EARLY SOVIET FAST REACTORS

The Soviet fast reactor program started in the early 1950s:

the first "reactor" was BR-1, a zero power experiment using plutonium metal for fuel and mercury as the coolant

in 1956, BR-1 was modified to produce 100 kW(thermal) and renamed BR-2

By the late 1950s, the fast reactor program changed to using sodium as the coolant:

in 1958, BR-5 was operated at 5 MW(thermal) using plutonium oxide fuel - changed to uranium carbide fuel in 1964

in 1972, BR-5 was upgraded to 10 MW(thermal) with the fuel changed back to plutonium oxide

FAST REACTOR DEVELOPMENT

As the Russian fast reactor program continued, reactor size increased rapidly:

                    Location              Responsible
Reactor                                Organization                        Status                    Purpose

BOR-60     Dimitrovgrad,   Research Inst. Of        Operating        Experimental facility
(1968)     Russia          Atomic Reactors                           for material
  
BN-350     Aktau,          Kazakh Atomic Energy     Operation        135 MW (electric) and
(1972)     Kazakhstan      Agency                   suspended        120,000 m³ fresh water
                                                                     from desalination,

BN-600     Beloyarsk,      MINATOM                  Operating        560 MW (electric)
(1980)     Russia
  
BN-800     Beloyarsk &     MINATOM                  3 units under    800 MW (electric)
(2000?)    South Urals*,                            construction
           Russia

 *  The South Urals project is part of a planned Nuclear Power Center at POMayak
    (Chelyabinsk), comprising a fuel fabrication plant, several BN-800 reactors and a
    reprocessing plant, (RT-1).

Shevchenko BN350: Situated on the shore of the Caspian Sea the plant generates 135 MW(e) and provides steam for an associated desalination plant.
(a) View of the interior of the reactor hall:

(b) View of the only nuclear-heated desalination unit in the world:

FAST REACTOR DESIGN CHARACTERISTICS

The Russian fast reactors have been designed to use plutonium:

• UO2/PuO2 mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel is the reference fuel

       -  enriched UO2 is standard fuel
       -  only BOR-60 has ever run with substantial amounts of MOX fuel (tens kg Pu)
       -  tests have been performed with MOX in BN-350 (10 fuel assemblies) and BN-
          600 (8 fuel assemblies)

The core dimensions increased with power, and a change was made in the
plant layout:

          BOR-60       0.46 m in diameter     0.46 m high      Loop-type        
 
          BN-350       1.52 m                 1.07 m           Loop-type        
 
          BN-600       2.06 m                 0.76 m           Pool-type        
 
          BN-800       2.47 m                 0.97 m           Pool-type        
 

      
Pool-type                                  Loop-type
(BN-600/BN-800)                            (BN-350)
Reactor, piping, pumps and heat            Reactor located in separate vessel.
exchangers in sodium pool                  Piping connects vessel to heat exchanges
                                           and other components.

RUSSIAN PLANS FOR FAST REACTOR DEPLOYMENT

According to Minister Mikhailov (MINATOM), the Russian plans are as follows:

1. "The Russian concept of plutonium management (both civil and weapons) is based on the postulate of the outer fuel cycle closure, necessity to enhance fuel efficiency, and decreasing radioactivity of disposed long-lived wastes."
   
   
2. "In view of plutonium utilization of existing reactors being restricted, safe and reliable storage of separated civil plutonium at PO Mayak [Chelyabinsk] and ex- weapons plutonium is required."
   
   
3. "Longer range plutonium disposition options are based on development of a Nuclear Power Center at PO Mayak (RT-1, Complex-300 and 3 BN-800s) to use accumulated civil and ex-weapons plutonium in fast reactors."
   
   
4. "Long-term management options, which calls for fulfillment of research, envisage burning of excess plutonium and minor actinides in fast reactors with new core compositions."
   
   
5. "Investigation is underway to estimate plutonium utilization options, possibly using foreign technology including those on light-water reactors and CANDU in the framework of defense nuclear centers concept."
   
   
6. "International cooperation with the aim not only to develop the current technical policy but also to determine the optimum long-term disposition is required."

RATIONALE FOR THE RUSSIAN POLICY

The Russians have developed their fast reactor policy based on the following:

1. Use of Russian inventories of plutonium for domestic electricity production in fast reactors frees up their inventories of enriched uranium for commercial export to generate hard currency.
   
   
2. In Russia, the technology for MOX fueling of fast reactors is more advanced than is MOX fueling of thermal (light-water) reactors.
   
   
3. Cost studies have shown that the new thermal reactor designs which meet revised safety requirements are more expensive than previous Soviet VVER designs and in fact are on a parity with the BN-800 design -- which also meets the revised safety standards, and
   
   
4. MOX utilization in thermal reactors actually exacerbates the nuclear waste disposal issues (more long-lived radiotoxicity is generated), whereas MOX utilization in fast reactors mitigates these issues.