NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. (“NANO Nuclear”), a Vertically Integrated DeepTech company emerging from the shared micro Small Modular Reactor (µSMR) and Advanced Nuclear Reactor (ANR) ambitions of a world class nuclear engineering team filled with leading nuclear experts in the field, working alongside business and industry professionals, possessing strong relationships with both government, and the private and public nuclear industries, is proud to announce its second proprietary Advanced Micro Nuclear Reactor Design, “ODIN”, a low-pressure coolant reactor.

Figure 1 – NANO Nuclear Energy Inc. Second Proprietary Portable Advanced Micro Nuclear Reactor Design, “ODIN”, a Low-Pressure Coolant Reactor

The second Advanced Nuclear Reactor (ANR) design in development at NANO Nuclear, “ODIN” aims to diversify its technology portfolio, as the design requirements can be met through different technological solutions. The ODIN design will utilize conventional sintered pellet UO₂ fuel with up to 20% enrichment, helping to minimize the required development and testing program schedule and costs. The proprietary reactor design “ODIN” will utilize low pressure coolant to minimize the stress on structural components, improve their reliability and service life. It will also use a unique reactivity control system design, aiming to have high reliability and robustness through minimizing the number of moving parts.

The reactor will operate at higher than conventional water-cooled reactor temperatures, which will allow resilient operation and high-power conversion efficiency in generating electricity. The “ODIN” design will aim to take maximum advantage of natural convection of coolant for heat transfer to the power conversion cycle at full power and for decay heat removal during reactor shutdown, operational transients, and off-normal conditions.

“Our second proprietary Advanced Nuclear Reactor design, ‘ODIN’ adds another disruptive technology that we are confident will add enormous value to our company. We now have a portfolio of advanced, commercially driven, reactors being developed by world class technical teams, diversifying the products that NANO Nuclear will have available, while simultaneously opening further routes to success. It is a privilege to work alongside such a team of the foremost experts in reactor materials and design,” said James Walker, NANO Nuclear Energy’s CEO and Head of Reactor Development. “It gives me a great pleasure to welcome Professor Ian Farnan and Professor Eugene Shwageraus to take the lead in our R&D for ODIN.”

“We have long planned to approach the issue of energy scarcity and security by promoting multiple reactor designs,” said Jay Jiang Yu, NANO Nuclear Energy’s Founder, Chairman and President. “This approach allows us to remain flexible and will help position us at the forefront of the advanced nuclear reactor industry. The addition of Prof. Ian Farnan and Prof. Eugene Shwageraus also underlines NANO Nuclear’s dedicated approach to the cultivation of specialized and world class expertise. Their contribution in the development of the “ODIN” design cannot be understated.”

Professors Ian Farnan and Eugene Shwageraus will be directing a nuclear technical team and provide expert analysis on numerous facets of the design, including materials, dimensions, composition, operability, ease of manufacture, and efficiency. Among their remits will be developing a safety case strategy, biological shielding requirements, and fuel cycle strategy, from fuel manufacturing to defueling and decommissioning.

Chair of Cambridge Nuclear Energy Centre and Professor of Earth & Nuclear Materials, Ian Farnan is an expert in the effect of nuclear radiation on materials from nuclear fuels and claddings to waste forms. From 2007 to 2015, Prof. Farnan served as a member of the scientific advisory committee of the EMSL Directorate of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the United States. He has led national (UK EPSRC) and international (Euratom) research consortia, including the RCUK/NDA spent fuel research group and more recently within the EPSRC advanced materials for fission program, the consortium Carbides for Future Fission Environments. Prof. Farnan currently serves as Discipline Lead for Materials Science with the UK NDA’s Nuclear Waste Services Research Support Office. He has extensive experience with high temperature materials and is currently involved in supporting the development of molten salt technology through fundamental research on in-situ measurements of dissolution and speciation in molten salts.

Figure 2 – Prof. Ian Farnan, NANO Nuclear Energy’s Lead Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Radiation and Materials. Lead for the development of ‘ODIN” Reactor.

“It is a pleasure to be working with the NANO Nuclear team during these exciting times for the Nuclear Industry around the world,” said Prof. Ian Farnan, NANO Nuclear Energy’s Lead for Nuclear Radiation and Materials. “There are so many scenarios where the ‘ODIN’ reactor design can decarbonise future energy production. There is currently a dearth of truly viable solutions to deliver in the advanced reactors space and the approach that our company has taken is refreshing. I am confident that the ‘ODIN’ design will create long term value and disruption in the advanced reactors development.”

A professor of Nuclear Energy Systems Engineering and Nuclear Energy Masters Course Director at the University of Cambridge Engineering Department, Eugene Shwageraus was the Head of the Nuclear Engineering Department at Ben-Gurion University, Israel and Visiting Associate Professor at the Nuclear Science and Engineering Department at MIT. Prof. Shwageraus has led multiple government and industry-sponsored research projects on developing advanced reactor designs. He is a co-PI on a £7M UK EPSRC sponsored program grant MATHRAD which will apply the latest mathematical methods to radiation transport modelling in the nuclear industry, space and medicine.

Figure 3 – Prof. Eugene Shwageraus, NANO Nuclear Energy’s Lead of Nuclear Reactor Engineering and development of “ODIN” Reactor

Prof. Shwageraus’ research is focused on the physics and engineering of nuclear power reactors as well as modelling nuclear energy systems to assist policy decision making. Furthermore, a part of Prof. Shwageraus’ research is dedicated to studying Thorium-based fuel in combination with advanced cladding material such as SiC which may be capable of achieving ultra-high burnup (long fuel cycles at high power densities) while at the same time providing higher safety margin.

“The future of energy is nuclear,” said Prof. Eugene Shwageraus, NANO Nuclear Energy’s Lead of Nuclear Reactor Engineering. “I am very pleased to be a part of this endeavor and I believe in the team behind NANO Nuclear Energy. A range of technology options will allow a flexible response to different geographic conditions, applications and markets. The multifaceted approach, including establishing a fuel cycle strategy early on that NANO Nuclear is pursuing, is very impressive and I am excited to be a part of this journey.”