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Materials Science & Technology
The objectives of MSTD are: promote the advancement of materials science in Nuclear Science Technology; support the multidisciplines which constitute it; encourage research by providing a forum for the presentation, exchange, and documentation of relevant information; promote the interaction and communication among its members; and recognize and reward its members for significant contributions to the field of materials science in nuclear technology.
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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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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.
M. H. Du Toit, A. C. Cilliers
Nuclear Technology | Volume 187 | Number 3 | September 2014 | Pages 260-269
Technical Paper | Fuel Cycle and Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT13-134
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Many studies have proven that thorium-based fuel cycles are more expensive than current uranium fuel cycles, which is confirmed in this paper as well. This research, however, goes beyond the conventional nuclear plant refueling cycle, aiming to optimize the refueling cycle in line with specific advantages realized from the thorium-based refueling cycle. These benefits are the good thermal neutronic characteristics of fertile 232Th and fissile 233U, resulting in longer refueling cycles, higher capacity factors, and reduced volumes of spent fuel. This paper focuses on once-through, homogeneously mixed, thorium-uranium fuel cycles and explores the economic advantages to introducing thorium as a fertile component in pressurized water reactor fuels as compared to once-through conventional uranium-only cycles. The economic evaluation compares the operational savings incurred as a result of longer fuel cycles and reduced reactor downtime with increased fuel expenses, due to higher initial enrichment of uranium and downblending with thorium. Uranium fuel is compared with thorium-uranium fuel in terms of the fuel cycle costs, reactor downtime cost due to refueling, and income due to electricity sales. Thorium-uranium fuel costs more than uranium, but the income from electricity sales and reactor downtime refueling cost is advantageous. These factors have also been taken into account and prove that the advantage of increased income outweighs the higher fuel costs. Issues related to longer fuel cycles and higher burnups need to be addressed, but the development and adoption of once-through, homogeneous, thorium-uranium fuel can be justified by a clear economic benefit for utilities operating nuclear power plants.