PFBR-500 - start of fuel loading AtomInfo.Ru, PUBLISHED 04.03.2024 Fuel loading into the reactor core will begin today at the PFBR unit under construction in India - also known as PFBR-500, a demonstration unit with a fast sodium reactor. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is visiting Tamil Nadu, intends to observe the start of the fuel loading, as reported in the Indian media. "Marking a historic milestone in India's nuclear power programme, Prime Minister will witness the initiation of core loading of India's indigenous Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor(PFBR) of 500 MWe capacity at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu," a government press release said. The text of the release recalls that the reactor project was developed by the Indian company BHAVINI (Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Limited). The release also reminds that fast sodium reactors will be built in India at the second stage of the three-stage program for the development of nuclear energy (the third stage is the transition to thorium). "A unique feature of this sodium cooled PFBR is that it can produce more fuel than it consumes, thus helping in achieving self-reliance in fuel supply for future fast reactors," the release says. "After PFBR is put into operation, India will become the second country after Russia to have a commercially operating fast neutron reactor," the release says. Although this is not said directly, Indian nuclear scientists intend to launch PFBR before the first of the two CFR-600 reactors starts operating in China. The construction of the PFBR reactor began in October 2004, and its start-up dates were repeatedly postponed for various reasons. At the same time, India is developing projects for future serial fast sodium reactors under the conditional name FBR. There is currently no accurate information about the start date of construction and the number of planned units with FBR reactors. Previously, it was planned to build a small series of four or six units, and in the latter case, two units with FBR were to be designed to run on metal fuel, providing higher breeding ration compared to oxide fuel. Topics: Commissioning, Fast breeders, Asia, India Other news: HTR-PM starts commercial operation It is an important pathway for optimizing energy structure, ensuring reliable energy supply, and contributing to the dual carbon goal. Lepse Floating Technical Base Dismantlement Project has been successfully implemented To discharge spent nuclear fuel, the Lepse was placed in a specially designed and built onshore sheltering site. This made it possible to prevent any weather effects. IAEA has issued a technical document on global inventories of secondary uranium supplies The document provides a comprehensive assessment of publicly available information on current secondary uranium supplies, including at the regional and national levels. |
Hero of the day Rosatom starts installation of the BREST-OD-300 4th generation reactor The steel reactor baseplate with the total weight of 165 tons has been installed. The workers have also loaded into the reactor shaft the first part of the reactor vessel - the lower tier of the containment. INTERVIEW
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