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U.S. Department of Energy
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Conceptual design and estimated cost of nuclear power plants in mined caverns. Executive summary

Book ·
OSTI ID:6026003
In 1976, the State of California enacted legislation (Section 25524.3 of the Public Resources Code) which required a study of the potential effectiveness and economic feasibility of, and the necessity for, underground siting of nuclear power reactors. The law instructed the California Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (CERCDC) to examine two general siting concepts: berm containment (wherein the reactor and principal radioactivity-containing structures are covered with soil); and mined caverns (wherein the reactor and principal systems are located in large caverns excavated in competent rock). This report presents design concepts and cost estimates for a nuclear power plant configured in mined caverns, a so-called rock-sited facility. Other contractors in the overall CERCDC study have considered berm-contained siting concepts and the effectiveness of subsurface siting for mitigating the consequences of severe hypothetical reactor accidents.
OSTI ID:
6026003
Report Number(s):
NP-23808
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English