For the first time in history, drones inspect nuclear reactor

A procedure never performed.

For the first time in history, drones conducted aerial inspections inside a nuclear fusion facility, the Jet facility located in Culham in Oxfordshire, United Kingdom, one of the most important fusion reactors ever built by Europe. For almost 25 years JET operated using deuterium and tritium as fuels, breaking records for fusion energy production. Now entering a new chapter, deactivating and disabling a fusion reactor is almost as complex as operating it.

Before dismantling any structure, engineers need to map, measure, analyze and verify every inch of the facility; the problem is, much of those areas are too hostile for human presence. That's where the drones come in. Teams from the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, in collaboration with robotics centers and engineering companies, began a series of experimental flights within the facility. More than 30 were carried out flights, each with a maximum duration of 7 minutes, the limit of the battery, but they are not common drones, the model used is wrapped in a flexible cage that allows it to gently collide against structures without falling or damaging sensitive components.

New safety, flight, cleaning and containment protocols were proposed.

During the inspection, the drone can brush against walls, tubes and metal surfaces while continuing to fly. Inside that cage, the team carries a powerful combination, high-resolution cameras, liar sensors for three-dimensional mapping and radiation sensors. This means that at the same time the drone measures distances, creates 3D models and detects radiological levels, all remotely, without exposing anyone.

The mission, however, was not simple, the air flow generated by the propellers contaminated dust, suspended particles represent additional risks. To solve it, teams had to create new safety protocols, new flight patterns, and new cleaning and containment methods.

For a long time, technology meant creating more powerful machines, now it increasingly means creating machines that take on danger for us.