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Latest News
DOE announces NEPA exclusion for advanced reactors
The Department of Energy has announced that it is establishing a categorical exclusion for the application of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) procedures to the authorization, siting, construction, operation, reauthorization, and decommissioning of advanced nuclear reactors.
According to the DOE, this significant change, which goes into effect today, “is based on the experience of DOE and other federal agencies, current technologies, regulatory requirements, and accepted industry practice.”
R. E. Olson
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 38 | Number 1 | July 2000 | Pages 6-10
Technical Paper | Thirteenth Target Fabrication Specialists’ Meeting | doi.org/10.13182/FST00-A36107
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A cryogenic, β-layered NIF ignition capsule with a beryllium ablator that employs a BeO dopant (2% O) for opacity control is described. The design has an optimized yield of 12 MJ and uses a “reduced drive” hohlraum temperature pulse shape that peaks at ∼250 eV. Shock timing sensitivity calculations have been performed for this capsule design. Individual uncertainties of: 1) ∼200 ps in the timing of the foot pulse; 2) ∼5% in the x-ray flux of the foot pulse and first step; 3) ∼10% in the ablator EOS; or 4) ∼ 5 μm in the DT ice layer thickness each have a significant impact on thermonuclear yield. Combined uncertainties have greater impact than isolated, individual issues. For example, a combination of uncertainties of: 200 ps in the foot, 2 eV in the foot, and 5 μm in the DT thickness results in a calculation that produces only ∼1% of the original design yield. A second, more speculative, capsule concept utilizing a liquid DT ablator is also discussed. This design produces a 2 MJ yield in a 250 eV peak drive calculation.