W9 Use of Accident Tolerant Fuel to Safely Increase Reactor Output

This video recording is from the technical session held at the NRC Regulatory Information Conference in 2024. 90% of the closed captions are accurate. More information on the technical session is provided below.

W9 Use of Accident Tolerant Fuel to Safely Increase Reactor Output

The NRC is committed to enabling the safe use of new fuel technologies to support future energy needs. The U.S. nuclear industry, with the assistance of the DOE, plans to deploy new fuel technologies, incentivized in the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, to achieve power uprates, extended fuel cycles, and the batch loading of accident tolerant fuels (ATF) in the mid to late 2020s. Industry response to Regulatory Issue Summary 2023 02, “Scheduling Information for the Licensing of Accident Tolerant, Increased Enrichment, and Higher Burnup Fuels,” dated June 26, 2023, indicated that over 50 percent of sites have a strong interest in coupling power uprates with ATF efforts to capitalize on potential gains for operational and safety enhancements. Focusing on near term implementation, ATF designs will generally maintain the existing physical fuel structure but may include concepts such as coated cladding, doped pellets, increased enrichment, and higher burnup limits. Power uprates (PUR), or increasing the output of a reactor, on the order of less than 2 percent up to 20 percent, can be accomplished through more precise measurements, higher enriched fuel, or major plant modifications. Leveraging modern data analytics tools for licensing and continued stakeholder engagement, both industry and the NRC are identifying regulatory efficiencies, consistent with the Principles of Good Regulation, for the potential influx of licensing actions for ATF and PUR. Coupling these concepts could enhance safety at U.S. nuclear power plants by offering better performance during normal operation, transient conditions, and accident scenarios, while enabling additional power production. The NRC is committed to working on the anticipated reviews in a thoughtful and deliberative manner.

SESSION CHAIR(S):
Bo Pham, Director, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, NRR/NRC
Opening Remarks

SPEAKER(S):
Scott Krepel, Chief, Nuclear Methods and Fuel Analysis Branch, Division of Safety Systems, NRR/NRC
NRC Perspective: Licensing for Accident Tolerant Fuel and Power Uprates
Frank Goldner, Federal Program Manager for U.S. Accident Tolerant Fuel Program, U.S. Department of Energy
U.S. DOE: Accident Tolerant Fuel Program Supporting Increased Reactor Output
Svetlana Lawrence, Risk-Informed Systems Analysis Pathway Lead, Idaho National Laboratory
Enabling Sizable Power Uprates
Jason Murphy, Vice President of Nuclear Fuels, Constellation Nuclear
Use of Accident Tolerant Fuel to Safely Increase Reactor Output

SESSION CORDINATORS(S):
Daniel King, Project Manager, Licensing Projects Branch, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, NRR/NRC e-mail: [email protected]
Jeffery Smith, Project Manager, Licensing Projects Branch, Division of Operating Reactor Licensing, NRR/NRC e-mail: [email protected]

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