Brennilis Nuclear Power Plant
Encyclopedia
The Brennilis Nuclear Power
Plant is a decommissioned
site located in the Monts d'Arrée
in the commune of Brennilis in Finistère
, France
.
Starting in 1962, the Commissariat à l'énergie atomique
undertook construction of this experimental reactor moderated with heavy water
and cooled with carbon dioxide
(HWGCR). The reactor was to have a power of 70 MWe. The startup occurred in 1967.
In 1971, however, the French government
decided to use Pressurized water reactor
(developed by the United States) technology as their primary reactor model.
On August 15, 1975, two explosions slightly damaged a turbine and destroyed a phone. The Liberation Front of Brittany
claimed responsibility. In 1979 the group destroyed electrical lines going from the plant to the grid, and with there being no grid to supply power to, the plant shut down. This was the only time in history that a terrorist group successfully stopped operation of a nuclear power plant.
In 1985 the reactor was stopped permanently. The price of decommissioning was estimated to be 482 million euros, much greater than initial estimates.
of a complete nuclear power station in France. EDF and CEA announced intention to make a transparent process so that it can be used as a model for decommissioning of plants later.
The process is divided into 3 stages.
On December 13, 2000 a rise in the ground water level caused a flood in the chemical processing building. In January 2001, a fire breakout in the joint inner building was confirmed. In 2005 phase 2 officially finished.
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
Plant is a decommissioned
Nuclear decommissioning
Nuclear decommissioning is the dismantling of a nuclear power plant and decontamination of the site to a state no longer requiring protection from radiation for the general public...
site located in the Monts d'Arrée
Monts d'Arrée
The Monts d'Arrée are an ancient mountain range in western Brittany which forms part of the Armorican massif. Historically it marked the border of the regions of Cornouaille and Léon....
in the commune of Brennilis in Finistère
Finistère
Finistère is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.-History:The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel...
, 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...
.
History
Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique
The Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives or CEA, is a French “public establishment related to industrial and commercial activities” whose mission is to develop all applications of nuclear power, both civilian and military...
undertook construction of this experimental reactor moderated with heavy water
Heavy water
Heavy water is water highly enriched in the hydrogen isotope deuterium; e.g., heavy water used in CANDU reactors is 99.75% enriched by hydrogen atom-fraction...
and cooled with carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
(HWGCR). The reactor was to have a power of 70 MWe. The startup occurred in 1967.
In 1971, however, the French government
Government of France
The government of the French Republic is a semi-presidential system determined by the French Constitution of the fifth Republic. The nation declares itself to be an "indivisible, secular, democratic, and social Republic"...
decided to use Pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactors constitute a large majority of all western nuclear power plants and are one of three types of light water reactor , the other types being boiling water reactors and supercritical water reactors...
(developed by the United States) technology as their primary reactor model.
On August 15, 1975, two explosions slightly damaged a turbine and destroyed a phone. The Liberation Front of Brittany
Liberation Front of Brittany
The Liberation Front of Brittany is a militant group founded in 1963 to promote the "liberation of Brittany from France". Brittany is a province in northwest France, and formed an independent Duchy of Brittany until the treaty of union in 1532....
claimed responsibility. In 1979 the group destroyed electrical lines going from the plant to the grid, and with there being no grid to supply power to, the plant shut down. This was the only time in history that a terrorist group successfully stopped operation of a nuclear power plant.
In 1985 the reactor was stopped permanently. The price of decommissioning was estimated to be 482 million euros, much greater than initial estimates.
Decommissioning Experience
This nuclear plant marks the first decommissioningNuclear decommissioning
Nuclear decommissioning is the dismantling of a nuclear power plant and decontamination of the site to a state no longer requiring protection from radiation for the general public...
of a complete nuclear power station in France. EDF and CEA announced intention to make a transparent process so that it can be used as a model for decommissioning of plants later.
The process is divided into 3 stages.
Stage 1
This stage was launched in 1985, similar to a refueling outage the fuel is moved to the spent fuel pool, but new fuel is not loaded, and the fuel on site is eventually transported elsewhere. It consists of:- discharge of the nuclear fuelNuclear fuelNuclear 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...
- drain circuits
- shut-down final.
Phase 2
In 1995 a public investigation was held for the "partial dismantling" that phase 2 consists of. In 1996 it was decided that a feasibility study for the "greening" of the site would be submitted by the end of 1999. Phase 2 started in 1997, consisting of:- decontamination and disassembling of the buildings except for the reactor itself
- evacuation of the nuclear waste
- containment of the reactor pressure vessel
On December 13, 2000 a rise in the ground water level caused a flood in the chemical processing building. In January 2001, a fire breakout in the joint inner building was confirmed. In 2005 phase 2 officially finished.
Phase 3
Phase 3 consists mostly of containing the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and is currently underway.- dismantling of the steam generatorsSteam 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....
- dismantling of the RPV
- demolition of the containment buildingContainment buildingA containment building, in its most common usage, is a steel or reinforced concrete structure enclosing a nuclear reactor. It is designed, in any emergency, to contain the escape of radiation to a maximum pressure in the range of 60 to 200 psi...