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Breadcrumb

  1. Research
  2. Energy Resiliency
  3. Nuclear Energy

Nuclear Energy

Advancing nuclear power
for a reliable, safe,
and secure energy future

PNNL led the environmental review for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission operating license for the Watts Bar Nuclear Unit 2 in Tennessee. The review evaluated a full scope of areas, ranging from aquatic ecology to radiological impacts to cultural resources to noise. The NRC approved the Tennessee Valley Authority's application for facility operating license for a second light-water nuclear reactor. Read more here.

  • Electric Grid Modernization
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  • Fossil Energy
  • Nuclear Energy
    • Reactor Licensing
    • Reactor Operations
    • Fuel Cycle Research
    • Advanced Reactors
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Nuclear-generated electricity produces benefits beyond keeping our homes warm, lights on, and cell phones charged. The federal government estimates use of carbon-free nuclear energy in America avoids some 650 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

At PNNL, we use our decades of expertise to facilitate the design of advanced reactors, extend the lives of the existing fleet, and develop processes for recycling, safe storage, transportation, and disposal of used nuclear fuel.

We have a long heritage of supporting our nation’s nuclear energy programs. A combination of science and technology expertise, a unique Hanford history, and highly equipped modern facilities allow us to bring substantial resources to helping solve the nation's nuclear energy challenges. For example, we led the International Nuclear Safety Program on behalf of DOE—enhancing the safety of reactors in former Soviet states; our staff led R&D for the Fast Flux Test Facility sodium-cooled fast reactor; and we served as the waste form qualification authority for the Yucca Mountain Project and the Materials Characterization Center.

We also are supporting the Japanese response, and related safety modifications to the U.S. fleet, to the 2011 accident at the Fukushima nuclear power plant.

Staff expertise and specialized facilities—such as the Radiochemical Processing Laboratory, a Hazard Category 2 nuclear facility—are substantial assets to the federal government and the commercial nuclear sector.

Recent News

MARCH 22, 2021
Web Feature

Environmental Justice Fueled by Social Science, Engagement

Read
An illustration shows different colored hands united over an image of the earth
MARCH 8, 2021
Web Feature

Radiation Knows No Bounds—but Builds Strong Bonds Between Two Communities

Read
Group of visitors in front of Daiichi Nuclear Reactor in Fukushima Japan
MARCH 2, 2021
Web Feature

Real-Time Monitoring Tool Speeds Up Advanced Nuclear Reactor Development

Read
probe
SEE MORE RELATED NEWS

Related Capabilities

Decision Science & Analysis
Earth Systems Science & Engineering
Nuclear Engineering
SEE ADDITIONAL CAPABILITIES

Facilities

Radiochemical Processing Laboratory Radiological Microscopy Suite 318 Building Materials Science and Technology Building Applied Process Engineering Laboratory Wasteform Development Laboratory Shallow Underground Laboratory Mineral Extraction from Seawater at MCRL

Related Research

Materials Science Waste Processing Nuclear & Particle Physics Radiation Measurement Environmental Management Chemistry

Related Divisions

Earth Systems Science Division
Nuclear Sciences Division

Related Links

Environmental Justice capabilities at PNNLAdditional Nuclear Energy capabilities at PNNLPNNL's Nuclear Research FacilitiesJob OpportunitiesWSU-PNNL Nuclear Science and Technology InstituteSearch for Nuclear Sciences Division publications

Brochures

File

PNNL_NuclearEnergy-Regulatory_Capabilities_Overview.pdf

File

PNNL Seismic Hazard Analysis flyer 2021

File

PNNL Spent Nuclear Fuel Management brochure 2021

Contacts

Mark Nutt
Manager, Nuclear market sector
mark.nutt@pnnl.gov
509-375-2984
Tara O'Neil
Manager, Nuclear Regulatory Subsector; Advisor, Earth Systems Science
tara.oneil@pnnl.gov
541-738-0362
Ali Zbib
Manager, Nuclear Power Systems, Energy and Environment
ali.zbib@pnnl.gov
(509) 372-4034

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Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is managed and operated by Battelle for the Department of Energy
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