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Integral Molten Salt Reactor

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) is a Generation IV nuclear reactor design developed by Terrestrial Energy, Inc., featuring an integral configuration where the primary system components are housed within a sealed, replaceable core-unit that uses molten fluoride salt as both the carrier for low-enriched uranium fuel and the primary coolant.^[1] This liquid-fueled approach operates at high temperatures around 700°C and near-atmospheric pressure, producing 390 megawatts of electrical power (MWe) from 822 megawatts thermal (MWth) at an efficiency of approximately 47%, significantly higher than traditional light-water reactors.^[1]^[2]^[3] The IMSR employs two thermal-spectrum, graphite-moderated reactors within its core-unit, which has a seven-year operational lifespan before replacement, minimizing downtime and waste through on-site modular exchanges.^[1] Fuel consists of standard-assay low-enriched uranium (SALEU, enriched to under 5% U-235) in the form of uranium tetrafluoride (UF₄) dissolved in the molten salt, avoiding the need for high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) and leveraging existing nuclear fuel supply chains.^[2]^[4] The design's inherent safety stems from the chemical and thermal stability of the molten salt, which remains liquid across a wide temperature range, eliminates high-pressure systems and fuel cladding, and passively drains to a subcritical configuration in emergencies without active intervention.^[1]^[2] Beyond electricity generation, the IMSR's high-temperature output supports diverse industrial applications, including process heat for hydrogen production and petrochemicals, while producing about 40% less nuclear waste than conventional reactors due to its efficient fuel utilization.^[2] It integrates well with renewable energy sources for load-following operations, contributing to decarbonization goals.^[1] As of November 2025, Terrestrial Energy, which went public on the Nasdaq (ticker: IMSR) in October 2025, is advancing IMSR commercialization, with regulatory pre-application activities underway at the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (Phase 2 Vendor Design Review completed in 2023) and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.^[2] A key milestone includes an expanded contract signed in early November 2025 with Westinghouse's Springfields Fuels Limited in the UK for a pilot fuel fabrication plant, where construction is slated to begin in 2026 to produce UF₄ from uranium hexafluoride (UF₆) for IMSR deployment.^[4] Initial commercial rollout is targeted for the early 2030s, with potential sites including Texas A&M University's RELLIS campus as a proving ground.^[2]^[3]

Development History

Early Concepts

The development of molten salt reactor (MSR) technology began at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in the 1950s as part of the U.S. Aircraft Nuclear Propulsion program, which explored high-temperature reactors for aviation applications.^[5] The Aircraft Reactor Experiment (ARE), operational in 1954, was a 2.5 MW thermal test reactor using a molten fluoride salt mixture (NaF-ZrF4-UF4) as fuel, beryllium oxide moderation, and helium cooling, demonstrating short-term operation at elevated temperatures up to 860°C and effective xenon removal from the salt.^[6] This foundational work shifted toward civilian power applications in the late 1950s, leading to the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment (MSRE), a 7.4 MW thermal prototype that achieved criticality on January 1, 1965, and operated until December 1969, accumulating over 13,000 full-power hours.^[7] The MSRE utilized a single-fluid design with lithium-beryllium fluoride salt (LiF-BeF2) carrying uranium tetrafluoride fuel, graphite moderation, and Hastelloy-N structural materials, successfully demonstrating fuel circulation, online processing, and operation with both uranium-235 and uranium-233 fuels, including the first criticality on U-233 in 1968.^[6]^[7] Early MSR research at ORNL addressed significant technical challenges, particularly in maintaining salt chemistry stability and mitigating corrosion under high-temperature, radiation-exposed conditions. Salt purity was essential to prevent impurity activation and degradation, requiring techniques like fluorination and distillation to control redox potential via the UF4/UF3 ratio and limit contaminants such as oxygen to below 100 ppm.^[5] Corrosion posed a major hurdle due to the aggressive nature of fluoride salts, with structural materials needing to withstand temperatures up to 700°C and neutron fluxes; ORNL developed Hastelloy-N, a nickel-molybdenum-chromium alloy modified with 1-2% niobium, which exhibited corrosion rates below 2 μm/year in purified FLiBe salt during MSRE operations, though it was limited by irradiation-induced embrittlement.^[5]^[8] Long-term testing in MSRE flow loops confirmed Hastelloy-N's compatibility, showing chromium depletion depths of 3.5-9 μm after 1,000 hours at 700°C, with carbide formation aiding stability.^[8] In the 1980s and 1990s, conceptual studies by ORNL and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) explored transitions from liquid-fuel MSRs to solid-fuel designs to enhance safety, simplify fuel handling, and address graphite lifetime issues in breeders.^[5] These efforts introduced fluoride salt-cooled high-temperature reactors (FHRs) using TRISO-coated particle fuels in graphite matrices, such as the 1983 pebble-bed FHR concept, which leveraged molten salts for cooling while avoiding liquid fuel complexities like online reprocessing.^[5] By the 2000s, ORNL and IAEA analyses emphasized integral configurations—where core, primary cooling, and intermediate systems are housed in a single vessel—to reduce piping and improve passive safety, building on MSRE's compact layout but adapting it for solid fuels to minimize proliferation risks and operational demands.^[5] A notable concept from this era was the Denatured Molten Salt Reactor (DMSR), proposed by ORNL in the late 1970s and refined through the 1980s under the Nonproliferation Alternative Systems Assessment Program, prioritizing proliferation resistance in response to U.S. policies limiting weapons-usable materials.^[9] The DMSR featured a once-through thorium-uranium fuel cycle using denatured uranium-238 (20% enriched U-235) in molten LiF-BeF2-ThF4-UF4 salt, with no fissile separation or reprocessing, resulting in a small, low-quality plutonium inventory (334 kg at end-of-life) embedded in highly radioactive salt that deterred diversion.^[9] Designed for 1 GWe output over 30 years with a graphite-moderated core and Hastelloy-N components, it achieved a conversion ratio of 1 while enabling continuous operation without graphite replacement, influencing later integral MSR studies.^[9]^[5]

Terrestrial Energy Initiative

Terrestrial Energy was founded in late 2012 by David LeBlanc, a nuclear physicist and former professor at Carleton University, who drew inspiration from the molten salt reactor experiments conducted at [Oak Ridge National Laboratory](/page/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) in the 1960s.^[10]^[11] The company, based in Ontario, Canada, aimed to commercialize advanced nuclear technology based on LeBlanc's prior research into simplified molten salt reactor designs. Initial funding came from Canadian private investors, including early support from the oil sands sector to explore applications for high-temperature industrial heat.^[12] By 2014, Terrestrial Energy had filed patent applications in 59 countries for its Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR), with key U.S. patents published in 2015 detailing an integrated core-unit configuration.^[13] The design incorporates a graphite moderator, fluoride-based molten salt as coolant operating at near-atmospheric pressure, and low-enriched uranium in the form of uranium tetrafluoride (UF₄) dissolved in fluoride-based molten salt, enabling a thermal-spectrum, burner-type reactor.^[14] These patents emphasized a replaceable core-unit housing the reactor vessel, heat exchangers, and control rods, designed for a 7-10 year operational life before removal as a sealed waste form.^[13] Early IMSR variants focused on scalability for power generation and cogeneration, with the primary IMSR 400 targeting approximately 440 MW thermal output and up to 195 MWe electrical capacity at 44% efficiency, leveraging the low-pressure molten salt system for enhanced safety and simplicity.^[15] By 2016, Terrestrial Energy had advanced to initial computational simulations and prototype studies, including neutronics modeling with Monte Carlo methods and thermal-hydraulics analyses to validate core behavior and heat transfer in the IMSR design.^[16] These efforts built on the patented integral concept to demonstrate feasibility for commercial deployment.^[17]

Milestones and Recent Advances

In 2017, Terrestrial Energy was selected for the U.S. Department of Energy's Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) program, awarding the company a voucher to partner with Argonne National Laboratory on verifying molten salt properties at high temperatures to support IMSR development.^[18] From 2020 to 2023, Terrestrial Energy advanced its regulatory efforts by completing Phase 2 of the pre-licensing vendor design review with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), with the review concluding in April 2023 that the IMSR design raised no insurmountable obstacles to licensing.^[19] In 2024, the company deepened its pre-application engagement with the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) toward design certification, building on prior interactions to address key safety and licensing topics for the IMSR.^[20] Key developments in 2025 further propelled IMSR commercialization. In June, Terrestrial Energy announced a collaboration with Ameresco to develop and deploy IMSR plants, leveraging Ameresco's expertise in energy systems integration for customized applications in data centers and industrial sectors.^[21] On November 5, it signed an expanded contract with Westinghouse for a pilot IMSR fuel plant at the Springfields site in the UK, covering deconversion, fabrication, packaging, and transport, with construction slated to start in 2026.^[22] On November 13, the company bolstered its U.S. team by appointing Jim Howe as Vice President of Government Relations and David O'Keefe as Vice President of Business Development and Project Management to expedite commercialization efforts.^[23] On October 28, 2025, Terrestrial Energy completed a business combination with HCM II Acquisition Corp., becoming publicly traded on the Nasdaq under the ticker "IMSR".^[3] On November 4, the company appointed Sarfraz M. Taj as Vice President of Business Development.^[24] On November 14, Terrestrial Energy was selected for the U.S. Department of Energy's Reactor Pilot Program, designating its project as "Project Tetra" for a 195 MWe IMSR demonstration.^[25] Terrestrial Energy targets commercial operation of the first IMSR plants in the early 2030s, aligning with ongoing regulatory and supply chain advancements.^[26]

Design Principles

Integral Configuration

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) features an integral design in which the primary coolant loop, reactor core, and heat exchangers are fully integrated within a single prestressed concrete vessel, eliminating extensive external piping and thereby minimizing leak risks associated with interconnecting components. This architecture houses all critical primary systems in a compact, sealed core-unit, which includes the graphite moderator, liquid fuel salt, primary pumps, shutdown rods, and heat transfer surfaces, allowing for natural circulation of the molten salt coolant under normal and transient conditions.^[14]^[15] The prestressed concrete vessel provides structural integrity and containment for the core-unit, operating at near-atmospheric pressure of approximately 0.1-0.2 MPa to reduce mechanical stresses and accident-related pressure buildup. This low-pressure environment, combined with the vessel's robust construction, supports passive safety by limiting the need for active intervention during off-normal events and containing fission products within a smaller volume. The integral setup also reduces the overall material inventory required for the primary system, enhancing constructibility and operational simplicity.^[5]^[15] In contrast to loop-type molten salt reactors, which rely on multiple external loops and pumps for coolant circulation, the IMSR's integral configuration avoids such components, resulting in lower system complexity, decreased potential failure points, and improved passive safety through inherent compactness. This design facilitates simplified maintenance, as the entire core-unit can be prefabricated off-site and replaced as a module after its operational lifespan, typically seven years, without extensive on-site disassembly. By concentrating primary functions within the vessel, the IMSR achieves greater inherent stability and reduced radiological exposure risks during servicing compared to non-integral molten salt designs.^[14]^[5]

Molten Salt Fuel and Coolant

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) utilizes a molten fluoride salt that serves dual roles as the primary coolant and the carrier for dissolved nuclear fuel, enabling efficient heat transfer and fission in a low-pressure environment. The fuel salt composition is based on a denatured fluoride mixture, such as 46 mol% NaF–33 mol% RbF–21 mol% UF₄, where low-enriched uranium tetrafluoride (UF₄, enriched to approximately 2–5% ²³⁵U) is fully dissolved to form the fissile component. This design draws from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory's denatured molten salt reactor (DMSR) concept, avoiding the need for expensive ⁷Li-enriched lithium or beryllium while supporting proliferation-resistant operation.^[27]^[28]^[29] The molten salt exhibits favorable thermophysical properties suited for high-temperature applications, with a melting point of approximately 470°C for the NaF-RbF-UF₄ mixture and a boiling point exceeding 1400°C, which minimizes vapor pressure and enhances safety during operation. Its specific heat capacity is around 1.4 kJ/kg·K, and thermal conductivity is approximately 1 W/m·K, facilitating effective heat removal and enabling core outlet temperatures of 600–700°C for efficient power generation or industrial process heat. These properties, combined with the salt's low viscosity (about 10–12 cP at operating temperatures), support natural circulation in certain modes and high thermal efficiency. The salt's low neutron absorption cross-section—achieved through careful selection of components like sodium and rubidium fluorides—helps maintain a thermal neutron spectrum moderated by graphite, though it is higher than in beryllium-based salts.^[27]^[5]^[29] The dissolved fuel form allows for continuous online refueling and burnup extension without mechanical fuel handling, supporting uranium fuel cycles with potential adaptation for thorium by adding ThF₄ to breed ²³³U. This liquid fuel configuration contrasts with solid-fuel reactors, providing inherent fuel shuffling and fission product management through salt chemistry.^[17]^[28] Corrosion management is critical due to the aggressive nature of fluoride salts at high temperatures, addressed through the use of highly purified salts to minimize impurities like oxides and moisture, which are removed via hydrofluorination processes. Compatible structural materials, such as modified Hastelloy N (a nickel-molybdenum alloy with added niobium for tellurium resistance), are employed for the reactor vessel, piping, and heat exchangers, demonstrating corrosion rates below 0.1 mm/year under controlled redox conditions maintained by trace UF₃. This approach ensures long-term integrity of components exposed to the salt over the reactor's 7–30 year core life.^[27]^[29]^[5]

Core Components

The core of the Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) consists of graphite moderator blocks arranged to form channels through which the liquid fuel salt flows, establishing a thermal neutron spectrum essential for efficient fission with low-enriched uranium. These moderator blocks facilitate the circulation of the molten salt, enhancing heat transfer while maintaining neutron moderation and optimizing power density within the sealed core unit.^[5]^[30] Integrated primary heat exchangers are embedded directly in the core unit to extract thermal energy from the circulating fuel salt, preventing the need for external piping that could compromise safety. An intermediate salt loop, utilizing a composition such as NaF-KF, circulates between the primary heat exchangers and the secondary steam generator, ensuring isolation from water circuits to avoid potential steam reactions. This design leverages the high thermal conductivity of the intermediate salt for efficient heat transfer at temperatures exceeding 600°C.^[31]^[28] Reactivity control in the IMSR core relies on shutdown rods containing neutron absorbers such as boron carbide, which provide rapid negative reactivity insertion when required. These absorbers are deployed via gravity-driven or buoyancy mechanisms, enabling passive operation without reliance on active power systems during transients. The core supports continuous fuel salt circulation and burnup over its 7-year operational lifespan before the entire core-unit requires replacement.^[30]^[5]^[27]

Operational Features

Fuel Cycle and Refueling

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) utilizes a once-through fuel cycle based on low-enriched uranium (LEU) dissolved as uranium tetrafluoride (UF<sub>4</sub>) in a fluoride-based molten salt, such as lithium-beryllium fluoride (LiF-BeF<sub>2</sub>) or sodium-rubidium fluoride (NaF-RbF).^[27] This design draws from denatured molten salt reactor (DMSR) concepts, incorporating thorium optionally alongside LEU to enable a thorium-uranium cycle, where thorium-232 serves as a fertile material for breeding uranium-233.^[27] The initial core loading employs LEU enriched to less than 5% uranium-235, with subsequent makeup fuel ranging from 5% to 19.9% enrichment added periodically to compensate for burnup without requiring on-site reprocessing.^[27] The cycle achieves superior fuel economy compared to light-water reactors, utilizing approximately one-sixth the uranium resource while maintaining a low conversion ratio of 0.1-0.2, emphasizing efficient burning over full breeding.^[27] Refueling in the IMSR occurs without full plant shutdown, enabling continuous operation through an integral core-unit replacement strategy. Every seven years—or within a 3-7 year operational window—the entire core unit, encompassing the vessel section containing the graphite-moderated pebble bed, molten salt fuel, pumps, heat exchangers, and control rods, is removed as a sealed assembly.^[30] This process utilizes a large overhead gantry crane within the reactor auxiliary building to lift the spent unit from its operating vault and transfer it to an adjacent pre-loaded vault housing a fresh core unit, minimizing downtime to weeks rather than months.^[30] The design alternates between two vaults per reactor module, allowing one unit to operate while the other is serviced or staged.^[30] Following removal, the spent core unit undergoes initial cooldown in a designated holding area before being placed into one of six on-site storage silos within the reactor auxiliary building for decay heat management over the plant's remaining lifetime.^[30] The irradiated fuel salt is drained from the unit into dedicated fuel salt storage tanks, where it is cooled and frozen solid at temperatures around 200°C or higher to prevent radiolysis and ensure stable long-term storage without complex processing.^[30] This approach simplifies waste handling, as the frozen salt blocks contain the fission products and actinides in a compact form suitable for eventual disposal or future recycling.^[30] Proliferation resistance is a core feature of the IMSR fuel cycle, achieved through denatured molten salts that mix any bred uranium-233 with uranium-238, ensuring isotopic compositions unsuitable for weapons-grade material extraction.^[27] Plutonium isotopes produced during operation exhibit high concentrations of even-numbered isotopes (Pu-240 and Pu-242), further deterring misuse, while the absence of on-site salt separation eliminates opportunities for diversion.^[17] The reliance on standard LEU inputs aligns with international safeguards protocols, enhancing overall non-proliferation credentials.^[32]

Heat Management and Power Output

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) employs a multi-loop heat transfer system to efficiently manage thermal output from the core and convert it to electrical power, leveraging the high-temperature capabilities of molten salts for enhanced performance. For the IMSR 400 configuration, each core-unit delivers a thermal output of 442 MWth, allowing a standard plant with two units to achieve approximately 884 MWth total while operating at a net thermal efficiency of 44%. This efficiency is realized through a high-temperature superheated steam Rankine cycle, with steam generated at 550–600°C, significantly higher than conventional light-water reactors.^[30]^[14] Heat generation occurs in the primary loop, where molten fluoride fuel salt circulates through the graphite-moderated core, entering at approximately 620°C and exiting at 700°C to balance fission energy capture with component durability and minimize thermal stress. The integral design positions primary heat exchangers (PHX) within the reactor vessel, where the hot primary salt transfers energy to a non-radioactive intermediate secondary coolant salt loop via shell-and-tube exchangers. This secondary salt then flows to secondary heat exchangers (SHX), also shell-and-tube type, which convey heat to a tertiary salt loop before reaching the steam generators.^[30]^[33]^[27] In the power conversion process, the tertiary salt heats water in shell-and-tube steam generators to produce superheated steam that drives a conventional turbine-generator system, yielding 195 MWe net per unit or 390 MWe for the full plant. Auxiliary systems, including pumps and controls, enable a 95% capacity factor, supporting reliable baseload electricity generation with minimal downtime beyond the 7-year core-unit replacement cycle.^[30]^[34]

Cogeneration Capabilities

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) features a dual-output design that enables the simultaneous production of electricity and high-temperature process heat, extracted primarily from an intermediate coolant loop to support diverse industrial needs. The standard IMSR plant configuration delivers a total thermal capacity of 822 MWth, allowing flexible allocation between electrical generation (up to 390 MWe) and process heat output, with the latter capable of reaching significant scales depending on operational priorities.^[31]^[35] This cogeneration approach integrates seamlessly with industrial sectors requiring reliable, high-grade heat, such as chemical manufacturing and district energy systems. In June 2025, Terrestrial Energy partnered with Ameresco to advance IMSR deployments tailored for applications including district heating and chemical processing, leveraging the reactor's modular design for customized, zero-carbon energy solutions at industrial sites across the United States.^[36] The collaboration emphasizes the IMSR's ability to hybridize with existing infrastructure, providing dispatchable heat to enhance energy efficiency in energy-intensive processes. Cogeneration in the IMSR yields substantial efficiency gains by converting otherwise low-value waste heat into useful thermal output, achieving overall plant utilization rates that exceed those of power-only modes—typically around 44% thermal efficiency for electricity generation alone—through the capture and application of high-temperature energy.^[31] Process heat is delivered via steam or a tertiary molten salt loop at temperatures up to 585°C, enabling advanced applications like carbon-free hydrogen production (with potential yields of up to 265 tonnes per day per plant via thermochemical processes) and synthetic fuel synthesis.^[37] This temperature range also supports petroleum refining and desalination, positioning the IMSR as a versatile heat source for decarbonizing heavy industry.

Safety Characteristics

Passive Cooling Systems

The passive cooling systems in the Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) rely on inherent physical processes to remove decay heat without requiring active mechanical intervention, leveraging the low-pressure operation of the molten salt fuel and coolant. During normal operation and transients, natural circulation—driven by thermosiphon effects in the low-viscosity fluoride salt—facilitates convective mixing within the core-unit, transferring heat from the fuel salt to the graphite moderator and subsequently to the reactor vessel wall via conduction. This heat is then dissipated to the environment through the Integral Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (IRVACS), a fully passive setup that employs radiation, natural convection, and a closed-cycle natural circulation loop to reject heat to ambient air, ensuring continuous operation without electrical power or pumps.^[15]^[30]^[32] The IRVACS is specifically sized to handle decay heat levels equivalent to 1-2% of full thermal power following shutdown, providing indefinite cooling capability even under loss-of-offsite-power or loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) scenarios, as the system's design maintains fuel salt temperatures below structural limits without core damage. The high heat capacity of the molten salt (approximately 1.5-2 kJ/kg·K) and the graphite moderator (around 1.7 kJ/kg·K) imparts substantial thermal inertia, offering a grace period of several hours during which temperatures rise gradually, allowing passive mechanisms to stabilize the system without operator action. This inertia, combined with the salt's chemical stability and boiling point exceeding 1400°C, supports robust heat management under adverse conditions.^[30]^[38]^[39] Safety analyses, including evaluations submitted to regulatory bodies and confirmed by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission's (NRC) approval of the IMSR's Principal Design Criteria in September 2025, demonstrate that the IMSR's passive cooling features prevent vessel overpressurization or fuel salt freezing in the core during design-basis accidents, enabling safe operation for extended periods without active systems. These analyses, informed by thermal-hydraulic modeling, demonstrate that natural circulation and IRVACS alone suffice for decay heat removal, aligning with the reactor's integral configuration to minimize accident risks. As of November 2025, recent submissions such as the August 2025 report on postulated initiating events further support these findings.^[38]^[15]^[40]^[41]

Control and Shutdown Mechanisms

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) achieves reactivity control primarily through inherent physical properties of its design, leveraging a strongly negative temperature coefficient of reactivity that ensures intrinsic stability during normal operations. This coefficient, arising from fuel salt density changes, Doppler broadening, and graphite moderator temperature effects, ranges from -5 to -11 pcm/°C across operating conditions, providing rapid negative feedback to suppress power excursions without active intervention.^[42] Long-term reactivity is managed by periodic additions of low-enriched uranium (LEU) makeup fuel salt, typically at a rate of about 0.5 m³ per week, to compensate for fission product buildup and maintain criticality over the core's operational life.^[30] For shutdown, the IMSR incorporates two independent, diverse systems to achieve subcriticality swiftly and reliably as defense-in-depth measures. The primary system consists of buoyancy-driven shutdown rods containing neutron absorbers, which insert passively into the core upon loss of power or scram signal, relying on the higher density of the rods compared to the surrounding molten salt for gravity-assisted deployment in seconds.^[42]^[30] The secondary system involves temperature-induced injection of neutron-absorbing poisons, such as gadolinium fluoride (GdF₃) or europium fluoride (EuF₃) eutectic salts stored in reservoirs that melt and release at elevated thresholds, further enhancing shutdown margin to a guaranteed subcritical state (k_eff ≈ 0.9).^[42] These mechanisms, combined with the negative reactivity coefficient, ensure shutdown without reliance on external power or operator action, aligning with the reactor's passive safety philosophy.^[32] Monitoring systems support both normal and shutdown operations through redundant instrumentation integrated into the reactor vessel. In-core neutron detectors continuously measure flux and power distribution to detect anomalies and inform automated responses, while salt flow sensors track circulation rates via the primary pumping system for reactivity and thermal balance assessment.^[30] A criticality accident alarm system (CAAS), employing 3-4 organic scintillator detectors with a voting logic, provides additional oversight for potential reactivity insertions.^[30] In normal operation, the IMSR demonstrates load-following capability without control rods or soluble poisons, adjusting power output through variations in salt pump speed to modulate flow rates and secondary coolant/feedwater conditions, supported by the inherent negative temperature coefficient for stable response to demand changes.^[30]^[5] This approach simplifies operations compared to solid-fuel reactors, as short-term reactivity adjustments occur naturally via thermal feedback rather than mechanical or chemical shims.^[32]

Containment and Accident Mitigation

The containment structure for the Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) consists of a steel enclosure that forms a sealed, low-leakage boundary surrounding the reactor vessel, fuel salt storage tanks, and associated transfer lines.^[43] This design operates at a slightly negative pressure relative to the surrounding reactor vault to direct any potential leaks inward, minimizing radiological releases during normal operations and severe accidents.^[43] The containment is engineered to withstand design-basis pressure transients and includes provisions for leakage rate testing to ensure integrity, with the guard vessel serving as an additional barrier to retain any leaked fuel salt in beyond-design-basis events.^[30] In IMSR accident scenarios, the absence of high-pressure water in the primary system eliminates the risk of steam explosions, a common concern in light-water reactors.^[44] The molten salt fuel and coolant, operating at approximately 700°C, exhibit low volatility due to the salt's high boiling point around 1400°C, which prevents significant vaporization or airborne release even under upset conditions. This inherent property of the fluoride-based salt enhances confinement by limiting the dispersion of radioactive materials.^[45] Fission product retention in the IMSR relies on the fuel salt itself as a primary barrier, where most radionuclides remain dissolved or chemically bound within the stable, inert liquid matrix.^[45] Gaseous fission products, such as xenon and krypton, are continuously separated and stored in a dedicated gas holding tank for the reactor's operational life, preventing their accumulation and release.^[46] The salt's high retention capability for non-volatile fission products, including cesium and iodine, provides an additional layer of protection, with the containment structure acting as a secondary barrier to further isolate any potential leaks from the environment.^[17] Ongoing research addresses challenges such as material corrosion from the hot, corrosive molten salts and long-term fission product behavior to further enhance safety.^[47] Severe accident analyses for the IMSR demonstrate robust mitigation through passive systems, particularly during station blackout events where external power is unavailable. The Internal Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (IRVACS) removes decay heat via natural convection and radiative transfer to the atmosphere, maintaining core-unit integrity without operator intervention or electrical power.^[43] Probabilistic risk assessments indicate that anticipated operational occurrences, design-basis accidents, and beyond-design-basis accidents do not lead to containment boundary failures or off-site radiological releases exceeding regulatory limits, as affirmed by the NRC's 2025 approval of principal design criteria.^[30]^[41] These features ensure that even in prolonged station blackout scenarios, the multi-barrier approach confines fission products effectively, supporting the IMSR's inherent safety profile.

Economic and Commercial Aspects

Cost Structure

The capital costs for the first-of-a-kind (FOAK) Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) are estimated at approximately $5,000 per kilowatt electric (kWe), reflecting the initial engineering, licensing, and construction expenses for a 390 MWe unit.^[48] These costs are projected to decrease to around $3,000/kWe for nth-of-a-kind (NOAK) units through standardized factory production, enabling economies of scale and reduced site-specific fabrication.^[49] Overall, the total capital investment for a single IMSR plant is anticipated to range from $1 billion to $2 billion.^[50] Operational costs for the IMSR are notably low, driven by efficient fuel utilization and minimal maintenance requirements inherent to the molten salt design. Fuel costs benefit from high burnup rates that extend the fuel cycle to seven years without refueling shutdowns.^[49] Operations and maintenance (O&M) expenses are low due to passive safety features that reduce staffing needs.^[48] The levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) for the IMSR is forecasted at 4-6 cents per kilowatt-hour (¢/kWh), making it competitive with natural gas combined-cycle plants due to the reactor's 60-year operational life and 95% capacity factor.^[49]^[34] Key factors influencing these projections include salt purification processes and waste handling, which are important for managing fission products and maintaining salt integrity.^[49]

Modularity and Deployment

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) design emphasizes modularity to facilitate efficient manufacturing and installation, with key nuclear components such as the core-unit and primary vessel prefabricated in controlled factory environments. This approach ensures high-quality construction, standardization, and reduced on-site labor, allowing the prefabricated modules to be transported via truck, rail, or sea to the deployment site.^[51]^[35] The IMSR core-unit, in particular, is compact and transportable, enabling its complete replacement every seven years without extensive site disruption.^[48] Factory fabrication significantly shortens the overall plant assembly timeline compared to traditional nuclear reactors. An IMSR plant can be assembled on-site in under four years from module delivery, less than half the typical 8-10 years required for conventional large-scale reactors, due to the off-site completion of most complex welding and testing.^[52] This modular strategy minimizes weather-related delays and supports rapid deployment for industrial or grid applications. The IMSR's scalability allows multiple 195 MWe units to be combined into larger plants, such as a 390 MWe facility with two units, enabling customization to match power demands while leveraging shared infrastructure for efficiency. Fleet deployment of standardized IMSR units across multiple sites further lowers costs through economies of scale in manufacturing and supply chain optimization.^[51]^[48] IMSR plants require a compact site footprint, approximately 300 m by 200 m (about 15 acres) for a 390 MWe configuration, making them suitable for brownfield or industrial locations with limited land availability. Unlike many traditional reactors, the IMSR supports dry air-cooling options, eliminating the need for large water bodies or extensive cooling infrastructure and enhancing siting flexibility in arid or water-scarce regions.^[53]^[48] The deployment model for initial IMSR units involves vendor oversight, where the technology provider manages core-unit replacement, fuel handling, and waste accumulation to ensure seamless operation and regulatory compliance. Over time, this transitions to customer-led control, allowing operators to maintain full ownership while benefiting from the vendor's established supply chain for periodic core refits.^[35]^[51]

Market Opportunities

The Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) presents significant opportunities in industrial heat markets, where its ability to deliver high-temperature process heat at up to 585°C positions it as a viable carbon-free alternative for energy-intensive sectors. In oil sands upgrading, the IMSR can supply thermal energy at a levelized cost below $6/MMBtu, supporting extraction and upgrading processes that currently rely on natural gas and contribute substantially to emissions in regions like Alberta, Canada.^[37]^[54] For cement production, the reactor's heat output enables clinker formation with emissions reduced to under 5 g CO2e/kWh, compared to 825 g CO2e/kWh for coal-based systems, addressing the sector's high thermal demands while facilitating decarbonization.^[37] Additionally, partnerships such as the 2024 collaboration between Terrestrial Energy and Schneider Electric aim to integrate IMSR technology into data centers, providing reliable, low-cost zero-emission power and cooling to meet surging demands from AI and computing infrastructure.^[55]^[56] In remote and developing regions, the modular design of the IMSR enables deployment of compact units for off-grid power and heat, ideal for isolated applications such as mining operations and island communities where grid extension is impractical. With a plant footprint of approximately 7 hectares for a 390 MWe configuration, these reactors can operate independently, delivering flexible energy solutions without the need for frequent refueling.^[31] The IMSR's fuel cycle supports operational lifetimes exceeding 30 years, minimizing logistical challenges in such areas by reducing the frequency of fuel resupply and enhancing long-term reliability.^[31] In October 2025, Terrestrial Energy became publicly traded on Nasdaq, raising approximately $280 million to advance IMSR commercialization.^[57] The IMSR contributes to global decarbonization efforts by serving as a replacement for coal and gas in electricity grids and industrial processes, aligning with projections for nuclear energy's expansion to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. According to IAEA assessments, nuclear capacity must more than double from current levels to 890 GW(e) by mid-century in a high-growth scenario, with advanced reactors like molten salt designs playing a key role in providing clean baseload power and heat to displace fossil fuels.^[58]^[59] This includes supporting synergetic energy systems that integrate nuclear output with renewables, reducing reliance on intermittent sources while addressing the 55% cut in coal-fired generation needed by 2030.^[60] Export potential for the IMSR is enhanced by its non-proliferation design features, including a sealed core-unit that circulates fuel and coolant internally without extraction, producing only short-lived fission product waste and minimizing proliferation risks associated with reprocessing.^[61] This makes it appealing for emerging nuclear markets in Southeast Asia, where countries seek secure, scalable technologies for energy security amid rapid economic growth and commitments to low-carbon transitions, with initial international deployments targeted for the early 2030s.^[31]^[62]

Regulatory Status

Licensing Efforts

The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) completed Phase 1 of its pre-licensing vendor design review for Terrestrial Energy's Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) in 2018, followed by the completion of Phase 2 in April 2023.^[26]^[63] This multi-year review process assessed the IMSR's design, safety features, and regulatory compliance, concluding with no fundamental barriers identified to proceeding toward a full licensing application.^[64] Terrestrial Energy is now advancing preparations for a licensing submission to the CNSC as part of broader commercialization efforts.^[65] In August 2025, Terrestrial Energy was selected for the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Reactor Pilot Program (Project Tetra), which aims to expedite the demonstration of advanced reactors, including the IMSR, with a goal of achieving initial criticality by July 2026.^[25] In the United States, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) initiated pre-application engagement with Terrestrial Energy USA in October 2019 to review key aspects of the IMSR design.^[20] This process intensified in subsequent years, including collaborative reviews with the CNSC under a 2019 memorandum of cooperation.^[66] A significant milestone occurred in September 2025, when the NRC issued a safety evaluation approving the IMSR's principal design criteria, including its inherent reactor power control mechanisms based on molten salt physics.^[67] Terrestrial Energy is pursuing standard design approval under 10 CFR Part 52, Subpart E, with ongoing topical reports supporting a design certification application planned for the fourth quarter of 2027.^[68]^[69] The technical foundation for IMSR licensing relies on a risk-informed, performance-based framework that highlights the reactor's passive safety characteristics, such as natural circulation cooling and inherent shutdown mechanisms without active intervention.^[20] Probabilistic risk assessments (PRA) for the design underscore the low probability of severe accidents.^[46] This approach integrates insights from the IMSR's safety characteristics, enabling streamlined regulatory reviews by focusing on event sequences and mitigation rather than prescriptive rules. Licensing the IMSR faces challenges related to the novel use of molten salts as both fuel carrier and coolant, necessitating new regulatory codes for handling, corrosion management, and waste processing.^[70] Material qualification under high-temperature, radiation-exposed conditions requires extensive testing to establish performance data compliant with ASME codes and NRC guidelines, as existing standards for solid-fuel reactors do not fully address salt chemistry interactions.^[71] These issues are being addressed through targeted research and pre-application submissions to develop technology-neutral criteria for molten salt systems.^[72]

International Collaborations

In 2025, Terrestrial Energy, the developer of the Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR), signed an expanded manufacturing and supply contract with Westinghouse Electric Company's UK subsidiary, Springfields Fuels Limited, for the design and construction of a pilot fuel fabrication plant at the Springfields site.^[4] This initiative supports the UK's advanced nuclear strategy by enabling domestic production of IMSR fuel salt, with construction slated to begin in 2026 and initial operations targeted for the late 2020s, positioning the technology for potential fleet-scale deployment in the UK's clean energy transition.^[73] Beyond the UK, international interest in the IMSR has grown through the Generation IV International Forum (GIF), where Terrestrial Energy joined as an associate member in 2019 to collaborate on molten salt reactor research.^[74] GIF, comprising members including China, the European Union, and other nations, facilitates shared R&D on advanced reactor systems, with Terrestrial Energy hosting the GIF Molten Salt Reactor steering committee meeting in 2022 to advance common technical challenges.^[75] This framework has fostered interest from Chinese and EU entities in IMSR-like designs for their Generation IV programs, emphasizing enhanced safety and efficiency.^[76] In Canada, potential demonstrations of the IMSR target the Alberta oil sands region, where high-temperature cogeneration capabilities align with decarbonizing steam-assisted gravity drainage operations. Terrestrial Energy signed a memorandum of understanding with Invest Alberta in 2022 to accelerate IMSR commercialization, building on studies highlighting the reactor's suitability for replacing natural gas in oil sands extraction.^[54] A 2025 feasibility study further confirmed the economic viability of small modular reactors like the IMSR for powering oil sands facilities, potentially reducing emissions while supporting energy-intensive processes.^[77] Key supply chain collaborations include a 2021 agreement with Orano for IMSR fuel supply, encompassing uranium enrichment, conversion to fluoride salt form, and transportation logistics, leveraging Orano's expertise in low-enriched uranium handling.^[78] This partnership was validated in 2022 through successful evaluations of fuel packaging and transport, confirming compatibility with existing nuclear industry standards.^[79] The IMSR's design incorporates proliferation-resistant features, such as the use of standard assay low-enriched uranium (around 5% U-235) in a sealed, integral system that minimizes material handling and diversion risks, aligning with International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards requirements.^[80] This IAEA-compliant architecture, which avoids on-site reprocessing and employs passive monitoring, facilitates international export approvals by demonstrating robust non-proliferation measures.^[5]

Future Deployment Plans

Terrestrial Energy anticipates the initial international rollout of Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) cogeneration plants beginning in 2030, with the first commercial deployments targeted for the early 2030s. In the United States, a key site under development is Texas A&M University's RELLIS campus, where an IMSR plant is planned to achieve commercial operations during this period to support high-temperature heat and power needs, including for data centers and industrial applications. In Canada, the IMSR was previously under evaluation as a small modular reactor option for deployment at Ontario Power Generation's Darlington site, aligning with broader national goals for advanced nuclear expansion.^[81]^[2]^[82] The company's modular design facilitates rapid scaling post-rollout, with each IMSR plant constructible in under four years, enabling fleet expansion to meet growing demand for zero-carbon energy. Ongoing research and development efforts focus on securing the fuel supply chain through partnerships, such as expanded contracts with Westinghouse for IMSR fuel fabrication and pilot plant construction in the UK, to support long-term operations with a commercial plant life of 56 years and core-unit replacements every seven years.^[81]^[22]^[35] Key challenges include establishing a robust supply chain for low-enriched uranium fuel and manufacturing components, as highlighted in industry assessments of advanced reactor deployment logistics. Public acceptance of Generation IV technologies like the IMSR also remains a hurdle, requiring continued engagement to address concerns over safety and waste management in regions transitioning to nuclear energy.^[83]^[84] Projections indicate that small modular reactors, including designs like the IMSR, could contribute up to 10% of global nuclear capacity by 2040 if supportive policies and investments accelerate deployment, potentially adding 80 GW of capacity worldwide. This outlook underscores the IMSR's role in enhancing energy security and decarbonization efforts.^[85]

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