Euratom Bulletin of the European Atomic Energy Community : June 1965 Vol. IV No.2
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uratom bulletin of the european atomic energy community june 1965 vol. IV no. 2 &m v£#V .'ft ;¥·.. -^ . *μ? ;% ^ Quarterly Information Bulletin of the Euro• pean Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) 1965-2 Contents: 34 Nuclear energy in Germany 44 Energy out of "pebbles" 49 What is ORGEL ?—A brief "recap" 50 How far have we got with the ORGEL project ? 54 CIRENE—A natural-uranium boiling- water reactor project 61 Euratom news: Nuclear energy from today until 2000—forecasts for the European Community; ORGEL—safety studies; A step towards nuclear superheat in water reactors; Production of uranium carbide single cristais at Ispra; Ways of obtaining higher burnups in graphite- gas reactors Published and edited by: Euratom, Dissemination of Information Directorate, 51-53 rue Be! I lard, Brussels 4. Telephone: 13 40 90 For subscription rates please see overleaf. Growth of o nuclear power plant—the Gund- remmingen "cactus" The Euratom Commission or any persons acting on its behalf disclaim all liability with respect to the completeness of the information contained in this periodical as well as to any damage which might result from the use of information disclosed or of equipment, methods or processes described therein. Any article published in this bulletin may be reproduced in whole or In part without restriction, provided that the source is mentioned. Picture credits: Page 2 of cover: AEG (Germany); page 35: Presse- u. Informa• tionsamt d. Bundesregierung, Bonn; Grodt- mann, Hamburg; page 39: KBB, Karlsruhe; page 40: Siemens; Linde; Erich Bauer, Karlsruhe; Interatom (Germany); page 41: AEG; page 43: Erich Bauer, Karlsruhe; page 48: Kernforschungsanlage Jülich; page 51 : Euratom JRC Ispra/Roberto Colom• bo; pages 52+53: Euratom JRC Ispra/ Ulrich Zimmermann; page 54: Roberto Zabban, Milan; page 60: Comm. Mario Agosto, Genoa. Cover: Gaston Bogaert, Brussels. Quarterly Five editions: English, German, French, Italian and Dutch Yearly subscription rates: United Kingdom 18/-; United States $ 3.50; Basic rate: Europe: 125 Belgian Francs Other countries: 175 Belgian Francs Single copies: United Kingdom 6/-; United States $ 1.- Printed in the Netherlands by A. W. Sijthoff, Leiden topi radioisotopen s hip propulsion schiffs antrieb propulsion na vale propulsione nava le scheepsvoortstuwi ng biology biologie biologie biologia bio logie medicine medi zin médecine medicin a geneeskunde healt h protection gesundh eitsschutz protection sanitaire protezione s anitaria bescherming van de gezondheid automatic data proces "Proven" reactors, "advanced" reactors, sing automatische inf ormation information "fast" reactors . these terms, which are automatique informa zione automatica auto creeping into nuclear parlance, do not, matische verwerking van gegevens insura strictly speaking, denote a hierarchical order, nee versicherungswes since all the reactors thus described are en assurances assicura zione verzekeringen kings in their own way; the proven reactors economics Wirtschaft économie economia e are the kings of today, the advanced con• Quarterly Information Bulletin of the Euro• conomie education verters—three types of which are discussed pean Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and training ausbildu ng enseignement inse in this issue—will reign tomorrow, and the gnamento onderwijs en opleiding power fast reactors are destined to become the reactors Jeistungsreak toren réacteurs de pu monarchs of a more distant future. According issance reattori di po to this scheme, therefore, what we really tenza energie reactor en nuclear fusion ke have is a dynasty. rnverschmelzung fusi 1965-2 on nucléaire fusione Undoubtedly, it is on the fast reactors that nucleare kernversmei ting radioisotopes r the ultimate hopes are pinned, because owing adioisotope radioisot opes radioisotopi ra to their amazing prospects as "breeders" of dioisotopen ship pr fissile material they show promise of solving opulsion schiffsantrie b propulsion navale the energy-supply problem for a long time to propulsione navale scheepsvoortstuwing come. biology biologie biolo gie biologia biologie Viewed in this perspective, the advanced medicine medizin mé thermal reactors would indeed seem or• decine medicina gene eskunde health pro dained to replace proven-type thermal tection gesundheitssc reactors, but they will merely constitute a hutz protection sanit aire protezione sanita temporary expedient to span the period of ría bescherming van de gezondheid auto development of fast reactors, which looks matic data processing like being fairly protracted. In short, their automatische informa tion information auto destiny is to fill the interregnum. matique informazione automatica automatis This outline already leaves room for numer• che verwerking van g ous minor variations, not to mention those egevens insurance v ersicherungswesen as that the future will no doubt bring. For ex• surances assicurazioni verzekeringen econ ample, certain advanced thermal reactors omics Wirtschaft èco themselves aspire to a breeding function and nomie economia eco nomie education and would thus appear to rival their legitimate The Community's mission is to create the training ausbildung successors. Actually, however, the notion of conditions necessary for the speedy estab• enseignement insegn amento onderwijs en lishment and growth of nuclear industries rivalry is misplaced, since the former call opleiding power reac in the member States and thereby contrib• tors leistungsreakto rather for a thorium/uranium-233 fuel cycle ute to the raising of living standards and ren réacteurs de pu and the latter for a uranium-238/plutonium the development of exchanges with other issance reattori di po tenza energie reactor countries (Article 1 of the Treaty instituting cycle. Consequently, it is more a case of co• en nuclear fusion ke the European Atomic Energy Community). rnverschmelzung fusi existence. on nucléaire fusione nucleare kernversmei ting radioisotopes r adioisotope radioisot opes radioisotopi ra dioisotopen ship pr opulsion schiffsantrie The development of nuclear research and tial should help to speed up this develop• of choice with regard to the lines to be technology in West Germany has hitherto ment, so that the consequences of Ger• followed which the country's limited proceeded under conditions which in major many's late start are likely to be overcome resources would otherwise certainly not respects differ from those obtaining in the in the foreseeable future, the German have permitted. United States, Britain and France. There are Federal Republic attaining a level of scien• Furthermore, as a result of these circum• two reasons for this which should be tific and technical achievement in the nuc• stances, no need was felt, in West Germany, particularly stressed : firstly, Germany made lear field within the next decade which will in the national organisation set up to pro• a late start and took a fairly long time to get correspond to the position occupied by it mote nuclear research and technology, to its programme off the ground and secondly, in other fields on the international plane. follow the example of the major nuclear all activities were restricted to the atoms- powers. Onlyasmall ministry of conventio• for-peace field. nal type was established, largely supported However, with the quickening pace of Peaceful uses only in its work by outs ¡de scientific, technical and development of nuclear research and tech• economic advisers. Research and develop• nology and the increasing importance of Under the terms of the Paris treaties of ment work in institutes and industrial the economic aspects of nuclear energy these two factors will gradually decrease in significance in comparison with the other conditions affecting the overall context of scientific and industrial activities. But EUBU 4-5 for the time being they should not be ignored in any attempt to assess the situa• tion in Germany. Late start Nuclear Energy in Germany It was not until 1955 that systematic work in the field of nuclear research and develop• ment could be commenced in Germany, with one or two isolated exceptions. At that time, however, only a few branches of DR. WOLFGANG FINKE, Federal Ministry for Scientific Research, Bad Godesberg research were blessed with a sound basis for rapid advance, and in the majority of fields of science and in almost the entire field of industrial development this basis had first to be created, with regard to both 1954 the German Federal Republic express• enterprises is to a large extent free of staff and material facilities. ly waived any right to develop or manufac• government interference. This resulted in a fairly long warming-up ture nuclear weapons. Since then, this period, during which it was often impossible pledge has been reiterated by the German to assess the full extent of the efforts re• Government on numerous occasions. Right quired, so that at the outset estimates from their commencement in 1955 all General conditions frequently fell short of reality. It was thus Germany's activities connected with re• only in the course of time that a realistic search into and the development and utili• By virtue of the conditions governing pictureofthesituation in Germany emerged sation of nuclear energy have been devoted nuclear research and technology in West which could be taken as the foundation solely to Its peaceful applications. This self- Germany, the special position which these for a long-term development programme. imposed curb has had an enormous effect fields have come to occupy in German Since