Arak / Khondab IR-40 Heavy-Water Reactor is a heavy-water research reactor in Markazi Province, Iran. It functions as a Heavy-water research reactor + heavy-water production. It is operated by Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI). Current status: Under redesign / construction. In service since 2026.
Plant data: WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0), id NUC-IR-ARAK.
Known, modelled and calculated values are kept separate. Missing fields are shown as unavailable.
The IR-40 reactor at Khondab, near the city of Arak, is a 40 MW(th) heavy-water research reactor, alongside a heavy-water production plant. Heavy-water reactors are a proliferation concern because they can produce plutonium in spent fuel; under the 2015 nuclear deal the original core was to be redesigned to sharply reduce its plutonium output.
The reactor and the adjacent heavy-water plant are recurring subjects in non-proliferation monitoring and in strike-target discussion. It is a research reactor, not a commercial power station — its thermal rating (40 MWth) is for research and isotope work, not grid electricity. The site is under IAEA verification.
Technically it is described as Heavy-water research reactor + heavy-water production. This facility converts its energy source into electricity for the grid; its capacity, fuel type and location determine its role in the national power mix.
Capacity comparison computed from the WRI Global Power Plant Database; fuel-type context is general engineering background.
Installed capacity (MW), WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0).
Operated by Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI).
This nuclear plant generates electricity for the grid. It sits in a hot-summer Mediterranean continental climate (Köppen Dsa) — Northern Hemisphere, latitude 34.4°N — which shapes how much energy it can produce and how its output varies through the year.
Climate zone & typical temperatures: Köppen-Geiger world climate classification (Kottek et al. 2006, 0.5° grid).
For a plant’s outdoor hardware — heat-recovery steam generators (HRSG), expansion joints, valves, flanges and their insulation — the local climate sets how fast unprotected steel and coatings degrade. This site sits in a mild atmospheric environment (estimated ISO 9223 class C2 — Low), with thermal cycling the leading environmental stress.
Higher environmental severity is exactly where protective removable insulation pays back most: a sheltered micro-climate slows corrosion, UV and thermal-cycling damage and extends outdoor hardware service life. This is an indicative site-climate context — not a condition assessment of any specific plant or operator.
Indicative estimate via the ISO 9223:2012 informative method (atmospheric corrosivity from temperature, time-of-wetness and airborne salinity), using WorldClim climate normals, the Köppen-Geiger class and coast distance. Indicative, not a measured corrosion rate.
The #1 largest nuclear power plant of 5 in Iran by capacity.
Iran has 5 nuclear power plants in this dataset, together about 45 MW of capacity.
Coordinates 34.3742, 49.2406 from WRI Global Power Plant Database (CC BY 4.0). View on OpenStreetMap.
Plants like this lose energy through hot steam generators, turbines, feedwater heaters and valves. Inzonex makes removable, reusable turbine & feedwater insulation that cuts that loss by up to 96% and holds surface temperatures under 45°C, unclipping in seconds for maintenance. See the industrial-AI efficiency hub for tools and benchmarks.
Arak / Khondab IR-40 Heavy-Water Reactor is a heavy-water research reactor in Markazi Province, Iran, operated by Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI).
No — Arak / Khondab IR-40 Heavy-Water Reactor is a heavy-water research reactor and does not generate grid electricity.
It is located near Khondab, near Arak, Markazi Province, at approximately 34.374, 49.241.
Arak / Khondab IR-40 Heavy-Water Reactor is used for Heavy-water research reactor + heavy-water production.
Under redesign / construction
Arak / Khondab IR-40 Heavy-Water Reactor is operated by Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI).
