ONHS Report: S-133663

TECHNOLOGY LICENSING OPPORTUNITY: Heat Pipe Reactor Fire Mitigation and Suppression System

Solicitation ID: S-133663

Agency: Los Alamos National Laboratory

Type: Special Notice

Deadline: 2026-12-19T19:00:00 ET

Eligibility: Maybe (Unspecified)

Funding: N/A

Doc Type: Other

Clearance: No

Program Manager: licensing@lanl.gov

Last Updated: 2026-06-24 19:05

Analyzed File: API_Description.txt

Eligibility Reasoning

Eligibility for FFRDCs or National Labs was not mentioned.

Note: This is an AI-generated summary...

Summary

[Analyzed from API Fallback] This technology from Los Alamos National Laboratory is an automated, sensor-driven fire mitigation and suppression system for advanced alkali metal-cooled heat pipe reactors. It repurposes the reactor's heat pipes into active fire defense components. Upon detecting fire-like conditions via sensors, a controller initiates a rapid, multi-stage response that includes injecting suppressant into the heat pipes, evacuating the alkali metal working fluid, and releasing suppressant into a surrounding inert gas chamber. Key technical features include redundant suppressant injection points, a phase change material jacket that doubles as a fire retardant, and an optional mechanism to disperse a neutron absorber into the reactor core to aid shutdown. The system's purpose is to provide a layered, automated safeguard against one of the most challenging hazards in advanced microreactors, enabling safer operation in remote, unattended, and space-constrained deployments without requiring major redesigns for external suppression equipment.

Overall Technical Areas

Nuclear Reactor EngineeringHeat Pipe TechnologyThermal Management SystemsAlkali Metal ChemistryAutomated Fire SuppressionSensor and Instrumentation SystemsEmbedded Control SystemsPhase Change Material ScienceNuclear Core PhysicsNeutron Absorber MaterialsReactor Safety EngineeringFluid Dynamics and Dispersion

Probable LBNL Areas

BSACSAEESAESAETAPSA

Focus Areas

Example Priorities:

transforms the heat pipes inside an alkali metal-cooled nuclear reactor from passive thermal conduits into active, sensor-driven fire defense components
Temperature and pressure sensors continuously monitor the heat pipe reactor core and the valves near each heat pipe end, feeding data to a controller that compares readings against predefined thresholds.
The active suppression and shutdown logic is governed by a controller comprising memory, processor, input/output circuitry and communications circuitry, optionally implemented as a distributed or cloud-based system.
Automated, sensor-driven response that opens valves and injects suppressant within milliseconds of fire-like conditions being detected

Specific Technical Skills:

Control Systems EngineeringReal-Time SystemsEmbedded Systems DesignSensor IntegrationProcess AutomationData Acquisition (DAQ)Fault DetectionIndustrial Control Logic

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Kameshwar Poolla	0.70	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Dre Helmns	0.70	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys.
Najm Us Saqib	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Oluwamayowa Amusat	0.69	CSA \| SciData \| Data Science Applications
Zhi Yao	0.69	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics
Duncan Callaway	0.69	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Johannes Mahl	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Electronic Engineering
Bin Wang	0.69	ETA \| Energy Analysis \| Systems & Energy Tech Analysis
Scott Moura	0.69	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Randy Louie	0.69	BSA \| Biological Systems & Engineering \| Biodesign Dept

Example Priorities:

By combining an inert gas buffer, a phase change material jacket, automated suppressant injection at multiple points...
each heat pipe carries thermal energy away from the reactor core through the evaporation and condensation of an alkali metal working fluid
a heat exchanger device sits at the heat rejection end of each heat pipe and defines an enclosed inert gas chamber that annularly surrounds the heat pipe
A layer of phase change material, typically a salt that doubles as a Class D fire extinguishing agent...is disposed on the outer surface of the gas chamber

Specific Technical Skills:

Heat Pipe DesignThermal ManagementTwo-Phase Flow AnalysisComputational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)Phase Change Material (PCM) ApplicationsHigh-Temperature MaterialsValve Design & ActuationAlkali Metal Handling

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Giorgio Vallone	0.71	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Chris Dames	0.71	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Dre Helmns	0.70	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys.
Eric Anderssen	0.70	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Peter Therkelsen	0.70	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys. \| Bldg & Industrial App Dpt
Pramod Bhuvankar	0.70	EESA \| EG \| Hydrogeology Dept
Katherine Ray	0.70	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Sumanjeet Kaur	0.70	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt
Sang woo Ham	0.69	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys. \| Bldg Technologies Dept
Li Wang	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering

Example Priorities:

optional neutron-absorber dispersion into the reactor core, the system delivers redundant protection
the controller can release that absorber into the gaps to reduce core reactivity and aid shutdown, providing a coupled fire-and-reactivity response
Multiple independent barriers between reactive alkali metals and potential ignition sources, reducing the probability of a single-point failure
Coupled fire suppression and reactor shutdown through optional neutron absorber dispersion into the core

Specific Technical Skills:

Nuclear EngineeringReactor PhysicsNeutronics ModelingNuclear Safety AnalysisProbabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA)Fire Protection EngineeringChemical EngineeringMaterials Science (Neutron Absorbers)

Potential PIs for this Area:

Name	Score	Organization
Michael Frenklach	0.71	ETA \| Energy Analysis \| Systems & Energy Tech Analysis
Hannah Parrilla	0.71	PSA \| NSD \| ANP
Dre Helmns	0.71	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys.
M Shamsuzzoha Basunia	0.71	PSA \| NSD \| Nuclear Data
Alexander Pattison	0.70	ESA \| MF \| MF NCEM Facility
Bethany Goldblum	0.70	PSA \| NSD \| Nuclear Data
Jennifer Pore	0.69	PSA \| NSD \| Low Energy Nuclear Science
Diego Arbelaez	0.69	PSA \| Engineering \| Mechanical Engineering
Peter Therkelsen	0.69	ETA \| Building Tech. & Urban Sys. \| Bldg & Industrial App Dpt
Lee Bernstein	0.69	PSA \| NSD \| Nuclear Data

Potential LBNL PIs (Overall)

Note on PI Matching: These suggestions are generated through an AI-driven semantic analysis of LBNL staff profiles.

Name	Score	Organization
Volker Koch	0.76	PSA \| NSD \| Nuclear Theory · Nuclear Core Physics
Aaron Lattanzi	0.75	CSA \| AMCR \| Applied Mathematics · Fluid Dynamics and Dispersion
Abhi Rajagopala	0.75	CSA \| NERSC \| HPC Technology Department · Embedded Control Systems
Peter Hosemann	0.75	ESA \| MSD \| Material Physics · Neutron Absorber Materials
Ravi Prasher	0.75	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt · Thermal Management Systems
Andrew Dopilka	0.74	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt · Phase Change Material Science
Thomas Schutzius	0.74	ETA \| ESDR \| Energy Storage & Dist Dpt · Heat Pipe Technology
Jennifer Pore	0.74	PSA \| NSD \| Low Energy Nuclear Science · Alkali Metal Chemistry
Hannah Parrilla	0.74	PSA \| NSD \| ANP · Reactor Safety Engineering
Yuan Mei	0.74	PSA \| PHY \| Atlas · Sensor and Instrumentation Systems

Fundamental Research Exemption (FRE)

Not Mentioned