Cambridge AtomWorks Opens New Laboratory at Granta Park to Develop ODIN Microreactor

Cambridge AtomWorks announced on August 27 that its new light industrial facility and laboratory at Granta Park in Cambridge, UK, has officially entered service. The site, leased from TWI (The Welding Institute), will be used to advance research and development work related to the ODIN microreactor.

According to the company, the new laboratory has already begun conducting experiments closely linked to ODIN microreactor development, including studies on coolant properties and behavior. The research team is using an STA-MS system to characterize material properties related to fuel performance, which enables simultaneous thermogravimetric analysis, heat flow analysis, and mass spectrometry.

The new facility will also be used for testing elements related to reactor flow and heat transfer. Cambridge AtomWorks stated that relevant non-nuclear test rigs have begun construction and entered the testing phase, with the team having installed a prototype air cooling unit to validate the passive reactor pressure vessel cooling system. Preliminary simulation test results have provided new quantitative data on the effectiveness of the design and will be used to supplement numerical models.

In addition to the air cooling test rig, a corrosion test rig is also planned to be commissioned in the near future to validate material selections for key components such as the reactor pressure vessel. In the long term, the facility will also undertake testing of key engineering systems for ODIN microreactor operation and control.

Rui Guo, Chief Materials Scientist at Cambridge AtomWorks, stated that the commissioning of the Granta Park experimental center has deepened the company's collaboration with TWI and enhanced its capabilities in materials development and non-nuclear test rig construction. CEO Ian Farnan stated that the new facility will provide the space needed for building the demonstration unit and support research into processes related to the ODIN reactor system through its chemistry analysis platform, thereby accelerating the completion of design work.