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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.
13th Nuclear Plant Instrumentation, Control & Human-Machine Interface Technologies (NPIC&HMIT 2023)
Matt Dennis is a Data Scientist at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research. Matt joined the NRC’s Accident Analysis Branch in 2021 and leads the agency’s efforts in developing and implementing the NRC Artificial Intelligence (AI) Strategic Plan. He also leads data science and AI research and development projects, software development, and training which aid regulatory enhancements and reactor safety research. Additionally, Matt supports the development and maintenance of the MELCOR Accident Consequence Code System (MACCS) suite of codes and conducts severe accident consequence analyses.
Prior to joining the NRC, Matt held positions at Northrop Grumman and Sandia National Laboratories. As a Senior Reliability Engineer with the Reliability Analysis Laboratory at Northrop Grumman’s Mission Systems Baltimore, he supported sustainment efforts for Global Hawk, Triton and Phoenix unmanned aircraft systems. As a Senior Member of the Technical Staff in the Risk and Reliability Analysis department at Sandia National Laboratories, Matt led research and development projects supporting risk assessment and consequence analysis for new and operating nuclear reactors, as well as nuclear waste transportation. He has a B.S. and M.S. in Nuclear Engineering from the Missouri University of Science and Technology.
Last modified May 9, 2023, 2:21pm EDT
