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The Mission of the Robotics and Remote Systems Division is to promote the development and application of immersive simulation, robotics, and remote systems for hazardous environments for the purpose of reducing hazardous exposure to individuals, reducing environmental hazards and reducing the cost of performing work.
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2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Glass strategy: Hanford’s enhanced waste glass program
The mission of the Department of Energy’s Office of River Protection (ORP) is to complete the safe cleanup of waste resulting from decades of nuclear weapons development. One of the most technologically challenging responsibilities is the safe disposition of approximately 56 million gallons of radioactive waste historically stored in 177 tanks at the Hanford Site in Washington state.
ORP has a clear incentive to reduce the overall mission duration and cost. One pathway is to develop and deploy innovative technical solutions that can advance baseline flow sheets toward higher efficiency operations while reducing identified risks without compromising safety. Vitrification is the baseline process that will convert both high-level and low-level radioactive waste at Hanford into a stable glass waste form for long-term storage and disposal.
Although vitrification is a mature technology, there are key areas where technology can further reduce operational risks, advance baseline processes to maximize waste throughput, and provide the underpinning to enhance operational flexibility; all steps in reducing mission duration and cost.
Masahiro Nishikawa, Takefumi Narikawa, Masatami Iwamoto, Kenji Watanabe
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 9 | Number 1 | January 1986 | Pages 101-115
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/FST86-A24706
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A study of a conceptual design for a “cassette” compact toroid reactor has been performed that emphasizes quick replacement handling. The core plasma, spheromak, is ohmically heated in a merging process between the core plasma and the gun-produced spheromak. The quick handling of replacement accomplished by using afunctional material, a shape memory alloy (SMA) joint, which is proposed for release from firstwall high neutron loading in a newly devised mechanical and structural method. The SMA joint can be used for connecting or disconnecting the coupling by simply controlling the SMA temperature without the need for a robot system. Effective heat removal from the first wall and thermal and electromagnetic stress in a fusion core with very high heat flux are discussed from an engineering standpoint.