TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY Integrated Reactor Shield-Structures: Revolutionizing Mobile Micro-Nuclear Reactor Designs
Closed Special Notice Posted
- Solicitation number
- BA-1453
- Agency
-
Department of Energy
- Responses due
- Set-aside
- No set-aside
Opportunity facts
- NAICS code
- 221113 Nuclear Electric Power Generation
- PSC
- 4470 Nuclear Reactors
- Place of performance
- Idaho Falls, Idaho 83415, United States
Notice details come from SAM.gov. Updated .
About this opportunity
This Special Notice from the Department of Energy announces a technology licensing opportunity for an Integrated Reactor Shield-Structures innovation from the Idaho National Laboratory. The Laboratory seeks to license or establish collaborative research agreements to commercialize a composite system that merges radiation shielding and reactor structures into a single lightweight component.
The Notice seeks expressions of interest from companies able to further develop and market the provisionally patented technology. It describes the integrated shielding concept and preliminary studies demonstrating reduced weight and enhanced radiation attenuation. Eligible applicants must have a proven ability to advance early-stage technologies, with preference given to small businesses and startups. Interested parties are invited to contact the Laboratory by July 27, 2024 to discuss exclusive licensing rights or cooperative research agreements in defined application areas such as mobile micro-nuclear reactors and aerospace composites.
Notice text
TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY
Integrated Reactor Shield-Structures: Revolutionizing Mobile Micro-Nuclear Reactor Designs
Utilizes a sandwich composite of reactor-grade steels and steel honeycombs filled with radiation-attenuating materials to deliver increased strength and radiation shielding with reduced weight.
Opportunity: Idaho National Laboratory (INL), managed and operated by Battelle Energy Alliance, LLC (BEA), offers the opportunity to explore a license and/or collaborative research agreement to commercialize this Integrated Reactor Shield-Structure. This technology transfer opportunity is part of a dedicated effort to convert government-funded research into job opportunities, businesses, and, ultimately, an improved way of life for the American people.
Overview: In conventional transportation casks and reactors, the radiation shield and the reactor vessel are independent components, both contributing significantly to overall weight. This imposes restrictions on mobile micro-nuclear reactors and creates design limitations. For decades, sandwich composites have been instrumental in sectors like aerospace for optimizing strength-to-weight ratios.
Description: The Integrated Reactor Shield-Structures merge the radiation shield and the reactor vessel into a single composite system. It consists of laminated layers of reactor-grade steels and steel honeycombs filled with neutron and gamma-ray attenuating materials like boron and tungsten. The honeycomb core eliminates issues like buckling, which are common in traditional shielding methods. Advanced manufacturing methods, including additive processes, will be employed for production.
Benefits:
- Increased strength-to-weight ratio
- Enhanced radiation attenuation
- Reduced transportation weight, facilitating easier deployment
- Elimination of buckling issues
- Versatility in design parameters through multiphysics and multi-objective optimization algorithms
Applications:
- Mobile micro-nuclear reactors
- Fission batteries
- High-radiation environments requiring durable, lightweight materials
- Nuclear-grade composites for aerospace applications
Development Status: The technology is currently at TRL 2, with the concept and application formulated. Preliminary studies on neutron and gamma-ray attenuation have been conducted, and the technology is part of a funded Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) project for further exploration.
IP Status: Provisional Patent Application No. 63/516,109, “Integrated Reactor Shield Structures,” BEA Docket No. BA-1453.
INL seeks to license the above intellectual property to a company with a demonstrated ability to bring such inventions to the market. Exclusive rights in defined fields of use may be available. Added value is placed on relationships with small businesses, start-up companies, and general entrepreneurship opportunities.
Please visit Technology Deployment’s website at https://inl.gov/inl-initiatives/technology-deployment for more information on working with INL and the industrial partnering and technology transfer process.
Companies interested in learning more about this licensing opportunity should contact Andrew Rankin at td@inl.gov.
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