X-energy and its helium-cooled nuclear reactors
X-energy is developing the Xe-100, a small modular nuclear reactor that uses helium cooling and TRISO fuel to provide high-temperature heat for industrial processes. This technology aims to decarbonize heavy industries like concrete and chemical production that currently rely on fossil fuels.
Why it matters
Decarbonizing heavy industry is one of the most difficult challenges in the climate transition, requiring high-heat solutions that renewables cannot easily provide.
Climate change and energy X-energy and its helium-cooled nuclear reactors A nuclear reactor that operates at high temperatures (but can’t melt down) could transform heavy industry.
X-energy is developing small modular reactors to satisfy some of the planet’s most power-hungry users: industrial manufacturers that need high temperatures to produce billions of tons of concrete, plastics, fibers, and chemicals.
Solar panels and wind turbines are great at producing electricity but what heavy industry also needs is raw heat—and lots of it. The manufacture of concrete, glass, and steel, as well as the production of many chemicals, plastics, and fertilizers, are still highly reliant on fossil fuels to produce that heat.
Traditional nuclear reactors simply don’t get hot enough . The cooling systems they use require liquid water to work, and even applying pressure to raise the water’s boiling point leaves their maximum operating temperatures hundreds of degrees cooler than needed.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in