Wiki · PWR · United States
AP1000
Westinghouse's passive PWR: it cools the core by gravity and convection for 72 hours without pumps or operators.
The AP1000 drastically cuts the number of safety pumps, valves and pipes. In an accident, a large water tank above the containment cools the reactor by gravity and the steel containment is cooled by natural air convection. That removes the dependence on diesel generators for the first three days.
Sanmen and Haiyang in China were the first to operate, in 2018. Vogtle 3 and 4 in Georgia, connected in 2023 and 2024, were the first new reactors in the United States in more than 30 years, with enormous cost overruns. China now builds its localized version, the CAP1000, and is developing the CAP1400.
Quick facts
| Power | 1,117 MWe net |
|---|---|
| Safety | passive, 72 h with no action |
| Operating | Sanmen 1-2, Haiyang 1-2, Vogtle 3-4 |
| Derivatives | CAP1000, CAP1400 and the modular AP300 |