I.V. Kurchatov Institute of Atomic Energy, Moscow

High-temperature reactors with helium cooling is the new trend in the nuclear energetics since they posses the conceptual possibility of heat production with temperature up to 1000°C and higher that cannot be attained in other power plants* As compared with the known reactor types the HTGR installations offer a number of advantages:

1) the high-temperature, the comparatively low pressure in the reactor, better thermal efficiency, lesser heat pollution in environment, lesser consumption of a cooling water;

2) the high nuclear safety provided by high negative reactivity coefficient, the high heat capacity of the reactor core, the lack of phase transitions and the chemical interness of the coolant;