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Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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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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Latest News
College students help develop waste-measuring device at Hanford
A partnership between Washington River Protection Solutions (WRPS) and Washington State University has resulted in the development of a device to measure radioactive and chemical tank waste at the Hanford Site. WRPS is the contractor at Hanford for the Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management.
Keisho Shirakata, Toshio Sanda, Fumiaki Nakashima
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 131 | Number 2 | February 1999 | Pages 187-198
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE99-A2027
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Space-dependent nuclear characteristics, measured by critical experiments on large-size fast breeder reactor (FBR) cores, were reviewed and interpreted. It was observed that radial neutron flux distributions were significantly distorted by perturbations, control rod reactivity interaction effects were large, and the point kinetics was not valid. These physical behaviors are enhanced as the spatial neutronic decoupling increases. To obtain stable and benign nuclear characteristics and to make the kinetics as close to the point kinetics as possible, it is necessary to reduce the spatial decoupling. This is an important issue that must be taken into account in the nuclear design for large FBR cores.A new nuclear core design method for large FBR cores is proposed in which neutronic stability is considered at the same time as performance and safety for the optimization of core design. The neutronic stability is improved by reducing the spatial decoupling and by taking into account the spatial higher harmonics.