ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Feb 2026
Jul 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
February 2026
Nuclear Technology
January 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Playing the “bad guy” to enhance next-generation safety
Sometimes, cops and robbers is more than just a kid’s game. At the Department of Energy’s national laboratories, researchers are channeling their inner saboteurs to discover vulnerabilities in next-generation nuclear reactors, making sure that they’re as safe as possible before they’re even constructed.
B. J. Kern, D. L. Sadowski, S. M. Ghiaasiaan, S. I. Abdel-Khalik
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 52 | Number 4 | November 2007 | Pages 958-962
Technical Paper | Inertial Fusion Technology: Drivers and Advanced Designs | doi.org/10.13182/FST07-A1618
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Compressible two-phase (liquid/gas) jets have been proposed as a means of protecting the chamber walls in high-yield, low repetition rate, Z-Pinch IFE reactor systems. The aspect ratio (height-to-thickness/diameter ratio) of such jets is expected to be large, so that the void fraction may vary significantly along the flow direction. An experimental investigation was conducted to determine the effect of various design and operational parameters on the void fraction distribution within a planar, downward-flowing, two-phase (liquid/gas) free jet. An air/water jet with an initial cross section of 1.0 cm × 10.0 cm was used, and different liquid inlet velocities and gas-to-liquid volumetric flow rate ratios were tested. Local void fractions at different locations along the width and length of the jets were measured by gamma-ray densitometry. The results indicated that buoyancy caused significant slip between the two phases, leading to the conclusion that homogeneous two-phase flow models cannot accurately model the behavior of such jets. The data obtained in this investigation can be used to validate predictions of mechanistic models for jet dynamics and shock attenuation.