Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor versus Pressurized Water Reactor debate Essay

Advanced Gas-cooled Reactor versus Pressurized Water Reactor debate - Essay Example On the contrary, the Pressurized Water Reactors are cheaper to maintain, environmentally safe and reliable. This prompted the government to commission the Sizewell B project. Future energy generation considerations are likely to favor the use of renewable sources that are cheaper, and environment friendly. Contents 1.0 Introduction From the 1960s, there was a clarion call to develop nuclear energy in UK with Advanced Gas-Cooled Reactors (AGRs) being the preferred choice. The first prototype of the advanced gas-cooled reactor was developed in 1962, but the first commercial AGR became operational in 1976. Complexities in implementation of the prototype delayed completion of the first AGR commercial plants. Other AGR projects were to be commissioned later in the 70s, and the 80s. However, they faced the same challenge (delayed implantation) compounded with a heavy cost implication. This led to an acrimonious debate about the use of AGR technology to generate electricity, when other econ omically viable means were available. The immense pressure forced the UK government to abandon building AGRs anymore and instead focused on the Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs). This led to the commissioning of Sizewell B in 1987 to 1995. The PWRs were considered to be cheaper, environmentally safer and more reliable than the AGRs. ... The AGR is designed to use carbon dioxide as a coolant and graphite as a moderator. The AGR is a specifically UK breed of reactor developed, from the design for the very first nuclear reactor, to generate electricity for commercial use, a reactor built at Calder Hall in Cumbria, UK (Breeze, 2005, p. 258). Figure 1: Schematic diagram of an AGR Source: World Nuclear Association There are several advanced gas-cooled reactors built in the UK, but they have been found to be costly to operate. Most of the AGR plants cost more at the completion than it was initially anticipated and no further units of the design are planned. Instead, the last nuclear power plant built in the UK employed a United States PWR design (Breeze, 2005, p. 258). Pressurized water reactors (PWRs) are used in light-water reactor power plants. Although, there are different manufacturers in the United States, the fundamental characteristics of the PWRs are the same: the main coolant brings up steam vapor in the heat exc hanger, known as the steam generator and this steam drives the turbines. Figure 2: Schematic diagram of a PWR Source: Tennessee Valley authority By the 1970s, United Kingdom was the only major Western Europe country yet to adopt the use of light water reactors (LWR) technology to develop. This was a result of a protracted debate between the protagonist of the AGR and the LWR. It was argued that the LWR was unsafe, thus the promotion of AGR usage. The Magnox stations in UK had for a long time been faced with the problems of low volumetric power density, low operating temperatures and low pressures. The time had come to look for an alternative, and well improved design. This led to the development of the advanced gas-cooled reactors.