Idaho State University, Idaho National Laboratory Researchers Drive Innovation in Advanced Nuclear R

[Marlin]

Idaho State University, Idaho National Laboratory Researchers Drive Innovation in Advanced Nuclear Reactor Deployment

https://www.isu.edu/news/2026-fall/idaho-state-university-idaho-national-laboratory-researchers-drive-innovation-in-advanced-nuclear-reactor-deployment.html

[Core Content]

Researchers from Idaho State University and Idaho National Laboratory are developing prefabricated Layered Composite walls with Mechanical Connections to accelerate nuclear facility construction. Funded by a 1.6 million dollar grant, the project aims to reduce build times for advanced reactors while maintaining structural integrity and radiation shielding standards.

Idaho State University, Idaho National Laboratory Researchers Drive Innovation in Advanced Nuclear Reactor Deployment

If the United States wants to quadruple nuclear energy capacity by 2050, there's going to have to be a lot more advanced nuclear power plants built. Now, researchers from Idaho State University (ISU), the Idaho National Laboratory (INL), and industry partners are exploring how to construct those facilities faster and without sacrificing safety.

The research team is developing a new construction technology for nuclear reactor buildings and other safety-related buildings using prefabricated wall systems called Layered Composite walls with Mechanical Connections (LC-MC). Rather than pouring a thick slab of concrete for every wall in a nuclear facility on-site, LC-MC uses multiple layers of specialized concrete, each designed to perform a specific job, poured off-site. Together, these walls provide structural strength, radiation...

Read the full article at Idaho State University:
https://www.isu.edu/news/2026-fall/idaho-state-university-idaho-national-laboratory-researchers-drive-innovation-in-advanced-nuclear-reactor-deployment.html