The American Air Force Base Ailson, located in Alaska, was chosen by the military to host a small experimental nuclear reactor as part of a pilot program. The Pentagon, together with the US Department of Energy, is looking for possible ways to meet the growing demand for electricity, including on the battlefield.
Ailson Base is located 42 kilometers from the city of Fairbanks and 177 kilometers from the Arctic Circle. The 354th Fighter Aviation Regiment is stationed there. The main composition is the F-16 and F-35 fighters. The military expects that the microreactor can become an ideal source of energy for remote military bases, such as Ailson. Now it is powered by its own coal-fired power plant, which is an environmental problem. The military is also concerned that the base depends on fuel supplies.
It is known that the reactor will be based on experimental fuel with protective layers of coatings such as TRISO (Tristructural Isotropic - isotropic coating of carbon and ceramics), which has higher characteristics than traditional materials used in nuclear power plants. This makes the reactors more compact and more reliable, writes The Drive.
In the spring, the Pentagon signed contracts for the production of experimental reactors with X-Energy and BWX Technologies. The work itself should begin in the fall of 2022, and the reactor should be fully commissioned in 2027. Subsequently, the microreactor can be not only a power source for stationary objects, such as a military base, but, if necessary, can be deployed in a combat zone.
However, this option still has many questions related to the safety of such an object as a nuclear microreactor. Including what will happen if the reactor is captured by the enemy or hit by enemy fire. So far, these questions remain unanswered.
Maya Biryukova
