ORIG. RUSSIAN: PROGRESS OF POWER ENGINEERING IN THE USSR AND ATOMIC POWER PLANTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP88-00904R000100100017-2
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 15
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 12, 2009
• Sequence Number: 17
• Publication Date: May 1, 1964
• Content Type: STUDY

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Third United Nations
International Conference
on the Peaceful Uses
of Atomic Energy
Confidential until official release during Conference
A/CONE. 28/P/316
USSR
May 19 64
Original: RUSSIAN
PROGRESS OF POWER ENGINEERING IN THE USSR AND ATOMIC
POWER PLANTS
A.M.Nekrasov, G.S.Selevinsky
1. Introduction
As a result of progress in scientific research in the
field of nuclear engineering and due to the experience in
designing, construction and operation of nuclear power
plants accumulated in the USSR, the USA , England, France
and some other countries the atomic power plants are CD-
mijg out of the stage of experiments and pilot plants and
become one of the i aclustrial branches of power engineering.
On that ground the problems of the further atomic power
plant development can be expediently solved only by taking
into account all specific conditions under which the gene'.
ral power enginnering of the whole country develops. It
is necessary to take into account the state and the pros-
pects of the development of power engineering; the scale and
the rate of the construction of new electric power stations;
power resources of the country, their reserves and classifi-
cation and their distribution all over the country.
2. Modern State of Power Engineering in the USSR
The electrification of the country has always been
a first priority item in the USSR.
The Soviet Union inherited from tsarist Russia a palt-
ry power economy. Beginning in 1921 with the production of
0.5 billion kWh it expanded the production of electrical
energy in 1940 to a level of 48.3 billion kWh and the
installed capacity of power stations - to 11.2 million kW.
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After the end of World War II the development of power
engineering again went quite rapidly as it is seen in the
following table:
Year
Production
of electrical
energy in
109 kWh
Installed capa-
city in million
kW
Notes
'1'945
43.3
11.1
1950
91.2
19.6
1955
170.2
3 7.2
1956
191.7
43.5
1957
209.7
48.4
1958
235.4
53.6
1959
2651
59.3
1960
292.3
66.7
1961
327.0
73.9
1962
369.3
82.4
1963
411.6
92.4
1964
455.0
102.4
Planned
1965
508.0
113.0
Planned
The table shows that for a long number of years the
annual increase of the production of electrical energy
and installed capacity of electric power stations is steadi-
ly in the range of 10.5-12.5 per cent; with its doubling
every 6.5 years and. its trebling - every 10 years. For
a short historical period the USSR made great progress and
already by '1947 achieved first rank in tho production of
electrical energy in Europe and second rank in world pro-
ducti on.
The thermal electric power stations form the basis of
the power economy of the USSR; their r specific weight in
the production of electrical energy reaches 82-83 per cent;
the hydroelectric power stations produce 18-17 per cent.
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The characteristic peculiarity of the development of
electric power stations for recent years is the increase
of their capacity that become necessary due to the rapid
rate of the development of power engineering. The most
powerful hydroelectric power stations in the world are
known to have been built in the USSR: Lenin Volga hydroelect-
ric power plant of 2300 MW capacity, Volgskaya named after
the XXII nd ,Congress of CPSU with 2530 MW capacity and Brats-
kaya hydroelectric power station on the Angara the capacity
of which at the beginning of 1964 has reached 3600 MW. By
the beginning of 1964 there were five thermal power sta-
tions already in operation with a capacity of 1000 MW and mo-
re each, By the end of 1965 the number of such stations will
increase to 11 ; the capacity of one of them will exceed
2000 MW.
The enlargement of thermal power stations capacity
takes place on the basis of the increase of the unit capa-
city of turbogenerators and boilers. Already at the pre-
sent time 150-200 MW units are widely used; in 1963 the
fir8t 300 MV! units were installed; the construction of
the units with 500 and 800 MW capacity is under way. Si-
multaneously the increase of the steam working conditions
takes place. Most popular nowadays is the use of steam
with initial conditions of 130 abs atm 565?C , and 300 MW
units are designed to operate at a pressure of 240 abs atm
and 560?C; with intermediate overheat of up to 565?C. One
of the characteristic features is a wide development of
the network of central heating plants at which the combined
production of electricity and heat in the form of steam for
technological needs of industrial enterprises and in the
form of hot water for heating buildings and public utilities
takes place. Such central heating plants give considerable
savings of fuel and account for about 30 per cent of the
total capacity of all thermal power stations. At central
heating plants 100 MW turbogenerators with steam extrac-
tion are widely used; 250 MW turbogeneratc% have been desig-
ned and will be installed in the nearest future.
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Nowadays standard capacities of 1 ,200 and 2,4Q0 MW are accep-
ted for the new thermal power stations and the construction
of some electric power stations with a capacity in the range
of 3,000 MW has begun and a 4,000 MW electric power station
for one of the Siberian districts is being designed. Simulta-
neously the work on increasing unit dapacity is conducted.
Within the nearest five years (1966 - 1970) 200 and 300 MW po-
wer units will be of basic type; after this the wide transi-
tion to the 500 and 800 MW units is planned and their portion
in the general introduction of new capacities at condensing
power stations for this period will reach 90 per cent;
the design of the units of larger capacity has begun and the
expedient scales of their use have been studied. The prelimi-
nary calculations showed that the development of electric
power stations during the given period can be sufficiently
economical if the already developed steam working conditions
are used. There are no economical reasons to foresee the use
of higher steam conditions on a larger scale.
Simultaneously the widest development of power sys-
tems and their united complexes is planned up to creating
one united power system in the USSR which will connect
Duropean and Ural districts with Siberia and Middle Asia.
Side by side with the work in the field of 750 kV alter-
nating current transmission lines with a capacity in one
circuit in the range of 2,500 kW, scientific and design
research is conducted on developing .1 ,500 kV direct current
transmission lines with the total length of 3 ,000-x+,000 km
and the capacity of each circuit in the range of 6,000 KW.
The transmission lines of such a type will provide the tran-
smission of electric energy from the regions with cheap po-
wer to the regions with more expensive power.
Thus from the technical point of view the programme
of the development of power engineering till 1980 is based
on the already accepted technical soiutioii .
At the same time wide research iL, co'a u ted on deve7 OT:ir~4.
more effective weem and c-,yclce- of the production of
The
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solution of new scientific and technical problems is conside-
red as a new reserve and it will favour the more economical
and rapid realisation of the programme of the development
of power engineering.
4. Goals of and Demands to Atomic Power Plants
For fulfillment of the planned programme of the develop-
ment of power engineering substantial initial power resour-
ces will be needed.
The Soviet Union possesses its own rich power resour-
ces of hydropower, coal, oil, natural gas, peat, oil-shale
which allow to achieve any goal in this field.
However the natural location of power resources on the
vast territory of the country in uneven, the main part of the
investigated nowadays resources, the cheapest and easi-
ly accessible, being located in eastern districts of the
country.
On that ground there arises the expediency of using
in the areas poDr in their own natural fuel resources
new sources of power and in the first place nuclear power.
Hydropower resources of the USSR considerably exceed
resources of any other country and those which can be tech-
nically used are estimated nowadays at 2,100 billion kWh per
annum. The European part of the USSR however posesses only
15 per cent of hydropower resources, and Siberia, Middle Asia
and the Far East - 85 per cent. Only the use of the most
economical hydropower resources on the basis of which large
hydroelectric power stations can be built with construc-
tion costs per kilowatt of installed capacity on the level
of thermal electric power stations and with the cost of
generated electrical energy 0.03 - 0.04 kopecks/kWh will.
allow to increase by 1980 the electric energy produ 'it
1~ l :w s
hydro-electric power stations of the USSR at leash 3-4
in comparison with 1965. But it is necessary to note
hydropower resources of the European districts of tho
USSR are not only relatively small and cannot play an im-
portant role in the ba:i uc;c of electric energy supply of i;h..-
se districts but also t~ o a ci.o..s:i.derable extent are less
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for the USSR the problem of the atomic power plant develop-
ment is mainly an economical question, that this country
has enough time for choosing most expedient ways of the de-
velopment of nuclear engineering in order to avoid random
solutions.
The economy of atomic power plants is defined by its
comparison with that of thermal electric power stations,
working on conventional fuel.
The pointed above variety of the conditions of fuel
supply predetermines the basic difference of economical
indices for thermal electric power stations in different
parts of the country.
For the four enlargened zones of the USSR the mean
economical indices whidh can be considered characteristic
of conventional thermal power stations for the suveyed period
are given below.
The given net price of generated power includes:
fuel costs, other operational expenses and assignments for
ammortisation of equipment and buildings. The estimated expen-
ditures (accepted in the USSR as.a complex economical index)
which in addition to direct expenditures of the production
of electrical energy also include capital investments for
the construction of electric power stations, fuel mining
and its transportation are also given.
Net price
kopecks/kWh
Estimated
expenditures
kopecks/kWh
European districts
0.40-0.45
0.70-0.75
Ural
0.24-0.28
0.45-0.50
Siberia
0.17-0.21
0.35-0.40
Middle Asia and
the Kazakh SSR
0.12-0.15
0.30-0.35
The highest indices, as it was expected, are received.
for the European districts of the USSR and exactly in
these regions atomic power plants should be located. 'J.-ben
economical indices of atomic power plants are improved their
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construction in these regions will be expanded and then
will take place in other parts of the country. Additional
quantities of uranium which had been destined for defence
purposes but, in accordance with the statement of the Soviet
Government on April 21 , 1964, are assigned for the develop-
ment of nuclear engineering will favour the wide construc-
tion of atomic power plants and speed up the rates of their
construction.
Modern atomic power plants are still expensive and
specific costs of the construction of atomic power plants
both in the USSR and in other countries are sufficiently higher
in comparison with those of conventional thermal electric
power stations. But it should be taken into account, that
atomic power plants are in fact in their initial stage of
development while thermal power stations have gone the long
way of development and improvement. That's why the direct
comparison in accordance with modern data is illegal. The
analysis of the reasons of high costs, of modern atomic po-
wer plants and the possible ways of their reductionc4s ne-
cessary. For the last ten years a considerable experience
in the design and construction of atomic power plants with
re ,.,.tors of different types was accumulated in the USSR
and other countries as well that can be a reliable basis
for defining the methods and real perspectives of increasing
atomic power plant economy.
The increase in capacities of atomic power plants
is of vital importance for lowering their construction
costs. The capacity of modern atomic power plants is in the
range to 600 MW while conventional thermal electric power
stations more often have a capacity of 1 ,200-1 ,400 MW
and even higher. The estimates of Beloyarskaya and Novo-
Voronezhskaya.omit power plants showed that the doubl-
ing of atomic power plant capacity could substantially
reduce specific capital investments.
The increase of atomic power plant capacity must
be obligatory based on the increase of the unit capaci-
ty of reactors and turbogenerators. The installation of
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reactors with a capacity increase about 1.5-2 times will also
substantially reduce specific capital investments.
Tqking into account this tendency the work on the
construction of new power units with a reactor capacity
up to 350-400 Mw has begun at Beloyarskaya aria .Novo-
Vorone zhskaya atomic power stations . Scientific and techni-
cal prerequisites for the construction of reactors with sig-
nificantly larger capacity and atomic power plants with a
capacity of 1000 MW and higher have been created and speci-
fic design and research work is conducted in these directions.
The essential means of the improvement of economical
indices is the increase of steam working conditions of
the power cycle of atomic power plants that in addition to
the effeciency improvement will provide the increase of
unit capacity of turbogenerators and the decrease of speci-
fic steam consumption and by means of that the additional
reduction in the cost of construction. It is necessary to
use higher temperatures of heat-transfer aj&ent at the reac-
tor outlet as well as to introduce steam overheat. The prac-
tical experience of the operation of atomic power plants
with nuclear steam overheat in the USSR and the work on
the heat-transfer agent temperature increase in reactors of
other types have given a hope that the possibility of using
live steam with the same parameters which are conventional
for modern thermal power stations will be found.
The fire overheat of the steam at atomic power plants
with the use of conventional fuel can hardly be considered
a prospective path of development as it greatly compli-
cates the lay-out and exploitation of atomic power plants
and at the same time does not give essential economical
effect in comparison to the use of this fuel at c onvent~.o-
nal electric power stations.
There are also reserves of the reduction of the cost
of atomic power plants in technological. schemes and coast-.
ruction::. The atomic power plants which hauE; been built
c _, ~ rJ~! . c, x;1.2 ~ ruot:i.on Evere cue : `,.aed with some c ompli ca--
+L,^ n.oflLl1't1CtJ(",n } i) h ! t c ~.
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e?perience of operation was accumulated. The experience in
design, construction and operation shows that it will be
possible to simpli4y protective building constructions, to
reduce the quantity of expensive construction materials as
for example stainless steel etc. without breaking reliability
and radiation safety standards.
These are the specific ways which will allow in a
relatively short time to reduce substantially the costs of
the construction of atomic power plants. It is characteris-
tic that these ways principally coincide with the ways of im-
provement and reduction of costs of conventional electric
power stations.
At the same time it is quite evident that all these
possibilities will be more real as the successive const-
tuction of the whole series of atomic power plants will be
accomplished that simultaneously will become one of the
essential reserves of the reduction of the costs of construc-
tion owing to the serial production of equipment which will
substitute the production of unique expensive installations.
Together with the reduction of the cost of construction
the cost of electrical energy generated at atomic power sta-
tions will also decrease, as the constant component of the
cost of electrical power depending on the post of construc-
tion decreases. Moreover and still to a greater degree the
reduction of the cost of electrical energy must and can go
in the direction of the reduction of its fuel component.
The essential part of the cost of the fuel at atomic power
plants is formed not only by the cost of nuclear fuel
but by the cost of the manufacturing of fuel elements as
well. Besides the great possibilities of improvement and the
reduction of the cost of constructional materials, it should
be noted that the reduction of the cost would be more rapid
with the increase of the scales of atomic power plant const-
ruction and, in connection with this the production of fuel
assemblies will become serial and wide-scaled. The essen-
tial possibilities of the reduction of the cost of electrical
energy are contained in the increase of the burn-up fraction
of nuclear fuel. The experience shows, that practically
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greater burn-up fractions can be obtained in comparison
with those that formerly had been expected.
Alongside with the improvement of economical in-
dices of atomic power plants their technical improvement
is necessary taking into account that atomic power plants
as any other electric power stat ion must provide the con-
stant electrical energy supply to consumers and reliable ope-
rationt all possible operating conditions. It is necessary
to achie the situation when the reactor plant in the range
of its rated capacity would make rapid dumping of the load
at any stage of the fuel core operating period with the
immediate readiness to increase its capacity again; would
allow rapid increase of capacity; the reactor start-up would
not take more time than the modern large power blocks ppe-
rating on conventional fuel. It is desirable that the reactor
design would allow to recharge the fuel core without long
stop of reactor which causes a drop of the pressure and
reactor shut-down cooling. It is necessary to simplify
technological schemes, to reduce the number of auxiliary
units, different apparatus and fittings. It is p4te impor-
tant to carry out the improvement of atomic power plants
without weakening of radiation safety for the operating
personnel of atomic. power plants as well as for population
and fauna and flora of the district. The works conducted
in all these directions and the accumulated experience shows
that these conditions can be provided.
Of vital importance is question of the types of power
reactors which must form the basis for the first stage
when atomic power plants achieve the planned economical le-
vel and for the subsequent programme of their wide construc-
tion. While solving this problem it is necessary to take
into account, that the development of nuclear engineering
can become in fact perspective only in case of provision of
a wide fuel basis for atomic power plants. The use of only
U-235 will not give such a basis because it will be quite
unwise use of valftle natural uranium, having great potential
power possibilities. At a great scale and rates of the
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development of all system of power engineering atomic power
plants can make a valuable contribution to fuel-power balan-
ce for an essentially long period of time only on the condi-
tion of using all natural uranium as a fuel. This task cannot
be solved with the help of modern thermal reactors, it is
becoming urgent to introduce and operate breeders.
There are the goals and demands to atomic power
plants resulting from the specific conditions of the develop-
ment of power engineering in the ;`oviet Union.
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