ABOUT 

A challenging scientific
and technical project

The JHR Material Test Reactor project led by the CEA will provide the means needed to explore an essential scientific and technical field: testing the behaviour of materials and fuels under irradiation in order to support current and future nuclear reactors. The JHR Material Test Reactor is currently under construction at the CEA Cadarache site. Once commissioned, this unique experimental irradiation tool in Europe will not only be available to the nuclear industry and research organisations, but also to nuclear safety authorities and their support units. It will also be used to produce radioelements needed in both nuclear medicine and the non-nuclear industry.

3D animation
of the reactor

The JHR Material Test Reactor is currently under construction; its pool-type design is one of a kind. The facility comprises a reactor building and a nuclear annex building. It has been designed to provide high neutron fluxes close to 10¹⁴n.cm^-2.s^-1, which are needed to:

• Speed up the ageing process of materials and fuels by a factor of around 10 compared with nuclear power reactors,
• Choose, characterise and qualify nuclear fuels and materials,
• Produce various radioelements for medical and industrial applications.