The Manufacturing Demonstration Facility (MDF) at the U.S. Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory has partnered with Kairos Power and Barnard Construction to successfully develop and validate large-scale 3D-printed polymer composite formwork for casting complex concrete structures. The testing was conducted at Kairos Power's site in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, where the Hermes low-power demonstration reactor is under construction.

Kairos Power plans to use 3D-printed formwork on a larger scale in future commercial power plants. According to an ORNL press release, these formworks shorten production time, allowing structural components with unique geometries to be "cast on-site" in "just days rather than weeks." The U.S. Department of Energy describes this as a major advancement in nuclear construction methods compared to traditional approaches relying on steel or wood formwork, which are costly, less precise, and time-consuming.

Ahmed Arabi Hassen, leader of ORNL's Composites Innovation Team, stated that the project fully leverages the advantages of additive manufacturing to break through old methods, lower barriers and risks, and accelerate construction progress. The formwork used for shielding demonstrations must withstand the pressure of heavy concrete, with maintaining structural integrity being a major challenge that requires mechanical resilience, innovative design, and printing strategies.

The MDF, supported by the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office, is a national consortium collaborating with ORNL to drive the transformation of U.S. manufacturing. Kairos Power's nuclear plant demonstration project is also supported by multiple industry partners to jointly establish a new supply chain for nuclear infrastructure based on additive manufacturing technology.

The collaboration with Kairos Power originated from the "moonshot" program called SM2ART, led by the MDF and the University of Maine and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy's Advanced Materials and Manufacturing Technologies Office. The project utilizes ORNL's capabilities in materials science, supercomputing, artificial intelligence, and large-format additive manufacturing, while the University of Maine focuses on large-scale 3D printing. Over the next 18 months, the SM2ART program will continue to support Kairos Power's construction, expanding to full production including radiation shielding and integrating smart manufacturing technologies, with the goal of using printable bio-composite raw materials to reduce material costs by 75%.

MDF Director Ryan Dehoff said that at ORNL, they are proving that the future of nuclear power construction does not have to resemble the past. By combining national laboratory capabilities with bold attempts, they are accelerating the development of new commercial nuclear energy. Barnard Construction implemented and adjusted the 3D-printed formwork, providing real-time feedback, integrating design changes, improving constructability, and achieving rapid deployment. Dehoff noted that the project's success stems from communication among partners.

Kairos Power co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Edward Blandford pointed out that the MDF develops rapidly and thinks creatively, delivering transformative results. While exploring prefabricated concrete system solutions, they received suggestions from commercial partners to engage with the MDF. The project aligns with their iterative development approach—by first building and testing tower column molds, improving methods, communicating with regulators, and reducing risks.