ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2026
Nuclear Technology
June 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2026
Latest News
MIT Maritime Consortium wins ABS approval
Maritime classification and certification organization the American Bureau of Shipping has granted its approval in principle (AIP) for the integration of a nuclear reactor into a cargo vessel propulsion system, as developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Maritime Consortium. This is the first AIP to be granted to a technology developed through the consortium, which includes founding members MIT, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering, and Capital Maritime Group.
C. Mun, L. Cantrel, C. Madic
Nuclear Technology | Volume 164 | Number 2 | November 2008 | Pages 245-254
Technical Paper | Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT08-A4023
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
In the case of a hypothetical severe accident in a nuclear pressurized water reactor, the formation of radiotoxic RuO4(g) may occur in the reactor containment building, resulting from the interactions of ruthenium oxide deposits with the oxidizing medium induced by air radiolysis. Consequently, this gaseous ruthenium tetroxide may be dispersed into the environment; therefore, the determination of the ruthenium deposits behavior is of primary importance for nuclear safety studies. An experimental study, performed by the French Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN), using a gamma irradiator cell (EPICUR facility at IRSN/Cadarache) has been carried out in order to obtain experimental data on these interactions. The results showed that radiolytic oxidation of ruthenium oxide deposits leads to the formation of gaseous ruthenium tetroxide to a significant extent. A comparison between the revolatilized Ru fractions obtained experimentally and those obtained by calculations based on the rate laws modeling ozone irradiation effect, established in previous studies, is presented. The disagreement observed is discussed. It appears that the oxidation resulting from air/steam radiolysis products is enhanced in comparison with pure ozone effect.