Kairos Power has started construction on a test nuclear reactor in west Oak Ridge. The Hermes Low-Power Demonstration Reactor is the first of its type to be approved for construction by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the first non-light-water reactor to be permitted in the U.S. in more than 50 years, a press release said. (Image courtesy Kairos Power)
Kairos Power has started construction on a test nuclear reactor in west Oak Ridge.
The Hermes Low-Power Demonstration Reactor is the first of its type to be approved for construction by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the first non-light-water reactor to be permitted in the U.S. in more than 50 years, a press release said.
The NRC approved a construction permit for the test reactor at Heritage Center industrial park, the former K-25 site, in December.
“Hermes represents a critical milestone on Kairos Power’s iterative path to commercializing advanced reactor technology,” the press release said.
Kairos Power said it has contracted with Barnard Construction Company Inc. to perform sitework and excavation at the Hermes site in Oak Ridge, and that work began earlier this month.
An image showing the proposed Hermes demonstration reactor by Kairos Power. The test reactor would be built at Heritage Center industrial park in west Oak Ridge. (Image by Kairos Power)
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has approved a construction permit for a test reactor at Heritage Center industrial park in west Oak Ridge. The NRC decision was announced Tuesday, and construction could start next year.
The 35-megawatt thermal Hermes demonstration reactor would be built by Kairos Power, which has headquarters in Alameda, California, and a Tennessee operation in Oak Ridge.
Hermes would use molten salt to cool its reactor core. It would not generate electricity. Instead, it would provide operational data to support the development of a larger version for commercial power, the NRC said.
“A critical step on Kairos Power’s iterative pathway to commercializing its advanced reactor technology, the Hermes reactor will demonstrate the company’s ability to deliver clean, safe, and affordable nuclear heat,” the company said in a press release.
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)
A small group of residents who spoke at a public meeting on Wednesday were mostly supportive of a proposed nuclear fuel facility in west Oak Ridge. None of the seven local speakers opposed the project, but they had some suggestions for what the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission should consider as it prepares an environmental impact statement. That was the type of input the NRC had requested.
The nuclear fuel facility would be the first manufacturing facility of its type in the United States. It has been proposed by TRISO-X, and it would be on 110 acres at Horizon Center. The coated particle uranium fuel produced there could be used in new types of nuclear reactors such as small modular reactors.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
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).
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
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.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
Small modular reactors and other types of new nuclear reactors could be considered for power generation at the Clinch River Nuclear Site in west Oak Ridge.
Kairos Power has proposed a Hermes test reactor at the Heritage Center, the former K-25 site in west Oak Ridge. A model of the test reactor is pictured at a U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission meeting in Oak Ridge on Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)
Note: This story was updated at 11:20 a.m. Dec. 1.
A nuclear test reactor proposed in west Oak Ridge could help as the United States tries to lower carbon dioxide emissions and reduce the effects of climate change, supporters said during a public meeting last week.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
Kairos Hermes test reactor (Image via Nuclear Regulatory Commission)
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is seeking public comment and will have a public meeting and online seminar Wednesday about issuing a construction permit for a proposed test reactor in Oak Ridge.
The NRC has issued a draft environmental impact statement for the construction permit for a Kairos Hermes Test Reactor. The nuclear reactor would not produce electricity, but it would test Kairos Power’s fluoride salt-cooled, high-temperature reactor technology, according to the NRC.
Completed in September, the draft environmental impact statement includes the NRC staff’s preliminary analysis of the environmental impacts of issuing a construction permit to Kairos.
“After weighing the environmental, economic, technical, and other benefits against environmental and other costs, the NRC staff’s preliminary recommendation, unless safety issues mandate otherwise, is that the operating license be issued as requested,” the NRC said in a notice published in the Federal Register.
If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:
Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831
We also have advanced subscription options. You can see them here.
We also accept donations. You can donate here. A donation of $50 or more will make you eligible for a subscription.
Thank you for reading Oak Ridge Today. We appreciate your support!
The Clinch River Site in west Oak Ridge is pictured above. The road running from bottom to top on the right (east) side of the Clinch River connects to Bear Creek Road in southwest Oak Ridge. Highway 58 is off to the top left of the photo and the Heritage Center is to the north. (Photo courtesy TVA)
The Tennessee Valley Authority could use the potential nuclear reactor site in west Oak Ridge to test new reactors and nuclear technologies.
Oak Ridge Today has previously reported that small modular nuclear reactors could be built at the Clinch River site, although no specific design has been approved or selected. There are additional actions that would have to be completed before any reactors would be built in Oak Ridge, including selection of a design, approval by the TVA board of directors, and issuance of a construction or operating permit by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
The Tennessee Valley Authority could use the potential nuclear reactor site in west Oak Ridge to test new reactors and nuclear technologies.
The rest of this story is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or contributor to Oak Ridge Today.
The Clinch River Site in west Oak Ridge is pictured above. The road running from bottom to top on the right (east) side of the Clinch River connects to Bear Creek Road in southwest Oak Ridge. Highway 58 is off to the top left of the photo and the Heritage Center is to the north. (Photo courtesy TVA)
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced Tuesday that it will issue an early site permit to the Tennessee Valley Authority for the Clinch River site in west Oak Ridge, where small modular nuclear reactors could eventually be built.
The early site permit closes several site-related issues, including many related to environmental impacts, for small modular reactors at the site, the NRC said in a press release Tuesday.
The Commission authorized the agency’s Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation to issue the permit following a hearing on August 14. The Commission found the staff’s review of TVA’s application to be adequate to make the necessary regulatory safety and environmental findings, the press release said.
The early site permit, which will be valid for up to 20 years, is expected to be issued in the next few days.
The carbonization and heat treatment furnace used to produce TRISO fuel, a uranium fuel, at a pilot production facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo courtesy X-energy)
Note: This story was updated at 12:15 p.m.
A company that has a trial fuel fabrication facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is collaborating with a joint venture led by GE with Hitachi to produce nuclear fuel for the U.S. Department of Defense and NASA.
Â
The carbonization and heat treatment furnace used to produce TRISO fuel, a high-assay, low-enriched uranium fuel, at a pilot production facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. (Photo courtesy X-energy)
A company that has a trial fuel fabrication facility at Oak Ridge National Laboratory is collaborating with a joint venture led by GE with Hitachi to produce nuclear fuel for the U.S. Department of Defense and NASA.
The company, X-energy of Rockville, Maryland, announced the collaboration with Global Nuclear Fuel on November 6.
The two companies have an agreement to develop high-assay, low-enriched uranium TRISO fuel. The fuel could be used in defense micro-reactors and by NASA for nuclear thermal propulsion, a press release said.
The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: an advertiser, sponsor, or subscriber to Oak Ridge Today.
If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to:
Oak Ridge Today
P.O. Box 6064
Oak Ridge, TN 37831
Learn about our advanced subscription options here.
Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories. These stories generally take more than four hours to report, write, and publish.
This is an aerial image of the current layout plan for the proposed Oak Ridge Airport at the Heritage Center (the former K-25 site) in west Oak Ridge. (Image courtesy Metropolitan Knoxville Airport Authority)
Cirrus Aircraft and Coquà Radio Pharmaceuticals could both use the proposed Oak Ridge Airport, a project consultant said Tuesday.
Oak Ridge Today has previously reported that Coquà Radio Pharmaceuticals Corporation could use the airport, which would have a 5,000-foot runway and be located at Heritage Center, the former K-25 site. Coquà has announced plans to build a $500 million medical isotope production facility at Heritage Center.
The company makes medical isotopes with a half-life of 62 hours, airport project consultant Billy Stair said at an Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce breakfast on Tuesday. Using the Oak Ridge Airport, rather than spending 42 minutes driving to McGhee Tyson Airport in Blount County, would save Coquà about $2.3 million per year, Stair said. It would also avoid the loss of about 1,000 doses per day of isotopes used for medical treatments, Stair said.
The Federal Aviation Administration conditionally approved the Oak Ridge Airport in March. That was a very significant step after four years of work, Stair said. The master plan has been approved; the precise location of the runway has been set; and a model of likely traffic has been developed.
As part of the conditional approval, the FAA wants an environmental assessment and a benefit-cost analysis.
