FIG. 23 illustrates an embodiment of a reactor with a shell-side fuel/tube-side primary coolant heat exchanger configuration using the same cross-section view of half of the reactor as in FIG. 22. The reactor core 2304 is surrounded by an upper reflector 2308A, a lower reflector 2308B, and an inner reflector 2308C that separates the reactor core from the primary heat exchanger 2310. The channels are provided through the reflectors 2308A, 2308B, 2308C allowing the circulation of fuel salt (illustrated by a dashed line 2306) from the reactor core 2304 through the inner reflector 2308C, into the shell of the primary heat exchanger 2310. The fuel flows through the shell around the tube set, thus transferring heat to the primary coolant. Cooled fuel then exits the shell and passes through the inner reflector 2308C back into the bottom of the reactor core 2304. Baffles 2312 are provided in the shell to force the fuel salt to follow a circuitous path around the tubes of the heat exchanger for more efficient heat transfer.
