The University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre has partnered with Rolls-Royce SMR to manufacture and test prototypes for its small modular reactors (SMRs)

The multi-million pound Module Development Facility will produce working prototypes of the individual modules that will be assembled into Rolls-Royce SMR power plants. Each of the factory-built nuclear power stations will provide enough low-carbon electricity to power a million homes for more than 60 years.

The facility is housed within the Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) flagship Factory 2050 building, the UK’s first state-of-the-art factory with reconfigurable spaces to enable collaborative research into digital manufacturing, machining technologies and component manufacture.

The production of SMRs is crucial to support the UK’s ambitions for net zero by 2050, as well as offering a global market opportunity for UK manufacturers that is expected to be worth up to $300 billion a year by 2040. Currently, more than 70 designs of SMRs are in development in 18 countries.

The Rolls-Royce SMR is UK’s first home-grown nuclear technology for over a generation and the facility is another vital step towards deploying a fleet of ‘factory-built’ nuclear power plants in the UK and around the globe.

The first phase of the AMRC’s project with Rolls-Royce SMR is worth £2.7 million and is part of a wider £15+ million package of work that will further de-risk and underpin the company’s SMR programme. The modular approach is unique within the nuclear industry but is widely used and well proven across the oil and gas and renewables sectors.

Announcing the project, the company described its investment in setting up the facility to build prototype modules as a “significant milestone” for its business. The AMRC has been a research partner to Rolls-Royce SMR on modular builds since 2017, and this latest opportunity will allow it to scale-up its fundamental research to full-scale products and processes.

When the project was announced, South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard, said:

“This announcement cements South Yorkshire’s position as the leading place to build small modular reactors, a cutting-edge technology which will be a key part of the global transition to clean energy.  It is also a sign of real confidence in our region’s world-leading advanced manufacturing innovation district which is helping us to create a bigger and better economy in South Yorkshire.

“South Yorkshire is proud to be the home of the largest Clean Tech cluster in the UK, with specialisms in nuclear tech, hydrogen and sustainable aviation fuels. Being chosen as the home of the new Rolls-Royce SMR Module Development Facility further enhances our region’s reputation as the best place for Clean Tech in the UK and puts us at the forefront of creating a greener future for the UK and beyond.”

The University of Sheffield is one of the UK’s leading universities for clean energy research and innovation. Its AMRC, on the border of Sheffield and Rotherham, is a world leader in manufacturing R&D and works with companies of all sizes — including SMEs, start-ups and large-scale manufacturers — to help them improve their productivity.

Links

• Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre