(Yicai) Sept. 8 -- China General Nuclear Power, a state-owned atomic and clean energy developer, has released Hualong One 2.0, the next iteration of the country’s self-developed third-generation, gigawatt-class pressurized water reactor nuclear power technology.

Hualong One 2.0 is an advanced atomic power technology developed by CGN and its industry partners through nearly 100 design optimizations based on the large-scale, in-batch construction and operation verification of Hualong One, Niu Wenhua, chief expert of Hualong One 2.0, said at the CGN Annual Sustainable Development Conference in Shenzhen yesterday.

Hualong One was jointly developed by CGN and China National Nuclear Corporation. Ten Hualong One units are operational at home and abroad, while 37 other units are either under construction or have received regulatory approval. Hualong One is the most used third-generation nuclear power technology in the world.

“Hualong One 2.0 is not a brand-new technology that overturns the previous iteration, but a systematic improvement to the quality and efficiency of the mature Hualong One design, which has achieved a comprehensive upgrade in terms of safety, construction period, costs, operations and maintenance, and environmental protection,” Niu noted.

Hualong One 2.0 has comprehensively optimized 14 safety features based on Hualong One’s original defense-in-depth security system, as well as nine key safety indicators, greatly reducing nuclear power plants’ dependence on manual operation and external rescue in the event of a serious accident, according to Niu.

He also explained how Hualong One 2.0 comprehensively simplifies the auxiliary system of nuclear power plants, cutting pipeline length by about 31 percent, process valves by around 25 percent, and the nuclear island volume by 21 percent while maintaining the same power generation capacity. These optimizations can lower the installation workload of nuclear islands by about 33 percent.

The third phase of the CGN’s Taipingling nuclear power plant in China’s Guangdong province, approved by an executive meeting of the State Council at the end of July, will become the first demonstration project to adopt Hualong One 2.0. Preparatory work for the project, such as signing the procurement contract for the main equipment, has already begun.

CGN also released FirmSys yesterday, a new-generation nuclear power plant distributed control system that supports Hualong One 2.0.

The new-generation FirmSys‌ can cut the number of cabinets in nuclear power plants by about 40 percent, increase the proportion of automated operation of Hualong One 2.0 units by 66 percent, and make system adjustments more precise and respond faster, Niu said.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione