Progress, Challenges, And Opportunities For Converting U.S. And Russian Research Reactors From Highly Enriched To Low Enriched Uranium Fuel

29-30 of November at the Keck Center of the National Academies the Meeting of the Committee on Research Reactors Conversion was held. Valentin Ivanov took part in the meeting from the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The welcoming and introductory remarks at the opening session were made by Richard A. Meserve, U.S. Chair and Boris Myasoedov, Russian Chair.

The first speaker Jeffrey Chamberlin, Deputy Director, Office of European and African Threat Reduction U.S. National Nuclear Security Administration, U.S. Department of Energy made a presentation on the U.S. Department of Energy’s Efforts in Conversion of Research Reactors from HEU to LEU and Objectives for the NAS/RAS Project.

Further presentations were made:

Jim Matos, Argonne National Laboratory “Technical Challenges for Conversion of Civilian Research Reactors in Russia”;

John Stevens, Argonne National Laboratory “Technical Challenges for Conversion of U.S. High-Performance Reactors”;

Daniel Wachs, Global Threat Reduction Initiative Technical Lead for Fuel Development Idaho National Laboratory “Development of High Density Fuel for Research and Test Reactors”;

Sean O’Kelly, Chief, Reactor Operations and Engineering National Institute for Standards and Technology “Technical Challenges for Conversion of the NIST Reactor”;

The last speaker of the open session Valentin Ivanov, professor of Russian Academy of Sciences made presentation “Research Reactors in Russia. Status and prospects for Reducing the Fuel Enrichment”.

Next was a discussion and answers to questions. The goal of discussion is to find approaches and solution for conversion fuel of research reactors in US and RF.

The next year, the special symposium on this topic should take place in Moscow.

After completion of open and closed session work program Valentin Ivanov has participated at open session of Nuclear and Radiation Studies Board (NRSB).