U.S. Patent Office Awards NAC International with MAGNASTOR Patent
March 24, 2014
NORCROSS, Georgia – NAC International Inc. (NAC) is pleased to announce that the United States Patent Office has awarded Patent No. US 8,630,384B2 to NAC for the protection of its proprietary MAGNASTOR®/MAGNATRAN™ storage and transport technology for management of spent nuclear fuel.
The MAGNASTOR System received its initial NRC storage cask certification in February 2009, and NAC began delivering the systems to customers in July 2010. This latest NAC patent grant is one of the multiple U.S. and foreign patents issued to NAC for its exclusive cask technology. Presently, NAC has several other pending U.S. and foreign patent applications reflective of its strong commitment to innovation on behalf of its worldwide customers.
NAC’s MAGNASTOR system is the first NRC-certified ultra-high capacity dry used fuel storage system. MAGNASTOR is currently the only system of its kind deployed at U.S. commercial nuclear power plants capable of storing 37 PWR and 87 BWR spent fuel assemblies. The uniqueness of the patented MAGNASTOR basket design permits ultra-high capacity spent fuel assembly storage with highly similar dimensional and weight parameters as current lower capacity systems. The innovative MAGNASTOR ultra-efficient basket design allows customers to store approximately 16% to 54% more spent fuel in each canister over other currently deployed systems at U.S. nuclear plants. This translates into significant cost savings throughout the procurement cycle from hardware to operations to the pad, and throughout the spent fuel lifecycle through decommissioning. This means plants now deploying older, lower-capacity systems can transition to the higher-capacity MAGNASTOR system with minimal transition modifications to the plant or ancillary equipment. The MAGNASTOR system is NAC’s latest success in demonstrating our commitment to spent fuel dry storage excellence.
To date, MAGNASTOR systems have been loaded at three different U.S. reactor sites with approximately 70 additional systems scheduled for loading in 2014. The MAGNASTOR is a leading-edge system that has been selected for five contracts, and as a result three of NAC’s customers transitioned a U.S. power plant to MAGNASTOR from another technology for a commitment total of 160 systems worldwide.
NAC is a diversified company specializing in nuclear fuel transport, used fuel management technology and fuel cycle consulting. Since 1968, NAC has been a leader in providing solutions and services to the nuclear industry throughout the world, working with both government and commercial organizations. NAC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hitachi Zosen Corporation, a global leader in design and construction of environmental systems, industrial plants, industrial machinery, process equipment, infrastructure-related equipment, disaster prevention systems, and precision machinery.
The MAGNASTOR System received its initial NRC storage cask certification in February 2009, and NAC began delivering the systems to customers in July 2010. This latest NAC patent grant is one of the multiple U.S. and foreign patents issued to NAC for its exclusive cask technology. Presently, NAC has several other pending U.S. and foreign patent applications reflective of its strong commitment to innovation on behalf of its worldwide customers.
NAC’s MAGNASTOR system is the first NRC-certified ultra-high capacity dry used fuel storage system. MAGNASTOR is currently the only system of its kind deployed at U.S. commercial nuclear power plants capable of storing 37 PWR and 87 BWR spent fuel assemblies. The uniqueness of the patented MAGNASTOR basket design permits ultra-high capacity spent fuel assembly storage with highly similar dimensional and weight parameters as current lower capacity systems. The innovative MAGNASTOR ultra-efficient basket design allows customers to store approximately 16% to 54% more spent fuel in each canister over other currently deployed systems at U.S. nuclear plants. This translates into significant cost savings throughout the procurement cycle from hardware to operations to the pad, and throughout the spent fuel lifecycle through decommissioning. This means plants now deploying older, lower-capacity systems can transition to the higher-capacity MAGNASTOR system with minimal transition modifications to the plant or ancillary equipment. The MAGNASTOR system is NAC’s latest success in demonstrating our commitment to spent fuel dry storage excellence.
To date, MAGNASTOR systems have been loaded at three different U.S. reactor sites with approximately 70 additional systems scheduled for loading in 2014. The MAGNASTOR is a leading-edge system that has been selected for five contracts, and as a result three of NAC’s customers transitioned a U.S. power plant to MAGNASTOR from another technology for a commitment total of 160 systems worldwide.
NAC is a diversified company specializing in nuclear fuel transport, used fuel management technology and fuel cycle consulting. Since 1968, NAC has been a leader in providing solutions and services to the nuclear industry throughout the world, working with both government and commercial organizations. NAC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hitachi Zosen Corporation, a global leader in design and construction of environmental systems, industrial plants, industrial machinery, process equipment, infrastructure-related equipment, disaster prevention systems, and precision machinery.
