The Radiation Science and Engineering Center Utilizations and Future Developments at Penn State University

The Radiation Science and Engineering Center (RSEC) facilities at Penn State include the Penn State Breazeale Reactor (PSBR), gamma irradiation facilities (In-pool Irradiator and Dry Irradiator), Neutron Beam Laboratory, Hot Cells, Radio-nuclear Applications Laboratory (RAL), Radiochemistry Teaching Laboratory, Nuclear Security Education Laboratory, Subcritical Graphite Reactor Facility, and various Radiation Detection and Measurement Laboratories. The PSBR is a 1 MW TRIGA Mark III reactor with pulsing capabilities. A variety of dry tubes and fixtures are available in or near the core for irradiations. When the reactor core is placed next to the D₂O tank and graphite reflector assembly near the beam port locations, thermal neutron beams become available. In steady state operation at 1 MW, the thermal neutron flux is 1x10¹³ n/cm² sec at the edge of the core and 3x10¹³ n/cm² sec at the central thimble. The peak flux during a maximum pulse is ∼ 6x10¹⁶ n/cm² sec with a pulse half width of ∼10 msec. The PSBR, the centerpiece of the RSEC, first went critical in 1955 and is the longest continuously operating university research reactor in the United States. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission renewed the PSBR's license for an additional 20 years in November 2009. A significant redesign of the core-moderator/beam port is currently underway to make full use of the PSBR's capabilities and to establish state-of-the-art neutron beam facilities