Co may be 0.1% to 0.01%. steam.) “5 Cm (Volatile fission products would of course go with the It is anticipated that deposits may be most severe in the condensers, continue at Arco with a new reactor which will replace the original Borax. . oN tee elie ale he eed oe . thee . : While the Boiling Reactor at Argonne is being designed, experiments will This will allow "power excursions" in a stainless steel vessel which will ve ; equipped for continuous operation at 300 lbs pressure and up to 6000 kw of heat and will have a water purification system. The program is exploratory and should contribute to the development of instrumentation, knowledge on the radioactivity of the steam, and other questions which affect the Argorme design. While it was intended to place this reactor in the Borax tank, con- tamination from the July "test-to-destruction" has required a new site at Arco and has probably somewhat delayed the schedule. Argonne recognizes that heavy water may be preferable in a Boiling Reactor.. It allows a more relaxed core design, reduces fuel inventory and reduces’or Coeeee“everelananates-the need for fuel enrichment. The paramount question is whether the loss of heavy water can be kept within bounds. Some power engi- neers believe that this can be done without much increase in the power equip- ment cost, e.g. Allis-Chalmers estimates $200,000 extra on the turbines and condensers. Experience with the Boiling Reactor at Argonne should be pertinent. In this connection, we feel that the costs of heavy water which are assumed in comparing potential heavy water and light water reactors are unrealistically high and tend to distort the comparison and invalidate the conclusions. The Subcommittee members discussed with the Argonne leaders how the Boiling Reactor program might best be further accelerated. The present “schedule for the reactor at Argonne » outlined below, seems very tight to us, . aurres poh #™ i, oe oV