The new Hydrogen-3 Advanced Technology (H3AT) centre is currently under construction at UKAEA’s Culham site and is due to be commissioned by 2024. UKAEA is working in collaboration with ITER Organization, Atkins, DBD and others on the design of the new plant and experimental laboratory.
The H3AT centre will support future fuel cycle development for projects such as ITER, DEMO and STEP. It offers state-of-the-art tritium systems and infrastructures that include:
- Process pilot plant demonstrating the ITER fuel cycle at 1/20th scale
- A closed loop system
- Off loop test bed capacity to develop and qualify developing tritium systems
- Facilities for the development of best available techniques for detritiation
- Rigs for tritium experiments and transferable solutions beyond fusion
Our closed loop system allows for modelling and validation of continuous flow fuel cycle loops for fusion. It offers testing and qualification of fusion related services and hardware with the ability to integrate new technology into the loop as it develops.
It will have the capability to store, deliver and purify tritium rapidly for use in further experiments. The centre incorporates the infrastructure and systems required to operate safely and be able to reprocess, recover and dispose of the associated tritiated waste.
Our new centre represents an important step in the development of tritium technology. By actively engaging with UK industry, academia, national laboratories and government organisations, it will allow vital research and development. This will keep pace with the growing demand for tritium expertise both in the UK and the rest of the world.
The facility has been uniquely designed to allow for further expansion. This will support our goal to grow the tritium capability across the UK and to drive tritium research and technology development forward.
Contact details
To find out more about H3AT and enquire about using the facility, please contact info@h3at.ukaea.uk.
