Nuclear energy seems to be the cleanest energy to power the AI and digital computing future. To keep nuclear facilities running, there must be a steady supply of fuel to power the reactors.

An Austin-based company called SuperCritical Materials Corp. is working on a solution and now have the appropriate license from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). The company aims to commercialize a new manufacturing process that pulls uranium and other critical materials straight out of seawater.

Pulling Uranium from the Ocean

uranium
A company wants to commercialize a uranium extraction method; Photo: Ployker/Shutterstock

The ocean holds about 4.5 billion metric tons of uranium, which is over 1,000 times more than all known reserves on land. To get to it, researchers at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) developed special materials that can attract and hold onto the uranium.

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SuperCritical now has the rights to manufacture and deploy this technology on an industrial scale, starting in the United States. One of the company’s co-founders is Dr. Gary Gill, a former PNNL scientist and leading expert who has spent two decades publishing research on extracting uranium from seawater.

Keeping the Power On

U.S. policymakers are shifting their focus from building advanced reactors to securing the supply chains that fuel them. While other companies build the actual reactors, SuperCritical wants to build the infrastructure that supplies the raw materials.

“Our objective is straightforward,” said Alexander Canon Bryan, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of SuperCritical Materials. “If the Intelligence Economy requires abundant, reliable nuclear energy, then it will also require abundant, reliable nuclear fuel. SuperCritical is building the infrastructure needed to help supply that fuel. We are proud to advance technology developed by the U.S. Department of Energy and contribute to strengthening America’s energy security, industrial competitiveness, and technological leadership.”

By pulling these materials from the sea, the company hopes to build a more secure supply chain.