MKER
Encyclopedia
The MKER is a development of the RBMK
nuclear power reactor. It is a third generation nuclear reactor design.
primary circuit fluid through inlined channels in the reactor core. Graphite blocks in the reactor core serve as a neutron moderator
.
There are three different types of MKER: the MKER-800, MKER-1000 and MKER-1500. No MKER of any type has yet been completed; Kursk Nuclear Power Plant
Unit 5 is a physical prototype of the MKER-1000 currently under construction.
. An automated process control system for the MKER-800 is under development in a joint project of Westinghouse
and NIKIET. Plans for the MKER-800 remain unfinished. Four MKER-800 units were originally planned for the Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant
.
in Saint Petersburg
, and the turbine supplier is the Leningradsky Metallichesky Zavod
. Main building and reactor containment is designed by Atomenergoproekt
. The MKER is intended to directly substitute for existing RBMK plants producing heat, electricity and medical isotopes.
The reactor building of the MKER consists of a dual containment structure with an inner diameter of 27.75 meters. An inner liner intended to prevent leakage of radioactive material into the atmosphere can withstand internal pressures of 2.5 bar. Protection from external damage is provided by an outer concrete wall. The two structures are independent and separated physically from one another on a common foundation. Damage from an earthquake of
8 would be contained by this structure.
Automatic control is an integral part of the MKER design. Located between the reactor building and the turbine hall, the control room oversees the automatic control system and various plant safety systems. It occupies a protected central location, minimizing possibility of damage or compromise.
The MKER-1000 core includes the pressure tube reactor and eight coolant injector pumps. There are multiple coolant loops with 16 independent circuits, two circuits sharing a pump each. From an overall thermal capacity of 3,000 MWth electrical generation of 1,000 MW plus an additional 130 MW of thermal energy for building heat
can be obtained. The design specified turbine is a type K-1000-6, 1 / 3000 at 3000 rpm with an alternator of type TZV-1100-2UZ. Both evaporative cooling and open cycle cooling variations have been proposed.
Low-enriched uranium dioxide fuel with concentrations of 2.0 to 2.4% U-235 equivalence is specified. Fuel is changed using a remote-controlled crane and spent fuel rods would spend up to five years in a cooling pond located in the reactor hall before further processing. The continuous refuelling cycle brings a fuel burnup benefit; individual rods can be left longer in the reactor instead of being swapped en masse as required in most PWR
designs.
Construction of a prototype MKER-1000 is underway at Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. This reactor is named RBMK-1000 Unit 5. The MKER design differs significantly from Kursk Unit 5: spacing of the graphite moderator has been changed. Several MKER-1000 units were proposed for the Leningrad nuclear power plant development.
RBMK
RBMK is an initialism for the Russian reaktor bolshoy moshchnosti kanalniy which means "High Power Channel-type Reactor", and describes a class of graphite-moderated nuclear power reactor which was built in the Soviet Union. The RBMK reactor was the type involved in the Chernobyl disaster...
nuclear power reactor. It is a third generation nuclear reactor design.
Operation
The MKER is a pressure tube reactor with modern safety features including containment and passive safety systems. Fuel can be changed while the reactor is in operation, improving grid and fuel efficiency. Vertical injectors promote a natural convective flow of the light waterLight water reactor
The light water reactor is a type of thermal reactor that uses normal water as its coolant and neutron moderator. Thermal reactors are the most common type of nuclear reactor, and light water reactors are the most common type of thermal reactor...
primary circuit fluid through inlined channels in the reactor core. Graphite blocks in the reactor core serve as a neutron moderator
Neutron moderator
In nuclear engineering, a neutron moderator is a medium that reduces the speed of fast neutrons, thereby turning them into thermal neutrons capable of sustaining a nuclear chain reaction involving uranium-235....
.
There are three different types of MKER: the MKER-800, MKER-1000 and MKER-1500. No MKER of any type has yet been completed; Kursk Nuclear Power Plant
Kursk Nuclear Power Plant
The Nuclear power station Kursk is located in western Russia on the bank of the Seym River about 40 kilometers west of the city of Kursk. The nearby town of Kurchatov was founded when construction of the plant began...
Unit 5 is a physical prototype of the MKER-1000 currently under construction.
MKER-800
The MKER-800 has an electrical generation capacity of 800 MWWatt
The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...
. An automated process control system for the MKER-800 is under development in a joint project of Westinghouse
Westinghouse Electric Company
Westinghouse Electric Company LLC is a nuclear power company, offering a wide range of nuclear products and services to utilities throughout the world, including nuclear fuel, service and maintenance, instrumentation and control and advanced nuclear plant designs...
and NIKIET. Plans for the MKER-800 remain unfinished. Four MKER-800 units were originally planned for the Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant
Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant
Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant located in the town of Sosnovy Bor in Russia's Leningrad Oblast, on the southern shore of the Gulf of Finland, some to the west of the city centre of Saint Petersburg. It consists of four nuclear reactors of RBMK-1000 type. These reactors...
.
MKER-1000
The MKER-1000 has a thermal power output of 2845 MWth and an electrical output of 1,000 MW. There are four circuits and 1,832 fuel elements in the reactor core. Total fissile material in the reactor is 163 tonnes. Overall responsibility for construction of the MKER design is held by Northern Construction Administration. Major assemblies are produced by the Izhorsky ZavodIzhorsky Zavod
Izhorskiye Zavody or Izhora Plants is a Russian machine building joint stock company belonging to the OMZ Group. It operates a major manufacturing plant in Kolpino, Saint Petersburg.-History:...
in Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg
Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea...
, and the turbine supplier is the Leningradsky Metallichesky Zavod
Leningradsky Metallichesky Zavod
Leningradsky Metallichesky Zavod , also known as LMZ, is the largest Russian manufacturer of power machines and turbines for electric power stations.-History:...
. Main building and reactor containment is designed by Atomenergoproekt
Atomenergoprom
Atomenergoprom is a 100% state-owned holding company that unites Russian civil nuclear industry. It is a part of the Rosatom State corporation.-History:...
. The MKER is intended to directly substitute for existing RBMK plants producing heat, electricity and medical isotopes.
The reactor building of the MKER consists of a dual containment structure with an inner diameter of 27.75 meters. An inner liner intended to prevent leakage of radioactive material into the atmosphere can withstand internal pressures of 2.5 bar. Protection from external damage is provided by an outer concrete wall. The two structures are independent and separated physically from one another on a common foundation. Damage from an earthquake of
8 would be contained by this structure.Automatic control is an integral part of the MKER design. Located between the reactor building and the turbine hall, the control room oversees the automatic control system and various plant safety systems. It occupies a protected central location, minimizing possibility of damage or compromise.
The MKER-1000 core includes the pressure tube reactor and eight coolant injector pumps. There are multiple coolant loops with 16 independent circuits, two circuits sharing a pump each. From an overall thermal capacity of 3,000 MWth electrical generation of 1,000 MW plus an additional 130 MW of thermal energy for building heat
District heating
District heating is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating and water heating...
can be obtained. The design specified turbine is a type K-1000-6, 1 / 3000 at 3000 rpm with an alternator of type TZV-1100-2UZ. Both evaporative cooling and open cycle cooling variations have been proposed.
Low-enriched uranium dioxide fuel with concentrations of 2.0 to 2.4% U-235 equivalence is specified. Fuel is changed using a remote-controlled crane and spent fuel rods would spend up to five years in a cooling pond located in the reactor hall before further processing. The continuous refuelling cycle brings a fuel burnup benefit; individual rods can be left longer in the reactor instead of being swapped en masse as required in most PWR
Pressurized water reactor
Pressurized water reactors constitute a large majority of all western nuclear power plants and are one of three types of light water reactor , the other types being boiling water reactors and supercritical water reactors...
designs.
Construction of a prototype MKER-1000 is underway at Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. This reactor is named RBMK-1000 Unit 5. The MKER design differs significantly from Kursk Unit 5: spacing of the graphite moderator has been changed. Several MKER-1000 units were proposed for the Leningrad nuclear power plant development.