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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy
The mission of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Division (NNPD) is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology while simultaneously preventing the diversion and misuse of nuclear material and technology through appropriate safeguards and security, and promotion of nuclear nonproliferation policies. To achieve this mission, the objectives of the NNPD are to: Promote policy that discourages the proliferation of nuclear technology and material to inappropriate entities. Provide information to ANS members, the technical community at large, opinion leaders, and decision makers to improve their understanding of nuclear nonproliferation issues. Become a recognized technical resource on nuclear nonproliferation, safeguards, and security issues. Serve as the integration and coordination body for nuclear nonproliferation activities for the ANS. Work cooperatively with other ANS divisions to achieve these objective nonproliferation policies.
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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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.
A.B. Antoniazzi, W.T. Shmayda
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 30 | Number 3 | December 1996 | Pages 879-884
Fuel Cycle and Tritium Technology | doi.org/10.13182/FST96-A11963048
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Tritiated waste and glovebox cleanup systems contain significant levels of trititated methane impurities which require reducing and processing to recover the tritium. A viable approach to the recovery of tritium is the conversion of tritiated methane into elemental tritium and carbon by thermal cracking on a heated metal matrix.
Through the conversion reaction of HTO/H2O with hot Al4C3 powder, tritiated methane concentrations in the 0.4 to 0.9 mCi/m3 range are achievable. The HTO/H2O ratio is ~10-7.
Conversion efficiencies for the decomposition of methane are measured for Zr-Fe-Mn alloy, iron oxide and supported nickel catalyst. HT and HTO are created by decomposing methane. Zr-Fe-Mn alloy achieved a maximum conversion efficiency of ~70% at 700°C. Iron oxide thermally cracked methane at 36% at a temperature of 700°C. Supported nickel operating at 450°C achieved conversion efficiencies ranging from 65 to 100%.
