India Nuclear News and Discussion 4 July 2011

[Amber G.]

Further details on the next stage
Thorium Fuel Cycle
https://www.barc.gov.in/randd/tfc.html
Thoria fuel bundles irradiated in PHWRs will be reprocessed in Power Reactor Thorium Reprocessing Facility (PRTRF). The recovered 233U will be used for reactor physics experiments in AHWR-Critical Facility.

Advanced reactors AHWR and AHWR300-LEU have been designed at BARC to provide impetus to the large-scale utilisation of thorium.

ADVANCE HEAVY WATER REACTOR (AHWR)

AHWR is a 300 MWe, vertical, pressure tube type, boiling light water cooled, and heavy water moderated reactor. ..... Extensive studies on various challenges in fabrication, reprocessing and waste management of thorium fuel cycle for AHWR are being carried out at BARC.

ADVANCE HEAVY WATER REACTOR (AHWR)- LEU

AHWR-LEU is a 300 MWe, vertical, pressure tube type, boiling light water cooled, and heavy water moderated reactor. The reactor will use (Thorium-LEU) MOX as fuel with LEU (Low Enriched Uranium) having 235U enrichment of 19.75%. The reactor is being designed based on once-through fuel cycle during its life time. A provision has therefore been made for long-term storage of the spent fuel along with monitoring and retrieval. These provisions during storage will keep open the option of reprocessing the spent fuel at a later date, if required. The co-location of the fuel fabrication plant with the reactor is not essential as no recycling of the bred fissile material in the same reactor is envisaged.

This was my core gripe all these 20 yrs since signing of civil nuclear deal. In parallel to 3 stage fuel cycle jump directly to imported LEU based AHWR.

First time I am seeing some progress, frustrating to see water flow down Sursari for decades while beaurocrats sleep at the wheel.

Haridas ji, (and others who are interested)

FWIW, my take on this—and I think if I understand your point correctly, this is a case where reasonable people can differ on the strategic prioritization—is that the current process, while not perfect, remains a technically valid parallel path.

From a reactor physics and deployment perspective, the AHWR-LEU variant can be seen as a necessary engineering compromise rather than a strategic detour:

• Decoupling from the Fissile Bottleneck: The traditional AHWR requires a significant initial Plutonium inventory to kickstart the thorium cycle. By utilizing 19.75% LEU as the driver fuel, the DAE can deploy thorium-burning systems immediately without being strictly limited by the PFBR fleet's doubling time.

• Validation of Thorium Physics: Even if the driver fuel is imported, the AHWR-LEU allows for the large-scale validation of thorium fuel performance and reprocessing chemistry in a high-flux environment. This provides the operational data needed for the ultimate Stage 3 transition.

• Pragmatic Energy Security: The 100 GW goal by 2047 requires a multi-pronged approach. While the Fast Breeder route is the indigenous ideal, the AHWR-LEU serves as a sound "bridge" that utilizes existing PHWR heritage to hedge against further delays in the closed fuel cycle.

The recent criticality of the PFBR at Kalpakkam is the defining step for the indigenous roadmap, but the LEU variant ensures the thorium infrastructure is matured in parallel. It isn't necessarily about abandoning the Bhabha plan, but about ensuring we have the "sink" ready for when the indigenous fissile supply finally scales up.

Amber G- (I put some links for more details. Hope this is helpful)

[chetak]

VI@WA

Last night, India switched on a reactor.

Here are 9 numbers nobody is talking about:

→ 72 years: Time since Homi Bhabha conceived this plan
→ 22 years : Time to actually build it
→ ₹7,700 crore : Final cost (started at ₹3,492 crore)
→ 500 MW : Power it will generate
→ 2nd : India's global rank only Russia had this before
→ 25% : India's share of world's thorium reserves
→ 400 years : How long those reserves can power India
→ 200+ : Indian companies that built it. *Zero foreign designs*
→ 3 : Countries that tried & quit - USA, Germany, UK

In 1954, a young scientist named Homi Bhabha stood before India's parliament. He made a bold promise : “Within 10–15 years, nuclear energy will be cheaper than any other source."

India had no uranium. No reactors. No money.
He had only a dream & a 3-stage plan. That plan started executing last night.

Bhabha's problem was brutal :
India has almost ZERO uranium.
But it has the world's LARGEST thorium reserves.
Thorium can't be used directly as fuel.
So he designed a 3-stage relay race - where each stage creates the fuel for the next.
Genius. Pure genius.
Here's how it works :

STAGE 1 - Use imported uranium in normal reactors
→ Create plutonium as a byproduct.

STAGE 2 - Use that plutonium in Fast Breeder Reactors
→ Convert uranium-238 into MORE fuel than you burn
→ Also convert thorium → uranium-233

STAGE 3 - Run reactors entirely on India's own thorium

India completed Stage 1.
Stage 2 just went live
Before today, did you know
India had this 3-stage plan?

"The reactor attained criticality."
Sounds boring. It is NOT.

Criticality = the moment a reactor sustains its own nuclear chain reaction without needing any external push.
Like the moment a fire catches & keeps burning on its own.
This is the most dangerous, most delicate, most important moment in any reactor's life.
India just nailed it

Wait - what is a FAST BREEDER Reactor?
Normal reactor: Eats fuel
Fast Breeder : BREEDS fuel
It produces MORE fissile fuel than it consumes.
It's the world's only self-refuelling power machine.

Imagine a car that generates MORE petrol than it burns while driving.

That's what's running in Kalpakkam right now.
Here's where it becomes a TRILLION DOLLAR story.
India has:
→ 25% of world's thorium reserves
→ Enough to power India for 300–400 years
→ Worth estimated $4.8 TRILLION at energy equivalent pricing

The West couldn't access it.
Russia couldn't touch it.
China couldn't claim it.

It was always India's but India had no way to use it.

Until now.
8 . But this victory did NOT come easy.

Timeline of PFBR's construction:

2004 - Construction begins
2010 - Supposed to be done
2015 - Still not done
2020 - Still. Not. Done.
2024 - Core loading finally begins
April 6, 2026 - CRITICALITY

22 years.
₹7,600 crore.
Over 200 Indian companies.
Thousands of scientists.

One nation. One mission.

9 . Here's what makes this reactor terrifyingly complex:

It's cooled by LIQUID SODIUM not water.
Sodium burns violently on contact with air.
Sodium explodes on contact with water.
So India built a 500 MW reactor cooled by one of the most reactive metals on Earth.
And gave it passive safety systems so it can shut itself down even if every single operator walks away.

This isn't just a reactor. It's a masterpiece of engineering.

10 . With this, India joins a club of ONE.

Only Russia has a commercially operating Fast Breeder Reactor.

Not USA.
Not China.
Not France.
Not Japan.

RUSSIA. And now INDIA.

Countries with the most advanced civilian nuclear tech on the planet:

Russia
India

Let that sink in.

11 . Which country did you think had the most advanced nuclear tech?

12 . Now here's the part nobody's talking about.

Fast Breeder Reactors don't just produce electricity.

They produce PLUTONIUM.

Lots of it.

India's PFBR, when fully operational, will produce plutonium sufficient to fuel more breeder reactors accelerating the entire program.

Strategic fissile material stockpile?

Let's just say India's options expand dramatically.

13 . India's nuclear roadmap is jaw-dropping:

Today: 8.78 GW nuclear capacity
2031-32: 22 GW (target)
2047: 100 GW (mission target)

That's a 12x JUMP in 21 years.

For context:
The entire nuclear capacity of France today = 61 GW.

India wants to build that - from scratch - in two decades.

And the PFBR is the engine that makes it possible.

14 . MUST BOOKMARK/SCREENSHOT

Who profits from this?

Here are the listed Indian companies DIRECTLY involved in India's nuclear program:

BHEL - turbines, reactor equipment (all 3 stages)
L&T - steam generators, civil construction
Walchandnagar Industries - Class-I nuclear components, PFBR supplier -
MTAR Technologies - precision engineering
HCC - built 60% of India's nuclear capacity
KSB Ltd - reactor coolant pumps
Patels Airtemp - only 3 Indian co's hold this nuclear stamp. This is one.
Premier Explosives - nuclear fuel handling systems
Power Mech Projects - Kaiga nuclear plant civil work.

These aren't speculative bets.
These are the actual companies that built the reactor.

15 . Important - Don't get carried away right now.

Criticality ≠ Electricity generation.

Here's what happens next:

→ Operators now gradually increase power in stages
→ Every system is tested under actual nuclear conditions
→ Regulators must sign off at each stage
→ Full commercial power generation: late 2026

This is like the ignition key turning.
The car hasn't left the driveway yet.

But the engine is running.

16 . China has been trying to build a Fast Breeder Reactor for 20 years.

They've spent billions.
Bought Russian technology.
Hired foreign experts.

Their CFR-600 is still being commissioned.

India built theirs:
Indigenously - no foreign reactor design.
With domestic industry (200+ Indian companies)
Without depending on any foreign nation for the core technology.

Aatmanirbhar Bharat wasn't just a slogan. It was built atom by atom.

17 . Why does energy independence matter this much?

Ask Europe.

When Russia cut gas supplies in 2022, Europe froze.
Energy = geopolitical leverage.

India imports 87% of its oil.
Every rupee spent on oil = money leaving the country.
Every drop of imported oil = a vulnerability.

A thorium-powered India is a nation that CANNOT be blackmailed by energy.

That's the real prize here. Not just clean power. SOVEREIGNTY.

18 . Here's the part that makes me emotional.

This reactor wasn't built by some elite government lab alone.

It was built by 200+ Indian companies.

Small factories in Pune making nuclear-grade valves.
Medium firms in Chennai fabricating sodium pipes.
MSMEs in Gujarat supplying precision bolts rated for radiation.

A chai-shop owner's son probably welded a part of this reactor.

THAT is what Aatmanirbhar Bharat looks like at its finest.

19 . So what does Stage 3 actually look like?

Picture India in 2050:

100 GW of nuclear power online
Electricity so cheap it's nearly free for farmers.
EVs charged by thorium-powered grids
Hospitals running on zero-emission baseload power.
Zero dependence on Middle East oil

All of it - powered by rocks dug out of Indian soil.

This isn't a fantasy.
Homi Bhabha wrote this plan in 1954.
The PFBR just made it real.

20 . “ But what about nuclear waste?!"

Fast Breeder Reactors actually EAT the waste from Stage 1 reactors.

The spent fuel from normal reactors - which stays radioactive for 10,000 years - becomes FUEL for the PFBR.

The PFBR burns that waste down into material that's safe in 300 years.

Not a waste problem.
A waste SOLUTION.

21 India isn't just making clean energy.
It's cleaning up old nuclear waste while doing it.
Mind = blown.

22 India isn't stopping at one reactor.

Already planned:

→ FBR-1 & FBR-2: Two more 500 MW breeders at Kalpakkam
→ 5 Small Modular Reactors by 2033
→ Private sector now allowed in nuclear energy (Budget 2025)
→ Collaborations with Russia (6 new plants), France (Jaitapur), USA

The PFBR isn't the finish line.

It's the starting gun.

India is about to build the world's largest nuclear expansion in history.

23 Homi Bhabha never saw Stage 2.

He died in a plane crash in 1966 under circumstances that remain disputed to this day.

Some believe it was no accident.
CIA documents, later declassified, showed interest in India's nuclear scientists.

He was 56.
His plan was barely a decade old.

Last night, 60 years after his death, his reactor came to life.

History doesn't forget its visionaries.
India didn't forget either.

24 What does India's PFBR
mean for the world?

Here is what happened on April 6, 2026:

India's PFBR achieved criticality at Kalpakkam
A self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction indigenous, no foreign design.
India is now 2nd in the world after Russia in Fast Breeder tech.
This unlocks India's $4.8T thorium reserves.

Roadmap: 8 GW → 100 GW nuclear by 2047
200+ Indian companies built it
70 years in the making

One reactor.
A century of impact.

India didn't just switch on a reactor.
India switched on its future.

Homi Bhabha gave his life for this.

The least we can do is make sure people know about it.

[Amber G.]

Kirloskar Brothers pumping systems for Kalpakkam FBR - pumps designed to handle liquid sodium at temperatures exceeding 500°C.

<Mainstream media - For details see any reputable source>
The KBL pumps, each weighing 135 tonnes, are constructed from specialised materials that can withstand extreme operating conditions.

Congratulations @KBLPumps on the milestone!

[drnayar]

Source : https://pbs.twimg.com/media/HFZJJbsaEAA ... ame=medium

[Amber G.]

@drnayar - Thanks. (This is consistent with my postings - which themselves consistent over last 25 years in Brf posts

[Amber G.]

VI@WA

Last night, India switched on a reactor.

<snip>


The least we can do is make sure people know about it.

Good Post. FWIW if you reply or R/T this with some comments - some correction may the there to make it more credible.
---->
This is a well-written thread—but it mixes solid facts with exaggerations, imprecise language, and a few technically incorrect claims. Below is a strict, science/engineering-grounded correction pass, keeping close to the original structure.

1) What actually “happened last night”
-Correct: PFBR achieving criticality is a major milestone.
- Clarification:
Criticality ≠ “switching on a reactor” in the operational sense.
It marks first self-sustained chain reaction at low power, not [the first] electricity generation.

2) Timeline & attribution
-Broadly correct: program traces back to Homi Jehangir Bhabha and the 3-stage plan (1950s).
- Correction: The PFBR is not a direct execution of a 1954 blueprint; the program evolved significantly (reactor physics, fuel cycle strategy, safety norms). -- “72 years” is rhetorical, not technically meaningful.

3) “India had almost ZERO uranium”
- Incorrect / exaggerated
- Correct version: India has modest but non-zero uranium reserves, historically of low grade.
This constraint motivated the closed fuel cycle strategy, not absolute scarcity.

4) Stage description (important precision)
Stage 1 - Mostly correct: PHWRs use natural uranium → produce plutonium-239 in spent fuel.
Stage 2 -Needs precision:
Fast Breeder Reactors (like PFBR) primarily:
Convert U-238 → Pu-239
Thorium → U-233 conversion:
Possible, but not the primary function of PFBR
Requires thorium blankets or dedicated systems, still limited in India
Stage 3 - Clarification:
“Run entirely on thorium” is aspirational.
India has no commercial-scale thorium (U-233) reactor yet.
Designs like AHWR remain unbuilt prototypes.

5) “Stage 2 just went live”
Misleading - Correct:
PFBR criticality = start of Stage 2 deployment, not completion.
Stage 2 requires multiple breeders + reprocessing infrastructure over decades.

6) Fast Breeder description
Core idea correct: breeding ratio > 1 possible.
Overstatement: “Produces MORE fuel than it burns” → conditionally true, depends on design and operation.
Incorrect - “Only self-refuelling power machine”
Not accurate; still requires: fuel fabrication, reprocessing ,external handling

7) “Only Russia had this” -- Incorrect
Correct:
Fast reactors have operated in:
Russia (BN-600, BN-800 – currently operating), France (Phénix, Superphénix – shut down), Japan (Monju decommissioned), US etc..

India is not “2nd ever”, but one of few currently pursuing it actively.

8 ) “Countries that tried & quit” - Oversimplified
Correct:
Programs slowed or stopped due to: economics (cheap uranium) etc..Not technical impossibility.

9) Thorium claims
“25% of world reserves” -- Roughly plausible (depends on dataset), but: Thorium resource estimates are highly uncertain.
“400 years of power” - Speculative ( Depends on *many* factors)
“$4.8 trillion value” - Wrong - Not a scientific metric (Energy-equivalent valuations are not meaningful without system costs.p

10) “West/Russia/China couldn’t access it” Wrong: Incorrect framing
Reality: Thorium is widely distributed globally, The constraint is technology, not access.

11) Safety & sodium coolant
Correct: Liquid sodium is chemically reactive.
Clarification: Sodium reactors are well understood (used since 1960s).
Risks are engineering challenges, not exotic unknowns.

12) “Club of ONE” - Wrong.
Correct: India joins a small group, not “club of one”.

13) Plutonium production
True but incomplete: - Breeders produce plutonium → used for fuel cycle.
Clarification: This is not unique to PFBR. Civilian program is under safeguards separation (important nuance).

14) Nuclear capacity targets
Numbers roughly align with announced goals.
Caveat: 100 GW by 2047 is aspirational, not guaranteed.

15) “Zero foreign design” - Overstated
Correct: PFBR is largely indigenous, but: builds on global fast reactor knowledge base not developed in isolation.

16) “Waste solution” - Wrong- Strongly misleading
Correct: Fast reactors can reduce long-lived actinides
But: do not eliminate nuclear waste. still require geological disposal
-“300 years safe” is not a standard scientific claim

17) China comparison
Partly correct:
China CFR-600 is under commissioning.
Clarification: China is progressing rapidly, not “struggling”.

18) Energy independence narrative: Overstated:
Nuclear ≠ full substitute for oil (transport sector dominates oil use).
Correct: Helps with electricity security, not total energy independence.

19) Emotional / anecdotal parts
Statements like:
“chai-shop owner’s son welded…”
“gave his life for this”
-Not factual claims → rhetorical, not scientific.

What is genuinely significant:

• PFBR achieving criticality is a major engineering milestone.
  It demonstrates-- India’s capability in sodium-cooled fast reactor technology-Progress toward a closed nuclear fuel cycle

What is overstated:

• Thorium timeline and readiness, Global ranking claims, “Self-fueling”, “waste solved”, “energy independence”
  Economic valuations

PFBR criticality marks the beginning of India’s practical fast breeder program, not the realization of the full thorium cycle.

[S_Madhukar]

I see that China, US also have large , may be half the reserve of thorium compared to us. Any chance they will steal a march as they should have more plutonium and uranium?
Some tech bros and AGI enthusiasts are salivating at this free energy source to power their dreams

[Amber G.]

^^^short reply -
Yes—thorium isn’t uniquely Indian. Countries like China and the United States also have substantial thorium resources.

But thorium is not a fuel—it’s fertile material. To use it, you need a fully developed breeding and reprocessing ecosystem (U-233 cycle), which is technologically complex and economically demanding.

That’s exactly why
-The U.S. did the physics, but didn’t pursue it commercially—cheap uranium made it unnecessary.
Fast breeders + reprocessing were costlier and operationally harder than the once-through cycle.
Thorium systems require decades of engineering iteration, not just raw material.

Even today- China is investing (including molten salt concepts we talked about here), but is still in development/early deployment stages. No country has a mature, large-scale thorium economy.

So this isn’t a “who has more thorium” race—it’s about who is willing to sustain a long, complex fuel-cycle program under different economic assumptions.

“Free energy” is a misnomer—the physics is sound, but the engineering and economics are the real bottlenecks.

[Amber G.]

Director General of the @IAEAorg International Atomic Energy Agency:

Impressive progress by India in achieving criticality of the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor at Kalpakkam, a key step forward in fuel sustainability and the future of nuclear energy.

The @IAEAorg will continue supporting the safe and secure development of ’s nuclear programme. Congratulations, Prime Minister @narendramodi!

[sanjaykumar]

For engineers here, what are the two biggest engineering challenges of the FBR?

Na+ reactivity? And handling. Moderating fast neutrons to. Prevent runaway chain reactions. (In the absence of conventional moderators?)

And why are the principles of conventional reactors not directly adaptable?

[Amber G.]

xpost... Civil nuclear cooperation discussed during Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, US energy secretary Wright meeting..

Ambassador Sergio Gor @USAmbIndia

Great to spend this morning with @SecretaryWright and FS Vikram Misri to discuss the future of US-India energy cooperation. After India’s historic passage of the SHANTI bill, we are ready to cooperate on civil nuclear in addition to other areas such as coal gasification and U.S.

[Amber G.]

Meanwhile: Abandon fast breeder nuclear reactor project at Kalpakkam, Vaiko urges Centre

He said the technology used in this type of reactor to generate power had been tested in several countries, but had been largely abandoned due to safety concerns and high economic costs
\

Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) general secretary Vaiko on Wednesday (April 8, 2026) urged the Union government to abandon the 500 MW Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor project at Kalpakkam, citing safety concerns.

[Anujan]

A Fast Breeder Reactor is the highest form of Dravidian ideology of self-sufficiency without any imports of outside fuels, ideas and and dependence. It creates its own future. It allows tamil thorium which was discarded as useless to run the entire country.

Disappointed with Vaiko for betraying the tamil people and dravidian idealogy. Periyar would be disappointed.

[drnayar]

A Fast Breeder Reactor is the highest form of Dravidian ideology of self-sufficiency without any imports of outside fuels, ideas and and dependence. It creates its own future. It allows tamil thorium which was discarded as useless to run the entire country.

Disappointed with Vaiko for betraying the tamil people and dravidian idealogy. Periyar would be disappointed.

Consider the deep christian missionary indoctrination of a lot of tamils., they are hindu only in name. I have had first hand experience with quite a few. Their heart and soul are in US/Australia and UK. A good case in example are hospitals and teaching institutions in TN run by missionaries or supported by foreign "NGO"s

[VinodTK]

A Fast Breeder Reactor is the highest form of Dravidian ideology of self-sufficiency without any imports of outside fuels, ideas and and dependence. It creates its own future. It allows tamil thorium which was discarded as useless to run the entire country.

Disappointed with Vaiko for betraying the tamil people and dravidian idealogy. Periyar would be disappointed.

Consider the deep christian missionary indoctrination of a lot of tamils., they are hindu only in name. I have had first hand experience with quite a few. Their heart and soul are in US/Australia and UK. A good case in example are hospitals and teaching institutions in TN run by missionaries or supported by foreign "NGO"s

Really this what we have gotten to!!!
Why do we need others to stab us when we are so good at side staring each other.

[sanjaykumar]

I have seen first hand the Love for the Tamil neighbour in some of the places listed. Cannot buy a house lest they get too neighbourly.

Cannnot attend the same church. Too dark skinned.

The best is the immortal description of brotherly Tamils by that European icon, Brigitte Bardot. She observed them in reunion island. I believe.

Too full of the Love to reproduce here.

I am also aware of some of European descent describing them as having ‘just recently come down from the trees”.

That’s Dravida pride.

[Anujan]

A Fast Breeder Reactor is the highest form of Dravidian ideology of self-sufficiency without any imports of outside fuels, ideas and and dependence. It creates its own future. It allows tamil thorium which was discarded as useless to run the entire country.

Disappointed with Vaiko for betraying the tamil people and dravidian idealogy. Periyar would be disappointed.

This was sarcasm good sirs.

[sanjaykumar]

I realise that. What we are seeing is a willingness to closely examine those who have a pathological fear of dengue. Those who are rationalist believers in miracles performed for the believers. Those who see demons in mandalas and icons.


India is maturing in that majoritarian population no longer reflexively defers to religious imbecility except perhaps their own. Dangerous times.

[SSridhar]

A Fast Breeder Reactor is the highest form of Dravidian ideology of self-sufficiency without any imports of outside fuels, ideas and and dependence. It creates its own future. It allows tamil thorium which was discarded as useless to run the entire country.

Disappointed with Vaiko for betraying the tamil people and dravidian idealogy. Periyar would be disappointed.

I don't know why the Dravidians are so angry against the commissioning of PFBR. They say that it is a deep conspiracy to implement dangerous technologies only in TN.

[Amber G.]

Anujan & SSridhar - Thanks for bringing up among other things a smile!

I have to admit it took me some time to understand Vaiko Strategy and Periyar Irony, (I keep in touch with Indian academic community but not so much in other things.. so thanks.)

Seriously - I think the disconnect between the scientific community and the political rhetoric is particularly sharp in Tamil Nadu. While the scientists at IGCAR are celebrating the PFBR's criticality as a 70-year engineering milestone, the political narrative often treats it as a regional bargaining chip.

[chetak]

Anujan & SSridhar - Thanks for bringing up among other things a smile!

I have to admit it took me some time to understand Vaiko Strategy and Periyar Irony, (I keep in touch with Indian academic community but not so much in other things.. so thanks.)

Seriously - I think the disconnect between the scientific community and the political rhetoric is particularly sharp in Tamil Nadu. While the scientists at IGCAR are celebrating the PFBR's criticality as a 70-year engineering milestone, the political narrative often treats it as a regional bargaining chip.

Amber ji,


all you guys are looking at it from the wrong angle.....

This PFBR's very presence in that part of the world makes it almost impossible for the dravidians to secede

BTW, there is not much coverage about the PFBR in the desi dork media, maybe because India has upset the BIF powers that be and the dravidians are angry that the Hindi guys, who they say are only good for selling pani puris, have out shone them

Our nuclear brigade has done an outstanding job and if they have also managed to rile up the dravidians, it's "सोने पे सुहागा" all the way...........

[sanjaykumar]

I am not clear of your meaning ‘Hindi guys have outshone them’

[chetak]

I am not clear of your meaning ‘Hindi guys have outshone them’

in a manner of speaking, sanjaykumar ji.


if any one angers the dravidians, one supports unhesitatingly, the opposite party that riled up the dravidians

[williams]

Anujan & SSridhar - Thanks for bringing up among other things a smile!

I have to admit it took me some time to understand Vaiko Strategy and Periyar Irony, (I keep in touch with Indian academic community but not so much in other things.. so thanks.)

Seriously - I think the disconnect between the scientific community and the political rhetoric is particularly sharp in Tamil Nadu. While the scientists at IGCAR are celebrating the PFBR's criticality as a 70-year engineering milestone, the political narrative often treats it as a regional bargaining chip.

Amber ji,


all you guys are looking at it from the wrong angle.....

This PFBR's very presence in that part of the world makes it almost impossible for the dravidians to secede

BTW, there is not much coverage about the PFBR in the desi dork media, maybe because India has upset the BIF powers that be and the dravidians are angry that the Hindi guys, who they say are only good for selling pani puris, have out shone them

Our nuclear brigade has done an outstanding job and if they have also managed to rile up the dravidians, it's "सोने पे सुहागा" all the way...........

The Dravidians you are talking about may not even know what PFBR stands for. BTW I don't want to offend our Scientists with this kind of terminology. I also don't want to offend the Pani puri wallas who make tremendous contribution to our Nation. Without them many of the scientific achievements cannot be made.

[Amber G.]

Sharing: Criticality for India’s PFBR

The sodium-cooled reactor will support future large-scale deployment of thorium-based nuclear energy and strengthen long-term fuel security.

Prototype fast breeder reactor at Kalpakkam has reached first criticality (Credit: Atomic Energy 2.0)
India’s 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) has achieved first criticality (start of controlled fission chain reaction) after meeting all the stipulations of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), which had issued clearance after a rigorous review of safety of the plant systems. This marks “a historic step in providing long-term energy security and advancing indigenous nuclear technology capabilities,” according to a Science Ministry press release.

The technology development and design of PFBR, a sodium-cooled fast reactor, was indigenously done by the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), an R&D Centre of the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE). It was built & commissioned by Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Ltd (BHAVINI), a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) under the DAE.

Attending the event was Dr Ajit Kumar Mohanty, DAE Secretary & Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) Chairman; IGCAR Director Shri Sreekumar G Pillai; Shri Allu Ananth, Acting Chairman & Managing Director at BHAVINI; and Shri KV Suresh Kumar, Former Chairman & Managing Director at BHAVINI & Homi Sethna Chair.


With the achievement of first criticality, India moves closer to realising its three-stage nuclear power programme. Fast breeder reactors (FBRs) represents stage two and forms the vital bridge between the current fleet of pressurised heavy water reactors (stage one) and the future deployment of thorium-based reactors (stage three), leveraging India’s abundant thorium resources for long-term clean energy generation.

India’s three-stage nuclear power programme was planned by physicist Homi Bhabha in the 1950s to to reduce dependence on imported uranium through the use of thorium reserves found in the monazite sands of coastal regions of South India.

“Today India takes a defining step in its civil nuclear journey advancing the second stage of its nuclear programme…the PFBR at Kalpakkam has attained criticality…it is a decisive step towards harnessing our vast thorium reserves,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted on X.

The PFBR uses uranium-plutonium mixed oxide (mox) fuel. The core is surrounded by a blanket of uranium-238. Fast neutrons convert fertile uranium-238 into fissile plutonium-239, enabling the reactor to produce more fuel than it consumes. The reactor is designed to eventually use thorium-232 in the blanket. Through transmutation, thorium-232 will be converted into uranium-233 in the third stage of India’s nuclear power programme. This enables India to extract far greater energy from its limited uranium reserves while also preparing for large-scale use of thorium in the future.

“The project also reflects the dedication of significant number of scientists, engineers, technicians and industry partners who have contributed to the design, fabrication and construction of the reactor using predominantly indigenous technologies and components,” the Ministry press release said. “Their efforts highlight the nation’s growing capability in advanced nuclear engineering and reinforce India’s commitment to technological self-reliance complying with Atmanirbhar Bharat [Self-Reliant India – a government campaign launched in 2020 with the goal of making India more self-sufficient].”

Beyond energy generation, the fast breeder programme strengthens strategic capabilities in nuclear fuel cycle technologies, advanced materials, reactor physics and large-scale engineering. The knowledge and infrastructure developed through this programme will support future reactor designs and next-generation nuclear technologies.

“The attainment of first criticality represents not only a technological milestone but also a major step towards a sustainable and self-reliant energy future for Viksit Bharat [Developed India – the government’s vision to transform the country into a fully developed nation by 2047, the 100th anniversary of its independence]”.

Anil Kakodkar, AEC Member and former DAE head, told The Hindu: “This is a historic moment. What this means is that we are now on our way to extract 80-100 times more energy from a given quantity of uranium.”

The PFBR was loaded with fuel in October 2025. It will be some months before it reaches full capacity and even longer before it produces useful electricity. Multiple experiments have to be conducted at low power to check it is operating after which the AERB must approve it for commercial power operation.

Once operational, the PFBR is expected to generate 500 MWe of electricity with a design life of 40 years. Current plans call for building six FBR-600 units, co-locating two reactors at each site to share common auxiliary systems and reduce costs. The first twin unit is planned at the BHAVINI premises at Kalpakkam, close to the PFBR.

Simultaneously, the Fast Reactor Fuel Cycle Facility (FRFCF) is under construction at Kalpakkam. It is designed to reprocess used fuel from FBRs and is expected to be completed by December 2027. This facility will be essential for closing the fuel cycle and extracting bred plutonium for use in future FBRs, according to documents on the DAE website.

Developing the PFBR was not an easy task. Construction of the PFBR began in 2004 and was originally scheduled to be completed in 2010. The project was delayed by approximately 16 years due to a combination of technical, financial, and external challenges. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that struck the Kalpakkam site shortly after construction began required a re-evaluation of safety features and protective structures. Repeated delays caused the project cost to more than double, rising from an original estimate of about INR 35bn ($375m) to approximately INR77bn.

India’s PFBR is a pool-type reactor. In this design, the entire primary circuit (the core, pumps, and intermediate heat exchangers) is housed inside a single massive stainless steel main vessel filled with liquid sodium. Fabricating a vessel of that size (nearly 13 metres wide) to hold 1,150 tonnes of sodium at high temperatures while ensuring it could withstand seismic activity was a massive hurdle for Indian industry.

Because of India’s historical position outside the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), there was very little sharing of technical “know-how” from Russia or the West for the PFBR. India’s exclusion from the NPT also led to international trade bans, making it difficult to procure high-end nuclear components and technology.

India had to develop its own materials, such as specific grades of stainless steel (316LN) that could survive 40 years of sodium exposure without corroding or becoming brittle. Every component – from the sodium pumps to the steam generators – had to be designed and manufactured by Indian companies (such as L&T and BHEL) for the first time. India also had to integrated post-Fukushima safety requirements into a breeder design.

Handling liquid sodium is extremely complex as it reacts violently with air and water. Significant setbacks occurred during the commissioning of sodium pumps and secondary cooling systems. There were also persistent difficulties in producing the mixed oxide (mox) fuel elements required for the core.

Despite these difficulties, India’s nuclear programme is progressing. Currently India has a fleet of 18-20 pressurised heavy water reactors (PHWRs) that use natural uranium as fuel and produce plutonium-239 (Pu-239) as a by-product in used fuel – the first stage of the programme. With criticality of the PFBR it is now embarking on stage two.

[sanjaykumar]

Remarkable perseverance, endurance and autarky. Truly something to be proud off.

[chetak]

Amber ji,


all you guys are looking at it from the wrong angle.....

This PFBR's very presence in that part of the world makes it almost impossible for the dravidians to secede

BTW, there is not much coverage about the PFBR in the desi dork media, maybe because India has upset the BIF powers that be and the dravidians are angry that the Hindi guys, who they say are only good for selling pani puris, have out shone them

Our nuclear brigade has done an outstanding job and if they have also managed to rile up the dravidians, it's "सोने पे सुहागा" all the way...........

The Dravidians you are talking about may not even know what PFBR stands for. BTW I don't want to offend our Scientists with this kind of terminology. I also don't want to offend the Pani puri wallas who make tremendous contribution to our Nation. Without them many of the scientific achievements cannot be made.

williams ji,


this lot of greedy dravidians are into whatever fills their pockets and the concept of dravidian is mostly in the minds of these shallow politicos. In actual fact, people in the north and people in the south have a lot of common genetic markers

"Pani puri wallas" are their derogatory catchall term which they use for non tamil migrants when they get frustrated with the GoI, and another very sore point is that a lot of the migrant labor is fair skinned, adding further to the dravidian sense of insecurity

they do not see their own people toiling for tens of decades as labor in lankan tea plantations and nor are they willing to do anything for them. It was the Modi govt that built houses for them in lanka, seriously upsetting a whole lot of politicos in TN

these TN politico guys are in a constant tussle with the sinhala because of dravidian support for the ltte and eelam

their deep angst peaked when the sinhala brutally wiped out the ltte and uprooted most of their terror infrastructure by the root

these terrorist scum have been allowed to set up shop in TN and parts of south India by these separatist dravidians and are slowly ramping up their terrorist networks with the active support of these BIF funded separatists.

the set of reactors at kalapakkam is their biggest bugbear because if they push too hard for secession, they will draw international condemnation because of the fear of these nuclear assets falling into terrorist hands. TN is one geographical location which is of great interest to the BIF, especially the padres and colombo port is a drug smugglers paradise, for drugs coming from afghanistan en route to europe and amrika and also the synthetic drugs made in India, mostly in the north, including the guns and human trafficking rackets, all pass through colombo

they will not admit it but a lot of industries in TN (mostly small and medium scale) run on migrant labor and the kind of efforts and hard work done by these migrants simply cannot, under any circumstances, be matched by the locals

[sanjaykumar]

Tamil Nadu is now part of pan India networks of electricity water agriculture supply chains labor and markets for industrial goods.

Not too belabour the obvious large demand for technical education and employment.

But hey let’s talk Dravidian pride and civilsing benefit of the (genocidal) grandparents.

I am game.

[chetak]

Tamil Nadu is now part of pan India networks of electricity water agriculture supply chains labor and markets for industrial goods.

Not too belabour the obvious large demand for technical education and employment.

But hey let’s talk Dravidian pride and civilsing benefit of the (genocidal) grandparents.

I am game.

sanjaykumar ji,

Tamil New year wishes to you........

[sanjaykumar]

Definitely, happy new year.


But don’t make any kolams. The devil resides in them. And he gonna git ya.

[A_Gupta]

Vaiko made some anti-Kalpakkam statement in 2013 too.

[bala]

INDIA'S LEAP INTO THORIUM ENERGY
Lt Gen PR Shankar April 14, 2026

A detailed overview of the thorium energy cycle. A great Nuclear Science/Tech/Engineering class especially pertaining to Indian Achievements in this Field.

The sand in South India are Monazite which is leached with Sodium hydroxide at 140 C to get ThO2.

Natural Uranium has U235 and U238; the U235 is fissile. U238 can be converted to Pu239 which are used in bombs. U238 predominates uranium ores and U235 is <1 %. Using enrichment we can use 3% enriched uranium in Heavy water (D20). Plutonium is byproduct since U238 exists (97%) in fuel rods. Also we get depleted uranium.

MOX - mixed oxide fuel : which is depleted uranium and plutonium. In Fast breeder reactor, MOX is loaded. Due to Depleted uranium we get more plutonium which is fed back as fuel. This stage has become critical recently, i.e. the second stage at Kalpakkam.

On FBR when a thorium blanket is introduced, i.e. Th232, we get U233. Not sure whether this has occurred or needs to occur.

Th232 bombarded with neutron creates Th233 which has beta decay into PA233 and then U233.

beta decay: U239 -> Np239 -> Pu239. Beta decay is a type of radioactive decay where an unstable nucleus emits a beta particle—a high-energy electron positron to achieve a more stable proton/neutron ratio. During this process, which is driven by the weak force, a neutron transforms into a proton (or vice-versa), changing the element without changing its mass number. Negative/Minus Beta decay methodology India has adopted apart from Neutron Bombardment and Decay to gradually increase the Atomic Number from Thorium 90Th232 to 90Th233->91Pa233->92U233, this is a Master Stroke to convert Fertile to Fissile.

BTW the kamini (kalpakkam mini) reactor has gone through all stages and is creating U233.



// btw China took thorium from South India illegally - maybe the Mao/Commy cabal and DMK included helped.

[SSridhar]

// btw China took thorium from South India illegally - maybe the Mao/Commy cabal and DMK included helped.

One company did all the damage, VV Minerals. The owner of the company which exported sand from Tutocorin & Kanyakumari districts has accepted that his company "mined 93 lakh metric tonnes of sand from 2000 to 2013, and exported 61-62 lakh metric tonnes". The export was all to one country, PRC. But, many believe that it was much more. Upright collectors who exposed illegal mining by this company were either abruptly transferred or abused/harassed. The mining was encouraged by AIADMK, for a change DMK wasn't in that business.

[Amber G.]

// btw China took thorium from South India illegally - maybe the Mao/Commy cabal and DMK included helped.

One company did all the damage, VV Minerals. The owner of the company which exported sand from Tutocorin & Kanyakumari districts has accepted that his company "mined 93 lakh metric tonnes of sand from 2000 to 2013, and exported 61-62 lakh metric tonnes". The export was all to one country, PRC. But, many believe that it was much more. Upright collectors who exposed illegal mining by this company were either abruptly transferred or abused/harassed. The mining was encouraged by AIADMK, for a change DMK wasn't in that business.

Honestly, I think the "Thorium Stealing" Narrative is more sensationalism than relevant science- at least for nuclear physics /thorium issue - may be something else about that monazite sand)
((Disclaimer - I don't know any details/knowledge of motives and/or facts - just commonsense physics ))

This likely stems from a 2012–2015 controversy regarding illegal beach sand mining in Tamil Nadu (VV Mineral). Critics "claimed billions of dollars worth of "thorium" was stolen."

Engineering Reality is - Thorium (as monazite) is dirt cheap and globally abundant. It has no value without the incredibly complex Stage III reactor technology that only a few countries possess. "Stealing" thorium is like stealing a pile of raw iron ore when you don't own a steel mill—it’s heavy, low-value, and strategically useless to most.

China isn't "stealing" to catch up; they have their own massive monazite deposits and are running their own Thorium Molten Salt Reactor (TMSR-LF1) program in the Gobi desert. Their progress is a result of state-funded R&D, not "sand smuggling" from South India.

(if is proved /known that they sent it (monazite)to china there is some thing else -- not thorium but the sand is rich in other things too)

-----
Let me add another perspective from that video clip (about US/India perspectivr)

US Perspective - When you have the world’s most advanced Uranium enrichment infrastructure and cheap U-235/Pu-239, why bother with the headaches of Uranium-232 contamination in the thorium cycle? U-232 emits high-energy gammas (2.6 MeV from Th-228/Tl-208), making fuel fabrication a robotic, shielded nightmare. For the US, the economics simply didn't close.

India’s Perspective - India is willing to pay that "complexity tax" because of its historical exclusion from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) and its lack of high-grade domestic Uranium. It’s a brilliant choice, not a "magic" one. India's achievement isn't a scientific discovery; it is an engineering and persistence milestone. They are one of the few nations that didn't abandon the Fast Breeder technology when the rest of the world (except Russia) pivoted away due to the technical headaches of liquid sodium cooling and the drop in uranium prices.