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Several molten salt reactors are being developed as SMRs, but they are not a new concept. Operational as research and test plants since the 1950s, molten salt reactors are now being touted as a clean and safe alternative to traditional water-cooled SMRs. One of the earliest molten salt reactor experiments was operated at Tennessee's Oak Ridge for four years, but shut down in 1969 after going critical. Even though the Molten Salt Reactor Experiment did end in a critical event, it was well known and respected throughout the nuclear research community as a success. However, later studies found the reactor only operated around 40 percent of the time, and experienced 171 unplanned shutdowns. These shutdowns were attributed to a number of technical problems, including: chronic pipe plugging, which led to charcoal beds designed to capture and remove radioactive materials; blower failures designed to remove reactor heat; and leaks within the freeze-valve safety system allowing fuel escapes. So far, modern metals have proven incapable of sustaining the natural corrosiveness of a small reactor's molten salt over a 4 year application.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Ramana |first1=M.V. |title=Molten salt reactors were trouble in the 1960s—and they remain trouble today |url=https://thebulletin.org/2022/06/molten-salt-reactors-were-trouble-in-the-1960s-and-they-remain-trouble-today/ |website=thebulletin.org |date=20 June 2022 |publisher=Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists |access-date=26 August 2025}}</ref>
Even Fluoride-Salt-Cooled High-Temperature Reactors (FHR) suffer from internal plant buildups of fission products, clogging heating and safety systems. A method of reductive extraction can be used to catch buildups before they occur.
== Radioactive waste ==
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