General Electric and Westinghouse received a significant contribution from the U.S. government in their early efforts to establish light water reactors as the world standard in nuclear technology. The support included low interest loans, direct state-to-state pressure, and government contracts that paid for basic materials development. This government support came for several reasons. Not only […]
Reactors
Letter from the Editor: The Market Battle Begins
The history of nuclear power technology is often as much a political study as it is a technical study. Perhaps no other technological development has ever been so tied to the actions and interests of government bodies and foreign affairs. In this issue of AEI we will focus on the early market struggle between the […]
Water vs. Gas Cooled Reactors: Round 1
In the period from 1966 to 1964, there were two basic reactor choices being offered for commercial electric power production. American companies were offering reactors that used ordinary water under pressure as the reactor coolant. British and French companies were offering reactors using pressurized CO2 gas as the reactor coolant. There were substantial technical differences […]
Fuel Element Designs: Unique Selection Criteria
After making the coolant and moderator choices, certain other details moved higher on the priority list. Core engineers needed to choose a cladding material, fuel material composition, and fuel element configurations. The choices designers made for the first reactors played an important role in the long term competitiveness of the early gas cooled reactor designs. […]
Pressure Vessel Construction: Lower Pressure Makes it Easier
Like the American pressurized water reactor systems, gas cooled reactors operate at elevated pressures. Unlike water, however, which is kept under extreme pressure in a reactor to prevent it from changing phase, carbon dioxide is kept under pressure in a reactor to improve its ability to remove heat by increasing its density. The actual pressure […]
Letter from the Editor: First Nuclear Power Stations
In the December 1995 issue we focused on the design decisions made by the U. S. Navy submarine reactor designers. As most people involved in the nuclear industry know, the technical direction taken by Rickover and his people had a major influence in the development of the commercial nuclear power industry. Interestingly enough, the first […]
CO2: First Choice for Power Reactors
During the period from 1946 until 1954, the single most important constraint governing the development of peaceful uses of atomic power was the Atomic Energy Act of 1946. This American law – passed after a failed attempt to establish an international control regime for nuclear materials – made it illegal to trade in nuclear knowledge […]
Protection for Fuel Elements: Ensuring Saftey
Once Rickover’s team selected water as their primary reactor coolant, other material criteria became readily apparent. Though pure water at room temperature is a relatively benign environment, water at high temperatures is quite corrosive. Because radioactive fission products can be dangerous to human health, prudent reactor designers must devise methods to ensure that the fission […]
Controlling Power: Temperature and Rods
Pressurized water reactors turned out to be extremely stable power producers. Because of the fact that water is used to moderate the energy level of neutrons, making them more effective in causing fission, the concentration of water in the core is an important part of determining the reactivity of the core. Temperature control An increase […]
Technical Hurdles: One Step at a Time
Though water was chosen partially because it was a familiar fluid for power engineers, the choice almost doomed the nuclear submarine program. Laboratory testing of the pumps, bearings, valves, and piping demonstrated to Rickover’s team that the simple, familiar fluid was not so simple at high temperatures and pressures, particularly when exposed to neutron radiation. […]
Pressurized Water: Best Choice for the 1950s Subs
When Rickover first began studying nuclear technology, he found a program in severe disarray. The Army’s Manhattan Project had accomplished its mission of completing a workable bomb before the end of the war. Many of the key scientists and engineers had left the program, eager to leave the security restrictions and poor working conditions behind. […]
Prefab Reactors For Off-Grid Users
The Army Nuclear Power Program was established as part of the Atomic Energy Commission in 1954. It was charged with the responsibility of developing reactors suitable for providing electrical power to remote bases and outposts. Some of the people associated with the Army Nuclear Power Program saw essentially unlimited potential for small, transportable reactors. Most […]
