Thursday, March 15, 2018

Cue up the Red October theme music

This, comrade, is the Russian nuclear powered icebreaker Rossiya!  Fear it, running dogs of Capitalism!

The Arktika class Russian Icebreaker fleet is double-hulled, with the outer hull 48 mm (1.89 in) thick, the inner 25 mm (0.98 in) thick, and with the space in between utilized for water ballasting. At the strongest point, the cast steel prow is 50 cm (19 ¾ in) thick and bow-shaped to aid in icebreaking, the curve applying greater dynamic force to fracture the ice than a straight bow would. The maximum ice thickness it can break through is approximately 5 meters (16.4 ft). Like many icebreakers, Rossiya also has an Air Bubbling System (ABS) which delivers 24 m3/s of steam from jets 9 m (29.5 ft) below the surface to further aid in the breakup of ice.
The ship is divided by eight bulkheads, providing nine watertight compartments in the event of disaster, and can undergo short towing operations when needed. It also comes equipped with a helicopter pad and hangar at the aft of the ship.  Mil Mi-2 "Hoplite", dubbed ptichka (Russian for "little bird"), or Kamov Ka-27 "Helix" helicopters are used for scouting expeditions to find safe routes through the ice floes.
The entire Arktika-class icebreaker fleet is outfitted with two OK-900A nuclear reactors, which deliver 171 MW each. Each reactor is contained in its own closed compartment and weighs 160 tonnes. They are shielded by water, steel, and high density concrete, and ambient radiation is monitored throughout the ship by 86 sensors.  The reactors were originally fueled by a 90% enriched, zirconium-clad, uranium fuel. Those reactors still in operation today now use a 20%-90% enriched with 60% average enrichment uranium dispersed in an aluminum matrix. The chain reaction can be stopped in 0.6 seconds by the full insertion of safety rods.
Rossiya consumes up to 200 grams of fuel a day when breaking ice. There are 500 kg of Uranium isotopes in each reactor, allowing for at least 13.7 years between changing reactor cores. The used cores are extracted and replaced in Murmansk, the spent fuel reprocessed and waste disposed of at a radioactive waste plant.

Both the OK-150 and OK-900(A) are pressurized water reactors, meaning that cooling water is continually pumped under pressure through the reactor to remove heat, keeping the cores and the reactor cool. The heated water is pumped from the reactor to a boiler (4 boilers per reactor), where it transfers its heat into another body of water, producing steam at a rate of 30 kg/cm3 (approx 1,084 psi).
Each set of four boilers drives two steam turbines, which turn three dynamos. One kilovolt of direct current is then delivered to three double-wound motors directly connected to the propeller, providing an average screw velocity of 120-180 rpm. Five auxiliary steam turbines are tied into the plant to provide electricity, turning dynamos which develop 30 MW.
Three fixed-pitch propellers provide Rossiya with its thrust, power, and maneuverability. The starboard and centerline propellers turn clockwise while the port turns counter clockwise to compensate. Each propeller sits at the end of a 20 meter (65.6 ft) shaft and has four blades, which weigh seven tons and are attached by nine bolts to the hub which is 5.7 meters (18.7 ft) in diameter and weighs 50 tons. Rosa also carries four spare blades along with the appropriate diving equipment and tools so that propeller repairs may be made at sea; the operation can take anywhere from 1–4 days depending on the extent of the damage.
This ship, the Rossiya, is currently decommissioned and is on cold layup awaiting dismantling.  A new Arkitika series icebreaker is planned by the Central Committee of Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.  Wait, no, just Central Committee.  Forget about the rest, comrade.  Never said it. Don't make me give your name to the NKVD.

3 comments:

  1. The US has lagged significantly when it comes to ice breakers. With the coming ice age, we'll need them.

    ReplyDelete
  2. With small modification of hull, BB-62 could be very nice icebreaker, tovarisch!

    http://www.ussnewjersey.com/hist_sts.htm

    ReplyDelete
  3. Spent fuel disposed at radioactive waste plant = dropped into the Arctic ocean with the rest of it.

    --generic

    ReplyDelete