GE Hitachi and PRISM Selected for US Department of Energy’s Versatile Test Reactor Programme

GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GEH) and its PRISM technology have been selected by Battelle Energy Alliance (BEA) to support the US Department of Energy’s Versatile Test Reactor (VTR) programme which seeks to utilise fast neutron spectrum technology to support accelerated development of fuels and materials for US advanced reactors.

The project is focused on advancing the reactor design and developing cost estimates for a new fast neutron spectrum irradiation capability. The results of the project will help inform a DOE decision about whether to construct a sodium-cooled fast test reactor which could become operational as early as 2026.

GEH and Bechtel National Inc will advance the design and cost estimates for the VTR based on GEH’s PRISM technology.

“The VTR is a vital and strategic project for the US and its promising advanced reactor industry, and we applaud the administration and Congress for making this technology a priority,” said Jay Wileman, GEH President and CEO.

“Our VTR project team combines GEH’s strength as a nuclear plant vendor, service provider and nuclear fuel fabricator with Bechtel’s strength in nuclear project management, engineering, procurement and construction. The mature PRISM technology is ideally suited to meet the VTR mission needs.”

“Currently the US. has no capability to test these fuels and materials,” said Peggy McCullough, a Bechtel senior vice president and general manager of Bechtel’s Nuclear, Security, and Operations business line.

“Advanced reactors hold great promise but their components need the proper testing before they can be licensed and used in energy-producing reactors. That’s what the Versatile Test Reactor will provide. It’s extremely important for the science community, industry, regulators, and the future of nuclear energy research.”

Building on the proven principles of the EBR-II, an integral sodium-cooled fast reactor prototype which was operated successfully for more than 30 years by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) in Idaho, PRISM is the only sodium-cooled reactor to have completed the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) preapplication review process successfully.

The PRISM Probabilistic Risk Assessment, developed with ANL in 2016, provided a validation of the advanced reactor’s safety.

Source: Global Energy World