Evening star., 1954-05-24
Tests Are Cited
0nFiveAtonlic
Power Plants
industrial Forum
Told Of Competitive
Boiler Outlook

Experimental development Of
five types of atomic power plants
each with possibilities Of be-
coming eventually competitive
with present industrial installa-
tions in areas where prices Of
conventional fuels are high
now is under way under the
auspices of the Atomic Energy
Commission.
All are boilers" producing
heat to make steam which is
used to produce electricity. All
projects are hampered by the
impoSsibility of estimating costs
of original plant investment.
operating expenses and fuel
prices.
Progress was described at an
all-day meeting of the Atomic
Industrial Forum, civilian Or
ganization. held at the Sheraton
Park Hotel today.
Problems were outlined by DR..
Lawrence Hafstad, the commits
sion's director of reactor develop
ment, who is working especially
at the Arco udaho) station on a
high-pressure water reactor, the
only type which actually has pro-
duced power in European expert
mentS.
U235 Is Key Factor.
In all projects the designs call
for use of the fashionable uranium
isotope U235 as the primary fuel
with the breeding of plutonium.
fashionable synthetic element. as
a coincidental process. The more
plutonium is produced the lower
the fuel costs with the ultimate
prospect of transmitting all or
binary uranium.
DR.. Hafstad warned against
atomic reactor which would be
like watches which must be taken
apart and repaired several times
a year at great expense.
Although he stressed his faith
in eventual success, Charles
Weaver, manager of the atomic
power division of the WeSting-
house Electric Corp, told of the
difficulties attending development
of light water reactor, in which
ordinary water is used for steam
production. The company has
built one successful power plant
already. that installed IN the sub
marine Nautilus. Here costs
were not a primary objective.
Wide Variation on Bids.
In work on the light water re-
actor, Mr.. Weaver said, bids for
separate parts received from diff
ferent contracting companies We
ried as much as f1ve-fold.
Evidence for a solid program
is badly lacking" Mr.. Weaver
said.
DR.. Alvin Weinberg, research
director of the Aces Oak Ridge
laboratory told of progress in
making the so-called homogen-
eouS reactor in which the flS-
sionable uranium would be put
in a heavy water solution. The
great advantage, it was stressed.
would be the possibility Of an
automatic chemical engineering.
process to remove f1Ssion prod
ucts from the solution as soon
as they are formed.
FOreSee Private Financing.
A possibility of privately A.
nanced atomic energy power
stations within five years and
certainly within 10 years. which
will compete with conventional
power plants was predicted by
Francis K. McCune, general
manager of the atomic products
division of the General Electric
Co.
He predicted that this can be
accomplished with the light
water reactor which, according
to studies by General Electric
scientists, may be able to pro-
duce power at a rate of 81 mills
per kilowatt hour.
With coal costing 35 cents for
the equivalent of million Brit
ish thermal units. the standard
usually taken for comparison in
the power industry, this would
mean a cost decrease of about
2 mill per kilowatt hour. This
price now is paid for coal in
some parts of the country.
The hurdle in the way is that
of q form of uranium fuel which
is not yet available, Mr.. McCune
said. There is a concenSuS that
the price of raw uranium will
gradually decline, he pointed
out.