The Status and Future of Nuclear Energy Policy and Deployment
Abstract:
This seminar will explore current key trends and insights shaping the future of nuclear energy policy and deployment both in the U.S. and globally. The speaker will present a potential vision for a future in which nuclear power enables net zero emissions by 2050. The narrow path required to turn this vision into reality is not only imperiled by the potential for a softening of national and global climate goals, but it is also challenged by a need to balance nuclear security with deployment. Key elements needed to realize this vision include mobilizing bold private capital investments, scaling a skilled workforce, revitalizing critical supply chains, engaging the public, and embedding safeguards and security into nuclear reactor and facility designs from the outset. As this future approaches, numerous opportunities and challenges will arise, inviting urgent research. The speaker will outline key areas of research needed to accelerate reactor deployment, secure and sustain the front and back ends of the nuclear fuel cycle, and ensure computational nuclear analysis tools are fully prepared to harness the power of the world's fastest computers.
Bio:
The Honorable Kathryn D. Huff, PhD, is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. From May 2021 to May 2024, she took a leave of absence from UIUC to hold multiple positions in the U.S. Department of Energy, including that of Assistant Secretary for Nuclear Energy. Before joining UIUC, she was a Postdoctoral Fellow with both the Nuclear Science and Security Consortium and the Berkeley Institute for Data Science at the University of California - Berkeley. As a PhD student, she helped to reimagine the GENIUSv2 fuel cycle simulator and became the primary developer of the Cyclus simulator in its initial phase. In addition, she collaborated with the Systems Analysis group at Idaho National Laboratory to develop the Fuel Cycle Simulator Software Requirements that defined the goals and expectations for the Next Generation Fuel Cycle Simulator. She received her PhD in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in August 2013 as a student of Professor Paul P.H. Wilson. Her undergraduate degree was in Physics from the University of Chicago. Her PhD dissertation and postdoctoral work both focused on development of software for nuclear engineering applications such as the Cyclus simulator, PyNE, and extensions to MOOSE. She is particularly interested in robust modeling and simulation of advanced reactors emphasizing scientific software engineering best practices.