DOE to Invest Up to $80M in Advanced Nuclear Reactors
Engineering360 News Desk | January 20, 2016The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded $6 million each to X-energy and the Southern Company as part of a cost-share program to develop advanced nuclear reactor designs.
The awards will support work by X-energy to develop the Xe-100 Pebble Bed Advanced Reactor and the Southern Company to develop the Molten Chloride Fast Reactor. DOE's investment ultimately could reach $80 million in the coming years, with demonstrations of the two technologies expected around 2035.
X-energy's work will attempt to solve design and fuel development challenges of the Xe-100 Pebble Bed Advanced Reactor. This type of reactor is smaller than traditional nuclear reactors, potentially enabling it to serve more densely populated areas. Partners on the project are BWX Technology, Oregon State University, Teledyne-Brown Engineering, SGL Group, Idaho National Laboratory and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The Xe-100 plant is designed to generate 200 MW and fit on as little as 10 acres. Image credit: X-energy.The Southern Company's work will focus on integrated effects tests and materials suitability studies to support development of the Molten Chloride Fast Reactor, a next-generation design intended for use throughout the U.S. Partners on the project are TerraPower, Electric Power Research Institute, Vanderbilt University and Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
The awards are part of the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) initiative announced by the Obama administration in the fall of 2015. The public-private partnerships are intended to provide the nuclear energy industry with technical, regulatory and financial support to accelerate the commercialization of advanced nuclear energy systems.