NRC Issues Confirmatory Order on 2021 Alert at NIST Center for Neutron Research

NRC Issues Confirmatory Order on 2021 Alert at NIST Center for Neutron Research

NIST's Center for Neutron Research, in Gaithersburg, Maryland



Credit: NIST


GAITHERSBURG, Md. — The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has issued a Confirmatory Order that documents the commitments made by the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to ensure the safe operation of the research reactor in the NIST Center for Neutron Research (NCNR), which experienced an unplanned shutdown on Feb. 3, 2021. 


Based on the NCNR’s completed and planned actions, as well as its commitments described in the Confirmatory Order, the NRC has not imposed a civil penalty or issued a cited notice of violation and will not pursue any further enforcement action.


“All of us at NIST are committed to undertaking the comprehensive corrective actions that will ensure a strong safety culture at the NCNR and prevent something like this from happening again,” said Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology and NIST Director Laurie E. Locascio. “We appreciate the NRC’s engagement with NIST, and we have already made many changes and improvements so that this important national resource can return to safe operation.”


The public was safe at all times during the 2021 incident, in which a single fuel element overheated and was damaged because it was not securely latched into place within the research reactor. The Confirmatory Order includes corrective actions NIST has already completed, as well as those planned for the future.


In March 2022 the NRC released the findings of a special inspection  that identified seven apparent violations, five of which had been identified by NIST and reported to the NRC. The Confirmatory Order released tod ..

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