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August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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Latest News
Antares achieves zero-power criticality at INL
Leveraging more than $140 million in private capital fundraising, over 322,000 square feet of operational manufacturing space, and multifaceted partnerships with the Departments of Energy and Defense, reactor start-up Antares has become the first company involved in the Reactor Pilot Program to achieve zero-power fueled criticality—a full month ahead of the July 4 deadline set by President Trump’s Executive Order 14301.
This milestone, announced yesterday, was achieved with the company’s Mark-0: a sodium heat-pipe-cooled, TRISO-fueled microreactor. The Mark-0 is a forerunner to the company’s flagship design, which it calls the R1. For Antares, this development represents a key validation of its reactor physics, control systems, and supply chain.
M. Harb, L. El-Guebaly, A. Davis, P. Wilson, E. Marriott, J. Benzaquen, FESS-FNSF Team
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 72 | Number 3 | October 2017 | Pages 510-515
Technical Note | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2017.1333846
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Two issues related to neutronics analysis of fusion systems were addressed for the purpose of physical design iterations as well as plant operation: tritium self-sufficiency and shielding of the inboard magnet. State-of-the-art modeling/analysis tools facilitated a full 3-D neutronics analysis of the latest FESS-FNSF design. The first stage of the analysis involved the selection of materials for the first wall and blanket along with shielding materials to protect the magnet based on extensive 1-D analyses. The second stage is a stepwise workflow to estimate the overall tritium breeding ratio with high fidelity. It involved a bottom-up approach by coupling the CAD model with the 3-D MCNP code using DAGMC and adding the relevant design details in steps to assess the effect of such details on the tritium breeding ratio. The final stage involved calculations of the values of damage parameters at specific components: the first wall, the vacuum vessel, and magnet.