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Aalo Atomics achieves criticality on July 4
Executive Order 14301 set an ambitious goal for at least three test reactors to achieve criticality by July 4. Two private companies participating in the Department of Energy’s Reactor Pilot Program—Antares and Valar Atomics—reached this stage earlier in June, and Deployable Energy—participating in the DOE's Nuclear Energy Launch Pad—became the third last week.
In the last few weeks, reports indicated that Aalo would be next, reaching criticality at Idaho National Laboratory with a low-enriched uranium–fueled, sodium-cooled reactor on or near the target date set forth by President Trump’s EO 14301. In the early hours of July 4, Aalo’s critical test reactor—a full-scale zero-power version of its planned 10-MWe Aalo-X—did just that, becoming the fourth DOE-authorized reactor to hit the milestone.
Heui Kyeong An, Eue Jin Jeong, Jae Hwa Hong, Youngpak Lee
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 27 | Number 4 | July 1995 | Pages 408-416
Technical Paper | Nuclear Reactions in Solid | doi.org/10.13182/FST95-A30361
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Earlier experiments suggested that large differences in heat release between the two sides of a palladium electrode coated with gold on one side and manganese oxide on the other cause observed electrode deformation with high-pressure D2 gas loading in an electrolysis-like cell Similar experiments were repeated using heavy water electrolysis. Palladium/titanium coatings on one side and gold coating on the other were made for the preparation of the palladium electrodes. Biaxial bending, partial discoloration, and microcracks of palladium electrodes were observed after 18 days of electrolysis. Analysis of the deformed palladium cathodes was performed. It was discovered that to convert this configuration to a practical energy-producing cell, a coating technique must be found to reduce outward diffusion of deuterium, i.e., to maintain a high D/Pd ratio over longer periods of time.