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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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May 2025
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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
Technical Session|Panel|Sponsored by ETWDD
Wednesday, June 19, 2024|8:00–9:45AM PDT|Banyan C
Session Chair:
Todd Allen (Univ. Michigan)
Session Organizer:
Alternate Chair:
Kuhika Gupta (Univ. Oklahoma)
In the past, siting used nuclear fuel facilities has been challenging in the US. A common thread in previous efforts relates to the role of potential host communities (PHCs) to engage during the siting process. Traditionally, siting programs have not enabled community members to meaningfully shape what it is that they are being asked to host. The facility design is typically predetermined, shaped by program goals and regulatory requirements. Therefore, when consent is sought, community representatives have not been meaningfully engaged in conversations about the ways in which variations in design can - while meeting or exceeding regulatory requirements - better match community identity and aspirations. We posit that siting programs need to integrate more robust engagement with communities about the program and facility so that they are truly consent-based. This project is exploring a qualitatively different approach to engaging with PHCs about siting interim storage facilities (ISFs). This new approach engages with PHCs to participate in collaborative design ("co-design") of a prospective facility with project engineers and explore the implications of this new approach for potential decision-making and project outcomes. The panel will discuss ways in which the co-design approach has been developed and implemented in the project so far. Members of the core research team will utilize a roundtable discussion format to reflect on the prospective strengths of co-design for consent-based siting, and potential weaknesses. The discussion will also highlight strategies for deep collaborative research, spanning multiple disciplines. Finally, the panel will present some key results from surveys and workshops conducted and steps for future research.
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