INTERFAX//

“Fast reactors comply to the maximum extent with the requirements to nuclear reactors of next generations”, - considers Head of "Rosatom", Sergey Kiriyenko.

"They can have a stable active zone, operate with natural uranium and can be used as afterburners not only of their own spent fuel, but also of spent fuel from thermal reactors. Therefore, here, in Russia, we have accepted the resolutions that speaking about a new technological platform, we place our stake, first of all, on fast reactors"   S.Kiriyenko said on Wednesday at the meeting with representatives of the nuclear industry and Mass Media of the USA in the RF Embassy in Washington.

As he said, in this matter great opportunities for cooperation with the USA can be opened. " Primarily, I would name cooperation on construction of a multifunction fast research  reactor. It is required to carry out  Research and Development and, the most important, a lot of tests. We are currently proceeding to construction of such essentially new reactor and have suggested our American colleagues to take part in this project in Russia. And we have a wide experience in this work, and in the USA, as far as I know, up to 1990 the fast research reactor was operating,  the Head of "Rosatom" noted.

With the requirements to rectors of new generation S.Kiriyenko has identified three main ones.

" The first one is natural safety. The current generation of reactors are safe enough, except for one problem: after the reactor is at the shutdown level, it is required to withdraw heat gain for some time. Though taking into account the behavior of the reactor in “Fukushima” in this accident,  we can say that even such an old reactor (and it was designed even earlier than the Chernobyl one, evidently in the process of its designing the underestimation of possible simultaneous impact of earthquake and a tsunami have been made, and this reactor has got an unprecedented combination of natural factors), if we assess it from the technical point of view, has passed this test. Its automatic equipment has operated in the design mode. It came to the shut down level itself after the earthquake. And if in the short run after that the Japanese experts had provided supply of the electric power, even such terrible coincidence of circumstances would not have resulted in such consequences. Nevertheless, the conclusion from the above situation is the following: the new generation of reactors shall provide safety, even if the personnel does not have an opportunity to take appropriate measures",  said S.Kiriyenko.

The second requirement is guarantees of the non-proliferation mode. "For this purpose it is desirable not to have a requirement of uranium enrichment. That is to work with natural uranium. And not to allow emission of plutonium in the process of operation with the SP ", - he noted.

The third requirement, according to S.Kiriyenko, is in the waste minimization.

Speaking about the new generation of reactors, it is necessary to design not only a reactor, but the complete fuel cycle as well, thus, the main issue is fuel processing”,  emphasized the Head of "Rosatom".

"We are producing an experimental demonstration facility in Zheleznogorsk for optimization of several available ways in this technology. And we are working today to do it together. Both Russian and American experts have a good experience. But, first, it is necessary for us to obtain the result quickly. And this result will be presented at the global market. And if it is not a separate decision of the country, but a joint product, it will be the best solution ",  S.Kiriyenko said.

One more perspective direction is low-power and medium-power reactors. "This is that requirement which is claimed today by a number of the countries that are only in the beginning of the road to atomic energy. They do not need high power.