LANL and Valar Atomics Announce Project Nova Criticality Milestone
5 days ago
- #HTGR
- #criticality-experiments
- #nuclear-energy
- Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) and Valar Atomics announced the achievement of zero-power criticality for the NOVA Core at the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS).
- Zero-power criticality, or 'cold criticality,' is a self-sustaining chain reaction of uranium-235 without reaching full operating temperatures, allowing for the study of neutronic characteristics.
- Project NOVA is a series of criticality experiments on a HALEU TRISO-fueled core, building on previous work like the Deimos critical assembly in 2024.
- The NOVA Core is a graphite-moderated, HALEU TRISO-fueled nuclear core with boron-carbide control elements, closely modeling Valar Atomics’ Ward250 core.
- The experiments validate Valar Atomics’ physics models and simulations, providing key performance data for their High-Temperature Gas Reactor (HTGR) design.
- The project is conducted at the National Criticality Experiments Research Center (NCERC), the only general-purpose critical-experiments facility in the U.S., under NNSA oversight.
- Valar Atomics aims to build America’s first nuclear gigasites, using TRISO fuel and helium coolant for inherently safe, high-temperature reactors.
- The milestone marks the first instance of cold criticality achieved by a venture-backed startup, paving the way for future power operations.