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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.
Bo Shi, Chenyao Jin, Chi-Shung Yip, Di Jiang, Wei Zhang, Wei Lu, Wenjing Pu, Junli Qi, Huihui Shan, Changjiang Zhang
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 80 | Number 8 | November 2024 | Pages 1055-1059
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2024.2309089
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
According to the characteristic spectral lines of helium atoms, an optical system for the laser-induced fluorescence study of helium atoms has been designed. The design includes a helium spectral scheme and a laser injection and fluorescence collection system. The diode laser generates a 667.8-nm laser, and the laser is injected into the linear plasma device through an optical fiber. The fluorescence collection system detects 501.6-nm fluorescence signals. Experiments were carried out on the linear plasma device during helium discharge, simulating the helium ash environment at the boundary of the fusion reactor. The fluorescence collection was realized, and the fluorescence signals showed an increasing trend with laser power. Atomic density calibration and study will be performed based on the collected signals in the next step.