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Removed statement about neutron sources adding delayed neutrons. This is false. See talk page. |
MajorVariola (talk | contribs) Explained how CP-1 worked without a starter |
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When [[plutonium-238]]/beryllium primary sources are utilized, they can be either affixed to [[control rod]]s which are removed from the reactor when it is powered, or clad in a [[cadmium]] alloy, which is opaque to thermal neutrons (reducing transmutation of the plutonium-238 by neutron capture) but transparent to [[fast neutron]]s produced by the source.<ref name="pat1"/>
The chain reaction in the first critical reactor, CP-1, was initiated by neutron sources generated during its prior subcritical test runs. The very first of those could have been initiated by ambient cosmic-ray neutrons. Similarly, in modern reactors (after startup), delayed neutron emission from fission products suffices to sustain the amplification reaction while yielding controllable growth times. (In comparision, a bomb is based on immediate neutrons and grows exponentially in nanoseconds.)
==References==
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