The June issue focuses on the CANDU® pressurized heavy water reactors. It describes why the system was developed and what advantages it has over other reactor systems in certain applications.
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…
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…
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…
In many ways a CANDU® nuclear plant is conceptually related to a standard pressurized water reactor plant system. It has two separate heat transfer loops whose fluids never directly interact. The two loops physically meet in large heat exchangers called steam generators, which are very similar in design to those used in PWRs. One fluid,…
One of the highest compliments that you can pay to a submariner is to describe him as someone with a “can-do” attitude. This implies that he will cheerfully find a way to overcome any obstacle. Perhaps that is one reason that I have always admired the name, CANDU®, that was chosen for the Canadian heavy…
An understanding of some of the features of the CANDU® reactor design makes it obvious that many of the negative perceptions about nuclear power are, in fact, based on characteristics of a single type of reactor. Simple Fuel Manufacture One common misconception about nuclear energy is that fuel manufacture is a complex endeavor that requires…