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Launching into tomorrow: NRIC guides new era of research and deployment
In June 2025, the Department of Energy announced the Reactor Pilot Program, an authorization pathway that allowed reactor developers to partner with the DOE to get first-of-a-kind (FOAK) reactors built and tested. Soon after, the DOE rolled out a complementary Fuel Line Pilot Program, which aimed to fast-track fuel projects. In all, 20 projects were accepted into the new programs.
R. A. Matzie, D. C. Leung, Y. Liu, R. W. Beekmann
Nuclear Technology | Volume 52 | Number 2 | February 1981 | Pages 189-197
Technical Paper | Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT81-A32664
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Nuclear reactors are inherently capable of operating for a substantial period beyond their nominal end of cycle (EOC) as a result of negative moderator and fuel temperature coefficients and the decrease in xenon poisoning with lower core power levels. This inherent capability can be used to advantage to reduce annual uranium makeup requirements and cycle energy costs by the use of planned EOC stretchout. The benefits of planned stretchout are assessed in the context of extended-burnup fuel cycles for two methods of operation: normal power coastdown and feedwater-pressure augmentation (FWPA). In the latter method, feedwater temperature is reduced allowing extended operation at full rated core power but at a lower thermal efficiency. The extent to which FWPA can be practiced is limited, primarily, by turbine operating conditions, resulting in a differential benefit in uranium utilization of only ∼0.5% above that of normal power coastdown.