Located in Dorset and constructed in the 1950’s as a centre of excellence for nuclear reactor research. Dragon was a 20-megawatt power output graphite moderated, helium cooled prototype reactor.
Seven of the nine experimental reactors have been dismantled, and the project is currently at the first of eleven phases to fully dismantle the core.
Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS) are driving innovation forward with this project and Phoebe Lynch, NRS strategic innovation programme manager, said: “All the learning from the initial operational phase of using laser cutting for the Dragon reactor core provided valuable insights into the feasibility, reliability and safety of this technique.”
Over the next few years, the core will be packed into 6m3 concrete intermediate level waste storage boxes, and these will be taken to the Harwell Science & Innovation Park in Oxfordshire.
The long-term aim is that this highly radioactive waste will be permanently stored in the geological disposal facility (GDF) once it is available.
Picture: gov.uk