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Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
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August 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
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The human factor in licensing and operating the next generation of nuclear plants
As human factors specialists working at the intersection of human performance and nuclear operations, we are witnessing one of the nuclear sector’s most significant transitions in decades. The emergence of small modular reactors, microreactors, and other advanced designs is reshaping the industry’s landscape. Digital instrumentation and controls, passive safety systems, and increased automation are creating opportunities for greater safety margins and more flexible operation. These same features also fundamentally redefine what it means to “operate” a nuclear plant. Interactions among human roles, automation, and passive systems shape how people maintain awareness, exercise judgment, and intervene when necessary. These developments affect both operational realities and the regulatory foundations on which nuclear safety is built.
Technology of Fusion Energy (TOFE 2026)
Technical Session|6. Plasma Physics Engineering
Tuesday, June 2, 2026|1:00–2:45PM MDT|Tower D
Session Chair:
Zeke Unterberg (ORNL)
Alternate Chair:
Katie Butler (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
Session Organizer:
Thomas Fuerst (INL)
Track Organizer:
Lane B. Carasik (Virginia Commonwealth Univ.)
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Exploring Passive Disruption Mitigation Techniques in the ARC-class Reactor: the Liquid Sandwich Vacuum Vessel
1:00–1:20PM MDT
Gabriele Ferrero (MIT), Joseph Jerkins (MIT), Ethan E. Peterson (MIT), Christopher Hansen (Columbia Univ.), Jeffrey P. Freidberg (MIT), Dennis Whyte (MIT), Sara E. Ferry (MIT)
Paper
Time-Dependent Strike-Point Sweeping Simulation in MAST-U using the FreeGSNKE MHD Equilibrium Code in the IPS-FASTRAN Framework
1:20–1:40PM MDT
Ehab Hassan (ORNL), Sebastian De Pascuale (ORNL), Ivan Paradela Perez (ORNL), Davis Easley (ORNL)
Burn Control in ITER by Maximization of Ion Cyclotron Power Absorption Through Regulation of Helium-3 Concentration
1:40–2:00PM MDT
Vincent Graber (Lehigh Univ.), Eugenio Schuster (Lehigh Univ.), Christopher Klepper (ORNL), Ernesto Lerche (Laboratory for Plasma Physics, ERM/KMS), Theodore M. Biewer (ORNL), Jeremy Lore (ORNL)
Flexible, Axisymmetric MHD Solver for Coupled Plasma and Liquid Metal Blanket Dynamics
2:00–2:20PM MDT
Sophia Guizzo (Columbia Univ.), Christopher Hansen (Columbia Univ.), Samuel Freiberger (Columbia Univ.), Carlos A. Paz-Soldan (Columbia Univ.)
