Collaborating for Innovation in Advanced Nuclear
Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs) operate at high temperatures and low pressures, offering passive safety features efficient fuel use makes them a compelling option for addressing modern energy challenges.
91°µÍø is building on decades of innovation and expertise in our collaborations with other national laboratories, industry partners, academic institutions, and international stakeholders to accelerate the development and deployment of MSR technologies.
A major difference in the new MSR development effort is that industry is leading the way. Worldwide, more than 10 private companies have active MSR or FHR designs under development using private investment. The first demonstration salt reactors since the MSRE are expected in the US within five years, and commercial plants are planned before the 2030s, in time to help replace the clean energy lost as the existing fleet begins to age out.
National Laboratory Partners
Argonne National Laboratory
ORNL and Argonne collaborate on thermophysical/thermochemical measurements, database contributions and technology maturation.
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
PNNL and ORNL work together on off-gas studies.
Idaho National Laboratory
INL's National Reactor Innovation Center partners private companies with national labs to test new nuclear reactors.
Industry and International
Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program
The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy founded the Advanced Reactor Demonstration Program to speed the demonstration of advanced reactors through cost-shared partnerships with U.S. industry.
Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear
DOE-NE established the Gateway for Accelerated Innovation in Nuclear (GAIN) to provide the nuclear community with access to the technical, regulatory, and financial support necessary to move innovative nuclear energy technologies toward commercialization while ensuring the continued safe, reliable, and economic operation of the existing nuclear fleet.
Generation IV International Forum
ORNL's David Holcomb serves as the US representative on the Generation IV International Forum on Molten Salt Reactors (MSRs), where he is a vice chair of the provisional system steering committee. He also chairs the American Nuclear Society’s working group developing a design safety standard for liquid-fueled MSRs (ANS-20.2) and provides technical oversight of the Department of Energy’s university projects on MSRs.
The United States is one of 14 member countries in the forum and was one of the nine founding members to sign the GIF Charter in July 2001.