MIT NUCLEAR REACTOR LABORATORY AN MIT INTERDEPARTMENTAL CENTER
MIT NUCLEAR REACTOR LABORATORY AN MIT INTERDEPARTMENTAL CENTER Welcome to the MIT Research Reactor! David Carpenter Research Scientist 6/25/2015
MIT Research Reactor (MITR) Ø Constructed in 1958 (MITR-I) o Upgraded in 1975 (MITR-II) Ø Power up-rate in 2010 to 6 MW o 2 nd largest university reactor in U. S. Ø Operates 24/7, 10 -week cycles Ø Uses light water for cooling Ø Produces radiation for research
What I Do – Materials Research 3
How I Got Here 4
How Much Do You Know? ØWhat is radiation? Is it dangerous? ØHow many nuclear power plants are there in the U. S. ? ØHow many are there in Massachusetts? ØWhere does nuclear power come from? ØWhat does a nuclear power plant look like? ØIs nuclear power safe? 5
What is Radiation? ØRadiation is moving particles / waves ØWe experience radiation as light and heat 6
Is Radiation Dangerous? ØIf it has enough energy radiation can o Heat things up o Move electrons o Move atoms ØThis can damage cells, DNA, materials ØBut, you get lots of radiation every day: o Radon 55% o Cosmic & Earth 16% o What you eat 11% o Medical exams 15% o Everything else 3% 7
Why Are We Interested In Nuclear Power? ØThere is a LOT of energy contained in atoms. o Fissioning 1 gram of Uranium-235 produces 24, 000 k. W-hr of energy. —This is the same as burning 3 tons of coal, or 12 barrels of oil, or 50, 000 ft 3 of natural gas o MIT consumes 600, 000 k. W-hr per day o Your house uses ~20 k. W-hr per day ØA Nuclear reaction, not a Chemical reaction 8
Why Nuclear Power? ØNot burning anything – no exhaust. ØWe have lots of cheap nuclear fuel ØUranium comes from nicer places: o Australia 24% o Kazakhstan 17% o Canada 9% o USA 7% o South Africa 7% ØIt produces a lot of power – we need a lot of power 9
Where are there Nuclear Reactors? 10
Where are there Nuclear Reactors? 11
Where are there Nuclear Reactors? 12
Where Does Nuclear Energy Come From? Split 1 large atom into 2 smaller atoms… This is where all of the energy from nuclear power is produced. 13
Fission of Uranium-235 14
Fission Chain Reaction ØThis is the process that allows reactors to exist: o One free neutron causes one U-235 atom to fission o That fission produces 2 or 3 new free neutrons 15
Nuclear Fuel ØNuclear (fission) reactors use Uranium as fuel Wikimedia Commons Uranium-235 has 92 protons and 143 neutrons 16
Chart of the Nuclides 17
Fission and Fusion ØHow do we know if we will get energy? FISSION FUSION Wikimedia Commons 18
How Does a Nuclear Reactor Work? ØBoil Water! 1. Produce heat 2. Boil water into steam 3. Use steam to turn a turbine-generator This is the same as a: • Coal power plant • Oil power plant • Natural gas plant • Solar thermal plant 19
How a Nuclear Power Plant Works 20
What a Nuclear Power Plant Looks Like Burning coal 21 21
Pilgrim - MA Robinson - SC Indian Point - NY Diablo Canyon - CA Prairie Island site - MN Seabrook - NH Surry - VA 22
The Reactor Core 23
Controlling a Reactor ØWe control the fission chain reaction by getting rid of neutrons o Insert control rods to absorb neutrons ØFewer neutrons = fewer fissions = less heat o This can be very fast – full power to shutdown in <1 second! 24
Nuclear Safety ØProtect people from radiation o Rules on radiation exposure from man-made sources ØKeep radioactive material contained o Keep the fuel cool and shielded o Put waste somewhere safe 25
Handling Radioactive Material ØReduce dose to people from sources o Shielding, distance, time o Dosimeters ØPrevent spread of contamination o Protective clothes o Monitors 26
MIT Research Reactor Layout 27
MITR Core Ø 27 positions with 24 fuel elements (15 fuel plates each) Ø 6 control blades (boron), 1 regulating rod (cadmium) 28
What We Make ØNo electricity ØWater is at 50°C (120°F), not pressurized ØNeutrons for science: o Imaging o Materials research o Fundamental properties of matter o Medicine o Testing equipment o Ultra-sensitive element detection 29
How it Works 30
Beam Ports ØProvides a straight beam of neutrons for many different uses o Student experiments and classes o Medical treatment o Imaging o Microchip production 31
In-Core Experiments ØA unique capability for advanced materials research o Irradiation in water, gas, lead, liquid salt. . . o Temperatures from 50°C to 1400°C o Pressures up to 3000 psi 32
Our Research ØNew sensors o Fiber-optics o Crack-length o Ultrasonic ØNew materials o Ceramics (Si. C, graphite, carbon fiber, MAX-phase) o Metals (zirconium, 3 D-printed steels) o Coolants (liquid flibe salt, lead bismuth) ØNew fuels o Annular o Zirconium hydride o. . . 33
Fusion Power! ØFusion could produce even more power with less fuel ØBut it is very hard ØStill ~30 years away 34
Thank You! Questions? 35
- Slides: 35