The ARPA-E (U.S. Department of Energy) is offering this RFI to gather input on advanced nuclear fuel reprocessing technologies for energy conversion.

The purpose of this RFI is solely to solicit input about the scope of the draft technical section of the CURIE FOA for ARPA-E consideration. ARPA-E will not provide funding or compensation for any information submitted in response to this RFI, and ARPA-E may use information submitted to this RFI without any attribution to the source. This RFI provides the broader research community with an opportunity to contribute views and opinions regarding the technology and economics of reprocessing facilities.

The Advanced Research Projects Agency –Energy (ARPA‐E) in the U.S. Department of Energy is seeking comments on the draft technical section of a potential future Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for the CURIE program. This new program would focus on innovative technologies and approaches that will significantly improve the economics of commercial nuclear fuel reprocessing facilities, improve reprocessing material accountancy while decreasing materials attractiveness, and drastically reduce the volume of high-level waste (HLW) requiring permanent disposal. An ARPA-E workshop was held in July 2021 to help identify and refine metrics for this contemplated program; presentations can be found here. Such technological advancements would enable a 1¢/kWh fuel cost for a secure 200 MTHM/yr facility that does not generate pure plutonium streams while significantly reducing the volume of high-level waste requiring disposal. ARPA‐E seeks input from experts in the fields of separations chemistry (e.g., solvent extraction, pyroprocessing, halide volatility, etc.); head-end processing (e.g., voloxidation, Kr/Xe capture, etc.); process intensification; material accountancy/online monitoring; project engineering; techno-economic analysis; digital engineering; systems analysis and risk assessment; advanced manufacturing and construction (including modular fabrication); artificial intelligence, machine learning, and digital twins; and sensors, instrumentation, autonomous operation, and robotics. 

To view the RFI in its entirety, please visit https://arpa-e-foa.energy.gov.