DAE Contributions for Nuclear Energy: Overview
DAE Contributions for Nuclear Energy: Overview
Question: DAE recently celebrated its Diamond Jubilee during August 2014-2015. Discuss the state of contributions by this department to the growing science of nuclear technology.
DAE has been serving with the motto “Atoms in the Service of the Nation”
It is delivering the benefits of nuclear science and technology in the following areas:
- Energy Security,
- Food Security,
- Water Security,
- Health Security,
- National Security,
- Development of World Class R&D
- DAE has contributed energy mix options in India through the indigenous three stage Nuclear Power Programme and international civil nuclear cooperation
- India has logged over 421 years of reliable and safe operation in several key operating achievements
- Unit 5 of the Rajasthan Atomic Power Station completed 765 days of continuous operation on September 6, 2014-this is the longest in the world in the past 20 years and second longest in the 6 decade history of nuclear power
- Continuous operation of more than one year has been logged by Indian Reactors 20 times including 7 reactors registering the feat during the past one year
Government has also taken many initiatives to boost civil nuclear energy sector in the nation such as:
- Civil nuclear agreement with Australia (potential supplier of uranium);
- Pre-Engineering Agreement signed between NPCIL and AREVA company of France;
- Supplement to General Framework Agreement with Russian Federation in respect of Kudankulam Units-3&4;
- Formulation of vision document on future cooperation with Russian Federation;
- Development and manufacture indigenous components and some critical large size equipment 700 MW indigenous Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWR), in line with “Make in India goal”, by DAE units.
- Efforts have been made to garner fuel resources from national and international shores/DAE has attained record production of fuel of 1252 MT for pressurised heavy water reactors
- Construction of Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor is also closing completion in Kalpakkam
- BARC’s reprocessing plant at Tarapur has exceeded the name plate capacity in producing material for PFBR fuel
- Comprehensive project on Fast Reactor Fuel Cycle Facility is being established at Kalpakkam
- A dedicated Centre for Thorium Advanced Research will be set up
- India will also host the International Thorium Energy Conference in October 2015
- Radiation processing of food was commissioned with DAE technology and two radiation processing plants were set up in at Bavla, Ahemdabad and Unnao, Lucknow
- BARC has also developed mutant high yielding pigeon pea crop variety Trombay Akola Red Arhar
- 4 prisons in TN have taken up seed multiplication of this; record yields have been noted in prison farms
- BARC had developed indigenous teletherapy machine, called Bhabhatron, for cancer treatment.
- Technologies developed by DAE have enhanced environmental safety and support to Swacch Bharat Abhiyan
- DAE’s supplies are assessed to lead to annually over 2.5 lakhs in-vivo diagnostic investigations, about 15,000 investigations using Positron Emission Tomography (PET), about 20000 therapeutic treatments and about 10 lakhs in-vitro hormone analysis.
- India is one of the 7 Partners in the largest International Cooperation Project ‘International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)’ being set up in France
Facts and Stats
- There are 21 nuclear power reactors with installed capacity of 5780 MW of electricity
- NPCIL achieved the highest power generation of 3783.5 crore units during 2014-2015 which is 7% more than the previous year
- Overall capacity factor of 83% and availability factor of 88% was assigned
- Kundamkalam Unit Number One set up with technical cooperation with Russia attained the rated capacity of 1000 MW on June 7,2014 and has commenced commercial operations towards the close of 2014
- It has been supplying electricity to the grid
- Kundamkalam Unit 2 is close to being commissioned
- India now has 12 private sector radiation processing plants
