National Reactor Innovation Center Launched at INL This Week

In March 2018, Congress passed the Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act, which would strengthen partnerships between the private sector and government researchers. A key component of that effort directed the Department of Energy to prioritize partnering with private innovators to test and demonstrate advanced nuclear reactor concepts and create the National Reactor Innovation Center (NRIC) combining the technical expertise at our world-leading national labs and DOE to spark the construction of demonstration reactors. The NRIC was officially launched at the Idaho National Laboratory this week.

RICH’S TAKE

“The U.S. is on the verge of commercializing groundbreaking nuclear innovation, and we must keep advancing the public-private partnerships needed to traverse the dreaded valley of death that all too often stifles progress. The NRIC will enable private sector nuclear innovators to access the best of public sector expertise, facilities, and resources to pilot the next-generation of clean and reliable nuclear technologies.”
 

Rich Powell Named to Export Import Bank Advisory Board

Rich Powell, Executive Director of ClearPath was named to the The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) 2019 Advisory Committee. The EXIM Advisory Committee advises EXIM on its programs and financing to support American jobs through exports. The Advisory Committee is made up of professionals working in small business, agriculture, environment, finance, labor, services, and textiles, among others. Read more here.
 

U.S. Canadian Partnership to Benefit Advanced Reactor & Small Modular Reactor Technologies

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission signed a Memorandum of Cooperation to streamline regulatory process and technical reviews of advanced reactor and small modular reactor technologies. This builds on a Memorandum of Understanding signed in August 2017, accelerating efforts to realize innovation in the review of advanced reactor and small modular reactor technology concepts. Read more here.
 

New Carbon Capture, Storage Project will be One of the World’s Largest

Last week Chevron announced they are launching one of the world’s largest carbon capture and storage projects, injecting CO2 into a deep reservoir in Australia at its Gorgon LNG project. According to their announcement, once the facility is fully up and running, between 3.4 million and 4 million tonnes a year of carbon dioxide will be buried. Read more.

RICH’S TAKE

“Carbon capture, utilization and storage, or CCUS, is widely recognized as a critical emission reduction technology because it can significantly reduce emissions from new and existing fossil power plants, mitigate industrial emissions (e.g. cement and steel), and achieve negative emissions under certain applications. Carbon capture projects were first deployed in the United States nearly half a century ago during the energy crisis. Petroleum engineers discovered that injecting carbon dioxide into mature oil fields often increases oil production by increasing reservoir pressure and increasing miscibility, in a process called “enhanced oil recovery”. Over 5,000 miles of carbon dioxide pipelines have been built across the United States, directly contributing to about 3% of total United States oil production. Carbon dioxide is so useful for oil production, naturally occurring carbon dioxide is actively mined for and sold like natural gas to producers. We applaud our friends in Australia adopting this critical technology.”
 

Momentum for Building a Versatile Test Reactor in the U.S.

Earlier this week, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) published a Notice of Intent in the Federal Register announcing that the department will develop an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to study the impacts of building a Versatile Test Reactor (VTR) in the U.S. The VTR is important to test future fuels and materials that industry is designing for advanced civilian nuclear power reactors to provide large amounts of carbon-free, economical electricity for the nation’s power grid. Read the recent ClearPath blog, A Versatile Way to Grow Advance Nuclear Power.

RICH’S TAKE

“DOE has taken great initiative to help support and advance nuclear energy, moving forward with the VTR study. We are also working to codify this work into law — starting with the Nuclear Energy Innovation Capabilities Act (NEICA) which was signed into law in September 28, 2018 continuing with the Nuclear Energy Leadership Act (NELA) which continues to pick up support in both the House and Senate.”
 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

Jupiter Oxygen: Advanced Carbon Capture Technology for Coal Plants

Watch the latest ClearPath whiteboard video on the exciting advanced technology coming from Jupiter Oxygen, and why you should pay attention to the future of coal plants with carbon capture.
 

ClearPath Publishes New Nuclear Fuel 101 Report

In the latest Energy 101 series, ClearPath’s policy team takes an in-depth look at the science behind nuclear fuel and helps you break it down.

Nuclear fuel “burns” without fire. Heat is created, but the fuel looks the same before it is used as it does after it. Campfires and burning your toast breaks the bonds between atoms and rearranges them, nuclear power breaks the atom itself. Nuclear energy is clean energy. Without fire, there’s no smoke. And without smoke there’s no emissions. How nuclear fuel is created and deployed is complex and often misunderstood; this article provides a high-level, comprehensive explanation of the creation of nuclear fuel from mining to final fuel assembly as well as a short explanation of current and future fuel alternatives.

Read the report!
 

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