May 2007
HFIR unveiled upgrades including new instruments and cold neutron source
In 2007, HFIR completed the most dramatic transformation in its 40-year history.
During a shutdown of more than a year, the facility was refurbished and a number of new instruments were installed, as well as a cold neutron source. The reactor was restarted in mid-May; it attained its full power of 85 MW within a couple of days, and experiments resumed within a week.
Improvements and upgrades to HFIR included an overhaul of the reactor structure for reliable, sustained operation; significant upgrading of the eight thermal-neutron spectrometers in the beam room; new computer system controls; installation of the liquid hydrogen cold source; and a new cold neutron guide hall.
View of the High Flux Isotope Reactor Cold Guide Hall.
(Photo Credit: Genevieve Martin/ORNL/U.S. Dept. of Energy)
