Americans needed mobile nuclear power plants for the army
On the American portal The Drive, Joseph Trevitnik has published an article on the American Military Reactors That Can Fit In A C-17 ("The US military wants tiny mobile nuclear reactors that can fit in C-17"). The article tells that the American Armed Forces decided to order the development of mobile NPPs for their needs.
The US Strategic Opportunity and Enforcement Administration called on potential developers to submit their proposals for mobile NPPs for the aircraft in accordance with the stated requirements. They are needed, they say, to meet the ever-growing demand for electricity in the modern army when conducting operations in remote locations with harsh conditions. Notice of this was published a week ago at one of the main "guest bidders", to put it in our concepts, sites, and after a few days the requirements for Project Dithulium, as they called it, were clarified.
They want to get a mobile nuclear power plant weighing about 40 t, power 1-10 MW, placed on a semi-trailer, capable of being transported by sea and in a C-17A military transport aircraft. This is obviously about container performance. The deployment time of the station after delivery is no more than 3 days, and clotting is a week. Very mild requirements, it should be noted. During the year (although the dates for the start of this period are not approved), the management will expect projects from interested corporations, then select one developer and wait for the finished prototype for 2025, if funding for this stage is finally approved, and if the deadlines fail and the other is possible.
We need this mobile, more precisely, transportable (because the container does not transport itself) nuclear power plants to the US military for the following reasons. Energy consumption in the leading armies of the world is constantly increasing - more and more electronics, automated control systems of various levels, communication systems, radar, electronic warfare systems. An even greater need is expected in view of the appearance of various means of protecting the troops from small-sized UAVs, or, say, the development weapons on new physical principles, such as EMP weapons, electromagnetic accelerators, lasers, or, say, electric or hybrid vehicles that require charging, electric UAVs or, say, ground-based robotic systems for electrical power.
The US Armed Forces currently rely either on local power grids (which, incidentally, is prohibited in a combat situation, it is necessary to switch to autonomous power supply), or on its diesel generators and DES at various levels. But in remote areas or in areas with a dangerous situation, there may be interruptions in the supply of fuel and lubricants, both in the composition of the columns, and with the transfer aviation. The Americans did not forget how they used helicopters to transport the “fuel” in Afghanistan, which was turning into “gold,” because they could not ensure the passage of the columns. This is when they had troops there, together with the Allies, twice as many as the USSR, which for some reason almost did not experience such problems. Also, Americans believe that in a war with a serious high-tech adversary, a situation can easily arise where you can’t throw anything over the air, because the enemy’s air defense does not, and on the ground it’s not particularly either. As a result, requirements were born to ensure the possibility of conducting combat operations of a brigade combat group for a week without supplies. Obviously, nuclear power plants come from them too.
Holos Mobile NPP Project
At the moment there are already several potential proposals on the topic, more precisely, there are several projects that, in general, could be suitable. So, there is a MegaPower project from LANL - Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives 1 MW of energy (we are talking about electrical energy, and not about thermal energy supplied by the reactor) and satisfies the advanced requirements on mobility and time of deployment and coagulation. There is an e-Vinci project from Westinghouse - this is a whole series of microreactors from 25 kW to 200 MW, but the deployment time is long - about a month. Both of these projects do not use water cooling and heat transfer, being air-cooling systems on the so-called "flame tubes". There is also a project from Filippone and Associates LLC, called Holos, a gas-cooled reactor for which power from 3 to 13 MW is claimed (for assembling 4 modules and placed in a container) and supposedly as long as 60 years (compared to 5-10) years of competitors). There are still projects from URENCO, but they are completely unsuitable for deployment and collapse times.
[media = https: //youtu.be/RPI8G6COc8g || Mobile MegaPower NPP from LANL]
[media = https: //www.youtube.com/watch? v = NmQ9ku9ABCs || Holos Reactor Module Operational Diagram]
It should be noted that the decision of the Americans to address this issue was influenced by the fact that such a mobile nuclear power plant would soon go into service with the Russian Armed Forces. Approximately in 2-3 of the year, a prototype mobile land-based nuclear power plant for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, intended primarily for Siberia and the Far North, should be ready. And to 2023g. OCD can be completed if, of course, the deadlines also do not move. But, unlike the Americans, we don’t want a transported circuit and trailers. And understanding that we have everything with roads, and often in the North in general, we preferred a modular scheme, designed either for an all-terrain self-propelled wheeled or tracked bases. Power is planned in three options - 100 kW, 1 MW and 10 MW. Moreover, many analysts have a suspicion that the Peresvet laser combat complex, whose combat positions are gradually appearing in various missile divisions of the Strategic Missile Forces, may also have a small nuclear power source. Although this is only suspicion and rumor, and it is quite possible that there is an ordinary source of energy. But besides that, underwater small nuclear power plants are being created in Russia. Thus, the NIKIET Shelf project envisages the creation of both a ground and an underwater bottom variant of a station with a capacity of 6.4MW. The "Shelf" is officially proposed for future work in the Arctic on the creation of powerful bottom complexes for exploration and production, and unofficially in the West, many suspect that it is also needed for a new powerful underwater tracking network known as Harmony. ATGU (autonomous turbogenerator installation) "Shelf" has a mass, together with a durable external housing for diving to the bottom of the order of 350, and power of the order of 44-50 kW, operating time without maintenance - 5000, there is also the Iceberg project from CDB MT Rubin "and OKBM them. Afrikantov - with power up to 24MW and operating time without maintenance up to 8000. But this project is proposed primarily for the peaceful development of the Arctic depths. There is also the PNAEM project for Africans, from 10 to 50 MW.
ATGU "Shelf", module diagram.
PNAEM from OKBM "Afrikantov"
Of course, the Pentagon guys felt hurt, and they wanted to have something similar. But it should be noted that all these our and American projects are based on a powerful background in both superpowers on this topic. Except maybe undersea nuclear power plants, but here the experience of building a nuclear submarine was useful. Both in the USSR and in the USA, since 50-ies, they have been actively working on mobile small nuclear power plants, which then seemed quite natural, along with projects and even prototypes of atomic locomotives, atomic planes and even atomic grip. And there were quite real results on this topic in 50-60's, and later, in 70-80's. But after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the wave of "radiophobia" almost washed this topic down the drain. But decades passed, and nuclear mobile and transportable stations were needed again. We'll see if something really serial will come out this time from anyone, or, like in the past decades, the desire for economy will be stronger.
And about the results of previous years, the story will continue in another article.
The US Strategic Opportunity and Enforcement Administration called on potential developers to submit their proposals for mobile NPPs for the aircraft in accordance with the stated requirements. They are needed, they say, to meet the ever-growing demand for electricity in the modern army when conducting operations in remote locations with harsh conditions. Notice of this was published a week ago at one of the main "guest bidders", to put it in our concepts, sites, and after a few days the requirements for Project Dithulium, as they called it, were clarified.
They want to get a mobile nuclear power plant weighing about 40 t, power 1-10 MW, placed on a semi-trailer, capable of being transported by sea and in a C-17A military transport aircraft. This is obviously about container performance. The deployment time of the station after delivery is no more than 3 days, and clotting is a week. Very mild requirements, it should be noted. During the year (although the dates for the start of this period are not approved), the management will expect projects from interested corporations, then select one developer and wait for the finished prototype for 2025, if funding for this stage is finally approved, and if the deadlines fail and the other is possible.
We need this mobile, more precisely, transportable (because the container does not transport itself) nuclear power plants to the US military for the following reasons. Energy consumption in the leading armies of the world is constantly increasing - more and more electronics, automated control systems of various levels, communication systems, radar, electronic warfare systems. An even greater need is expected in view of the appearance of various means of protecting the troops from small-sized UAVs, or, say, the development weapons on new physical principles, such as EMP weapons, electromagnetic accelerators, lasers, or, say, electric or hybrid vehicles that require charging, electric UAVs or, say, ground-based robotic systems for electrical power.
The US Armed Forces currently rely either on local power grids (which, incidentally, is prohibited in a combat situation, it is necessary to switch to autonomous power supply), or on its diesel generators and DES at various levels. But in remote areas or in areas with a dangerous situation, there may be interruptions in the supply of fuel and lubricants, both in the composition of the columns, and with the transfer aviation. The Americans did not forget how they used helicopters to transport the “fuel” in Afghanistan, which was turning into “gold,” because they could not ensure the passage of the columns. This is when they had troops there, together with the Allies, twice as many as the USSR, which for some reason almost did not experience such problems. Also, Americans believe that in a war with a serious high-tech adversary, a situation can easily arise where you can’t throw anything over the air, because the enemy’s air defense does not, and on the ground it’s not particularly either. As a result, requirements were born to ensure the possibility of conducting combat operations of a brigade combat group for a week without supplies. Obviously, nuclear power plants come from them too.
Holos Mobile NPP Project
At the moment there are already several potential proposals on the topic, more precisely, there are several projects that, in general, could be suitable. So, there is a MegaPower project from LANL - Los Alamos National Laboratory. It gives 1 MW of energy (we are talking about electrical energy, and not about thermal energy supplied by the reactor) and satisfies the advanced requirements on mobility and time of deployment and coagulation. There is an e-Vinci project from Westinghouse - this is a whole series of microreactors from 25 kW to 200 MW, but the deployment time is long - about a month. Both of these projects do not use water cooling and heat transfer, being air-cooling systems on the so-called "flame tubes". There is also a project from Filippone and Associates LLC, called Holos, a gas-cooled reactor for which power from 3 to 13 MW is claimed (for assembling 4 modules and placed in a container) and supposedly as long as 60 years (compared to 5-10) years of competitors). There are still projects from URENCO, but they are completely unsuitable for deployment and collapse times.
[media = https: //youtu.be/RPI8G6COc8g || Mobile MegaPower NPP from LANL]
[media = https: //www.youtube.com/watch? v = NmQ9ku9ABCs || Holos Reactor Module Operational Diagram]
It should be noted that the decision of the Americans to address this issue was influenced by the fact that such a mobile nuclear power plant would soon go into service with the Russian Armed Forces. Approximately in 2-3 of the year, a prototype mobile land-based nuclear power plant for the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, intended primarily for Siberia and the Far North, should be ready. And to 2023g. OCD can be completed if, of course, the deadlines also do not move. But, unlike the Americans, we don’t want a transported circuit and trailers. And understanding that we have everything with roads, and often in the North in general, we preferred a modular scheme, designed either for an all-terrain self-propelled wheeled or tracked bases. Power is planned in three options - 100 kW, 1 MW and 10 MW. Moreover, many analysts have a suspicion that the Peresvet laser combat complex, whose combat positions are gradually appearing in various missile divisions of the Strategic Missile Forces, may also have a small nuclear power source. Although this is only suspicion and rumor, and it is quite possible that there is an ordinary source of energy. But besides that, underwater small nuclear power plants are being created in Russia. Thus, the NIKIET Shelf project envisages the creation of both a ground and an underwater bottom variant of a station with a capacity of 6.4MW. The "Shelf" is officially proposed for future work in the Arctic on the creation of powerful bottom complexes for exploration and production, and unofficially in the West, many suspect that it is also needed for a new powerful underwater tracking network known as Harmony. ATGU (autonomous turbogenerator installation) "Shelf" has a mass, together with a durable external housing for diving to the bottom of the order of 350, and power of the order of 44-50 kW, operating time without maintenance - 5000, there is also the Iceberg project from CDB MT Rubin "and OKBM them. Afrikantov - with power up to 24MW and operating time without maintenance up to 8000. But this project is proposed primarily for the peaceful development of the Arctic depths. There is also the PNAEM project for Africans, from 10 to 50 MW.
ATGU "Shelf", module diagram.
PNAEM from OKBM "Afrikantov"
Of course, the Pentagon guys felt hurt, and they wanted to have something similar. But it should be noted that all these our and American projects are based on a powerful background in both superpowers on this topic. Except maybe undersea nuclear power plants, but here the experience of building a nuclear submarine was useful. Both in the USSR and in the USA, since 50-ies, they have been actively working on mobile small nuclear power plants, which then seemed quite natural, along with projects and even prototypes of atomic locomotives, atomic planes and even atomic grip. And there were quite real results on this topic in 50-60's, and later, in 70-80's. But after the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the wave of "radiophobia" almost washed this topic down the drain. But decades passed, and nuclear mobile and transportable stations were needed again. We'll see if something really serial will come out this time from anyone, or, like in the past decades, the desire for economy will be stronger.
And about the results of previous years, the story will continue in another article.
- Ya. Vyatkin, especially for "Military Review"
- www.thedrive.com, www.hisutton.com
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