Dive deep into the inner workings of the SFR-1000. Discover how liquid metal, fast neutrons, and natural thermodynamics power the Swedish grid.
Unlike pressurized water reactors that pipe highly pressurized water across the facility, the SFR-1000 contains its entire primary coolant system—1,250 tonnes of liquid sodium—inside a single, unpressurized stainless steel pool.
Three massive primary pumps and six Intermediate Heat Exchangers (IHXs) are suspended directly into this pool. This localized design drastically eliminates the risk of primary coolant loop leaks, ensuring unparalleled safety.
The sheer volume of sodium provides a massive heat sink. The core takes hours to heat the pool even a few degrees during a total power loss.
Because sodium boils at 881°C, the reactor operates at normal atmospheric pressure, completely removing the risk of explosive depressurization.
In standard reactors, water slows down (moderates) neutrons. The SFR-1000 uses sodium, allowing neutrons to travel at unmoderated "fast" speeds. This fast spectrum enables the reactor to fission isotopes that other reactors consider to be nuclear waste.
Our two-zone homogeneous core is loaded with Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel. Consisting of 81,571 annular fuel pins, the core sustains a continuous 160-day effective full-power cycle, extracting exponentially more energy from less material.
Inspired by the legendary BN-600, our secondary loops transfer heat to water via three massive Steam Generators. Each generator is divided into 8 distinct sections. If a leak is detected by our micro-acoustic sensors, a single section can be isolated, drained, and purged with nitrogen in under 60 seconds—all while the reactor remains at 95% power.