![Argonne history Chicago Pile-3](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Argonne_history_Chicago_Pile-3.jpg)
Chicago Pile-3 (CP-3) was the world's first
heavy water reactor
A pressurized heavy-water reactor (PHWR) is a nuclear reactor that uses heavy water ( deuterium oxide D2O) as its coolant and neutron moderator. PHWRs frequently use natural uranium as fuel, but sometimes also use very low enriched uranium. T ...
. One of the first
research reactors
Research reactors are nuclear fission-based nuclear reactors that serve primarily as a neutron source. They are also called non-power reactors, in contrast to power reactors that are used for electricity production, heat generation, or mariti ...
, it was built in 1943 near
Palos Hills, Illinois
Palos Hills is a city in Cook County, Illinois, United States. It is a southwest suburb of Chicago. The city was established in 1958 and had reached a population of 18,530 in the 2020 census. It is the home of Moraine Valley Community College as ...
, original site of
Argonne National Laboratory
Argonne National Laboratory is a science and engineering research United States Department of Energy National Labs, national laboratory operated by University of Chicago, UChicago Argonne LLC for the United States Department of Energy. The facil ...
. Joining
CP-1/CP-2, it first went critical on 15 May 1944, and was at first used in the experimental physics work of the
Metallurgical Laboratory
The Metallurgical Laboratory (or Met Lab) was a scientific laboratory at the University of Chicago that was established in February 1942 to study and use the newly discovered chemical element plutonium. It researched plutonium's chemistry and m ...
for the
Manhattan Project
The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
. After its useful research-life ended, it was deactivated in 1954.
CP-3 was initially fueled with
natural uranium
Natural uranium (NU or Unat) refers to uranium with the same isotopic ratio as found in nature. It contains 0.711% uranium-235, 99.284% uranium-238, and a trace of uranium-234 by weight (0.0055%). Approximately 2.2% of its radioactivity comes fr ...
and used
heavy water as a neutron moderator. In January 1950, the reactor was dismantled due to suspicion of
corrosion of the aluminum cladding that surrounded the
control rod
Control rods are used in nuclear reactors to control the rate of fission of the nuclear fuel – uranium or plutonium. Their compositions include chemical elements such as boron, cadmium, silver, hafnium, or indium, that are capable of absorbing ...
s. The reactor was rebuilt and redesignated CP-3′ (CP-3 prime). It was restarted in May 1950 and operated until 1954.
The reactor was authorized to operate up to 300 kilowatts.
The two versions of the reactor were used to study physics, separate fission products, recover tritium from irradiated lithium, and study radionuclide metabolism in laboratory animals.
After the reactor was decommissioned, the fuel and heavy water were shipped to the
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is a U.S. multiprogram science and technology national laboratory sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and administered, managed, and operated by UT–Battelle as a federally funded research and ...
. Pipes, valves, and building debris were placed in the reactor's containment shell, which was then filled with concrete. The shell was buried on the site in a deep pit.
The site, now known as the
Site A/Plot M Disposal Site, sits within
Red Gate Woods, part of the Cook County Forest Preserve system. A historical marker commemorates the site of CP-3 and its sister reactor
CP-1/CP-2.
See also
*
Chicago Pile-1
Chicago Pile-1 (CP-1) was the world's first artificial nuclear reactor. On 2 December 1942, the first human-made self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction was initiated in CP-1, during an experiment led by Enrico Fermi. The secret development of t ...
*
Experimental Breeder Reactor I
Experimental Breeder Reactor I (EBR-I) is a decommissioned research reactor and U.S. National Historic Landmark located in the desert about southeast of Arco, Idaho. It was the world's first breeder reactor. At 1:50 p.m. on December 20, 1 ...
(Chicago Pile-4)
*
Chicago Pile-5
References
Nuclear research reactors
Nuclear history of the United States
Argonne National Laboratory
Manhattan Project sites
{{nuclear-energy-stub