Triso-X can use HALEU uranium to make reactor fuel

The U.S. Nuclear?power regulator announced on?Friday that it had issued a license to?Triso X for the use of a more-enriched uranium, known as HALEU, for making a fuel for high-tech commercial nuclear reactors.

Triso-X is a subsidiary company of X-energy and plans to manufacture TRISO fuel in Oak Ridge Tennessee. This fuel contains uranium that has been coated with hard ceramics and carbon layers. Ho K. Nieh said that commercial-scale production is essential to enable the deployment of advanced reactor designs.

Joel Duling, TRISOX's?president, said that the regulatory approval brought us closer to a reliable, American fuel supply, for next-generation nuclear technologie. This will close a gap in the U.S. Nuclear Fuel Cycle.

Several 'new reactors' being planned by X-energy, and other companies, are designed to operate on HALEU but have not been licensed by the NRC. Donald Trump wants to quadruple the U.S. nuclear energy production by 2050, as the U.S. electricity demand is increasing for the first decade due to the large new data centres?needed for electric transportation, cryptocurrencies and artificial intelligence. Trump had ordered in May that the regulator speed up permits for nuclear reactors, and other?facilities.

HALEU contains up to 20% enriched Uranium, compared to the 5% used in current reactors. Centrus is developing it in the United States.

Experts in the field of proliferation have warned that HALEU enriched above 12% could be used for a crude nuclear device.

An ?X-energy spokesperson said its fuel ?is proliferation-resistant: "The design of our reactors - ?to be melt-proof and achieve high burnup and fuel utilization - means there are virtually no remaining active materials in our spent fuel once it leaves the reactor." (Reporting and editing by Ethan Smith; Timothy Gardner)

(source: Reuters)