SCK CEN Launches Limets 6 to Advance Lead-Cooled Small Modular Reactor Development
Mol, Belgium – SCK CEN has activated Limets 6, a new test station designed to characterize material performance in liquid lead environments, crucial for the development of its Eagles-300 Small Modular Reactor (SMR). The facility will assess properties like tensile strength and corrosion resistance under conditions mirroring those within the reactor’s lead coolant system.
Limets 6 allows researchers to evaluate how materials – designated X, Y, or Z – behave under load and exposure to liquid lead at 500°C.Data gathered will inform material selection and design choices,reducing uncertainties in the Eagles-300 project.
Testing involves securing material samples within a Test Autoclave, heating them to 500°C in liquid lead, and then subjecting them to tensile or creep tests, stretching the material until failure. A 380°C dump tank,continuously rinsed with hydrogen gas to control oxygen content,safely contains the liquid lead when the autoclave is opened,creating a controlled corrosive environment for long-term exposure studies. Limets 6 can apply forces up to 50 kN to candidate materials.
SCK CEN anticipates the completion of Limets 5 by the end of 2025. This complementary installation will focus on dynamically oriented material properties,examining responses to repeated or sudden loads like vibrations and shocks using a hydraulic piston system.
The Limets facilities – Liquid Metal Test Stations – represent a thorough research program into liquid metal environments.Limets 1, 3, and 4 are dedicated to heavy liquid metal material research, while Limets 2, originally built for PB-LI fusion applications, now supports lead-cooled reactor development.
