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Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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
AI at work: Southern Nuclear’s adoption of Copilot agents drives fleet forward
Southern Nuclear is leading the charge in artificial intelligence integration, with employee-developed applications driving efficiencies in maintenance, operations, safety, and performance.
The tools span all roles within the company, with thousands of documented uses throughout the fleet, including improved maintenance efficiency, risk awareness in maintenance activities, and better-informed decision-making. The data-intensive process of preparing for and executing maintenance operations is streamlined by leveraging AI to put the right information at the fingertips for maintenance leaders, planners, schedulers, engineers, and technicians.
K. Takahashi et al.
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 63 | Number 1 | May 2013 | Pages 156-159
doi.org/10.13182/FST13-A16894
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Nuclear analysis of the ITER equatorial EC launcher consisting of an unique blanket shield structure and a port plug installing millimeter (mm) wave components, neutron shields, cooling water lines, etc. has been carried out. The analysis results are used to determine heat and/or particle loads on its components and to evaluate the possibility of “hands-on maintainability” (personnel accessibility) to the launcher back-end. A significant radiation leak at the gaps between the port walls and port plug frame of the launcher was revealed. Another significant neutron leakage is through the port wall consisting of only stainless steel but without light isotopes such as water. The shut down dose rates was estimated at the port interspace behind the launcher at the same level of the required value of 100 Sv/h. This analysis offers the potential to modify the launchers shielding layout to minimize the above leakage and further reduce the shut down dose rates in the regions of personnel access.