Belgium centre unveils safer nuclear reactor design

A new, safer method of operating lead-cooled nuclear reactors has been demonstrated at the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre. The operational model, Guinevere, uses a particle accelerator to control nuclear reactions.

As the new reactor design – referred to as an Accelerator Driven System [ADS] – requires an external neutron source to operate, an immediate shutdown can be brought about by simply turning off the particle accelerator. This makes Guinevere both much safer and easier to control…