Abstract: In a nuclear reactor (e.g. one having coolant down-flow through a core to a hearth below) thermal insulation (e.g. of a floor of the hearth) comprises a layer of bricks and a layer of tiles thereon, with smaller clearances between the tiles than between the bricks but with the bricks being of reduced cross-section immediately adjacent the tiles so as to be surrounded by interconnected passages, of relatively large dimensions, constituting a continuous chamber extending behind the layer of tiles. By this arrangement, lateral coolant flow in the interbrick clearances is much reduced.The reactor core is preferably formed of hexagonal columns, supported on diamond-shaped plates each supported on a pillar resting on one of the hearth-floor tiles.