Advanced nuclear power reactors could make a major contribution to decarbonizing the U.S. power sector, according to a new report from the National Academy of Engineering. But getting advanced reactors from drawing boards and board rooms to reality could take decades and will require heavy, regulatory, technical, economical, and societal lifting.
The head of the academy project that produced the report – “Laying the Foundation for New and Advanced Nuclear Reactors in the United States” – former U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chairman Richard Meserve, said in a press release, ““Our report shows new and advanced nuclear reactors could play an important role as the U.S. works to decarbonize the economy. But there are significant hurdles that must be overcome to enable advanced nuclear reactors to succeed and reach commercial and globally competitive viability ― among them, economic challenges, technological challenges, regulatory changes, and societal acceptance. If we want the ability to pursue this option, the U.S. should address these barriers now.”
The report notes that its focus is “LWRs [light water reactors] that are significantly different from current designs (principally, small modular reactors [SMRs]) and reactors using coolants different from light water (e.g., sodium, molten salts, or helium). The focus of the report is on power reactors….”
But there are significant hurdles that must be overcome to enable advanced nuclear reactors to succeed and reach commercial and globally competitive viability
Meserve, 78, a lawyer who also holds a Ph.D. in applied physics, was NRC chairman from 1999 to 2003. He then became chairman of the Carnegie Institution for Science, where he served until 2014, and a part-time lawyer for the D.C. firm of Covington & Burling. He was a Covington & Burling partner when President Bill Clinton nominated him to head the NRC.
In the area of technology, the Meserve report calls for a focus on fuels and materials, rapid demonstration, advanced construction research and development, programs to produce skilled workers, and “significant incentives, such as those that have nurtured solar and wind technologies….”
Advanced nuclear success will require dealing with new regulatory and economic challenges. The report notes, “Some regulatory risks are particularly difficult for industry to evaluate because there is often no past guidance that would apply to novel reactor designs, so more regulatory certainty will help industry and its investors make informed plans.” The NRC should continue its “overarching” safety mission, bit advanced reactor technologies “present novel regulatory issues, particularly reactors that use new coolants, have advanced safety capabilities, or are factory made or transportable.” Congress should act to give the NRC more resources and regulatory options.
As for social acceptance, long a problem for nuclear power, the report “calls for consent-based approaches for new facilities, adjusted for place, time, and culture.” The nuclear industry typically reviews new reactor plans only after design and siting are completed. Instead, industry plans “should include participatory site selection methods and incorporate more value-focused thinking. Industry should adopt research-backed approaches to community engagement, enduring through the life of a project, and these should be treated with the same seriousness as technological development.”
The specter of a warming world has given nuclear power its new rationale, but advanced nuclear will not make an easy or rapid contribution to reducing greenhouse gas air emissions. The report observes, “Nuclear power could be important in this transition. But the role for nuclear power, as with many other energy technologies, remains uncertain as to its extent and timing.”
“The race against climate change is both a marathon and a sprint,” says the Meserve report, noting that “economy-wide decarbonization will span several decades; projected growth in electricity demand during the 2030s, 2040s, 2050s, and beyond presents important long-term opportunities for advanced nuclear technologies.”
The Meserve report was funded by the Department of Energy and by a gift from James J. Truchard, 79, a member of the National Academy of Engineering and billionaire entrepreneur, who co-founded National Instruments (NI), purveyor of automated test and measurement systems, in his Texas garage in 1976. He has a B.S. and M.S. in physics and a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.
–Kennedy Maize
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