Most people associated with the nuclear industry, and many residents of Florida have some knowledge of the ill-fated Westinghouse/Newport News Offshore Power System project. Begun in 1970, this project was based on two ideas. The first was that a series of identical reactors produced in a factory type setting could be completed in a shorter […]
Letter from the Editor: Electric Plants for Rapidly Growing Areas
Electric power sources are on or near the top of the wish list for many developing nations. Business, social and government leaders recognize that reliable sources of electricity are essential to a modern economy. Without electricity, computers do not compute, mass transit systems cannot function, air conditioners do not enhance productivity, dryers do not dry, […]
Power Barges: Tools for Progress
The power barge market seems to be moving in several different directions depending on the specific needs of the potential customers and the business model of the various suppliers. There are complex, high tech projects that are aiming for higher and higher levels of efficiency and gains in scale economies. These projects are often slated […]
In the News: July 1996
Russian Floating Power Stations (June 11, 1996: Source-NucNet, an Internet service of the European Nuclear Agency) – Officials at the Kurchatov Atomic Energy Institute in Moscow have announced that the technical design stage for a series of floating nuclear power stations is now complete. Each power plant will consist of two 70 Mwe pressurized water […]
Accident Consequences: Design Added to Magnitude
The SL-1 accident was initiated by the rapid withdrawal of the central control rod. Starting from a fully shutdown condition, the action produced a condition in the core technically known as a prompt criticality. When the SL-1 reactor achieved prompt criticality, a number of events happened in rapid succession. The core power level pulsed to […]
SL-1: Designed for Remote Power and Heat
The Army’s designation , SL-1, tells us that the plant was a stationary, low power reactor, and that it was the first of its kind. The design work was done by Argonne National Laboratory in 1955-1956 under the name Argonne Low Power Reactor (ALPR). SL-1’s mission was to provide power to radar stations along the […]
Letter from the Editor: Solving the SL-1 Mystery
One common link in the training of most nukes is the viewing of a grainy, black and white documentary on the aftermath of an accident at a reactor known as SL-1. The accident occured on January 3, 1961 at the Atomic Energy Commission’s National Reactor Testing Station near Idaho Falls Idaho. Three people died in […]
What Caused the SL-1 Accident?: Plenty of Blame to Share
(Note from the editor: The following story is conjecture supported by interviews of first hand sources and a careful review of the written history. It is tempered with an understanding of reactor operations and human nature gained during more than six years in supervisory positions in military nuclear power plants. The mystery, however, is more […]
January 1961: SL-1 Explosion Aftermath
At 9:01 pm on January 3, 1961, the first indication of trouble at SL-1 was received at Atomic Energy Commission Fire Stations. The alarm, which was triggered by one of several measured parameters at the plant, was immediately broadcast over all National Reactor Testing Station radio networks. By 9:10 pm, fire trucks and security personnel […]
In the News June 1996
Power Cutoffs Ordered in Northeast (May 22, 1996) – Unusually hot weather forced several electric utilities in the Northeast United States to cut power to customers who had agreed to power interruptions in return for lower rates and to reduce voltage by 5 to 8 percent in order to protect reserve margins. Affected utilities included […]
PHWR Historical Problem Areas: Sources of Incidents
The pressure tubes of a CANDU® are in a hostile environment that includes a high neutron flux, hot, high temperature water, and a certain amount of hydrogen and oxygen released by the decomposition of water by radiation.Though the CANDU® has proven itself to be a reliable, cost effective and safe power generation system, there are […]
Isotope Production: Dual Use Power Plants
Nuclear reactors are not just a source of heat for power production. They are also an abundant source of neutrons, which allows the plants to be in a process of transmutation which makes the old dream of alchemy a reality. Since neutrons are neutrally charged, they have the ability to insert themselves in a wide […]
