Nuclear energy research center

THE IDAHO National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory (INEEL) has been energized with new mission objectives. U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham recently announced the establishment of INEEL as the nation's leading center of nuclear energy research and development. INEEL will receive an

INEEL had been managed by the Department of Energy's (DOE's) environmental-management program before its reassignment to the Office of Nuclear Energy, Science, and Technology. According to Secretary Abraham, "INEEL will be the epicenter of our efforts to expand nuclear energy as a reliable, affordable, and clean energy source for our nation's energy future. While environmental cleanup remains a priority for us [in] Idaho, the importance of advanced, safe nuclear energy for the future demands that we return the Idaho labs to their core mission of nuclear-technology research, development, and demonstration. This realignment is an important first step in rebuilding our advanced nuclear research capabilities."

In a related development, Secretary Abraham also announced that the Generation IV International Forum (GIF), comprised of 10 leading nuclear nations, has reached an agreement on six nuclear-energy systems to be pursued for joint development. For the past year, according to the DOE, more than 100 experts from the 10 GIF countries and international organizations have participated in the development of a Generation IV technology roadmap. The technologies selected by the GIF for development include gas-- cooled, fast-reactor systems; lead-alloy liquid metal-cooled reactor systems; molten-salt reactor systems; sodium-- liquid metal-cooled reactor systems; supercritical water-cooled reactor systems; and very-high-temperature gas reactor systems.