Liquid cooled nuclear reactors

A construction is described for a liquid metal cooled fast reactor, in which the core is supported in a pool of liquid coolant, wherein a catchment tray is provided for any debris falling from the core. The tray comprises a complex of open top collecting vessels with central support struts, the vessels being spaced apart and arranged in layers in a lattice pitch. The lattice pitches of the vessels in each layer are off-set to the lattice pitches of the vessels in the other layers, so that upper vessels partially overlap lower vessels, and the support struts extend through interspaces defined by the vessels in off-set pitch to a common supporting sub-structure. The complex of vessels offers a complete catchment area for falling debris, whilst being pervious to liquid coolant circulating upwardly by convection. The collecting vessels preferably comprise conical dishes and are arranged in triangular lattice pitch in each layer, and the complex of vessels comprises three layers. Alternatively the collecting vessels may be rectilinear and arranged on a square lattice. The catchment tray may comprise two or more such complexes in stacked array. (U.K.)