The Thermionic Fuel Element Test Rig is designed for non‐nuclear testing of individual single cell thermionic fuel elements utilizing electric heaters as a part of the Thermionic System Evaluation Test (TSET) Facility, at the New Mexico Engineering Research Institute (NMERI), in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The test rig was purchased from the Republic of Russia and assembled jointly by Russian and American specialists from JV Inertek, a Russian Corporation and the New Mexico Strategic Alliance (Air Force Phillips Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, and the University of New Mexico). Initial certification testing and system qualifications testing were completed in December 1992. In the fall of 1993, US personnel completed certification as operators of the test rig and conducted additional testing to verify previous results. The testing is being funded by the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization (BMDO) and is being executed by the Air Force Phillips Laboratory.
