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Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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Center for Used Fuel Research: Building confidence in storage and transport
Used nuclear fuel storage and transportation have reached a critical juncture.
Dozens of utilities need reliable data on how used nuclear fuel performs in dry storage casks and canisters to extend regulatory licenses at sites across the United States. Likewise, the Department of Energy expects to take ownership of the used nuclear fuel—termed “spent nuclear fuel” in the laws and regulations governing its stewardship—and transfer it to one or more federal staging facilities for management and disposition.
Meanwhile, dozens of reactor companies are testing prototypes of advanced reactors and advanced reactor fuels. Eventually, regulators and industry must also verify the safety and security of storage methods for these advanced fuel types.
To help address these challenges, the DOE established the Center for Used Fuel Research (CUFR) in January 2026 for work related to the long-term storage and transport of used nuclear fuel.
Technical Session|Panel|Sponsored by OPD
Monday, June 13, 2022|1:00–2:45PM PDT|San Simeon A
Session Chair:
John H. Jackson
Alternate Chair:
Piyush Sabharwall
Session Organizer:
This panel will provide a brief overview on the cross-cutting research and development (R&D) that is being carried out at various national laboratories to enable technology demonstrations and successful deployment. The main objective of the R&D is to reduce uncertainty and risk in the design and development of microreactors to facilitate rapid technology commercialization. The work is broadly applicable to multiple reactor cooling/technology options to ensure that concepts can be licensed and deployed to meet specific use-case requirements.
INL
Bob Reid
Los Alamos National Laborator
Donna Guillen
Chase Taylor
Abdellatif Yacout
ANL
David Shropshire
