PRESSURIZED WATER REACTOR

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Working principle
Nuclear reactor
In PWR , light water at high pressure as coolant and
moderator
Operating pressure is near about 155 bar
It utilises enriched uranium as fuel
Two coolant cycles are used in PWR
Primary coolant through core to remove heat generated
by nuclear fission
The high pressure ensures that water remain in liquid
state even at high temperature

 in steam generator primary coolant flows through tubes

and comes in thermal contact with secondary coolant
which is at lower pressure than primary coolant
So vaporization of secondary coolant is done and steam
is generated which is used to run the turbine for power
generation
The spent steam is condensed in condenser and
returned to the steam generator as secondary coolant.

Design criteria
Fuel
Pressurizer
Coolant
Moderator
Control rod

Fuel
Fuel :- ceramic pellets of enriched uranium(235) dioxide
MOC of fuel rod :- zirconium alloy
Fuel pellet cladded in the fuel rod
Space between two pellet is fed by helium gas to enhance
heat transfer rate and detect any of leakage.

Length of rod :- 4 meters

No. of rod :- 200 to 300
No. of pellet in each rod :- 200 to 250
Amount of fuel used :- 80 to 100 ton

Pressurizer
Pressure in the primary circuit is maintained by a pressurizer, a
separate vessel that is connected to the primary circuit and partially
filled with water.
Vertical, cylindrical vessel containing electrical heater and sprayer.
Operating condition:
Temperature :- 345 c
Pressure:- 155 bar

Below the pressure from the operating condition, heater is on. So

that, steam is generated and pressure are increased.
above the pressure from the operating condition, sprayer is
activated and steam is condensed. So that pressure is reduced.

Coolant
Primary and secondary loop coolant :- light water
primary loop coolant : Inlet temperature :- 275 c
Outlet temperature :- 315 c
Pressure :- 155 bar

Secondary loop coolant : Inlet temperature :- 227 c

Outlet temperature :- >285 c
Pressure :- 69 bar

Moderator
the fast fission neutrons to be slowed down by using light water and produce heat
moderating of neutrons will happen more often when the water is more dense
increase in temperature

Decrease in water density

Increase in gaps between the water molecules
Decrease in rate of neutron collision
Decrease in reactivity and slow down the reaction

Therefore, if reactivity increases beyond normal, the reduced moderation of neutrons

will cause the chain reaction to slow down, producing less heat. This property, known
as the negativetemperature coefficient of reactivity, makes PWR reactors very stable.
This process is referred to as 'Self-Regulating', i.e. the hotter the coolant becomes,
the less reactive the plant becomes, shutting itself down slightly to compensate and
vice versa. Thus the plant controls itself around a given temperature set by the
position of the control rods

Control rod
Material used :- boron and boric acid
No of rods :- 20
inserted from above, with the control rod drive
mechanisms mounted on the reactorpressure
vesselhead
Reduce the neutron flux
For complete shut down the reactor boric acid is added
in the primary coolant (light water).
For distributing neutron flux over entire core boric acid
also used.

Advantage
PWR reactors are very stable due to their tendency to produce less
power as temperatures increase; this makes the reactor easier to
operate from a stability standpoint.
PWR turbine cycle loop is separate from the primary loop, so the
water in the secondary loop is not contaminated by radioactive
materials.
The control rods are held by electromagnets and fall by gravity
when current is lost; full insertion safely shuts down the primary
nuclear reaction.
PWR technology is favoured by nations seeking to develop a
nuclear navy; the compact reactors fit well in nuclear submarines
and other nuclear ships.

Disadvantage
The coolant water must be highly pressurized to remain liquid at high temperatures. This requires high strength
piping and a heavy pressure vessel and hence increases construction costs. The higher pressure can increase the
consequences of aloss-of-coolant accident.[14]The reactor pressure vessel is manufactured from ductile steel but,
as the plant is operated, neutron flux from the reactor causes this steel to become less ductile. Eventually the
ductilityof the steel will reach limits determined by the applicable boiler and pressure vessel standards, and the
pressure vessel must be repaired or replaced. This might not be practical or economic, and so determines the life of
the plant.
Additional high pressure components such as reactor coolant pumps, pressurizer, steam generators, etc. are also
needed. This also increases the capital cost and complexity of a PWR power plant.
The high temperature water coolant withboric aciddissolved in it is corrosive tocarbon steel(but not
stainless steel); this can cause radioactive corrosion products to circulate in the primary coolant loop. This not only
limits the lifetime of the reactor, but the systems that filter out the corrosion products and adjust the boric acid
concentration add significantly to the overall cost of the reactor and to radiation exposure. In one instance, this has
resulted in severe corrosion to control rod drive mechanisms when the boric acid solution leaked through the seal
between the mechanism itself and the primary system. [15][16]
Natural uranium is only 0.7% uranium-235, the isotope necessary for thermal reactors. This makes it necessary to
enrich the uranium fuel, which significantly increases the costs of fuel production. The requirement to enrich fuel
for PWRs also presents a serious proliferation risk.
Because water acts as a neutron moderator, it is not possible to build afast neutron reactorwith a PWR design. A
reduced moderation water reactor may however achieve abreeding ratiogreater than unity, though this reactor
design has disadvantages of its own. [17]

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