NATURAL URANIUM HEAVY-WATER MODERATED ORGANIC-COOLED POWER CONVERTER REACTOR, USSR

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-00904R000100110046-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 20
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 26, 2009
• Sequence Number: 46
• Publication Date: May 1, 1964
• Content Type: STUDY

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~j~ ~~ Third United Notions
,V, ~,I
internotional Conference
V
-
~ on the Peaceful Uses
1
~ /~
of Atomic Energy
A~Cc~Nl~'. ~'f3~}'~~7"I
U;;:,lt
l~:uy ~. ~ c,~
Oriiirt:~1: i3iJaS:1AN
Confidential until official releose during Conforen~~~
Natural Uraniwu ~ieavy-Wat~;r f'~loderra~ted Orgaxiic-
Coolod rower Converter 1~eactor
Alichanov A.I. , ~~ ' ~~.govolin P.Y. ,
Ilyiechev B, Y . , Karavaev G. N . , K ondari t Lky N .It . ,
Nledzibo~~sky ~3.A. , Mukhamedov U.M. , Nikolaev N.h.
~t;ekolnikov V.V. , Titov V. l'. , 't'orlin ~3.Z. ,
Khokhlachev A.A.
Tn troduc lion
To provide a mots effective use o:C natural urc~.nium ir.
nuclear power secondary 1'ue1-plutonium must be intro-
duced in uranium fuel cycle. Plutonium can considerably
increase the utilization factor of U~3ain thermal neutron
reactors and practically ensure a complete use of U23~ in
fast breedars. ~!.'herEfore one of the maim purposes of employing
uranium reactors, along with power ber~eraLion, is production
oi' plutonium.
The main features of uraniulcc converter reactors (besides
their eff;.ciency) are
'1. Uranium utilizing; eff'ectiveiiess i.e. the amotult of
electric energy and plutonium, produced when reprocessing 1
ton of. natural uranium.
2. Plutonium fabrication effectiveness, i.e. per unit
of time per. unit of reactor power.
? The promising type of converter reactor. s in our opinion
are natural uranium heavy-water moderated reactors. By the
effectiveness of utilizing uranium, reactors of this type
have an advantage over all l,he existing thermal converter
reactors. They have a lower efPeCtiteness oP plutonium t'ab-
rication as compared only with fast converter reactors.
One of the possible variants of a heavy-water reactor
i~ an organic-cooled reactor. Organic liquids da not react
with uranium, which considerably increases the reactor
operation safety, thus permitting the application of such
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reactor noL ona.,y ;f,or tatc~tn.i.c ~~owc::r :j~f.~ t;~ion,, but a1::,o a'c~r
iiea~tin~; int3~l;al'la~iori:~ loca~tcd. ricar popul~ateci aret~;~. r1'h~~ c;c~-
ni,unt circuit; ct~n be mar~utact~ired of convoritional ::3 t,ri.,r; t;ur_~1.
materials. Besides, comparatively hi.E;Yi t}lertnal .pt~rarnetc,r.:~~ c>:F
or~;r~tiic coolan~t~~ are obtained at a low pressure-:, wrl.i.cl~, i'tjr,i-
litates the soluticn c,f a number o!' tectinolo~;.ica1. pro~~lc;ma,
when constructin~~; large 500-10vU M.W~b~ plants. '1'h~ 1a~t;-
ter fact is of not minor importance as the power o1' t, tie plant
considerably effects both the capital investiments and the
cost of generated e 1 ectric energy,
Tn this respect an orgt~nic-cooled reactor is a st;ej.~
i'orward as compared with high-pressure vessel reactors, in
which the power is limitea by technologically realised
dimensions of the pressure vessel.
The present report deals with the description and com-
parison of two dir z erenti natural uranium heavy-water mode-
rated organic cooled reactors. Th.e thermal and physical. pro-
perties as well as radiation and thermal resistance of this
liqu~.d, oblrainea ey hydraulic purification of polyalkilbenzol
resin Fraction (wastes of cumene production) are not lowc;r
than those of such a well_-mown coolant as monopropyldiphenyl
but i~l. is considerably cheaper. The main difference between
the two reactors, presented in 'the report, consists in the
fact that one reactor (R-1) possesses an increased pluto-
nium fabrication effectiveness, and the other (R-2) effecti-
vely utilizes uranium.
The possibility of constructing similar reactors with
different characteristics depends on the specific features
of plutonium production in natural uranium trier~ual
reactors. As it is shown in Fig.'1 appz~oximately 2/~ of
plutonium (Pu 239 + Pu24~) are produced with a fuel burn-
out of 3000 M~~d/t Therefore, e . g. a reactor with aburn-
up of ^~ 3000 M'Nd/t can produce two ti:~~es as much plutonium
as a reactor with a burnuP of ^' 9000 MWd/t at the same
reactor power.
Ui~ren be1Qw is the descripti can of the design and cha,
racteristics of R-I and R-2 reactors.
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Description oY' .Reactor a-, I ,
The development of the reactor design (Fig.2) was
baaod on the following:
a) vertical postion of the reactor axi.s~
b) fabrication of Lhe reactor gore from separate
easily replaceable fuel ahanrlels isolated from the moderators
o) upward direction of 'the coolant flow into the reac-
tor core;
d) fuel elements made in the form of small slugs.
The reactor consists of a number of tanks s a prASSUre
chamber, a core tank, a shield tank and a dump tank, which
are pierced by fuel chsinnel.s and control and safety elements
cgannels. Despite large dimensions of the reactor its design
peraits mauufactuz~ing it from separate fully adjusted and
tested at the Manufacturing plant with welding works during
assembly reduced to a giinisum~ to prevent the misalignment
of the holes in the reactor structural assemblies.
The height of the reaato~~ assembled is 25 m.
Pressure chamber is designed for the distribution of
the coolant among the fuel cha~nels~ reception of spent
fuel eleuents discharged from the channels and their trans-
fer into the hydraulic transportation sTs~:~~ made similar
to 1~ydraulic transportation system~a. The Pressure chamber
is a carbon sts el structure consisting of an upper flat truse-
type plate ?500 mm die. with holes to rcaeive fuel channels
shanks. Welded to the plste through a al~roud is a cone ~
ended in a shroud with pipes for the coolant inlet pipelines.
Th? pressure chamber is provided with an inner cone the
lowser part of which is fitted with a nozzle for hydraulic
transportation of fuel elements.
Core tank - is manufactured from an aluminium alloy.
The tsnk diameter i s ~ 000 mm , Lhe height i s 5000 mm.
The tank h.:s a flat cover and a bottom flared ~ which are
calandria-type pipes for the passage of fuel channels.
s~~ ~~.
mt=- ~-n.k is filled with a moderator -heavy .ter. Above
~~.rq aaoderator level is a gas cavity intended for blowing
s~~"':'' the o~-hydrogen gas.
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Provision e made for aheaJking bhe moderator level and
a possible leakage frow it with the tightness of the aaland-
ria~type pipes afteoted. The oore tank 18 installed on the
upper plate of the pressure chamber.
Uuosr sb-.~teld task ~ ie a cylinder '7500 mm di.a? and
X000 mm high, witb~ ~ tla~ bottom flared in rd~iah aligned
rl-i~h aalandria--type pipers of the a ore tank ~ the pipelines
to pass th? fuel chaane].s and the ~ackots for the control
and safety el?ments channels. The t8n~c oavity ie filled
with organic liquid (the same as the coolant) with a tetupe--
rature of 90?C which serve$ four the proteotion of the reac-
tor top eecti on.
The tank rests on the biological shielding annular
water tank. The shielding tan: level is ventilated for
removing the gaseous products resulting from the organic
liquid radiolysio. The tank is made of an aluminium alloy.
D~~ serves for collecting a hot coolant whick
leaks frow the fuel channel holes and for distributing it
ea-ong int,;o th? steam generators circulation pipelines.
Located above the coolant; level is a gas blanket to blow
off and remove the gaseous products resulting from the coolant
P~diolyeis. The tank upper cover is also used as the reactor
upper plate, on which the fuel channel heads and the tempi--
rature sensing element are secured and the sables, wires and
pulse lines are laid. The tank is mado o~ a carbon steel.
The dump tank r?sts on the shielding water tsnkb
Fue +,Ghaanel~ (Fi~,3) are designed for housing the
fuel elements and for passing the coolant flow through
the reactor core. To flatten. the neutron. flux distribution
aQaording to the core diameter, th? channelo are made of L-he
two types.
The channel end sections are secured in the pressure
chamber in special mouth pieces and the heads - on the
dump tank cover.
Although such at#;achment of the channel in the reactor
,c~ekes it necessary to have a circuit for collecting the
?oolant leaks through the channel lower seal ~ it pro-rides
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Descri~~ Lion of l~eactor .Yt-2
As mentioned above, the reactor 1~-~ (F~'iY.S) dif'fer?
from t/hi; reactor R-1 in being; designed ~t'or~ deeper f'uol l~urn-
ups. This led to:
a) change in fual elements which a.re n-ade of uranium
dioxide, plat?d in tubular asserribliea (clusters). '.l'Yie length
of such an assembly is 4U0 mm;
b) increase in the core diameter and introduction of
end reflectors;
c) replacement of the tapered pressure chamber with
a system of pipelines which pr~ov:i.de au individua]. coolant
supply to the fuel. channels.
The loading and discharging of fuel elemen~l:,s from the
channels are accomI~lished by ir~eans of a special fueling
machine from the reactor cover.
The above mentioned called for slight changes in the
fuel channel construction, princ:ips.l change in the coolant
supply to them and constructional cha~l~;es in the entire reac-
tor bottom.
The upper sections of the r :actor from -the level o:P t;he
core bottom are similar in the design diagram to -those of
the R-1 reactor.
The materials , used for the core , fuel channel , fuel
elements Cladding and for other assemblies oa the reactor,
a:re similar to those approved for the R-1 reactor.
R-2 reactor is a vertical-type assembly comprising the
following main parts (from the bottom to the top)
1 , llump tank and lower shielding.
2. Core with heavy water end reflectors and a side
graphite reflector.
3, Upper shielding.
4. llump tank (tipper) .
5. Fuel channels.
'phis section deals with the description of l;he design
diagrams according to steps 1 and 5; the description of the
assemblies 2, 3 a-nd 4 are given in the corresponding section
of the R-1 reactor description.
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`.Phe dump tank acid lower atiieldin~ consist v1:' a shell
with a flat ribbed bottom I:~ie~x~cca with cylindrical tklrottles
into which the ands oi' the 1'uei channels enter.
The compound steel shell is fitted with a flange support-
ir~.g the core aluminium vessel.
The whole system resi;s on cylindrical rollers installed
on the plate constructioxxally built in the reactor water
shielding system.
Fuel channel
The fuel channel is constructionally similar to that
of 'the R-1 reactor but differs from it in pr~~ision of more
effective end reflectors:
a) In the laver reflector area tYie fuel channel and
calandria-type p:~.pes have a smaller diameter, on the lug,
thus obtained the fuel element column is installed ;
b) Fram the top of the channel a rod is inserted which
ends near the surface of the upper fuel element. The rod
is used for: 1) holding the fuel elements in the reaction.
area to prevent them from coming to the surface under the
action of the coolant flow; '2) forcing the coolant out of the
upper reflector area with the rod lower end.
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Fuel
Characteristics of L1-1 anci. R-~' reactors
No. Name Characl;eristl.cs
R-1
-. ~ -
IZ-2
1 2 3 4
1 Electrical
output 50U MW 500 MW
2 heat o