Army Nuclear Power Program

The first reactor (SM-1) of the Army Nuclear Power Program

The Army Nuclear Power Program ( ANPP ; dt. "Nuclear energy program of the US Army") was a program of the United States Army less to develop nuclear power plants , the remote and relatively inaccessible places with electricity and district heating should provide. It was directed by the US Army Engineer Reactors Group and had its headquarters in Fort Belvoir , Virginia .

The program had some notable achievements, but was ultimately seen as "the solution to a non-existent problem". A total of eight nuclear power plants were built and operated , including in Alaska , Greenland and the Antarctic . The program ran from 1954 to 1977 when the last nuclear reactor was decommissioned.

history

As early as 1952 there was interest in the United States in the possible use of nuclear energy for land-based military purposes. A memo from the US Secretary of Defense dated February 10, 1954 gave the United States Army the responsibility to "develop nuclear power plants that provide remote and relatively inaccessible military facilities with heat and electricity." The Department of the Army then set up the Army Nuclear Power Program and assigned it to the Corps of Engineers .

The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 made the Atomic Energy Commission responsible for nuclear research and development, making the program a joint cross-agency activity of the Department of the Army and the Atomic Energy Commission . When the Atomic Energy Act 1954 was revised, Section 91b authorized the Department of Defense to purchase special nuclear materials for use in defense facilities. On April 9, 1954, the head of the Corps of Engineers set up the US Army Engineer Reactors Group , which should carry out the orders of the Department of the Army . The focus of the Army Nuclear Power Program was on energy production facilities, while the Naval Reactors Program , which was carried out in parallel, concentrated on the nuclear propulsion of submarines and ships.

The Atomic Energy Commission , however, came after a few years to the conclusion that the probability that the objectives of the program could be achieved in time manner and at a reasonable cost was not high enough to finance the projects to continue. Cuts in the military budget for long-term research and development as a result of the Vietnam War finally caused the Atomic Energy Commission to phase out its support for the program in 1966 . The cost of designing and manufacturing compact nuclear power plants was ultimately so high that it could only have been justified if the reactors had unique capabilities and a clearly defined purpose supported by the Department of Defense . As a result, the involvement of the United States Army in the research and development of nuclear power plants was steadily reduced and ultimately stopped.

The last nuclear reactor was shut down in 1977, but work continued until the facilities were decommissioned or safely enclosed.

tasks and goals

The main tasks of the Army Nuclear Power Program were :

carry out research and development in the field of nuclear power plants together with the Atomic Energy Commission ;
operate the Corps of Engineers nuclear power plants ;
To carry out training measures for the operation of these nuclear power plants;
to provide technical support to other authorities, if required, and
Develop programs for the application of nuclear reactors for military use.

In a target agreement for the development of nuclear power plants dated January 7, 1965, approved by the Department of the Army , the objectives of the program were:

reducing or eliminating dependence on fossil fuels ;
the reduction or elimination of the logistical burden of operating conventional nuclear power plants;
a reliable operation;
a rarely necessary fuel change and maintenance;
a reduced workforce with the ultimate goal of unsupervised operations;
Portability, mobility and response times that are compatible with the supported mission or equipment and
improved cost efficiency.

Nuclear power plants

In the Army Nuclear Power Program eight nuclear reactors and nuclear power plants were built in total. The thermal efficiency of power plants is typically in the range of 30-40%, in the case of the ANPP reactors it was only around 20% for various reasons. The electrical energy available outside of the plant was limited in some plants by the extraction of water vapor for heat supply and in all plants by the need to supply the nuclear power plant itself.

Due to the need for small size, all reactors except the MH-1A used uranium enriched to 93% . The MH-1A had more space and weight capacity available and could therefore work with low-enriched uranium (4–7%). It was planned to use this reactor in Vietnam for a short time, but the idea was quickly rejected by the US State Department .

The plants are listed in the order of the first criticality .

Surname	electrical power	Location	Operation from - to	developer	Remarks
SM-1	2 MW	Fort Belvoir , Virginia	Apr. 8, 1957 - 1973	American Locomotive Company	The first US nuclear power plant to be connected to the electrical grid, several months before the Shippingport commercial nuclear power plant . The power plant was primarily used for training and testing rather than generating electricity for Fort Belvoir.
SL-1	300 kW	National Reactor Testing Station , Idaho	Aug 11, 1958 - 1961	Argonne National Laboratory	Location of a fatal accident involving a US nuclear reactor on January 3, 1961, which destroyed the reactor. The SL-1 was developed to gain experience in the operation of boiling water reactors to obtain performance metrics, to train military teams and to test components. The company Combustion Engineering was developed by the Atomic Energy Commission in charge of the operation of the SL-1, which in turn hired an operating team of the army, to operate the nuclear power plant. The reactor was specifically developed to supply early warning system stations.
PM-2A	2 MW + heat	Camp Century , Greenland	Oct. 3, 1960 - 1963	American Locomotive Company	The first “portable” nuclear reactor. It was disassembled into individual pieces and brought to Greenland, where it was assembled, operated, dismantled and brought back to the USA. The PM-2A was developed to demonstrate the possibility of assembling a nuclear power plant at a remote, arctic station. The pressure vessel was subsequently used to investigate embrittlement by neutrons in carbon steel.
ML-1	140 kW	National Reactor Testing Station , Idaho	30th Mar 1961 - 1965	Aerojet General Corporation	Owned the first closed-loop gas turbine. The reactor was developed for an output of 300 kW, but it only reached 140 kW. It was only run in a test run for a few hundred hours. The reactor was developed as a test of a reactor integrated into a cargo load that could be transported by military semi-trailers , flat cars or barges .
PM-1	1.25 MW + heat	Sundance , Wyoming	Feb 25, 1962 - 1968	Martin Company	Property of the United States Air Force and was used to supply a radar station . The PM-1 provided electrical power to the 731st Radar Squadron of the North American Air Defense Command .
PM-3A	1.75 MW + heat + desalination	McMurdo Station , Antarctica	3rd Mar 1962 - 1972	Martin Company	Property of the United States Navy . The reactor was designed to provide electrical power and steam heating for the McMurdo station on McMurdo Sound .
SM-1A	2 MW + heat	Fort Greely , Alaska	13 Mar 1962 - 1972	American Locomotive Company	The first permanent on-site installation developed under the Army Nuclear Power Program . The site was chosen to develop construction methods in a remote, arctic location.
MH-1A	10 MW + desalination	Sturgis	Jan. 24, 1967 - 1977	Martin Marietta Corporation	Was installed on a non -propelled ship that was converted from a Liberty freighter and anchored in the Panama Canal Zone . The power station ship was in Gatunsee in the Panama Canal from 1968 to 1977 , when it was towed back to Fort Belvoir for decommissioning. The reactor was brought to the James River Reserve Fleet in 1978 , where it was initially to be safely stored for an expected 50 years. Dismantling began in 2014. The MH-1A had a complex analog computer-based simulator installed for training.

Name key:

first letter: S - stationary (stationary), M - mobile (mobil), P - portable (transportable)
second letter: H - high power (high power), M - medium power (medium power), L - low power (low power)
Number: consecutive number
third letter: A means installation on site

Achievements

The Army Nuclear Power Program can boast the following achievements:

detailed designs for pressurized water , boiling water , gas cooled and liquid metal reactors
first nuclear power plant with a containment (SM-1)
first use of stainless steel for fuel element sleeves (SM-1)
first nuclear power plant in the United States to supply electricity to a commercial network (SM-1)
first nuclear district heating source in the United States (SM-1A)
first replacement of a steam generator in the United States (SM-1A)
first containment with pressure suppression (SM-1A)
first operational nuclear power plant with boiling water reactor (SL-1)
first portable, prefabricated, modular nuclear power plant that was built, operated and dismantled again (PM-2A)
first use of nuclear energy for seawater desalination (PM-3A)
first mobile nuclear power plant that can be transported on land (ML-1)
first nuclear powered gas turbine with closed Brayton cycle (ML-1)
first (on a ship) floating nuclear power plant (MH-1A)

education

Nuclear Power Plant Operator Second Class Badge

Shift supervisor's badge

A training program for workers in a nuclear power plant ( Nuclear Power Plant Operator Course , NPPOC) was carried out at Fort Belvoir . Candidates for the program were drafted men who had committed to at least two years of service after completing their training. The prerequisites for admission to the program included aptitude test results that were at least as demanding as those for officer candidates .

The NPPOC was an intense, challenging, year-long course. The training took place in the three phases of theory, operation and specialty, each lasting four months. The theoretical phase consisted of eight hours of instruction in electrical engineering , mechanics and reactor technology . The operating phase took place on the SM-1 and consisted of shift work both as a machine operator on the system itself and as an operator in the control room . The specialization phase consisted of either mechanics, electrical engineering, instrumentation or health or chemistry.

Over 1,000 nuclear power plant employees graduated between 1958 and 1977. All nuclear power plants in the Army Nuclear Power Program were operated by personnel trained in their respective specialties.

From June 18, 1965, military badges were awarded in the four classes Basic (basic badge), Second Class (second class), First Class (first class) and Shift Supervisor ( shift supervisor ). The basic badge was awarded to graduates of the NPPOC, while the higher grades required completion of a certain number of shifts and further written exams. The badges were worn on service and dress uniforms above the ribbons above the left pocket flap. In 1991, the badges were made obsolete by Army Regulation 672-5-1 , but the regulation still allows a badge to be worn if it was previously awarded.

Web links

Summary of the Army Nuclear Power Program (English).
Article about the Army Nuclear Power Program in the Army Logistician .

Individual evidence

↑ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Army Nuclear Power Program: Past, Present, Future . A briefing document prepared and presented to the Ad Hoc Study Group of the Army Scientific Advisory Panel, 10-11 February 1969 (English)

↑ Pfeffer, Macon, Nuclear Power: An Option for the Army's Future , Army Logistician, PB 700-01-5, Vol 33, Issue 5, Sept / Oct 2001 (English)

^ ^A ^b L. H. Suid: The Army's Nuclear Power Program: The Evolution of a Support Agency. Greenwood (1990), ISBN 0-313-27226-3 (English)

^ ^A ^b Office of the Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs: Highly Enriched Uranium: Striking A Balance - A Historical Report On The United States Highly Enriched Uranium Production, Acquisition, And Utilization Activities From 1945 Through September 30, 1996. Revision 1 (Redacted For Public Release). US Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, January 2001, accessed June 13, 2009 .

^ LH Suid: The Army's Nuclear Power Program: The Evolution of a Support Agency. P. 36.

↑ The United States Army Prime Power School (English)

↑ Nuclear Reactor Operator Badges ( Memento of the original from January 11, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , The Institute of Heraldry, Department of the Army (English) @1@ 2

[Briefbook-1] Army Nuclear Power Program: Past, Present, Future . A briefing document prepared and presented to the Ad Hoc Study Group of the Army Scientific Advisory Panel, 10-11 February 1969 (English)

[Logistic-2] Pfeffer, Macon, Nuclear Power: An Option for the Army's Future , Army Logistician, PB 700-01-5, Vol 33, Issue 5, Sept / Oct 2001 (English)

[Suid-3] A ^b L. H. Suid: The Army's Nuclear Power Program: The Evolution of a Support Agency. Greenwood (1990), ISBN 0-313-27226-3 (English)

[DOE-4] A ^b Office of the Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs: Highly Enriched Uranium: Striking A Balance - A Historical Report On The United States Highly Enriched Uranium Production, Acquisition, And Utilization Activities From 1945 Through September 30, 1996. Revision 1 (Redacted For Public Release). US Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, January 2001, accessed June 13, 2009 .

[5] LH Suid: The Army's Nuclear Power Program: The Evolution of a Support Agency. P. 36.

[6] The United States Army Prime Power School (English)