Zoé (reactor)
The Zoé reactor, or EL-1, was the first French
Design work for the
The choice of moderator and fuel was dictated by the undeveloped state of the French nuclear industry at the time, which could not manufacture the corrosion-proof equipment needed for a more advanced unit.[3] The reactor was a pool-type design, with five tons of heavy water moderator surrounded by a two-meter-thick concrete wall. The core, immersed in the pool, consisted of 60 aluminum-cased vertical rods containing three tons of uranium oxide pellets, controlled by cadmium rods. The heavy water was purchased from Norsk Hydro. A cooling system was added after the reactor had operated for a time, allowing it to run at a heat release rate of 200 kilowatts.[4]
The name Zoé was an acronym, from Zéro de puissance (zero power, that is, very little capacity to produce electricity, which made it easier and faster to build); Oxyde d'uranium (uranium oxide), Eau lourde (heavy water).[1][5] The Châtillon site was superseded for later nuclear research by a new site at Saclay.[3] The reactor was also known as EL-1 (Eau Lourde); its successor at Saclay was EL-2.[4]
The building that formerly housed Zoé is now an exhibit space, the Museum of the Atom.[6]
References
- ^ a b "Irène and Frédéric Joliot-Curie". Institut Curie. Archived from the original on 2010-06-03. Retrieved 26 April 2010.
- ^ The French Nuclear Weapons Program (PDF) (Report). Central Intelligence Agency: Office of Scientific Intelligence. 13 November 1959.
- ^ .
- ^ ISBN 0-8133-1612-X.
- ^ Pinault, Michel, Frédéric Joliot-Curie, Editions Odile Jacob, Paris (2000), pg. 359
- ^ "Site de Fontenay-aux-Roses - La pile Zoé.htm" (in French). CEA. 24 July 2023.
Bibliography
- Pinault, Michel, Frédéric Joliot-Curie, Editions Odile Jacob, Paris, 2000. (ISBN 2-7381-0812-1)
