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Two steps forward for U.K. advanced nuclear
This week, two significant announcements have emerged from the United Kingdom’s advanced reactor sector.
On June 14, Rolls-Royce, the United Kingdom National Nuclear Laboratory, and the Japan Atomic Energy Agency announced that they had signed two trilateral memorandums of cooperation to collaborate on “advanced modular reactor (AMR) technology, specifically high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGR), and the coated particle fuel these reactors will use.”
Separately, on June 16, Bellevue, Wash.–based TerraPower announced that its Natrium reactor design has been formally submitted for U.K. regulatory review. The company also announced the formation of a new subsidiary, TerraPower UK Ltd.
Dr. William Burchill retired from a career in nuclear energy that spanned over 35 years focusing on nuclear safety. He is a member of the ANS Nuclear Installations Safety; Education, Training, & Workforce Development; and Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Divisions.
Before retiring, he was an HTRI Professor and Department Head of Nuclear Engineering for five years at Texas A&M University. Prior to that, he spent five years as the Risk Management Director at Commonwealth Edison/Exelon Nuclear.
Dr. Burchill’s career also included three years at Pennsylvania Power & Light and 25 years with Combustion Engineering (C-E), where his last position was Director, Operations and Field Engineering Services. He led the C-E response to the Three Mile Island accident.
Dr. Burchill earned a BS in Metallurgical Engineering (Nuclear Option) from the Missouri School of Mines & Metallurgy, and an MS and PhD in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC). He also holds an MS in Management from the Hartford Graduate Center of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.
He was given the 2008 Distinguished Alumni Award, Department of Nuclear, Plasma and Radiological Engineering by UIUC, and in 2011 he was presented the Alumni Award for Distinguished Service from the College of Engineering at the UIUC. He was presented the 2017 Leadership Award from ANS and the 2020 Walter Zinn Medal from ANS. He was elected to be an ANS Fellow in 2021.
He is a past chair of the International Nuclear Societies Council.
Read Nuclear News from July 2008 for more on Bill.
