Hendrik_2000
Lieutenant General
China did built new spent fuel reprocessing plant in Jiuguan for fast breeder experimental reactor by extracting Pu
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Pinpointing China’s new plutonium reprocessing plant
By | May 5, 2020
A satellite image of China's demonstration plutonium reprocessing plant.
Over the last decade, China has been actively pursuing plans to recycle its spent nuclear fuel. In 2010, it a pilot civilian plutonium reprocessing plant with a design capacity to produce about 50 metric tons of heavy metal per year at the Jiuquan nuclear complex in Gansu province (known as Plant 404). In July 2015, the China National Nuclear Corporation of a larger demonstration reprocessing plant at the Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park in Jinta, Gansu Province, about 100 kilometers from the Jinquan pilot plant. The demonstration reprocessing plant, which has a planned capacity of 200 metric tons per year, is to be commissioned in 2025.
While there was news coverage of the groundbreaking ceremony of the Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park, information on the location and construction progress has been scarce. Limited available information and satellite imagery, however, offer clues about the key facilities under construction.
On August 30, 2017, the head of the company responsible for building the demonstration plant the completion of the water supply system for the industrial park. The water pipeline begins at the Jiuquan Plant and ends at the demonstration plant in Jinta county, with a total length of 125 kilometers and elevation loss of 249 meters.
A dedicated highway to the demonstration plant started construction in July 2016 and was in October 2017 (ahead of the schedule of June 2020). The road starts at the intersection of Jiayuguan city’s orbital road and airport road (hosting the residence place for employees of Plant 404) and ends at the demonstration plant. The overall direction of the route is roughly from south to north, with a construction mileage of about 61 kilometers. The width of the subgrade is 12 meters.
Other Chinese sources mention the demonstration plant is several tens of kilometers northwest of Jinta city in Gansu province. Based on the above public information, the demonstration plant can be located as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1:Overview of China National Nuclear Corporation’s Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park (the demonstration plant). Coordinates: 40°19’29.74″N 98°30’53.30″E. The demonstration plant is about 100 kilometers from the pilot plant (40°14’20.31″N 97°22’17.97″E), about 60 kilometers from Jiayuguan airport (39°50’49.56″N 98°21’47.57″E), and about 50 kilometers from Jinta town (39°59’6.03″N 98°54’16.34″E). Since 2006, workers at Plant 404 (the pilot plant) have resided at Jiayuguan city and have commuted to work from there. Some workers of the demonstration plant also reside at and commute from Jiayuguan. In fact, both the pilot and demonstration plants share the same group of leadership. Satellite image from December 30, 2016. Credit: Image Landsat/Copernicus and Google Earth.
On September 5, 2017, a construction company affiliated with the Chinese National Nuclear Corporation reported that it had four liquid natural gas storage tanks at the demonstration plant, providing a backup energy source. The four huge storage tanks can be clearly identified in the satellite images. This information further corroborates the site of the demonstration plant.
Figure 2: China National Nuclear Corporation’s Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park. Satellite image from August 29, 2019 (Coordinates: 40°19’29.74″N 98°30’53.30″E). Credit: Maxar Technologies and Google Earth.
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Pinpointing China’s new plutonium reprocessing plant
By | May 5, 2020
Over the last decade, China has been actively pursuing plans to recycle its spent nuclear fuel. In 2010, it a pilot civilian plutonium reprocessing plant with a design capacity to produce about 50 metric tons of heavy metal per year at the Jiuquan nuclear complex in Gansu province (known as Plant 404). In July 2015, the China National Nuclear Corporation of a larger demonstration reprocessing plant at the Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park in Jinta, Gansu Province, about 100 kilometers from the Jinquan pilot plant. The demonstration reprocessing plant, which has a planned capacity of 200 metric tons per year, is to be commissioned in 2025.
While there was news coverage of the groundbreaking ceremony of the Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park, information on the location and construction progress has been scarce. Limited available information and satellite imagery, however, offer clues about the key facilities under construction.
On August 30, 2017, the head of the company responsible for building the demonstration plant the completion of the water supply system for the industrial park. The water pipeline begins at the Jiuquan Plant and ends at the demonstration plant in Jinta county, with a total length of 125 kilometers and elevation loss of 249 meters.
A dedicated highway to the demonstration plant started construction in July 2016 and was in October 2017 (ahead of the schedule of June 2020). The road starts at the intersection of Jiayuguan city’s orbital road and airport road (hosting the residence place for employees of Plant 404) and ends at the demonstration plant. The overall direction of the route is roughly from south to north, with a construction mileage of about 61 kilometers. The width of the subgrade is 12 meters.
Other Chinese sources mention the demonstration plant is several tens of kilometers northwest of Jinta city in Gansu province. Based on the above public information, the demonstration plant can be located as shown in Figure 1.
Figure 1:Overview of China National Nuclear Corporation’s Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park (the demonstration plant). Coordinates: 40°19’29.74″N 98°30’53.30″E. The demonstration plant is about 100 kilometers from the pilot plant (40°14’20.31″N 97°22’17.97″E), about 60 kilometers from Jiayuguan airport (39°50’49.56″N 98°21’47.57″E), and about 50 kilometers from Jinta town (39°59’6.03″N 98°54’16.34″E). Since 2006, workers at Plant 404 (the pilot plant) have resided at Jiayuguan city and have commuted to work from there. Some workers of the demonstration plant also reside at and commute from Jiayuguan. In fact, both the pilot and demonstration plants share the same group of leadership. Satellite image from December 30, 2016. Credit: Image Landsat/Copernicus and Google Earth.
On September 5, 2017, a construction company affiliated with the Chinese National Nuclear Corporation reported that it had four liquid natural gas storage tanks at the demonstration plant, providing a backup energy source. The four huge storage tanks can be clearly identified in the satellite images. This information further corroborates the site of the demonstration plant.
Figure 2: China National Nuclear Corporation’s Gansu Nuclear Technology Industrial Park. Satellite image from August 29, 2019 (Coordinates: 40°19’29.74″N 98°30’53.30″E). Credit: Maxar Technologies and Google Earth.
