From the mid-60s to the early 80s, the construction of three series of multi-purpose nuclear boats of project 671-671, 671RT and 671RTM with a total number of (15+7+26) 48 units made it possible to saturate all ocean-going fleets with modern submarines. The six hundred and seventy-first series was supplemented by missile carriers of projects 670A and 670M (11+6 = 17 units) designed and built at the Krasnoye Sormovo plant in the city of Gorky - small single-reactor ships, considered the quietest boats of the 2nd generation. The fleet also received very specific Lyras - high-speed submarines of Project 705 (7 units). This made it possible to create a group of 70 modern multi-purpose nuclear-powered ships by the mid-70s.

Although the boats were distinguished by mediocre characteristics, due to their large numbers they provided combat service for the USSR Navy in all corners of the planet. Let us note that this is precisely the path the United States is following, building a huge series of inexpensive simple boats such as Los Angeles (62 boats), and at the moment - Virginia (plan 30, 11 in service).

Academician Spassky, in his article in the magazine “Military Parade” in 1997, indicated that the Russian fleet needs about a hundred submarines. Approximately, 15 strategic missile carriers, 15-20 missile cruisers with cruise missiles and 30-40 diesel-electric submarines are needed. The remaining boats (40-50 units) should be nuclear-powered multi-purpose.

The problem is that there are no similar boats in Russia. The construction of Project 971 and 945 nuclear submarines has been stopped and there is no point in restoring them. Project 885 nuclear submarines are being built in a small series - a series of 8 units has been announced by 2020. At the same time, their price - from 30 to 47 billion rubles and the construction time - one boat in 5-8 years does not allow having many such boats. Diesel-electric boats - which are now fashionable to call non-nuclear - are too small and cannot go to sea for a long time. There are currently no intermediate projects between a 2000 ton boat and a 9500 ton boat.

There have been discussions about the need for such a boat for a long time, but so far nothing concrete has appeared. For example, variants of the 885 project without a missile compartment were proposed, but it quickly became clear that such a project would not reduce the cost/increase the series/construction time. It’s just that for the same money the fleet will get a worse boat. The option of a “Russian Rubis” was also considered - i.e. a small boat with full electric propulsion, but such proposals were rejected by the French themselves, who are currently building a nuclear submarine of normal size. European (for example, English) experience is also not capable of helping.

Therefore, I decided to figure out on my own what such a boat should be like.

In my opinion, the concept of a budget nuclear submarine should be as follows:

1. To reduce the weight and size characteristics and cost of the nuclear power plant, we are reducing the required full speed from 31-33 to 25 knots, which will reduce the maximum power of the power plant by 2.5 times compared to 3rd generation boats. Those. up to 20 thousand hp The fact is that when the boat moves at maximum speed, due to the roar of the water, it loses both stealth and the ability to detect targets. At the same time, reducing the power of the power plant reduces the weight and spends the saved weight on strengthening the weapons. In our case - to a missile compartment with 16 missiles.


2. Refusal from extreme quantitative duplication of systems, as well as from an increased reserve of buoyancy (we will have it in the region of 16%), and a rescue chamber.


3. Reducing the maximum diving depth from 600 to 450 meters compared to 3rd generation boats, which will reduce the weight of the hull.


4. The one and a half building architecture is the same as in Severodvinsk. The 2nd and 3rd compartments - residential and control - have a single-hull architecture. The rest are double-hulled.


5. Armament - combined - UVP for missiles and torpedo tubes for torpedoes. Moreover, the TA is of two calibers: large - for combat torpedoes and small - for anti-torpedoes and means of active hydroacoustic jamming.


6. The torpedo tubes have a classic location for the Soviet fleet - in the upper hemisphere in the bow. Because now the boat has not only a spherical antenna in the bow, but also on-board conformal antennas.


7. The boats should be built at second-tier factories in St. Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod and Komsomolsk-on-Amur, the construction period for a serial boat is no more than three years, the cost is 18-20 billion rubles.

The structure of a nuclear submarine

Multi-purpose nuclear submarine of Project P-95 is designed to fight enemy shipping, naval groups against the enemy, under water-y-boat-ka-mi, on-not-se-s-ing of strikes on coastal objects, imple-ment of mines on -sta-no-vok, conducting reconnaissance.

Just like on 3rd generation boats, all the main equipment and combat stations are located in amor-ti-zi-ro-van-zonal blocks -kah. Amor-ti-za-tion greatly reduces the acoustics of the ship, and also allows you to protect the boat from underwater explosions.

Second and third compartments- management and residential. On the first and second pa-lu-bang there is a main command post, rub-ki, ap-pa-ra-tu-ra combat in-for-ma- qi-on-but-control-system (BI-US); the third and fourth pa-lu-would-be-for-you-lived-mi, community-st-ven-ny-mi and medical-di-cin-ski-mi-locally-mi. In the hold there is all kinds of equipment, con-di-tsio-ni-ro-va-niya and general-co-working systems. In the second section, all the mast lifting devices are located, in the third there is a diesel generator.

Fourth compartment- rocket. It contains 4 strong shafts in each of which there are 4 transport and launch containers with cruise missiles. The compartment also houses various equipment and storage areas.

Fifth compartment- reactor. The reactor itself with its equipment is isolated from the rest of the boat with a bio-lo-gi-che-shield. The PPU itself, together with the systems under the ve-she-na, on the console beams, behind the de-lan-nyh in the per-re-bor-ki.

Sixth compartment- turbine. Consists of block pa-ro-tur-bin-noy us-ta-nov-ke and av-to-nom-ny-mi tur-bo-ge-ne-ra-to-rum and ho-lo-dil -ny-mi ma-shi-na-mi pa-ro-tur-bin-noy us-ta-nov-ki. The block, through amor-ti-for-the-ry, stands on the pro-me-exact frame, which, through the second cas-cad, amor-ti-for- the ditch is attached to special racks. Also in this compartment there is located on a special shock-absorbed platform a reversible low-speed electric motor and a coupling that allows you to disconnect the GTZ.

Seventh compartment- auxiliary mechanisms. A shaft passes through it with the main thrust under-spike in the bow and the seal of the propeller shaft in the stern. The compartment has two floors. It also houses a rum-de-le-tion, in which ru-left guide-equivalent machines are located, as well as the rum-pe-li and the ends of the ball-le-row ru-ley.

Above the second and third compartments there is a fence for the wheelhouse and retractable devices. In the stern there are four stabilizers forming a stern tail. The main entrance to the submarine is through the fence of the cabin. In addition, there are auxiliary and repair hatches above the first fifth and seventh compartments.

The main propulsion device is a seven-blade low-speed propeller with a diameter of 4.4 meters. Auxiliary - two retractable columns with a power of 420 hp. providing speeds up to 5 knots.

It was decided to abandon the installation of water jets due to lower efficiency and lower efficiency at low speeds

Powerplant and equipment

The boat has characteristics exceeding the requirements for the fourth generation of submarines. Those. corresponds to generation 4+.

To ensure low noise in our project, we are moving away from the traditional thrust of the Soviet fleet to high-power power plants with low specific gravity. Multi-purpose boats of the 2nd generation had two 70 MW reactors and a turbine with a capacity of 31 thousand horsepower, boats of the third - 190 MW and 50 thousand horsepower. It is known that the mass of power plants of 2 and 3 generations is approximately the same and is in the region of 1000 tons

n (according to various estimates from 900 to 1100 tons) - only the specific gravity - the mass of one horsepower - differs.

So, we are deliberately going to reduce the power of the power plant and refuse unification with power plants of other types. At the same time, in addition to reducing power, we are also simplifying the power plant circuit. This approach makes it possible to reduce the dimensions and dimensions of the power unit, increasing the number of weapons, while due to the increase in specific characteristics, the aggregate reliability increases. Plus, since the power unit is of lower power, it makes less noise, costs less and is more reliable.

The Kikimora power plant includes:

• one nuclear reactor with a capacity of 70 MW, with two steam generators, one primary circuit pump on each. Approximately this nuclear reactor design is used on American Virginia-class nuclear submarines. The reactor can operate in low-noise mode with natural circulation at 20% of the nominal power, providing steam only to the boat's turbogenerator.


• one GTZA with a single-casing steam turbine and a planetary gearbox with a shaft power of 20,000 hp. At the same time, when moving under the turbine, the propulsion electric motor works as a generator, which allows you to turn off the steam generator and go under only one unit.


• reversible electric propulsion motor for low-noise propulsion with a power of 1500 kW. Installed in front of the turbine, i.e. The GTZA can be turned off and run only under the turbogenerator and electric motor, or you can, on the contrary, turn on the GTZA and turn off the turbogenerator, then the propulsion electric motor works as a generator. Having only one working device eliminates resonances and reduces the noise of the boat.


• one low-noise autonomous turbogenerator with a power of 3500 kW. In this case, the turbogenerator is located along the axis of the boat, the plane of the boat - under the turbine on the same shock-absorbing platform, only from below. This scheme ensures minimization of the noise emitted by the generator and allows you to obtain minimal noise when driving under an electric motor in low-noise mode. At the same time, both ATG and GTZA each use their own fittings - capacitors, refrigerators, pumps, etc. Including feedwater supplies. This allows you to increase the reliability of the power plant and the autonomy of the boat.


• one diesel generator with a capacity of 1600 kW. Located in compartment 3. One large battery in the first compartment and 3 small batteries in compartments 2, 3 and 7.

Electronic weapons

The composition of radio-electronic weapons is classic. The boat is armed with a sonar system with several antennas and retractable devices. Reception of information from all devices and control of weapons is carried out by an integrated combat information and control system.

The hydroacoustic complex of a submarine consists of:

• bow spherical antenna with a diameter of 4.4 meters


• two onboard low-frequency conformal antennas


• high-frequency anti-mine sonar in the bow of the cabin


• towed low frequency antenna


• non-acoustic wake detection systems for surface ships

Retractable devices: (from bow to stern)

• universal optronic periscope - in addition to several optical channels, it is equipped with a laser rangefinder and a thermal imager.


• multi-purpose digital communications complex - provides both terrestrial and space communications in several bands.


• radar/electronic warfare complex - is a multifunctional radar with a phased array antenna, capable of detecting both surface and air targets, with the additional ability to jam.


• RDP is a device for operating a diesel engine under water.


• digital complex of passive electronic reconnaissance - instead of old direction finders. It has a wider range of applications and, thanks to its passive operating mode, is not detected by enemy RTR equipment.

Armament

As mentioned above, thanks to the light power plant and lightweight hull, the boat has extremely powerful weapons for its size, amounting to 56 weapons with a standard load. At the same time, anti-ship missiles and anti-submarine missile-torpedoes are launched from the UVP. Torpedoes are launched from torpedo tubes.

The armament of a nuclear submarine consists of:

• 16 launchers in 4 strong shafts located in the midship area of ​​the ship. These are not "Onyxes", they did not fit in length. In our case, we use three times cheaper solid-fuel anti-ship missiles and vertical-launch missile-torpedoes (they are solid-fuel initially). The anti-ship missile has a mass of 2.5 tons, transonic speed and a flight range of 200 km with a warhead of 450 kilograms, an anti-submarine missile-torpedo has a range of 35 km (more is not needed for a boat) and a warhead in the form of a 324-mm torpedo or underwater missile .


• Four 605-mm torpedo tubes with ammunition of 20 torpedoes - 4 in the torpedo tubes and 16 on mechanized racks. The increase in the caliber of torpedoes is due to the desire to increase the capabilities of the torpedo without increasing the length. If an ordinary Soviet torpedo has a caliber of 533 mm and a length of 7.9 meters, then our torpedo, with almost the same length (8 meters), is thicker and heavier by a ton (i.e. weighs three tons). There are two types of torpedoes in ammunition - the first has a heavy warhead weighing 800 kg (modern supertankers are so huge that they require large warheads), the second has a high speed and range - 50 knots/50 km.


• Also, instead of some torpedoes, the boat can take up to 64 mines of various types.


• Four 457-mm torpedo tubes designed to launch anti-torpedoes, hydroacoustic jammers, simulators and small anti-mine torpedoes. Ammunition - 4 torpedoes in TA and 16 in two echelons in mechanized racks. Instead of 16 small torpedoes, the racks can accommodate 4 large torpedoes. The mini-torpedo has a length of 4.2 meters and a mass of 450 kilograms, a firing range of up to 15 kilometers, and a warhead mass of 120 kilograms.


• Six Igla MANPADS with a supply of missiles.

Crew and habitability

The boat's crew consists of 70 people, including 30 officers. This practically corresponds to Project 971 boats, where the crew is 72-75 people. There are about 100 people on the boats of Project 671RTM and Project 885. For comparison, on American Virginia-type boats the crew is 120 people, and on Los Angeles boats in general - 140. The entire crew is housed in single-occupancy cabins and small cockpits. For receiving food and other events, two wardrooms are used - the officer's and the midshipman's. The boat is equipped with a medical unit, shower cabins and a sauna. All residential premises are located in the 2-3rd compartments on the 2nd and 3rd decks.

Comparison with competitors

Compared to its direct predecessor - project 671rtm - the boat became almost 12 meters shorter, thicker and lost 6 knots of speed. By reducing the weight of the power plant (by 200-250 tons), it became possible to strengthen the armament with a compartment with anti-ship missiles. With almost the same underwater displacement, due to a reduction in the reserve of buoyancy (i.e. water) by 900 tons, habitable volumes increased, which made it possible to improve habitability conditions. Noise has decreased radically. The detection range of low-noise targets has also increased. The autonomy remained at the same level, but the accommodation conditions for the crew have become better, while the boat is better in operation, which will increase the utilization factor from 0.25 to 0.4.

Compared to its classmate - Project 885 - the boat of Project P-95 has one and a half times less displacement and one and a half to two times (depending on the number of ships in the series) less cost. There is an opinion that in low-noise mode when moving under an electric motor, the boat will be quieter even than Project 885.

The P-95 project looks very worthy against the background of the American Virginia-class boat. At least in duel situations, our ship will not be inferior to the American one.

In the 50s, a new era began in underwater shipbuilding - the use of nuclear energy to propel submarines. According to their properties, nuclear energy sources are the most suitable for submarines, since, without the need for atmospheric air or oxygen reserves, they allow one to obtain energy for an almost unlimited time and in the required quantity.

In addition to solving the problem of long-term movement underwater at high speed, the use of a nuclear source removed restrictions on the supply of energy to such relatively high-capacity consumers as life support devices and systems (air conditioners, electrolyzers, etc.), navigation, hydroacoustics and control weapons. The prospect of using submarines in Arctic regions under ice has opened up. With the introduction of nuclear energy, the duration of continuous navigation of boats in a submerged position began to be limited, as many years of experience have shown, mainly by the psychophysical capabilities of the crews.

At the same time, from the very beginning of the introduction of nuclear power plants (NPPs), new complex problems that arise have become clear: the need to ensure reliable radiation protection of personnel, increased requirements for the professional training of personnel servicing NPPs, the need for a more developed than for diesel-electric submarines, infrastructure (basing, repair, delivery and reloading of nuclear fuel, removal of spent nuclear fuel, etc.). Later, as experience was gained, other negative aspects emerged: the increased noise of nuclear submarines (NPS), the severity of the consequences of accidents of nuclear power plants and boats with such installations, the difficulty of decommissioning and disposing of used nuclear submarines.

The first proposals from nuclear scientists and military sailors to use nuclear energy to propel boats in both the USA and the USSR began to arrive in the late 1940s. The deployment of practical work began with the creation of submarine designs with nuclear power plants and the construction of ground stands and prototypes of these installations.

The world's first nuclear submarine was built in the USA - Nautilus - and entered service in September 1954. In January 1959, after completion of tests, the first domestic nuclear submarine of Project 627 was put into operation by the USSR Navy. The main characteristics of these nuclear submarines are given in table. 1.

With the commissioning of the first nuclear submarines, almost without interruption, a gradual increase in the pace of their construction began. In parallel, there was a practical development of the use of atomic energy during the operation of nuclear submarines, and a search for the optimal design of nuclear power plants and the submarines themselves.

Table 1

*Equal to the sum of the surface displacement and the mass of water in completely filled main ballast tanks.
**For American nuclear submarines (hereinafter) the test depth, which is close in meaning to the maximum.

Rice. 6. The first domestic serial nuclear submarine (project 627 A)

Rice. 7. The first American nuclear submarine “Nautilus”

Rice. 8. The first domestic nuclear submarine “Leninsky Komsomol” (project 627)

Already in 1960, due to a number of problems that emerged during operation, the liquid-metal coolant reactor on the Seawolf nuclear submarine was replaced by the S2WA pressurized water reactor, which was an improved modification of the NautiIus nuclear submarine reactor.

In 1963, the USSR introduced the Project 645 nuclear submarine into the fleet, also equipped with a reactor with a liquid metal coolant, which used an alloy of lead and bismuth. In the first years after construction, this nuclear submarine was successfully operated. However, it did not show any decisive advantages over nuclear submarines with pressurized water reactors being built in parallel. However, the operation of a liquid-metal cooled reactor, especially its basic maintenance, caused certain difficulties. Serial construction of this type of nuclear submarine was not carried out; it remained a single copy and was part of the fleet until 1968.

Along with the introduction of nuclear power plants and equipment directly related to them on submarines, their other elements also changed. The first American nuclear submarine, although larger in size than the diesel submarine, differed little from them in appearance: it had a stem bow and a developed superstructure with an extended flat deck. The hull shape of the first domestic nuclear submarine already had a number of characteristic differences from the diesel submarine. In particular, its nasal extremity was given contours that were well streamlined in the underwater position, having a semi-elliptical outline in plan and cross sections close to circular. The fencing of retractable devices (periscopes, RDP devices, antennas, etc.), as well as the hatch and bridge shafts, were made in the form of a streamlined body like a limousine, hence the name “limousine” shape, which later became traditional for the fencing of many types of domestic nuclear submarines.

To make maximum use of all the opportunities to improve the tactical and technical characteristics caused by the use of nuclear power plants, research was launched to optimize the hull shape, architecture and design, controllability when moving underwater at high speeds, automation of control in these modes, navigation support and habitability in conditions of prolonged scuba diving without surfacing.

A number of issues were resolved using specially built experimental and non-nuclear and nuclear submarines. In particular, in solving the problems of controllability and propulsion of nuclear submarines, an important role was played by the experimental submarine "Albacore", built in the USA in 1953, which had a hull shape close to optimal in terms of minimizing water resistance when moving in a submerged position (the ratio of length to width was about 7.4). Below are the characteristics of the Albacore diesel submarine:

Dimensions, m:
length................................................. ...........................................62.2
width................................................. ........................................8.4
Displacement, t:
surface........................................................ ....................................1500
underwater........................................................ ....................................1850
Power plant:
power of diesel generators, l. s........................................1700
electric motor power *, l. s........................about 15000
number of propeller shafts................................................... .......................1
Full submerged speed, knots................................................... ..33
Test immersion depth, m...................................................185
Crew, people................................................... ........................................52

*With silver zinc battery.

This submarine was refitted several times and was used for a long time to test propellers (including coaxial counter-rotating ones), controls when moving at high speeds, new types of propellers and solving other problems.

The introduction of nuclear power plants on submarines coincided with the development of a number of fundamentally new types of weapons: cruise missiles (CR) for firing along the coast and for hitting sea targets, later - ballistic missiles (BR), long-range radar detection of air targets.

Advances in the creation of land-based and sea-based ballistic missiles have led to a revision of the role and place of both land and sea weapons systems, which is reflected in the development of the type of nuclear submarines. In particular, missile launchers intended for shooting along the shore gradually lost their importance. As a result, the United States limited itself to building only one nuclear submarine, the Halibut, and two diesel submarines, Grayback and Growler, with the Regulus cruise missile, and the nuclear submarines with the cruise missile built in the USSR to hit coastal targets were subsequently converted into nuclear submarines with only torpedo launchers. weapons.

A single copy of the Triton radar patrol nuclear submarine built in the United States during these years, designed for long-range detection of air targets using especially powerful radar stations, remains in one copy. This submarine is also notable for the fact that, of all the American nuclear submarines, it was the only one that had two reactors (all other US nuclear submarines are single-reactor).

The world's first launch of a ballistic missile from a submarine was carried out in the USSR in September 1955. The R-11 FM missile was launched from a converted submarine from the surface position. From the same submarine, five years later, the first launch of a ballistic missile in the USSR from an underwater position was carried out.

Since the late 50s, the process of introducing ballistic missiles on submarines began. First, a small-missile nuclear submarine was created (the dimensions of the first domestic liquid-fueled naval ballistic missiles did not allow the creation of a multi-missile nuclear submarine at once). The first domestic nuclear submarine with three ballistic missiles launching from the surface was put into operation in 1960 (by this time several domestic submarines with ballistic missiles had been built).

In the United States, based on the successes achieved in the field of naval ballistic missiles, they immediately went to create a multi-missile nuclear submarine with support for launching missiles from an underwater position. This was facilitated by the Polaris solid fuel ballistic missile program, successfully implemented in those years. Moreover, to shorten the construction period of the first missile carrier, the hull of a serial nuclear submarine, which was under construction at that time, was used

Rice. 9. George Washington-class nuclear-powered missile submarine

In the years following the creation of the first submarines, there was a continuous improvement of this new type of naval weapons: an increase in the flight range of naval ballistic missiles to intercontinental, an increase in the rate of fire of missiles up to salvo, the adoption of ballistic missiles with multiple warheads (MIRVs) containing consisting of several warheads, each of which can be aimed at its own target, increasing the ammunition load of missiles on some types of missile carriers to 20-24.

table 2

At the end of the 60s, the USSR created nuclear submarines of a fundamentally new type - multi-missile submarines - carriers of missile launchers with underwater launch. The appearance and subsequent development of these nuclear submarines, which had no analogues in foreign navies, was a real counterweight to the most powerful surface combatants - attack aircraft carriers, including those with nuclear power plants.

Rice. 10. Nuclear submarine missile carrier (project 667A)

Due to the characteristics of the environment in which submarines operate, the determining factors in the problem of stealth and detection are the noise reduction of submarines and the range of the hydroacoustic equipment installed on them. It was the improvement of these qualities that most strongly influenced the formation of the technical appearance that modern nuclear submarines acquired.

In order to solve the problems arising in these areas, many countries have launched unprecedented research and development programs, including the development of new low-noise mechanisms and propulsors, testing of serial nuclear submarines under special programs, re-equipment of built nuclear submarines with the introduction of new technical solutions on them and finally, the creation of nuclear submarines with power plants of a fundamentally new type. The latter includes, in particular, the American nuclear submarine Tillibee, commissioned in 1960. This nuclear submarine was distinguished by a set of measures aimed at reducing noise and increasing the efficiency of sonar weapons. Instead of the main steam turbine with a gearbox, used as an engine on nuclear submarines being serially built at that time, the Tullibee was implemented with a full electric propulsion scheme - a special propeller electric motor and turbogenerators of appropriate power were installed. In addition, for the first time, a hydroacoustic complex with a spherical bow antenna of increased size was used for a nuclear submarine, and in connection with this, a new arrangement of torpedo tubes was used: closer to the middle of the submarine’s length and at an angle of 10-12° to its center plane.

When designing the Tillibee, it was planned that it would become the lead in a series of new type of nuclear submarines, specifically designed for anti-submarine operations. However, these intentions were not realized, although many of the technical means and solutions used and tested on it (hydroacoustic complex, layout of torpedo tubes, etc.) were immediately extended to the Thresher-class serial nuclear submarines being built in the 60s.

Following the Tillibee, two more experimental nuclear submarines were built to test new technical solutions to increase acoustic stealth: in 1967, the Jack nuclear submarine with a gearless (direct-acting) turbine installation and coaxial propellers in the opposite direction of rotation (like those used on torpedoes) and in 1969, the Narwhal nuclear submarine, equipped with a new type of nuclear reactor with an increased level of natural circulation of the primary coolant. This reactor was expected to have a reduced level of noise emissions due to a reduction in the power of the primary circuit circulation pumps. The first of these solutions was not developed, but as for the new type of reactor, the results obtained were used in the development of reactors for serial nuclear submarines in subsequent years of construction.

In the 70s, American specialists again returned to the idea of ​​​​using full electric propulsion on nuclear submarines. In 1974, the construction of the Glenard P. Lipscomb nuclear submarine with a turboelectric power plant consisting of turbogenerators and electric motors was completed. However, this nuclear submarine was not accepted for mass production. The characteristics of the nuclear submarines "Tillibee" and "Glenard P. Lipscomb" are given in table. 3.

The refusal to “replicate” nuclear submarines with full electric propulsion suggests that the gain in noise reduction, even if it occurred on nuclear submarines of this type, did not compensate for the deterioration of other characteristics associated with the introduction of electric propulsion, primarily due to the impossibility of creating electric motors of the required power and acceptable dimensions and, as a consequence, a decrease in the speed of full underwater progress compared to nuclear submarines with turbo-drive units that were close in time when they were created.

Table 3

The world practice of submarine shipbuilding so far knows only one exception, when the full electric propulsion scheme was implemented not on one prototype, but on several serial nuclear submarines. These are six French nuclear submarines of the Rubis and Amethyste type, commissioned in 1983-1993.

The problem of acoustic stealth of nuclear submarines did not simultaneously become dominant in all countries. Another important area for improving nuclear submarines in the 60s was considered to be achieving the highest possible underwater speed. Since the possibilities of reducing water resistance to movement by optimizing the shape of the hull had been largely exhausted by this time, and other fundamentally new solutions to this problem did not give real practical results, to increase the underwater speed of nuclear submarines there was only one way left - increasing their power supply (measured by the ratio power used to move the installation to displacement). At first, this problem was solved directly, i.e. through the creation and use of nuclear power plants of significantly increased power. Later, already in the 70s, designers took the path of simultaneously, but not so significantly, increasing the power of nuclear power plants and reducing the displacement of nuclear submarines, in particular by sharply increasing the level of control automation and reducing the crew size in this regard.

The practical implementation of these directions led to the creation in the USSR of several nuclear submarines with a speed of over 40 knots, i.e., significantly higher than that of the bulk of nuclear submarines being simultaneously built both in the USSR and in the West. The record for full submerged speed - almost 45 knots - was achieved in 1969 during testing of the domestic nuclear submarine with the Project 661 cruise missile.

Another characteristic feature of the development of nuclear submarines is a more or less monotonous increase in immersion depth over time. Over the years since the commissioning of the first nuclear submarines, the immersion depth, as can be seen from the data below for serial nuclear submarines of the last years of construction, has more than doubled. Of the combat nuclear submarines, the domestic experimental nuclear submarine Komsomolets, built in the mid-80s, had the greatest diving depth (about 1000 m). As you know, the nuclear submarine was destroyed by fire in April 1989, but the experience gained during its design, construction and operation is invaluable.

By the mid-70s, subclasses of nuclear submarines gradually emerged and stabilized for some time, differing in the purpose and composition of the main strike weapons:
- multi-purpose submarines with torpedo weapons, anti-submarine missiles, and later cruise missiles fired from torpedo tubes and special launchers, designed for anti-submarine operations, destruction of surface targets, as well as for solving other traditional submarine tasks (mine laying, reconnaissance, etc. );
- strategic missile submarines armed with ballistic missiles to destroy targets on enemy territory;
- submarines carrying cruise missiles, designed mainly to destroy surface ships and transports.

Abbreviated designation for submarines of these subclasses: nuclear submarines, SSBNs, SSGNs (respectively English abbreviations: SSN, SSBN, SSGN).

The above classification, like any other, is conditional. For example, with the installation of silos for launching cruise missiles on multi-purpose nuclear submarines, the differences between nuclear submarines and specialized SSGNs are largely erased, and the use of cruise missiles with nuclear submarines, intended for firing at coastal targets and carrying nuclear warheads, transfers such submarines to the category of strategic ones. The navies of different countries, as a rule, use their own classification of ships, including nuclear submarines.

The construction of combat submarines is carried out, as a rule, in series of several (sometimes several dozen) submarines each based on one basic design, to which, as experience in the construction and operation of submarines accumulates, relatively insignificant changes are made. For example in table. 4 shows data on the serial construction of nuclear submarines in the USA. The series, as is usually customary, are named accordingly to the head

Table 4

The level of development of ALL reached by the mid-90s is characterized by those given in table. 5 data for three American nuclear submarines in recent years of construction.

Table 5

In relation to nuclear submarines (sometimes also to submarines), the rather conventional but widespread concept of “generation” is used. The signs by which nuclear submarines are classified as belonging to a particular generation are: proximity in time of creation, commonality of technical solutions incorporated in the projects, similarity of power plants and other equipment for general ship purposes, the same hull material, etc. One generation may be classified as nuclear submarines for various purposes and even several successive series. The transition from one series of submarines to another, and even more so the transition from generation to generation, is preceded by comprehensive research in order to justify the choice of optimal combinations of the main tactical and technical characteristics of new nuclear submarines.

Rice. 11. The newest Russian multi-purpose nuclear submarine of the Bars type (project 971)

As a rule, these studies are not limited only to the design of nuclear submarine variants, but also include entire programs of research and development work in hydrodynamics, strength, hydroacoustics and other areas, and in some cases, discussed above, also the creation of special experimental nuclear submarines.

In countries that build nuclear submarines most intensively, three or four generations of these ships have been created. For example, in the United States, among multi-purpose nuclear submarines, generation 1 usually includes nuclear submarines of the “Skate” and “Skipjack” types, generation 2 - “Thresher” and “Sturgeon”, generation 3 - “LosAngeles”. The Seawolf nuclear submarine is considered as a representative of a new, fourth generation of US Navy nuclear submarines. Among the missile carriers, the first generation includes the boats “George Washington” and “Ethan Allen”, the second - “Lafayette” and “Benjamin Franklin”, the third - “Ohio”.

Rice. 12. Modern Russian nuclear submarine missile carrier "Akula" type (project 941)

Table 6

According to the forecast, the total number of nuclear submarines that will be in service in 2000 will be (excluding nuclear submarines of the Russian Navy) about 130, of which about 30 are SSBNs.

The stealthiness of nuclear submarines and almost complete independence from weather conditions makes them an effective means for conducting various kinds of special reconnaissance and sabotage operations. Typically, submarines are used for these purposes after completing their service for their intended purpose. For example, the previously mentioned US Navy nuclear submarine Halibut, which was built as a carrier of Regulus cruise missiles, was converted in the mid-60s to search (using special devices it carried) for objects lying on the ground, including sunken submarines . Later, to replace it for similar operations, the torpedo nuclear submarine of the US Navy "Parche" (Sturgeon type) was converted into the hull of which a section about 30 m long was cut into and a special underwater vehicle was received onto the deck. The nuclear submarine became notorious for participating in a spy operation in the Sea of ​​Okhotsk in the 80s. By installing a special device on an underwater cable, she, according to data published in the United States, ensured that communications between the Soviet naval base in Kamchatka and the mainland were eavesdropped.

Rice. 13. The newest American nuclear submarine “Seawolf”

Over the forty-odd years of the nuclear submarine’s existence, as a result of accidents (fires, explosions, depressurization of sea water lines, etc.), two nuclear submarines of the US Navy and four nuclear submarines of the USSR Navy sank, of which one sank twice in places with relatively shallow depths and was raised both times means of the emergency rescue service. The remaining sunken nuclear submarines have serious damage or are almost completely destroyed and lie at depths of one and a half kilometers or more.

There was one case of combat use of a nuclear submarine against a surface ship: the nuclear submarine Conqueror of the British Navy during the conflict over the Falkland Islands in May 1982 attacked and sank the Argentine-owned cruiser G.Belgrano with torpedoes. Since 1991, American Los Angeles-class nuclear submarines have launched Tomahawk cruise missile attacks on targets in Iraq several times. In 1999, attacks with these missiles on the territory of Yugoslavia were carried out from the English nuclear submarine Splendid.

(1) This shape, characteristic of diesel-electric submarines, ensured satisfactory performance while on the surface.

(2) Previously, if a submarine had a strong deckhouse protruding beyond the hull, it was called a deckhouse fencing.

(3) It should be noted that at different times the US Navy intended to create submarines with cruise missiles, but each time preference was given to multi-purpose submarines.

(4) Previously, nuclear submarines used a set of sonar systems for various purposes.

(5) For construction, the design of serial nuclear submarines of the “Thresher” type was used and officially the nuclear submarine was considered the seventh ship of the series.

(6) Two electric motors with an estimated power of 11,000 hp were used. With. each placed one after the other.

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In the second half of the 80s of the 20th century, an intensive process of decommissioning and withdrawal of nuclear submarines (NPS) from the Russian Navy began. This was due both to the expiration of service life and to the fulfillment by the Russian Federation of international obligations on arms reduction. The main results of the work on dismantling three generations of nuclear submarines are presented in the table.

At present, the period of active dismantling of nuclear submarines, when more than 10 nuclear submarines per year were dismantled annually to form one- or three-compartment blocks, has ended. 1st generation nuclear submarines are almost completely dismantled (with the exception of damaged nuclear submarines). The second generation has also been largely taken out of service and disposed of according to the accepted scheme. Over the next few years, 2–5 nuclear submarines of the 2nd and 3rd generations will be decommissioned and dismantled per year.

Currently, to solve the problems of storing reactor compartments (RC), handling radioactive waste (RAW) generated during disposal, it is necessary to create additional infrastructure, including the construction of long-term storage facilities for reactor compartments (LSR), regional centers for conditioning and storage of RW, berths walls, reconstruction of railway communications, etc. All this requires the involvement of significant financial and labor resources. The scale of the tasks being solved is illustrated in Fig. 1, which shows one of the long-term storage sites for reactor compartments of dismantled nuclear submarines.

The total cost of constructing an above-ground storage facility for 120 ROs in Sayda Guba exceeds 300 million euros.

Figure 1. Long-term storage site for reactor compartments.

It is assumed that radioactive waste in storage facilities should be stored for 75-100 years, after which the issue of their disposal must be finally resolved. Considering that the masses of nuclear submarine reactors are relatively small (about 1000 tons), and the storage tanks are located far from steelmaking plants, their final disposal (final cutting and remelting of steel) is economically doubtful.
When deciding on final dismantlement, it should also be taken into account that solid radioactive waste generated during nuclear submarine dismantlement is loaded into the reactor facility.

A significant part of nuclear power plants (NPPs) of decommissioned nuclear submarines of the 2nd and 3rd generations have not reached their intended service life indicators and are generally in good condition.
Currently, Russia is developing a program for the construction of low-power floating nuclear power plants. The power units of floating nuclear power plants are planned to be created on the basis of ship reactor plants of the KLT-40 type (the prototype was the OK-900 reactor), which have proven themselves in operation on nuclear ships. For example, the nuclear power plant of the nuclear icebreaker "Arktika" (OK-900 reactor) was successfully operated from 1975 to October 3, 2008; for 176,384 hours of operation with an average power of 63.1 MW, energy production amounted to 11,132,456 MW*hours. It should be noted that the icebreaker's reactor installation had a design life of 90,000 hours when operating at a rated power of 170 MW, and, therefore, the reactor's energy output could be 15.5 million MW*hours.

Nuclear power plants of nuclear submarines are fundamentally no different from icebreaking installations. Essentially, pressurized water boat reactor technology created the basis for nuclear power plants with pressure vessel reactors.
“We have always strived to create dual-use nuclear power plants, because the creation of military and civilian equipment based on a single technology is very effective for improving both,” says Academician N.S. Khlopkin. It was in the nuclear power plants of nuclear submarines that technical solutions were used that today have become mandatory for large-scale nuclear power: the cores had negative feedback on the temperatures of the fuel and moderator, and the nuclear power plants themselves had a protective fence in the form of a durable RO casing.

Experts from the Russian Research Center “Kurchatov Institute”, when developing the concept for the construction of underground nuclear power plants, back in 1993, noted that “due to their small dimensions and weight, shipborne solutions for power plants can also be used in underground nuclear power plants. Comprehensive automation, hermetically sealed equipment, minimizing liquid and gaseous waste, mature technology and high quality manufacturing due to most of the installation work being carried out at machine-building plants - all these properties fit very well into the concept of an underground nuclear power plant.”

Reactor vessels are equipment with a long production cycle and are the most expensive parts of nuclear power plants. The only enterprise that currently produces such equipment is Izhora Plants. The technological cycle for manufacturing a reactor vessel, depending on the type of reactor, is 2-3 years. Considering the unlimited production capabilities of the Izhora Plant, in the opinion of the authors, it is not advisable to load it with additional orders for floating nuclear power plants.
It should also be taken into account that the cost of manufacturing reactors for a floating nuclear power plant is, according to various estimates, from 40 to 60% of the total cost of the station. Thus, during the construction of floating nuclear power plants, it seems economically feasible to use ready-made radioactive materials of decommissioned nuclear submarines.

Nuclear submarines of the 2nd - 3rd generations that are in operation or are at the stages of decommissioning and temporary storage afloat are fully suitable for these purposes (the total number of such nuclear submarines is approximately 140 units). The use of cut-off ROs already formed during the dismantling of nuclear submarines 1-3 is subject to separate consideration in each specific case.
Nuclear power plants for civil and military purposes have minor design differences. The 2nd generation nuclear submarines expected to be dismantled have 2 reactors with a thermal power of 90 MW, the 3rd generation nuclear submarines have 1-2 reactors with a thermal power of 180 MW.

The report will examine one of the components that has a significant impact on the safety of using nuclear power units of decommissioned nuclear submarines - embrittlement of the reactor hull steel under the influence of a flux of fast neutrons. The material of reactor vessels for civil and military purposes is the same - steel type 15Х2МФАА.

Operating a nuclear power plant at partial loads significantly reduces the lifespan of the reactor vessel, which is determined by a shift in the critical fragility temperature of the vessel material, which is mainly caused by the fluence of fast neutrons. Studies of the base metal and weld metal of the reactor vessels of the nuclear-powered icebreaker "Lenin", carried out after its decommissioning with a service life of 106,700 hours, confirmed the possibility of extending the design hourly service life of reactor vessels operating at less than nominal power.

To study the possibility of using nuclear power plants for dismantled nuclear submarines, the authors assessed the embrittlement of nuclear submarine reactor vessels using standard methods and operational parameters achieved by the reactors of the icebreaker "Arktika".
The critical brittleness temperature of the reactor vessel material (Tk) is a factor limiting its service life and is determined by the sum

ТК = ТК0 + ΔТТ + ΔТN + ΔТF, (1)

where TK0 is the critical brittleness temperature of the material in the initial state,
ΔТТ – shift of the critical brittleness temperature due to temperature aging;
ΔТN – shift of the critical brittleness temperature due to cyclic damage (for ship nuclear power plants ΔТN is not a determining factor and can be taken equal to zero);
ΔТF – shift of the critical brittleness temperature due to neutron irradiation.

Using standard dependencies, we calculate the value of fast neutron fluence Fn on the reactor vessel of the icebreaker "Arktika":

Fn = F0*(ТF/AF)3 = 1018*(110/23)3 = 1.1 1020 cm - 2 , (2)

where AF is the embrittlement coefficient of the bottom weld;
F0 = 1018 cm - 2 – fluence threshold value;
ТF = 110 0С – shift of the critical temperature of the ductile-brittle transition as a result of irradiation.

In this case, the average fast neutron flux density on the reactor vessel during operation τ will be

φb = Fn/τ = 1.1 1020/176384 3600 = 1.73 1011cm – 2c – 1, (3)

and, therefore, the operating time of the reactor at the average power during operation is

τ = Fn/φb 3600 = 1.1 1020/1.73 1011 3600 = 176622 hours. (4)

The result obtained is in good agreement with the recorded operating time of the reactor of the icebreaker "Arktika", which means that the shift in the critical temperature of the ductile-brittle transition was accepted correctly. Based on these data and taking into account that the fast neutron flux densities in the reactors of icebreakers and nuclear submarines are approximately the same, it can be assumed that the reactors of dismantled nuclear submarines are capable of achieving energy output of 11 - 12 million MW*hours or more.

Nuclear power plants of dismantled nuclear submarines, according to experts, are far from developing service life indicators. The specificity of nuclear submarine operation is that the share of nuclear power plant operating modes at loads close to maximum is small. In addition, starting from the 90s of the twentieth century, nuclear submarines did not go to sea so often.
Considering that the rated power of 2nd generation nuclear submarine reactors is 90 MW, the average power during the operation of most of them did not exceed 30%, i.e. 27 MW, and the operating time at power was about 40,000 hours, we get an energy output of about 1.08 million MW*hours.

Considering the neutron flux densities in the reactors of icebreakers and nuclear submarines to be close in value, and also assuming that the values ​​of the neutron flux densities are proportional to the power of the reactors, and, therefore, the fluence of fast neutrons on the reactor vessel is proportional to its energy production, we have a fluence value for energy production of 1.08 million. MW*hours Fn = 1.07∙1019 cm – 2. In this case, the shift in the critical temperature of the ductile-brittle transition for the material of nuclear submarine reactor vessels will be

ТF = Aw*(Fn/F0)1/3 = 23*(1.07∙1019/1018)1/3 ≈ 49.5 0С. (5)

Consequently, the residual life of the nuclear submarine reactor vessel in terms of fast neutron fluence on the vessel is 10 - 11 million MW*hours, and possibly more.

Calculating the fluence of fast neutrons on the reactor vessel is fraught with certain difficulties:
− at the end of the core campaign, the neutron flux density increases;
− there is no accurate information about the neutron flux density in the reactor (especially fast neutrons);
− during the operation of the reactor, several active zones are “burned” in it, which leads to the accumulation of errors in determining the fluence;
− witness samples are not loaded into ship reactors, allowing one to judge changes in the physical and mechanical properties of hull steel.

More precisely than the fluence of fast neutrons, the energy output of the reactor is determined as a result of operation. Therefore, the dependence of the shift in critical temperature as a result of neutron irradiation on the energy output of the reactor is of significant interest. Obviously, this dependence will have the same form

ТF = Aw*(W/W0)1/3, (6)

where Aw is the embrittlement coefficient due to energy production,
W – achieved energy production,
W0 – threshold energy production.

This dependence is valid in the range of changes in energy production from 1*106 MW*hour to 3*107 MW*hour. Since the reactors of all ship nuclear power plants are made using the same technology from 15Kh2MFAA steel and have approximately the same thickness of the iron-water protection of the hull, during the calculation it was assumed that Aw = 49.5.

The obtained dependence allows us to predict the shift in the critical temperature of fragility as a result of neutron irradiation of the material of ship reactor vessels from energy production (Fig. 2). Analysis of the curve shows that ship reactors are capable of achieving an energy output of 15.5*106 MW*hours, while the shift in the critical brittleness temperature will not exceed 125 0 C.

Figure 2. Prediction of the shift in the critical brittleness temperature from neutron irradiation for ship reactors.

Thus, the residual resource of a 2nd generation nuclear power plant can reach a maximum value of 14.4 106 MW*hours (actually about 10*106 MW*hours). It follows that when using nuclear power plants from dismantled nuclear submarines of the 2nd generation as part of the power modules of floating nuclear power plants operating with capacity utilization factor (installed power utilization factor) = 0.7, they will be able to operate for about 25 years before dismantling.

If we assume that for a 3rd generation nuclear submarine the average power level is approximately 30% or 54 MW for a 2nd generation nuclear submarine, and the operating time at this power is about 30,000 hours, then we obtain an energy output of 1.62*106 MW*hours. Then the residual resource of these reactor vessels in terms of energy production will be about 13.9 * 106 MW * hours. When operating on floating nuclear power plants with capacity factor = 0.7, the possible operating time of these reactors will be approximately 110 thousand hours or approximately 12.5 years.

Thus, the main factor that determines the service life of the reactor vessel material—the shift in the critical brittleness temperature as a result of neutron irradiation of nuclear submarine reactors—is not a basis for refusing to use reactor installations of dismantled nuclear submarines as power modules for floating nuclear power plants.
An approximate methodology for solving this issue can be represented by the diagram in Figure 3.

Rice. 3. Methodological scheme for resolving the issue of using nuclear power units of nuclear submarines as a power module at a floating nuclear power plant.

In addition, the high reliability and survivability of nuclear power plants has been confirmed both by many years of operating experience and by the loss of submarines. The reactors of all sunken nuclear submarines were reliably shut down, and radiation contamination of the water area was never recorded. The latest example of this is the Kursk nuclear submarine disaster (August 2000).

Upon reaching the maximum energy output, the impact strength characteristics of the reactor vessel metal can be restored by dry low-temperature annealing, the technology of which has been developed and used in our country for many years. From 1987 to 1992, recovery annealing was carried out on 12 VVER-440 reactor vessels in Russia, Germany, Bulgaria and Czechoslovakia. During one of the first annealings on weld material irradiated to a fluence of 1020 cm-2, the dependence of the recovery of the critical temperature (Tc) on the annealing temperature at an annealing time of 150 hours was studied. During the experiments, it was found that in almost all cases the impact strength was restored to values ​​corresponding to the non-irradiated material, and the maximum restoration of the properties of irradiated 15Kh2MFAA case steel at an annealing temperature of 460 - 4700C occurs in a time of 170 hours.

The planned resource of the KLT-40S reactors, which are planned to be installed on floating nuclear power plants, is 40 years, and once every 10 years the plants must be towed to shipbuilding enterprises for repairs. If RO of dismantled nuclear submarines is used at a floating nuclear power plant, then during scheduled repairs the reactor vessels can be annealed, as a result of which the time resource will be doubled and will practically coincide with the service life of newly built KLT-40S reactor vessels.

A separate issue is the possibility of using a steam turbine unit (STU) of a dismantled nuclear submarine. The thermal design of the nuclear submarine steam turbine differs from those designed for a floating nuclear power plant in the absence of a thermal feedwater deaerator (the installation of which is not difficult) and a higher rotation speed of the main turbine. The question of how to use the main turbine can be resolved in two ways. Firstly, reducing the rotation speed of the main turbine to 3000 rpm will slightly reduce its power, but will allow it to work in conjunction with a turbogenerator that produces a current with a frequency of 50 Hertz. In this case, excess steam can be used to transfer thermal energy to shore through an intermediate heat exchanger.

Secondly, the use of the main turbine over the entire rotation speed range will require the use of static frequency converters to supply the required quality of electricity to the network. In both options for using the main turbine, it is possible to abandon the use of auxiliary turbogenerators, replacing them with transformers for the own needs of floating nuclear power plants. Auxiliary turbogenerators are replaced by diesel generators, the power of which ensures the cooling of both installations and the commissioning of one of the nuclear power plants. This will allow excess steam to be used to generate thermal energy. In addition, when using a nuclear power plant of a nuclear submarine on a floating power unit, there will be no need to use steam refrigeration machines, as a result of which excess steam is generated, which can be used both in the deaerator and to generate thermal energy and transfer it to the shore. Thus, the STU equipment of dismantled nuclear submarines can also be used as part of the energy module at floating nuclear power plants.

Recycled nuclear submarines of the 2nd and 3rd generations have a wide range of reactor powers from 70 to 190 MW and main turbines from 15 to 37 MW. This makes it possible to select the required capacities of the main power equipment for use at floating nuclear power plants.

The cost of construction of a turnkey floating nuclear power plant is estimated at more than $150 million, while approximately 80% of it is determined by the cost of the nuclear power plant and steam turbine unit. The use of nuclear power plants from dismantled nuclear submarines will significantly reduce this cost.

The mass of reactor waste from the two reactor installations of dismantled nuclear submarines of the 2nd generation is about 1200 tons, and that of the 3rd generation is about 1600 tons. This allows the reactor and turbine compartments to be used as a single energy module mounted on a floating nuclear power plant. In this case, we will receive a previously built and paid for nuclear power plant in a protective shell, the function of which is performed by the durable hull of the nuclear submarine. One of the possible options for such a design of a floating nuclear power plant is shown in Fig. 4.

Figure 4. Option for placing the power module (nuclear submarine reactor compartment) on floating nuclear power plants.

The use of the proposed technology will inevitably encounter a number of problems that need to be solved in the near future. Such problems include:
− lack of a procedure for transferring nuclear power plants for military purposes to nuclear power plants for the peaceful use of atomic energy;
− lack of analysis of the compliance of nuclear power plants of nuclear submarines of 2-3 generations with the requirements of regulatory documents of Rostechnadzor and the Ministry of Health and Social Development for floating nuclear power plants;
− the need to justify the residual life, as well as the possibility of extending the assigned life indicators of the main equipment of the nuclear power plant for each decommissioned nuclear submarine;
− the need to change the design of floating nuclear power plants under construction or design.

To solve these problems, it is necessary to carry out a significant complex of R&D.
It should also be noted that the use of radioactive waste from dismantled nuclear submarines is not limited to their use for floating nuclear power plants. Possible applications could be their use in the construction of underground nuclear power plants.

Conclusions:
1. The proposed innovative technology for using nuclear power units from dismantled nuclear submarines will allow:
− significantly reduce the costs of constructing floating nuclear power plants and reduce their construction and payback time;
− reduce the costs of dismantling nuclear submarines;
− significantly reduce the amount of radioactive waste and the costs of handling it;
− make full use of the potential of the nuclear power plant of nuclear submarines:
− during the operation of nuclear power plants of dismantled nuclear submarines as part of a floating nuclear power plant, to finance the future disposal of radioactive waste.
2. To implement this technology, it is necessary in the near future to deploy a R&D complex that will make it possible to scientifically substantiate the technical feasibility of using RO from dismantled nuclear submarines for the designed floating nuclear power plants.

The far northern city of Severodvinsk, located in European Russia, is known as the cradle of Russian nuclear shipbuilding. At the Sevmash enterprise, which is located in the mainland part of the city, about 165 submarines were built over half a century. Of these, 128 are nuclear.

Many of these submarines ended their lives here, in Severodvinsk. At the Zvezdochka enterprise, neighboring Sevmash, 44 nuclear submarines were dismantled. The operation to dismantle nuclear submarines and surface ships with a nuclear heart is a separate, complex operation from an engineering point of view.

Taken from kuleshovoleg in About the disposal of nuclear ships - first-hand

There are not many enterprises in the country that are capable of carrying out this work. We asked Sergei Dobrovenko, head of the department of repair technologies for hull structures and coatings of the Scientific Research Design and Technology Bureau "Onega" (NIPTB "Onega"), to tell us how it happens and why ships need this procedure.

2. Sergey Dobrovenko / NIPTB "Onega"

Sergey Vyacheslavovich, tell us about yourself. How long have you been involved in shipbuilding? What do you do at NIPTB "Onega"?

He has been associated with shipbuilding since the time of Sevmashvtuz (now ISMART SAFU). I studied there and at the same time worked in the “factory-technical school” system at the Zvyozdochka ship repair enterprise as an assembler of metal ship hulls in workshop No. 15. After graduating, in 1996, I got a job at the Onega Research and Production Institute. I started as a process engineer. Now I hold the position of head of the department of technologies for repair of hull structures and coatings.

Our department develops technologies for repairing hulls, hull structures and coatings. In addition, one of the areas of activity of NIPTB Onega is the development of technologies for dismantling nuclear submarines, surface ships with a nuclear power plant, as well as nuclear support vessels. Basically, these are works related to cutting hull structures and dismantling systems and equipment.

We are developing all kinds of technologies for cutting hulls, metal structures, the process of dismantling hull structures, and forming reactor compartment blocks.

3. The cabin of the Project 667AT nuclear submarine installed as a monument

- You mentioned working at Zvezdochka. What order did you start working on? So to speak - your first ship

If we talk about the first ship on which I worked, it was the Grusha, project 667AT. On it I worked on missile niches. And if we talk about cutting, the first ship in the dismantling of which I took part was the Azukha - a Project 667A nuclear submarine.

4. Nuclear submarine K-222 (Project 661 "Anchar") before disposal / Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center

- Let's move on to the main question. What is the recycling process?

Dismantling a nuclear submarine and dismantling a surface ship are different from each other, but the essence is nonetheless the same. To begin with, a so-called set of design and organizational documentation for the dismantling of the ship is being developed, which includes a certain amount of documents necessary and sufficient to bring the boat into a safe condition and form the reactor compartment. These documents are coordinated with the relevant supervisory authorities and interested organizations.

The recycling process begins with the decommissioning of the ship. The Navy hands over the ship to industry. A set of documents is developed, agreed upon, approved, received expert opinions from supervisory authorities, and only after that the physical disposal procedure begins. The ship arrives at a company that will carry out dismantling work. Stands against the quay wall. If it contains spent nuclear fuel (SNF), it is unloaded at onshore SNF unloading complexes. The reactor is brought into a safe state.

5. The process of dismantling the nuclear submarine "Borisoglebsk" (Project 667BDR) / Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center

After the SNF is unloaded, the physical dismantling of the ship begins. Partially the structures are dismantled afloat in order to unload the dock weight of the order, as well as speed up the disposal process. After unloading, the ship is placed on a solid foundation: in a floating dock, docking chamber or slipway. Once the ship is docked, the process of dismantling hull structures, systems and equipment begins. The spent fuel is unloaded and then sent on a special train to reprocessing plants such as Mayak. The radioactive waste generated in this case remains at the enterprise and is subject to processing or temporary storage.

6. The process of dismantling the nuclear submarine "Borisoglebsk" (Project 667BDR)

The first step is to dismantle hull structures, such as the superstructure of a ship or the deckhouse of a submarine. They are unloaded from the order in large sections, then cut into transport sections, after which they are transported to scrap metal and equipment cutting areas, where this dimensional scrap is shipped to metallurgical plants.

7. The process of dismantling a nuclear submarine / Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center

During the recycling process, all equipment is unloaded from the ship, which is also dismantled at specialized sites, or specialized enterprises take it for dissection. Scrap metal is separated into various grades and also delivered to processing plants.

8. The metal that remains from the dismantling of the nuclear submarine is subsequently sent for recycling / Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center

Also, during recycling, a large amount of various toxic industrial waste is generated: residues of paint, rubber and other coatings, decoration of ship premises, etc., which are subject to recycling or sent to a landfill.

9. Formation of a three-compartment block of the nuclear submarine K-222 (Project 661 "Anchar") / Zvezdochka Ship Repair Center

After the bow and stern blocks of the nuclear submarine are disposed of and recycled, the formation of the reactor blocks begins. At shipbuilding enterprises, they are formed into three-compartment blocks - a reactor compartment and two additional compartments on the sides, the so-called floats, which provide positive buoyancy of this block. After formation, the blocks are towed to long-term storage points for reactor compartments, where the float compartments are cut off and the compartment with the reactor is left for storage.

10. Three-compartment block of a nuclear submarine during transportation to the long-term storage point for reactor compartments / ROSATOM

11. Long-term storage facility for reactor compartments / ROSATOM

You talked about the disposal of submarines. And what about the disposal of large surface ships, such as the SSV-33 Ural, the hull of which has not yet been disposed of, but the entire superstructure has been cut down. Any difficulties?

Work on dismantling the Ural is still underway. They are progressing slowly due to lack of funding. Also, a project for dismantling this ship was developed for a long time, and for a long time the issue of the option of forming the reactor compartment was resolved.

Since such ships have significantly higher weight and size characteristics than nuclear submarines, this disposal option was adopted - the superstructure structures are dismantled to the upper deck, and then the reactor is unloaded from the reactor compartment and placed in special packaging. If necessary, the ship is cut into two parts so that it can be placed on a solid foundation.

12. Large nuclear reconnaissance ship SSV-33 "Ural" / Wikipedia.

- When will the dismantling of the Kirov begin?

Today, NIPTB Onega is developing a set of documents for its disposal. We will agree on it, and then, as far as I know, the work will be financed with money from the Rosatom State Corporation. It is unknown about the timing, it depends on the tender, but most likely, recycling will begin next year.

13. Heavy nuclear missile cruiser "Kirov".

In the spring, an entry appeared on the government procurement portal about a tender for the dismantling of shaft covers from the nuclear submarine TK-17 Arkhangelsk (project 941). It was reported that work would begin in August of this year. Has any work begun in this direction?

To be honest, I don’t have such information. But they will probably start soon. If we are talking about dismantling the covers, then this will be the so-called procedure under the START treaty - dismantling the covers and making the launchers safe. I believe that this work is not difficult and will be done quickly.

14. Project 941 nuclear submarines awaiting disposal.

What about the dismantling of Atomflot ships and technical support vessels? How is this different from the recycling of submarines and ships? I heard that there were certain difficulties with Lepse.

Disposal of Lepse is a complex project. We developed a set of documents for it, I was directly involved in the development of technologies for the disposal of hull structures and the formation of block packages in which the most radiation-hazardous blocks of the ship will be rolled up. These parts will be packaged, which will then be sent to the long-term storage facility for reactor compartments in Saida Bay.

Difficulties exist always and everywhere, especially on ships such as the Lepse, which contain high-level waste, with which it was impossible to do anything other than leave it in a part of the ship for further long-term storage.

(Lepse is a refueling vessel of the Russian nuclear icebreaker fleet. Owned by FSUE Atomflot. In 1988, the vessel was decommissioned, and in 1990 it was transferred to the category of rack-mounted vessels. 639 spent nuclear fuel (SNF) storage facilities of the vessel are stored in the canisters and caissons of the spent nuclear fuel (SNF) storage fuel assemblies (fuel assemblies), some of which are damaged - Ed.)

Safety issues were very serious and were carefully considered to prevent emergencies and overexposure of people.

15. “Lepse” is a refueling vessel of the Russian nuclear icebreaker fleet.

- Which order in your work was especially difficult?

There were many complex ships in practice. There were difficulties with Kursk. We developed draft documents for it. There were difficulties with Lepse only because of its condition. Also, the "Golden Fish" (nuclear submarine of Project 661 "Anchar") was complex - a titanium ship in disrepair.

But the most complex were the nuclear submarines located in the Far East, the so-called Chazhem submarines. Two damaged submarines of project 675 No. 175 and project 671 manager. No. 610 with increased background radiation. They were laid up for many years in Pavlovsky Bay, and then they were disposed of in the docking chamber of the Zvezda Shipyard. To dispose of them, special pallets were made at the dock for the entire base, so as not to spread contaminated elements. There was very high activity on these ships, which presented great difficulty.

Documents were developed so that the dismantling of structures, systems and equipment was carried out with the least harm to humans, since there could be remains of liquid radioactive waste inside.

- How do you feel about the large-scale dismantling of first and second generation submarines in the 90s and 2000s?

We must understand that all these ships have exhausted their service life, especially the first and second generations. Geopolitics and the tasks of the state have changed, and new technology is being developed. But those ships had completely worn out, and it was completely inappropriate to continue their operation; many of them were in disrepair. I believe that it is more correct to build up new groups of more modern ships, rather than morally support obsolete ones. In addition, there was a threat to environmental safety. They came to such a state that the tightness of the light body was practically completely absent. There was also a threat of flooding, which would have caused even more problems.

Timely disposal is necessary - it is rational. Everything must be built on time and disposed of on time. If you have a car, you won’t drive it for a hundred years and constantly repair it - there will be more problems than pleasure from driving it.

Do you have information on raising submarines and reactors sunk in the seas? Recently, information on their recovery and disposal has often flashed in the media, but no action has been taken.

As of today, this is just talk. Lifting these boats is a very expensive undertaking. Some of them lie at great depths. At one time, they raised the Kursk, it lay at a shallow depth, and the same Komsomolets lies at a depth of about one and a half thousand meters, lifting it to the surface is a big problem.

Talk about raising these boats is often heard at various conferences and meetings, but so far I have not heard about the real prospects for raising sunken nuclear submarines.

- From boats to family. Do you have any children? If so, did you follow in your footsteps?

My son has now graduated from school and entered Arkhangelsk Medical University. He will begin his studies there on September 1st. He didn't follow in my footsteps.

- Do you have a favorite submarine? For beauty, some quality or something else?

I really like "Sharks", the 941st project. Apart from us, no one could build such a powerful and large ship. In modern conditions they may not be needed, but this is a masterpiece.

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The first American and Soviet nuclear submarines (NPS), as is known, were equipped with steam-producing plants with pressurized water reactors. However, already on the second nuclear submarine, Sea Wolf, American designers used a reactor with liquid metal coolant (LMC). Other schemes were also considered, including the so-called “boiling” reactor, a reactor with a gas coolant, but the advantages of a reactor with liquid liquid metal turned out to be the most attractive. Firstly, the metal coolant allows the primary circuit to have a fairly high temperature at a relatively low pressure. Thanks to this, it was possible to increase the temperature in the steam-producing circuit, which contributed to achieving high efficiency.

installations in general. Secondly, the pressure in this circuit was assumed to be significantly higher than in the first, so leaks in the first circuit did not lead to rapid radioactive contamination of the steam. Thirdly, the high heat capacity of the metal fundamentally contributed to the reduction in the size and weight of the reactor.

In the Soviet Union, the development of a ship reactor with liquid metal material was set by a resolution of the CPSU Central Committee and the Council of Ministers dated October 22, 1955. The resolution provided for the creation of an experimental Project 645 nuclear submarine with a two-reactor steam-generating unit. The hull of the boat, like all the main systems (besides the reactors), was to be “borrowed” from the production boat of Project 627.

Unlike the Project 645 nuclear submarine, the reactors were located in the fourth compartment (in the predecessor - in the fifth). Moving the heavy reactors closer to the bow of the ship made it possible to improve the trim, but as a result of the decision made, the central post became adjacent to the reactor station, which made it more difficult to ensure radiation safety. The VT-1 nuclear reactors that were part of the main power plant, created by the Podolsk Design Bureau Gidropress under the scientific leadership of the Physics and Power Engineering Institute (Obninsk), had a total power of 146 MW. The boat's steam turbine installation was two-shaft, each of the two steam turbines had a rated power of 17,500 hp.

On their boat, the Americans used a sodium-potassium alloy as a liquid metal material, which actively, with a large release of heat, reacted upon contact with water. Domestic designers settled on a lead-bismuth alloy with a melting point of 398 K. The coolant temperature at the outlet of the reactor was 713 K, and the temperature of the superheated steam in the second circuit was 628 K. The reactors had certain advantages over traditional water-water reactors. In particular, their cooling in the event of a power outage was carried out through natural circulation, without the use of pumps.

The boat was provided with electricity by two autonomous turbogenerators with a power of 1600 kW each. In particular, they powered the so-called “sneaking engines” PG-116, which made it possible to covertly approach the target of attack (the main, very noisy turbo-gear units were turned off).

Unlike the Project 627 nuclear submarine, the K-27 did not have a backup diesel-electric unit.

In May 1968, K-27 once again went to sea. Already upon returning by boat, a severe radiation accident occurred, as a result of which nine crew members of the nuclear-powered ship died. After the accident, they did not restore the K-27, and after 13 years of laying in reserve, the boat was sunk in the Kara Sea.

However, the experience of operating ship reactors with liquid metallic waste in our country was not considered unequivocally negative (unlike the United States). In 1959 A.B. Petrov, one of the leading specialists at the Leningrad Design Bureau, which designed the nuclear submarine, proposed the idea of ​​a small-sized high-speed boat, distinguished by an exceptionally high degree of automation at that time. According to his plan, it was supposed to become a kind of “underwater interceptor fighter” of enemy submarines. The idea was supported at the highest level. In particular, its supporters were the Minister of Shipbuilding B.E. Butoma and Commander-in-Chief of the Navy S.G.

Gorshkov. On June 23, 1960, a joint decree of the CPSU Central Committee and the Council of Ministers was issued on the construction of the Project 705 nuclear submarine. The exceptional attention “from above” to the original ship was evidenced by the second decree of May 25, 1961, which allowed designers, if there were sufficient grounds, to deviate from the norms and rules, adopted in military shipbuilding.

The general management of the program was carried out by Academician A.P.

An experimental boat of Project 705 (tactical number K-64) was laid down at the Leningrad Admiralty Association in June 1968, and three and a half years later the ship arrived at the Northern Fleet, joining it on December 31, 1971. This boat had a power plant developed by Gorky OKBM. From the very beginning of its operation, the K-64 was plagued by failures and accidents, the largest of which led to the solidification of the coolant and the complete failure of the reactor. In August 1974, the boat was withdrawn from the fleet, and even before that the entire construction program of the series was suspended (by this time there were five more similar ships on the stocks in Leningrad and Severodvinsk).

The “debriefing” that took place at the highest level led to the abandonment of the Gorky version in favor of the BM-40A power plant with a capacity of 150 MW, developed in Podolsk. It turned out to be much more reliable; in any case, on the six nuclear submarines of the improved Project 705K that were subsequently built, not a single sailor died due to radiation accidents.

Project 705K boats were accepted by the fleet in 1977-1981.

At the same time, the originality of the design inevitably implied the presence of a fair fly in the ointment. Western experts have invariably criticized the Alphas for their high noise level, which is almost inevitable when a nuclear submarine moves at high underwater speed. Tom Clancy did not fail to mention this in his extremely tendentious book “The Hunt for Red October.” But operational problems again turned out to be more significant: the need to constantly maintain the reactor in a “warm” state, periodic regeneration and replacement of liquid metal materials. The fleet was unable to debug in practice, an outwardly very attractive system of operating the boat by two crews - “sea” and “shore”. As a result, the career of the Project 705 nuclear submarine was short-lived - all of them, except one, were withdrawn from the fleet by 1990. The last "Alpha" in The leading production boat K-123, decommissioned in 1997, remained in the Russian Navy.

And yet, according to specialists from the Institute of Physics and Power Engineering, the experience of operating ship reactors with liquid metal material makes it possible to recommend such systems for use on promising nuclear submarines.