Cold functional tests of the ACP100 small modular reactor (SMR) demonstration project being built at China’s Changjiang NPP site in Hainan Province, according to China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC). The multi-purpose 125 MWe SMR (also known as Linglong One) is a pressurised water reactor designed for electricity generation, urban heating, urban cooling, industrial steam production, or seawater desalination.
Cold tests are carried out to confirm that safety-relevant components and systems are properly installed and operational. The main purpose is to check the tightness of the primary circuit and its components, such as the pressure vessel, pipework and valves and to clean the main circulation piping.
The next stage will be hot testing, before loading nuclear fuel, in which the temperature and pressure in the reactor will be simulated, corresponding to conditions that will occur during operation of the reactor. Fuel loading will then follow.
CNNC began development of the Linglong One in 2010, and it was the first SMR project to pass an independent safety assessment by International Atomic Energy Agency experts in 2016. Its integrated pressurised water reactor (PWR) design was completed in 2014 and it was identified as a key project in China’s 12th Five-Year Plan. The design, which has 57 fuel assemblies and integral steam generators, was developed from the larger ACP1000 PWR. It incorporates passive safety features and could be installed underground.
CNNC formally launched the project in 2019 and China’s state council approved the ACP100 Science & Technology Demonstration Project in 2021. First concrete was poured in July that year. The lower section of the containment shell of was hoisted into place on in February 2022 and the last tank of concrete for the nuclear island’s underground retaining walls was poured the following August. Once completed, the project will produce enough power to meet the needs of 526,000 households, CNNC said.
There are already two operating CNP600 power units at the Changjiang site, and construction of the two Hualong One power units began in March and December 2021 for operation by the end of 2026.
