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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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Sep 2025
Jan 2025
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2025
Latest News
From operator to entrepreneur: David Garcia applies outage management lessons
David Garcia
If ComEd’s Zion plant in northern Illinois hadn’t closed in 1998, David Garcia might still be there, where he got his start in nuclear power as an operator at age 24.
But in his ninth year working there, Zion closed, and Garcia moved on to a series of new roles—including at Wisconsin’s Point Beach plant, the corporate offices of Minnesota’s Xcel Energy, and on the supplier side at PaR Nuclear—into an on-the-job education that he augmented with degrees in business and divinity that he sought later in life.
Garcia started his own company—Waymaker Resource Group—in 2014. Recently, Waymaker has been supporting Holtec’s restart project at the Palisades plant with staffing and analysis. Palisades sits almost exactly due east of the fully decommissioned Zion site on the other side of Lake Michigan and is poised to operate again after what amounts to an extended outage of more than three years. Holtec also plans to build more reactors at the same site.
For Garcia, the takeaway is clear: “This industry is not going away. Nuclear power and the adjacent industries that support nuclear power—and clean energy, period—are going to be needed for decades upon decades.”
In July, Garcia talked with Nuclear News staff writer Susan Gallier about his career and what he has learned about running successful outages and other projects.
Technical Session|Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
Tuesday, May 7, 2024|1:00–2:40PM MDT|Sweeney B
Session Chair:
Minghui Chen (University of New Mexico)
Alternate Chair:
Katey Lenox (INL)
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Influence of Stoichiometry on Zirconium Oxycarbides (ZrCxOy) Exposed to Hot Flowing Hydrogen
1:00–1:06PM MDT
Martin Volz (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jamelle K. P. Williams (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Arne Croell (Univ. Alabama, Huntsville), J. Reynolds (Univ. South Carolina), Brian Taylor (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jhonathan Rosales (Univ. Florida), E. Kardoulaki (LANL), K. J. McClellan (LANL)
Paper
Specific Heat Capacity Measurement of Bi-Carbide Fuels for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
1:06–1:12PM MDT
Jason Reynolds (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jhonathan Rosales (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Martin Volz (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Brian Taylor (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jamelle K. P. Williams (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Arne Cröll (Univ. Alabama, Hunstville), Travis Knight (Univ. South Carolina), Theodore Besmann (Univ. South Carolina), Juliano Schorne-Pinto (Univ. South Carolina), Ronald Booth (Univ. South Carolina), Matt Phipps (Univ. South Carolina), Robert Demuth (Univ. South Carolina)
Sintering Behavior of TiC with ZrC, NbC, and TaC for use in Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Uranium Carbide Fuel
1:12–1:18PM MDT
Luke Hansen (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Ethan Payne (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Brandon Shaver (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Justin Milner (NASA Glenn Research Center), Steven Zinkle (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
Mass Loss of Mixed Uranium Carbides in Hot Hydrogen I: The Influence of Composition and Density
1:18–1:24PM MDT
Jamelle K. P. Williams (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Arne Cröll (Univ. Alabama, Hunstville), Jason Reynolds (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Martin P. Volz (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Brian D. Taylor (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Erofili Kardoulaki (LANL), Ken J. McClellan (LANL), Jhonathan Rosales (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center)
Mass Loss of Mixed Uranium Carbides in Hot Hydrogen II: The Influence of Additional Carbon
1:24–1:30PM MDT
Arne Cröll (Univ. Alabama, Hunstville), Jamelle K. P. Williams (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jason Reynolds (Univ. South Carolina), Martin P. Volz (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Brian D. Taylor (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Erofili Kardoulaki (LANL), Kenneth J. McClellan (LANL), Jhonathan Rosales (Univ. Florida)
Analysis of Homogenization and Solute Interdiffusion Kinetics of ZrC, NbC, TaC Refractory Carbides as Surrogate Fuels for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Systems
1:30–1:36PM MDT
Alexander Nadermann (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Jonas Kessing (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Brandon Shaver (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Justin Milner (NASA Glenn Research Center), Steven J. Zinkle (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
Presentation Slides (Visible to Attendees)
Hot Hydrogen Testing of ZrC, NbC, TaC, and (Zr, Nb, Ta)C Tricarbide to Simulate the Environment of Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
1:36–1:42PM MDT
Ethan Payne (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Luke Hansen (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Brandon Shaver (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Ronald Booth (Univ. South Carolina), Theodore Besmann (Univ. South Carolina), Justin Milner (NASA Glenn Research Center), Steven Zinkle (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
Grain Growth and Hardness of ZrC, NbC, and TaC Tri-Carbide Surrogate Fuels for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion
1:42–1:48PM MDT
Jonas R. Kessing (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Alexander T. Nadermann (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Brandon Shaver (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Justin Milner (NASA Glenn Research Center), Steven J. Zinkle (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
Manufacturing Progress of USNC NTP Prismatic Fuel
1:48–1:54PM MDT
Neal Gaffin (Ultra Safe Nuclear), Brian Ade (Ultra Safe Nuclear)
Hot Hydrogen Testing of USNC CFEET Minifuel Elements
1:54–2:00PM MDT
Investigation of the Optimum Cooling Channel Spacing in Surrogate Fuel for Space Nuclear Propulsion
2:00–2:06PM MDT
Jhonathan Rosales (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jason Reynolds (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Jamelle K. P. Williams (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Arne Croell (Univ. Alabama, Huntsville), Brian Taylor (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center), Martin Volz (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center)
Establishing Radiological Spark Plasma Sintering Capabilities for Nuclear Thermal Propulsion Fuel Research
2:06–2:12PM MDT
Brandon Shaver (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville), Steven J. Zinkle (Univ. Tennessee, Knoxville)
ALUMNI Project: Conceptual Design Options of a NTP Engine and Performance Comparison with LOX/LH2 Engine on Mars Use Cases
2:12–2:18PM MDT
Frédéric Bertrand (CEA), Pierre Sciora (CEA), Valérie Brun-Magaud (CEA), Gédéon Mauger (CEA), Eric Proust (CEA), Michel Schlegel (CEA), Fabrice Jacquet (Arianegroup), Jean-Luc Dumont (Arianegroup), Nicolas Guezennec (Arianegroup), Lea Wullschleger (Arianegroup), Valère Girardin (ESA)
Identification of I&C Components for Fission Surface Power Technology Maturation
2:18–2:24PM MDT
Pattrick Calderoni (INL)
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