Nuclear technology and its challenges in India

Abstract

India has a strong technology base for its comprehensive nuclear energy programme. A glimpse of this capability is given in this paper, starting with uranium exploration and mining to fuel reprocessing and nuclear waste management. India has chosen a closed fuel cycle option, and the plutonium recovered from spent fuel will soon be manufactured into fuel elements for its 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor, which is under construction. A modest programme to develop systems for thorium utilisation is being pursued. The nuclear energy development programme includes accelerator-based nuclear reactor systems. India is also a party to the 500 MW nuclear fusion machine ITER, which is under construction at Cadarache, France, under an international cooperation framework.