Pathfinder A-plant is readied at Sioux Falls

Sufficient fuel is now available to the Northern States Power Company´s Pathfinder atomic power plant, Sioux Falls, S. Dak., to bring the first commercial power reactor with integral superheater to criticality. It is designed for a heat power level capability of about 164,000 kw in the boiler region with a recirculation rate of 60,000 gpm (gallons per minute). Steam generation rate will be about 600,000 pounds per hour at an operating pressure of 600 psig and a 489 F temperature in the boiler region.