PFR operational experience

The Prototype Fast Reactor, PFR, was built and operated at the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority s site at Dounreay in Scotland to validate and provide operational experience of a large pool-type fast reactor and as a test bed for the fuel, components, materials and instrumentation needed for an eventual commercial-sized station It represented 

As an initial experimental stage in this programme, a decision was made in 1954 to build the 60MW(th), 15MW(e) Dounreay Fast Reactor (DFR), which subsequently operated from 1959 to 1977. The information and experience gained from DFR provided the necessary confidence that a commercial-sized fast reactor could be successfully built and operated. However, because a large increase in size between DFR and a commercial plant was necessary, the need for an intermediate plant incorporating the major steps in concept and scale was identified. 

First criticality was achieved on 3 March 1974 and operations continued until 31 March 1994. During this period, PFR contributed considerably to the UK s and latterly to the Western European partnership s experience on fast reactors, and the purpose of this paper is to review this contribution. 

Secondary sodium flowed through the shell side of each IHX and transported heat to the steam generators. There were three secondary circuits, each containing about 75 tones of sodium which was circulated by a mechanical pump similar to the primary sodium pumps and each coupling a pair of IHXs to a set of steam generators consisting of an evaporator, a superheater and a reheater. 

Each steam generator was of single-wall tube-in-shell design. The evaporators were of the forced-circulation type, with each of the three circuits having a steam drum and a boiler circulating pump. Superheated steam from the three circuits flowed to a common header to drive a 300MW turbo-alternator. The main feed was via a 100% duty steam-driven pump with 

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