08/07/2019
- Compact plants proposed to ease pollution but backers must win over wary public
China is exploring the idea of using small nuclear power plants to phase out coal- and gas-fired heating generators in smog-afflicted northern China. Photo: Reuters
China plans to build a pilot small-scale nuclear reactor that could replace coal or gas to heat towns and cities in its colder northern regions, an official with the state-owned developer in charge of the project said on Monday.
The small heating reactor was planned for the city of Jiamusi in northeastern Heilongjiang province, one of two proposed units with a combined capacity of 400 megawatts, Wang Xujia, a senior engineer with the State Power Investment Corp, said on the sidelines of an industry conference.
“The project is still under central government review for approval,” Wang said, adding that the developer aimed to put the project into operation by 2024.
China has been exploring the use of small nuclear reactors – less than a fifth of the size of a standard reactor – as alternative heating systems in smog-prone northern regions.
The state provides heating throughout northern China from November to March, using predominantly coal- or gas-fired boilers.
State-owned China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC) has already conducted trial runs for a “district heating reactor” (DHR) design, which it says can supply heat to 200,000 urban households.
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The DHR model consists of a reactor core immersed in a water-filled tank. It is estimated to require investment of 1.5 billion yuan (US$217 million) and take three years to build, making it cheaper and quicker to construct than conventional reactors.
However, while the various designs will use only a fraction of the radioactive material of a conventional nuclear plant, officials acknowledge the biggest challenge is convincing the public the reactors are safe and reliable.
“The planned project in Jiamusi will be located in a remote area of the city which undermines its economic efficiency, but since it is just a demonstration project we just want to complete one first and show it to the public,” Wang said.
China aims to raise total nuclear capacity to 58 gigawatts by the end of next year, but it has not launched any new conventional reactors in more than three years.
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After Japan’s Fukushima accident in 2011, China conducted a root-and-branch safety review and decided it would only use the most advanced “third generation” technology for any new projects.
However, those technologies – including Westinghouse’s AP1000 and the Areva-developed EPR – have proved to be expensive, complex and prone to long construction delays.
In a bid to broaden its options, the country is developing smaller units and plans to launch its first “small modular reactor” on the island province of Hainan at the end of this year.
China also planned to launch floating nuclear reactors with the aim of developing a fleet of ship-mounted nuclear generators that could be deployed on islands in Southeast Asia, Song Danrong, a reactor designer at CNNC, told Monday’s conference.
This article appeared in the South China Morning Post print edition as: Pilot nuclear reactor may replace coal in north
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Posted in Areva-developed EPR, “district heating reactor” (DHR), China General Nuclear Power, China National Nuclear Corp (CNNC), China National Nuclear Corporation, coal, coal or gas, coal- and gas-fired heating generators, floating nuclear reactors, Fukushima accident, heat, Heilongjiang province, Jiamusi, Pilot nuclear reactor, ship-mounted nuclear generators, small test nuclear reactor, smog-prone north, south china morning post, State Power Investment Corp, Uncategorized, Westinghouse’s AP1000 |
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09/03/2019
- Researchers say they spend so much time on grant applications that they get no time to do science
- Funding applications are said to be too onerous and inflexible
Chinese scientists say funding applications are too onerous and restrictive. Photo: Xinhua
Chinese scientists are appealing for a bigger say over research funding as they buckle under a rigid and bureaucratic application system.
The appeal from delegates to the country’s peak advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, comes as the central government prepares to launch a pilot project that will give research teams greater flexibility in the way funds are used.
Despite slowing economic growth, the central government also plans to increase the budget for science and technology by 13.4 per cent this year to 354.31 billion yuan (US$52.7 billion) as Beijing tries to challenge the United States in the race for high technology.
But researchers have been hampered by a funding structure that demands they clearly state the use of their research and submit a detailed plan with a deadline for delivery of results.
Application rules have become stricter in the last few years, partly a result of a crackdown on corruption, which has led to a dozen university presidents and top scientists being arrested for embezzling research and infrastructure funding.
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CPPCC delegate Yuan Zhiming, an agricultural scientist from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Wuhan, said he spent so much time filling out funding applications that he did not have time to do any research.
“It’s not easy to complete the budget with detailed outcomes, because I don’t already know my research results,” Yuan said in an open panel discussion on the sidelines of the CPPCC.
Wang Liming, a CPPCC delegate from China National Nuclear Corporation, agreed, saying funding applications were too onerous and inflexible. “Money earmarked for buying soy sauce cannot be used to buy vinegar,” he joked.
People’s Daily, the Communist Party’s mouthpiece, reported in December 2016 that it took a scientist a month to finish an annual report for a regular research project and much longer for a major one.
The fears about more bureaucracy in research intensified last year when the National Natural Science Foundation – which manages science funding and promotes research – was downgraded and put under the Ministry of Science and Technology.
The authorities said the change was aimed at strengthening the government’s “research-driven development strategy” and “optimising the distribution of funding on science and technology”, while scientists said it meant funding approval would be more stringent.
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But senior Chinese officials said they understood the need to speed up research for China to transform itself into an innovation powerhouse.
Science and Technology Minister Wang Zhigang said on Friday that China would overhaul the way funding was managed to give researchers more incentives.
“The ministry [of science and technology] has done a series of things to ease the burden on researchers, so that they will not be bothered by forms, reimbursements, titles and prizes and have more time to do real research,” Wang said.
“The upcoming reforms will be centred on how to ignite researchers’ enthusiasm, initiative and creativity.”
Source: SCMP
Posted in agricultural scientist, Beijing, buying soy sauce cannot be used to buy vinegar, China alert, China National Nuclear Corporation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Chinese scientists, Communist Party’s mouthpiece, CPPCC delegate, He Jiankui, Ministry of Science and Technology, National Natural Science Foundatio, People’s Daily, Red tape, research funding, rigid and bureaucratic application system, science and tech minister, Science and Technology Minister, Uncategorized, United States, Wang Liming, Wang Zhigang, Wuhan, Yuan Zhiming |
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