The Jules Horowitz Reactor (RJH) is to be Europe's newest research reactor. The 100 MWt reactor is being built at Cadarache in southern France.[1]
As of July 2008, site preparations are nearly complete, with thousands of cubic metres of dirt and debris having been moved since March 2007 in preparation for the reactor's foundations. First concrete is expected to be poured soon.[2]
The Jules Horowitz Reactor is a part of The European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI), which published the European Roadmap for Research Infrastructures Report in 2006.[3]
The reactor is being built under the framework of an international consortium of research institutes from France, the Czech Republic (NRI), Spain (CIEMAT), Finland (VTT), Belgium (SCK•CEN) and the European Commission, along with companies such as Electricité de France (EdF), Vattenfall and Areva. There are two associate partners to the consortium; India (DAE) and Japan (JAEA). The consortium is open for further international collaboration. The construction of RJH is funded by a consortium of CEA (50%), Electricité de France (20%), EU research institutes (20%) and Areva (10%).[4]
RJH is intended to be a materials test reactor. Upon expected completion in 2014, the reactor will be a versatile research tool, designed to be adaptable for a variety of uses over a lifetime of 50 years. It may be used by nuclear utilities, nuclear steam system suppliers, nuclear fuel fabricators, research organisations and safety authorities.[4] Its primary uses will be research into the performance of nuclear fuel at existing reactors, testing of materials used in reactors, testing designs for fuel for future reactors and the production of radioisotopes for use in medicine.[4] The reactor will be much needed by the time it starts up, as all of Europe's existing material test reactors were built in the 1960s and are expected to be reaching the ends of their lives between 2015 and 2020.[2]
The versatile modular design is to accommodate some 20 simultaneous experiments. The instrumentation to be used with the reactor will allow hitherto unavailable real-time analysis to be performed.
The reactor is expected to produce radioisotopes in coordination with existing production facilities at Petten in the Netherlands.[2]
The CEA's Cadarache site will also be home to the ITER fusion reactor, for which ground is being prepared about 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) away.