America’s nuclear renaissance has taken an important step forward with the latest news emanating from the state of Tennessee, where it was announced that TRISO-X has now commenced vertical construction on the first advanced fuel fabrication plant in the United States specifically designed with small modular nuclear reactors in mind. This phase of the development process signifies much more than the beginning of construction on the fuel fabrication facility.
Oak Ridge complex reaches a milestone in nuclear manufacturing
The Oak Ridge, Tennessee, TX-1 complex marks the dawn of a new era in nuclear manufacturing in the United States. The construction company, Clark Construction Group, was awarded a $48.2 million contract to construct the 214,812 sq. ft. complex, making it the first fuel fabrication Facility licensed as a Category II by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. This is important because the nuclear fuel designed here will be high-assayed, low-enriched uranium fuel, specifically designed to power the small modular nuclear reactor.
The construction would be completed in mid-2026, and the start of commercial operation would be in 2027. The plant would initially service X-energy’s first commercial reactor, the four-unit nuclear power plant, in conjunction with Dow Chemical Company, in the Seadrift, Texas, manufacturing complex. The Department of Energy has further agreed on an extension of $30 million in order to stay on the aggressive schedule and the related early start of procurement of essential equipment and long-lead components.
Key facility specifications include:
- Annual capacity: 5 metric tons of uranium production
- Fuel output: 700,000 TRISO fuel pebbles per year
- Reactor support: Sufficient fuel for 11 Xe-100 SMRs annually
- Employment impact: More than 400 new regional jobs expected
TRISO fuel technology promises enhanced reactor safety
The proposed fuel production unit will provide the world with tristructural-isotropic, or TRISO, fuel. The fuel type takes the form of a pellet called a TRISO fuel pellet, designed and fabricated specifically for high-temperature use in the latest models of nuclear power stations. The fuel type has several containment levels, ensuring that the fuel does not spill in the event of an accident, making the fuel considerably safer than all other models on the market. The fuel type can sustain temperatures in excess of 1,600 degrees Celsius.
X-energy has initiated the confirmatory qualification testing of the company’s TRISO-X fuel in the Advanced Test Reactor at the Idaho National Laboratory, in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Reactor Innovation Center. The testing process, scheduled for completion in 13 months, determines the fuel’s performance characteristics under different power conditions, marking the first commercial SMR fuel subjected to qualification testing.
Strategic investment drives the pace of nuclear competitiveness in America
The TX-1 project has the support of the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program, an initiative by the Department of Energy that helps split the cost and accelerate the development process of the SMR technology and the fuel infrastructure. Speaking on the ambitious schedule set in the TX-1 project, the President of the company, Joel Duling, said, “TX-1 represents our team’s unrelenting dedication and drive to advance this transformative project in a couple of years, rather than decades.”
The purpose that this facility is to fill an important gap in the nuclear capability that America needs because the energy fuel facilities in the U.S. cannot produce high-enriched fuel. The technology offered by the TX-1 laboratory and the advancements in the technology development field in the globally competitive world favor the development and implementation of the hydrogen fuel technology.
The establishment of the TX-1 complex represents a momentous shift in the nuclear energy industry in the U.S., enabling the nation the manufacture the next generation of clean energy technology. The development, set to begin operation in 2027, represents the beginning of the United States leading the worldwide charge in nuclear technology, in addition to the hundreds of high-skilled employment opportunities.
