Aerial view of the Fast Flux Test Facility

The Fast Flux Test Facility is a 400 MW nuclear test reactor owned by the U.S. Department of Energy. It is situated in the 400 Area of the Hanford Site, which is located in the state of Washington. Image File history File links FFTF_Hanford. ... Image File history File links FFTF_Hanford. ... The megawatt (symbol: MW) is a unit for measuring power corresponding to one million (106) watts. ... Core of a small nuclear reactor used for research. ... Motto: (historic) In God We Trust (official, 1956–present) Anthem: The Star-Spangled Banner Capital Washington, D.C. Largest city New York Official language(s) None at federal level; English de facto Government Federal Republic  - President George W. Bush (R)  - Vice President Dick Cheney (R) Independence - Declared - Recognized From Great... The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government responsible for energy policy and nuclear safety. ... Hanford Site during the Manhattan Project. ... Official language(s) None Capital Olympia Largest city Seattle Area  Ranked 18th  - Total 71,342 sq mi (184,824 km²)  - Width 240 miles (385 km)  - Length 360 miles (580 km)  - % water 6. ...

History

The construction of the FFTF was completed in 1978, and the first reaction took place in 1980. From April 1982 to April 1992 it operated as a national research facility to test various aspects of commercial reactor design and operation, especially relating to breeder reactors. The FFTF is not a breeder reactor itself, but rather a sodium-cooled Fast neutron reactor, as the name suggests. It is stated on the site dedicated to the FFTF, that it tested "advanced nuclear fuels, materials, components, nuclear power plant operations and maintenance protocols, and reactor safety designs." By 1993, the number of uses to which the reactor could be put was diminishing, so the decision was taken in December of that year to decommission it. Over the next 3 years, the active parts of the facility were gradually halted, fuel rods removed and stored in above-ground dry storage vessels. However, in January 1997, the DOE ordered that the reactor be maintained in a standby condition, pending a decision as to whether to incorporate it into the US Government's tritium production programme, for both medical and fusion research. Since then, due to legal wrangling, decommissioning has been stopped and restarted at intervals. In December 2001, the deactivation was continued, after the DOE found that it was not needed for tritium production. Work was halted in 2002 when court action was begun. As of May 2003, deactivation has continued uninterrupted, and it is currently in a state of cold standby. 1978 (MCMLXXVIII) was a common year starting on Sunday (the link is to a full 1978 calendar). ... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... A breeder reactor is a nuclear reactor that breeds fuel by producing more fissile material than it consumes. ... A fast neutron reactor or simply a fast reactor is a category of nuclear reactor in which the fission chain reaction is sustained by fast neutrons. ... // Enriched uranium is uranium whose uranium-235 content has been increased through the process of isotope separation. ... A nuclear power station. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... A reserve fleet or (less formally) mothball fleet is a collection of naval vessels that are fully equipped for fighting but are not currently needed. ... Core of a small nuclear reactor used for research. ... A typical dry cask storage system with vertical cylinders Dry cask storage is a method of storing high-level radioactive waste, such as spent nuclear fuel that has already been cooled in the spent fuel pool for at least one year. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... In telecommunication, the term standby has the following meanings: In computer and communications systems operations, pertaining to a power-saving condition or status of operation of equipment that is ready for use but not in use. ... Tritium (symbol T or 3H) is a radioactive isotope of hydrogen. ... Nuclear medicine is a branch of medicine and medical imaging that uses unsealed radioactive substances in diagnosis and therapy. ... The Sun is a natural fusion reactor. ... 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

In May 2005 the core support basket was drilled to drain the remaining sodium coolent. This effectively made the reactor unusable, however a technical study is being pursued with regard to repairing the reactor. As the coolent was drained, the system was back filled with high purity argon gas to prevent corrosion. The support basket is an unpressurized area, the reactor core has not yet been breached (as of June 2006).

The reason for renewed interest in the FFTF is that the global atmosphere with regard to nuclear energy has changed due to current oil prices, and the US is pursuing nuclear power once again. To build a similar facility would cost an estimated $2-5 billion.

In April, 2006, the FFTF was honored by the American Nuclear Society as a "National Nuclear Historic Landmark". Achievements cited include: The American Nuclear Society is a non-profit, educational organization established by a group of individuals who recognized the need to bring together professional activities within the fields of nuclear science and technology. ...

• Radiation exposure to operators was 1/100th of commercial power reactors.
• Established a world record for fuel performance.
• Produced extremely high quality rare radioisotopes for medicine and industry.
• Conducted the first passive safety testing.
• Demonstrated commercial viability of breeder reactor components, materials and fuels.
• Provided fundamental experimental data for fusion programs.
• Advanced the fuels and materials development for space nuclear power.
• Demonstrated miniaturized reactor test techniques.
• Demonstrated the feasibility of transmuting radioactive Technetium 99 into a non-radioactive element using a reactor. Technetium 99 is one of the most troublesome long-lived components of the nuclear waste stream. Processing out this isotope and destroying it in a reactor represents a permanent solution to reducing the nuclear risk in waste.

Radioactive decay is the set of various processes by which unstable atomic nuclei (nuclides) emit subatomic particles (radiation). ... Atoms of chemical elements may have many isotopes (different forms) with the same atomic numbers but different atomic weights / atomic mass numbers. ... General Name, Symbol, Number technetium, Tc, 43 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 7, 5, d Appearance silvery gray metal Atomic mass [98](0) g/mol Electron configuration [Kr] 4d5 5s2 Electrons per shell 2, 8, 18, 13, 2 Physical properties Phase solid Density (near r. ... Radioactive waste is waste material containing radioactive chemical elements that does not have a practical purpose. ... Isotopes are forms of an element, therefore their nuclei have the same atomic number — the number of protons in the nucleus — but different mass numbers because they contain different numbers of neutrons. ...

External links

• Annette Cary. "FFTF gets historic landmark designation", Tri-City Herald, 2006-04-18. Retrieved on 2006-05-31.

• Annette Cary. "Group says DOE should consider restarting FFTF", Tri-City Herald, 2006-06-20. Retrieved on 2006-06-27.

• The Associated Press. "Core drilling kills last hope to revive Hanford research reactor", Tri-City Herald, 2005-05-20. Retrieved on 2006-06-27.

• DOE Richland Operations Office Fast Flux Test Facility. Retrieved on 2006-05-31.
• The Center for Land Use Interpretation. Retrieved on 2006-05-31.
• The Fast Flux Test Facility. (1999). Retrieved on 2006-05-31.

2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... April 18 is the 108th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (109th in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 20 is the 171st day of the year (172nd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 194 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 20 is the 140th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (141st in leap years). ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... June 27 is the 178th day of the year (179th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 187 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ... 2006 (MMVI) is a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... May 31 is the 151st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (152nd in leap years), with 214 days remaining. ...

Reference

• John Abbotts, "The long, slow death of the fast flux reactor," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, September/October 2004.

Coordinates: 46.435284° N -119.360061° E The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists is a journal concerned with global security issues, especially related to the dangers posed nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. ... Map of Earth showing lines of latitude (horizontally) and longitude (vertically); large version (pdf) The geographic (earth-mapping) coordinate system expresses every horizontal position on Earth by two of the three coordinates of a spherical coordinate system which is aligned with the spin axis of the Earth. ...

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