Current IssuesDOE's Nuclear Energy Programs

Dr. Peter LyonsAssistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy

U.S. Department of Energy

Energy Communities Alliance Peer Exchange

February 27, 2014

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President Obama’s Nuclear Energy Goals

“Thanks to the ingenuity of our businesses, we're starting to produce much more of our own energy. We're building the first nuclear power plants in more than three decades in Georgia and South Carolina.“ - Georgetown University June 26th, 2013

“Now, one of the biggest factors in bringing more jobs back is our commitment to American energy. The all-of-the-above energy strategy I announced a few years ago is working, and today, America is closer to energy independence than we’ve been in decades.”- State of the Union, January 28th, 2014

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“The Energy Department is committed to strengthening nuclear energy’s continuing important role in America’s low carbon future, and new technologies like small modular reactors will help ensure our continued leadership in the safe, secure and efficient use of nuclear power worldwide.” New Investment in Innovative Small Modular Reactor, December 12, 2013

“All-of-the-above is not merely a slogan, but a clear-cut pathway to creating jobs and at the same time reducing carbon emissions, which recently stood at their lowest level in 20 years…President Obama has made clear that he sees nuclear energy as part of America’s low carbon energy portfolio. And nuclear power is already an important part of the clean energy solution here in the United States.”The National Press Club, February 19, 2014

Secretary Moniz on Nuclear Energy

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Secretary Moniz Announces$6.5 Billion Vogtle Loan Guarantee

“The construction of new nuclear power facilities like this one - which will provide carbon-free electricity to well over a million American energy consumers - is not only a major milestone in the Administration’s commitment to jumpstart the U.S. nuclear power industry, it is also an important part of our all-of-the-above approach to American energy as we move toward a low-carbon energy future…

The innovative technology used in this project represents a new generation of nuclear power with advanced safety features and demonstrates renewed leadership from the U.S. nuclear energy industry.”

Construction of Vogtle Unit 3, January 2014 ©Georgia Power Company

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Role of U.S. Department of Energy for Sustainable and Innovative Nuclear Energy

Conduct Research, Development, and Demonstration to: Reduce regulatory risk

Reduce technical risk

Reduce financial risk and improve economics

Used fuel disposition

Minimize the risks of nuclear proliferation and terrorism

Foster international and industry collaboration

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Overview

Omnibus Budget

Fuel Cycle R&D

Reactor Technology R&D

NE Modeling and Simulation

Nuclear Energy University Programs (NEUP)

Challenge of Plant Retirements

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Fuel Cycle Research and Development

• Mission– Develop used nuclear fuel management strategies

and technologies; conduct R&D on fuel cycle technologies and options.

• FY 2014 Planned Accomplishments– Increase in Advanced Fuels for assessing the

feasibility of accident tolerant fuel concepts for development and qualification (explicit Congressional direction is noted in the text box, below left).

– Continue activities that support the Strategy for the Management and Disposal of Used Nuclear Fuel and High-Level Radioactive Waste.

– Develop design concepts for consolidated storage facilities and explore logistics for shipping orphan fuel to such a facility.

– Conduct R&D for the long-term storage of high-burnup used nuclear fuel.

– Complete the evaluation and screening of fuel cycle options in order to identify the most promising options for further research and development.

Program ElementFY 2013

FinalFY 2014

Omnibus

Separations and Waste Forms 37,450 34,300

Advanced Fuels 39,146 60,100

Systems Analysis & Integration 21,993 19,605

Materials Protection, Accounting & Control Technology

6,983 7,600

Used Nuclear Fuel Disposition 57,849 60,000

Fuel Resources 6,475 4,600

Total: 169,896 186,205

Budget Summary$ in thousands

“Not later than 30 days after enactment of this Act, the Department shall provide the Committees on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the Senate a plan for development of meltdown-resistant fuels leading to in-reactor testing and utilization by 2020 as required in the Fiscal Year 2012 Consolidated Appropriations Act.” (FY 2014 Omnibus, Explanatory Statement)

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Administration Strategy for Used Fuel Disposition Key Elements

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High temperatureduring loss of active

cooling

Slower Hydrogen Generation Rate• Hydrogen bubble• Hydrogen explosion• Hydrogen embrittlement of the clad

Improved Cladding Properties

• Clad fracture• Geometric stability • Thermal shock

resistance• Melting of the cladding

Improved Fuel Properties • Lower operating temps• Clad internal oxidation• Fuel relocation/dispersion• Fuel melting

Enhanced Retention of Fission Products• Gaseous fission products• Solid/liquid fission products

Improved Reaction Kinetics with Steam• Heat of oxidation• Oxidation rate

Behaviors of Accident Tolerant Fuels &Fuel and Cladding at High Temperatures

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Uranium Extraction from Seawater

U.S. Investment Strategies-Develop novel adsorbent materials:

Increase surface area via reduced fiber size and modified fiber shape; Increase functional group density and grafting efficiency via tailored nanostructure design, nanomanufacturing and irradiation techniques; Enhanced ligand design via computational modeling and computer-aided screening

Understand ligand coordination modes, sorption mechanism, kinetics, and thermodynamics

Enhance adsorbent reuse and durabilityIncrease the number of recycles/reuse;Improve U-stripping methodology

Vast potential resource in seawater: ~4.5 billion tonnes U Challenge is low concentration: ~3.3 ppb in seawater

- provide a price cap and ensure centuries of U supply even with aggressive world-wide growth in nuclear energy applications

3-fold Increase of the best Japanese samplesThe ORNL developed adsorbent materials received 2012 R&D 100 Award

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DOE Program to Support SMR Design Certification & Licensing

The U.S. Government wants to support the safest, most robust SMR designs that minimize the probability of any radioactivity release

In 2012, DOE initiated the SMR Licensing Technical Support program – Currently a 6 year/$452 M program

Accelerate commercial SMR development through public/private arrangements· Deployment as early as 2022

Provide financial assistance for design engineering, testing, certification, and licensing of promising SMR technologies with high likelihood of being deployed at domestic sites

Exploring additional mechanisms for SMR fleet deployment

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Status of SMR Licensing Technical Support Program

B&W mPower America Cooperative Agreement established with team

consisting of B&W, Bechtel, and TVA in April 2013 Initial DOE commitment of $101 M through March 2014 Design Certification Application (DCA) submittal to NRC in

late 2014; Construction Permit in mid-2015 mPower is meeting the DOE goals established in the agreement

NuScale Power Selection of NuScale announced on December 12, 2013 Negotiations on cooperative agreement terms are underway DCA submittal planned for late 2015

DOE is examining options to optimize the funding split between the industry partners within the $452 M program

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B&W mPower SMR Features

Integral NSSS Module: 180 MWe per unit (530MWt) 2 units/plant 60-year design life / rail shippable modulesStandard UO2 LWR fuel (<5% enriched)4 year refueling interval

No shuffling of fuel / Burnable poisons / no boron in coolantCore remains covered during all postulated accidentsOngoing proactive pre-application engagement with NRCDesign Certification application submittal to NRC

estimated October 2014Supports DOE goal for SMR deployment in the 2022

timeframe

Next generation passive safety design philosophy uses non-safety “defense-in-depth” systems first - Multiple defense-in-depth layers deliver ~10-8 CDF

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NuScale Power SMR Features

45 MWe per unit (150 MWt) – up to 12 units/plant Standard UO2 LWR fuel (4.95% enriched)2.5 year refueling intervalUtilizes passive circulation cooling under normal operating

conditionsSMR containment vessels submerged in reactor pool for

improved safetyCore Damage Frequency for internal events calculated at

2.9x10-9

Ongoing proactive pre-application engagement with NRCDesign Certification application submittal to NRC estimated

Q3 2015Supports DOE goal for SMR deployment in the 2025

timeframe

Containment Vessel

Reactor Vessel

Core

Steam Generator

Innovative emergency core cooling system design requires no operator intervention, no AC or DC power, and no additional cooling water to

maintain safe condition for an indefinite period

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Advanced Reactor Technologies

R&D focused on Advanced, Small and Modular Reactor Concepts· Fast Reactor Technologies

– For actinide management and electricity production– Current focus on sodium coolant

· High Temperature Reactor Technologies– For electricity and process heat production– Current focus on gas- and liquid salt-cooled systems

· Advanced Reactor Generic Technologies– Common design needs for advanced materials, energy conversion,

decay heat removal systems and modeling methods

· Advanced Reactor Regulatory Framework– Development of licensing requirements for advanced reactors

· Advanced Reactor System Studies – Analyses of capital, operations and fuel costs for advanced reactor types

High Temperature Test FacilityOregon State University

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Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program

LWRS Program Goal· Develop fundamental scientific basis to allow continued long-term safe operation of

existing LWRs (beyond 60 years) and their long-term economic viability

LWRS program is developing technologies and other solutions to· Enable long term operation of the existing

nuclear power plants· Improve reliability· Sustain safety

LWRS focus areas· Materials Aging and Degradation· Advanced Instrumentation and Controls· Risk-Informed Safety Margin Characterization· Systems Analysis and Emerging Issues (includes research to support post-Fukushima

lessons learned)

Nine Mile Point ~ Courtesy Constellation Energy

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Comparison Rankine efficiency is 33% Potential for Supercritical CO2

(sCO2 ) to surpass 40% efficiency Greatly reduced capital cost for

sCO2 compared to conventional steam Rankine cycle

sCO2 compact turbo machinery is easily scalable

Supercritical CO2 Energy Conversion

1 meter sCO2 (300 MWe)(Brayton Cycle)

20 meter Steam Turbine (300 MWe)(Rankine Cycle)

5-stage Dual TurbineLo Hi Lo

3-stage Single Turbine Hi Lo

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HUBS AND NEAMS – PARTNERSHIP AND COMPLEMENTARITY

Partnership· Advance multi-scale, multi-physics

computational methods for reactor simulations

· Demonstrate positive impact of models and simulations on NE technology

Complementarity· CASL – focus on solutions to industry

defined challenges· NEAMS – focus on insights into

performance and safety “hubification” – using successful Hub

R&D and business models to improve other programs· Medium-long term objectives, plan· Independent advisory boards· Self-sustained user groups· Funding stability

Computational methods

Industry challenges

Insights

Positive Impact on NE technology

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Nuclear Energy University Programs

The Nuclear Energy University Programs (NEUP) and the Integrated University Program (IUP) have a well established competitive process for awarding R&D, infrastructure and scholarships/fellowships.· The Office of Science and Technology

Innovation will continue implementing this competitive process and will expand to incorporate it into all competitive research.

The NE R&D Programs are the cognizant technical managers of these competitive R&D awards and therefore play in integral role in the success of each project.· Universities, national laboratories, industry, and foreign research partners are strongly

encouraged to actively engage and collaborate with the NE R&D programs.

Since FY09, NEUP and IUP have awarded$290M to 89 schools in 35 States and the District of Columbia.

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Impact of Early Retirements on Clean Energy Goals

Consider Dramatic Retirement Scenario· One-third of the reactor fleet, ~26 GW, 200 TWh/yr · Replacement power estimated to add 125 MT per year

Near-term Target: Reduce Emissions 17% by 2020· 2005 emissions from power sector: 2,417 MT· Reduction target of 411 MT climbs to 536 MT (30% increase)

Long-term Target: 80% Clean Electricity by 2035· Need 2,900 TWh non-emitting power; EIA: 800 TWh of nuclear, 700 TWh of

renewable· 1,400 TWh shortfall grows to 1,600 TWh with retirements

Meeting energy goals will be challenging. Retiring nuclear plants early makes the challenge more daunting.

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Sanmen –November 2013Source: SNPTC

Summer – November 2013Source: SCE&G

Global Demand for Nuclear Energy Continues

Haiyang – December 2013Source: Shandong Nuclear Power Company,Ltd..

Vogtle – January 2014Source: Georgia Power Co.

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Global Energy Distribution

as indicated by nighttime electricity use

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BACK UP

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Office of Nuclear Energy FY 2014 Appropriations

FY 2013 Final a

FY 2014Request

FY 2014Omnibus e

Change from Request

Integrated University Program 4,677 0 5,500 5,500

SMR Licensing Technical Support 62,670 70,000 110,000 40,000

Reactor Concepts RD&D 104,780 72,500 112,822 40,322

Fuel Cycle R&D 169,896 165,100 186,205 21,105

Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies

67,904 62,300 71,109 8,809

Radiological Facilities Management b 65,370 5,000 24,968 19,968

International Nuclear Energy Cooperation

2,806 2,500 2,496 -4

Idaho Facilities Management 144,981 181,560 196,276 14,716

Idaho Safeguards and Security c 89,853 94,000 94,000 0

Program Direction 85,118 87,500 90,000 2,500

Adjustments d 227 -5,000 -5,000 0

Total, Nuclear Energy $798,282 $735,460 $888,376 $152,916

a) Reflects full year CR, sequestration and $4.1M provided to Idaho S&S via appropriation transferb) FY 2013 included $46.6M for Space & Defense Infrastructure this included in NASA budget starting in FY 2014.c) Funded within Other Defense Activities in FY 2013; Nuclear Energy in FY 2014 (retains Defense function designation)d) FY 2013 transfer from Department of State; FY 2014 reflects use of prior year balances e) Reflects NE’s share of general reduction associated with contractor foreign travel; does not reflect potential 0.2% general reduction

(Dollars in Thousands)

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Nuclear Energy Enabling Technologies Crosscutting Technology Development

Provide R&D solutions to address critical technology gaps relevant to multiple reactor and fuel cycle concepts

· Reactor Materials: New classes of alloys and materials that may enable transformational reactor performance.

· Advanced Sensors and Instrumentation: Unique sensor and instrumentation technology to monitor and control reactors and fuel cycle systems.

· Advanced Methods for Manufacturing:Manufacturing technologies that draw upon successful practices in oil, aircraft, and shipbuilding industries, as appropriate, and employ modeling and simulation capabilities.

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FY 2013 NEUP IRP Award

High Fidelity Ion Beam Simulation of High Dose Neutron IrradiationLead: Gary Was, University of Michigan

Collaborators: University of Tennessee, Pennsylvania State University, University of Wisconsin, Madison, University of South Carolina, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Santa Barbara, University of Manchester, Oxford University, Queens University, CEA Saclay Center, Tour AREVA, TerraPower, LLC, EPRI, ORNL, LLNL, ANL, LANL, INL

DOE Funding: $5M

Collaborator Contributions: $4M

Total Project Budget: $9M

Upgrade and utilize ion beam irradiation capabilities to:· Simulate advanced (e.g. fast) reactor neutron irradiations· Predict microstructural evolution and other properties of structural materials

in-reactor and at high doses