THORIUM THE ULTIMATE SOLUTION FOR OUR NUCLEAR ENERGY NEEDS

By Rajesh Sinha

1. Energy Consumption in India. The Indian economy has been

growing at a rapid pace for the past four years. The momentum

of this growth is expected to be sustained in the near future.

The main contributors to this growth have been the service

sector and industry. Both these sectors are energy intensive.

The agriculture sector does not contribute much to the growth

rate ‘per se’, but is a major contributor to the GDP of the

country. This sector is huge, and has a very large potential

for mechanisation. The domestic consumption of electricity is

very low in India, especially in the rural sector. The per

capita consumption of electricity in India is one of the

lowest in the world. There exists a huge potential for

development in this field.

2. Energy Requirement. A large number of agencies; both

national and international, have predicted the Indian

requirement for energy in the next forty years. The expected

growth rate varies from 5.7 % to 6.5 %. There is a huge gap

between the production, and demand for electricity in India,

which is amply demonstrated during the power cuts. There was a

public outrage in Kanpur and Maharastra this year due to this

shortage.

3. Sources of Energy. The main sources of energy are:-

(a) Coal.

(b) Petroleum products.

(c) Natural Gas.

(d) Hydro –Electricity.

(e) Renewable source like solar power, Hydrogen, fuel

cells etc.

(f) Nuclear energy.

(g) Gas Hydrates.

4. Availability of Energy. India is one of the largest

coal producers, but the quality of coal is not very good, as a

result a large amount of coal has to be imported. National

reserves of oil and gas are very small; India imported

approximately 76.66 % of her total crude requirements till Nov

20051. There is sufficient capacity to develop hydro-

electricity, but it has a number of social ramifications as

the ‘Narmada Valley Project’ has demonstrated. The renewable

1 http://indiabudget.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.

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sources of energy are still in developmental stage. Nuclear

Energy has a lot of scope for development in India.

5. Definitions. Some of the definitions used in the paper

are:-

(a) Fission. This is a nuclear reaction where in, a

nucleus absorbs a neutron and splits into two nuclei,

producing neutrons and heat.

(b) Fissile Material. These are those materials, which

undergo fission reaction readily with neutrons of any energy

level, for example, Uranium 235 (U 235) and Plutonium 239 (Pu239).

(c) Fissionable Material. These are materials which

undergo fission reaction with neutrons having specific

energy levels, for example, Uranium 238 (U 238).

(d) Fertile Material. These are materials, which do not

undergo a fission reaction, but they absorb neutrons and

produce materials which are fissile, for example, Thorium

232 (Th 232).

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(e) Coolant. It is a medium, used in a nuclear reactor

for removing heat from the reactor. It may be liquid, like

water or liquid Sodium; or gas, like CO2.

(f) Moderator. It is a medium used in reactors for

slowing down, or reducing the energy of the neutrons

produced in a fission reaction. It may be liquid, like

water; or solid, like graphite.

(g) Thermal Reactor. The ‘Thermal Reactor’ is one in

which the chain reaction is sustained primarily by fission

caused by thermal neutrons, which have been slowed down so

as to make them more likely to collide with a fissile

nucleus and cause fission. The energy of the neutrons is

equal to the energy of the water molecules, at the given

water temperature.

(h) Fast Reactor. A ‘Fast Reactor’, is a reactor in

which the neutrons are not slowed down before reaction,

hence it does not use a moderator.

(j) Breeder Reactor. A ‘Breeder Reactor’, is a reactor

which produces more fuel during a nuclear reaction than it

consumes. A ‘Breeder Reactor’ can be either ‘Fast’ or

‘Thermal’.

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(k) Burn up. Burn-up is the amount of energy that can be

extracted from a given quantity of fuel. Higher the burn-up,

lesser will be the fuel used. It also means that lesser fuel

would need to be reprocessed and lesser radioactive waste

generated.

(l) Breeding Ratio (BR), Breeding Gain (BG). Breeding

ratio is a measure of the degree of conversion of fertile to

fissile material. BR of up to 1.5 is possible in Fast

Breeder Reactors (FBR).

BR = Fissile Mass Produced

Fissile Mass Destroyed].

BG = BR-1.

(m) Doubling Time. It is the operating time required for a

breeder to produce enough fissile fuel in excess of its own

fissile inventory to fuel an identical reactor. It is

possible to achieve a doubling time of 10 years with

advanced FBR designs.

6. Scope. This paper primarily deals with the ‘electric’

energy requirements of India. ‘Nuclear Energy’, in this paper,

is restricted to energy produced by fission. The discussions

will be restricted to ‘Pressurised Water’ and ‘Fast Breeder’

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reactors. The paper does not discuss the technical details of

the various reactors and the physics behind the nuclear

reactions.

AIM

7. To study the importance of Thorium (Th) as a source of

nuclear energy, for meeting the future energy requirements of

India.

8. Commercial Consumption of Electricity. The Indian

economic growth rate has been 6.5 to 8 % for the past five

years. ‘Industry’ and ‘Services’ sectors have been the main

contributors to this growth. Both these sectors are energy

intensive. Though the contribution of agriculture to the

growth rate is modest, it contributes 22 % to the GDP of the

country 2 . It accounted for 22.9 % of the total energy

consumed in India, as compared to 35.6 % by industry in 2004-

053. Approximately 58 % of the population is engaged in

agriculture4. Agricultural practices in India are, at the best,

primitive, as compared to Europe and America; as far as

mechanisation is concerned. Most of the tilling, irrigation,2 www.economywatch.com, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.3 http://indiabudget.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.4 www.economywatch.com, op cit.

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harvesting and related procedures are carried out manually/

using animals. Commercial establishments consumed 8.1 %, while

traction’s share was just 2.5 % of the total electricity

consumption5. As the government pays more attention to the

development of infrastructure and mobility within the country,

the share of these sectors is bound to increase.

9. Domestic Consumption. India has the second largest

population in the world. Approximately 1/6th of the world

population lives here. The per capita energy consumption is

one of the lowest in the world at 606 KWH/ year6. The domestic

sector accounts for 24.8 % of the total electricity consumed7.

The domestic consumption of electricity is very low, as

compared to other countries. There are a large number of

villages that have not been electrified, or which receive only

a few hours of supply per day. The 2001 census indicates that

the population of the country has grown at 1.99 % per year for

the last 10 years. According to a study published by the

United Nations , depending on the population growth scenario,

India’s population will cross 1.88 billion (high variant),

1.57 billion (medium variant) or 1.2 billion (Low variant) in

the year 20508. Thus there is tremendous scope for growth in

consumption in this sector.

5 India budget, op cit.6 www.powermin.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Sep 06.7 indiabudget, op cit.8 www.dae.gov.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.

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10. Projected Demand for Electricity. Various agencies

have projected the rate of growth of demand for electricity in

India. Some of the estimates are as follows9:-

(a) 10 th Five-Year Plan . 5.74 % for the 11th and 12th

plans.

(b) TERI. 5.7 % from 1997 to 2019, and 3.6 % from 2020

to 2047.

(c) Institute of Energy Economics of Japan (IEEJ). 5.4 %

till 2027.

(d) Central Electric Authority (CEA), India. 6.5 % from

1997 to 2012, and 1 to 2 % beyond 2050.

Coal

11. Availability. India ranks third in the world, in coal

production. According to the ‘Geological Survey of India’,

9 Ibid.

8

Indian coal reserves stand at 253.301 Billion Tons. The total

extractable coal in the 10th ‘Five Year Plan’ is expected to be

37.86 Billion Tons. According to the ‘Economic Survey of

India’, the total domestic requirement of coal during 2006-07

is expected to be 365 million tons, while the production is

expected to be 334 million tons, leading to a shortage of 31

million tons. This shortage will be overcome by imports.

12. Problems. The Indian electricity sector is primarily

based on coal based thermal power plants. According to

Ministry of Power, Government of India, web site, coal based

plants produce a total of 68,988 KWH of power, which is 54.4 %

of the total installed capacity10. Coal is a difficult fuel to

handle. It is expensive and cumbersome to transport. Coal

based plants need a very large amount of water, and produces a

large amount of ‘Green House’ gases and ash, which contribute

to air, soil and water pollution. India is increasingly coming

under pressure to reduce her carbon emissions under the Kyoto

Protocol.

Gas

13. Availability. India has recently discovered large

reserves of ‘Natural Gas’ in various areas, both onshore and

10 www.powermin.nic.in

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off-shore. According to the annual ONGC report made to the

Government of India, the total known gas reserves of India are

estimated at 1101 Billion (Bn) cubic meters. The present

annual domestic gas production stands at 31.777 Million Tons

(MT), while the consumption stands at 30.788 MT11. Gas is

available in abundance in the world, and the present demand

for gas stands at 2420 MT equivalent of oil; as per the ‘BP

Statistical Review of World Energy’12.

14. Problems. Gas based Thermal Power Plants contribute

13,582 MW of power which accounts for 10.7% of the total power

produced in India13. Gas is difficult to handle as it needs a

huge infrastructure in the form of pipelines. Importing gas in

ships is a cumbersome process and requires ships that run on

Diesel, which in turn is at a record high price, with no signs

of a reduction. Building of pipelines is a very specialised

and expensive proposition with added political problems due to

the pipeline crossing a number of international territories. A

fantastic example of the problem is the Indo-Iran gas pipeline

through Pakistan. The thermal capacity of the gas is low and

thus a very large amount of gas is required for a given amount

of power produced.

11 http://indiabudget.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Sep 06.12 www.neimagazine.com, downloaded on 30 Jul 06.13 www.powermin.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Sep 06.

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Oil

15. Availability. Crude is increasingly becoming a very

expensive commodity. According to the US Geological Survey, a

total of three trillion barrels is ultimately recoverable. Out

of this only 1/4th can actually be recovered, hence the world

oil production is expected to peak around 202014. The prices

are increasing and so is the demand. India has a meagre oil

reserve of 786 MT, as per the Annual ONGC report to the

government of India15. The annual consumption of oil in India

in 2005-06 was 127.12 MT, while the domestic production was

31.777 MT. India imported 95.86 MT (75.4 %) of her total oil

requirement. Oil based ‘Thermal Power Plants’ produced 1202

MW, which accounts for 0.09 % of power produced in India.

16. Problems. The demand for oil is mainly from the

transport sector. The world reserves are depleting fast and no

significant new fields have been discovered for the past

several years. The country is totally dependent on the

international market for this commodity, and the availability

is influenced by the competing demands from various countries.

The availability of oil in the country can be influenced by

international events, even where India may not be directly

involved. For example, disruption may occur as a result of war14 Neal Adams, Terrorism and Oil (Oklahoma: Penn Well Corporation,

2003), p.6.15 www.powermin.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Sep 06.

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and terrorist activities. Most of the oil is produced in the

‘Middle East’ and North Africa. These areas are inherently

unstable; since 1948, there have been seven major wars in the

Persian Gulf region itself. The strife in Iraq is continuing

with no end in sight. All these factors make the country

hostage to blackmail and influence from undesired corners.

Hydro-Electricity

17. Availability. This sector contributed 32,976 MW to

national power production in 2005-06, which was 26 % of the

total power produced16. India has a large number of perennial

rivers with a huge hydro-electric potential of 150 Giga Watt

Electric (GWe) per annum. According to the Department of

Atomic Energy report, India was producing only 27 GWe from

Hydro-electricity in 200317. The plans are to produce 29.9 % of

power through these means by the end of 10th ‘Five Year Plan’18.

18. Problems. Though it is a very clean source of energy,

it is expensive as dams have to be built for the same. The

bigger projects do affect the eco-system of an area, as large

areas are inundated. Bigger projects also lead to displacement

of populations leading to resentment and opposition to the16 Ibid.17 www.dae.gov.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.18 http://indiabudget.nic.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.

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projects. The campaign against the Narmada Valley Project is a

good example. The power generated in these plants is not

constant through out the year and also depends on natural

factors like monsoons.

Nuclear Power

19. Availability. Nuclear power contributed 3900 MW or 3.1 %

to the total power produced in the country19. This sector has

got a huge potential for expansion. All the plants in India

are Uranium based. Except for one plant in Tarapur, which is a

Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) all other reactors in use are

Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWR) using natural Uranium

as fuel. Pressurised Water Reactors (PWR) are under

construction at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu. The BWR is a very

old technology, and is being phased out. The PHWR uses heavy

water as coolant and moderator. The PWR uses light water (de-

mineralised water) as coolant and moderator. All these

reactors are ‘Thermal Reactors’. India is self sufficient in

manufacture of the fuel used in the present reactors, and also

in production of heavy water. Indian Uranium reserves stand at

95,000 tons, of which 67,000 tons is recoverable. India

accounts for only 1 % of total known world reserves of

19 www.powermin.nic.in downloaded on 20 Sep 06.

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Uranium20. This reserve can provide 330 GWe-year of energy. The

aim is to produce 20 GWe power from nuclear plants by 2020.

20. Problem. India is one of the leading nations in the

world as far as nuclear research is concerned, but she is not

a signatory of the Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT). The Nuclear

Suppliers Group (NSG) has a legislation banning trade in

nuclear material with countries which are not NPT signatories.

As a result, she cannot purchase Uranium from the world

market, nor can she expect foreign investment in this field.

She cannot seek technological cooperation with other

countries. The Uranium resources are not inexhaustible. The

government is trying to overcome these problems by signing

bilateral treaties with the International Atomic Energy Agency

(IAEA), and the USA, who can influence other members of the

NSG.

Indian Nuclear Program

21. Plutonium 239 (Pu 239 ) . Plutonium is a dual use material,

which can be used in nuclear weapons as well as in fast

breeder reactors. With the fast breeder reactor programme like

that of India, excess plutonium can be used for new power20 OECD NEA & IAEA, Uranium 2005: Resources, Production and Demand ("Red Book"). (www.uic.com.au), downloaded on 20 Jul 06.

14

stations. The use of fast breeder reactors in India arises

more from the point of view of resource utilisation capacity,

than from the growth capability. By the use of fast breeder

reactors the utilisation of uranium can reach 60-80% as

compared to less than 1% with the pressurised heavy water

reactors

22. Thorium 232 (Th 232 ) . The problem of limited Uranium

reserves was identified by the fore fathers of the Indian

nuclear program. They also realised that India has a reserve

of 0.63 million tons of Thorium232 (Th232), mainly occurring in

the beach and river sand. Out of this reserve 225,000 tons is

recoverable21. Th232 is a fertile material and does not undergo

fission on its own, but it can be used in a breeder reactor

along with Plutonium (Pu), to produce Uranium233 (U233). U233 is a

fissile material which can then be used as fuel in a U233 based

nuclear reactor to produce electricity. The advantages of

using Th 232 are as follows22:-

(a) It has a better absorption cross section, than U238,

and hence can be more efficiently converted to U 233.

(b) U233 is less sensitive to the type of reactor in which

it is used, hence it is simpler to use.

21 www.dae.gov.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.22 ibid

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(c) Recycling of U233 is easier than of Pu 239.

(d) Burden of management of long-lived radio-active

waste is lesser in the Th233- U233 cycle as it has a shorter

half-life.

(e) It has better burn-up characteristics.

23. Three Stage Nuclear Program. The Indian nuclear

program is well charted and has been planned to cater to the

long term energy requirements of India. The program is in

three stages23. They are as follows:-

(a) Stage 1. Stage one visualised power production

using PHWRs fuelled by natural Uranium. This stage has

been completed, and today India is one of the world

leaders in PHWR technology. All nuclear power plants in

operation today, except the one at Tarapur are based on

PHWR technology.

(b) Stage 2. Stage two planned for the use of Pu239

produced as a by-product in the PHWR to operate the FBR.

This FBR would not only produce energy using a Pu-U fuel

23 Shaping the Third Stage of Indian Nuclear Power Programme, Department of Atomic Energy pp 2.

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but also produce more Pu239. This stage is at an advanced

juncture and the construction of a 500 MW Prototype Fast

Breeder Reactor (PFBR) has commenced at Kalpakkam. India

is a world leader in this technology, and one of the very

few nations to have succeeded in mastering this

technology. A new company Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam

Limited, (BHAVINI) has been floated and is going to

construct four more FBRs to utilise the fuel produced in

the PFBR. A diagrammatic representation of the PFBR is

placed at Appendix P.

(c) Stage 3. Stage three plans to use Th232 found in

abundance in India to produce U233, in breeder reactors and

use that fuel in U233 based reactors. In preparation for the

Third Stage, development of technologies pertaining to

utilisation of Th are going on at Indira Gandhi Centre for

Atomic Research (IGCAR).Considerable Th irradiation

experience has been acquired in research reactors and Th

has been introduced in PHWRs in a limited way. Experience

is being gained over the entire Th fuel cycle, which

includes breeding and reprocessing the Th to separate the

U233. IGCAR has developed an experimental reactor; KAMINI;

the only currently operating reactor in the world, which

uses U233 as fuel. The fuel for this reactor was bred,

processed and fabricated indigenously. Efforts are

currently on to enlarge that experience to a bigger scale.

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BARC is now designing and developing the ‘Advanced Heavy

Water Reactor’(AHWR) which will utilise plutonium

resources in an optimum manner to maximise conversion of

thorium to U233, extract power in-situ from the Th fuel, and

recycle the bred U233 in future reactors24. A diagrammatic

representation of the AHWR is placed at Appendix Q.

24. Goals for Stage 3 of Nuclear Program. The third stage

of the program is designed to meet the following goals25:-

(a) Utilise Th as fuel on a commercial scale.

(b) Deploy nuclear power in the country on a large

scale.

(c) Achieve good economic performance as compared to

alternate options for energy generation.

(d) Attain higher levels of transparent safety, through

optimal utilisation of inherent and passive safety

features.

24 www.igcar.ernet.in, downloaded on 20 Jul 0625 Shaping the Third Stage of Indian Nuclear Power Programme, Department of Atomic Energy pp 4.

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(e) Utilise the proliferation resistant potential of Th

fuel cycle to the full extent.

(f) Provide for adaptability to non-electrical

applications, in particular, desalination and high

temperature processing applications, including those for

generation of non-fossil fluid fuels.

25. According to Dr Baldev Raj, Director IGCAR, “The

projected increase in electricity generation, which is

expected to be between 300 to 500 GW per year by the year

2020, can be sustained for more than 50 years through the fast

breeder reactor method only. The U233 breeder option provides a

power generation base of 500 GW per year, which can be

sustained for four centuries. If our energy independence in

the years after 2020 is to be ensured India must build the

prototype because it takes a minimum of two decades and four

more reactors after the prototype to get full benefits of the

learning curve in commercialising a complex technology such as

that of the fast breeder reactors.”26.

26. Requirements for India. The above discussion has clearly

indicated that if the country has to maintain the current rate

26 lecture by Dr Baldev Raj, Director IGCAR, to Chennai Science City, downloaded on 20 Jul 06.

19

of economic development, she has to be self sufficient in

energy. As of today, India is highly dependent on external

imports for her energy requirements, whether they are oil or

gas. She will become dependent in case of Uranium and coal in

the long term. The demand for energy in India is going to soar

as time passes, because of the scope for development in each

field, be it industry, agriculture or domestic requirements.

This is primarily due to the large population that has to be

supported. As oil gets depleted, there will be a major shift

towards electricity as a means of energy. The following

developments are anticipated in the next 50 to 60 years:-

(a) Increased dependence on railways with electric

traction.

(b) Increased usage of electric vehicles, which may have

onboard power generation, or may require charging from

external source.

(c) Increased dependence on nuclear power plants for

shipping.

(d) Shift in agriculture from diesel to electricity.

(e) Increased usage of electric appliances in homes for

cooking.

20

27. Technical Capability. India has been pursuing the

nuclear objective with a single minded approach; as a result

she has been able to develop the requisite technologies

indigenously. Today India is in one of a select group of

countries, who have mastered the FBR technology, and the only

country to develop the U233 technology. Thus the technical

capability exists in the country to use Th as a future fuel in

the nuclear reactors.

28. Benefits to the Country. If India uses the Th based

cycle, she will be self sufficient in energy for a few

centuries to come. The other benefits accrued to the country

could be:-

(a) Independence from nuclear hegemony of other

countries.

(b) Independence from arm twisting by oil exporting

countries.

(c) Drastic reduction in the import bill.

(d) Savings in foreign exchange.

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(e) Earnings from exporting the nuclear plants to other

countries.

(f) Reduction in pollution from green house gases.

CONCLUSION

29. The Indian economy is growing rapidly. A large amount

of energy is required to maintain this pace. The per capita

consumption of energy in the country is amongst the lowest in

the world. There is sufficient scope for development in the

field of agriculture, and domestic consumption of energy. In

addition there is already a shortage of power in the country.

30. The main contributors to the energy sector are fossil

fuels, like oil, gas and coal, with a very small contribution

from the nuclear sector. The fossil fuels are exhaustible, and

polluting. India is highly dependent on imports for crude oil.

World oil production is expected to peak in 2020 and then

taper off. The Uranium reserves in the country are also

limited and there are a large number of curbs on importing the

same.

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31. The country has a huge reserve of Thorium, which if

exploited can solve India’s energy problem for the next few

centuries. The country has, and is, developing the requisite

technologies successfully. It is now a matter of time when

Thorium based reactors would be functioning commercially in

India. Thus Thorium appears to be the ultimate solution for

India’s energy requirements.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

Books

1. Neal Adams. Terrorism and Oil. Oklahoma: Penn Well

Corporation, 2003

2. PR Shukla. India’s Energy. Manohar, 2000.

3. Samuel Glasstone and Alexander Sesonske. Nuclear Reactor

Engineering. CBS Publishers and Distributors, 1998.

Reports

4. DAE Annual Report 2005-06.

5. Atomic Energy in India, a Perspective. Department of

Atomic Energy, Government of India.

6. Shaping the Third Stage of Indian Nuclear Power Program,

Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India.

24

7. A Perspective on Science and Technology of Fast Breeder Reactors, lecture by Dr Baldev Raj, Director, IGCAR, Kalpakkam, to Science City Chennai.

8. Long Term Vision of the Department of Atomic Energy,

Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India.

Internet

9. www.nic.in

10. http://indiabudget.nic.in

11. www.spe.org

12. www.igcar.ernet.in

13. www.dae.gov.in

14. www.wikipedia.com

15. www.neimagazine.com

16. www.nfcis.iaea.org

Newspapers

25

17. The Hindu, 19 Jul 06.

26

Appendix A

PROTOTYPE FAST BREEDER REACTOR

27

Appendix B

ADVANCED HEAVY WATER REACTOR

28

29