Preliminary reactor physics analysis of alternative moderators for modular high temperature gas-cooled reactors

Graphite moderated mHTGRs are capable of power production and research applications. These reactors are large and have low power density. Several alternative moderators are showing similar or better performance than graphite-based moderators according to these early stage calculations. These calculations have not been optimized to reflect the characteristics of the moderator, and instead rely on an existing graphite-based mHTGR design. Future studies will focus on the achievable performance with a design optimized for the alternative moderators.