China showed off its first new generation of reactor on
Beijing's northern outskirts Thursday in an effort to demonstrate
not only its safety and reliability but its progress in overcoming
its chronic energy shortage.
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The high-temperature gas-cooled reactor, designed at prestigious
Tsinghua University in Beijing, was on display at a location near
the Great Wall, roughly 40 km north of downtown Beijing.
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More than 60 atomic energy experts from over 30 countries watched
the safety operation, in which the reactor successfully cooled down
after the control stick was pulled out. The operation had been
demonstrated before.
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Scientists have said the major safety issue regarding nuclear
reactors lies in how to cool them efficiently, as they continue
produce heat even after shutdown.
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Gas-cooled reactors are now widely considered the most secure. They
don't need additional safety systems, as do water cooled reactor,
and they discharge surplus heat, which could damage elements of the
device.
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"It will not cause a catastrophe such as the one at Chernobyl in
the Ukraine at any time," said Qian Jihui, former deputy chief of
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a noted atomic
scientist with an international reputation.
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IAEA official Byung-Koo Kim said that the operation of the reactor
was "rather impressive."
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Owing to technological improvement, Kim acknowledged, gas-cooled
reactors will be introduced extensively for business purposes in
the coming decades, and international cooperation will also be
greatly reinforced.
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China is the fifth nation in the world to master the technology --
the others being the United States, Britain, Germany and Japan --
and remains in the lead in the peaceful application of nuclear
energy, said Qian.
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Andrew C. Kadak, former president of the American Nuclear Society
and a professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said
after the demonstration that MIT has reached an agreement with
Tsinghua University on research cooperation.
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With an budget of more than 250 million yuan (US$30 million), the
gas-cooled reactor was constructed in 1995 and incorporated into
the power network in 2003.
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With helium refrigerant and ceramic components, fuel temperature in
the reactor can reach up to 1,600 degrees Celsius.
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Qian said China is building another high-temperature gas-cooled
reactor with a capacity of 160,000 kw. It will be completed in 2010
with a total cost of 2 billion yuan (US$240 million) at either
Qingdao or Anqing City.
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China, which detonated its first atomic bomb in 1964, has focused
on the civil use of nuclear energy since the 1980s.
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Two nuclear power plants started operation in the 1990s and four
more are under construction. Their cost is much higher than
ordinary power generators because they all use water-cooled
reactors and imported technologies, noted Qian.
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Experts believe the use of gas-cooled reactors will significantly
cut costs and enhance the competitive edge of nuclear power plants,
which might finally trigger a new revolution in the energy
field.
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Analysts held that China would surely run short of petroleum due to
its rapid economic development and energy consumption.
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Nuclear electricity accounts for 2 percent of China's energy
consumption. It is likely to reach 6 percent in 2020, still low
compared with world average of 16 percent, the analysts
said.?
(Xinhua News Agency October 1, 2004)