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Jordan’s New Research Reactor: A Virtual Tour

12 January 2018
Research reactors have often more than research functions, they are used for education and training, material testing and modification, and for the production of radioisotopes for medical and industrial applications. Like nuclear power reactors, research reactors are required to adhere to the highest safety standards. The 5MW Jordan Research and Training Reactor (JRTR) is the latest of this kind. It was built on the campus of the Jordan University for Science and Technology and received the operation license on 12 November 2017.The JRTR reactor hall, which is inside the reactor building where the facility is located. As the JRTR project transitioned from the design phase to the construction, the Jordanian Atomic Energy Commission (JAEC) was keen on ensuring that safety and security were in accordance with the highest international standards, and being incorporated throughout all phases of the JRTR project. “The IAEA has been our partner right from the start and throughout the various stages of the JRTR project,” said Samer D. Kahook, JAEC’s Commissioner for the Nuclear Fuel Cycle and the JRTR Manager. Staff monitoring the JRTR systems during the initial operation testing phase from the main control room. “Training facilitated by the IAEA for our engineering, scientific, and project staff members has been tailored to meet our needs helping us to prepare and provide our staff with the knowledge and skills that enabled Jordan to receive this state-of-the-art and versatile facility equipped with safety features — unlike no other,” said Kahook. The JRTR has been subjected to IAEA peer review missions, such as the IAEA Integrated Nuclear Safety Assessment of Research Reactors in December 2016. Husam Khalefih, one the JRTR Senior Reactor Operators and a colleague assessing data during the testing of systems related to the JRTR.The sealed double door to the research facility provides for containment, one of the stringent safety features of the JRTR.The brilliant blue glow in the reactor pool. Electron particles released by the fuel, interacting with water, generate a piercing blue light, known as ‘Cherenkov effect’. The intensity of the blue glow increases with increasing power level of the operating reactor. Neutron beam ports of the JRTR will be used to conduct nuclear science and technology experiments, and the irradiation holes will be utilized for the production of radioisotopes for medical and industrial purposes – in addition to other research activities, Kahook said.To support training of JRTR operators and nuclear technology engineers, the JRTR training center is equipped with a fully functional simulator. The JRTR facility also includes a radioactive waste treatment facility, which is in the final stages of commissioning and it will handle radioactive waste from the JRTR as well as from industry and hospitals. Another important feature of the JRTR are the ‘hot cell banks’ that allows for the safe handling of highly-radioactive material, such as in the production of radioisotopes for medical and industrial applications.The JRTR team produces medical-grade 131I and 99Mo/99mTc during the initial operation testing stage. A picture through the service pool into the reactor pool showing the grid on top of the fuel assemblies and some of the irradiation holes used for research and radioisotope production. Also visible is the gate that separates the reactor pool from the service pool. The reactor and service pool contain 86 000 gallons of high-purity (demineralized) water, and is 12 feet wide and 33 feet deep.State-of-the-art facility with three pneumatic systems to support neutron activation analysis, forensic analysis, and archaeological research.The JRTR is a multipurpose research reactor, and our continued collaboration with the IAEA and IAEA Member States will help expand the benefits of nuclear applications in Jordan and the surrounding region,” Kahook said. “The production or medical radioisotopes for therapy and diagnostic is only a small fraction of what the JRTR will deliver,” he added.The JRTR was inaugurated under the patronage of King Abdullah II on 7 December 2016.

Take a peek inside one of the world's newest research reactors, which received its operation license last November. 

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Last update: 24 July 2019

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