Authors & Affiliations
Vereshchagina T.N., Sorokin A.P.
Institute of Physics and Power Engineering, Obninsk, Russia
Abstract
The article describes the history of formation and evolution of the thermal physics school at IPPE. The IPPE scientific School of thermal physics formed in 1945 – 1956. During that period there appeared the first thermal physics experimental facilities where the properties of three different coolants – sodium, lead-bismuth alloy and water – were studied and their production processes were developed. Work was also started to test serviceability of various reactor elements in the proposed coolants. In 1954 the department of thermal physics headed by V.I. Subbotin was created at IPPE. It is, therefore, 1954 which is considered to be the date of birth of the IPPE School of thermal physics. The second stage (1957 – 1968) is characterized by full-scale research into thermohydraulic, physical and chemical, mass transfer processes to justify operating and technological parameters of nuclear power facilities under development. At that stage, work was carried out to justify thermohydraulic modes, physical and chemical characteristics of sodium, sodium-potassium alloy, lithium, and their production processes. Work on the design and construction of fast reactors, reactors for nuclear-power submarines and space vehicles was done at IPPE. At the third stage (1969 – 1993), guidelines and quality assurance regulations on the coolants were prepared and published. The fourth stage (1994 – 2009) can be described as saving the scientific school in conditions of restructuring and stagnation in the nuclear industry. The fifth stage (2010 – to the present day) is characterized by the fulfillment of the Federal Target Program “Next Generation Nuclear Energy Technologies” which marks a turning point in the development of nuclear power based on fast reactors with closed fuel cycle. The article also looks at the current state of the IPPE scientific Shool of thermal physics and efforts to preserve its knowledge.
Keywords
history, scientific schools, thermal physics, coolant production processes, preservation of knowledge
Article Text (PDF, in Russian)
UDC 536.24(09)
Problems of Atomic Science and Technology. Series: Nuclear and Reactor Constants", issue 1, 2014