4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 1 of 60 Session I.4.8 Part I Review of Fundamentals Module 4Sources of Radiation Session 8Research Reactors IAEA Post Graduate Educational Course Radiation Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 2 of 60 Overview  In this session we will discuss the types of Research Reactors  We will also discuss where these Research Reactors are located

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 3 of 60 Introduction  Research Reactors  Not used to generate electrical power  Produce neutrons for various uses  Use higher enriched 235 U than power reactors  Approximately 241 worldwide

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 4 of 60 Types  Pool type (67 units)  Curved aluminum clad fuel plates  Control rods  Water for moderation and cooling  Beryllium or graphite neutron reflectors common  Empty channels for experiments  Apertures for neutron beams  Tank Type (32 units)

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 5 of 60 Types  TRIGA (40 units)  cylindrical fuel elements (36 mm diameter)  Uranium fuel and zirconium hydride moderator  Water for moderation and cooling  Beryllium or graphite neutron reflectors common  Pulsed up to 25,000 MW

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 6 of 60 Types Some produce radioisotopes TypeNumber Critical assemblies (zero power) 60 Test reactors 23 Training facilities 37 Prototypes2 Generating electricity 1 Research160

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 7 of 60 Types  Some moderated by heavy water (12 units) or graphite  Some are fast reactors (no moderator and mixed U - Pu fuel)

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 8 of 60 Fuel  Typically a few kilograms  High enriched uranium (HEU) >20% 235 U compared to 3-5% for power reactors  Typically plates or cylinders of Uranium-Aluminum alloy clad with pure Aluminum compared to ceramic UO 2 pellets in power reactors

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 9 of 60 Fuel  Security concerns over the use of HEU have led to development of high-density, low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel  Fuel density for U-Al fuel increased from g/cm 3 to g/cm 3 as enrichment decreased  In 1996, with the Summer Olympics scheduled to be held in Atlanta, Georgia in the USA, security concerns caused Georgia Tech University to remove the HEU from its research reactor

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 10 of 60 Uses  Analysis and testing of material  Production of radioisotopes  Fusion research  Environmental science  Advanced material development  Drug design  Nuclear medicine

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 11 of 60 Uses  Neutron scattering experiments to study structure of materials at atomic level  Neutron activation for detecting presence of small amounts of material

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 12 of 60 Uses  Radioisotope production  90 Y from 89 Y for treatment of liver cancer  99 Mo from fission of 235 U foil to produce 99m Tc for nuclear medicine

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 13 of 60 Uses  Industrial processing  Neutron transmutation doping of silicon crystals  Study changes resulting from intense neutron bombardment (e.g., embrittlement of steel)

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 14 of 60 Spent Fuel  U-Al fuels can be reprocessed in France  United States has offered to take back spent fuel resulting from fuel originally supplied by the US

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 15 of 60  zero ‑ power full ‑ scale reactor core mockup assemblies used to:  gain understanding of a variety of reactor concepts  assist in the engineering design of these reactor systems Zero Power Reactor

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 16 of 60 SLOWPOKE Large sample irradiation tube Small sample irradiation tube Central control rod Beryllium annulus Lower beryllium reflector

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 17 of 60 SLOWPOKE  prime functions are to perform nondestructive elemental analysis and produce quantities of selected radioactive material for use in industry and medicine  SLOWPOKE laboratories have been utilized in a number of different fields such as:  Trace element identification  Radiotracer supply  Forensic science  Environmental analysis  Radioactivity counting

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 18 of 60 SLOWPOKE Reactor Specifications TypePool and Tank Licensed limit20 kW FuelExtruded Uranium/aluminium alloy ModeratorLight water CoolingConvection/conduction Core diameter/height22cm/22.1cm Critical mass 235 U g Fuel life6.4 x nvt (at small inner sites) Irradiation Parameters ParameterInner SitesOuter Sites Thermal flux1 x x 10 12

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 19 of 60 TRIGA  most widely used non ‑ power nuclear reactor in the world  In 24 countries, 66 in use or under construction at:  universities  government and industrial laboratories  medical centers

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 20 of 60 TRIGA  used in many diverse applications  production of radioisotopes for medicine and industry  treatment of tumors  nondestructive testing  basic research on the properties of matter  education and training  operate at thermal power levels from less than 0.1 to 16 megawatts and pulsed to 22,000 megawatts

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 21 of 60 High Flux Isotope Reactor

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 22 of 60 High Flux Isotope Reactor

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 23 of 60 Egypt

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 24 of 60 Egypt

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 25 of 60 India

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 26 of 60 Korea

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 27 of 60 Pakistan PARR-1

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 28 of 60 Location of Research Reactors Russia62 United States 54 Japan18 France15 Germany14 China13

4/2003 Rev 2 I.4.8 – slide 29 of 60 Where to Get More Information  Cember, H., Johnson, T. E., Introduction to Health Physics, 4th Edition, McGraw-Hill, New York (2008)  Martin, A., Harbison, S. A., Beach, K., Cole, P., An Introduction to Radiation Protection, 6 th Edition, Hodder Arnold, London (2012)  Glasstone, S., Sesonske, A., Nuclear Reactor Engineering, 4 th Edition, Dordrecht:Kluwer Academic Publishers (1995)  Further information can be obtained from :