High Flux Isotope Reactor

The High Flux Isotope Reactor (or HFIR) is a nuclear research reactor located at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, United States. Operational since 1966, the HFIR is an 85 MW reactor designed for the production of special radioisotopes (it is the only US source of Californium-252) and high thermal neutron fluxes for research purposes.

Additional recommended knowledge

What is the Sensitivity of my Balance?

How to quickly check pipettes?

Daily Visual Balance Check

In November 2007 ORNL officials announced that time-of-flight tests on a newly installed cold source (which uses liquid helium and hydrogen to slow the movement of neutrons) showed better performance than design predictions, equaling or surpassing the previous world record set by the research reactor at the Institut Laue-Langevin in Grenoble, France.^[1]