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Rep. Mike Simpson brings sustained funding for key nuclear energy R&D programs
Funding in the next federal government fiscal year (2010) for the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) will take a jump thanks to the legislative accomplishments of Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) (right). Simpson's district, which stretches across southeastern Idaho, includes the lab and almost all of its employees. The lab supports nuclear energy R&D. Also, taking place at the lab are two large nuclear waste cleanup contracts and the continuing operations of the Naval Reactors Facility.
Simpson, who is a member of the House Appropriations Committee, announced Sept 30 substantial increases in funding for the Idaho National Laboratory and the Idaho Cleanup Project as part of legislation funding the Department of Energy.
The legislation includes an increase of $33 million over current funding levels for new facilities and other infrastructure improvements at INL bringing total infrastructure funding to $173 million. Just two years ago, the budget requested just $104 million for Idaho infrastructure funding.
The additional funding is available for a variety of uses including new buildings, renovation of existing buildings, equipment purchases, and the Advanced Test Reactor’s operation as a National Scientific User Facility. Simpson has made additional funding for new infrastructure at INL a top priority over the past three fiscal years.
“Thanks to the hard work and dedication of those who work at INL, substantial new resources are headed Idaho’s way to improve facilities and expand the capabilities of some of the lab's premier resources,” said Simpson. “This funding is the second installment of a multi-year commitment by the DOE and Congress to revitalize the INL’s infrastructure to support the revival of nuclear energy in the United States.”
Among its provisions, the Energy and Water Development Appropriations bill also includes:
Level funding from Fiscal Year 2009 for the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) of $169 million. The NGNP is designed to produce both electricity and heat for industrial applications.
$10 million for INL’s Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program. The Program focuses on maintenance and life extension of our nation’s current fleet of nuclear reactors.
$464.168 million for cleanup activities at INL, which is a $59 million increase over President Obama’s FY2010 requested amount.
A $20 million increase for the treatment of Sodium Bonded Fuel at INL. The treatment will include fuel originally used in the Experimental Breeder Reactor II and fuel transferred from Hanford, WA.
$1 million for equipment purchases at the Center for Advanced Energy Studies at INL.
Simpson said in a statement the funding shows Congress supports the nuclear R&D work taking place at the lab and the progress being made by the cleanup contractors.
New INL project tackles nuclear fuel recycling science
A new $2 million research project from the DOE Office of Science at Idaho National Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory will use an innovative approach to learn how to get more use from nuclear fuel. [INL press release]
INL has won a competitive research grant that could help nuclear fuel be recycled or used for longer periods of time to produce more energy. The INL team will collaborate with scientists at the Argonne Tandem Linac Accelerator System (ATLAS) user facility in Illinois.
New INL project will improve nuclear reactor simulations
A new project at Idaho National Laboratory and Brookhaven National Laboratory, funded by the Office of Science, will improve the way scientists model the inner workings of nuclear reactors. [INL Press Release]
Researchers will use the money to develop more accurate, and more universally applicable, reactor simulations. As a result, engineers should be able to design better, more efficient reactors down the road.
INL and BNL scientists will use data from experiments already performed at nuclear facilities around the world to test and calibrate their models of nuclear reactions at the atomic level. This will enable them to integrate data from the meter scale (humans and their machines) with outcomes at the femtometer scale (the atomic nucleus). The research will cover an unprecedented 15 orders of magnitude, equivalent to the range between a single footstep and a light year.
Herring named ANS Fellow
J. Stephen Herring, leader for the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory research on nuclear hydrogen production, has been named a Fellow by the American Nuclear Society. [INL Press Release]
Herring will be recognized for the honor at the ANS 2009 Winter Meeting and Nuclear Technology Expo Nov. 15-19 in Washington, D.C. The Fellow designation is the highest honor ANS can bestow on an individual and acknowledges outstanding leadership, professional accomplishment and service to the profession.
International Nuclear Energy Academy elects INL leader
One of Idaho National Laboratory's top managers, Phillip J. Finck, Ph.D., has been elected to the membership of the elite International Nuclear Energy Academy (INEA). [INL Press Release]
INEA is a group of prominent, experienced scientists, engineers and related nuclear energy specialists who conduct studies and discussions, and develop recommendations for the international nuclear community on various generic nuclear energy issues. Academy membership is limited to 100 distinguished individuals from around the world.
Finck is the associate laboratory director for Nuclear Science & Technology at INL and is an internationally recognized expert in advanced reactor and fuel cycle programs.
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