Publication Laka-library:
Fast Breeder Reactor Programs: History and Status (2010)
| Author | T.B.Cochran, H.Feiveson, W.Patterson, G.Pshakin, Ramana, Mycle Schneider, T.Suzuki, Frank von Hippel |
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6-01-2-60-34.pdf |
| Date | January 2010 |
| Classification | 6.01.2.60/34 (FAST BREEDERS - GENERAL) |
| Front |
From the publication:
Fast Breeder Reactor Programs: History and Status Research Report 8 International Panel on Fissile Materials Thomas B. Cochran, Harold A. Feiveson, Walt Patterson, Gennadi Pshakin, M.V. Ramana, Mycle Schneider, Tatsujiro Suzuki, Frank von Hippel February 2010 Overview: The Rise and Fall of Plutonium Breeder Reactors The possibility of a plutonium‑fueled nuclear reactor that could produce more fuel than it consumed (a “breeder reactor”) was first raised during World War II in the United States by scientists in the atomic bomb program. In the following two decades, the Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan and India followed the United States in establishing national plutonium breeder reactor programs, while Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands joined the French and German programs as partners. In all of these programs, the main driver was the hope of solving the long‑term energy supply problem using the large scale deployment of nuclear energy for electric power. Plutonium‑fueled breeder reactors appeared to offer a way to avoid a potential shortage of the low‑cost uranium required to support such an ambitious vision using other kinds of reactors. Uranium proved to be much more abundant than originally imagined and, after a fast start, nuclear power growth slowed dramatically in the late 1980s and global nuclear capacity is today about one‑tenth the level that had been projected in the early 1970s. The urgency of deploying fast‑neutron reactors for plutonium breeding therefore abated — at least in the western Organization for Economic Co‑operation and Development (OECD) countries. In India and Russia, however, concerns about potential near‑term uranium shortages persist, and new demonstration breeder reactors are being built. China, which currently is building up its nuclear capacity at an enormous rate, is considering the possibility of building two Russian‑designed breeder reactors. Because of the high costs and reliability and safety issues that are detailed below, however, no commercial breeder reactors have been deployed.