Nuclear scientists to discuss fast reactors, related fuel cycles at international conference

Nuclear engineers, scientists, and decision-makers from more than 30 countries are meeting this week in Yekaterinburg, Russia, to discuss fast reactors (FRs) and related fuel cycles.

Fast-neutron systems use fast neutrons without a moderator to sustain the fission chain reaction. They
operate in a closed cycle that reuses nuclear fuel instead of creating waste and are much more efficient than traditional thermal reactors. They can extract 60 to 70 times more energy from uranium than current thermal reactors, according to International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano.

“I’m pleased that so many experts from all over the world have come together to share their knowledge and expertise,” Amano said. “I have no doubt that this conference will move us a step closer to helping
innovative nuclear energy systems become viable for industrial deployment in the coming decades.”

The International Conference on Fast Reactors and Related Fuel Cycles: Next Generation Nuclear Systems for Sustainable Development (FR17) is the third such IAEA gathering. The conference is hosted by the Government of the Russian Federation through State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, which oversees the world’s only n commercially operating FRs at Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Plant about approximately 40 miles from Yekaterinburg.

“The future of the world’s nuclear power industry is inextricably linked with the development of closed nuclear fuel cycles, in which fast reactor technologies are an integral part,” Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said. “This allows us to say that, in the near future, the world’s nuclear energy will truly be renewable.”