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Division Spotlight
Operations & Power
Members focus on the dissemination of knowledge and information in the area of power reactors with particular application to the production of electric power and process heat. The division sponsors meetings on the coverage of applied nuclear science and engineering as related to power plants, non-power reactors, and other nuclear facilities. It encourages and assists with the dissemination of knowledge pertinent to the safe and efficient operation of nuclear facilities through professional staff development, information exchange, and supporting the generation of viable solutions to current issues.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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 Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2025
Latest News
Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
J. Q. Ling W. D. Booth, R. Carrera, D. Tesar
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 19 | Number 3 | May 1991 | Pages 1823-1827
Impurity Control and Plasma-Facing Component | Proceedings of the Ninth Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy (Oak Brook, Illinois, October 7-11, 1990) | doi.org/10.13182/FST91-A29609
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A remote system is considered for the in-vessel maintenance of the IGNITEX device. The specified maintenance tasks include: inspection, coating repair of the first wall, and cleaning of the vacuum vessel. In this paper the conceptual design of the in-vessel remote maintenance system (IVRMS) is presented. The IVRMS consists of a manipulator chain, a series of dedicated tools as end-effectors, a control system, and a delivery system. A manipulator of snake type with 11 degrees of freedom (DOF), consisting of a toroidal chain (6 links) and a poloidal chain (3 links), is used to provide 90° toroidal reach and 360° poloidal reach in the IGNITEX vacuum vessel. The mechanical structure design of the manipulator uses light weight and compact actuator modules and carbon fiber materials for the links. The interface of the IVRMS with the IGNITEX system is described. A system control layout including the hardware and software architecture is discussed. The concept and implementation of this design provides general features for in-vessel remote maintenance of a small fusion tokamak.
