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Division Spotlight
Thermal Hydraulics
The division provides a forum for focused technical dialogue on thermal hydraulic technology in the nuclear industry. Specifically, this will include heat transfer and fluid mechanics involved in the utilization of nuclear energy. It is intended to attract the highest quality of theoretical and experimental work to ANS, including research on basic phenomena and application to nuclear system design.
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!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
How robust is HALEU from a nonproliferation perspective?
Shikha Prasad
High-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU) has emerged as a popular fuel choice for advanced small modular reactors due to its long power production periods before refueling. It is currently being pursued by TerraPower, X-energy, BWX Technologies, Kairos, Oklo, and other reactor companies. HALEU has a uranium-235 enrichment ranging from 5 percent to 20 percent, whereas traditional LWRs use low-enriched uranium fuel enriched up to 5 percent.
HALEU will provide power for longer durations, compared with traditional LWRs. But could it also provide an opportunity for more rapid proliferation, as is speculated in a 2023 National Academy of Sciences report on advanced nuclear reactors (nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26630/)?
If a nuclear proliferator conspires to divert fresh nuclear fuel for weapons production when it has not been used in a reactor, the effort required in separative work units (SWUs) to enrich U-235 from 5 percent to 90 percent and that required to enrich from 20 percent to 90 percent are both very small, compared with the effort required to enrich U-235 from its natural abundance to the initial 5 percent.
Technical Session|Reactor Design and Analysis
Wednesday, April 24, 2024|3:30–5:15PM PDT|Franciscan A
Session Chair:
Abdalla Abou-Jaoude
Session Organizer:
Alternate Chair:
Stefani Terlizzi (INL)
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Mobile Small Reactor Minor-Actinide Proliferation Resistant Fuel in LEU+ Once-Through Operation Cycle Performance Verification
3:30–3:50PM PDT
Gray S. Chang (JFoster & Assoc.), John D. Bess (JFoster & Assoc.), Patrick Moo (JFoster & Assoc.), Julie Foster (JFoster & Assoc.)
Paper
Progress Toward the Development of a High-Fidelity Neutronic Model of MARVEL Using Griffin
3:50–4:10PM PDT
S. Terlizzi (INL), I. Trivedi (INL)
Steady-State and Transient Analysis of a Heat-Pipe Cooled Micro-Reactor Using the DireWolf Code Suite
4:10–4:30PM PDT
Tatiana Siaraferas (Univ. California, Berkeley), Vefa Kucukboyaci (Westinghouse Electric Co.), Mykola Boychenko (Westinghouse Electric Co.), Massimiliano Fratoni (Univ. California, Berkeley)
Modeling of a Representative MHTGR 350MWth Supercell with RAPTOR
4:30–4:50PM PDT
Luke Wells (Georgia Tech), Andrew Johnson (Ultra Safe Nuclear), Dan Kotlyar (Georgia Tech)
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