Idaho National Laboratory manager describes reprocessing work to capture more of the nuclear fuel cycle

Nate Stevens, a portfolio manager in nuclear nonproliferation at Idaho National Laboratory, said the lab is expanding work on reprocessing to capture more of the nuclear fuel cycle.

"I love being part of INL because, you know, we're focusing on the nuclear mission, and we're we're looking at the nuclear fuel cycle," Stevens said, describing the lab's emphasis on the full range of nuclear research activities.

He told listeners that part of the lab's work involves reprocessing techniques. "What we get to participate in is is that reprocessing side, you know, solvent extraction," Stevens said, identifying solvent extraction as one of the core capabilities the lab applies to fuel-cycle work. He added that capturing additional parts of the fuel cycle is something the lab needs to maintain.

Stevens also highlighted the hands-on research environment at Idaho National Laboratory. "I think there's no better place to realize what you want and what you don't want than to get some hands on amongst fantastic research that happens here at the INL," he said, stressing the importance of practical experiments and in-house research for evaluating technical approaches.

The remarks were brief and introductory; the transcript contains no formal proposals, votes or references to specific projects, budgets or external authorities. The comments serve as a high-level description of INL's priorities in nuclear nonproliferation and fuel-cycle research.