The third participant of the Innovation for Nuclear (I4N) contest, to be held in Bariloche during IYNC2018, was selected from the Spark! Contest and announced during ENYGF in Manchester. Spark! is a contest aimed to current and former students to produce innovative thinking on a topic related to Energy, under Franco-British supervision. The aim of the contest is to foster a Franco-British community of Energy, in order to bring a pool of young talent closer to Industry.
The Winner Benjamin Govier Moore, is excited to participate to the next contest, as he had such a good experience during the Spark! He recalled this experience with energy and passion: “The topic for the 2016-17 Spark! contest – ‘Why SMR?’ – Really grabbed my attention as, in the year since leaving university, I had been exposed to the growing opportunity and utility in small modular reactor technology. The contest was a perfect opportunity for me to not only gain some brilliant experience and meet and discuss ideas with other contestants, but it gave me the chance to put forward my perspective on the global opportunity for SMRs.
As I began to research the topic in more detail it became clear to me that very few people were discussing the significant challenges that faced global deployment of SMR technology. So the focus of my paper was not around the widely known benefits of small reactors, but instead the many obstacles that spanned political, economic and social aspects of any technology integration. I learnt a lot about the various regulatory and financial enablers that needed to align to ensure SMRs made economic sense, and found the role of government(s) in the technology growth was – unsurprisingly – one of the most influential factors.
I took the ideas of modularity, standardization and interoperability that were fundamental to SMR success factors, and stressed these ideas beyond the nuclear world. Drawing comparisons between furniture manufacturers and space programs meant understanding the real opportunity rather than the limited opportunity perceived by the nuclear industry.”
We cannot wait to see your passion for nuclear technology and its wide application expressed in Argentina.
Photo: Benjamin G. Moore, 3rd local winner of I4N partner contest, in the middle during the Spark! Session at the ENYGF.
