SHINE Technologies has announced a new partnership with a Tennessee company, Standard Nuclear, aimed at turning recycled nuclear fuel into a “strategic asset” for new fuel production.
That’s according to SHINE CEO and founder Greg Piefer, who calls the agreement an “important step toward closing the nuclear fuel cycle” and making nuclear energy renewable.
“Together, we’re building the ecosystem needed to turn waste into a strategic asset and move closer to a future where clean energy is both practical and sustainable,” Piefer said in a statement.
Under the partnership, Janesville-based SHINE will provide recycled nuclear materials such as uranium and plutonium from planned spent fuel recycling facilities to Standard Nuclear, which the company will use to produce a nuclear fuel product called TRISO. It will also be used to provide isotopes for power systems, according to the release.
TRISO is made of uranium particles contained within ceramic and carbon layers, and the company boasts better safety and durability at extreme temperatures for use in advanced reactors. The announcement notes Standard Nuclear is the only independent U.S. developer of this fuel for such reactors, helping to reduce domestic reliance on foreign production.
Ultimately, the companies say they aim to develop a “closed-loop, circular economic solution” to domestic nuclear fuel production.
The one-year partnership framework hinges on SHINE’s approach to recycling the 90,000 metric tons of nuclear waste that’s currently stored in the United States, which the company notes contains “decades of untapped energy potential.”
SHINE plans to start building its first commercial recycling facility in the early 2030s, with an initial target of processing 100 metric tons per year. The company has created a pilot plant at the concept phase, according to Piefer, and is working toward a “more mature design” in the coming years. Full-scale operation is planned for the mid-2030s.
In a recent interview, Piefer noted SHINE’s approach to using recycled nuclear fuel is a key step in its path toward fusion energy production, building on its work in medical isotopes and industrial testing applications.
“That’s a great opportunity for us to prove the economics of the recycling case,” he said.
See the release and see more in a recent story on nuclear energy legislation in the state.
