PPPL radioactive fusion test reactor safely dismantled after 15 years of use

The Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory has successfully completed a three-year effort to dismantle and remove the Tokamak Fusion Test Reactor.

The reactor was a major contributor to research of fusion as a longterm energy alternative, said Richard Hawryluk, deputy director of PPPL.

The government provided $6 million in grant money to remove and decontaminate the reactor in 1999, he said.

The process, which was scheduled to take three years, was completed on time and under budget in September.

The money left over from the procedure will be donated to furthering fusion research, Hawryluk said.

"This is an example of doing a job well and allowing the entire scientific community to benefit from it," he said.

Dismantling the reactor was a colossal undertaking that required significant resources, he said.

"A project this large and complicated has many industrial hazards," Hawryluk said.

The machine itself contained 680 tons of metal and coils, not including a massive stainless-steel support system, according to a PPPL press release.

The reactor used a fuel mixture that contained mildly radioactive substances, adding safety procedures to the complication of the removal.

However, "all went very smoothly," Hawryluk said. "All controls were in place, and the procedure was done safely."

The large staff that included both engineering and health experts faced numerous challenges.

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Each aspect of the project was considered comprehensively before completion.

For example, abrasive sawing did not meet health and safety standards, so the staff was forced to use techniques such as diamond wire cutting to slice up the metal components, according to the press release.

Construction of the reactor, an experimental fusion device, began in 1974, said Patricia Wieser, a PPPL spokeswoman.

The machine was used from 1982 to 1997. Experimenting stopped in 1997 once the reactor had succeeded in its mission, Hawryluk said.

Budget constraints were also a factor in the decision to shut down the machine, he said.

During its peak, the reactor set record temperatures and energy production rates.

In 1994, the reactor produced enough power to meet the needs of more than 3,000 homes, according to the PPPL website.

Though fusion is capable of producing massive amounts of energy, there is still an enormous amount of scientific and technological advances that must be completed before it is used as an alternative power source, Hawryluk said.

"There are an awful lot of discoveries and research that must take place before fusion is a viable alternative," he said.

Though the reactor has been retired, the PPPL has been doing research on a newer machine, which is already producing new and important results, Hawryluk said.

"And yet another machine is on the drawing board," he said.