Plenary 1. Technology Innovation for Nuclear Sustainability
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Date: September 1 (Mon), 2025
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Time: 09:20-10:40
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Venue: Grand Ballroom 301 (3F)
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Speakers:
Presentation Order
Shaping the Future of Nuclear Energy: Thermal Hydraulics, Key to Robust Defense-in-Depth and Severe Accident Management
Véronique Rouyer
Head of Division
Nuclear Safety, Technology and Regulation Division
OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA)
France
Short Biography
Ms Véronique Rouyer is Head of the Division of Nuclear Safety Technology and Regulation of the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA), since August 2019, coordinating the development of effective and efficient regulation and oversight of nuclear installations, and helping to maintain and advance the scientific, technological knowledge base and safety research experimental activities.
Prior to joining the NEA, Ms Rouyer was the Safety Research Director at the Institut de radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN). From 2009 to 2016, she gained extensive experience in the development and coordination of scientific programme plans as Deputy Director for the scientific projects, strategy partnerships division after a long carrier supporting criticality safety activities. Ms Véronique Rouyer holds a Graduate Chemical Engineering Master Degree in the Polytechnic Institute of Toulouse and a Master Degree in Nuclear Engineering from the Institut National des Sciences et Techniques Nucléaires (INSTN).
Field of Interest or Research
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Nuclear safety assessment, regulation and associated research activities
Thermal Hydraulics Innovation Enables Global Nuclear Energy Resurgence
W. David Pointer
Division Director
Nuclear Energy and Fuel Cycle Division
Oak Ridge National Laboratory
United States
Short Biography
W. David Pointer leads the Nuclear Energy and Fuel Cycle Division of Oak Ridge National Laboratory. More than 80 years ago, nuclear energy found a home in the valleys of East Tennessee and never left. Today, the innovative experts of ORNL work to translate the latest scientific discoveries into market-ready technologies that power our lives here on earth and fuel our exploration of our universe.
Dr. Pointer is a recognized expert in the thermal hydraulics and safety of both conventional and advanced nuclear energy systems. He has extensive experience in the application, validation and development of computational fluid dynamics software as well as a strong background in experimental fluid dynamics methods for nuclear energy system and component design and licensing.
Field of Interest or Research
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Development of integrated multi-physics simulation toolsets for advanced reactor design and safety analysis which leverage high performance computing to provide unprecedented predictive power and precision.
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Development and calibration of CFD-based simulation capabilities for boiling flows to support industry application to current fuel performance issues.
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Development and execution of advanced separate effects experiments to support the design of advanced reactor concepts, including VHTR and SFR systems.
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Validation of higher fidelity thermal and fluid simulation methods
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Application of CFD methods to a variety of engineering problems in the areas of power generation, energy efficiency and transportation.
Regulation and Research for Demonstrating and Deploying Advanced Nuclear Systems
Toyoshi Fuketa
Head of Decommissioning
Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation Corporation
Japan
Short Biography
Dr. Toyoshi Fuketa is Head of Decommissioning at Nuclear Damage Compensation and Decommissioning Facilitation Corporation (NDF) and concurrently serves as Senior Researcher at Department of Nuclear Engineering and Management of the University of Tokyo.
Dr. Fuketa was sworn in as a Commissioner of the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) on September 2012, when the NRA was established following the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear accident. After the five years as a Commissioner, he served as the Chairman of the NRA for another five-year term until September 2022.
Prior to becoming a Commissioner of the NRA, Dr. Fuketa engaged in nuclear safety research programs at Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) and at Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) for twenty-five years and performed various experiments regarding reactor fuel behavior during accidents. He was honored by ASTEM international with William J. Kroll Zirconium Medal. He received Ph.D (1987), MS (1984) and BS (1982) in Mechanical Engineering Science from the Tokyo Institute of Technology (Institute of Science Tokyo).
Field of Interest or Research
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Severe Accident, Steam Explosion, Risk-informed Regulation, Reactor Decommissioning and Dismantling
Plenary 2. Innovation to Disrupt and Stimulate Thermal Hydraulics R&D
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Date: September 1 (Mon), 2025
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Time: 10:50-12:10
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Venue: Grand Ballroom 301 (3F)
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Speakers:
Presentation Order
From Models to Agents: Rethinking Safety Analysis in the Age of AI
Nam T. Dinh
Distinguished Professor
Department of Nuclear Engineering
North Carolina State University
United States
Short Biography
Professor Nam Dinh has over thirty years of R&D experience in nuclear reactor thermal hydraulics and safety. His research contributed to severe accident treatment in Light Water Reactor plants, nuclear system thermal-hydraulics modeling, experimentation, validation and analysis of multi-phase thermal-fluid phenomena. Dr. Dinh’s current research is focused on data-driven modeling, validation, and application of digital twins, machine learning, and artificial intelligence in advanced reactor’s safety analysis and nearly autonomous control.
Prior to NCSU, Dr. Dinh was with Center for Risk Studies and Safety at University of California, Santa Barbara, a chair professor of nuclear power safety at Sweden’s Royal Institute of Technology, and a Laboratory Fellow at Idaho National Laboratory. He is a NURETH Scholar, recipient of ANS-THD Technical Achievement award, and a Fellow of American Nuclear Society.
Field of Interest or Research
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Nuclear Power Safety, Reactor Thermal Hydraulics, Severe Accidents, Boiling Heat Transfer
Artificial Intelligence and Nuclear Power: Developments and Challenges
Kyun-Tae Kim
Researcher
Department of Regulation Policy
KINS
Korea, Republic of
Short Biography
Education
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Seoul National University, Department of Nuclear Engineering (B.S., ’85)
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KAIST, Department of Nuclear Engineering (M.S., ’87, Ph.D., ’91)
Career
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’90.9. ~ Present : Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS)
- (Former) Director of Nuclear Safety Division, Director of Emergency Division
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’19.9. ~ ‘23.4. : Adjunct Professor, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)
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’21.9. ~ ’23.4. : Visiting Professor, Seoul National University, Dept. of Nuclear Engineering
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’22.10. ~ Present : Commissioner of Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (Non-permanent)
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’09.9. ~ ‘22.8. : Korea Nuclear Society (Directors, Chairs of 2 Subdivisions, Vice President)
Field of Interest or Research
He is trying to put into practice the regulatory philosophy he has gained through 35 years of practical experience in nuclear safety regulation. The purpose of regulation is to confirm safety, and the regulatory system is a means to achieve the purpose, so the system should be operated flexibly, but its capabilities should be focused on confirming safety.
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Improving unreasonable regulatory procedures for the continued operation of nuclear power plants after their design life span
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Establishing regulatory procedures, safety principles, and technical standards for new advanced reactors such as SMRs.
TBA
Jean-Marie Le Corre
Consulting Engineer
Fuel Engineering
Westinghouse Electric Sweden
Sweden
Short Biography
Dr. Jean-Marie Le Corre is a Consulting Engineer in Thermal Hydraulics at Westinghouse Electric Sweden AB, with over two decades of experience in nuclear fuel engineering. He holds a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and dual M.S. degrees in Nuclear and Energy Engineering from Purdue University and Grenoble Institute of Technology. Dr. Le Corre is a recognized expert in light water reactor (LWR) fuel thermal-hydraulics, with significant contributions to advanced modeling, experimental methods, and safety analysis. He has led the thermal hydraulic development of the Westinghouse TRITON11 BWR fuel design and the MEFISTO-T subchannel analysis code. His work spans industry, academia, and international collaborations, including roles as affiliated faculty at KTH and research fellow at Bangor University.
Field of Interest or Research
Dr. Le Corre’s research focuses on thermal-hydraulic phenomena in nuclear reactor cores, particularly boiling two-phase flow, critical heat flux (CHF), and post-dryout modeling. His expertise includes mechanistic modeling, subchannel and CFD simulations, and advanced instrumentation for fuel bundle testing. He is actively involved in international benchmarks and AI/ML applications for nuclear safety analysis, and supports academic research through Ph.D. supervision and collaborative projects across Europe and North America.
