Department of Energy Celebrates Second Advanced Reactor Achieving Criticality

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Department of Energy Celebrates Second Advanced Reactor Achieving Criticality

https://www.energy.gov/articles/department-energy-celebrates-second-advanced-reactor-achieving-criticality

[Core Content]

Source: Energy.gov.

Valar Atomics achieved zero-power criticality with its Ward 250 reactor at the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab. This event marks the first Department of Energy authorized reactor constructed outside of a national laboratory. The milestone supports the federal mandate to demonstrate multiple advanced reactor designs by July 2026 to accelerate the deployment of new nuclear technologies.

Today, as part of the U.S. Department of Energy Reactor Pilot Program, Valar Atomics' advanced reactor design, Ward 250, successfully completed a zero-power fueled criticality demonstration.

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today celebrated another historic milestone in America's nuclear renaissance. DOE Reactor Pilot Program participant Valar Atomics' advanced reactor design, Ward 250, successfully completed a zero-power fueled criticality demonstration. The experiment took place at the Utah San Rafael Energy Lab in Emery County, Utah, and marks the first DOE authorized reactor built outside of a national laboratory.

Read the full article at Energy.gov:
https://www.energy.gov/articles/department-energy-celebrates-second-advanced-reactor-achieving-criticality