MIT Nuclear Reactor Laboratory

As a class trip, we visited the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Nuclear Reactor Laboratory (MIT-NRL). The MIT-NRL houses and operates a 5 megawatt (MW) nuclear reactor (MITR) which runs at 50°C (the temperature of hot bath water). Currently the reactor is the second largest university reactor in the entire country but don’t let this fool you – it’s still small enough to fit inside a hug (though I wouldn’t recommend doing so). According to the MIT-NRL, the MITR is “a light-water cooled and moderated, heavy-water reflected nuclear reactor that utilizes flat, plate-type finned, aluminum clad fuel elements.” From what I learned, the reactor has more security than Obama that not only protect it from being taken out but also help keep any contaminants in. To spare ourselves of further details that neither of us will understand I’ll put it simply: The reactor is not used to generate any electricity but rather it produces neurons that scientists and researchers use in their studies. Even if it was used to generate electricity, after all of the power lost in transmission of energy, its 5 MW capacity would only be able to power a bunch of light bulbs.

(Models of the MITR)

Starting our tour of MIT-NRL was like something out of a Bond movie. We had to leave all of our belongings behind and have our starting radiation levels tested to measure any hazardous changes to it when we came out. We then went through one security door and two sets of blast proof doors before entering into the steel box containment building where the MITR is held.

Then we were shown around. We learned that the MIT-NRL used to conduct research on humans, specifically though with tumors. This is a form of therapy called Baron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT). Patients used to be held in a room under the reactor and scientists could use what I interpreted as a ray gun to target the tumor wherever it was, usually in the brain.

Now if the MIT-NRL conducts such studies humans are no longer involved and lab mice are used as a substitute.

We were lead down to the control room where someone must always be present to check for any abnormalities in the neutron flux levels of the MITR. Most of the controls are analog because of resistance from head organization to make the switch to digital. Their resistance is based on many things like being more able to control analog but mostly it’s just unwillingness to make changes. I say this because between the two, digital is more accurate, quicker, and easier to use.

As someone coming in with very little knowledge, I imagined what it’s like to be in a control room when something went wrong. Surrounded by all of those different buttons and controls and light flashing I think I would look something like this

When the tour was finished we were lead back out through the blast proof doors and each of us had to stand on a contamination monitor which looked like a robot to make sure we were “clean” of any contaminants we may have been exposed to.

(Contamination Monitor)

All in all it was an interesting trip and I learned a lot about nuclear reactors. It was good to get some hands on (not literally since we couldn’t touch anything) knowledge about all we’ve been learning.