Next-gen fusion could be one step closer to realization, thanks to new partnership
The Bull Run site in Clinton will function as a fusion development campus through the projects between Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Type One Energy, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and the Tennessee Valley Authority.
East Tennessee is taking another decisive step toward becoming the nation’s epicenter for advanced energy – this time specifically in realizing fusion technologies.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), Type One Energy, and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), have joined forces to build a world-class high-heat flux (HHF) testing facility at the Tennessee Valley Authority’s (TVA) Bull Run Energy Complex. The new site will be only the second of its kind in the United States, and will focus on how materials react inside a fusion device.
Fusion energy has been called the “holy grail of energy.” It is essentially mimicking the limitless free energy of the sun. Bringing fusion energy to reality is about building the equivalent of a star on Earth – or at least simulating the thermonuclear process of one.
Fusion is considered one of the most critical energy technologies to achieve because it offers the possibility of producing abundant, carbon‑free power without the long‑lived radioactive waste associated with traditional nuclear fission. Unlike fossil fuels, fusion relies on widely available hydrogen isotopes, and the reaction itself cannot run out of control, which makes it inherently safer.
What makes this partnership special?
The newly announced HHF facility will accelerate the development of plasma-facing components (PFCs), which experience the harshest operational conditions in fusion energy devices, and enable both private and public entities to qualify and validate the materials used in fusion pilot plant designs.
According to ORNL, the facility will be “by far the most powerful of its kind in the United States,” because of its capabilities to replicate the high-heat flux present in fusion devices. It will also be the only domestic facility to include pressurized helium gas cooling, the coolant of choice for many U.S.-based fusion concepts.
“This unique collaboration of breakthrough science, industry innovation, and academic leadership will result in the creation of a national facility critical to the success of realizing commercial fusion,” said ORNL Director Stephen Streiffer. “As the Oak Ridge Corridor continues to serve as the hub of nuclear and fusion energy development, ORNL is excited to play a role in this pivotal next step in the future of fusion.”
Additionally, this partnership further emphasizes the Bull Run location as being a central piece of the fusion boom. In September, TVA signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Type One Energy, which is currently developing its Infinity One stellarator testbed and planning for its first Infinity Two fusion power plant.
At September’s LOI announcement, Chris Mowry, CEO of Type One Energy, said, “People have been working on this for centuries, and what’s exciting today is that we’re crossing this threshold from developing the science to getting in a position to build and operate a fully-functional fusion power plant.”
That statement gets even more momentum with the news of the ORNL, UT, TVA, and Type One Energy partnership.
From the UT side, Brian Wirth, the UT Nuclear Engineering Department Head and UT-ORNL Governor’s Chair Professor, said the university is excited to lend its talent, resources, and materials to the research.
“This is yet another opportunity to expand our unique East Tennessee nuclear ecosystem, which has strong support of the local community and public-private partnerships to enable the continued development and expansion of both advanced fission and fusion energy,” Wirth said.
As such, the Clinton site will function as a fusion development campus through the projects between ORNL, Type One Energy, UT, and TVA.
“It’s exciting to witness the convergence of science and innovation toward a commercially viable fusion industry in the U.S. We very much look forward to the insights gleaned from these partnerships and the realization of real-world impacts toward making fusion a viable energy source for the future,” said Joe Hoagland, the interim associate laboratory director for ORNL’s Fusion and Fission Energy and Science Directorate.
TVA is currently conditioning the site for the facility, and the project is slated for completion at the end of 2027.
Read more about the partnership from Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
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