We embrace key design innovations to enable product-based standardization while accommodating coal fleet and heat source diversity. These include automated design, seismic isolation, ‘kit-of-parts’-based design, standardization of supporting systems across multiple heat source vendors, and a ‘universal adaptor’ heat transfer and storage system. These innovations enable a licence once, build many approach, and complete reusability of the design for each site, each time.
Terra Praxis is leading a world-class consortium in developing the standardized physical system designs and project delivery tools for coal plant owners to rapidly repower their coal-fired power plants with advanced heat sources, such as small modular reactors, that can be delivered as standardized modules from the manufacturer. These technologies can provide clean, affordable, and reliable electricity to billions of people worldwide while limiting the disruption to communities by sustaining and growing local jobs and community tax revenues associated with existing plants.
Seismic variations usually require site-specific design which can be costly. Our partners at the University at Buffalo are global experts on nuclear plant seismic isolation. They have found that separating the reactor building from the building’s foundation via seismic isolation allows for a reusable building design across multiple sites of varying seismic risk. It enables the plant to be designed for a range of seismic conditions and licensed once, allowing for a rapid roll-out.
We are designing the plant so that there is a clear demarkation of what needs to be in a safety-grade building and what does not. This enables the use of commercial-grade building systems for the non safety grade systems.
Thermal energy storage de-links the new heat island safety case from the existing power island, enabling flexible generation and continued use of the balance of plant. The molten salt storage tanks shown here are part of a standardized but customizable heat transfer and storage system. A range of advanced heat sources can be housed in a standardized building and connected to steam generators by a molten-salt-based thermal transport system. The building-integrated reactor system can be configured for a variety of site layouts, energy, and heat demands. Standardization and reduction in design work enables higher volume manufacturing for all aspects of the plant, and delivers significant cost reductions.
Generators and cooling systems are likely to be reusable. The installed base of coal power plant steam turbines varies. The range of advanced heat sources varies as well. The EVALUATE application makes initial assessments of what combinations of heat sources and existing steam turbines allow for steam turbine reuse.
Existing coal plant grid connections are extremely valuable assets. They greatly simplify the deployment of repowered coal plant electric power generation.
TerraPraxis has partnered with Bryden Wood to design a standardized, modular building system, benefitting from the design innovations of seismic isolation and separation of the heat island from the power source. The system is designed with a technology-agnostic approach to accommodate a wide range of advanced heat sources, allowing customers to choose from a wide range of advanced heat sources, including light water reactors (LWRs) that are available today, or advanced fission and fusion heat sources, that are projected to be available in the late 2020s.
The REPOWER system includes the development of digital solutions for swift and cost-effective licensing, permitting, and fleet-wide feasibility studies to lower development risk and stimulate investment.
PLANTTARGET COST IS $2,000/kWe
Our REPOWER cost target is $2,000/kWe. This can be achieved through key design and delivery innovations shown in the figure. This includes: reuse of the existing power island; a standardized completed design, which eliminates hundreds of millions of dollars of design engineering each time; standardized licensing applications; a 'kit-of-parts' approach which radically lowers construction complexity, duration, and supervision requirements; and a manufacturing-based supply chain, enabling highly productive use of labor and multiple suppliers for all components.
TARGET SCHEDULE IS 5 YEARS
By starting with a completed and licensed standardized design, a project can be rapidly adapted to meet plant and site requirements. Repower customers will have access to automated design tools to eliminate years of design engineering work in a typical project. Site licensing and permitting is reduced by template-based standardized applications. Construction schedule is greatly reduced and simplified by the 'kit-of-parts' approach, which is designed for high quality manufacture and rapid assembly onsite. Mechanical and electrical systems will arrive at the site in relatively complete modules and pre-commissioned. These best practices - proven and demonstrated in other complex and high performance industries - will eliminate more than 7 years from a conventional power plant project schedule.
TARGET RISK: STANDARD COMMERCIAL RISK
All projects have risks, but attractive projects have low, and well-defined risks, with well-understood and effective ways of managing the remaining risk. The REPOWER consortium is focused on eliminating and reducing risks BY DESIGN, and using best practices from other industries.
Interacting through the platform brings the following benefits to all the parties: reduce transactions costs, access to much larger market, real time market intelligence, higher productivity, faster cycle time, reduced sales costs, etc.
PLANT OWNERS
To avoid spending years and millions of dollars on feasibility studies, coal plant owners can use our application EVALUATE to quickly assess project feasiblity, cost and time.
Investors
Our global coal plant data allow investors to assess & opportunities and make investment decisions.
Designers
Designers can develop options by using standardized components, and generate comprehensive information for review and construction. (DESIGN application coming in 2023)
Suppliers
Offers open access to global suppliers, allowing them to offer goods, services, equipment, manufactured components, etc.
Heat Source Vendors
Vendors supply factory built Advanced Heat Source modules, using tools to deliver to a pipeline of future projects.
Assemblers
Contractors provide assembly services, using tools to see which services are required where and when.
Operators
Operators deliver heat as a service to their customers.
Regulators
Regulators review and approve more simply and quickly, using tools that receive the necessary information, to easily validate preapproved systems on each project.