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Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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LLNL, Ampera partner to develop thorium-based TRISO fuel
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has formed a strategic partnership with Ampera to develop the company’s nuclear fuel concept through a project named THUNDER, for Thorium Unimodal Droplet Ejection for Reactors.
The focus of THUNDER is fabricating TRISO made with kernels of thorium rather than the usual uranium. LLNL and Ampera will evaluate and optimize liquid metal–jetting technology to produce highly uniform, spherical kernels of thorium-232 for later processing into TRISO fuel.
10:00–11:40AM CDT
Salon EF (Marriott)|Radioisotope Power Systems
Session Chair: Carl E. Sandifer
SPOC B (Space & Rocket Center)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Mitchell Rodriguez
Panel|Atlantis/Discovery/Columbia (Marriott)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Michael G. Houts
1:00–2:40PM CDT
Atlantis/Discovery/Columbia (Marriott)|Fission Surface Power
Session Chair: Mark Lefebvre|Alternate Chair: Robert Okojie
Session Chair: David Frate
Session Chair: Jason Cassibry
SPOC A (Space & Rocket Center)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Will Grier
3:15–4:55PM CDT
Session Chair: Tyler Steiner
Session Chair: Allen Guzik
Session Chair: David Manzella
Session Chair: Jarvis Caffrey
Session Chair: Gregory Fedor|Alternate Chair: Mark Lefebvre
Session Chair: Lauren Clayman
Session Chair: Doug Burns
Panel|Atlantis/Discovery/Columbia (Marriott)|Radioisotope Power Systems
Session Chair: June Zakrajsek
Session Chair: Colleen Van Lear
Session Chair: Joel Krakower
Panel|SPOC A (Space & Rocket Center)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Julia E. Cline
Session Chair: Andrea Marchica
Atlantis/Discovery/Columbia (Marriott)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Kurt Polzin
Session Chair: Tim Duquette
Session Chairs: Chris Whiting, Emily Hsu
Session Chair: Ron S. Faibish
Session Chair: Jason Reynolds|Alternate Chair: Justin Milner
Salon EF (Marriott)|Fission Surface Power
Session Chair: Mark Lefebvre|Alternate Chair: Greg Fedor
Session Chair: George Williams
Session Chair: James Maddox
Session Chair: Michael Schoenfeld|Alternate Chair: Harold Gerrish
Session Chair: Tyler Steiner|Alternate Chair: Robert Okojie
Salon EF (Marriott)|Space Nuclear Propulsion
Session Chair: Elora Kurz
