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Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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Getting back to yes: A local perspective on decommissioning, restart, and responsibility
For 45 years, Duane Arnold Energy Center operated in Linn County, Ia., near the town of Palo and just northwest of Cedar Rapids. The facility, owned by NextEra Energy, was the only nuclear power plant in the state.
In August 2020, a historic derecho swept across eastern Iowa with winds approaching 140 miles per hour. Damage to the plant’s cooling towers accelerated a shutdown that had already been planned, and the facility entered decommissioning soon after, with its fuel removed in October of that year. Iowa’s only nuclear plant had gone off line.
Today the national energy landscape looks very different than it did just six short years ago. Electricity demand is rising rapidly as data centers, artificial intelligence infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, and electrification expand across the country. Reliable, carbon-free baseload power has become increasingly valuable. In that context, Linn County has approved the rezoning necessary to support the recommissioning and restart of Duane Arnold and is actively supporting NextEra’s efforts to secure the remaining state and federal approvals.
Technical Session|Radioisotope Power Systems
Monday, May 5, 2025|1:00–2:40PM CDT|Salon EF (Marriott)
Session Chair:
David Frate (NASA Glenn Research Center)
Track Organizer:
Harold Gerrish (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center)
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Risk Analysis of Radiological Release from Pu-238 Production Targets During Manual Handling
1:00–1:25PM CDT
Daniel K. Sluder (INL), Igor A. Sarygin (INL), Jacob L. Westacott (INL), Matthew D. Horkley (INL)
Paper
Chemical Processing Waste Remediation in the Plutonium-238 Supply Program
1:25–1:50PM CDT
Briana R. Schrage (ORNL), Jisue Moon (ORNL), Ethan Villarreal (Virginia Commonwealth Univ.), Sam Cummings (ORNL), Doug Crawford (ORNL), Kristian G. Myhre (ORNL), Adam J. Parkison (ORNL)
Materials Characterization Capabilities for the Plutonium-238 Supply Program
1:50–2:15PM CDT
Kathryn M. Peruski (ORNL), Connor J. Parker (ORNL), Samantha K. Cary (ORNL), Chris L. Jensen (ORNL), Adam J. Parkison (ORNL)
Capabilities for Studying Temperature Dependence in Optical Spectra of Actinides in Support of the Plutonium-238 Supply Program
2:15–2:40PM CDT
Sara E. Gilson (ORNL), Luke R. Sadergaski (ORNL), Hunter B. Andrews (ORNL), Adam J. Parkison (ORNL)
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