Atucha-2 reaches criticality

摘要

The Atucha-2 pressurized heavy-water reactor achieved initial criticality at 9:02 a.m. on June 3, within a few days of the issuance of the license to commence nuclear commissioning. According to Nucleoelectrica Argentina SA, the owner/operator of the plant, "The event represents the culmination of a great national project." Nucleoelectrica Argentina received the license to start up Atucha-2 on May 29 from Francisco Spano, chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority. The commissioning process began with the loading of heavy water containing boron to prevent criticality of the fuel. Achieving criticality then required the gradual extraction of boron from the heavy water. With criticality reached, the commissioning turned to carrying out tests at different power levels to verify the behavior of systems as the process moves toward grid connection and then commercial operation.