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The busyness of the nuclear fuel supply chain
Ken Petersenpresident@ans.org
With all that is happening in the industry these days, the nuclear fuel supply chain is still a hot topic. The Russian assault in Ukraine continues to upend the “where” and “how” of attaining nuclear fuel—and it has also motivated U.S. legislators to act.
Two years into the Russian war with Ukraine, things are different. The Inflation Reduction Act was passed in 2022, authorizing $700 million in funding to support production of high-assay low-enriched uranium in the United States. Meanwhile, the Department of Energy this January issued a $500 million request for proposals to stimulate new HALEU production. The Emergency National Security Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2024 includes $2.7 billion in funding for new uranium enrichment production. This funding was diverted from the Civil Nuclear Credits program and will only be released if there is a ban on importing Russian uranium into the United States—which could happen by the time this column is published, as legislation that bans Russian uranium has passed the House as of this writing and is headed for the Senate. Also being considered is legislation that would sanction Russian uranium. Alternatively, the Biden-Harris administration may choose to ban Russian uranium without legislation in order to obtain access to the $2.7 billion in funding.
J.P. Smith, W.R. Johnson, C.B. Baxi
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 30 | Number 3 | December 1996 | Pages 982-986
Fusion Materials | doi.org/10.13182/FST96-A11963064
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
General Atomics is developing manufacturing methods for vanadium alloys as part of a program to encourage the development of low activation alloys for fusion use. The culmination of the program is the fabrication and installation of a vanadium alloy structure in the DIII-D tokamak as part of the Radiative Divertor modification. Water-cooled vanadium alloy components will comprise a portion of the new upper divertor structure. The first step, procuring the material for this program has been completed. The largest heat of vanadium alloy made to date, 1200 kg of V-4Cr-4Ti, has been produced and is being converted into various product forms. Results of many tests on the material during the manufacturing process are reported. Research into potential fabrication methods has been and continues to be performed along with the assessment of manufacturing processes particularly in the area of joining.
Joining of vanadium alloys has been identified as the most critical fabrication issue for their use in the Radiative Divertor Program. Joining processes under evaluation include resistance seam, electrodischarge (stud), friction and electron beam welding. Results of welding tests are reported. Metallography and mechanical tests are used to evaluate the weld samples. The need for a protective atmosphere during different welding processes is also being determined.
General Atomics has also designed, manufactured, and will be testing a helium-cooled, high heat flux component to assess the use of helium cooled vanadium alloy components for advanced tokamak systems. The component is made from vanadium alloy tubing, machined to enhance the heat transfer characteristics, and joined to end flanges to allow connection to the helium supply. Results are reported.