IGCAR director Sreekumar G. Pillai said on Tuesday that thorium connects India’s natural resources with its three-stage nuclear programme. He noted, "If a grain of sand from the coast is able to meet the electricity requirement of a city, it will be a great thing." The symposium continues until Wednesday.
If a grain of sand from the coast is able to meet the electricity requirement of a city, it will be a great thing, he says.
Thorium, found in the mineral sand deposits of coastal States such as Keralam, is a potential energy source that connects the nation's natural resources with its carefully-conceived, three-stage nuclear programme, Sreekumar G. Pillai, Director, Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), Kalpakkam, said here on Tuesday.
Mr. Pillai was speaking on 'India's three-stage nuclear programme: Role of fast reactors and utilisation of thorium' at a symposium 'Monazite to Megawatt: Emerging Frontiers in Nuclear Science and Technology' organised by the Atomic Energy Retirees Association (AERI)/ The two-day symposium opened on Tuesday at the Mar Ivanios College here.
"If a grain of sand from the coast is able to meet the electricity requirement of a city, it will be a great thing," he said. That India is home to about 25% of the world's known thorium deposits was the basis for the country's three-stage nuclear programme designed in the 1950s.
However, thorium is fertile, not fissile, meaning it must be converted to Uranium-233 in a reactor, Mr. Pillai said, noting the progression from uranium to plutonium and ultimately to thorium as the sequential foundation of the nuclear programme.
Nuclear energy, as a clean energy source, grows in relevance particularly at a time when India is facing the challenge of ramping up electricity production while decarbonising the power sector, A.K. Balasubrahmanian, Chairperson, Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, Mumbai, who inaugurated the symposium, said.
The 'nuclear advantage' is that it is a clean energy source that provides reliable 24/7 baseload power. Describing the safety aspects of the sector as an overriding priority, he stressed the importance of reliability and quality in systems, structures and components (SSC), and the design, construction and operation aspects of the nuclear power sector. Mr. Balasubrahmanian also emphasised the role of competent manpower in the critical positions.
The two-day national symposium, which concludes on Wednesday, covers aspects of nuclear technology related to applications of nuclear radiations, thorium utilisation, safety aspects of nuclear reactors, nuclear energy and climate change and career opportunities in nuclear science. An exhibition on India's nuclear energy sector is also part of the event.