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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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Wright officially sworn in for third term at the NRC
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission recently announced that David Wright, after being nominated by President Trump and confirmed by the Senate, was ceremonially sworn in as NRC chair on September 8.
This swearing in comes more than a month after Wright began his third term on the commission; he began leading as chair July 31. His term will conclude on June 30, 2030.
Gregory A. Johnson
Nuclear Technology | Volume 175 | Number 2 | August 2011 | Pages 371-387
Technical Paper | Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT11-A12310
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A study was performed to examine power conversion system (PCS) options for the next generation nuclear plant, a very high temperature gas-cooled reactor. The purpose of the study was to provide insight into which PCS should be used and how should it be coupled to the reactor: direct or indirect. Seven PCSs were examined: direct helium Brayton, indirect helium Brayton, supercritical CO2 (SCCO2), cascaded SCCO2, combined-cycle gas turbine (CCGT), subcritical steam-Rankine, and supercritical steam-Rankine with double reheat. The results of the study show that the SCCO2 cycles are very promising and warrant further development, but the relative immaturity precludes it as a short-term option. Further, the results show a relative unattractiveness of the Brayton cycles when compared to the SCCO2 cycles. The best short-term options were the steam-Rankine cycles. The supercritical steam-Rankine cycle gave the best performance of the two. The CCGT was the most costly and provided little performance advantage over the supercritical steam-Rankine cycle. Issues associated with closed-loop operation, high-temperature compressor inlet temperature, and potential nitriding from the He/N2 working fluid cast uncertainty on the maturity of this cycle.