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Overview of US Nuclear Energy Initiatives

Overview of US Nuclear Energy Initiatives. Harold McFarlane President. American Nuclear Society. 7671-9/06- 1. unauthorized informal informative. Energy Policy Act of 2005. Nuclear. New Plant Construction. R&D. Loan guarantees Risk assurance Production tax credit Price-Anderson

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Overview of US Nuclear Energy Initiatives

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  1. Overview of US Nuclear Energy Initiatives Harold McFarlane President American Nuclear Society 7671-9/06-1

  2. unauthorizedinformalinformative

  3. Energy Policy Act of 2005 Nuclear New Plant Construction R&D • Loan guarantees • Risk assurance • Production tax credit • Price-Anderson • Decommissioning funds • Next generation nuclear plant • Nuclear hydrogen production • Advanced fuel cycle initiative • Nuclear engineering program • Medical isotopes 7639-8/06-3

  4. US Major Nuclear Initiatives • Nuclear Regulatory Commission • New licensing process • Department of Energy • Nuclear Power 2010 • Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) • Nuclear Hydrogen • Generation-IV • Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative (AFCI) • Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) • Yucca Mountain Project

  5. Nuclear Power 2010 Current US Nuclear Electric Generation: 104 Reactors; 100 GWe; 20% of total

  6. Nuclear Power 2010 Initiative • Federal/private cost sharing • Early site permitting • Combined construction/operating license (COL) • COL application expected 2007-2008 • Construction expected to begin in 2010 following NRC issuance of COL 2006 budget appropriation: $65.3 million 2007 budget request: $54.0 million

  7. Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) • Very high temperature reactor • Electricity and/or industrial heat applications • New $8 million contract with industry • National laboratories working on technology gaps

  8. Nuclear Hydrogen Initiative • Part of a larger hydrogen program • Investigating 2 high temperature approaches • Thermo-chemical water cracking • Steam electrolysis • Budget • 2006 appropriation: $24.8M • 2007 request: $18.7M

  9. Generation-IV • Generation-IV International Forum (GIF) coordinates international research cooperation on advanced nuclear reactors • Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Euratom, France, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States • China and Russia to join this year • US emphasis has been on the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) and fast reactors

  10. Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative • Advanced aqueous separations • Advanced pyroprocess methods • Advanced fuels for transmutation • Focus on improving repository performance • Implement advanced safeguards in process and facility design • Budget: • 2006 Appropriation: $79.2 million • 2007 Request: $243.0 million

  11. High Level Waste Repository Program

  12. Yucca Mountain Repository • License submittal 2008 • Opening ~ 2017 • DOE paying some utilities for fuel storage • “Adaptive Staging” recommended by National Research Council in 2003 • Pending legislation

  13. Senator Domenici’s Yucca Mountain Bill • Authorizes DOE to withdraw 147,000 acres of federally owned property • Replaces arbitrary 70,000 ton capacity with scientifically based capacity • Authorizes infrastructure construction after EIS • Gives DOE authority to accept and store SNF • Starts with defense waste and fuel • After construction permit, legacy civilian fuel • Withdraws land for rail line • Changes “standard contract” to 25 years after start of operation of new nuclear plants

  14. Domenici’s bill, continued • Takes Waste Fund off budget • Requires NRC to accept legislation as satisfying waste confidence for new plant construction • Basically the bill would integrate DOE’s programs • High level waste program • Advanced nuclear energy program • Incorporate some recommendations from the National Research Council’s staging report

  15. Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP) The US blueprint for nuclear sustainability Source: www.gnep.energy.gov

  16. Safeguards Transparency • Incorporate into design of new facilities • Remote, automated intelligent systems • Materials tracking and process control • Remote sensing, environmental sampling and forensic verification • International tests and demonstrations • Continued support for global best practices in security and materials accounting

  17. Reliable fuel services • Limit sensitive technologies • Enrichment • Reprocessing • Must integrate into existing commercial uranium market • 17.4 tons HEU pledged by US • $50 million pledged by NTI/Warren Buffet • Excellent forum during IAEA General Conference • http://www.iaea.org/About/Policy/GC/GC50/SideEvent/report220906.pdf

  18. Appropriately sized reactors • 50-350 MWe sized for grid • Long fuel life; infrequent reloading • Passive safety systems • Electricity, district heating, potable water • IAEA safeguards • Physical protection from terrorism • R&D needed

  19. Proliferation resistant recycle • UREX+ and Pyroprocessing • Remote fuel fabrication • Integrated safeguards

  20. Minimized nuclear waste • Employ advanced recycle • Custom waste forms • Manage heat load • Manage radiotoxicity

  21. Advanced Burner Reactor • Sodium cooled • Fast neutron spectrum • Transmutation • Naturally safe

  22. GNEP Technology Demonstrations • Advanced Burner Reactor • Advanced Fuel Cycle Facility • Advanced modeling and simulation and industrial application • Consolidated fuel treatment center

  23. Undergraduate Student Enrollment Trends in nuclear engineering enrollment 1,831 DOE Investment ($ in Millions) Number of Students HBCU/HSI Student Enrollment DOE Investment 70 US DOE August 2006

  24. US Nuclear Initiatives Aimed at nuclear expansion American Nuclear Society Thank you! 7671-9/06-25

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