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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
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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Latest News
Commercial nuclear innovation "new space" age
In early 2006, a start-up company launched a small rocket from a tiny island in the Pacific. It exploded, showering the island with debris. A year later, a second launch attempt sent a rocket to space but failed to make orbit, burning up in the atmosphere. Another year brought a third attempt—and a third failure. The following month, in September 2008, the company used the last of its funds to launch a fourth rocket. It reached orbit, making history as the first privately funded liquid-fueled rocket to do so.
Xuelong Fu, Zhengbo Ji, Chunbo Li
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 191 | Number 1 | July 2018 | Pages 85-97
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2018.1449492
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A novel neutron shielding B4C/CF/PI/AA6061 composite laminate (NSCL) with different layups containing 10 to 50 wt% of boron carbide (B4C) particles was successfully fabricated using a hot molding process. The effects of different B4C loadings and various configurations on the neutron transmission of the NSCLs were evaluated correspondingly. The MCNP 5.0 program was used to probe the neutron transmission mechanism of the NSCLs. The results showed that B4C particles are an effective absorbent, and neutron transmission of the NSCLs decreased with the increment of layups, B4C loadings, and the laminate thickness. Fast neutrons emitted from a 241Am-Be neutron source were first moderated by low atomic elements (hydrogen) and then absorbed by 10B nuclide contained in the B4C particles. Numerical simulation corroborated the experimental testing results.