HTGR TRISO Fuel Patent Snapshot 2026
The HTGR TRISO fuel patent corpus is extremely small and heavily concentrated, with the U.S. Department of Energy holding the dominant position among a handful of recorded filers. Activity peaked in 2021 and has since declined, signalling a field that is contracting rather than expanding at present.
U.S. Department of Energy dominates a very small, concentrated field
The U. S. Department of Energy ranks first among applicants, accounting for the majority of patent records in scope. BAE Systems PLC and General Dynamics Corp each hold one patent record, rounding out a roster of only three distinct organizational filers.
Concentration is absolute: the top five filers collectively account for 100% of the ranked applicants visible in this query’ combined total, reflecting a corpus so small that no meaningful tier gap exists between leader and challengers — there is simply the leader and a thin tail.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | U.S. Department of Energy | 5 | |
| 2 | BAE Systems PLC | 1 | |
| 3 | General Dynamics Corporation | 1 |
The Department of Energy’s dominance indicates that HTGR TRISO fuel IP in this corpus is primarily driven by government-funded research rather than commercial competition, which has significant implications for freedom-to-operate and licensing strategy.
The most recent filing periods should be treated with caution, as publication lag typically causes a 18–24 month undercount in recent activity. Longer-window growth, applicant concentration, and technology-route coverage are therefore more reliable signals than the latest-year bar alone.
A single 2021 filing event and a technology mix locked to G21C
The filing trend and technology composition together reveal a field with minimal and episodic activity, clustered entirely within nuclear reactor classifications. Both dimensions point to a narrow, specialist domain rather than a broad, multi-branch technology area.
Annual filing trend
A single patent record was filed in 2021; all other years from 2017 to 2026 show zero activity. Given publication lag, the most recent periods may be undercounted, but the overall picture is one of very sparse and irregular filing.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
All classified records fall under G21C (Nuclear reactors), with sub-classes G21C 3 and G21C 21 covering fuel element design and G21C 1 and G21C 15 covering reactor types and cooling — reflecting the tightly bounded technical scope of TRISO fuel development.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaHighly cited patent families surfaced by the query
Citation-heavy patent families returned by the query. Use this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents.
Preparation of high temperature gas-cooled reactor…
1485707 Fuel elements UNITED STATES ENERGY RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT ADMINISTRATION 13 Oot 1975 [26 Nov 1974] 41770/75 Heading G6C A high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) fuel element is made by loading green compacts, each consisting of a dispersion of nuclear fuel oxide or carbide microspheres within a pitch matrix, into close-fitting channels of a… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
Open this patent in Eureka →| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Preparation of high temperature gas-cooled reactor… | 4 |
| 2 | kakunenryobofukugobutsunoseizohoho | 1 |
Ranked by total forward citations. Citation counts favour older and broadly cited patent families, and broad or adjacent patents may appear when they match the search scope. Treat this section as citation context, not as a curated list of the most topic-specific patents. Some patent titles may be shown in their original, non-English language where an accurate translation could not be guaranteed.
Assignee snapshot from the current evidence set
The applicants below are visible in this query result. Because the evidence set is relatively small, read this section as a directional snapshot rather than a full competitive ranking.
U.S. Department of Energy
The U.S. Department of Energy holds five patent records, all classified under G21C 3 (nuclear reactor fuel elements), reflecting a focused government R&D mandate on TRISO fuel fabrication and performance. No recent momentum data is available, consistent with the field’s declining filing trend. Its position as the sole visible filer underscores the government-led character of HTGR TRISO fuel IP.
patent records: 5BAE Systems PLC
BAE Systems PLC holds one patent record with a notably broader IPC spread — spanning G21C 1 (reactor types), G21C 15 (cooling), and G21C 3 (fuel elements) — suggesting an interest in system-level nuclear reactor integration rather than TRISO fuel fabrication alone. General Dynamics Corp similarly holds one patent record, split between G21C 3 and G21C 21 (reactor manufacturing). No filing momentum data is available for either.
patent records: 1Frequently asked questions
The current corpus contains 1 patent family in scope. The small size reflects the highly specialised nature of HTGR TRISO fuel technology and the predominance of government-led research that may not be fully captured in commercial patent databases.
The U.S. Department of Energy is the leading filer with five patent records, well ahead of BAE Systems PLC and General Dynamics Corp, each holding one patent record.
Patent records have been filed in the United Kingdom (three records), France (two records), Japan (one record), and the United States (one record), with the United Kingdom as the lead filing office.
The field is assessed as being in Decline. Annual filings eased back from a single recorded peak in 2021, and all other years in the 2017–2026 window show zero filings. Teams should account for publication lag in the most recent periods.
All patent records fall under G21C (Nuclear reactors). The visible sub-class is G21C 3 (fuel element design), with minor representation in G21C 1 (reactor types), G21C 15 (cooling), and G21C 21 (manufacturing methods).
No co-applicant filing relationships were detected in the current corpus. This may reflect how IP ownership is structured in government-funded programmes, where collaborative R&D does not always result in jointly filed patents.
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Disclaimer. This page is generated from Patsnap Eureka data drawn from a limited snapshot of global patent and scientific-literature records, and is provided for general information and reference only.
Patent data carries inherent limitations: recent filings (typically the most recent 18–24 months) are under-counted due to standard publication lag; counts may be reported at either a patent-family or a patent-record basis and are not always directly comparable; classification, applicant-name, and citation data may contain errors, duplicates, or omissions; and the underlying search query defines and constrains the scope shown. As a result, the analysis may be incomplete or inaccurate and may not reflect the full technology landscape.
Nothing on this page constitutes an exhaustive prior-art, novelty, freedom-to-operate, or validity search, nor does it constitute legal, financial, investment, or professional advice, and it should not be relied upon as such. Any patent, commercial, or strategic decision should be verified independently and reviewed with qualified patent, legal, and domain professionals. Patsnap makes no warranties, express or implied, as to the accuracy, completeness, or fitness for any particular purpose of the information presented.