The NNSA global threat reduction - reactor conversion program

Full text: The National Nuclear Security Administration's (NNSA) Office of Global Threat Reduction (GTRI) mission is to reduce and protect vulnerable nuclear and radiological materials located at civilian sites worldwide. The minimization, and to the extent possible, the elimination, of Highly-Enriched Uranium (HEU) in civilian nuclear applications is key to the mission of the GTRI program. There are three program elements in GTR: The Reactor Conversion element aims at converting HEU-fueled research and test reactors in civilian applications to the use of low enriched uranium (LEU) fuels and irradiation targets. The Remove program element objective is to remove excess nuclear and radiological materials from civilian sites worldwide for proper disposition. The Protect program element objective is to protect high-priority nuclear and radiological materials worldwide from theft and sabotage. The accomplishments and priorities of the GTRI program are summarized, and the detailed activities of the GTRI Reactor Conversion program are described. The Reactor Conversion program develops (1) LEU fuels to enable the reactor conversions, (2) the methodology for performing the analyses necessary for converting and licensing operations with LEU fuels, and (3) technology for the production of medical isotopes without the use of HEU targets. The paper provides an overview of the technologies involved in the reactor conversions and provides a more detailed description of the process underway for the conversion of high performance reactors in the US. (authors)