Industry needs more than clean electrons. It needs clean heat.
Industrial process heat remains one of the hardest parts of the global economy to decarbonize. Heavy industries rely on large volumes of reliable, high-temperature steam to manufacture chemicals, fuels, fertilizers, plastics, and many other products that support modern life. Providing that steam without generating carbon emissions is a major challenge.
In the United States, industry remains one of the most energy-intensive and difficult-to-decarbonize sectors. DOE’s Industrial Decarbonization Roadmap found that, in 2020, the U.S. industrial sector accounted for 33% of the nation’s primary energy use and 30% of energy-related CO₂ emissions. More recent EIA data show industrial energy-related CO₂ emissions declined in 2024, but the sector still emitted 947 million metric tons of CO₂. Globally, industrial heat demand is also rising. The International Energy Agency projects global industrial heat demand will expand 16% from 2023 to 2028. That makes clean, efficient industrial heat a critical priority.
Nuclear energy offers a powerful solution that goes beyond powering the electrical grid. It can also help provide the reliable, carbon-free heat needed for industrial processes that produce the materials we use every day.
At NuScale, we have developed an integrated energy system capable of supporting industrial-scale production of steam, electricity, and hydrogen. Our technology centers on the NuScale Power Module™, a 250-megawatt thermal integral pressurized water reactor that uses natural circulation and proven light water reactor technology.
At nominal full power, a single NuScale Power Module can generate 8,883 metric tons of steam per day. That translates to 816,000 pounds per hour at 283°C and 32.8 bar. Because the NuScale design is modular, industrial users can scale output to match site-specific needs.
In one modeled case, a single NuScale Power Module fully dedicated to steam production could produce 400,000 pounds per hour of high-temperature process steam at 1000 psia and 500°C. A 12-module plant operating under the same modeled conditions could produce up to 4.8 million pounds per hour. This innovative approach has been validated in two independent national laboratory studies:
Many industrial processes require temperatures higher than what a standard light water reactor typically provides. We solve this challenge through a highly efficient heat augmentation process using commercial-grade equipment.
First, we route the steam generated by the NuScale Power Module steam generator through an intermediate heat exchanger. This important step provides a double barrier that keeps the nuclear reactor coolant completely separate from the process steam used by the industrial plant. Then, we use commercially available steam compressors and heaters to raise the process steam to higher temperatures and pressures.
Our core nuclear heat provides the heavy lifting. For example, to produce process steam at 500 degrees Celsius and 69 bar, the NuScale core provides over 86 percent of the energy needed for fluid phase change and initial superheating. The steam compression and heating system only needs to account for the remaining 14 percent of the energy change. This allows us to reach high-temperature commercial conditions efficiently, while eliminating the need for high temperature nuclear reactor components and delivering high-temperature steam closer to the end user.
With this heat augmentation approach, NuScale steam can support a wide variety of industrial applications. Our system can reach the temperature requirements for producing ethylene oxide, acetic acid, nylon, polyester, and urea. It also supports distillation, thermal cracking, and catalytic reforming. About 70% of U.S. industrial heat demand is for applications below 500°C, based on DOE/NREL industrial process heat characterization data.
These industries already use massive amounts of steam. The goal is to transition that steam supply to a carbon-free, highly reliable source.
Industrial customers also require flexibility. NuScale Power Modules can quickly adjust output to meet changing facility needs. Using turbine bypass, a module can reduce power from 100% to 20% in eight minutes. Process steam controls can also adjust rapidly, with modeled ramp-up and ramp-down from nominal to maximum or minimum in under one minute.
The modular design gives customers additional flexibility. One module can produce high-temperature steam for an industrial process while another provides electricity to the grid. Modules can also be assigned to different functions as customer needs evolve. Because refueling can be staggered across modules, the broader plant can continue supplying energy while an individual module is offline for refueling.
NuScale has partnered with Ebara Elliott Energy to build and test a commercial-scale, high-temperature steam compressor designed to integrate NuScale Power Modules with petrochemical plants that need process heat. The demonstrator will compress steam at NuScale operating conditions to produce 60,000 lb/hr of steam at 500°C.
The approach is designed to isolate steam produced by the NuScale Power Module from the industrial facility through an intermediate heat exchanger, then raise the steam to higher temperature through adiabatic compression. This allows NuScale’s light water reactor technology to support high-temperature process steam applications that have historically been difficult to serve with nuclear energy.
The collaboration also brings together NuScale’s SMR technology with Ebara Elliott Energy’s experience in steam turbines, compressors, and rotating equipment for petrochemical and industrial facilities. The project is in progress, with compressor completion targeted for 2027. NuScale and Ebara Elliott Energy are currently seeking candidates for the next phase of the program: field testing.
Industrial decarbonization, energy security, and rising global demand are converging into one of the defining energy challenges of our time. Heavy industry requires a constant and secure supply of clean energy to thrive.
The NuScale integrated energy system expands what nuclear energy can achieve. It provides a pathway to deliver clean electricity and vital process heat directly to the industrial sector. By embracing small modular reactor technology, we can help strengthen energy supply chains and achieve meaningful decarbonization across the global economy.