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August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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The deadline arrives: Checking in on the Reactor Pilot Program
On May 23, 2025, President Trump signed Executive Order 14301, “Reforming Nuclear Reactor Testing at the DOE,” which instructed the Department of Energy to create a Reactor Pilot Program (RPP)—a new system in which companies could pursue DOE authorization to build and test their first-of-a-kind nuclear technologies. EO 14301 set an ambitious goal for that program: three reactors achieving criticality by July 4, 2026.
Mark T. Robinson, William A. Brooksbank, Jr., Samuel A. Reynolds, Henry W. Wright, Thomas H. Handley
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 4 | Number 3 | September 1958 | Pages 288-296
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE58-A25529
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Observations are reported on the behavior of several fission product elements in molten NaF-ZrF4-UF4 fuels, irradiated in capsule experiments, forced-convection in-pile loop experiments, and in the Aircraft Reactor Experiment (ARE). The rare gases have been observed to escape readily from the fuels in dynamic tests, although in static tests the rate of escape is very low. Ruthenium and niobium deposit on the Inconel walls of the fuel container, probably as metals. Other fission products studied (Sr, Zr, La, Ce) appear to remain in the fuel. The results obtained are entirely consistent with theoretical predictions. It is suggested that the observed noble metal deposit may serve to reduce corrosion of metals by molten fluoride fuels. The unsatisfactory nature of Cs137 as a fission monitor in such fuels is reported and the use of Zr95 as a substitute is discussed.