Office of Nuclear Energy
Technologies
Suibel Schuppner, DirectorMay 2023

NE-51

Office of Nuclear Energy Technologies

Enabling Technologies TeamNuclear Energy Enabling Technologies• Advanced Modeling and Simulation• Advanced Materials and ManufacturingTechnologies• Advanced Sensors and Instrumentation• Nuclear Cybersecurity• Nuclear Science User Facilities

University and Competitive
Research Team
University Support• Nuclear Energy University Program• University Fuel Services• University Nuclear Leadership Program
Industry Support• Advanced Nuclear Energy Funding Opportunity(Industry FOA)
• Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear• Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) / Small
Business Technology Transfer (STTR)• Technology Commercialization Fund (TCF)

2Nuclear Energy Advanced Modeling and Simulation (NEAMS)NEAMS aims to develop and deploy predictive M&S tools and methods to enable andaccelerate advanced reactor deployment and improve existing fleet operations.
NEAMS core competencies:

Multiscale fuelperformance andstructural materials
degradation
modeling:
BISON, GRIZZLY,
YellowJacket

Reactor Physics:
GRIFFIN, MPACT,ShiftNEAMS develops modelingtools for others to use, thus
coordination and interaction
with industry and NE’s
reactor and fuels R&D
programs is critical.

Multiscale
thermal fluids:
CTF, SAM,
PRONGHORN,Sockeye,
Nek5000

Workflow
Management:
Workbench
Multiphysics:
MOOSE, VERANEAMS work needs to be
informed by experimental
capabilities and data in order
to best support reactor
deployment and operation.

Key Success Metric: Use of NEAMS technology (either software orR&D) by stakeholder to improve how they “do business.”

https://neams.inl.gov/

3Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies (AMMT)
Development, Qualification and Demonstration••••

Develop advanced materials & manufacturing technologies
Establish a rapid qualification framework
Evaluate material performance in reactor environments
Technology demonstration and deployment

Capability Development & Transformative Research•••Develop high-throughput, accelerated testing andcharacterization techniques
Develop modeling capabilities for materials design,development and qualification
Perform transformative research to develop new material
concepts and design

Collaborative Research and Development•••

Investigate a broad range of advanced materials andmanufacturing technologies
Address reactor-specific issues
Provide near-term material solutions to nuclear industry

Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies
2022 Roadmap | Department of Energy4

Advanced Sensors and Instrumentation (ASI)
Develop advanced sensors and instrumentation & controls (I&C) that address critical technology gaps
for monitoring and controlling existing and advanced reactors and supporting fuel cycle development

Resilient, real-time transmission of
sufficient amount of data for online
monitoring and advanced data analytics

Sensor Performance
Modeling

Communication

Modeling of instrumentation performanceto enable predictive capabilities andintegration in Digital Twins

Sensors and Instrumentation

Machine learning and artificial
intelligence processes to enablesemi-autonomous operation andmaintenance by design

Reliable, cost-effective, real-time,accurate, and high-resolution
measurement of the performanceof existing and advanced reactors
core and plant systems
Big data, Machine
Learning, Artificial
Intelligence

Material Science

Innovative sensor materials andadvanced manufacturing techniquesapplied to instrumentation design andfabrication

https://asi.inl.gov
Advanced Control
Systems

Enable near real-time control of plant or experiments process variables to enhance performance5

Nuclear Cybersecurity Research• Emphasizes NE mission, enabling advanced technology
deployment and improving efficiency/performance - notprimarily a security program.
• Address any nuclear-specific needs not addressed by broader
programs, emphasizing technologies toenable innovative implementation of modern digital tools• Address barriers to adoption of best-in-classcybersecurity solutions developed for other sectors
Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear - Cybersecurity (inl.gov)

Key R&D Products:• Techniques to identify and mitigate cybersecurity hazards during design• Support for longer-term, post-deployment use cases that are currently cybersecurity-limited (e.g., wirelesssafety-related controls, remote/autonomous operations, advanced applications of digital twins)• Technical tools, such as control system design requirements, supply chain protection methods and test beds
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Nuclear Science User Facilities (NSUF)
Neutron
Irradiations

Ion Irradiations

Hot Cells &Shielded Cells

Low Activity
Laboratories

Beamlines

Gamma
Irradiations

High Performance
Computing

Coordinates a consortium of institutions toprovide access, at no cost to the user, tounique and highly specialized nuclear
research facilities and technical expertise.
https://nsuf.inl.gov/

Visit nsuf.inl.gov

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Thank you!