The world's first nuclear power plant. History and types of nuclear power plants

Nuclear power plants are nuclear installations producing energy, while observing specified modes under certain conditions. For these purposes, a territory defined by the project is used, where nuclear reactors are used in combination with necessary systems, devices, equipment and structures. For execution targets specialized personnel are involved.

All nuclear power plants in Russia

History of nuclear energy in our country and abroad

The second half of the 40s was marked by the beginning of work on the creation of the first project involving the use of peaceful atoms to generate electricity. In 1948, I.V. Kurchatov, guided by the instructions of the party and the Soviet government, made a proposal to begin work on practical use nuclear energy to generate electricity.

Two years later, in 1950, not far from the village of Obninskoye, located in the Kaluga region, the construction of the first nuclear power plant on the planet was launched. Launch of the world's first industrial nuclear power plant, whose power was 5 MW, took place on June 27, 1954. The Soviet Union became the first power in the world to use the atom for peaceful purposes. The station was opened in Obninsk, which had by that time received the status of a city.

But Soviet scientists did not stop there; they continued work in this direction, in particular, just four years later in 1958, operation of the first stage of the Siberian Nuclear Power Plant began. Its power was many times greater than the station in Obninsk and amounted to 100 MW. But for domestic scientists this was not the limit; upon completion of all work, the design capacity of the station was 600 MW.

In the vastness of the Soviet Union, the construction of nuclear power plants assumed, at that time, a massive scale. In the same year, the construction of the Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Plant began, the first stage of which, already in April 1964, supplied the first consumers. The geography of the construction of nuclear power plants entangled the entire country in its network; in the same year, the first unit of the nuclear power plant was launched in Voronezh, its capacity was 210 MW, the second unit, launched five years later in 1969, boasted a capacity of 365 MW. The boom in nuclear power plant construction did not subside throughout the Soviet era. New stations, or additional units of already built ones, were launched at intervals of several years. So, already in 1973, Leningrad received its own nuclear power plant.

However, the Soviet power was not the only one in the world that was able to develop such projects. In the UK, they also did not sleep and, realizing the promise of this area, actively studied this issue. Just two years later, after the opening of the station in Obninsk, the British launched own project on the development of the peaceful atom. In 1956, in the town of Calder Hall, the British launched their own station, the power of which exceeded its Soviet counterpart and amounted to 46 MW. They did not lag behind on the other side of the Atlantic; a year later, the Americans solemnly launched the station in Shippingport into operation. The facility's capacity was 60 MW.

However, the development of the peaceful atom was fraught with hidden threats, which the whole world soon learned about. The first sign was a major accident in Three Mile Island that occurred in 1979, but after it there was a catastrophe that struck the whole world, in the Soviet Union, in small town A large-scale disaster occurred at Chernobyl in 1986. The consequences of the tragedy were irreparable, but besides this, this fact made the whole world think about the feasibility of using nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

World leaders in this industry are seriously thinking about improving the safety of nuclear facilities. The result was the holding of a constituent assembly, which was organized on May 15, 1989 in the Soviet capital. The assembly decided to create a World Association, which should include all nuclear power plant operators; its generally recognized abbreviation is WANO. In the course of implementing its programs, the organization systematically monitors the improvement of the safety level of nuclear power plants in the world. However, despite all the efforts made, even the most modern and at first glance seemingly safe objects cannot withstand the onslaught of the elements. It was because of an endogenous disaster, which manifested itself in the form of an earthquake and the subsequent tsunami, that an accident occurred at the Fukushima-1 station in 2011.

Atomic blackout

NPP classification

Nuclear power plants are classified according to two criteria: the type of energy they produce and the type of reactor. Depending on the type of reactor, the amount of energy generated, the level of safety, and also what kind of raw materials are used at the station are determined.

According to the type of energy that the stations produce, they are divided into two types:

Their main function is to generate electrical energy.

Nuclear thermal power plants. Due to the heating installations installed there, using heat losses that are inevitable at the station, heating of network water becomes possible. Thus, in addition to electricity, these stations generate thermal energy.

Having examined many options, scientists came to the conclusion that the most rational are three of their varieties, which are currently used all over the world. They differ in a number of ways:

1. Fuel used;
2. Coolants used;
3. Active zones operated to maintain the required temperature;
4. A type of moderator that reduces the speed of neutrons that are released during decay and are so necessary to support a chain reaction.

The most common type is a reactor using enriched uranium as fuel. Ordinary or light water is used here as a coolant and moderator. Such reactors are called light water reactors; there are two types of them. In the first, the steam used to turn the turbines is generated in a core called a boiling water reactor. In the second, steam formation occurs in an external circuit, which is connected to the first circuit through heat exchangers and steam generators. This reactor began to be developed in the fifties of the last century; the basis for them was the US Army program. In parallel, around the same time, the Union developed a boiling reactor, in which a graphite rod acted as a moderator.

It is the type of reactor with a moderator of this type that has found application in practice. We are talking about a gas-cooled reactor. Its history began in the late forties and early fifties of the 20th century; initially, developments of this type were used in the production of nuclear weapons. In this regard, two types of fuel are suitable for it: weapons-grade plutonium and natural uranium.

The last project, which was accompanied by commercial success, was a reactor where heavy water is used as a coolant, and natural uranium, which is already familiar to us, is used as fuel. Initially, several countries designed such reactors, but in the end their production was concentrated in Canada, which is due to the presence of massive uranium deposits in this country.

Thorium nuclear power plants - the energy of the future?

History of improving types of nuclear reactors

The reactor of the first nuclear power plant on the planet was a very reasonable and viable design, which was proven during many years of impeccable operation of the station. Among him constituent elements highlighted:

1. lateral water protection;
2. masonry casing;
3. top floor;
4. collection manifold;
5. fuel channel;
6. top plate;
7. graphite masonry;
8. bottom plate;
9. distribution manifold.

Stainless steel was chosen as the main structural material for fuel rod shells and technological channels; at that time, there was no knowledge of zirconium alloys that could have properties suitable for working with temperatures of 300°C. Cooling of such a reactor was carried out with water, and the pressure under which it was supplied was 100 at. In this case, steam was released with a temperature of 280°C, which is a quite moderate parameter.

Channels nuclear reactor were designed in such a way that they could be completely replaced. This is due to resource limitation, which is determined by the time the fuel remains in the activity zone. The designers found no reason to expect that structural materials located in the activity zone under irradiation would be able to exhaust their entire service life, namely about 30 years.

As for the design of TVEL, it was decided to adopt a tubular version with a one-way cooling mechanism

This reduced the likelihood that fission products would enter the circuit in the event of fuel rod damage. To regulate the temperature of the fuel element shell, a fuel composition of uranium-molybdenum alloy was used, which had the form of grains dispersed through a warm-water matrix. Nuclear fuel processed in this way made it possible to obtain highly reliable fuel rods. which were capable of operating under high thermal loads.

An example of the next round of development of peaceful nuclear technologies can be the infamous Chernobyl nuclear power plant. At that time, the technologies used in its construction were considered the most advanced, and the type of reactor was considered the most modern in the world. We are talking about the RBMK-1000 reactor.

The thermal power of one such reactor reached 3200 MW, while it has two turbogenerators, the electrical power of which reaches 500 MW, so one power unit has an electrical power of 1000 MW. Enriched uranium dioxide was used as fuel for the RBMK. In the initial state before the start of the process, one ton of such fuel contains about 20 kg of fuel, namely uranium - 235. With a stationary loading of uranium dioxide into the reactor, the mass of the substance is 180 tons.

But the loading process does not represent a bulk; fuel elements, already well known to us, are placed into the reactor. Essentially, they are tubes made from a zirconium alloy. The contents are cylindrical uranium dioxide tablets. In the reactor activity zone, they are placed in fuel assemblies, each of which combines 18 fuel rods.

There are up to 1,700 such assemblies in such a reactor, and they are placed in a graphite stack, where vertical technological channels are designed specifically for these purposes. It is in them that the coolant circulates, the role of which, in the RMBK, is played by water. The water whirlpool occurs under the influence of circulation pumps, of which there are eight. The reactor is located inside the shaft, and the graphic masonry is located in a cylindrical casing 30 mm thick. The support of the entire apparatus is a concrete base, under which there is a pool - a bubbler, which serves to localize the accident.

The third generation of reactors uses heavy water

The main element of which is deuterium. The most common design is called CANDU, it was developed in Canada and is widely used throughout the world. The core of such reactors is located in a horizontal position, and the role of the heating chamber is played by cylindrical tanks. The fuel channel stretches across the entire heating chamber, each of these channels has two concentric tubes. There are outer and inner tubes.

In the inner tube, the fuel is under coolant pressure, which allows additional refueling of the reactor during operation. Heavy water with formula D20 is used as a retarder. During a closed cycle, water is pumped through the pipes of a reactor containing fuel bundles. Nuclear fission produces heat.

The cooling cycle when using heavy water consists of passing through steam generators, where ordinary water boils from the heat generated by heavy water, resulting in the formation of steam that comes out under high pressure. It is distributed back into the reactor, resulting in a closed cooling cycle.

It was along this path that there was a step-by-step improvement of the types of nuclear reactors that were and are being used in various countries of the world.

The production of electricity using a nuclear chain reaction in the Soviet Union first occurred at the Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant. Compared to today's giants, the first nuclear power plant had only 5 MW of power, and the largest operating nuclear power plant in the world today, Kashiwazaki-Kariwa (Japan), had 8212 MW.

Obninsk NPP: from start-up to museum

Soviet scientists led by I.V. Kurchatov, after completing military programs, immediately began creating a nuclear reactor with the goal of using thermal energy to convert it into electricity. The first nuclear power plant was developed by them in as soon as possible, and in 1954 the launch of an industrial nuclear reactor took place.

The release of potential, both industrial and professional, after the creation and testing of nuclear weapons allowed I.V. Kurchatov to tackle the problem entrusted to him of generating electricity by mastering the heat generated during a controlled nuclear reaction. Technical solutions for creating a nuclear reactor were mastered during the launch of the very first experimental uranium-graphite reactor F-1 in 1946. The first nuclear chain reaction was carried out on it, and almost all recent theoretical developments were confirmed.

For an industrial reactor, it was necessary to find design solutions related to the continuous operation of the installation, heat removal and supply to the generator, circulation of the coolant and its protection from radioactive contamination.

The team of Laboratory No. 2, headed by I.V. Kurchatov, together with NIIkhimmash under the leadership of N.A. Dollezhal, worked out all the nuances of the structure. Physicist E.L. Feinberg was entrusted with the theoretical development of the process.

The reactor was started up (critical parameters were reached) on May 9, 1954; on June 26 of the same year, the nuclear power plant was connected to the network, and in December it reached its design capacity.

After operating as an industrial power plant for almost 48 years without incident, the Obninsk NPP was shut down in April 2002. Unloading was completed in September of the same year nuclear fuel.

Even during the work at the nuclear power plant, many excursions came, the station worked as a classroom for future nuclear scientists. Today, a memorial museum has been organized at its base. nuclear energy.

The first foreign nuclear power plant

Nuclear power plants, following the example of Obninsk, did not immediately begin to be created abroad. In the United States, the decision to build its own nuclear power plant was made only in September 1954, and only in 1958 the Shippingport nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania was launched. The capacity of the Shippingport nuclear power plant was 68 MW. Foreign experts call it the first commercial nuclear power plant. The construction of nuclear power plants is quite expensive; the nuclear power plant cost the US treasury $72.5 million.

After 24 years, in 1982, the station was stopped, by 1985 the fuel was unloaded and dismantling of this huge structure weighing 956 tons began for subsequent disposal.

Prerequisites for the creation of a peaceful atom

After the discovery of uranium nuclear fission by German scientists Otto Hahn and Fritz Strassmann in 1938, research into chain reactions began.

I.V. Kurchatov, prompted by A.B. Ioffe, together with Yu.B. Khariton, wrote a note to the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences on nuclear issues and the importance of work in this direction. I. V. Kurchatov worked at this time at the Leningrad Physico-Technical Institute (LPTI), headed by A. B. Ioffe, on problems of nuclear physics.

In November 1938, based on the results of studying the problem and after I.V. Kurchatov’s speech at the Plenum of the Academy of Sciences (Academy of Sciences), a note was drawn up to the Presidium of the Academy of Sciences on the organization of work in the USSR on the physics of the atomic nucleus. It traces the rationale for generalizing all the disparate laboratories and institutes in the USSR, belonging to different ministries and departments, essentially dealing with the same problems.

Suspension of work on nuclear physics

Some of these organizational work managed to be done even before the Second World War, but major progress began to occur only in 1943, when I.V. Kurchatov was offered to head the atomic project.

After September 1, 1939, a kind of vacuum gradually began to form around the USSR. Scientists did not immediately feel this, although Soviet intelligence agents immediately began to warn about the secrecy of speeding up work on studying nuclear reactions in Germany and Great Britain.

Great Patriotic War immediately made adjustments to the work of all scientists in the country, including nuclear physicists. Already in July 1941, LFTI was evacuated to Kazan. I.V. Kurchatov began to deal with the problem of mine clearance of sea vessels (protection against sea mines). For his work on this topic in wartime conditions (three months on ships in Sevastopol until November 1941, when the city was almost completely under siege), he was awarded the Stalin Prize for organizing a demagnetization service in Poti (Georgia).

After a hard time colds Upon his arrival in Kazan, it was only towards the end of 1942 that I.V. Kurchatov was able to return to the topic of nuclear reaction.

Atomic project under the leadership of I.V. Kurchatov

In September 1942, I.V. Kurchatov was only 39 years old; by the age standards of science, he was a young scientist next to Ioffe and Kapitsa. It was at this time that Igor Vasilyevich was appointed to the post of project manager. All nuclear power plants in Russia and plutonium reactors of this period were created within the framework of the nuclear project, which was led by Kurchatov until 1960.

From the point of view of today, it is impossible to imagine that precisely when 60% of industry was destroyed in the occupied territories, when the main population of the country was working for the front, the leadership of the USSR made a decision that predetermined the development nuclear power in future.

After assessing intelligence reports on the state of affairs with work on atomic nuclear physics in Germany, Great Britain, and the USA, the extent of the lag became clear to Kurchatov. He began to collect scientists across the country and active fronts who could be involved in the creation of nuclear potential.

The lack of uranium, graphite, heavy water, and the lack of a cyclotron did not stop the scientist. Work, both theoretical and practical, resumed in Moscow. A high level of secrecy was determined by the State Defense Committee ( State Committee defense). To produce weapons-grade plutonium, a reactor (“boiler” in Kurchatov’s own terminology) was built. Work was underway to enrich uranium.

Lagging behind the United States from 1942 to 1949

On September 2, 1942, in the USA, at the world's first nuclear reactor, a controlled nuclear reaction was carried out. By this time, in the USSR, apart from the theoretical developments of scientists and intelligence data, there was practically nothing.

It became clear that the country would not be able to catch up with the United States in a short time. To prepare (save) personnel, create the prerequisites for the rapid development of uranium enrichment processes, the creation of a nuclear reactor for the production of weapons-grade plutonium, and the restoration of the operation of factories for the production of pure graphite - these were tasks that had to be done during the war and post-war times.

The occurrence of a nuclear reaction is associated with the release of a colossal amount of thermal energy. US scientists - the first creators of the atomic bomb - used this as an additional damaging effect during the explosion.

Nuclear power plants of the world

Today, nuclear energy, although it produces a colossal amount of electricity, is widespread in a limited number of countries. This is due to the huge capital investments in the construction of nuclear power plants, from geological exploration, construction, creation of protection and ending with employee training. Payback can occur in tens of years, provided that the station continues to operate continuously.

The feasibility of constructing a nuclear power plant is determined, as a rule, by the governments of countries (naturally, after consideration various options). In the conditions of development of industrial potential, in the absence of its own internal energy reserves in large quantities or their high cost, preference is given to the construction of nuclear power plants.

By the end of 2014, nuclear reactors were operating in 31 countries around the world. The construction of nuclear power plants has begun in Belarus and the UAE.

Nuclear power plants in Russia

Today, ten nuclear power plants operate in the Russian Federation.

Today, Russian nuclear power plants are part of the Rosatom State Corporation, which unites all structural units industries from uranium mining and enrichment and nuclear fuel production to the operation and construction of nuclear power plants. In terms of power generated by nuclear power plants, Russia is in second place in Europe after France.

Nuclear energy in Ukraine

Ukraine's nuclear power plants were built during the Soviet Union. The total installed capacity of Ukrainian nuclear power plants is comparable to Russian ones.

Before the collapse of the USSR, nuclear energy in Ukraine was integrated into a single industry. In the post-Soviet period before the events of 2014, they worked in Ukraine industrial enterprises, producing components for Russian nuclear power plants. Due to the breakdown in industrial relations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine, the launches of power units being built in Russia, planned for 2014 and 2015, have been delayed.

Nuclear power plants in Ukraine operate on fuel rods (fuel elements with nuclear fuel, where the nuclear fission reaction occurs), manufactured in the Russian Federation. Ukraine’s desire to switch to American fuel almost led to an accident at the South Ukrainian Nuclear Power Plant in 2012.

By 2015, the state concern “Nuclear Fuel”, which includes the Eastern Mining and Processing Plant (uranium ore mining), had not yet been able to organize a solution to the issue of producing its own fuel rods.

Prospects for nuclear energy

After 1986, when the Chernobyl accident occurred, nuclear power plants were shut down in many countries. Improving the level of safety brought the nuclear energy industry out of stagnation. Until 2011, when the accident occurred at the Japanese Fukushima-1 nuclear power plant as a result of the tsunami, nuclear energy was developing steadily.

Today, constant (both minor and major) accidents at nuclear power plants will slow down decision-making on the construction or reactivation of installations. The attitude of the Earth's population to the problem of generating electricity through a nuclear reaction can be defined as cautiously pessimistic.

Visited the world's first nuclear power plant. Once again I admired the geniuses of Soviet scientists and engineers who, in the difficult post-war years, managed to create and put into operation unprecedented power plants.

The nuclear power plant was built in the strictest secrecy. It is located on the territory of the former secret laboratory “B”, now it is the Institute of Physics and Energy.

The Institute of Physics and Energy is not just a sensitive facility, but a particularly sensitive one. Security is stricter than at the airport. All equipment and Cell phones I had to leave it on the bus. Inside there are people in military uniform. Therefore, there will not be very many photographs, only those provided by the staff photographer. Well, and a couple of mine, taken in front of the entrance.

A little history.
In 1945 The United States was the first in the world to use atomic weapons, dropping bombs on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. For some time, the whole world found itself defenseless against the nuclear threat.
In the shortest possible time, the Soviet Union managed to create and test August 29, 1949 the weapon of deterrence is its own atomic bomb. The world has achieved, albeit shaky, balance.

But in addition to developing weapons, Soviet scientists showed that atomic energy could also be used for peaceful purposes. For this purpose, the world's first nuclear power plant was built in Obninsk.
The location was not chosen by chance: nuclear scientists were not supposed to fly on airplanes, and at the same time, Obninsk is located relatively close to Moscow. The thermal power plant was built earlier to serve the institute with energy.

Estimate the time frame with which the creation and commissioning of the nuclear power plant took place.
May 9, 1954 The core was loaded and a self-sustaining fission reaction of uranium nuclei was launched.
June 26, 1954— supply of steam to the turbogenerator. Kurchatov said about this: “Enjoy your bath!” The nuclear power plant was included in the Mosenergo network.
October 25, 1954— the nuclear power plant reaches its design capacity.

The power of the nuclear power plant was small, only 5 Megawatts, but it was a colossal technological achievement.

Everything was created for the first time. The reactor cover is at ground level, and the reactor itself goes down. In total, there are 17 meters of concrete and various structures under the building.

Everything was controlled automatically, as far as possible at that time. Air samples were supplied to the control panel from each room, thus monitoring the radiation situation.

The first days of work were very difficult. Leaks occurred in the reactor, requiring emergency shutdowns. As work progressed, the designs were improved and components were replaced with more reliable ones.
The staff had portable dosimeters the size of a fountain pen.

But the most important thing is that during the entire operation of the First Nuclear Power Plant there were no accidents with the release of radioactive substances or other problems associated with exposure and radiation.

The heart of a nuclear power plant is its reactor. Loading and Unloading fuel elements took place using a crane. The specialist observed what was happening in the reactor hall through half-meter glass.
The nuclear power plant in Obninsk operated for 48 years. It was decommissioned in 2002 and later converted into a memorial complex. Now you can take a photo on the reactor lid, but getting there is very difficult.

At the First Nuclear Power Plant, they carefully preserve the memory and every page of the history of nuclear energy. This is not only the power plant itself, but also isotope medicine, power plants for transport, submarines and spaceships. All these technologies were developed and honed in Obninsk.

This is what the Buk and Topaz nuclear power plants looked like, which provide electricity to those very spaceships that roam the expanses of the universe.

After the First Nuclear Power Plant there were others. More powerful, with other technical solutions, but ahead of them was the nuclear power plant in Obninsk. Many solutions have been used in other areas of nuclear energy.

Currently, Russia is still the leader in nuclear energy. The foundations for this were laid by the pioneers who once built the Obninsk nuclear power plant.

There are no individual tours to the nuclear power plant, and the queue for organized ones is months in advance. We arrived together with the CPPC along a new, recently developed route. I really hope that soon it will be possible to purchase tickets for a comprehensive tour to Obninsk and the surrounding area. There are such plans and they are being implemented.

The world's first nuclear power plant

After testing the first atomic bomb, Kurchatov and Dollezhal discussed the possibility of creating a nuclear power plant, focusing on the experience of designing and operating industrial reactors. On May 16, 1949, a corresponding government decree was issued. Despite the apparent simplicity of the transition from one nuclear reactor to another, the matter turned out to be extremely complex. Industrial reactors operated at low water pressure in the working channels, the water cooled the uranium blocks and that was enough.

The design of the nuclear power plant was significantly complicated by the fact that it was necessary to maintain high pressure in the working channels in order to obtain the steam required for the operation of the turbine. More structural materials had to be introduced into the reactor core, which required enriching uranium with the 235 isotope. In order not to contaminate the turbine compartment of the nuclear power plant with radioactivity, a double-circuit circuit was used, further complicating the power plant.

The first radioactive circuit included the reactor process channels, water circulation pumps, the tubular part of the steam generators and the connecting pipelines of the primary circuit. A steam generator is a vessel designed for significant water and steam pressure. At the bottom of the vessel there are bundles of thin tubes through which primary circuit water is pumped with a pressure of about 100 atmospheres and a temperature of 300 degrees. Between the tube bundles there is water in the secondary circuit, which, receiving heat from the tube bundles, heats up and boils. The resulting steam at a pressure of more than 12 atmospheres is sent to the turbine. Thus, the primary circuit water does not mix in the steam generator with the secondary circuit medium and it remains “clean.” The steam exhausted in the turbine is cooled in the turbine condenser and turns into water, which is pumped again into the steam generator. This maintains coolant circulation in the second circuit.

Conventional uranium blocks were not suitable for nuclear power plants. It was necessary to construct special technological channels consisting of a system of thin-walled tubes of small diameter, on the outer surfaces of which nuclear fuel was placed. Technological channels several meters long were loaded into the cells of the graphite masonry of the reactor by an overhead crane in the reactor hall and connected to the primary circuit pipelines with removable parts. There were many other differences that complicated the relatively small nuclear installation for the production of electricity.

When the main characteristics of the nuclear power plant project were determined, it was reported to Stalin. He highly appreciated the emergence of domestic nuclear energy; scientists received not only approval, but also assistance in implementing the new direction.

In February 1950, in the First Main Directorate, headed by B.L. Vannikov and A.P. Zavenyagin, the proposals of scientists were discussed in detail, and on July 29 of the same year, Stalin signed the Resolution of the USSR Council of Ministers on the development and construction of a nuclear power plant with a reactor in the city of Obninsk, received the code name "AM." The reactor was designed by N.A. Dollezhal with his team. At the same time, the design of station equipment was carried out by other organizations, as well as the nuclear power plant building.

Kurchatov appointed D.I. Blokhintsev as his deputy for scientific management of the Obninsk NPP; by order of the PSU, Blokhintsev was entrusted with not only scientific but also organizational management of the construction and commissioning of the nuclear power plant. N. A. Nikolaev was appointed the first director of the nuclear power plant.

In 1952, scientific and design work for the AM reactor and nuclear power plants in general. At the beginning of the year, work began on the underground part of the nuclear power plant, construction of housing and social amenities, access roads, and a dam on the Protva River. In 1953, the bulk of construction and installation work: the reactor building and the turbine generator building were erected, the metal structures of the reactor, steam generators, pipelines, a turbine and much more were installed. In 1953, the construction site was given the status of the most important in the Ministry of Medium Machine Building (in 1953, the PSU was transformed into the Ministry of Medium Machine Building). Kurchatov often came to construction; a small wooden house was built for him in the neighboring forest, where he held meetings with the managers of the site.

At the beginning of 1954, graphite laying of the reactor was carried out. The tightness of the reactor vessel was tested in advance using a sensitive helium method. Helium gas was supplied inside the body under low pressure, and from the outside all welded joints were “felt” with a helium leak detector, which detects small helium leaks. During helium tests, unsuccessful design solutions were identified and some things had to be redone. After renovation welded joints and re-testing for leaks, I thoroughly cleaned the internal surfaces of the metal structures and put them under masonry.

Graphite masonry work is eagerly awaited by both workers and managers. This is a kind of milestone on the long path of reactor installation. Masonry belongs to the category of clean work and indeed requires sterile cleanliness. Even dust entering the reactor will deteriorate its quality. Row by row, working graphite blocks are laid, checking the gaps between them and other dimensions. The workers are now unrecognizable, they are all in white overalls and safety shoes, and white caps so that a hair doesn’t fall out. In the reactor room there is the same sterile cleanliness, nothing superfluous, wet cleaning is almost continuous. The masonry is carried out quickly, around the clock, and after finishing the work, it is handed over to picky inspectors. Finally, the hatches to the reactor are closed and welded. Then they begin to install process channels and reactor control and protection channels (control and safety control channels). At the first nuclear power plant they caused a lot of trouble. The fact is that the channel tubes had very thin walls and operated at high pressure and temperature. The industry for the first time mastered the production and welding of such thin-walled pipes, which caused water leaks through welding leaks. The current channels had to be changed, as well as their manufacturing technology, all this took time. There were other difficulties, but all obstacles were overcome. Start-up work has begun.

On May 9, 1954, the reactor reached criticality, until June 26 at different levels power carried out adjustment work on numerous nuclear power plant systems. On June 26, in the presence of I.V. Kurchatov, steam was supplied to the turbine and the power was further increased. On June 27, the official launch of the world's first Obninsk nuclear power plant took place, supplying electricity to the Mosenergo system.

The nuclear plant had a power output of 5,000 kilowatts. 128 process channels and 23 control rod control channels were installed in the reactor. One load was enough to operate a nuclear power plant at full power within 80-100 days. The Obninsk nuclear power plant has attracted the attention of people all over the world. It was attended by numerous delegations from almost all countries. They wanted to see the Russian miracle with their own eyes. No need coal, oil or flammable gas, here the heat from the reactor, hidden behind reliable protection made of concrete and cast iron, drives a turbogenerator and generates electricity, which at that time was sufficient for the needs of a city with a population of 30–40 thousand people, with a nuclear fuel consumption of about 2 tons per year.

Years will pass on earth different countries hundreds of nuclear power plants of enormous power will appear, but all of them, like the Volga from a spring, originate on Russian soil not far from Moscow, in the world-famous city of Obninsk, where for the first time an awakened atom pushed the turbine blades and gave electricity under the glorious Russian motto: “Let the atom be a worker, not a soldier!”

In 1959, Georgy Nikolaevich Ushakov, who replaced Nikolaev as director of the Obninsk NPP, published a book - “The First Nuclear Power Plant.” A whole generation of nuclear scientists studied from this book.

Even during its construction and commissioning, the Obninsk NPP turned into a wonderful school for training construction and installation personnel, scientific workers and operating personnel. The nuclear power plant performed this role for many decades during industrial operation and numerous experimental work on it. The Obninsk school was attended by such well-known specialists in nuclear energy as: G. Shasharin, A. Grigoryants, Yu. Evdokimov, M. Kolmanovsky, B. Semenov, V. Konochkin, P. Palibin, A. Krasin and many others.

In 1953, at one of the meetings, the Minister of the Ministry of Medium Machine Building of the USSR V.A. Malyshev raised before Kurchatov, Alexandrov and other scientists the question of developing a nuclear reactor for a powerful icebreaker, which the country needed in order to significantly extend navigation in our northern seas, and then make it year-round. The Far North was then given Special attention, as the most important economic and strategic region. 6 years have passed and the first in the world nuclear icebreaker"Lenin" set out on its maiden voyage. This icebreaker served for 30 years in harsh Arctic conditions.

Simultaneously with the icebreaker, a nuclear power plant was built Submarine(APL) The government decision on its construction was signed in 1952, and in August 1957 the boat was launched. This first Soviet nuclear submarine was named “Leninsky Komsomol”. She made an under-ice trek to the North Pole and returned safely to base.