-^."-••-.\ >'.J • ••Wai ' i GOVERNMENT OF INDIA Coolan' f Iiannel with sealing plug of Madras Atomic Power DEPARTMENT ANNUAL Station Unit-1 OF REPORT ATOMIC 1983-84 ENERGY Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Dr. R. Ramanna Secretary, (ex-officio) Department of Atomic Energy Member for Finance Shri P. K. Kaul Finance Secretary in and ex-officio the Ministry of Finance, Secretary Department of Economic in the Deptt. of Atomic Affairs. Energy in financial matters. Member Dr. P. C. Alexander Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, Member Prof. S. Dhawan Chairman, Space Commission and Secretary, Department of Space. Member Shri C. R. Krishnaswamy Cabinet Secretary. Rao Sahib Member Shri J. R. D. Tata Chairmen, Tata Sons Ltd. Contents it*' Publicity, AlWn'm Energy", International Relations, Use of radioisotopes, electronics, instrumentation, lasars. biology, agriculture, food technology, radiation medicine etc. Reactor In tho field of research reactors, expertise from design to operation General Survey stago has been fully developed. The country's 1 MW awimming pool India's programme for the reactor APSARA built in 1956, utilisation of atomic energy for its continues to be used for isotope economic development made rapid production and physics experiments. strides during 1983-84. The power reactor (unit-1) at Kalpakkam The 40 MW CIRUS reactor, designed, engineered and built operating since 1960, has provided entirely by Indian scientists and valuable production, experimentation engineers, attained criticality on July 2, and training 'acuities. Commissioned in 1983 and was synchronised to the grid 1961, ZERLINA — the zero energy by the Prime Minister on July 23, 1983. reactor, was decommissioned in 1983 India is thus one of the few countries after rendering useful service in in the World capable of designing, studying new reactor concepts and building, fuelling and operating power components. reactors entirely on its own. The power reactor (unit li) at Rawatbhata The zero energy fast reactor assembly achieved record performance with an PURNIMA was built in 1972 and is ODeratina factor of 85.33 per cent presently under modification to during the year. In the latter half of the operate using uranium (233) fuel year the heavy water plants at (PURNIMA II). It is expected to Baroda and Tutlcorin have been producing their targetted quantities. become operational in 1984. In addition another mini-pool reactor, also containing uranium (233) as R & D at Research and development fuel, is under construction at BARC activities at the Shabha Atomic Kalpakkam, for neutron radiography Research Centre (BARC) moved experiments. forward contributing to the building up of the nuclear power programme of A new high flux indigenous reactor the country with significant spin-offs at Vrombay, called DHRUVA will be in the fields of space, defence, commissioned in 1984. DHRUVA is a industry, agriculture and medicine. nelural uranium heavy water moderated reactor of 100 MW Founded in 1957 as the Atomic dermal power and incorporates Energy Establishment at Trombay, tjsveral new features including a new BARC's activities cover_dwerse fields fuel concept. such as physics.chemistry, engineering, metallurgy, reprocessing, fuel fabrication, waste management, Nuclear Since the inception ot atomic energy reprocessing and separation of FIMI programme, R 4 D efforts have Plutonium, sodium, materials research been directed towards achieving development, reactor engineering, Develop- self-reliance in meeting the fuel needs electronics and instrumentation, and nwiil . of the reactors. The Uranium Metal safety research. Plant at Trombay, which produced its first ingot of fuel in January 1959, Work on the design of 500 MWe was partially recommissioned Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor during the year. commenced and preliminary reports prepared. Fuel elements and subassemblies for CIRUS reactor and metallic uranium fuel clusters and other components for Centra Work on setting up the Centre for DHRUVA reactor were fabricated. for Ad- Advanced Technology at Indore Design and fabrication work for the vancwl commenced on February 19, 1984 with new plutonium rich carbide fuel was Techno- the unveiling of a plaque by the undertaken at BARC. Development logy President. worn on .uranium (233) based fuel fabrication as well as R & D work in The Centre will work on a variety of thorium utilisation was carried out. advanced and frontier technologies which have been engaging the Fuel The 30 tonne per year Plutonium attention of BARC, such as Repro- Plant built at Trombay in 1964, was accelerators, lasers and fusion. The cMstng recommissioned after some additions Centre will evolve designs for large high and capacity augmentation. The energy accelerators, laser systems for 100 tonnes per year Power Reactor' fusion investigations and advanced Fuel Reprocessing Plant built at MHO systems etc. Tarapur in 1979 began reprocessing spent fuel from the Rajasthan Station. Work on the construction of a third Techno- BARC continued transferring reprocessing plant located at logy technologies for commercial Kalpakkam commenced. Transfer production. During the year these included low carbon ferroalloys, osmotic dehydration of fruits, Wast* The waste management facilities at microprocessor based PABX/PAX, Manage- Trombay, Kaipakkam, Tarapur and automatic fraction collectors and ment Rajasthan operated well during the surface area measuring apparatus. year. Work on waste immobilisation project and solid storage surveillance facility at Tarapur was In progress. Product During the year, BARC exported 130 Export, consignments of radio labelled The Reactor Research Centre was phosphates to Indonesia, Syria, established in 1971 at Kalpakkam, Zambia and Tanzania. Radioisotopes Tamil Nadu, to carry out development and allied products were supplied also of sophisticated breeder technology. to the users abroad. 3 gamma chamber The Fast Breeder Test Reactor is units were exported to Burma, expected to be commissioned Singapore and Sudan. towards the end of 1984. This is a 40 MW thermal sodium cooled A neutron spectrometer was designed reactor: It will generate about and fabricated for installation' at the 15 MW of electrical power, using Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, UK mixed carbide fuel developed and while a neutron polarisation manufactured at Trombay. analysis spectrometer developed at Laboratories have been commissioned BARC was installed at the Korean for handling active materials, Atomic Energy Research Institute. Variable VEC, set up at Calcutta by BARC, is Support In addition to the High Altitude Energy emerging as 2 national research to basic Research Laboratory at Gulmarg* Cyclotron facility with the major users being research National Research Laboratory at Centre scientists from universities throughout in nuclear Srinagar and Seismology Station at (VECC) the country. An additional beam sciences Gauribidanur, institutions aided by transport channel and radiofrequency OAE like the Tata Institute of system were commissioned this year. Fundamental Research and the Sana Institute of Nuclear Physics, Calcutta are engaged in research geared to Magneto BARC, in collaboration with BHEL, has achieve self-reliant base in nuclear hydro- been engaged on the development of 'science and technology. DAE also dynamics an experimental 5 MW MHD plant supported research and development (MHD) at Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu, the work in various disciplines related .to Project construction work of which was largely atomic energy in Indian universities and completed. The plant is expected to be other academic institutions by giving in operation in 1984. project-linked financial assistance and fellowships. The Department also provided grants to institutions for the * BARC has been producing a variety of Radio- development of mathematics. During radioisotopes for use in medicine, isotope* the year Rs. 1.3 crores were industry, agriculture and research. and Appli- allocated by DAE as grants-in-aid to cations universities and institutions. The value of radioisotopes and related services rendered during the year totalled Rs.1.90 crores with over Training The Training School was started in 46,000 consignments of radioisotopes BARC in August 1957 to develop and products being supplied within sufficient trained scientific and the country and abroad. technical manpower. 117 trainees including 33 inplant trainees graduated in August 1983 from the Radio Radiopharmaceutical products from 26th Course of the Training School. Pharma- BARC are being used in over 120 ceuticals medical institutions in the country. It The School has thus trained over 3850 is estimated that 4 lakh patients in the scientists and engineers since its inception. For the training of operation country were benefited from these. and maintenance personnel, a products. a Training Centre is also functioning at RAPS, Kota. ISOMED The ISOMED Plant commissioned in Plant 1974 continued to offer irradiation services to the pharmaceutical Nuclear As a result or consistent efforts industry and the hospitals. Power towards self-reliance India is today Programme one of the few countries in the world, and the only one among the developing Radiation The Radiation Medicine Centre at countries, to attain self-reliance in all Medicine Bombay offers various radioisotopic aspects of nuclear power generation, investigations including imaging of starting from prospecting and body organs. During the year, 12,000 mining of uranium to fuel reprocessing patients attended the Centre and