The American Breeder Reactor COMMENT BY JAY BOUDREAU rom its inception. the breeder velopment costs, and partly from the tor, denounced the Clinch River project reactor has been described as politics of nonproliferation of nuclear as “totally incompatible with our free a self-fueling energy machine, weapons. Just the cost of producing market approach to energy policy.” F the answer to our energy plutonium fuel from a breeder is high The politics of nuclear weapons pro- needs in the coming century. The United enough to keep utility companies in the liferation is still another issue in the States started up the world’s first breeder United States from being seriously in- breeder program. Because of grave in- reactor in 1951 and followed with an terested in the breeder at this time. For ternational concern about proliferation, operational pilot plant in 1963, the 20- example, the current market price of President Carter in April 1977 called for megawatt-electric (MWe) Experimental mined, processed uranium fuel (yellow- indefinite deferral of construction of Breeder Reactor II (EBR II). In 1969 we cake), which is $25 per pound, would commercial breeder reactors. Breeders completed the initial design for an inter- have to increase to nearly $165 per are considered hazardous because they mediate size (300-MWe) breeder reactor pound in today’s dollars before the produce rather large quantities of to be built at Clinch River, Tennessee, as breeder would be financially competitive plutonium, the basic material of nuclear the major step toward a commercially with the light-water reactor. cost weapons. However, separation of viable power generation system. In 1971 equivalence might take seventy-five to plutonium from breeder reactor fuel re- President Nixon established the liq- one hundred years unless crises arise in quires sophisticated reprocessing, and uid-metal fast breeder reactor (LMFBR) fossil fuels and imported oil. Conse- fabrication of nuclear weapons requires as the nation’s highest priority research quently, today there is little market pres- still further technology. The Interna- and development effort. Yet today, ten sure to maintain the impetus of the tional Fuel Cycle Evaluation report pub- years later, we have slipped from our breeder programs begun in the Nixon lished in 1979 found that the breeder fuel world preeminence in breeder technolo- era. cycle poses no greater threat of interna- gy, and the direction and very future of The cost of development and con- tional weapons proliferation than does the breeder development program in the struction is another problem in the the light-water reactor system. In 1981 United States is now uncertain. breeder reactor program. Currently, the an Iraqi reactor was destroyed by Israel Meanwhile, the French, the British, capital cost of the breeder is significantly in order to stop development of nuclear and the Russians proceeded with their higher than that of the light-water reac- weapons in Iraq; that reactor was not a own original plans: the 250-MWe tor. Constructing a 1000-MWe breeder but a light-water type. In the Phenix, the 250-MWe Prototype Fast light-water reactor would cost about United States the proliferation-inspired Reactor (PFR), and the 350-MWe $1.7 billion, while a fast breeder reactor moratorium has locked up our breeder Bystrye Neitrony (BN-350) all came system of comparable power could cost program for four years; now, under a on--line about 1974. The French and the $3.4 billion. Because of the excessive new administration, we are just begin- Russians have continued their programs. cost, United States utility companies are ning to take another look at the pro- The Russian 600-MWe Bystrye reluctant to undertake the purchase of a gram. Whether the breeder development Neitrony (BN-600) came on-line in 1979; breeder system without government sub- should simply pick up where it left off is their 1600-MWe Bystrye Neitrony sidies. In France, where there is a short- open to question. (BN-1600) is scheduled for 1986. The age of domestic energy resources, On the technical side the case for 1200-MWe French Super-Phenix is breeder construction is subsidized as a completing the 350-MWe Clinch River scheduled for completion in 1984. Today matter of government policy. However, breeder reactor as a demonstration, it is France who leads the world in in this country opposition to such a power-producing facility is debatable. breeder reactor technology. policy has come from both political The reason for building commercial The slowdown and all-but demise of parties. For example, in a 1977 letter to plants of gradually increasing size is to the American breeder reactor program the House of Representatives, Michigan learn about scaling. It is not possible, for have resulted partly from uranium fuel Congressman David Stockman, who is example, to ensure successful construc- costs, partly from breeder reactor de- now President Reagan’s Budget Direc- tion and operation of a 1000-MWe 118 LOS ALAMOS SCIENCE Program Gets a Second Chance COMMENT breeder facility by extrapolating from has more advanced pumps, heat ex- the interest on the loan. The term of the our experience with the 20-MWe Ex- changers, steam generators, and cooling loan would commence during plant con- perimental Breeder Reactor II. Thus, loops. Its design is close to what we now struction and would terminate when the Clinch River was to be a steppingstone, envision for commercial plants. How- loan had been repaid from revenue gen- On the other hand, even during the ever, technical considerations alone do erated by power sales. Revenue from Carter deferral of commercialization, not dictate the timing for such a plant. continued operation would be used to funding for building and testing Clinch There are two questions. How can we repay Treasury for its contribution of River’s large components continued. The finance the large developmental plant? interest monies. Such a scheme could Department of Energy constructed large And how should its construction tie in reduce to $800 million the government facilities specifically designed to test with the now revived Clinch River investment in the large plant. pumps, heat exchangers, and other parts. project? The large developmental plant Two decades ago the breeder reactor By now the components have been large- is in the 1000-MWe range and, as men- was an experimental technology with ly tested, and most of what will be tioned before, would cost $3.4 billion in great promise for solving future energy learned from building Clinch River will 1981 dollars. One option would be to problems. The United States was a world be how the components behave together begin the large plant at some time in the leader in that technology. Now, when in an operating plant. While this is future when expenditures for Clinch Riv- energy is a very immediate problem for valuable knowledge, its direct ap- er have declined, But if too much time most of the world, breeder reactors in plicability is diminished by the fact that elapses, companies will not be able to France and in the Soviet Union are present plans for the next generation afford to keep the existing cadre of beginning to fulfill their promise. But we facility, familiarly known as Son of experienced designers and reactor manu- are still in the developmental stage; we Clinch, do not retain the same design facturers on the payroll. The team will have lost our sense of urgency about features. Therefore, from a developmen- disband, and the price this country will breeders; and our entire nuclear industry tal point of view, the Clinch River pay is the lead time necessary to re- is just beginning to recover from the project would increase in value if its assemble the team. No one really knows aftereffects of the Three Mile Island design were modified to include these how many years this would take or what accident. new features. it would cost. Our country’s energy future is not at An even more important step toward So far, $1 billion in tax dollars has all secure; another series of crises over commercialization would be construc- been spent on Clinch River; the total imported oil and new demands and high- tion of a larger, more advanced develop- cost estimate in current dollars is $3.0 to er prices for uranium could make the mental plant. The concept for this larger $3.2 billion. The original cost estimate breeder reactor very attractive thirty plant is another result of the moratorium was $700 million. An associated reproc- years from now. From our own ex- on breeder commercialization. When essing facility is also planned, and its perience and from watching the Europe- President Carter stopped the Clinch Riv- development could cost as much as an efforts, we know that development er project in 1977, he instituted a another $1 billion. To build the large and commercial plant production take four-year conceptual design study to plant concurrently would require an in- twenty years or more. We also know evaluate a variety of breeder designs that novative financing scheme. One sugges- that the costs of development and con- might minimize the threat of prolifera- tion is a Congressionally chartered cor- struction are rising rapidly. Much of the tion and enhance overall breeder effec- poration composed of personnel from preliminary testing of breeder reactor tiveness. The report, just issued to Con- government, from national laboratories, components is done. Now the gress last March, outlines a modern, and from industries and utilities. The moratorium is over. It seems a good time streamlined, large developmental plant corporation would be empowered to to go forward either with a revised with state-of-the-art features not avail- enter the private capital market to seek intermediate project at Clinch River or able when the Clinch River breeder was funding.