Fast reactors are viewed as the most promising trend in nuclear power engineering, for in addition to power they also produce nuclear fuel. According to informed expert opinion, the Russian BN-800 setup (the abbreviation stands for "fast neutrons") operating on mixed uranium-plutonium fuel is superior to foreign analogs in many ways. It can put out nuclear fuel in larger amounts than what has been utilized and thus supply other nuclear reactors.

Acad. Nikolai Ponomarev-Stepnoi, Vice-President of the Russian Research Center "Kurchatov Institute" and a prominent authority on nuclear engineering, has told Tatiana Barkhatova working for the National Information Center for Science and Innovations ScienceRF that Japan has paid 2.5 mn US dollars for the operation technology of the Russian BN-600 fast reactor.

In his opinion, in the latest nuclear power engineering technologies Russia is at a vantage point for beneficial international cooperation. Considering the broad opportunities offered by innovative nuclear power technologies, the President of the Russian Federation has come up with the idea of setting up a chain of international nuclear centers to provide reactors in other countries with fuel, Acad. Ponomarev-Stepnoi said.

The spent nuclear fuel should be returned to our country for safe storage and enrichment. Such an arrangement should contribute to better power engineering safety and bring down the risk of nuclear arms proliferations.

The novel nuclear reactors have one essential prospect, and this is hydrogen power. The reserves of organic fuels are not open-ended, and their price is rising. Such fuels, though needed to everyone, are concentrated only in some areas of the globe. Using nuclear reactors, we could produce hydrogen from water and thus alleviate the shortages of petroleum, natural gas and coal. Russia is capable of developing this kind of technology today, Acad. Nikolai Ponomarev-Stepnoi stressed in conclusion.

ScienceRF, March 3, 2006

Prepared by Yevgenia SIDOROVA.