The dismantlement of the TRIGA reactor and the former Nuclear Reactor Building is on schedule to be completed by the end of Summer 2012.
Over the past week the building’s walls have been removed. Rich Holm, Reactor Administrator and a member of the university’s Reactor Safety Committee, has been recording the work’s progress with photos (available for viewing on the NPRE Facebook page) and a week-to-week summary.
No final decision has been made yet regarding what will be done with the area once it’s cleared. However, NPRE is planning to establish on campus a prominent display commemorating the facility and its historical significance to the Department, the College of Engineering and the University of Illinois.
The main components of the reactor core were dismantled with the fuel removal in 2004. The current $4 million project involves dismantling remaining portions of the reactor, and tearing down the building on the campus’ east side.
The reactor operated for 38 years before it was shut down in 1998. It went critical on August 16, 1960, and was used by many departments on campus as an interdisciplinary teaching and research facility.