A French nuclear reactor company recently announced the completion of the first fabricated metallic fuel element for a widely used class of nuclear research reactor.
Framatome, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie, France, announced it had completed the first fabricated metallic fuel element in 10 years for TRIGA (Training, Research, Isotopes, General Atomics) reactors, according to a March 9 news release. That successful metallic fuel element fabrication "is a key step" toward a relaunch of a dependable fuel supply for TRIGA reactors worldwide and a first since 2012.
"DOE is committed to developing a workforce that supports our nation and our planet in our transition to a clean energy economy," Kathryn Huff, DOE assistant secretary for nuclear energy, said in the news release. "A dependable fuel supply for the world's university research reactors enables our future nuclear energy professionals to receive the hands-on experiences they need to help propel nuclear energy forward.”
TRIGA International, a joint venture between Framatome and General Atomics, successfully created the fuel element at a recently restored manufacturing facility in Romans, France, the release reported. The fuel will support university research reactors in the U.S. while a microreactor nuclear test platform is planned at the Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls, Idaho.
DOE plans to buy more than 660 of the new fuel elements for U.S. TRIGA reactors, as well as additional fuel for the Microreactor Applications Research Validation and Evaluation Project, or MARVEL, a nuclear test platform intended to demonstrate microreactor operations and end-use applications, according to the release.
"Training and research reactors play a significant role in the evolution of nuclear energy and in particular in the development of young generations of nuclear engineers and researchers," TRIGA International President François Gauché said in the news release. "We are proud to supply safe and reliable fuel for the research reactor community worldwide in support of carbon-free electricity while developing expertise for generations to come."