The first icebreaker, dating back to the 18th century, was a small steamship that carried out icebreaking operations in Philadelphia Harbor. More than a century has passed since its appearance, and during this time there have been global changes in design: first, the wheel was replaced by a turbine, then by a nuclear reactor, and now today ships impressive size They are engaged in chopping ice in the Arctic. Today, Russia and America can be proud of their large fleet, consisting of nuclear and diesel powerful ships that are designed to perform icebreaking operations, but where and when the largest icebreaker in the world was created is still unknown to some. About this and we'll talk in our article.

The construction of a nuclear-powered lighter-container carrier was carried out at the large shipbuilding enterprise Zaliv in the period from 1982 to 1988. The nuclear-powered icebreaker "Sevmorput" is an icebreaking transport vessel that used a nuclear power plant. The lighter carrier was put into use in December 1988.

After the flag was raised and work began, the total distance of the lighter carrier was 302,000 miles. Over the entire period of operation of the icebreaker, over 1.5 million tons of various cargo were transported. The need to recharge the nuclear reactor was only required once.

The main purpose of the vessel, the height of a multi-storey building and 260.1 m long, is to transport cargo to remote areas of the North, but it is also capable of moving in ice 1 meter thick. And who after this will say that the ship “Sevmorput” does not deserve to bear the title of icebreaker?

"Arctic"

The nuclear icebreaker was named after its legendary predecessor, which was launched in 1972 and operated for more than 30 years. The 173.3 meter long vessel can operate in bays and estuaries, as well as ocean ice. Nuclear icebreaker The Arktika was launched without the superstructure section in June 2016. According to the technology, the superstructure, weighing about 2,400 tons, must be installed after the ship is launched.

The Project 22220 icebreaker Arktika could pass through ice 2.9 thick. Thanks to the modern automatic control system equipped with the new vessel, it was possible to reduce the crew size by half.

The icebreaker is planned to be put into operation in 2018-2019 and after this happens it will break all records in terms of the power of power plants, the dimensions and height of the ice through which it will pass.

"50 years of Victory"

The main difference between the 159.6-meter long nuclear icebreaker “50 Let Pobedy” is its deep landing and impressive power. Construction of the ship was carried out from 1989 to 2007. Since its launch and start of use, the ship “50 Let Pobedy” has been sent on expeditions to the North Pole more than 100 times.

"Taimyr"

The 151.8-meter-long nuclear icebreaker at river mouths is capable of breaking up ice 1.77 meters thick, thus clearing the way for other ships. The main features of the Taimyr icebreaker include a reduced landing position and the ability to carry out icebreaking operations in areas with extremely low temperatures.

"Vaigach"

The shallow-landing nuclear icebreaker is the second ship in the Project 10580 series, which was built in Finland by order of the USSR. The main purpose of the 151.8-meter-long icebreaker is to serve ships heading along the Northern Sea Corridor to the mouths of rivers in Siberia. The ship was named after a hydrographic ship of the early 20th century performing icebreaking operations.

The icebreaker "Vaigach" escorts ships loaded with metal from Norilsk, and with timber and ore from Igarka. Thanks to the nuclear turboelectric installation, Vaygach can pass through ice up to two meters thick. In ice 1.77 meters thick, the ship moves at a speed of 2 knots. Icebreaking operations are carried out at temperatures down to -50 degrees.

"Yamal"

Construction of the 150-meter-long icebreaker was completed in 1986, and it was launched 3 years later. Initially, the ship was called “October Revolution”, and in 1992 it was renamed “Yamal”.

In 2000, Yamal went to the North Pole to celebrate the third millennium. In total, the icebreaker made 46 expeditions to the North Pole. "Yamal" became the seventh ship that managed to reach North Pole. One of the advantages of the Yamal icebreaker is the ability to move forward and backward.

"Healy"

On an icebreaker 128 meters long, which is the largest in America, Americans for the first time independently managed to reach the North Pole. This event happened in 2015. The research vessel is equipped with the latest measuring and laboratory equipment.

Polar Sea

Construction of the 122-meter-long icebreaker was completed in 1976; the ship is still in working order, although it was not in service between 2007 and 2012. Diesel engines and gas turbine units together produce a power of 78 thousand horsepower. In terms of power characteristics, it is practically in no way inferior to the icebreaker Arktika. The speed of the icebreaker “Polar Sea” in ice 2 meters thick is 3 knots.

"Louis S. St. Laurent"

Construction of the Canadian icebreaker, 120 meters long, was completed in 1969. In 1993, the vessel was completely modernized. "Louis S. St-Laurent" is the first ship in the world to reach the North Pole (the expedition ended in 1994).

"Polarstern"

The 118-meter-long German vessel, designed for scientific and research work, can be operated at temperatures down to -50 degrees. In ice up to 1.5 meters thick, the icebreaker Polarstern moves at a speed of 5 knots. The ship mainly travels in the directions of the Arctic and Antarctic in order to study these areas.

In 2017, the new icebreaker Polarstern-II is expected to appear, which will be assigned to watch duty in the Arctic.

June 16, 2016, Baltic Shipyard launched the lead nuclear icebreaker "Arktika" of project 22220. In the presence of several thousand spectators, the godmother of the icebreaker, Chairman of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko, broke a traditional bottle of champagne on the side of the icebreaker,

sending the largest and most powerful nuclear icebreaker in the world from the slipway, the press service of the United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) reports.

« Today is a special day for the Russian nuclear industry. The world's largest and most powerful nuclear icebreaker "Arktika" left the slipway of the Baltic Shipyard. A harsh region requires harsh technology. I am sure that the icebreaker Arktika will give a new impetus to the development of the Arctic latitudes. I am very glad that young shipbuilders are entering the industry and continuing everything that has been accumulated by other generations of shipbuilders. Thanks to the shipbuilders of this creation. You look at it, and you are filled with such pride for the country and the people who are building it. Thank you for preserving the St. Petersburg shipbuilding school. Our country is proud of the result of such work! Seven feet under your keel, great "Arctic", - wished Valentina Matvienko.

The Kirov Plant shipped a turbine for the icebreaker "Arktika" to the Baltic Shipyard >>

The day of the launching of the nuclear icebreaker symbolically coincided with the start of the Economic Forum in St. Petersburg.

The General Director of Rosatom, the customer of Project 22220 nuclear icebreakers, Sergei Kiriyenko, in his welcoming speech noted: “ Today's event is a huge victory in every sense! A lot of work has been done, and today there are no analogues to such an icebreaker as the Arktika in the world. Thanks to the team of the Baltic Shipyard, everything was done according to schedule, and by the end of 2017 the Arktika will go into operation. This icebreaker is the most modern in its characteristics; it implements all the technical capabilities that have never been used on other ships before. The icebreaker "Arktika" is truly new opportunities for our country!»

After the command from the chief builder of the lead nuclear-powered ship, Vadim Golovanov, to begin launching, the delay was cut, holding back more than 14,000 tons of the weight of the ship’s hull, and the Arktika smoothly descended into the waters of the Neva River.

Ahead of the shipbuilders« Baltic Shipyard-Shipbuilding» completion of the lead nuclear-powered vessel on the water, contract delivery date is December 2017*.

* The construction of the lead nuclear icebreaker LK-60Ya "Arktika" required the intervention of Vladimir Putin - only he was able to decide to shift the project from 2017 to 2019. Serial "Sibir" and "Ural" will be delivered in 2021 and 2022. Failure to meet deadlines, one of the key reasons for which was Russia’s conflict with Russia, could turn into a scandal: the president has already ordered “personnel, organizational and management decisions” to be made, the Accounts Chamber, the Prosecutor General’s Office and the FSB will begin inspections. Both the customer Rosatom and the contractors, in particular USC, can answer. But you shouldn’t expect high-profile layoffs, because the project was launched back when Rosatom was headed by the first deputy head of the presidential administration, Sergei Kiriyenko.

In May 2017, Vladimir Putin instructed to postpone the delivery date of the lead nuclear icebreaker LK-60Ya Arktika from 2017 to 2019. In addition, the president demanded that personnel, organizational and management decisions be made in connection with the failure of the government contract. In parallel, the Accounts Chamber, the Prosecutor General's Office and the FSB must conduct an audit of the project.

The world's second largest nuclear icebreaker left the slipway of the Baltic Shipyard >>

FSUE Atomflot (owns nuclear icebreakers, controlled by Rosatom) and Baltic Shipyard (BZS, part of USC) agreed on the construction of the Arctic in 2012; money for the icebreaker - 37 billion rubles - was allocated by the budget. In 2014, a contract was signed for 2 more icebreakers of the series - Sibir and Ural - for 84.4 billion rubles. "Arktika" was supposed to be commissioned at the end of 2017, "Siberia" - at the end of 2019, "Ural" - at the end of 2020.

Turbines became the key problem of the Arctic. They were supposed to be supplied by the Ukrainian Kharkov Turbine Plant, but after 2014 the supplier had to be replaced by KEM (inaccuracy - in fact, KhTZ was not supposed to supply turbines; when in 2013 KEM won the tender for the production of turbine units, it was planned that they would be manufactured at the Kirov Plant turbines can only be tested at KhTZ, where there is a special stand for this -). A government source says that there are no serious technical difficulties: the first turbine is being tested at the KEM stand, the second should be tested by October. USC complained about personnel problems, a large time gap in the implementation of such projects, loss of competencies, reworking of the technical design and documentation.

In general, icebreaker contractors shift the blame for missed deadlines onto each other. Thus, USC believes that the weak links in cooperation were the manufacturers of steam turbine units (STE) and electric propulsion systems (Federal State Unitary Enterprise Krylov State science Center" - Krylov State Research Center). The Kirov plant reported that during the execution of the contract for the Arctic, checks are carried out that “do not reveal any violations of the law on the part of the plant.” The company added that the Krylov State Scientific Center delayed the delivery of generators by more than two years. The executive director of the Krylov State Research Center, Mikhail Zagorodnikov, believes that the delay is USC’s fault: the competition was held for five months, and although the technical design was ready in 2009, detailed design began only in 2013.

BZS also missed the delivery deadlines for both the LK-25 diesel icebreaker Viktor Chernomyrdin and the floating nuclear power plant Akademik Lomonosov.

Currently, the nuclear-powered icebreakers Taimyr and Vaygach are in operation, the life of their nuclear installations is being extended, which cannot happen indefinitely; when the icebreaker Yamal leaves, only the icebreaker 50 Let Pobedy will remain from the Arctic class. If by 2022 there are only four icebreakers, this will not be enough, since a sharp increase in cargo traffic from oil and gas fields, from Vostok Coal and Norilsk Nickel is predicted, and there are attempts to increase transit along the Northern Sea Route. By 2022, at least two new double-draft icebreakers should be built.

Help 24RosInfo:

The lead nuclear icebreaker of Project 22220 is being built to the class of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping at« Baltic Shipyard-Shipbuilding» commissioned by the Rosatom State Corporation (the keel of the vessel took place on November 5, 2013) and will become the largest and most powerful nuclear icebreaker in the world.

Main characteristics of the Project 22220 nuclear icebreaker:

power.....60 MW (on shafts);

speed.....22 knots (in clear water);

length.....173.3 m (160 m along the vertical line);

width.....34 m (33 m along the vertical line);

height.....15.2 m;

draft.....10.5 m/8.65 m;

maximum ice penetration.....2.8 m;

total displacement.....33 540 t;

assigned service life.....40 years.

The nuclear icebreaker "Yamal" is one of ten icebreakers of the "Arctic" class, the construction of which began in 1986, back in Soviet times. The construction of the icebreaker "Yamal" was completed in 1992, but already at that time there was a need for its use to ensure navigation along the Northern sea ​​route disappeared. Therefore, the owners of this vessel, which weighs 23,455 tons and is 150 meters long, converted it into a vessel with 50 tourist cabins and capable of taking tourists to the North Pole.

The “heart” of the Yamal icebreaker is two sealed water-cooled reactors OK-900A, which contain 245 fuel rods with enriched uranium. The full load of nuclear fuel is about 500 kilograms, this reserve is sufficient for the continuous operation of the icebreaker for 5 years. Each nuclear reactor weighs about 160 tons and is located in a sealed compartment, protected from the rest of the ship's structure by layers of steel, water and high-density concrete. There are 86 sensors placed around the reactor compartment and throughout the ship that measure radiation levels.

The reactors' steam power boilers produce superheated, high-pressure steam that spins turbines that drive 12 electric generators. Energy from the generators is supplied to electric motors that rotate the blades of the icebreaker's three propellers. The engine power of each propeller is 25 thousand horsepower or 55.3 MW. Using this power, the Yamal icebreaker can move through ice 2.3 meters thick at a speed of 3 knots. Despite the fact that the maximum thickness of ice through which an icebreaker can pass is 5 meters, cases have been recorded of an icebreaker overcoming ice hummocks 9 meters thick.

The hull of the icebreaker "Yamal" is a double hull coated with a special polymer material that reduces friction. The thickness of the upper layer of the hull at the ice cutting site is 48 millimeters, and in other places - 30 millimeters. The water ballast system, located between the two layers of the icebreaker's hull, allows additional weight to be concentrated at the front of the ship, which acts as an additional ram. If the power of the icebreaker is not enough to cut through the ice, then an air bubble system is activated, which throws 24 cubic meters of air per second under the surface of the ice and breaks it from below.

The design of the reactor cooling system of the Yamal nuclear icebreaker is designed to use sea water with a maximum temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. Therefore, this icebreaker and others like it will never be able to leave northern seas and go to more southern latitudes.

During my trip to Murmansk, like everyone else, I visited the nuclear icebreaker Lenin. Therefore, I will describe this vehicle in my multi-photo manner :-)))


Icebreaker Lenin is a three-screw ship. Architecturally, it is a smooth-deck vessel with moderate sheer, four continuous decks, an extended superstructure and two masts. At the aft part of the boat deck there is a landing pad and a helicopter hangar. There is no chimney.

The unusually large size of the mainmast is due to its use for ventilation of a steam generator plant.

The use of nuclear energy determined the features of the internal arrangement of the ship's power, residential and service spaces. The icebreaker's hull is divided into twelve compartments by main transverse watertight bulkheads.

Two longitudinal bulkheads running from the second bottom to the upper deck form compartments along the sides, which house mainly ballast, fuel and other tanks; above the lower deck there are various storerooms, service rooms and crew cabins.

The design of the icebreaker Lenin's hull differs significantly from other Russian-built icebreakers. Bottom, sides, inner decks, platforms and upper deck at the ends they are built according to a transverse system, and the upper deck in the middle part is built according to a longitudinal system.

The spacing size is 800 mm. Intermediate frames are installed along the entire length of the vessel from the second bottom to the living deck. The set of bow and stern ends is fan-shaped; the frames in these areas are located normal to the skin.

The outer skin in the area of ​​the ice belt and the adjacent belts above and below it are made of high-strength steel. The thickness of the ice belt is 36 mm in the middle part, 52 mm in the bow and 44 mm in the stern end.

The stem and stern stem of the icebreaker are cast-welded. The total weight of the stem is 30 tons, and the sternpost is 86 tons. The icebreaker's rudder is welded and has a 40 mm thick sheet steel casing. The rudder area is 18.5 m2. The stock is forged from alloy steel with a diameter of 550 mm.

The icebreaker's crew is accommodated in single and double cabins. For residential, cultural and medical premises on the icebreaker, water heating with air conditioning is used.

The engine room and auxiliary rooms have steam heating. There is a powerful automatic refrigeration unit and a large number of food pantries.

The cargo equipment on the icebreaker is: in the bow - two cargo booms with electric winches with a lifting capacity of 1.5 t,

in the middle part there is a crane with a lifting capacity of 12 t for servicing the nuclear installation compartment;

in the stern there are two cranes with a lifting capacity of 3 t.

The icebreaker is equipped with three main anchors (one of them is a spare one) with swivel legs weighing 6 tons each, a stop anchor weighing 2 tons and four ice anchors (two 150 kg and two 100 kg). The main anchors are retracted into the fairleads flush with the casing. Cast anchor chains of 67 mm caliber have a length of 325 m.

There is a cutout in the stern for towing ships closely, which is equipped with fenders and fenders lined with rubber. An automatic double-drum towing winch with a traction force of 40 tf on the main drum and 25 tf on the auxiliary drum is installed at the aft end.

The electro-hydraulic steering machine shifts the rudder from side to side in 30 seconds at a vessel speed of 18 knots and one of the two installed pumps is running. The icebreaker's unsinkability is ensured by the simultaneous flooding of two main watertight compartments.

The icebreaker has two lifeboats for 58 people each, two motor lifeboats for 40 people each, two six-oar yawls, a crew boat and a towing boat. The lowering and ascent of lifeboats and boats is carried out using rolling-type davits.

The icebreaker's power plant operates according to the following scheme. The heat generated in the reactor is used to produce superheated steam in steam generators. The steam is sent to the main turbo generators, from which electricity is supplied to the propulsion motors.

The propeller motors' anchors are connected to the propeller shafts. The steam generators are powered by feed pumps operating in parallel, so that in the event of an emergency stop of one of the pumps, the others automatically increase their productivity to required level. Manage the whole power plant icebreaker from one post.

Biological protection of a nuclear installation guarantees the protection of the icebreaker crew from the effects of radioactive radiation, which is controlled by a special dosimetric system. The control panel of this system is located in the radiation control post.

The main turbogenerators are located in two compartments: bow and stern. Each compartment has two active-reactive type turbines with a power of 11,000 hp each. Each turbine is connected through a gearbox to two double-armature DC generators with a continuous power of 11,500 hp. at rated voltage 600 V.

Turbogenerator units power three double-anchor DC propulsion motors: the middle one and two onboard ones. The middle engine receives 50% of the power generated by the turbogenerators, and the onboard engines receive 25% each. The power of the middle electric motor is 19,600 hp, and the onboard motors are 9,800 hp each. Propeller shafts icebreakers are made of alloy steel. The diameter of the middle shaft is 740 mm, length 9.2 m, weight 26.8 tons; side shaft diameter 712 mm, length 18.4 m, weight 45 tons.

The propellers are four-bladed, with removable blades. The weight of the middle propeller is 27.8 tons, the side propeller - 22.5 tons.

The icebreaker has bow and stern power plants. Three turbogenerators are installed in the bow, two turbogenerators and one backup diesel generator with a capacity of 1000 kW each are installed in the stern. Each turbogenerator consists of an active-type condensing steam turbine and an alternating current generator. In addition, the ship is equipped with two emergency diesel generators.

The nuclear-powered ship project was developed at TsKB-15 (now Iceberg) in 1953-1955 (project No. 92) after the decision to build a nuclear icebreaker was made on November 20, 1953 by the USSR Council of Ministers. The chief designer was V.I. Neganov. The nuclear installation was designed under the leadership of I. I. Afrikantov. Hull steel grades AK-27 and AK-28 (almost “stainless steel”) were specially developed at the Prometheus Institute for icebreakers.

The ship was laid down in 1956 at the shipyard named after. A.Marti in Leningrad. The chief builder is V.I. Chervyakov.

Launched on December 5, 1957. On September 12, 1959, already from the shipyard of the Admiralty Plant, he set off for sea trials under the command of P. A. Ponomarev

December 3, 1959 handed over to the Ministry navy. Since 1960 as part of the Murmansk Shipping Company.

It had good ice penetration. In the first 6 years of operation alone, the icebreaker completed more than 82 thousand nautical miles and independently conducted more than 400 ships.

The icebreaker "Lenin" operated for 30 years and in 1989 was decommissioned and placed in permanent berth in Murmansk.

Now let's move inside. Entrance is free, and at the entrance a group of local sailor students has already formed.

The nuclear-powered icebreaker stands at the pontoon pier of the Murmansk seaport.

"Clavdia Elanskaya" is moored nearby

It carries out local transportation.

The nuclear icebreaker "Russia" is visible in the distance, if I'm not mistaken.

These yachts are moored on the other side.

Monuments on the opposite shore of the bay.

Time 12 o'clock: forward...

We move from the gangway to the board.

In the following parts we will see what is inside it and take a closer look at the wheelhouse.