Dounreay (Ordnance Survey grid reference NC982669) is the name of a now ruinous castle on the north coast of Caithness, in the Highland area of Scotland. Ordnance Survey (OS is an Executive agency of the United Kingdom government The British national grid reference system is a system of geographic grid references commonly used in Great Britain, different from using Latitude and Longitude A castle is a defensive structure seen as one of the main symbols of the Middle Ages. The coast is defined as the part of the land adjoining or near the Ocean. Geography Caithness extends about 40 Miles (64 Kilometres) north-south and about 30 miles (50 km east-west The Highland Council area ( Sgìre Comhairle na Gàidhealtachd in Gaelic, s̪g̊ʲiːɾʲə kɔ Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. The castle is within grounds used by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (Dounreay Nuclear Power Development Establishment) and the Ministry of Defence (Vulcan Naval Reactor Test Establishment), and the site is best known for its five nuclear reactors, three owned and operated by the UKAEA[1] and two by the Ministry of Defence. The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA was established in 1954 as a Statutory corporation to oversee and pioneer the development of Nuclear energy within The Ministry of Defence ( MoD) is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters This article is a subarticle of Nuclear power. A nuclear reactor is a device in which Nuclear chain reactions are initiated controlled
The nuclear power establishment was built on the site of a World War II airfield, called HMS Tern (II). World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including An aerodrome is an area on land or water (including any buildings installations and equipment used for the arrival and departure of aircraft The airfield was transferred to the Admiralty by RAF Coastal Command in 1944, as a satellite of HMS Tern at Twatt in Orkney. The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy. RAF Coastal Command was an organization within the Royal Air Force which defended the United Kingdom from naval threats and countered German U-boats Twatt is a small settlement on the Mainland of the Orkney Islands, UK. Orkney (also known as the Orkney Islands or incorrectly the Orkneys) is an Archipelago in northern Scotland, situated 10 miles (16 km north It never saw any action during the war and was placed into care and maintenance in 1949.
Dounreay is near the A836 road, about 9 miles (14 km) west of the town of Thurso, which grew rapidly when the research establishment was developed during the mid 20th century. Towns villages and junctions The A882 runs through or near towns and villages listed below A mile is a unit of Length, usually used to measure Distance, in a number of different systems including Imperial units United States The kilometre ( American spelling: kilometer) symbol km is a unit of Length in the Metric system, equal to one thousand This article refers to the town in Scotland For the city in Canada see Thurso Quebec. The establishment remained a major element in the economy of Thurso and Caithness until 1994 when the government ordered the reactors closed for good; a large population employed in the clean-up of the site (which is scheduled to continue until at least 2025) remains. Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. [1]
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Etymology
According to one story the name Dounreay came about after a local with a strong accent tried to pronounce Down Reay to a map maker (Down Reay being down the road from the village of Reay, with the rural and part-time post office at the entrance to the reactor establishment having had the correct name, Down Reay, above its door). Reay ( Scottish Gaelic: Ratha) is a Village which has grown around Sandside Bay on the north coast of the Highland council area A post office is a facility authorized by a Postal system for the posting receipt sorting handling transmission or delivery of Mail.
Robert Gordon's map of Caithness, 1642, uses Dounrae as the name of the castle. Robert Gordon may refer to Robert Gordon of Straloch, (1580–1661 Scottish cartographer Robert Gordon (philanthropist (1668–1731
Watson's The Celtic Place-names of Scotland gives the origin as Dúnrath, and suggests that it may be a reference to a broch. A Broch is an Iron Age Drystone hollow-walled structure of a type found only in Scotland. This is the commonly accepted toponymy.
Dounreay Nuclear Power Development Establishment
Dounreay Nuclear Power Development Establishment was established in 1955 primarily to pursue the UK Government policy of developing fast breeder reactor (FBR) technology. The fast breeder or fast breeder reactor ( FBR) is a Fast neutron reactor designed to breed fuel by producing more Fissile material [1] The site was operated by the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA). The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA was established in 1954 as a Statutory corporation to oversee and pioneer the development of Nuclear energy within [1] Three nuclear reactors were built there by the UKAEA, two of them FBRs plus a thermal research reactor used to test materials for the program, and also fabrication and reprocessing facilities for the materials test rigs and for fuel for the FBRs. This article is a subarticle of Nuclear power. A nuclear reactor is a device in which Nuclear chain reactions are initiated controlled
Remote Dounreay was chosen as the reactor location for safety, in case of an explosion. [1] The first reactor built was surrounded by a 60 metre giant steel sphere, still a feature of the landscape and nicknamed Fred the Golf Ball. [1]
DMTR
The first of the Dounreay reactors to achieve criticality was the Dounreay Materials Test Reactor (DMTR), in May 1958. This reactor was used to test the performance of materials under intense neutron irradiation, particularly those intended for fuel cladding and other structural uses in a fast neutron reactor core. A fast neutron reactor or simply a fast reactor is a category of Nuclear reactor in which the fission Chain reaction is sustained by Fast neutrons Test pieces were encased in uranium-bearing alloy to increase the already high neutron flux of the DIDO class reactor, and then chemically stripped of this coating after irradiation. Dido is also the name of an optimal control software which is named after the ancient queen of Carthage DMTR was closed in 1969, when materials testing work was consolidated at Harwell Laboratory.
| 1 | Fissile Pu-239 Core |
| 2 | Control Rods |
| 3 | U-235 Breeder Blanket |
| 4 | Primary NaK Coolant Loop |
| 5 | Secondary NaK Coolant Loop |
| 6 | Secondary NaK Circulator |
| 7 | Secondary Heat Exchanger |
| 8 | Primary Heat Exchanger |
| 9 | Primary NaK Circulator |
| 10 | Boronised Graphite Neutron Shield |
| 11 | Radiation Shield |
DFR
The second reactor to achieve criticality (although the first to commence construction) was the Dounreay Fast Reactor (DFR), which came on-line in November 1959, producing an electrical output of 14 MWe. The watt (symbol W) is the SI derived unit of power, equal to one Joule of energy per Second. This power was exported to the National Grid from 14 October 1962 until the reactor was taken offline for decommissioning in 1977. During its operational lifespan, DFR produced over 600 million kWh of electricity.
DFR was a loop-type FBR cooled by primary and secondary NaK circuits, with 24 primary coolant loops. The fast breeder or fast breeder reactor ( FBR) is a Fast neutron reactor designed to breed fuel by producing more Fissile material NaK (næk rhyming with "sack" is an alloy of Sodium (Na and Potassium (K and particularly one that is liquid at room temperatures The reactor core was fuelled initially with uranium metal fuel stabilized with molybdenum and clad in niobium. Molybdenum (məˈlɪbdənəm from the Greek word for the metal " Lead " is a Group 6 Chemical element with the symbol Mo Niobium (naɪˈoʊbiəm or columbium (/kəˈlʌmbiəm/ is a Chemical element that has the symbol Nb and Atomic number 41 The core was later used to test oxide fuels for PFR and provide experimental space to support overseas fast reactor fuel and materials development programmes.
PFR
The third and final UKAEA-operated reactor to be built on the Dounreay site was the Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR), which achieved criticality in 1974 and began supplying National Grid power in January 1975. The output of PFR was 250 MWe. The reactor was taken offline in 1994, marking the end of nuclear power generation at the site. PFR was a pool-type FBR, cooled by liquid sodium and fueled with MOX. The fast breeder or fast breeder reactor ( FBR) is a Fast neutron reactor designed to breed fuel by producing more Fissile material Sodium (ˈsoʊdiəm is an element which has the symbol Na( Latin natrium, from Arabic natrun) atomic number 11 atomic mass 22 Mixed oxide, or MOX fuel, is a blend of oxides of Plutonium and Natural uranium, Reprocessed uranium, or Depleted uranium which behaves
Subsequent activity
Since the reactors have all been shut down,[1] care and maintenance of old plant and decommissioning activities have meant that Dounreay has still retained a large work-force. Commercial reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel and waste was stopped by the UK government in 1998 although some waste is still accepted from other nuclear facilities in special circumstances.
Nuclear Decommissioning Authority ownership
On 1 April 2005 the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) became the owner of the site, with the UKAEA remaining as operator. Events 527 - Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA is a Non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom formed by the Energy Act 2004. Decommissioning of Dounreay is planned to bring the site to an interim care and surveillance state by 2036, and as a brownfield site by 2336, at a total cost of £2. The Pound Sterling ( symbol £; ISO code: GBP) subdivided into 100 pence (singular penny) is the Currency 9 billion. [2]
Apart from decommissioning the reactors, reprocessing plant, and associated facilities, there are five main environmental issues to be dealt with:
- A 65-metre deep shaft used for intermediate level nuclear waste disposal is contaminating some groundwater, and is threatened by coastal erosion in about 300 years time. Radioactive wastes are Waste types containing radioactive Chemical elements that do not have a practical purpose The shaft was never designed as a waste depository, but was used as such on a very ad-hoc and poorly monitored basis, without reliable waste disposal records being kept. In origin it is a relic of a process by which a waste-discharge pipe was constructed. The pipe was designed to discharge waste into the sea. Historic use of the shaft as a waste depository has resulted in one hydrogen gas explosion[3] caused by sodium and potassium wastes reacting with water. Hydrogen (ˈhaɪdrədʒən is the Chemical element with Atomic number 1 Sodium (ˈsoʊdiəm is an element which has the symbol Na( Latin natrium, from Arabic natrun) atomic number 11 atomic mass 22 Potassium (pəˈtæsiəm is a Chemical element. It has the symbol K (kalium from qalīy Atomic number 19 and Atomic mass 39 At one time it was normal for workers to fire rifles into the shaft to sink polythene bags floating on water. [4] There are fears that accumulated material might represent a potential critical mass
- Irradiated nuclear fuel particles on the seabed near the plant,[1] estimated about 10,000 in number. A critical mass is the smallest amount of Fissile material needed for a sustained Nuclear chain reaction. Nuclear fuel is any material that can be consumed to derive Nuclear energy, by analogy to chemical Fuel that is burned to derive energy The beach has been closed since 1983 thanks to this danger,[1] caused by old fuel rod fragments being pumped into the sea. [1] In 2008, a clean-up project using Geiger counter-fitted robot submarines will search out and retrieve each particle individually, a process that will take years. A Geiger counter, also called a Geiger-Müller counter, is a type of Particle detector that measures Ionizing radiation. [1] The particles still wash ashore, including as of 2006 about 70 smaller particles on the public Sandside Bay beach and one at a popular tourist beach at Dunnet. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Reay ( Scottish Gaelic: Ratha) is a Village which has grown around Sandside Bay on the north coast of the Highland council area Dunnet ( is a Village in Caithness, in the Highland area of Scotland. [5]
- 18,000 cubic metres of radiologically contaminated land, and 28,000 cubic metres of chemically contaminated land. CM3 redirects here If you were looking for the 3rd game in the Cooking Mama series abbreviated as CM3 see here.
- 1,350 cubic metres of high and medium active liquors and 2,550 cubic metres of unconditioned intermediate level nuclear waste in store.
- 1,500 tonnes of sodium, 900 tonnes of this radioactively contaminated from the Prototype Fast Reactor. This article is about the tonne or metric ton For other tons see Ton. Sodium (ˈsoʊdiəm is an element which has the symbol Na( Latin natrium, from Arabic natrun) atomic number 11 atomic mass 22
Historically much of Dounreay's nuclear waste management was poor. On 18 September 2006, Norman Harrison, acting chief operating officer, predicted that more problems will be encountered from old practices at the site as the decommissioning effort continues. Events 96 - Nerva is proclaimed Roman Emperor after Domitian is assassinated Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Some parts of the plant are being entered for the first time in 50 years. [6]
In 2007 UKAEA pleaded guilty to four charges under the Radioactive Substances Act 1960 relating to activities between 1963 and 1984, one of disposing of radioactive waste at a landfill site at the plant between 1963 and 1975, and three of allowing nuclear fuel particles to be released into the sea,[7][8] resulting in a fine of £140,000. [9][1]
Because the site contains so much uranium and plutonium, it's considered a security risk and there is a high police presence. [1]
Vulcan NRTE
The Vulcan Naval Reactor Test Establishment (NRTE) is a Ministry of Defence (MoD) establishment housing the prototype nuclear propulsion plants of the type operated by the Royal Navy in its submarine fleet.
For over 40 years Vulcan has been the cornerstone of the Royal Navy's nuclear propulsion program, testing and proving the operation of four generations of reactor core and currently testing its fifth. Its reactors have significantly led the operational submarine plants in terms of operation hours, proving systems, procedures and safety.
Rolls-Royce, who design and procure all the reactor plants for the Royal Navy from their Derby headquarters, operate Vulcan on the behalf of the MoD and employ around 280 staff there, lead by a small team of staff from the Royal Navy. Rolls-Royce plc ( is a British Aircraft engine maker and the second-largest in the world behind GE Aviation.
The cost of decommissioning NRTE facilities when they become redundant, including nuclear waste disposal, was estimated at £2. Radioactive wastes are Waste types containing radioactive Chemical elements that do not have a practical purpose 1 billion in 2005. Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. [10]
Dounreay Submarine Prototype 1 (DSMP1)
The first reactor, PWR1, is known as Dounreay Submarine Prototype 1 (DSMP1). The Rolls-Royce pressurised water reactor (PWR series has powered British Nuclear submarines since the ''Valiant'' class, commissioned in 1966 The reactor plant was recognised by the Royal Navy as one of Her Majesty's Submarines (HMS) and was commissioned as HMS Vulcan in 1963, though it did not go critical until 1965. HMS Vulcan is a Rolls-Royce PWR 1 reactor plant and tested Cores A, B and Z before being shutdown in 1984. In 1987 the plant was re-commissioned as LAIRD (Loss of Coolant Accident Investigation Rig Dounreay) a non-nuclear test rig, the only one of its kind in the world. LAIRD trials simulated loss of coolant accidents to prove the effectiveness of systems designed to protect the reactor in loss of coolant accident. The plant was decommissioned in 1992 after more than 250 separate trials and a total of 27 years successful operation.
Shore Test Facility (STF)
The second reactor, PWR2, is housed in the Shore Test Facility (STF), was commissioned in 1987, and went critical with Core G the same year. The Rolls-Royce pressurised water reactor (PWR series has powered British Nuclear submarines since the ''Valiant'' class, commissioned in 1966 The plant was shut down in 1996, and work began to refit the plant with the current core, Core H, in February 1997. This work was completed in 2000 and after two years of safety justification the plant finally went critical in 2002 and is still critical today. Vulcan Trials Operation and Maintenance (VTOM) (the programme under which Core H is tested) is scheduled to be complete in 2014 and the reactor will be de-fuelled and examined. The site would then be decommissioned in conjunction with facilities at neighbouring UKAEA Dounreay.
See also
- Atomic Energy Research Establishment
- Nuclear power in the United Kingdom
- Energy policy of the United Kingdom
- Energy use and conservation in the United Kingdom
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Robots scour sea for atomic waste, by Robin McKie, The Observer, May 25, 2008
- ^ UKAEA site
- ^ The Scotsman
- ^ The Herald
- ^ Nei Magazine
- ^ BBC News
- ^ The Herald article
- ^ BBC News article
- ^ BBC News: Nuclear site operator fined £140k Thursday, 15 February 2007, 17:42 GMT
- ^ Hansard
External links
- Dounreay Site Restoration Limited
- Rolls-Royce Shore Based Testing
- Vulcan leads the way for Navy nuclear reactors
- Vulcan takes on additional role
- Dounreay - Scottish Parliament research note, 9 January 2001
- Dounreay - Fast Breeder
- Dounreay - Overview of NDA's Draft Strategy
- Dounreay Decommissioning Tasks
- Dounreay shaft "dry cleaning"
- The threats at Dounreay
- Dounreay Particles Advisory Group: 3rd Report - November 2006 - SEPA
- Seabed robot seeks Dounreay pollution, Nuclear Engineering International, 3 October 2007
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