--- SEARCH ---
WEATHER
CHINA
INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS
CULTURE
GOVERNMENT
SCI-TECH
ENVIRONMENT
LIFE
PEOPLE
TRAVEL
WEEKLY REVIEW
Learning Chinese
Learn to Cook Chinese Dishes
Exchange Rates


Hot Links
China Development Gateway
Chinese Embassies


Beijing Uses Nuclear Power
The country's first high-temperature, gas-cooled nuclear reactor is now generating power at full capacity in Beijing.

The development of the reactor represents a major step in the country's safe use of nuclear energy to resolve its energy shortage, said Wu Zongxin, a professor with the Nuclear Energy Technology Institute of Tsinghua University.

China is the fifth country in the world to master the technology for building this type of reactor, following the United States, Britain, Germany and Japan.

Construction of the reactor began in 1995, at a total cost of 250 million yuan (US$30 million). The reactor has undergone 100 safety tests since it began thermal testing in December 2000.

It has a shorter production circle and lower production cost, compared with other types of reactors, Wu said.

Moreover, there is no need for a regular reactor shutdown, since the reactor can be refueled at any time. This, of course, enhances its utilization rate, he said.

The reactor produces temperatures three times that of pressurized water reactors and is operationally very secure, Wu said.

Several key components of the reactor were designed and produced by China under the country's high-technology research development plan, commonly known as the "863 Program." The successful development of the reactor paves the way for the building of similar or larger nuclear power stations in China.

The high-temperature, gas-cooled reactor is generally believed to be the safest reactor in use in the world. In the event of an accident, the reactor shuts down automatically and cools the surplus heat inside the reactor.

A nuclear accident such as Chernobyl is absolutely impossible, Wu said.

China has been shifting the focus of nuclear power usage from defense to civilian use since the 1980s. The country has already built three nuclear power stations, two of which started commercial operations in the 1990s. Four nuclear generating units are under construction.

The country's installed nuclear power capacity will reach 8.7 million kilowatts in three years.

(Xinhua News Agency March 6, 2003)


New Type of Nuclear Reactor Put into Use
Nuclear Power Capacity to Keep Rising
PICC Insures Nuclear Power Station
Third Commercial Nuclear Power Plant to Operate
Measures Designed to Assure Nuclear Power Industry Safety
China's Nuclear Power Domestication onto a New Stage
Chinese Nuclear Power Industry Offers Big Opportunities
Construction of Two More Nuclear Power Generators Begins
Beijing Institute of Nuclear Engineering(BINE)
Tsinghua University
Print This Page
|
Email This Page
About Us SiteMap Feedback
Copyright © China Internet Information Center. All Rights Reserved
E-mail: webmaster@china.org.cn Tel: 86-10-68326688