First consignment of uranium from Russia arrives

[Mohammed Azizuddin]

Koodankulam, May 30:The first consignment of 40 cylinders of enriched uranium from Russia has arrived at the atomic power station here.

The cylinders, that reached here on Wednesday and stored in safety chambers, would be constantly monitored for uniform temperature and other safety aspects, station project director K C Purohit told reporters today.

He said another batch of 163 cylinders would arrive from Russia in the coming months.

The enriched uranium fuel is in the form of final fuel assembly and it will be loaded in to a reactor by October, he said.

He said works on two Russian reactors called VVER-1000 were progressing and it was likely to be commissioned by January 2009.

The two reactors would use enriched uranium as fuel and light water as both moderator and coolant.

While Russia is supplying the design and all the equipment for the two reactors, Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is building the units.

Source:Zee News.

P.S. Do we really need the Indo-US Nuclear Deal??

 

[Flintlock]

Yes, we do need the US Nuke deal.

BTW, could you provide the details of these nuclear plants, their wattage, location, technology etc?

Thanks!

 

[Mohammed Azizuddin]

The VVER s a series of pressurised water reactors that were developed and used by the former Soviet Union, its satellites, Finland and the present-day Russian Federation. The VVER was a more expensive reactor design, and the former Soviet Union opted for the graphite-moderated RBMK series nuclear reactors on the grounds of cost as well as the ease of re-fueling the RBMK while the reactor was still operational compared to the VVER which needed to be shut down to be re-fueled and is of a much safer design.



The earliest VVERs were developed before 1970. The most common design, the VVER-440 Model V230, employs six primary coolant loops, each with a horizontal steam generator. The modified version of the VVER-440, Model V213, was a product of the first uniform safety requirements drawn up by the Soviet designers. This model includes added emergency core cooling and auxiliary feedwater systems as well as upgraded accident localization systems. The larger VVER-1000 design, which was developed after 1975, is a four-loop system housed in a containment-type structure with spray type steam suppression system.

The VVER series nuclear reactors were also scaled down in size and was used by the Soviet Navy's nuclear submarine fleet as well as by surface warships.

The Russian abbreviation VVER stands for water-cooled, water-moderated energy reactor. This means, that the reactor is of the pressurized water reactor (PWR) design. The fuel is low enriched (ca. 2.4–4.4% 235U) uranium dioxide (UO2) pressed into pellets and assembled into fuel rods. These fuel rods are fully immersed into water that is kept under pressure (15 MPa) so that it cannot boil. This water serves both as coolant and moderator, which guarantees intrinsic safety under normal circumstances: Should the circulation fail, the moderating effect diminishes, thus reducing the intensity of the reaction to compensate the loss of cooling (negative void coefficient). The whole reactor is encased in a massive steel pressure-shell.

The intensity of the nuclear reaction is controlled by control rods that can be inserted into the reactor from above. These rods are made from a neutron absorbing material and depending on the depth of insertion hinder the chain reaction. In the case of emergency, an emergency switch-off can be performed by full insertion of the control rods into the core.


When built in the former USSR, the VVER design was thought to have a 35 year life time. A mid-life major overhaul including the complete replacement of critical parts was specified. Since the design of the older RBMK design specified the replacement of fuel and control rod channels etc., designers originally decided this needed to happen in VVER plants even though they are of a more robust design than the RBMK type. Most of Russia's VVER plants are now reaching and passing the 35 year mark. The world's nuclear industry was shocked when Russian nuclear authorities announced that rather than shutting down current reactors they would give a life extension to the plants and uprate them by 5%, including also RBMK units similar to the RBMK 1000 plant involved in the Chernobyl Accident.

As stated above, the water in this circuit is kept under constant pressure to avoid boiling. Since this water removes all the heat from the core and is irradiated, the integrity of this circuit is most crucial.


Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power station currently under construction in Koodankulam in the Tirunelveli district of the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Cost estimation of this project was US$3 billion.

United States complained about the agreement as it does not meet with the terms of the Nuclear Supplies Group (NSG), Russia contends that the Koodankulam deal was originally signed in 1988 and is therefore not subject to the 1992 NSG guidelines.[1]

There are negotiations to see if a naval base is to be added here for both safeguarding the project and as a presence in the southern tip of the country.[2] A mini port became operational in Koodankulam on January 14, 2004.[3] The port has been established to receive barges carrying overdimensional equipments for light water reactors from ships anchored at a distance of 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi). This removes the necessity of land transportation that increases the possibility of damage. The Sethusamudram project will enhance the military and provide Nuclear Submarine base in the canal, with the nuclear fuel supplied by the Koodankulam Nuclear Project.

In 2008, an agreement on building additional reactors at the atomic station was initialized.

VVER-1000 model are being constructed by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited. When the two are completed, it will become the largest nuclear power generation complex in India producing a cumulative of 2 GW of electric power. Both units are Water Cooled Water Moderated Power Reactors.[5] The first unit is estimated to go into operation in December 2008, while the second one is set for June 2009.[6][7] Four more reactors are set to be added to this plant.[8] This will add another 2.5 GW output from the project. When completed, this will provide about 40% of the nuclear power in India

 

[BATMAN]

Jamshedpur residents blame Telco for gas leakage
28 May, 2008, 1632 hrs IST, IANS

RANCHI: The residents of Jharkhand's Jamshedpur town Wednesday blamed the management of the Telco plant, run by the Tata Group, for the leakage of chlorine gas from its water purifying plant, which led to the hospitalisation of about 150 people with breathing problems.

The gas started leaking from the plant at about 11 am Tuesday. By evening, residents started having respiratory problems and vomiting since the density of the gas had increased.

indians running nuclear plant is not a great omen for the world and particularly Asia.
They have the poorest industrial practices and major accidents are regular events in Indian industry, if not every day. I hope those foreigners who have visited Indian industry stand witness to my claim.
I hope we all remember the bhopal incident. Gases, germs, radiation does not know boundaries and can effect Bangladesh, Sirilanka, Nepal, Bhutan, middle east and most important Pakistan.
It should be declared an international crime to hand out uranium based process to indians.
Their hands are full with accidents and thefts and presence of an underworld uranium smuggling racket as well. I think very soon this uranium smuggling out of india will bite American arss.

 

[Mohammed Azizuddin]

Jamshedpur residents blame Telco for gas leakage
28 May, 2008, 1632 hrs IST, IANS



indians running nuclear plant is not a great omen for the world and particularly Asia.
They have the poorest industrial practices and major accidents are regular events in Indian industry, if not every day. I hope those foreigners who have visited Indian industry stand witness to my claim.
I hope we all remember the bhopal incident. Gases, germs, radiation does not know boundaries and can effect Bangladesh, Sirilanka, Nepal, Bhutan, middle east and most important Pakistan.
It should be declared an international crime to hand out uranium based process to indians.
Their hands are full with accidents and thefts and presence of an underworld uranium smuggling racket as well. I think very soon this uranium smuggling out of india will bite American arss.