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Atomic Insights

Atomic energy technology, politics, and perceptions from a nuclear energy insider who served as a US nuclear submarine engineer officer

Nuclear Fuel Cycle

U.S. Shouldn’t Depend On Russian Reactors. Restore Our World Class Fast Flux Test Facility

March 10, 2017 By Rod Adams

Senator Carper (D-DE) asked each witness at a March 8 hearing about NEIMA – Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act – to give one suggestion for improving the bill. If asked, my answer would be to include findings that emphasize the importance of U.S. government-owned testing facilities that are capable of supporting the NRC licensing […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, FFTF, Fuel Recycling, Irradiation, Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors

Potential for Korea, Japan, U.S. to Collaborate on Pyroprocessing Under Trump

February 18, 2017 By Rod Adams

South Korea (ROK), Japan and the United States all have large nuclear energy programs that are facing a variety of challenges limiting their growth, namely opposition by the nonproliferation industry to wider deployment of enrichment and recycling technologies. There is interest and opportunity to collaborate in developing solutions in areas where challenges overlap. The Global […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, Atomic politics, Fuel Recycling, International nuclear

Jimmy Carter never served on a nuclear submarine. Was not a nuclear engineer

January 13, 2017 By Rod Adams

Initial version posted Jan 27, 2006 A recent conversation about the dangers of false claims of expertise stimulated me to revise and republish a nearly 11 year-old post. It provides documented proof that Jimmy Carter was not a “nuclear engineer” and never served on a nuclear submarine. He left the Navy in October 1953, about […]

Filed Under: Fuel Recycling

Passive-Aggressive Fight Against Plutonium Economy

October 12, 2016 By Rod Adams 36 Comments

Late on a Friday afternoon (September 23), the Department of Energy released an updated performance report on the MOX Fuel Fabrication Facility (MFFF). DOE’s internal Office of Project Management Oversight and Assessment in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers produced the report using assumptions and data provided by DOE leadership. The report concludes […]

Filed Under: Atomic politics, Fuel Recycling, Plutonium, Politics of Nuclear Energy

Stockpile of 20% enriched uranium will enable advanced reactor deployment

September 15, 2016 By Rod Adams 28 Comments

This is a call to action. The Department of Energy is soliciting comments on its excess uranium management plan. The deadline for comments, initially announced as August 18, 2016, has been extended until September 19. That is just 4 days away. Here is a quote from the Federal Register request for information: The U.S. Department […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, Business of atomic energy, Economics, Nuclear Fuel Cycle

South Australia: Making money by solving “waste” problems of others

May 24, 2016 By Rod Adams 21 Comments

South Australia is making progress in its effort to profitably address an issue that has slowed nuclear energy’s growth prospects for more than 40 years. On May 9th South Australian premier Jay Weatherill released the final version of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Royal Commission report that had been briefed to him on May 6. The […]

Filed Under: Nuclear Waste, Nuclear Fuel Cycle

How Did the MOX Project Get So Expensive?

May 17, 2016 By Rod Adams 23 Comments

Over the past week or so, I’ve engaged in a “root cause analysis” project to determine why the US is having so much difficulty implementing a plan to take 34 metric tons of nearly pure plutonium 239 — a fissile isotope with virtually the same energy value as uranium 235 — out of our nuclear […]

Filed Under: Atomic politics, Breeder Reactors, Economics, Fossil fuel competition, Fuel Recycling, Politics of Nuclear Energy

Lightbridge metallic alloy fuel provides upgrade path for LWRs

April 13, 2016 By Rod Adams 53 Comments

Lightbridge, a company that was originally incorporated as Thorium Power, Inc., has achieved significant technology developments after making a strategic turn in 2010 from thorium based fuels to low enriched uranium metal alloy fuels. As funding dried up from the government agencies supporting their thorium work, the company chose to use its assembled nuclear engineering […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, Atomic Entrepreneurs, Economics, Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Water Cooled Reactors

Atomic Show #245 – Building a prosperity program on used nuclear fuel foundation

October 8, 2015 By Rod Adams 9 Comments

I applaud reasoned, long term thinking that aims to use science, technology and deep understanding of human wants and needs — aka politics — to set a course for success. You can find one of my favorite current examples of an effort that meets my criteria in the expansive, lightly populated, rather dry state of […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, Atomic Entrepreneurs, Atomic politics, Business of atomic energy, Fuel Recycling, International nuclear, Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Nuclear Waste, Podcast, Politics of Nuclear Energy

Atomic Show #244 – September 2015 atomic update

September 21, 2015 By Rod Adams 4 Comments

For the first time in several months, I gathered a group of nuclear energy experts to chat about recent events and announcements in nuclear energy. Participants in this episode include: Meredith Angwin who blogs at Yes Vermont Yankee and Northwest Clean Energy Steve Aplin who blogs at Canadian Energy Issues Les Corrice who blogs at […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, International nuclear, LNT, Nuclear Fuel Cycle

Sad-ending story of EBR-II told by three of its pioneers

August 24, 2015 By Rod Adams

During the period between 1961 and 1994, an extraordinary machine called the Experimental Breeder Reactor 2 (EBR-II) was created and operated in the high desert of Idaho by a team of dedicated, determined, and distinguished people. In 1986, that machine demonstrated that it could protect itself in the event of a complete loss of flow […]

Filed Under: Advanced Atomic Technologies, Atomic history, Atomic Pioneers, Atomic politics, Breeder Reactors, Fuel Recycling, Liquid Metal Cooled Reactors, Politics of Nuclear Energy, Pro Nuclear Video, Technical History Stories

EPA’s Proposed ISR Rule

April 6, 2015 By Guest Author

By Andrea Jennetta During a March 16, 2015, meeting of the National Council on Radiation Protection (NCRP), FCW columnist (and Atomic Insights owner/blogger) Rod Adams listened to, challenged and followed up with Jonathan Edwards, Director of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Radiation Protection Division. Edwards gave a talk entitled “Federal Directions in Radiation Regulations: […]

Filed Under: Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Nuclear regulations, Uranium mining

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