Dr. Reyes is the co-founder of NuScale Power and co-designer of the NuScale passively-cooled small nuclear reactor. He is an internationally recognized expert on passive safety system design, testing and operations for nuclear power plants. He has served as a United Nations International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) technical expert on passive safety systems. He is a co-inventor on over 110 patents granted or pending in 20 countries. He has received several national awards including the 2013 Nuclear Energy Advocate Award, the 2014 American Nuclear Society Thermal Hydraulic Division Technical Achievement Award and the 2017 Nuclear Infrastructure Council Trailblazer Award. He is a fellow of the American Nuclear Society and a member of the National Academy of Engineering.
At Oregon State University, Dr. Reyes served as head of the Department of Nuclear Engineering and Radiation Health Physics. He directed the Advanced Thermal Hydraulic Research Laboratory (ATHRL) and was the co-director of the Battelle Energy Alliance Academic Center of Excellence (ACE) for Thermal Fluids and Reactor Safety in support of the Idaho National Laboratory mission. Additionally, Dr. Reyes was the OSU principal investigator for the AP600 and AP1000 design certification test programs sponsored by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the U.S. Department of Energy and Westinghouse. He currently serves as a Professor Emeritus in the School of Nuclear Science and Engineering.
Prior to joining the faculty at OSU in 1987, Dr. Reyes worked nearly 10 years as a thermal hydraulics research engineer in the Reactor Safety Division of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He holds Ph.D. and Master of Science degrees in nuclear engineering from the University of Maryland, and a Bachelor of Science degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Florida. He is the author of numerous journal articles and technical reports, including a book chapter on SMRs for an ASME B&PV Codes and Standards handbook. He has given lectures and keynote addresses to professional nuclear organizations in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
- Licensed Professional Engineer, State of Oregon.
- Fellow of ANS and Member of ASME.
- Inaugural Holder of the Henry and Janice Schuette Endowed Chair Professor, Oregon State University.
Keynote Speaking Engagements in 2019:
- Small Modular Reactor Innovation, Innovation Session 4: Innovation in Energy and Transportation Sector, G20 Climate Sustainability Working Group, Nagano, Japan, April 2019.
- Flexible Nuclear for Low-cost Decarbonization, Academy of the American Public Power Association, National Conference, Austin, TX June 2019.
- Fireside Chat- Next Generation Nuclear, 2019 ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit, Aurora, CO, July 2019.
- General Co-Chairman, 18th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics (NURETH-18), August, 2019 Portland, OR.
- NuScale Integrated Energy Systems, Plenary Speaker, IAEA International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power, Vienna, Austria, October 2019.
- Adapting Nuclear Power for Climate Change, IAEA International Conference on Climate Change and the Role of Nuclear Power, Vienna, Austria, October 2019.
- An Innovative Energy Solution for a Carbon Constrained World, Mpact Lecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, November 2019
- NuScale Power Plant Resilience for Energy Security, InfraGard National Disaster Resilience Council, Summit on Building Critical Infrastructure Resilience, Washington DC, November 2019.
- NuScale Technology Overview, Bettis Naval Nuclear Laboratory, Pittsburgh, PA, November 2019.