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NRC accepting comments on environmental review for nuclear fuel facility

Posted at 9:22 pm January 19, 2023
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

TRISO-X has proposed a nuclear fuel fabrication facility on 110 acres at Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo from TRISO-X environmental report to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission will have a public meeting in Oak Ridge next week to accept public comments about the environmental review for a proposed nuclear fuel facility at Horizon Center.

It would be the first manufacturing facility of its type in the United States. It has been proposed by TRISO-X, which wants to manufacture coated particle uranium fuel for new types of nuclear reactors—advanced and small modular reactors. The fuel could power reactors for electrical and chemical use, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

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Filed Under: Business, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Oak Ridge, Premium Content, Roane County Tagged With: fuel fabrication, HALEU, high-assay low-enriched uranium, Horizon Center, NRC, NRC license, nuclear fuel, nuclear reactors, public meeting, TRISO-X, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, X-energy

NRC will prepare environmental statement for nuclear fuel facility

Posted at 4:26 pm December 17, 2022
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

TRISO-X has proposed a nuclear fuel fabrication facility on 110 acres at Horizon Center in west Oak Ridge. (Photo from TRISO-X environmental report to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission)

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Friday that it will prepare an environmental impact statement for a proposed nuclear fuel fabrication facility in Oak Ridge that could help power advanced reactors for electrical and chemical use, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

The project could partially benefit from last year’s federal infrastructure law, specifically about $1.1 billion appropriated for a clean energy supply.

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Filed Under: Business, Federal, Front Page News, Government, Government, Oak Ridge, Premium Content, Slider, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, advanced reactors, ARDP, EIS, environmental impact statement, fuel fabrication facility, HALEU, high-assay low-enriched uranium, Horizon Center, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, infrastructure law, NRC, nuclear fuel, nuclear fuel facility, nuclear reactors, small modular reactors, TF3, TRISO fuel, TRISO-X, TRISO-X Fuel Fabrication Facility, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, uranium fuel, X-energy, Xe-100

ORNL consortium working on nuclear reactors names director

Posted at 12:40 pm September 3, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

David Kropaczek directs the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, U.S. a Department of Energy Innovation Hub headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo by ORNL)

David Kropaczek directs the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, U.S. a Department of Energy Innovation Hub headquartered at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo by ORNL)

 

A consortium that is based at Oak Ridge National Laboratory and works on next-generation commercial nuclear reactors has named a director.

David J. Kropaczek will lead the Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, which is based at ORNL, a U.S. Department of Energy laboratory.

CASL, which launched in 2010 as DOE’s first Energy Innovation Hub, has brought together the nation’s supercomputing facilities and leading nuclear experts and institutions to pursue an aggressive 10-year mission—to predict the performance of existing and next-generation commercial nuclear reactors through comprehensive, science-based modeling, and simulation, a press release said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Alan Icenhour, CASL, Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, David J. Kropaczek, nuclear reactors, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, U.S. Department of Energy

ORNL technique could set new course for extracting uranium from seawater

Posted at 1:41 pm December 17, 2015
By Oak Ridge National Laboratory Leave a Comment

ORNL-TOC-Graphic

Using high-energy X-rays, researchers discovered uranium is bound by adsorbent fibers in an unanticipated fashion. (Image by ORNL)

 

An ultra-high-resolution technique used for the first time to study polymer fibers that trap uranium in seawater may cause researchers to rethink the best methods to harvest this potential fuel for nuclear reactors.

The work of a team led by Carter Abney, a Wigner Fellow at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, shows that the polymeric adsorbent materials that bind uranium behave nothing like scientists had believed. The results, gained through collaboration with the University of Chicago and detailed in a paper published in Energy and Environmental Science, highlight data made possible with X-ray Absorption Fine Structure spectroscopy performed at the Advanced Photon Source. The APS is a DOE Office of Science User Facility at Argonne National Laboratory.

“Despite the low concentration of uranium and the presence of many other metals extracted from seawater, we were able to investigate the local atomic environment around uranium and better understand how it is bound by the polymer fibers,” Abney said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Front Page News, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Advanced Photon Source, APS, Argonne National Laboratory, Carter Abney, DOE Office of Science, Energy and Environmental Science, extracting uranium, Gabriel Veith, Marek Piechowicz, National Energy Research Scientific Computing Centre, nuclear reactors, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Office of Nuclear Energy, ORNL, Richard Mayes, Sheng Dai, U.S. Department of Energy, University of Chicago, uranium, Vyacheslav Bryantsev, Wenbin Lin, Zekai Lin

DOE program funds alloy research led by UT; ORNL collaborates

Posted at 3:40 pm September 11, 2014
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Haixuan Xu

Haixuan Xu

KNOXVILLE—An international research team led by an assistant professor at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville has received a grant to help with work involving a key component of nuclear reactors.

The U.S. Department of Energy grant is worth $800,000 over three years, and it has been awarded to UT Assistant Professor Haixuan Xu. It’s part of the Nuclear Energy University Programs funding and will be used to work on a pair of particular steel alloys, a press release said.

“Getting support on this will allow us to investigate and understand the defect evolution in these materials,” said Xu, of the UT Department of Materials Science and Engineering. “What we hope to gain is fundamental insight into the effects of radiation on the alloys so that we can better predict and detect how they will break down over time and adjust the materials accordingly.”

The alloys in question would be used in sodium-cooled reactors. Xu’s research is important because little is known about how the materials stand up to high levels of radiation over time. [Read more…]

Filed Under: College, Education, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: College of Engineering, Department of Material Science and Engineering, Department of Nuclear Engineering, Haixuan Xu, Kurt Sickafus, NEUP, Nuclear Energy University Programs, nuclear reactors, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, radiation, sodium-cooled reactors, steel alloys, U.S. Department of Energy, University of Lille, University of Tennessee, University of Wisconsin, UT

NNSA marks 10th anniversary of Global Threat Reduction Initiative

Posted at 12:54 am May 31, 2014
By National Nuclear Security Administration Leave a Comment

Frank Klotz

Frank Klotz

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Nuclear Security Administration on Thursday marked the 10th anniversary of the Global Threat Reduction Initiative, GTRI. Since the Sept. 11 attacks, reducing the threat of terrorist acquisition of nuclear or radiological material has been a core mission of NNSA, and it is a mission that will continue into the future.

“The Global Threat Reduction Initiative’s history demonstrates how seriously we take this mission and our commitment to fulfilling President Obama’s nuclear security agenda,” said U.S. Department of Energy Under Secretary for Nuclear Security and NNSA Administrator Frank G. Klotz. “However, the threat to national and global security from state or terrorist acquisition of nuclear and radiological materials is far from gone, and our focus now is on addressing the substantial threats that remain.”

GTRI, an NNSA nuclear nonproliferation program, works with partners around the world to reduce and consolidate global stockpiles of highly enriched uranium, or HEU, and plutonium, and to secure dangerous radiological sources both at home and abroad. GTRI and its predecessor programs have removed and secured more than enough material for 980 nuclear weapons and tens of thousands of radiological dirty bombs by converting HEU research reactors and isotope production facilities to the use of low enriched uranium, or LEU; removing or confirming disposition of HEU and plutonium; and securing nuclear and radiological sites around the world. [Read more…]

Filed Under: National Nuclear Security Administration, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Argonne National Laboratory, DOE, Frank G. Klotz, Global Threat Reduction Initiative, GTRI, HEU, highly enriched uranium, IAEA, Idaho National Laboratory, International Atomic Energy Agency, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, LEU, Los Alamos National Laboratory, low enriched uranium, National Nuclear Security Administration, Nevada National Security Site, NNSA, nuclear, nuclear material, nuclear reactors, nuclear security, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, plutonium, radiological dirty bombs, radiological material, radiological sites, radiological sources, reactors, Sandia National Laboratories, Savanah River Site, security, U.S. Department of Energy, Y-12 National Security Complex

Lecture to focus on whether small reactors can rejuvenate nuclear power

Posted at 12:30 pm November 17, 2013
By Oak Ridge Today Staff 1 Comment

Kent Williams

Kent Williams

A retired distinguished staff member at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will discuss Thursday evening whether small modular nuclear reactors, such as the one proposed in west Oak Ridge, can rejuvenate nuclear power.

The presentation by Kent Williams starts at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Fellowship Hall at First Presbyterian Church in Oak Ridge.

Many people in the nuclear industry say that small modular reactors, or SMRs, are key to a revitalized nuclear industry in the U.S. and overseas because of their projected market, safety, and economic characteristics, a press release said. One SMR plant has been proposed at the former Clinch River Breeder Reactor site in west Oak Ridge. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Business, Community, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: Advocates for the Oak Ridge Reservation, AFORR, American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASME, Clinch River Breeder Reactor, First Presbyterian Church, Kent Williams, nuclear industry, nuclear plants, nuclear power, nuclear reactors, Oak Ridge Reservation, small modular reactors, U.S. Department of Energy

UT names nuclear materials expert as 13th UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair

Posted at 2:11 pm August 28, 2013
By University of Tennessee Leave a Comment

Steve Zinkle

Steve Zinkle

KNOXVILLE—Steve Zinkle, an authority on the effect of radiation on materials in fission and fusion nuclear reactors, has been named the thirteenth University of Tennessee–Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor’s Chair.

Zinkle will serve as Governor’s Chair for Nuclear Materials, based in the department of nuclear engineering at UT with a complementary appointment in materials science and engineering. He begins at UT on Oct. 1. [Read more…]

Filed Under: College, Education, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Science, Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: E. O. Lawrence Award, Governor's Chair for Nuclear Materials, High Flux Isotope Reactor, Jimmy G. Cheek, materials, materials science, Materials Science and Technology Division, National Academy of Engineering, nuclear engineering, nuclear reactors, Nuclear Science and Engineering Directorate, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, radiation, radiation-resistant materials, scientist, Steve Zinkle, U.S. Department of Energy, University of Tennessee, University of Tennessee-Oak Ridge National Laboratory Governor's Chair, UT, UT-Battelle Corporate Fellow

Nuclear goes Hollywood: New film sheds light on old debate

Posted at 5:47 pm July 24, 2013
By Oak Ridge National Laboratory 9 Comments

Pandora's Promise Panel Discussion

Jeff Binder, Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s associate lab director of nuclear science and engineering, answers an audience question during a panel discussion following a screening of “Pandora’s Promise” in Knoxville on Saturday. (Submitted photo)

By Scott Jones

About 300 people attended a showing of the new pro-nuclear film “Pandora’s Promise” and heard a panel discussion about nuclear energy on Saturday, including perspectives from Oak Ridge National Laboratory staff.

The lab worked with Regal Entertainment Group to bring the film to the Downtown West theater from July 19-25.

Few phrases carry the ideological weight of the words “nuclear power.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: College, Education, Federal, Government, Movies, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Top Stories Tagged With: Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors, Doug Kothe, environmental, film, fission, fusion, Gordon Petersen, ITER, Jeff Binder, Lawrence Townsend, Mike Cohen, Ned Sauthoff, Nuclear Energy, nuclear engineering, nuclear power, nuclear reactors, nuclear weapons, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, ORNL, Pandora’s Promise, Regal Cinemas Downtown West, Robert J. Whalen, Robert S. Eby, Robert Stone, small modular reactor, SMR, Tennessee Valley Authority, United States Enrichment Corporation, University of Tennessee, USEC, utilities

DOE award could lead to small nuclear reactors in Oak Ridge

Posted at 7:14 pm November 20, 2012
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Note: This story was updated at 8:12 p.m.

Four small nuclear reactors could be built on the Clinch River in west Oak Ridge in about a decade under a federal award announced Tuesday.

In its announcement, the U.S. Department of Energy said it will invest up to half of the total cost of the project to design, license, and help commercialize the new small modular reactors, or SMRs. The investment will come through a five-year cost-sharing agreement.

The project will be led by The Babcock & Wilcox Co, which is headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., and has a business unit that oversees the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge. The company’s partners on the SMR project are Bechtel and the Tennessee Valley Authority.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Top Stories, U.S. Department of Energy Tagged With: B&W, Bechtel, Clinch River Site, DOE, nuclear reactors, Oak Ridge, small modular reactors, SMR, Tennessee Valley Authority, The Babcock and Wilcox Co., U.S. Department of Energy

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Classifieds

Availability of the draft environmental assessment for off-site depleted uranium manufacturing (DOE/EA-2252)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) announces the … [Read More...]

Public Notice: NNSA announces no significant impact of Y-12 Development Organization operations at Horizon Center

AVAILABILITY OF THE FINAL ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT FOR THE OFFSITE HOUSING OF THE Y-12 DEVELOPMENT … [Read More...]

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Aid to Distressed Families of Appalachian Counties (ADFAC) is a non-profit community based agency, … [Read More...]

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