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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy
The mission of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Division (NNPD) is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology while simultaneously preventing the diversion and misuse of nuclear material and technology through appropriate safeguards and security, and promotion of nuclear nonproliferation policies. To achieve this mission, the objectives of the NNPD are to: Promote policy that discourages the proliferation of nuclear technology and material to inappropriate entities. Provide information to ANS members, the technical community at large, opinion leaders, and decision makers to improve their understanding of nuclear nonproliferation issues. Become a recognized technical resource on nuclear nonproliferation, safeguards, and security issues. Serve as the integration and coordination body for nuclear nonproliferation activities for the ANS. Work cooperatively with other ANS divisions to achieve these objective nonproliferation policies.
Meeting Spotlight
2025 ANS Annual Conference
June 15–18, 2025
Chicago, IL|Chicago Marriott Downtown
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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Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2025
Nuclear Technology
June 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
High-temperature plumbing and advanced reactors
The use of nuclear fission power and its role in impacting climate change is hotly debated. Fission advocates argue that short-term solutions would involve the rapid deployment of Gen III+ nuclear reactors, like Vogtle-3 and -4, while long-term climate change impact would rely on the creation and implementation of Gen IV reactors, “inherently safe” reactors that use passive laws of physics and chemistry rather than active controls such as valves and pumps to operate safely. While Gen IV reactors vary in many ways, one thing unites nearly all of them: the use of exotic, high-temperature coolants. These fluids, like molten salts and liquid metals, can enable reactor engineers to design much safer nuclear reactors—ultimately because the boiling point of each fluid is extremely high. Fluids that remain liquid over large temperature ranges can provide good heat transfer through many demanding conditions, all with minimal pressurization. Although the most apparent use for these fluids is advanced fission power, they have the potential to be applied to other power generation sources such as fusion, thermal storage, solar, or high-temperature process heat.1–3
Steven Arndt is an internationally recognized expert in the field of nuclear engineering with experience in nuclear power plant simulation, severe accident analysis and nuclear power plant instrumentation and control. In his 40 years in the nuclear industry Dr. Arndt has worked as a researcher, educator, consultant, and regulator including extensive experience in Russia and Ukraine leading the United States support programs to the states of the former Soviet Union following the Chernobyl accident and as part of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s (NRC’s) response to the Fukushima accident.
Dr. Arndt currently serves as a Distinguished Scientist at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory where his research involves advance reactor design readiness. Previously he spent 31 years as a senior scientist with the NRC, leading key research efforts and providing authoritative advice to NRC management and staff in the areas of digital instrumentation and control, software reliability, emergency response, cyber security and numerous other technical areas. Prior to his work at the NRC, Dr. Arndt was a Professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. Additionally, Dr. Arndt serves as an Adjunct Professor of Nuclear Engineering at the University of Tennessee. In 2012 Dr. Arndt was named the Federal Engineer of the Year by the National Society of Professional Engineers, the first nuclear engineer to ever be awarded this honor. In 2020 Dr. Arndt was awarded the “NSPE Award” the highest honor given specifically to a professional engineer.
Dr. Arndt holds a BS in engineering physics and a MS and PhD in nuclear engineering all from The Ohio State University, where he was honored by the faculty of the College of Engineering in 2004 as a Distinguished Alumnus. Dr. Arndt also holds a MS in reliability engineering from the University of Maryland. Dr. Arndt is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME), the American Nuclear Society (ANS), the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Society for Quality (ASQ) and the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE).
Dr. Arndt is a registered professional engineer in Tennessee and Maryland and was appointed by the Governor of Maryland in 2006 to the Maryland Board for Professional Engineers, where he served for fifteen years (Three years as Chairman). He has served in leadership roles in a number of professional societies especially ANS. He has served as the ANS Treasurer and as a member of its Board of Directors. In June of 2022, he became the 68th President of ANS.
Read Nuclear News from July 2022 for more on Steven Arndt.
