Nuclear power before the NPP
67 years ago, on December 20, 1951, the experimental fast EBR-1 reactor became one of the first nuclear power sources. The photo shows 4 200 W bulbs that he “lit” that day. Before the launch of the first-ever nuclear power plant in Obninsk, about 3 years remained.
By the memorable date, a small story about the appearance of this reactor, a photo of what is with it now, and an explanation of why it is not considered a full-fledged nuclear power plant.
The first electricity from the EBR-1 reactor in 1951. Photo: DOE
The reactor was designed and built in the late 1940s in Idaho by a team from the Livermore laboratory at the site for testing nuclear reactors. Later, this place became the Idaho National Nuclear Laboratory (INL) , and about 50 nuclear installations were designed and tested, including reactors for the US Navy and even experimental aircraft nuclear engines and power plants.
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A modern view of the site where the EBR-1 reactor building (center) is located, and on the left are two experimental reactors of the Aircraft Nuclear Engine (Air Propulsion ) program, closed in 1961.
Students against the background of one of the HTRE-3 aircraft reactors (by reference, anyone can read a 210-page report on their tests . Photo: EBR-1 Facebook page
In total, the EBR-1 reactor, using a turbine and a generator, produced up to 200 kW of electricity from 1.2 MW of thermal energy (to put it mildly, it didn’t have the highest efficiency), which it created in an active zone the size of a football. And now let the inscription on its facade show that this is the first nuclear power plant in the world, formally it was not a nuclear power plant, since the generated energy was used only at the industrial site and not transferred to the network.
Scheme of the reactor installation. Highly enriched uranium in metallic form was used as fuel. The coolant is potassium-sodium eutectic. Read more about the design can be read on the link .
The core of the EBR-1 reactor. AZ itself is about the size of a soccer ball. The elongated cylindrical shape is due to the space for the stroke of the control rods (4 pieces). Source of
Reactor with biological protection. Around AZ there is a blanket of uranium, a 50-cm reflector of neutrons from graphite and almost 2.7 m of concrete. A source.
Tourists on the background of the building EBR-1 with a proud sign, calling it "the world's first nuclear power plant." Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
The first full-fledged nuclear power plant in the United States (the NPP Shippingport with a single reactor with a capacity of 68 MW) earned only in 1958. And the first in the world nuclear power plant, which issued a current to the common power grid in 1954, was the Soviet Obninsk nuclear power plant. Its power was 5 MW.
The first nuclear power plant in the US - Shippingport NPP. Photo: Wikipedia
But EBR-1 was built not so much for generating energy (no one doubted that this was possible), but rather to confirm the possibility of creating a breeder reactor. A breeder is a reactor in which, during operation, more new nuclear fuel (plutonium) is produced than is consumed (uranium). Theoretically, this was understandable earlier, but the possibility of building such a reactor (with a fast spectrum of neutrons and a liquid-metal coolant) appeared only after World War II. Two years after the launch of EBR-1, in the experiments of 1953, the properties of the breeder reactor were confirmed.
Another group of students at the University of Idaho with the EBR-1 control panel. Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
Similar experimental fast reactors in the USSR appeared later, in the same Obninsk in the BR series of reactors, and later this direction grew to industrial power reactors of the BN series at the Beloyarsk NPP.
The EBR-1 was stopped in 1964, and in 1966 it was visited by US President Lyndon Johnson and granted him the status of National Attraction. Now at the site of the EBR-1 there is a museum of atomic energy, open in the summer season every day for everyone . At other times - for groups by appointment. The first nuclear power plant in Obninsk is now also a museum, but it works only for groups by appointment.
In front of the EBR-1 museum. Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
By the memorable date, a small story about the appearance of this reactor, a photo of what is with it now, and an explanation of why it is not considered a full-fledged nuclear power plant.
The first electricity from the EBR-1 reactor in 1951. Photo: DOE
The reactor was designed and built in the late 1940s in Idaho by a team from the Livermore laboratory at the site for testing nuclear reactors. Later, this place became the Idaho National Nuclear Laboratory (INL) , and about 50 nuclear installations were designed and tested, including reactors for the US Navy and even experimental aircraft nuclear engines and power plants.
')
A modern view of the site where the EBR-1 reactor building (center) is located, and on the left are two experimental reactors of the Aircraft Nuclear Engine (Air Propulsion ) program, closed in 1961.
Students against the background of one of the HTRE-3 aircraft reactors (by reference, anyone can read a 210-page report on their tests . Photo: EBR-1 Facebook page
In total, the EBR-1 reactor, using a turbine and a generator, produced up to 200 kW of electricity from 1.2 MW of thermal energy (to put it mildly, it didn’t have the highest efficiency), which it created in an active zone the size of a football. And now let the inscription on its facade show that this is the first nuclear power plant in the world, formally it was not a nuclear power plant, since the generated energy was used only at the industrial site and not transferred to the network.
Scheme of the reactor installation. Highly enriched uranium in metallic form was used as fuel. The coolant is potassium-sodium eutectic. Read more about the design can be read on the link .
The core of the EBR-1 reactor. AZ itself is about the size of a soccer ball. The elongated cylindrical shape is due to the space for the stroke of the control rods (4 pieces). Source of
Reactor with biological protection. Around AZ there is a blanket of uranium, a 50-cm reflector of neutrons from graphite and almost 2.7 m of concrete. A source.
Tourists on the background of the building EBR-1 with a proud sign, calling it "the world's first nuclear power plant." Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
The first full-fledged nuclear power plant in the United States (the NPP Shippingport with a single reactor with a capacity of 68 MW) earned only in 1958. And the first in the world nuclear power plant, which issued a current to the common power grid in 1954, was the Soviet Obninsk nuclear power plant. Its power was 5 MW.
The first nuclear power plant in the US - Shippingport NPP. Photo: Wikipedia
But EBR-1 was built not so much for generating energy (no one doubted that this was possible), but rather to confirm the possibility of creating a breeder reactor. A breeder is a reactor in which, during operation, more new nuclear fuel (plutonium) is produced than is consumed (uranium). Theoretically, this was understandable earlier, but the possibility of building such a reactor (with a fast spectrum of neutrons and a liquid-metal coolant) appeared only after World War II. Two years after the launch of EBR-1, in the experiments of 1953, the properties of the breeder reactor were confirmed.
Another group of students at the University of Idaho with the EBR-1 control panel. Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
Similar experimental fast reactors in the USSR appeared later, in the same Obninsk in the BR series of reactors, and later this direction grew to industrial power reactors of the BN series at the Beloyarsk NPP.
The EBR-1 was stopped in 1964, and in 1966 it was visited by US President Lyndon Johnson and granted him the status of National Attraction. Now at the site of the EBR-1 there is a museum of atomic energy, open in the summer season every day for everyone . At other times - for groups by appointment. The first nuclear power plant in Obninsk is now also a museum, but it works only for groups by appointment.
In front of the EBR-1 museum. Photos: EBR-1 Facebook page
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/433846/
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