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SRNL’s Thad Adams Honored for Fuel Cycle Work

Submitted by: Angeline French on Dec 07, 2010 at 7:06 pm Tagged with: fuel cycle, nuclear energy, nuclear fuel, Research And Development Source: Savannah River National Laboratory

Dr. Thad Adams of the Savannah River National Laboratory has been recognized by the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) for his research on the management of commercial nuclear fuel that could eventually lead to new approaches to clean nuclear energy. At the Winter 2010 American Nuclear Society meeting in Las Vegas, Dr. Adams was recognized with a Fuel Cycle Research and Development Program Award for Excellence in Research.

Dr. Adams is leading a team at SRNL focused on the development of a transformational “dry separations recycle” technology for commercial used nuclear fuel (UNF). This novel dry recycle process could allow for increased utilization of the uranium resources in the commercial UNF while significantly reducing the waste volume in comparison to conventional aqueous recycle technologies.

“We’re very proud that this important work by Thad and his team is being recognized by DOE,” said SRNL Director Dr. Terry Michalske. “This is another example of how SRNL is putting science to work to help the nation reach sustainable energy independence.”

The mission of the DOE-NE Fuel Cycle Research & Development program is to perform results-oriented, science-based R&D to provide options for decision-makers for future commercial fuel cycle management strategies. This will enable the safe, secure, economic, and sustainable expansion of nuclear energy while minimizing proliferation risks.

The SRNL team is working on development of a “dry” technology that combines a gas reaction with heat treatment to separate the useful components of used nuclear fuel for reuse. This approach may reduce both the volume and the variety of waste requiring storage, treatment and disposal, when compared with conventional “wet” or aqueous technologies.

SRNL is DOE’s applied research and development national laboratory located at the Savannah River Site. SRNL puts science to work to support DOE and the nation in the areas of environmental management, national and homeland security, and energy security. The management and operating contractor for SRS and SRNL is Savannah River Nuclear Solutions, LLC.
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