Transportable Microreactor Patent Snapshot 2026
Transportable microreactor patenting is a nascent but expanding field, with activity concentrated almost entirely in the United States and dominated by a small group of energy and national-laboratory-affiliated entities. Filing volume is still expanding on a multi-year basis, though annual activity has eased from its 2023 peak, and the most recent years remain understated by publication lag.
A tightly concentrated field led by three co-equal filers
Three applicants — Global Energy Research Associates LLC, Walsh Eng Services PC, and Battelle Energy Alliance LLC — each hold two patent records, placing them at the top of the ranking in a field where even the leader commands a modest absolute position.
The top five filers account for 73% of the combined total among the ranked applicants visible in this query, signaling high concentration for such an early-stage technology. A second tier of single-record filers, including NuScale Power LLC, Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties Inc., and Washington University in St. Louis, rounds out the assignee snapshot.
| # | Applicant | Patent records | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Global Energy Research Associates LLC | 2 | |
| 2 | Walsh Engineering Services PC | 2 | |
| 3 | Battelle Energy Alliance LLC | 2 | |
| 4 | The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois | 1 | |
| 5 | Terminus Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento em Energia Ltda | 1 | |
| 6 | NuScale Power LLC | 1 | |
| 7 | Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties Inc. | 1 | |
| 8 | Washington University in St. Louis | 1 |
The leaders’ positions imply that no single organization has yet established a commanding IP fortress; this creates both vulnerability and opportunity for well-resourced new entrants who can move quickly into underclaimed branches.
Patent records from the most recent 18–24 months are subject to publication lag and are likely undercounted; the apparent quieting of activity in 2024–2026 should not be interpreted as a real decline in inventive effort.
Filing activity surged in 2023; nuclear reactor classes dominate the technology mix
Two charts together reveal when and where inventive effort has concentrated: annual filing volume shows the timing of interest, while IPC class composition reveals the visible technical routes and the adjacent branches that remain sparse.
Annual filing trend
Activity was essentially absent before 2020, then rose in sporadic bursts, reaching a local peak of three records in 2023. The field is expanding on a multi-year basis — recent-window growth is 100% versus the prior period — but annual volume has eased from the 2023 peak. Records from 2024 onward are further understated by publication lag and should not be read as a real slowdown.
↗ Hover for values · click a bar to ask EurekaTechnology composition
G21C (Nuclear reactors) is the visible branch, with eight records, followed by G21D (Nuclear power plants) at three and F02C (Gas-turbine plants) at two. Adjacent classes — B01J (Chemical/physical processes and catalysis), C07B, C07K, G09B, G21G, and G21H — each hold a single record, signaling sparse coverage in those branches relative to the nuclear-reactor core.
↗ 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.
Testing and education microreactor
A configurable microreactor for testing and education is described. The microreactor includes a reactor core comprising a plurality of fuel rods, a plurality of guide tubes, and a plurality of rotating control drums configured to control operation of the microreactor. Further, the microreactor includes a testing cavity disposed in an area within the reactor… (excerpt from the patent abstract)
| # | Patent | Citations |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Use of a Multi-Spectrum Microreactor to Produce La… | 2 |
| 2 | Internal-External Hybrid Microreactor in a Compact… | 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.
Global Energy Research Associates LLC
Global Energy Research Associates LLC holds two patent records, placing it at the top of the ranking. Its filings are classified primarily under G21C (Nuclear reactors) sub-classes, consistent with a focus on reactor design and control. Momentum data does not include a specific trend figure for this applicant in the evidence provided.
patent records: 2Battelle Energy Alliance LLC
Battelle Energy Alliance LLC also holds two patent records and is flagged as a new entrant in the recent filing window, filing in collaboration with Walsh Eng Services PC. Its technology emphasis centers on G21C 17 (reactor instrumentation/monitoring), G21C 7 (control rods and reactivity control), and G21C 5 (reactor fuel elements) — a monitoring-and-fuel-focused profile consistent with national-laboratory expertise.
patent records: 2Frequently asked questions
The corpus contains 7 patent families in scope. This is a very small corpus, which means the field is genuinely nascent and individual filings carry outsized structural weight.
Global Energy Research Associates LLC, Walsh Eng Services PC, and Battelle Energy Alliance LLC each hold two patent records, placing them jointly at the top of the ranking. A second tier of single-record filers includes NuScale Power LLC, Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties Inc., Washington University in St. Louis, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, and Terminus Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento em Energia Ltda.
The field is classified as Growth: recent three-year filing volume sits well above the prior three-year window, representing 100% growth. Annual volume has eased from its 2023 peak, and the most recent years are further understated by publication lag, so the apparent quieting since 2023 does not indicate a real decline.
All seven patent records are filed in the United States, with one record also filed at the EPO. No filings are visible in other major jurisdictions, leaving international markets largely open from a patent-coverage perspective.
G21C (Nuclear reactors) is visible in with eight records, followed by G21D (Nuclear power plants) with three and F02C (Gas-turbine plants) with two. Several adjacent classes — including B01J, C07B, C07K, G09B, G21G, and G21H — each hold only a single record, indicating sparse coverage in those branches.
One confirmed co-applicant relationship exists: Walsh Eng Services PC and Battelle Energy Alliance LLC have co-filed on two records, making them the most active collaboration pair in the corpus. No other co-filing relationships are documented in the evidence.
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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.
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