EPRI Podcast: Advanced Nuclear Looks Promising
Tina Taylor is a Director in the Nuclear Sector at the Electric Power Research Institute. She is responsible for EPRI's work with external organizations and currently leads research on advanced nuclear technologies as well as long-term operations of nuclear plants.
Andrew Sowder is a Principal Technical Leader in the Advanced Nuclear Technology program at the Electric Power Research Institute in Charlotte, N.C. He leads EPRI's newly established strategic program on advanced reactors. His previous responsibilities at EPRI included managing applied research on used nuclear fuel management, including storage and disposal, and the analysis of advanced nuclear fuel cycles.
Shane Johnson serves as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Science and Technology Innovation in the Office of Nuclear Energy at the U.S. Department of Energy. He is responsible for competitive research and infrastructure development programs, advanced modeling and simulation programs, and the Nuclear Science User Facilities.
The nuclear industry may not mirror Silicon Valley, but innovation is coming to the forefront of an industry historically slow to change. "It's no longer a question of if - it's more a question of when and by whom," said Andrew Sowder during a recent discussion on advanced nuclear technologies.
Sowder is the principal technical leader for EPRI's advanced nuclear program. He was joined by Tina Taylor, director of strategic programs for EPRI's nuclear sector, and special guest Shane Johnson, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Science and Technology Innovation in the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Nuclear Energy.
These three bring unique backgrounds and perspectives, but all agree that advanced nuclear technologies are closer to reality than you might think.
"Many companies are trying different designs, some of them will fail, some of them will succeed, and that's an environment we really haven't seen in the nuclear industry, at least in my lifetime," commented Taylor.
Another significant change? Industry is now taking the lead when it comes to innovation.