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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
INL makes a case for eliminating ALARA and setting higher dose limits
A report just released by Idaho National Laboratory reviews decades of radiation protection standards and research on the health effects of low-dose radiation and recommends that the current U.S. annual occupational dose limit of 5,000 mrem be maintained without applying ALARA—the “as low as reasonably achievable” regulatory concept first introduced in 1971—below that threshold.
Noting that epidemiological studies “have consistently failed to demonstrate statistically significant health effects at doses below 10,000 mrem delivered at low dose rates,” the report also recommends “future consideration of increasing this limit to 10,000 mrem/year with appropriate cumulative-dose constraints.”
M. E. Schoff, E. R. Castillo, N. M. Ravelo, M. P. Farrell
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 70 | Number 2 | August-September 2016 | Pages 372-376
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/FST15-243
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Planar components made from glow discharge polymer (GDP) are commonly used in laser inertial fusion experiments. The thickness profile of GDP coatings on flat substrates follows a nearly Gaussian distribution with a full-width at half-maximum only 20 mm across, restricting the number of usable components with the same thickness that can be made from each substrate. A new coating method to improve the thickness uniformity and increase the usable area of GDP coatings has been simulated and involves rotating the planar substrate while it is offset from the center of the coating chamber. While the coating rate drops to about 40% at the center, the thickness variation is less than 10% out to a radius of 10 mm, increasing the usable area by a factor of over 7, thereby increasing the number of components that can be made from a single coating.