based molten salt reactor is a fourth-generation advanced nuclear energy system that uses thorium as fuel and high-temperature molten salt as a coolant, offering advantages such as no water cooling, operation at atmospheric pressure, and high-temperature output [1][4] - This technology aligns with China's abundant thorium resources and can deeply integrate with solar energy, wind energy, high-temperature molten salt energy storage, high-temperature hydrogen production, and coal-to-chemical industries, constructing a low-carbon composite energy system with multi-energy complementarity [1] Group 2 - The development of the thorium molten salt reactor began in 2011 with the launch of a pilot technology project by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, which gathered a collaborative innovation team to overcome various technical challenges and achieve significant advancements from laboratory research to experimental reactor engineering validation [4][5] - The experimental reactor construction started in January 2020, achieving full power operation in June 2024, and completed the world's first thorium addition to a molten salt reactor in October 2024, establishing a unique research platform for molten salt reactors and thorium-uranium fuel cycles [4][5] - The team aims to build a 100 megawatt thorium-based molten salt reactor demonstration project by 2035, accelerating technology iteration and engineering transformation to provide a safe and reliable new path for thorium-based energy generation in the country [5]