Kalpakkam: Nuclear regulator nod for fuel loading in PFBR

India’s nuclear regulator AERB has granted permission to load fuel in the 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam and start the controlled chain reaction, taking it a step closer to producing power. The board of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) met at Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu on Saturday and granted permission for ‘First Approach to Criticality’ including loading of fuel in the reactor that uses plutonium as nuclear fuel, an official statement said. The AERB also granted permission to conduct ‘Low Power Physics Experiments’ in PFBR. “In a fast reactor, the first criticality is achieved during the fuel loading process. This is the reason for granting permission for the three activities together,” a senior official said In March, Prime Minister Narendra Modi witnessed the core loading activity of PFBR. The core loading was initiated in phased manner beginning with insertion of control sub-assemblies followed by blanket sub-assemblies with necessary permissions from the AERB. The nuclear regulator had been carrying out extensive safety review and assessment through multi-tier safety review mechanism. The safety reviews are complemented with periodic inspections and observation by resident site observer team, the statement said. “The Board assured itself of the systematic regulatory oversight by the AERB, took cognizance of the detailed submissions presented, safety review outcomes tabled and also visited the plant. Based on the above, the said permission was granted,” the statement said. In the final stage of core loading, fuel sub-assemblies would be loaded in the core of the reactor following which nuclear fission process will commence. On attainment of sustained nuclear fission chain reaction, a phenomenon known as criticality of the reactor, various low power physics experiments would be conducted. This permission marks a significant step towards operationalization of PFBR. The 500MWe so