Cammell Laird project set to ‘revolutionise’ nuclear power station construction
Liverpool City Region’s shipyard and engineering firm, Cammell Laird, has completed the design, manufacture and installation of a test rig as part of a scheme looking to re-establish the UK as a world leader in thermal hydraulics research.
The thermal hydraulic test rig built by Cammell Laird
The facility was built for the National Nuclear Laboratory (NNL) as part of Project Faith.
The initiative aims to use the build of the experimental rig as a model for proving the facility’s modular construction techniques in the nuclear industry.
Jamie Willgress, project manager at Cammell Laird, said: “Our expertise in the block build fabrication of ships was instrumental to this project and we’ve been able to share considerable best practice from our work constructing some of the world’s most high-profile vessels, including the RRS Sir David Attenborough and the Queen Elizabeth Aircraft Carriers.
“Modular construction will improve the delivery of nuclear projects in the future and revolutionise the way nuclear plant is constructed so this is an incredibly important project to be part of.”
Designed to circulate water around a pipe loop, the stand-alone rig enables different test sections to be installed to study the impact of flowrates and temperature on the flow regime in the geometry and workings of a nuclear reactor.
The rig will be used by scientists at the NNL to collect data that will inform future nuclear reactor design and help to deliver a “more robust talent pipeline” to support the UK nuclear industry.
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