High-temperature reactors

At the start of its development in the 1950s, nuclear power generation was marked by a profusion of ideas aimed at improving the physical characteristics and performance of reactors. The combination of the core's three main components - the fuel (type, enrichment), the moderator (liquid, solid or non-existent) and the coolant (liquid or gaseous coolant) - has led to a wide range of solutions, some with very specific characteristics. Such is the case of high-temperature reactors, known by the acronym HTR (High Temperature Reactors), whose refractory core and inert gas coolant enable very high temperatures to be reached.

In power generation applications, these temperature levels lead to interesting steam cycle efficiencies and even enable direct cycle operation (gas turbine, § 5.3 ). In heat-generating applications, industries requiring high temperatures may be interested in this type of reactor.