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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy
The mission of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Division (NNPD) is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology while simultaneously preventing the diversion and misuse of nuclear material and technology through appropriate safeguards and security, and promotion of nuclear nonproliferation policies. To achieve this mission, the objectives of the NNPD are to: Promote policy that discourages the proliferation of nuclear technology and material to inappropriate entities. Provide information to ANS members, the technical community at large, opinion leaders, and decision makers to improve their understanding of nuclear nonproliferation issues. Become a recognized technical resource on nuclear nonproliferation, safeguards, and security issues. Serve as the integration and coordination body for nuclear nonproliferation activities for the ANS. Work cooperatively with other ANS divisions to achieve these objective nonproliferation policies.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Proving DRACO will deliver
The United States is now closer than it has been in over five decades to launching the first nuclear thermal rocket into space, thanks to DRACO—the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Orbit.
L. Begrambekov, A. Gordeev, Y. Ma, G. Vayakis, P. Shigin, Ya Sadovsky, A. Zakharov, M. Walsh
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 76 | Number 1 | January 2020 | Pages 1-12
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2019.1589206
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
High-quality tungsten coating deposition on sintered aluminum nitride ceramic substrates (both of thin flat chips and structural boxes) was realized using an adapted plasma-aided coating deposition rig. The tungsten coating produced using this technique and the accompanying apparatus setup are of high-purity, strong adhesion, and controlled three-dimensional uniformity (<20% thickness variations). The coating also exhibits well-structured and smooth (Ra < 1.0 µm) microscopic surface landscape with densely clustered tungsten granulations. The coated samples were tested under load conditions expected during ITER operation, including thermal cycling and superheated (up to 500°C) steam. Exposure to thermal cycles and hot steam made no apparent changes to the coating’s microscopic structure with no sign of cracks, blistering, or exfoliation seen under electron microscopy. These successes validated the microwave shield design for the ITER high-frequency magnetic sensor, which is based on this concept, and laid a solid foundation for the production of this component in the forthcoming procurement phase. Besides, a failure test was conducted for the tungsten coating in the temperature range of 500°C to 1500°C. Surface smoothing, pores, delamination, and mass loss in substrate were observed when temperature exceeded 1000°C, possibly due to the evaporation of aluminum atoms. These findings unveiled the changes of tungsten coating properties under extreme conditions that are of both academic and practical values.