The canadian research reactors and their uses

Abstract

The heart of the programme at Chalk River is the high-flux, heavy-water-moderated NRX reactor. The primary aim justifying this and the even more costly NRU reactor is to explore the possibilities of deriving low-cost electricity from nuclear energy. This aim is not, however, pursued narrowly and the reactors are used to foster basic research in nuclear physics, nuclear chemistry, radiation physics, chemistry and biology. Since separated fissile material has high intrinsic value in atomic energy research, emphasis has been and still is given to the production of plutonium and uranium-233 as well as to certain radioisotopes, tritium and cobalt among others. Nuclear power will become important within Canada only if it is cheaper than power from the present-day alternatives. The more costly of these are coal in Ontario, coal and oil in the Maritime Provinces, and oil in remote industrial installations such as mines and wood-pulp mills. Coal in Ontario at $8/ton and contributing 3 mills/kWh to the cost of electricity, sets the major target. Results obtained in the NRX reactor indicate that once the large development costs have been worked off nuclear power costs will be definitely lower than this target. Canada is relatively rich in uranium and must immediately consider the particular requirements of foreign as well as domestic consumers. Consequently the research remains broad, and very full programmes lie ahead, not only for the NRX reactor, but also for ZEEP which is mostly used for measurements on fuel arrangements, and a proposed PTR (Swimming-Pool Test Reactor) which will take over the function of ZEEP for measuring reactivity effects of materials, particularly after irradiation. The most powerful and versatile research reactor is, however, the NRU, a heavy-water-cooled and moderated, high-flux reactor, which should be in operation in 1956.