Reactor design of UPR-1: A MW-level reactor for unmanned underwater vehicle propulsion using low-enriched uranium

Unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) are being used for many civil and military applications. Power sources with longer life are required for deployment in UUVs. Unlike conventional power sources, nuclear reactor with longer life can be considered for such application. In the present paper, a MW-level Lead-cooled reactor is proposed for UUV power source. Low enriched UO₂ core with 10 EFPY life is considered for the present design. Various core configurations have been considered to obtain the final optimized design. This design satisfies the required criteria. Enough excess reactivity with adequate shutdown margin is ensured to run the system for its design life. The shielding performance has also been evaluated to show the feasibility of nuclear source in a compact unmanned facility.