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
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
C. H. Skinner, A. A. Haasz, V. Kh. Alimov, N. Bekris, R. A. Causey, R. E. H. Clark, J. P. Coad, J. W. Davis, R. P. Doerner, M. Mayer, A. Pisarev, J. Roth, T. Tanabe
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 54 | Number 4 | November 2008 | Pages 891-945
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/FST54-891
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Management of tritium inventory remains one of the grand challenges in the development of fusion energy, and the choice of plasma-facing materials is a key factor for in-vessel tritium retention. The Atomic and Molecular Data Unit of the International Atomic Energy Agency organized a Coordinated Research Project (CRP) on the overall topic of tritium inventory in fusion reactors during the period 2001-2006. This dealt with hydrogenic retention in ITER's plasma-facing materials - Be, C, and W - and in compounds (mixed materials) of these elements as well as tritium removal techniques. The results of the CRP are summarized in this paper together with recommendations for ITER. Basic parameters of diffusivity, solubility, and trapping in Be, C, and W are reviewed. For Be, the development of open porosity can account for transient hydrogenic pumping, but long-term retention will be dominated by codeposition. Codeposition is also the dominant retention mechanism for carbon and remains a serious concern for both Be- and C-containing layers. Hydrogenic trapping in unirradiated tungsten is low but will increase with ion and neutron damage. Mixed materials will be formed in a tokamak, and these can also retain significant amounts of hydrogen isotopes. Oxidative and photon-based techniques for detritiation of plasma-facing components are described.