Neutronic reactor having localized areas of high thermal neutron densities

Claim 1

A NEUTRONIC REACTOR HAVING AN ACTIVE PORTION INCLUDING A GRAPHITE MODERATOR AT LEAST 25 FEET IN LENGTH ALONG EACH AXIS, A PLURALITY OF PARALLEL CHANNELS TRAVERSING SAID MODERATOR, SAID CHANNELS BEING DISPOSED WITHIN A GEOMETRIC LATTICE WITH ADJACENT CHANNELS SPACED FORM EACH OTHER BY A DISTANCE OF APPROXIMATELY 8 INCHES, A PLURALITY OF CYLINDRICAL BODIES OF NATURAL URANIUM DISPOSED WITHIN AT LEAST 1089 OF SAID CHANNELS, SAID URANIUM BODIES HAVING A DIAMETER OF APPROXIMATELY 1.1 INCH AND BEING JACKETED IN A THIN ALUMINUM JACKET, THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF NATURAL URANIUM BEING APPROXIMATELY 93.5 TONS, AND THE DIAMETER OF THE CHANNELS BEING GREATER THAN 1.1 INCH CHARACTERIZED BY THE IMPROVED CONSTRUCTION WHEREIN A DUCT TRAVERSES THE MODERATOR NORMAL TO SOME CHANNELS, AND THE CHANNELS ADJACENT TO AT LEAST A PORTION OF THE DUCT ARE DISPLACED FROM THE LATTICE AND DISPOSED 8 INCHES FROM THE DUCT SAID CHANNELS BEING APPROXIMATELY 4 INCHES FROM ADJACENT CHANNELS, EACH OF SAID CHANNELS CONTAINING ONE OF SAID URANIUM BODIES.