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Topics
Nuclear reactors can provide low-carbon energy, and advanced nuclear technologies could play an important role in moving the United States towards a zero-carbon future. Next-generation nuclear reactors have the potential to be smaller, safer, less expensive to build, and better integrated with the modern grid. However, the technical, economic, and regulatory outlook for these technologies remains uncertain. This study will assess the future of new and advanced nuclear reactor technologies and identify the opportunities and barriers to commercialization.
This study operates in parallel with a congressionally mandated study on the fuel cycle and waste aspects of these advanced reactor designs.
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Workshop
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Recent years have brought a renewed focus on the potential for nuclear energy to help meet the United States' growing demands for abundant, reliable, low-carbon energy. Trends such as the increased electrification of transportation and industrial processes, along with the rapid expansion of data cen...
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Description
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will appoint an ad hoc committee of experts to identify opportunities and barriers to the commercialization of new and advanced nuclear reactor technologies in the United States over the next 30 years as part of a decarbonization strategy. Specific topics the committee will examine include:
- The research, development, and demonstration needed for new and advanced nuclear reactor technologies to reach commercial readiness, the potential for leveraging technological developments outside the nuclear energy sector, and the manufacturing, construction, financial, societal, and other barriers associated with their deployment;
- The operational characteristics of these technologies, including their implications for safety, security, and non-proliferation, as well as their interaction with other low-carbon generation and storage resources that may be relevant to a changing electricity system;
- The economic, regulatory, and business challenges associated with commercialization of these technologies;
- The implications of these technologies for the front- and back-end of the fuel cycle;
- The viability of these technologies in applications outside the electricity sector, for example in desalination, water and wastewater treatment, hydrogen production, or process heat;
- The role of the U.S. Government in sponsoring the development and commercialization of new and advanced nuclear reactor technologies to provide clean energy, to address national-security and nonproliferation goals, or to assist in nuclear exports; and
- The future workforce and educational needs to support the research, development, and deployment of these technologies.
Collaborators
Committee
Chair
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Committee Membership Roster Comments
Heather Feldman resigned April 2022.
Rachel Slaybaugh resigned May 2022.
Sponsors
Department of Energy
Private: Non Profit
Staff
Kyra Howe
Jasmine Victoria Bryant
K. John Holmes
Jennifer Heimberg
Charles Ferguson
Rebecca DeBoer
Catherine Wise
Major units and sub-units
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
Lead
Division on Earth and Life Studies
Lead
Center for Advancing Science and Technology
Lead
Board on Energy and Environmental Systems
Lead
Nuclear and Radiation Studies Board
Lead
Physical Sciences, Systems, and Infrastructure Program Area
Lead