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Part 1 of 3 Parts
      Most of my posts about nuclear energy concern the generation of electricity. Other uses such as creation of isotopes used in medical diagnosis and treatment or for the generation of heat for residential and business buildings. Today I am going to talk about several other possible uses of nuclear energy.
    Nuclear developers across the world are hoping that the development and deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) which generation three hundred million megawatts or less will help the industry that suffered plant closures, cost overruns, cancelled projects, and stiff competition from renewable sources during the last ten years. There are plans to seek new markets that will generate new revenue streams for nuclear energy production. Such new markets may help the nuclear industry survive the next ten years as renewable energy and natural gas prices continue to drop, especially if flat demand for electricity continues.
    Maria Korsnick is the CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute. She said in an interview, “With each of these new things that are brought to the marketplace for nuclear, I think it's just a wonderful opportunity to see that innovation.” 
    The success of the penetration of nuclear energy into new markets in the U.S. depends on whether or not SMRs and other advanced reactor designs can obtain the approval of federal agencies during the next twenty years. One of the reasons that nuclear energy production has struggled to expand in the U.S. is the fact that the price for construction of new conventional reactors in the U.S. is very high and there are serious regulatory challenges to licensing new reactor builds. Most nuclear reactor construction projects have gone beyond their original schedules.
    NuScale Power is based in Oregon. It is the first company to seek approval for its SMR design from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. It has taken a difficult decade of negotiation between NuScale and the NRC to get this far. They hope to have the NRC issue a decision within the next year.
    At the federal level, the Department of Energy (DoE) has just launched a National Reactor Innovation Center to assist companies in the further development of new reactor designs to improve their capabilities for future deployment.
    Rita Baranwal is the DoE Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy. In an interview, she said, “All of this really shows that DOE is certainly dedicated to demonstrating new nuclear technology in the United States by offering a space, land and facilities, as well as expertise, to ensure that private developers can do so in the United States.”
    Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) introduced a bill earlier this year that would help expand the DoE nuclear research initiatives to include ways that the next generation of reactors might be used for purposes beyond the generation of electricity. The bill, S.2702, was voted out of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee last month. It would authorize fifty million dollars annually in support of these research directives. Risch said, “Nuclear energy holds incredible potential beyond its traditional uses.”
Please read Part 2