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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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Latest News
DOE on track to deliver high-burnup SNF to Idaho by 2027
The Department of Energy said it anticipated delivering a research cask of high-burnup spent nuclear fuel from Dominion Energy’s North Anna nuclear power plant in Virginia to Idaho National Laboratory by fall 2027. The planned shipment is part of the High Burnup Dry Storage Research Project being conducted by the DOE with the Electric Power Research Institute.
As preparations continue, the DOE said it is working closely with federal agencies as well as tribal and state governments along potential transportation routes to ensure safety, transparency, and readiness every step of the way.
Watch the DOE’s latest video outlining the project here.
Shang-Fon Su, Gene L. Woodruff, N. J. McCormick
Nuclear Technology | Volume 29 | Number 3 | June 1976 | Pages 392-405
Technical Paper | Fusion Reactor Material / Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT76-A31604
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The neutronics of several fusion-fission hybrid reactors were studied to develop a design capable of producing 233U while maintaining a self-sufficiency in tritium. High breeding rates are achieved by using an equilibrium concentration of 238U and 239Pu instead of thorium in a converter region to produce a significantly greater multiplication of the 14-MeV source neutrons. The final blanket design has an 18-cm neutron converter that consists of 0.5-in-diam pins of 92% 238U/8% 239Pu with a 0.7-in. pitch. The 40-cm breeding region consists of 0.5-in.-diam pins of ThC with 0.6-in. pitch; the overall blanket thickness is 102 cm. The tritium and fissile breeding ratios are 1.052 and 1.880, respectively, and there are 3.537 233U nuclei produced per fusion neutron. An analysis of the performance of the blanket over a 2-yr period was carried out, including the buildup and depletion of fissionable nuclides and fission products. The final design requires an inventory of ∼30 000 kg of 239Pu, which must be produced for the design to be viable. A preliminary static and time-dependent study was done for a startup cycle to serve this purpose.