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Russia proposes optical laser monitoring method for spent nuclear fuel reprocessing

Recently, a research team from Sechenov University in Russia, together with the Proryv Project and the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute of Inorganic Materials (VNIINM), published latest results in the journal Applied Spectroscopy, proposing a non-contact optical method for continuous monitoring of the spent nuclear fuel reprocessing process. It is reported that in the liquid-liquid extraction process of spent nuclear fuel reprocessing, traditional laboratory analysis has problems such as long sampling time and increased risk of radioactive waste. The research team introduced Raman Spectroscopy to monitor the state of extractants such as tributyl phosphate in the organic phase, measuring a median error of about 1%; meanwhile, laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was used to determine the concentration of metal elements in the aqueous phase, with an average error controlled at 4%–8%, achieving near-real-time synchronous monitoring of the two-phase streams.

2026-11-02

Framatome Commissions Chromium-Coated Facility to Advance Industrialization of Accident-Tolerant Fuel

Recently, France's Framatome officially commissioned an industrial pilot facility for chromium coating at its Paimboeuf manufacturing plant in western France, in order to accelerate the industrialization of its PROtect enhanced accident-tolerant fuel (E-ATF) technology. It is reported that the facility represents an investment of 30 million euros (approximately 33.5 million US dollars) and uses physical vapor deposition (PVD) technology to apply chromium coating to the surface of zirconium alloy cladding tubes for nuclear fuel assemblies. The pilot facility is designed with an annual production capacity of more than 100,000 chromium-coated cladding tubes, aimed at verifying process stability under serial production conditions. Framatome plans to complete industrial qualification of the process by the end of 2026, and...

2026-10-31

US Centrus Energy Ships First Centrifuge to Support Piketon Expansion

Recently, the technology and manufacturing center of US-based Centrus Energy in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, has completed the manufacture of its first new advanced centrifuge and officially shipped it to the uranium enrichment plant in Piketon, Ohio. This milestone marks the entry of Centrus' multi-billion-dollar uranium enrichment capacity expansion project into the on-site cascade assembly phase. The project adopts Centrus' independently developed AC-100M advanced centrifuge technology. The first batch of expanded enrichment capacity is expected to officially enter operation in 2029, aiming to simultaneously meet the commercialization and national security needs of low-enriched uranium (LEU) and high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU)...

2026-10-31

U.S. Announces $50 Million to Fund Next-Generation Nuclear Fuel R&D

Recently, the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) under the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the selection of 8 innovative projects and will provide a total of up to $50 million in funding to fully advance breakthroughs in next-generation nuclear reactor fuel technologies. It is reported that this funding focuses on cutting-edge technical pathways such as nuclear fuel fabrication, irradiation testing, and safety certification, aiming to significantly reduce fuel production costs and shorten the commercialization deployment cycle of advanced reactors. The projects will focus on overcoming manufacturing bottlenecks in key materials such as high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) and advanced tristructural isotropic (TRISO) particle fuel. The U.S. Department of Energy stated that this funding directly implements U.S. President Donald Trump's...

2026-10-31

Sandia National Laboratories Awarded $3.38 Million to Develop Next-Generation Nuclear Reactor Fuel

Recently, according to U.S. media reports, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced a $3.38 million grant to Sandia National Laboratories to develop advanced analytical tools to advance the production and deployment of next-generation nuclear reactor fuel. It is reported that Brandon Williams, Administrator of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), and Deborah Frincke, Deputy Director of Sandia National Laboratories, announced at a press conference that the project is named Transuranic Reactor Fuel Pathway Sociotechnical Analysis, Techno-Economics, and Coordination (TRU-PATH). The core of the project lies in establishing a new analytical plat...

2026-10-31

Standard Nuclear CEO Discusses U.S. Oak Ridge Expansion Project

Recently, Kurt Terrani, CEO of U.S. advanced nuclear fuel producer Standard Nuclear, stated that the company is planning to expand advanced nuclear fuel production capacity in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, to meet strong market demand for advanced reactor fuel. It is reported that Standard Nuclear was founded in 2024 and primarily produces advanced nuclear fuel serving the fields of national security and space exploration. Terrani noted that as multiple U.S. nuclear companies invest billions of dollars in Oak Ridge, the area has become the core hub of U.S. advanced nuclear innovation, but current advanced nuclear fuel supply capacity still lags far behind market demand. As an advanced...

2026-10-31

Russia's Kursk Nuclear Power Plant Loads Improved Nuclear Fuel for the First Time

Recently, Russia's State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom) announced that the loading of the first batch of improved low-erbium-oxide-content nuclear fuel assemblies (TVS PSE) into the RBMK-1000 reactors of Units 3 and 4 at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant has been successfully completed, with official permission obtained from the Federal Service for Ecological, Technological and Nuclear Supervision of the Russian Federation. It is reported that the new fuel was developed and produced by the Machine-Building Plant (MSZ) in Elektrostal, a subsidiary of Rosatom. Denis Pereguda, Deputy Chief Engineer for Safety at the Kursk Nuclear Power Plant, stated that the fuel composition optimization scheme is based on independent calculations by leading nuclear research institutions such as NIKIET...

2026-10-30

The Underground Engineering of a Hair's Breadth: How the Hualong One Overseas Project Recalibrated Construction Baselines Through Earned Value Reconstruction

In today's wave of global energy transition and nuclear renaissance, the Hualong One, as the benchmark of China's self-developed third-generation nuclear power technology, is achieving scaled deployment in multiple countries. However, transforming a standardized design into a physical project in a foreign land has never been a simple matter of duplicating blueprints. From coastal rock foundations to inland sand foundations, dramatic geological changes pose severe challenges to project management. Recently, after a six-month management review, CNNC's overseas Project C chose to publicly analyze two major recalibrations of its Earned Value Management (EVM) system. This practice, spanning budget structure correction and schedule realization reconstruction, not only tears open the veil of "false stability" in traditional project management, but also provides a highly valuable underlying methodology for complex nuclear power engineering construction worldwide.

2026-10-30

First Batch of Nuclear Fuel Delivered to Unit 2 of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh

Recently, Rosatom announced that the first batch of fresh nuclear fuel for Unit 2 of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh has been successfully delivered to the project site and is currently being properly stored in a dedicated storage facility. It is reported that this batch of nuclear fuel assemblies was manufactured at the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant, a production facility of Rosatom's TVEL Fuel Company, and was delivered through combined air and road transport. A joint inspection team composed of Bangladeshi experts, the general contractor, and manufacturing plant representatives is conducting mandatory incoming inspections at the site, including visual and instrumental testing, to ensure that the fuel fully complies with...

2026-10-29

U.S. NRC Issues New Rule Allowing Use of Demonstration Data to Accelerate Commercial Licensing

Recently, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) finalized a major new regulatory rule that explicitly allows applicants for commercial nuclear reactors to cite analyses, test data, and operating experience from reactor demonstration projects previously authorized by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) or the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) as technical support basis for commercial licensing applications. It is reported that the rule implements Executive Order 14300 and amends relevant provisions of Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Part 50 (adding new Section 50.43(f)) and Part 53....

2026-10-27

Final Environmental Impact Statement Issued for U.S. Laser Enrichment Facility

Recently, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) officially released the Final Environmental Impact Statement for the proposed Paducah Laser Enrichment Facility (PLEF) of Global Laser Enrichment (GLE), recommending the formal issuance of a construction and operating license for the proposed plant. It is understood that the facility, located in Kentucky, will use the proprietary SILEX laser uranium enrichment technology of Silex Systems Ltd. to re-enrich depleted uranium tailings from previous gaseous diffusion enrichment plant operations of the U.S. Department of Energy. The project will not only produce conventional low...

2026-10-27

Holtec Successfully Recovers Tilted Fuel Assembly at Palisades Nuclear Power Plant

Recently, the engineering team of Holtec International has successfully used a specially manufactured device—conceived, designed, and delivered in just two weeks—to safely retrieve and recover a previously tilted fuel assembly from the Reactor Pressure Vessel at the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant in Michigan. It is reported that the Palisades Nuclear Power Plant, a single-unit Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) retired in 2022, officially commenced fuel loading operations in late August this year. However, on September 21, due to a fuel assembly...

2026-10-27

World's Largest Stellarator W7-X Launches New Experimental Campaign to Pursue Long Pulses

Recently, Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X), the world's largest and most complex stellarator fusion device operated by the Max-Planck-Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) in Germany, has officially launched its latest OP2.4 experimental campaign. This three-month experiment has attracted over one hundred top scientists from approximately 20 laboratories across Europe and around the world, jointly advancing stellarator technology toward longer pulses and higher performance. It is understood that the OP2.4 experiment will focus on three key research areas: high-performance plasmas, fast ions and turbulent transport, and long-pulse operation. Sci...

2026-10-26

Hainan Nuclear Power, CNNC Jianzhong, and CNNC Precision Sign Special Cooperation Agreement to Jointly Tackle the Full Process of Core Components for Nuclear Fuel Assemblies

To implement the relevant special deployments of CNNC and strengthen the independent controllability of the nuclear fuel industry chain and supply chain, Hainan Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., CNNC Jianzhong Nuclear Fuel Element Co., Ltd., and CNNC (Yibin) Precision Manufacturing Co., Ltd. officially signed a special cooperation agreement on nuclear fuel assembly grid strips and springs on October 22 in Yibin, Sichuan. This move marks substantive progress by CNNC in advancing the coordinated strengthening and consolidation of the two major sectors of the nuclear fuel cycle and nuclear power generation. Grid strips and springs are the core supporting and positioning structural components of nuclear reactor fuel assemblies, and their manufacturing precision and mechanical durability directly determine the operational stability of fuel elements under extreme in-core neutron irradiation and strong scouring...

2026-10-25

Rosatom States Respect for Hungary's Autonomy, Still Hopes to Continue Leading Paks NPP Expansion Project

Rosatom publicly stated on October 23 that it hopes the Hungarian government will continue to select it as the general contractor for the Paks NPP expansion project, but the Russian side also clearly emphasized that it fully respects the legitimate sovereignty of the Hungarian government to make the final decision based on its own interests. This statement comes at a critical juncture when the international community is widely watching the future direction of this flagship cross-border nuclear power project. It is understood that, as part of a comprehensive review of this major nuclear energy project, Hungary is currently assessing the possibility of replacing the general contractor Rosatom and has begun...

2026-10-24