Time Warp: Molten Salt Reactor Experiment—Alvin Weinberg’s magnum opus | ORNL

During the 1968 event, Weinberg dubbed MSRE the “Mighty Smooth Running Experiment.” As he addressed a gathered crowd, he motioned to nearby barrels containing processed salt carrier and spent fuel.  The barrels had no radiological protection and needed none.

The reactor went on to log 11,515 hours of critical operation during its brief run.  It was shut down ceremoniously in 1969, having achieved all that was asked of it. The graphite bars that lined the reactor core as its moderator showed little to no damage, whether from heat, radiation or chemical corrosion.

The molten salt program ended in 1973, with the Atomic Energy Commission deciding to focus on other designs. Both government and industry are now reevaluating molten salt technology as an answer to the global energy challenge. It’s a conversation built on what Weinberg considered one of ORNL’s greatest technical achievements.

And we dropped the ball. If you believe in abundance, at least of energy, instead of the upcoming era of expensive and scarce energy, molton salt reactors will pay a large part.