Saturday, May 01, 2010

Nuclear Reactor Cutaways

Nuclear Reactor Wall Charts: an earlier post from the same collection


The World's Reactors, No. 76, Gosgen, Daniken, Switzerland. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, February 1980
Gosgen, Daniken, Switzerland. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, February 1980 [No. 76]



The World's Reactors, No. 32, Windscale AGR, Windscale, Cumberland, UK. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, April 1961
Windscale AGR, Windscale, Cumberland, UK. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, April 1961 [No. 32]



The World's Reactors, No. 39, Wylfa Magnox, Wylfa, Anglesey, UK. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, 1965
Wylfa Magnox, Wylfa, Anglesey, UK. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, 1965 [No. 39]



The World's Reactors, No. 97, System 80+ (e.g. Yongwang 3 & 4), USA. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, 1992
System 80+ (e.g. Yongwang 3 & 4), USA. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, 1992 [No. 97]



The World's Reactors, No. 26, Dragon, HTR, Winfrith, Dorset, UK. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, July 1960
Dragon, HTR, Winfrith, Dorset, UK. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, July 1960 [No. 26]



The World's Reactors, No. 41, Dungeness B, Kent, England, UK. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, 1967
Dungeness B, Kent, England, UK. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, 1967 [No. 41]



The World's Reactors, No. 100, Ulchin 3 & 4, South Korea. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, April 1998
Ulchin 3 & 4, South Korea. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, April 1998 [No. 100]



The World's Reactors, No. 99, Kernkraftwerk Krummel. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, 1993
Kernkraftwerk Krummel. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, 1993 [No. 99]



The World's Reactors, No. 85, DWR-PWR 1300 MWe, Germany. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, March 1984
DWR-PWR 1300 MWe, Germany. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, March 1984 [No. 85]



The World's Reactors, No. 79, CANDU 950. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, June 1981
CANDU 950. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, June 1981 [No. 79]



The World's Reactors, No. 72, Point Lepreau, New Brunswick, Canada. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, June 1977
Point Lepreau, New Brunswick, Canada. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, June 1977 [No. 72]



The World's Reactors, No. 49, Palisades, South Haven, Michigan, USA. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, January 1970
Palisades, South Haven, Michigan, USA. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, January 1970 [No. 49]



The World's Reactors, No. 42, Winfrith SGHWR, Dorset, England. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, May 1968
Winfrith SGHWR, Dorset, England. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, May 1968 [No. 42]



The World's Reactors, No. 22, Latina, Italy. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, October 1959
Latina, Italy. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, October 1959 [No. 22]



The World's Reactors, No. 27, BR3 PWR, Mol, Belgium. Wall chart insert, Nuclear Engineering, August 1960
BR3 PWR, Mol, Belgium. Wall chart insert,
Nuclear Engineering, August 1960 [No. 27]


[click through on any chart for large -- and extra large -- images]

{the images appear here with permission}


The complete set of 105 reactor wall charts has now been uploaded by the University of New Mexico. The dates above relate to the issue of Nuclear Engineering International magazine in which they first appeared. The collection was assembled by Ronald Knief, a nuclear engineer from Sandia National Laboratories.

The UNM CSEL Nuclear Engineering Wall Chart collection can be viewed as thumbnail jpegs but the full sized images are only available as pdf files {I found it easiest to download them rather than paralyse the browser on ffox} The size and resolution of the images vary somewhat, but they're all at least 2000px on the long side. Wired posted a little more information about the collection late last year.

The images remain under copyright to NEI magazine : high-resolution scans, and poster prints, are available for sale. For more information or a quotation contact: wdal AT neimagazine DOT com.

Previously: Nuclear Reactor Wall Charts

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4 comments :

Curious Art said...

I've always had a mild cutaway fetish... the Wylfa one is particularly pleasing with its organic cuts & beautiful shading, looks a bit like an ant farm! But I must admit the subject matter gives me a case of the willies... or should I say Wylfies?

Simen Christiansen said...

The semi-spherical or convex building shape that so many nuclear reactors have, always had me thinking that they contained some sort of pressurised.. something. But apparently they don't, as you can walk inside them. Why this shape? Is it to withstand an explosion? Or is it just style :)

Anonymous said...

Simen Christiansen,

The speherical or dome shaped part that you are looking at is called the containment dome. Virtually every western reactor has one of these. Its designed to withstand a steam explosion, or prevent the escape of radioactivity under accident conditions. The containment dome should not be confused with the pressure vessel, which sits inside the containment dome in Pressurised-Water-Reactors.

Hope that answers your questions.

Patrick Potts said...

The dome shape alleviates steam pressure by allowing for easier condensation, thus extending the amount of time from steam build-up to the eventual explosion. Think of it as a heatsink on an engine, processor, etc. except for steam.

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