Past exam of the MPhil in nuclear energy course of the University of Cambridge / 2021 / Module NE4 / 1 / c

Use the recovered uranium inventory, rather than the initial fuel mass, as the recycle feed. Its available mass isAssuming the same enrichment tails assay and the specified higher recycled-fuel assay, the isotopic mass balance givesTreat this fuel as replacing the same heavy-metal mass of ordinary fresh fuel: the stipulated higher uranium-235 content compensates for uranium-236. The displaced natural feed isabout 12.63% of the once-through natural-uranium requirement. The residual natural feed demand is $286.052\mathrm{t}\mathrm{U}\mathrm{y}{\mathrm{r}}^{-1}$.

For separative work accounting defineUsing kilograms in this expression gives kg-SWU. For ordinary fresh fuel the work per product kilogram isThe fresh work avoided by substituting $P_r$ is $23896.3\mathrm{kg}\text{-}\mathrm{SWU}\mathrm{y}{\mathrm{r}}^{-1}$, but producing that recycled product still requiresHence the net saving isThe work saving is only about 0.786% of the original annual separative work. Crediting the whole avoided fresh-fuel work without charging the recycle work would substantially overstate the saving. This is an annual resource account at the supplied assays, with no isotope-separation equipment model.