Prototype CAP1400 fuel assembly produced
04 January 2016
A prototype fuel assembly for China's CAP1400 pressurized water reactor design has been produced at the Baotou fuel fabrication facility in Inner Mongolia. The fuel's performance will now be verified.
.jpg "CAP1400 prototype fuel assembly - 460 (SNPTC)") |
| The prototype CAP1400 fuel assembly (Image: SNPTC) |
Fabrication of the first fuel assembly - designed by the Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute (SNERDI) - was completed on 31 December, State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation (SNPTC) announced.
The fuel assembly - measuring over 4 meters in length - features a new zirconium alloy skeleton. SNPTC said the fuel meets the latest domestic and international regulations and standards and has been developed with "completely independent intellectual property rights".
The CAP1400 is an enlarged version of the AP1000 pressurized water reactor developed from the Westinghouse original by SNPTC with consulting input from the Toshiba-owned company. As one of China's 16 strategic projects under its National Science and Technology Development Plan, the CAP1400 is intended to be deployed in large numbers across the country. The reactor design may also be exported.
Site preparation is already underway for two demonstration CAP1400 units at Huaneng Group's Shidaowan site in Shandong province. The pouring of first concrete is expected to take place soon.
Researched and written
by World Nuclear News