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Division Spotlight
Education, Training & Workforce Development
The Education, Training & Workforce Development Division provides communication among the academic, industrial, and governmental communities through the exchange of views and information on matters related to education, training and workforce development in nuclear and radiological science, engineering, and technology. Industry leaders, education and training professionals, and interested students work together through Society-sponsored meetings and publications, to enrich their professional development, to educate the general public, and to advance nuclear and radiological science and engineering.
Meeting Spotlight
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
May 2024
Jan 2024
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
G7 pledges support for nuclear at Italy meeting
The Group of Seven (G7) recommitted its support for nuclear energy in the countries that opt to use it at a Ministerial Meeting on Climate in Italy last month.
In a statement following the April meeting, the group committed to support multilateral efforts to strengthen the resilience of nuclear supply chains, referencing the goal set by 25 countries during last year’s COP28 climate conference in Dubai to triple global nuclear generating capacity by 2050.
M. Caramello, M. Frignani, R. Beaumont, M. Tarantino, J. Liao, R. F. Wright, M. Durse, A. Wimshurst, P. Ferroni
Nuclear Technology | Volume 210 | Number 4 | April 2024 | Pages 740-757
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2023.2241731
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Innovative reactor concepts are being studied by several research institutions and private entities for their role against climate change and energy poverty. The Generation IV International Forum, committed for more than 20 years in support of advanced reactors, has drawn up a series of objectives for the new class of nuclear plants, among which is an improvement in safety and economy through passive safety systems for the removal of decay heat. One of the most studied technologies is the lead fast reactor (LFR), whose coolant has a high boiling point, excellent shielding capabilities, and good heat transfer in forced and natural circulation, as well as neutron properties suitable for a hard spectrum. These allow for designing systems with high simplification and wide safety margins. On the other hand, opacity, corrosion, and innovative design choices require demonstration of the technology in experimental campaigns before using it in the industrial field.
In recent years, Westinghouse Electric Company has begun the conceptual study of an intermediate size LFR [~460 MW(electric)] which, by exploiting the opportunities of the technology, aims at marketability over the next decade. One of the features is a passive heat removal system that allows, through different heat exchange mechanisms including conduction, convection, and radiation, for the transfer of decay heat from the reactor block to a pool of water inside the containment. The system is designed for indefinite heat removal thanks to channels that allow outside air to replace water following complete boiling. For the geometry of the system, the size, the materials, and the heat transfer mechanisms, an experimental activity is required to validate the prediction of the calculation codes and potentially support design optimization.
The UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy has recently subsidized the design, procurement, installation, and operation of the Passive Heat Removal Facility, an experimental facility to study the innovative safety system. This paper presents the activities of scaling, design, pretesting, and installation of that facility.