The Budapest Research Reactor

Short Introduction of the Budapest Research Reactor

(history, operation and utilisation)

Reactor features

The Budapest Research Reactor (BRR) is a tank-type reactor, moderated and cooled by light water. The reactor, which went critical in 1959, is of Soviet origin. The initial thermal power was 2 MW. The first upgrading took place in 1967 when the power was increased from 2 MW to 5 MW, using a new type of fuel and a beryllium reflector. A full-scale reactor reconstruction and upgrading project began in 1986, following 27 years of operation since initial criticality. The upgraded 10 MW reactor received the operation license in November 1993.

Main technical data:

Reactor type:..................................... Light-water cooled and moderated tank-type
reactor with beryllium reflector
Fuel:.................................................. VVR-SM(-M2)
Nominal thermal power:.................... 10 MW
Mean power density in the core:....... 61.2 kW/litre
Neutron flux density in the core:........ 2,5 * 1014 n/cm2s (thermal in the flux trap)
1 * 1014 n/cm2s (approx. max. fast flux in the fast channel)

The Reactor Hall

Layout of the horizontal neutron beam facilities at the BRR