BN-600 reactor
Encyclopedia
The BN-600 reactor is a sodium-cooled
fast breeder reactor, built at the Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station
, in Zarechny, Sverdlovsk Oblast
, Russia
. Designed to generate electrical power of 600 MW in total, the plant dispatches 560 MW to the Middle Urals
power grid. It has been in operation since 1980.
The plant is a pool-type reactor, where the reactor, coolant pumps, intermediate heat exchangers and associated piping are all located in a common liquid sodium
pool. The reactor system is housed in a concrete rectilinear building, and provided with filtration and gas containment features. There have been incidents involving sodium/water interactions from tube breaks in the steam generators
, a sodium fire from a leak in an auxiliary system, and a sodium fire from a leak in a secondary coolant loop while shut down. All these incidents were classified at the lowest level on the International Nuclear Event Scale
, and none of the events prevented restarting operation of the facility after repairs.
The reactor core is 1.03 meters tall with a diameter of 2.05 meters. It has 369 fuel assemblies
, mounted vertically, each consisting of 127 fuel rods enriched to between 17–26% 235U
. In comparison, normal enrichment in other Russian reactors is between 3–4% 235U. The control and scram system
comprises 27 reactivity control elements including 19 shimming rods, two automatic control rods, and six automatic emergency shut-down rods. On-power refueling equipment allows for charging the core with fresh fuel assemblies, repositioning and turning the fuel assemblies within the reactor, and changing control and scram system elements remotely.
The unit employs a three-circuit coolant arrangement; sodium
coolant circulates in both the primary and secondary circuits. Water and steam flow in the third circuit. The sodium is heated to a maximum of 550 °C in the reactor during normal operations. This heat is transferred from the reactor core via three independent circulation loops. Each comprises a primary sodium pump, two intermediate heat exchangers, a secondary sodium pump with an expansion tank located upstream, and an emergency pressure discharge tank. These feed a steam generator
, which in turn supplies a condensing turbine that turns the generator.
There is a lot of international interest in the fast-breeder reactor at Beloyarsk. Both Japan
and France
have their own prototype fast-breeder reactors. Japan paid 1 billion for the technical documentation of the BN-600. The operation of the reactor is an international study in progress; Russia, France, Japan, and the United Kingdom currently participate.
Liquid metal cooled reactor
A liquid metal cooled nuclear reactor, liquid metal fast reactor or LMFR is an advanced type of nuclear reactor where the primary coolant is a liquid metal. Liquid metal cooled reactors were first adapted for nuclear submarine use but have also been extensively studied for power generation...
fast breeder reactor, built at the Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station
Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station
The Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station , was the second of the then Soviet Union's nuclear plants. It is situated by Zarechny in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia. Zarechny township was created to service the station, which is named after the Beloyarsky District...
, in Zarechny, Sverdlovsk Oblast
Zarechny, Sverdlovsk Oblast
Zarechny is a town in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Pyshma River east of Yekaterinburg. Population: It was granted urban-type settlement status in 1957; town status was granted in 1992....
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. Designed to generate electrical power of 600 MW in total, the plant dispatches 560 MW to the Middle Urals
Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains , or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the Ural River and northwestern Kazakhstan. Their eastern side is usually considered the natural boundary between Europe and Asia...
power grid. It has been in operation since 1980.
The plant is a pool-type reactor, where the reactor, coolant pumps, intermediate heat exchangers and associated piping are all located in a common liquid sodium
Sodium
Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal and is a member of the alkali metals; its only stable isotope is 23Na. It is an abundant element that exists in numerous minerals, most commonly as sodium chloride...
pool. The reactor system is housed in a concrete rectilinear building, and provided with filtration and gas containment features. There have been incidents involving sodium/water interactions from tube breaks in the steam generators
Steam generator (nuclear power)
Steam generators are heat exchangers used to convert water into steam from heat produced in a nuclear reactor core. They are used in pressurized water reactors between the primary and secondary coolant loops....
, a sodium fire from a leak in an auxiliary system, and a sodium fire from a leak in a secondary coolant loop while shut down. All these incidents were classified at the lowest level on the International Nuclear Event Scale
International Nuclear Event Scale
The International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale was introduced in 1990 by the International Atomic Energy Agency in order to enable prompt communication of safety significance information in case of nuclear accidents....
, and none of the events prevented restarting operation of the facility after repairs.
The reactor core is 1.03 meters tall with a diameter of 2.05 meters. It has 369 fuel assemblies
Nuclear fuel
Nuclear fuel is a material that can be 'consumed' by fission or fusion to derive nuclear energy. Nuclear fuels are the most dense sources of energy available...
, mounted vertically, each consisting of 127 fuel rods enriched to between 17–26% 235U
Uranium-235
- References :* .* DOE Fundamentals handbook: Nuclear Physics and Reactor theory , .* A piece of U-235 the size of a grain of rice can produce energy equal to that contained in three tons of coal or fourteen barrels of oil. -External links:* * * one of the earliest articles on U-235 for the...
. In comparison, normal enrichment in other Russian reactors is between 3–4% 235U. The control and scram system
Scram
A scram or SCRAM is an emergency shutdown of a nuclear reactor – though the term has been extended to cover shutdowns of other complex operations, such as server farms and even large model railroads...
comprises 27 reactivity control elements including 19 shimming rods, two automatic control rods, and six automatic emergency shut-down rods. On-power refueling equipment allows for charging the core with fresh fuel assemblies, repositioning and turning the fuel assemblies within the reactor, and changing control and scram system elements remotely.
The unit employs a three-circuit coolant arrangement; sodium
Sodium
Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal and is a member of the alkali metals; its only stable isotope is 23Na. It is an abundant element that exists in numerous minerals, most commonly as sodium chloride...
coolant circulates in both the primary and secondary circuits. Water and steam flow in the third circuit. The sodium is heated to a maximum of 550 °C in the reactor during normal operations. This heat is transferred from the reactor core via three independent circulation loops. Each comprises a primary sodium pump, two intermediate heat exchangers, a secondary sodium pump with an expansion tank located upstream, and an emergency pressure discharge tank. These feed a steam generator
Steam generator (nuclear power)
Steam generators are heat exchangers used to convert water into steam from heat produced in a nuclear reactor core. They are used in pressurized water reactors between the primary and secondary coolant loops....
, which in turn supplies a condensing turbine that turns the generator.
There is a lot of international interest in the fast-breeder reactor at Beloyarsk. Both Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
have their own prototype fast-breeder reactors. Japan paid 1 billion for the technical documentation of the BN-600. The operation of the reactor is an international study in progress; Russia, France, Japan, and the United Kingdom currently participate.