In India's three-stage nuclear program, the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) is considered important because:

I. It is designed to use uranium-238 to breed plutonium in a sodium-cooled fast reactor design.
II. Thorium-232, though not fissile, is proposed to be used as a blanket material.
III. By transmutation Thorium will create fissile Uranium-233, which will be used as fuel in the third stage.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Question

In India's three-stage nuclear program, the Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) is considered important because:

I. It is designed to use uranium-238 to breed plutonium in a sodium-cooled fast reactor design.

II. Thorium-232, though not fissile, is proposed to be used as a blanket material.

III. By transmutation Thorium will create fissile Uranium-233, which will be used as fuel in the third stage.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Quintessence Classes · Accepted Answer

The correct answer is I, II and III. Why All Statements Are Correct:India's nuclear program, formulated by Dr. Homi Bhabha, is a strategic three-stage plan designed to utilize the country's vast thorium reserves, since India has limited domestic uranium supplies.Statement I is correct: The Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam is the gateway to the Second Stage. It uses a Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel (Uranium-238 and Plutonium-239) and is cooled by liquid sodium. It "breeds" more fuel (Plutonium) than it consumes.Statement II is correct: Thorium-232 is fertile, not fissile (meaning it cannot sustain a nuclear chain reaction on its own). Therefore, it is placed as a "blanket" around the core to absorb escaping neutrons.Statement III is correct: When the Thorium-232 blanket absorbs neutrons in the second stage, it undergoes transmutation to become Uranium-233. This fissile Uranium-233 will then be extracted and used as the primary fuel for the Third Stage of the program.

Answer

I and II only

Answer

I and III only

Answer

II and III only

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