Decommissioning activities continue at the Brookhaven Graphite Research Reactor (BGRR). The removal of the above-ground cooling air ducts -- a significant subproject that began more than a year ago -- has been completed. The ducts, made of large, heavy pieces of concrete, were cut into pieces small enough to transport. After the concrete was segmented and packaged, it was loaded onto flatbed trailers, surveyed again to verify that there was no contamination on the exterior surfaces of the structure, and then shipped off site for final disposal.
The BGRR, which began operating in 1950, was the first peace-time reactor constructed to provide neutrons exclusively for research. The reactor's scientific mission ended in 1968. Several other sub-projects are underway, including work on the below-ground ducts and preparing to take samples of soil under the building.
Once the above-ground duct "Completion Report" has been written, it will be posted to the BGRR web site at http://www.bnl.gov/bgrr.