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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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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Latest News
INL makes a case for eliminating ALARA and setting higher dose limits
A report just released by Idaho National Laboratory reviews decades of radiation protection standards and research on the health effects of low-dose radiation and recommends that the current U.S. annual occupational dose limit of 5,000 mrem be maintained without applying ALARA—the “as low as reasonably achievable” regulatory concept first introduced in 1971—below that threshold.
Noting that epidemiological studies “have consistently failed to demonstrate statistically significant health effects at doses below 10,000 mrem delivered at low dose rates,” the report also recommends “future consideration of increasing this limit to 10,000 mrem/year with appropriate cumulative-dose constraints.”
Sunday, June 12, 2022|2:00–5:00PM PDT
Avila B
Summary Paragraph: UNF-ST&DARDS is being developed to provide the ability to perform automated analysis of spent fuel storage and transportation systems. One of the key capabilities of UNF-ST&DARDS is to perform criticality analysis of dry casks. UNF-ST&DARDS allows for modelling the variation of cask payload burnup enrichments and cooling times through a flexible GUI. Users can also modify, neutron absorber loadings, water soluble boron concentrations, and fuel and canister dimensions for fresh and spent fuel. This demonstration will show users how to perform criticality analysis for casks using templates and graphical user interface. Attendees have no requirements to watch the demonstrate, however, an RSICC license for UNF-ST&DARDS and SCALE is necessary if they would like to follow along.
