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
Apr 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Task force charts growing interest in civilian maritime nuclear applications
Readers of Nuclear News will have heard of historical applications of civilian maritime nuclear power, like the merchant ship NS Savannah and the USS Sturgis floating power plant. With a few exceptions there has been little action in this area for over 50 years, and there are plenty of reasons and opinions as to why, but over the last few years the dramatic increase in interest from the maritime industry and its stakeholders has been undeniable.
Marius Zamfirache, Anisia Bornea, Ioan Stefanescu, Nicolae Bidica, Ovidiu Balteanu, Ciprian Bucur
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 54 | Number 2 | August 2008 | Pages 423-425
Technical Paper | Isotope Separation | doi.org/10.13182/FST08-A1845
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Among the most difficult problems of cryogenic distillation one stands apart: the extraction of the heavy fraction. By an optimal design of the cycle scheme, this problem could be avoided. A "worst case scenario" is usually occurring when the extracted fraction consists of one prevalent isotope such as hydrogen and small amounts of the other two hydrogen isotopes (deuterium and/or tritium). This situation is further complicated by two parameters of the distillation column: the extraction flow rate and the hold-up. The present work proposes the conceptual design of an extraction system associated to the cryogenic distillation column used in hydrogen separation processes. During this process, the heavy fraction (DT, T2) is separated, its concentration being the highest at the bottom of the distillation column. From this place the extraction of the gaseous phase can now begin. Being filled with adsorbent, the extraction system is used to temporarily store the heavy fraction. Also the extraction system provides samples for the gas chromatograph. The research work is focused on the existent pilot plant for tritium and deuterium separation from our institute to validate the experiments carried out until now.