DOE MARVEL Project: Innovation to Enable Microreactors and Applications

The purpose of the DOE MARVEL project is to develop, in an accelerated timeline, a nuclear microreactor applications test bed at INL to perform research and development on various operational features of microreactors to ultimately prove and improve the integration of microreactors to end-user applications. Through the DOE Microreactor Program, the development of this nuclear testbed provides an opportunity to establish and exercise key capabilities that support future reactor demonstrations by (1) providing an early-stage platform for potential end users of microreactor systems, (2) deploying the first small-scale R&D reactor in ~50 years to support new capability development, (3) facilitating outreach activity with stakeholders interested in novel nuclear energy applications (e.g., hydrogen production, process heating, water purifications), and (4) investigating and addressing issues relating to fabrication, assembly, rapid installation, deployment, and operation of microreactors. The panel will shine a light on their areas of work to enable microreactors and their integration with end users, and how the novel MARVEL Microreractor plays a role in their mission.