IAEA Nuclear Energy Series IAEA Nuclear No. NP-T-5.3 No. IAEA Nuclear Energy Series Applications of Research Reactors No. NP-T-5.3 Basic Applications of Principles Research Reactors Objectives Guides Technical Reports INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA ISBN 978–92–0–145010–4 ISSN 1995–7807 13-49091_PUB1627_cover_A4.indd 1,3 2014-02-27 08:47:02 IAEA NUCLEAR ENERGY SERIES PUBLICATIONS STRUCTURE OF THE IAEA NUCLEAR ENERGY SERIES Under the terms of Articles III.A and VIII.C of its Statute, the IAEA is authorized to foster the exchange of scientific and technical information on the peaceful uses of atomic energy. The publications in the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series provide information in the areas of nuclear power, nuclear fuel cycle, radioactive waste management and decommissioning, and on general issues that are relevant to all of the above mentioned areas. The structure of the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series comprises three levels: 1 — Basic Principles and Objectives; 2 — Guides; and 3 — Technical Reports. The Nuclear Energy Basic Principles publication describes the rationale and vision for the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Nuclear Energy Series Objectives publications explain the expectations to be met in various areas at different stages of implementation. Nuclear Energy Series Guides provide high level guidance on how to achieve the objectives related to the various topics and areas involving the peaceful uses of nuclear energy. Nuclear Energy Series Technical Reports provide additional, more detailed information on activities related to the various areas dealt with in the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series. The IAEA Nuclear Energy Series publications are coded as follows: NG — general; NP — nuclear power; NF — nuclear fuel; NW — radioactive waste management and decommissioning. In addition, the publications are available in English on the IAEA Internet site: http://www.iaea.org/Publications/index.html For further information, please contact the IAEA at PO Box 100, Vienna International Centre, 1400 Vienna, Austria. All users of the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series publications are invited to inform the IAEA of experience in their use for the purpose of ensuring that they continue to meet user needs. Information may be provided via the IAEA Internet site, by post, at the address given above, or by email to Offi[email protected]. 13-49091_PUB1627_cover_A4.indd 4,6 2014-02-27 08:47:03 APPLICATIONS OF RESEARCH REACTORS The following States are Members of the International Atomic Energy Agency: AFGHANISTAN GREECE PALAU ALBANIA GUATEMALA PANAMA ALGERIA HAITI PAPUA NEW GUINEA ANGOLA HOLY SEE PARAGUAY ARGENTINA HONDURAS PERU ARMENIA HUNGARY PHILIPPINES AUSTRALIA ICELAND POLAND AUSTRIA INDIA PORTUGAL AZERBAIJAN INDONESIA QATAR BAHAMAS IRAN, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA BAHRAIN IRAQ ROMANIA BANGLADESH IRELAND BELARUS ISRAEL RUSSIAN FEDERATION BELGIUM ITALY RWANDA BELIZE JAMAICA SAN MARINO BENIN JAPAN SAUDI ARABIA BOLIVIA JORDAN SENEGAL BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA KAZAKHSTAN SERBIA BOTSWANA KENYA SEYCHELLES BRAZIL KOREA, REPUBLIC OF SIERRA LEONE BULGARIA KUWAIT SINGAPORE BURKINA FASO KYRGYZSTAN SLOVAKIA BURUNDI LAO PEOPLE’S DEMOCRATIC SLOVENIA CAMBODIA REPUBLIC SOUTH AFRICA CAMEROON LATVIA SPAIN CANADA LEBANON SRI LANKA LESOTHO CENTRAL AFRICAN SUDAN REPUBLIC LIBERIA SWAZILAND CHAD LIBYA SWEDEN CHILE LIECHTENSTEIN SWITZERLAND CHINA LITHUANIA COLOMBIA LUXEMBOURG SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC CONGO MADAGASCAR TAJIKISTAN COSTA RICA MALAWI THAILAND CÔTE D’IVOIRE MALAYSIA THE FORMER YUGOSLAV CROATIA MALI REPUBLIC OF MACEDONIA CUBA MALTA TOGO CYPRUS MARSHALL ISLANDS TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO CZECH REPUBLIC MAURITANIA TUNISIA DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC MAURITIUS TURKEY OF THE CONGO MEXICO UGANDA DENMARK MONACO UKRAINE DOMINICA MONGOLIA UNITED ARAB EMIRATES DOMINICAN REPUBLIC MONTENEGRO UNITED KINGDOM OF ECUADOR MOROCCO GREAT BRITAIN AND EGYPT MOZAMBIQUE NORTHERN IRELAND EL SALVADOR MYANMAR UNITED REPUBLIC ERITREA NAMIBIA OF TANZANIA ESTONIA NEPAL ETHIOPIA NETHERLANDS UNITED STATES OF AMERICA FIJI NEW ZEALAND URUGUAY FINLAND NICARAGUA UZBEKISTAN FRANCE NIGER VENEZUELA GABON NIGERIA VIET NAM GEORGIA NORWAY YEMEN GERMANY OMAN ZAMBIA GHANA PAKISTAN ZIMBABWE The Agency’s Statute was approved on 23 October 1956 by the Conference on the Statute of the IAEA held at United Nations Headquarters, New York; it entered into force on 29 July 1957. The Headquarters of the Agency are situated in Vienna. Its principal objective is “to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world’’. IAEA NUCLEAR ENERGY SERIES NO. NP-T-5.3 APPLICATIONS OF RESEARCH REACTORS INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY VIENNA, 2014 COPYRIGHT NOTICE All IAEA scientific and technical publications are protected by the terms of the Universal Copyright Convention as adopted in 1952 (Berne) and as revised in 1972 (Paris). The copyright has since been extended by the World Intellectual Property Organization (Geneva) to include electronic and virtual intellectual property. Permission to use whole or parts of texts contained in IAEA publications in printed or electronic form must be obtained and is usually subject to royalty agreements. Proposals for non-commercial reproductions and translations are welcomed and considered on a case-by-case basis. Enquiries should be addressed to the IAEA Publishing Section at: Marketing and Sales Unit, Publishing Section International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna International Centre PO Box 100 1400 Vienna, Austria fax: +43 1 2600 29302 tel.: +43 1 2600 22417 email: [email protected] http://www.iaea.org/books © IAEA, 2014 Printed by the IAEA in Austria February 2014 STI/PUB/1627 IAEA Library Cataloguing in Publication Data Applications of research reactors. — Vienna : International Atomic Energy Agency, 2014. p. ; 24 cm. — (IAEA nuclear energy series, ISSN 1995–7807 ; no. NP-T-5.3) STI/PUB/1627 ISBN 978–92–0–145010–4 Includes bibliographical references. 1. Nuclear reactors — Research. 2. Nuclear reactors — Experiments. 3. Nuclear physics — Research. I. International Atomic Energy Agency. II. Series. IAEAL 14–00879 FOREWORD One of the IAEA’s statutory objectives is to “seek to accelerate and enlarge the contribution of atomic energy to peace, health and prosperity throughout the world.” One way this objective is achieved is through the publication of a range of technical series. Two of these are the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series and the IAEA Safety Standards Series. According to Article III.A.6 of the IAEA Statute, the safety standards establish “standards of safety for protection of health and minimization of danger to life and property”. The safety standards include the Safety Fundamentals, Safety Requirements and Safety Guides. These standards are written primarily in a regulatory style, and are binding on the IAEA for its own programmes. The principal users are the regulatory bodies in Member States and other national authorities. The IAEA Nuclear Energy Series comprises reports designed to encourage and assist R&D on, and application of, nuclear energy for peaceful uses. This includes practical examples to be used by owners and operators of utilities in Member States, implementing organizations, academia, and government officials, among others. This information is presented in guides, reports on technology status and advances, and best practices for peaceful uses of nuclear energy based on inputs from international experts. The IAEA Nuclear Energy Series complements the IAEA Safety Standards Series. The purpose of the earlier publication, The Application of Research Reactors, IAEA-TECDOC-1234, was to present descriptions of the typical forms of research reactor use. The necessary criteria to enable an application to be performed were outlined for each one, and, in many cases, the minimum as well as the desirable requirements were given. This revision of the publication over a decade later maintains the original purpose and now specifically takes into account the changes in service requirements demanded by the relevant stakeholders. In particular, the significant improvements in equipment and technology available for such utilization applications are considered. This publication is of particular benefit to those seeking to increase the utilization of their facilities and to assist with the strategic planning required prior to the installation of new equipment or modification of an existing facility, or even for the construction of a new research reactor. This consideration becomes particularly relevant where the owners and operators of these facilities must demonstrate either the financial or the strategic value of their facilities to the relevant stakeholders. The applications presented represent a variety — from those that are possible at any power level of research reactor, such as training, to those that require higher power and more specialized reactors with expensive experimental facilities, such as transmutation doping and radioisotope production. The publication has been expanded to include considerations on strategic planning and user and customer relations. The simplified research reactor capability matrix which was originally developed has been updated accordingly and is now presented in Annex I. This assists in the determination of the various applications that may be appropriate for a particular power level reactor. The IAEA wishes to acknowledge the assistance of all the experts who contributed to the updating and revision of this publication. The IAEA also thanks C. Piani (South Africa) for assistance