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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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Latest News
No impact from Savannah River radioactive wasps
The news is abuzz with recent news stories about four radioactive wasp nests found at the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site in South Carolina. The site has been undergoing cleanup operations since the 1990s related to the production of plutonium and tritium for defense purposes during the Cold War. Cleanup activities are expected to continue into the 2060s.
Jaakko Leppänen
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 174 | Number 3 | July 2013 | Pages 318-325
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE12-54
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This paper presents a methodology for applying continuously varying density distributions in Monte Carlo particle transport simulation. The capability is implemented in the Serpent 2 code, as part of an effort for developing a universal multiphysics interface for the coupling of Monte Carlo neutronics to thermal hydraulics and fuel performance codes. The method is based on rejection sampling of particle path lengths, but despite its close resemblance to the Woodcock delta-tracking method, the routine can be used with conventional surface tracking as well. The modified tracking routine is put to the test in a simple boiling water reactor pin-cell calculation with continuously changing void distribution in the coolant channel.