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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.
Keynotes Session
Wednesday, August 23, 2023|8:00–8:50AM EDT|Columbia 3/4
Session Chair:
Fan-Bill Cheung (PSU)
Dr. Robert (Bob) Salko performs research in the area of computational thermal hydraulics to support modeling and simulation of light water reactors and molten salt reactors. His primary focus has been on development of subchannel and system thermal hydraulics codes, which includes modeling of two-phase flow and heat transfer, coupling with other reactor modeling tools, deployment on high performance computing systems, and implementing quality assurance measures and releasing software for users in the nuclear community. Bob has been working at Oak Ridge National Laboratory for approximately ten years, where he has supported efforts in the US Department of Energy Consortium for Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactor and Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation programs. Prior to that, Bob obtained his PhD in nuclear engineering from The Pennsylvania State University.
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Subchannel Methods Development for Modeling of Light-Water Reactors at Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Robert Salko (ORNL), Belgacem Hizoum (ORNL), Vineet Kumar (ORNL), Aaron Wysocki, (ORNL), Aaron Graham (ORNL), David Kropaczek (ORNL), Mehdi Asgari (ORNL), Agustin Abarca (NCSU), Maria Avramova (NCSU), Benjamin Collins (Veracity Nuclear)
Paper