Nuclear reactor types
Introduction to the various types of nuclear reactors worldwide and information on prototype designs.
Many different reactor systems have been proposed and some of these have been developed to prototype and commercial scale. Six types of reactor (Magnox, AGR, PWR, BWR, CANDU and RBMK) have emerged as the designs used to produce commercial electricity around the world. A further reactor type, the so-called fast reactor, has been developed to full-scale demonstration stage.
These various reactor types will now be described, together with current developments and some prototype designs.
Event registration will be unavailable from 8am - 10am on Monday 1 June 2026.
We’re upgrading our event registration system to make it quicker and easier for you to register for an event or course.
On Monday, 1 June, 8am to 10am, our registration system will be temporarily unavailable while we upgrade our systems. For any urgent enquiries during this time, please email events@theiet.org and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
Thank you for your patience.