In the advanced gas cooled reactor a british design the core is made of a graphite neutron moderator where the fuel assemblies are located. This was the type of reactor involved in the chernobyl disaster. See the soviet made rbmk nuclear power reactor.
One type uses solid graphite for the neutron moderator and ordinary water for the coolant. There are also graphite moderated reactors in use. Units 1 and 2 were constructed between 1970 and 1977 while units 3 and 4 of the same design.
The chernobyl power complex lying about 130 km north of kiev ukraine and about 20 km south of the border with belarus consisted of four nuclear reactors of the rbmk 1000 design see information page on rbmk reactors. The chernobyl site and plant. The russian nuclear program developed the technology for rbmk reactors throughout the 50s before the first rbmk 1000 reactor began construction at chernobyl in 1970.
It is considered the worst nuclear disaster in history and was caused by one of only two nuclear energy accidents rated at seven the maximum severity on the international. 4 reactor in the chernobyl nuclear power plant near the city of pripyat in the north of the ukrainian ssr. The chernobyl disaster was caused by a nuclear accident that occurred on saturday 26 april 1986 at the no.
The first of these obninsk am 1 атом мирный atom mirny russian for atoms for peace generated 5 mw of electricity from 30 mw thermal power and supplied obninsk from 1954. The rbmk was the culmination of the soviet nuclear power program to produce a water cooled power reactor with dual use potential based on their graphite moderated plutonium production military reactors. 1 commissioned in 1977.
Construction of the plant and the nearby city of pripyat to house workers and their families began in 1970 with reactor no. The nuclear power plant consisted of four rbmk 1000 reactors each capable of producing 1 000 megawatts mw of electric power 3 200 mw of thermal power and the four together produced about 10 of ukraine s electricity at the time of the disaster.
