[ RadSafe ] Chinese fast reactor starts supplying electricity 21July 11

[Brennan, Mike (DOH)]

My first Captain on the Daniel Webster had been a junior officer on the
Seawolf when she had the sodium plant (they later replaced it with a
pressurized water reactor).  He said that it was a fairly intense
experience.  One of the jokes was that the Auxiliary Primary Coolant
Leak Alarm was sonar reporting repeated explosions amidships.  

I can take rad in stride, but tons of molten sodium, surrounded by
water, would make me nervous.  

-----Original Message-----
From: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu
[mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] On Behalf Of Ted de Castro
Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2011 9:52 AM
To: The International Radiation Protection (Health Physics) Mailing List
Subject: Re: [ RadSafe ] Chinese fast reactor starts supplying
electricity 21July 11

Not to mention that the USS Seawolf was originally a sodium plant.  I 
think maybe one or two other US subs were as well (George Washington 
maybe??) - but can only assuredly speak to the Seawolf.

On 7/26/2011 8:43 AM, Brennan, Mike (DOH) wrote:
> The Russians, back in the Soviet days, did do some interesting things
> with liquid metal cooled reactors.  I remember when I read the real
> scoop about the lead-bismuth reactors on the Alpha class submarines.
As
> a former submariner I was impressed by both the imagination needed to
> see that as a solution to the power-density problem, and the
> bone-headedness of not seeing why this might not be a good idea.  I'm
> not sure which would worry me more: the possibility of a primary
coolant
> leak, which means I'm sharing my tube of air with an uncontrolled
stream
> of molten metal, or a reactor shutdown that lasts so long the metal in
> the reactor starts to solidify, which can leave you a long way from
home
> with very limited resources for getting back.
>
> Still, I wish the Chinese the best of luck with their new reactor.
The
> world-wide nuclear power community could use a little good news.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu
> [mailto:radsafe-bounces at health.phys.iit.edu] On Behalf Of Maury
> Sent: Tuesday, July 26, 2011 4:45 AM
> To: Radsafe
> Subject: [ RadSafe ] Chinese fast reactor starts supplying electricity
> 21July 11
>
> Forwarded by
> Maury&Dog [MaurySiskel  maurysis at peoplepc.com]
> ===========================================
> WNN
> New Nuclear
> Chinese fast reactor starts supplying electricity
> 21 July 2011
>
> Exactly one year after achieving first criticality, China's
experimental
>
> fast neutron reactor has been connected to the electricity grid.
>
> At 10.00am today, the head of China National Nuclear Corporation
(CNNC),
>
> Sun Qin, declared to workers and officials gathered in the Chinese
> Experimental Fast Reactor's (CEFR's) control room that the unit had
> successfully achieved grid connection.
>
> The sodium-cooled, pool-type fast reactor has been constructed with
some
>
> Russian assistance at the China Institute of Atomic Energy (CIEA),
near
> Beijing, which undertakes fundamental research on nuclear science and
> technology. The reactor has a thermal capacity of 65 MW and can
produce
> 20 MW in electrical power. The CEFR was built by Russia's OKBM
> Afrikantov in collaboration with OKB Gidropress, NIKIET and Kurchatov
> Institute.
>
> Xu Mi, chief engineer at the CEFR program at CIEA, told Bloomberg that
> the unit was connected to the grid at 40% capacity. "The next step for
> us is to increase the generating capacity of the reactor to 100% while
> connected to the grid," he said. "After that, we can use the
technology
> to build our own commercial fast reactors."
>
> Beyond the pilot plant, China once planned a 600 MWe commercial scale
> version by 2020 and a 1500 MWe version in 2030 but these ambitious
ideas
>
> have been overtaken by the import of ready-developed Russian designs.
In
>
> October 2009, an agreement was signed by CIAE and China Nuclear Energy
> Industry Corporation (CNEIC) with AtomStroyExport to start pre-project
> and design works for a commercial nuclear power plant with two BN-800
> reactors with construction to start in August 2011, probably at a
> coastal site. The project is expected to lead to bilateral cooperation
> of fuel cycles for fast reactors, which promise to vastly extend the
> fuel value of uranium as well as reduce radioactive wastes.
>
> In April 2010, a joint venture company was established for the
> construction of China's first commercial-scale fast neutron reactor,
> near the inland city of Sanming in Fujian province. The joint venture
-
> Sanming Nuclear Power Co Ltd - was established by CNNC, Fujian
> Investment and Development Corp and the municipal government of
Sanming
> city. CNNC holds a majority stake in the venture.
>
>
>
> Researched and written
>
> by World Nuclear News
>
>
>
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