Molten-salt reactor

A nuclear fission reactor that uses molten salt as fuel, coolant, or both. Its liquid-salt systems distinguish it from reactors that keep fuel in solid pellets or rods.

Liquid-fuel reactor: A nuclear reactor in which fissile material circulates in liquid form rather than remaining in solid fuel elements. Molten-salt reactors with dissolved fissile material are a prominent liquid-fuel design.
Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion program: A United States program that investigated nuclear-powered aircraft from the 1940s through the 1960s. Its reactor studies prompted early work on molten-salt systems suited to high temperatures.
Thorium fuel cycle: A nuclear fuel cycle that converts thorium-232 into fissile uranium-233 through neutron capture and radioactive decay. Molten-salt reactors are often proposed as a way to breed and burn uranium-233 from thorium.
Pressurized water reactor: A nuclear fission reactor that uses pressurized water as both coolant and neutron moderator, with solid fuel assemblies. It contrasts with molten-salt designs in coolant, fuel form, and operating pressure.
Nuclear reactor safety: The design, operation, and regulation of systems intended to prevent or limit harm from nuclear reactors. Liquid fuel changes accident behavior but still requires rigorous safety analysis and containment.
Fuel salt: A molten mixture of carrier salts and dissolved fissile or fertile nuclear material. In liquid-fueled designs, this circulating mixture contains the reactor's nuclear fuel.
Aircraft Reactor Experiment: A 1954 Oak Ridge experiment that operated a circulating-fuel molten-salt reactor using uranium-235. It demonstrated that a molten-salt reactor could sustain fission at high temperature.
Fast-spectrum molten-salt reactor: A molten-salt reactor designed to sustain fission mainly with fast, unmoderated neutrons. Removing the moderator can support different fuel-cycle and waste-management strategies.
Sodium-cooled fast reactor: A fast-neutron reactor that uses liquid sodium as coolant and typically contains solid fuel elements. It offers a liquid-metal alternative to salt cooling while retaining solid fuel.
Corrosion: The chemical or electrochemical deterioration of a material through reactions with its environment. Hot fluoride or chloride salts can attack structural alloys and challenge long-term service.

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