Scientists in Germany have researched a novel method to convert spent nuclear fuel into low-carbon electricity. A feasibility study by the Technical University of Dresden outlines plans for a pioneering recycling reactor called DEMO.
“High-level radioactive waste is considered one of humanity’s most dangerous legacies,” said the research team. “In order to get to the root of this problem, the TUD is planning to build the experimental recycling reactor DEMO.”
The project proposes a molten salt reactor that can consume spent fuel on site. If the project succeeds, it could make Germany’s search for a deep geological repository obsolete. According to the proposal, this could potentially save the country 50 billion euros ($56 billion) under the federal site selection law.
Bypassing a dangerous method
The proposal focuses on a method called transmutation without reprocessing. Conventional nuclear recycling relies on complex chemical processes to extract usable materials from radioactive rods.
Dresden’s design avoids this danger by placing high-level waste – including spent fuel and vitrified materials – directly into liquid salt carriers without traditional chemical reprocessing.
Neutron bombardment splits heavy nuclear waste into lighter elements in the reactor. Most of these remaining fission products decay to safe levels within decades rather than millennia. Since the remaining waste is predominantly short-lived, the team argues that this would circumvent the strict long-term storage regulations required by German federal law.
The energy potential contained in these reserves is considerable. Researchers have calculated that waste stored in Germany contains enough usable energy to meet the equivalent of 300 times the country’s annual electricity needs. In addition to clean heat, the reactor would produce vital medical radionuclides for cancer therapies and provide technical data for advanced nuclear fusion research.
A non-commercial research institution
In order to overcome the political hurdles surrounding nuclear energy in Germany, the Dresden team designed the DEMO reactor based on the existing nuclear law. Current laws prohibit commercial nuclear energy and chemical fuel reprocessing.
However, DEMO is a purely non-commercial research facility with a thermal output of 50 megawatts. Because it does not separate nuclear fuel and generate no commercial electricity, planners say it is legally possible to build under current law.
“The DEMO project was strategically designed to allow construction in accordance with the current Atomic Energy Act (AtG), as it does not involve commercial power generation or nuclear fuel reprocessing,” emphasized the research team.
Strategic leadership for advanced nuclear recycling
The project requires an estimated public investment of 1.95 billion euros. The development and construction period is five years, followed by a 20-year operational period. The authorities are already examining three potential locations in Saxony: the VKTA research campus in Rossendorf and two important industrial transformation centers in Lusatia, Schwarze Pumpe and Boxberg.
If the experimental phase proves physics, researchers hope that changed regulations will allow commercial transmutation plants to feed the grid by 2045. For Saxony, the project offers a strategic opportunity to advance advanced nuclear recycling and transform a costly environmental crisis into an exportable global industry.
“The aim is to secure Europe’s energy independence and competitiveness while promoting broad public and political acceptance by solving or mitigating the problem of final disposal of radioactive waste,” the team concluded.
