India is an important member of the 'International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor'. If this expe

Q: What is UPSC Prelims?

UPSC Prelims is a competitive examination conducted in India. This question is from the 2016 UPSC Prelims Science & Technology paper.

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To prepare for UPSC Prelims Science & Technology, practice previous year questions (PYQs), understand concepts thoroughly, and solve mock tests regularly. This 2016 question covers Nuclear Technology – Reactors, Radiation & India's Nuclear Policy topic.

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This UPSC Prelims 2016 Science & Technology question has a easy difficulty level and is marked as an important question.

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You can find more UPSC Prelims previous year questions on AspirantMitraa. Browse by subject, topic, year, and difficulty level to practice effectively.

Question

India is an important member of the 'International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor'. If this experiment succeeds, what is the immediate advantage for India?

Accepted Answer

Correct Answer: D — It can build fusion reactors for power generationSolution:ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) is the world's largest nuclear fusion experiment, currently being built in Cadarache, France. It is a collaboration of 35 nations including India, EU, USA, Russia, China, Japan, and South Korea. ITER uses magnetic confinement (Tokamak design) to fuse hydrogen isotopes (deuterium and tritium) to produce energy — replicating the process that powers the sun.If ITER succeeds in demonstrating that nuclear fusion is scientifically and technically feasible as an energy source, the immediate practical benefit for India would be the ability to develop and build commercial fusion reactors for power generation. Fusion energy would provide virtually limitless, clean energy with minimal radioactive waste — a transformative advantage for energy-hungry India.Why other options are incorrect:Option A (Thorium for power): Thorium is used in advanced fission reactors (India's three-stage nuclear programme). ITER is a fusion experiment — completely unrelated to thorium fission reactors.Option B (Satellite navigation): ITER has no connection to navigation systems. India's navigation system is NavIC.Option C (Improving fission reactors): ITER deals with nuclear fusion — a fundamentally different process from fission. Its success would not directly improve existing fission reactor efficiency.Key Concept: Nuclear fusion (combining light nuclei to release energy) is the opposite of nuclear fission (splitting heavy nuclei). Fusion fuel — deuterium from seawater and tritium — is virtually inexhaustible. Fusion produces no long-lived radioactive waste and no risk of meltdown. India joined ITER in 2005. The Department of Atomic Energy coordinates India's ITER participation, contributing several components including cryostat (built by Larsen & Toubro) and in-wall shielding. ITER aims to produce 500 MW of fusion power from 50 MW of input — a gain factor (Q) of 10. If successful, DEMO reactors would follow, paving the way for commercial fusion power plants.

India is an important member of the 'International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor'. If this experiment succeeds, what is the immediate advantage for India?

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India is an important member of the 'International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor'. If this experiment succeeds, what is the immediate advantage for India?

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More Questions from Nuclear Technology – Reactors, Radiation & India's Nuclear Policy

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