Historic First: University of Utah TRIGA Reactor to Generate Electricity After 50 Years
Breaking: University of Utah TRIGA Reactor to Produce Electricity
In a world-first, the University of Utah's 50-year-old TRIGA research reactor is being converted to generate electricity starting this year. The 50 kWth reactor, installed in 1975, has until now only produced heat that was dissipated into cooling systems. Now, a partnership with startup Elemental Nuclear will see roughly 2–3 kWe of electricity produced using a closed-loop helium Brayton cycle engine.
“This is a landmark moment for research reactors and for demonstrating the practicality of TRIGA-based microreactors,” said Dr. Sarah Linden, a nuclear engineering professor at the university overseeing the project. “The inherent safety of the TRIGA design makes it ideal for such conversion, and we are thrilled to be the first to prove the concept.”
What Makes TRIGA Reactors Safe
The TRIGA (Training, Research, Isotopes, General Atomics) design relies on uranium zirconium hydride fuel, which gives a strong negative thermal coefficient. This means the reactor naturally limits its own power output if temperature rises, eliminating the need for complex safety systems or a containment dome. The pool-type, water-cooled configuration allows direct visual observation of the blue Cherenkov glow during operation.
“With TRIGA, you get inherent safety without sacrificing visibility—students and researchers can literally watch the fission process,” added Professor Linden.
Proof-of-Concept for Elemental Nuclear
Elemental Nuclear, a startup aiming to commercialize TRIGA fuel for sodium-cooled microreactors, designed the generator that will be installed at the Utah reactor. The system uses a closed Brayton cycle with helium gas to spin a turbine, capturing about 13 kWth from the reactor core. The resulting electricity—enough to power several servers—will be directed to a rack of GPUs performing AI tasks.
“This is a perfect demonstration of how small, safe nuclear reactors can power the growing energy demands of AI datacenters,” said Michael Korr, CEO of Elemental Nuclear. “If successful, it opens the door for dozens of other TRIGA reactors worldwide to do the same.”
Background
TRIGA reactors were conceived in the 1950s as a safer alternative to early research reactors. Over 60 units were built globally, many at universities and research institutes. The University of Utah's unit—one of the lowest-power TRIGAs at 50 kWth—has been used for education, isotope production, and neutron activation analysis for half a century.
Despite their safety record, no TRIGA reactor had ever been used to generate electricity. Their thermal output—ranging from 0.1 MWth to 16 MWth—was considered too small for traditional steam turbines. However, advances in microturbines and Brayton cycle devices have changed the economics, making sub-100 kWth reactors viable for distributed generation.
What This Means
The conversion represents a potential breakthrough for microreactors—compact nuclear units that can be sited near energy demand, especially for compute-intensive applications like AI and data centers. If the Utah installation proves reliable, it could catalyze a wave of similar retrofits at the dozens of TRIGA reactors still operating worldwide.
For the nuclear industry, it demonstrates that decades-old research reactors can be repurposed without major modifications, leveraging their inherent safety to provide carbon-free electricity. For AI companies, it offers a vision of dedicated, clean power sources that operate independently of the grid.
“This isn't just about generating a few kilowatts—it's about proving the concept of a safe, scalable microreactor that can be deployed on college campuses or near data centers,” concluded Korr. “We expect this to be the first of many.”
Top image: The University of Utah's TRIGA reactor core during a routine tour. (Credit: University of Utah)
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