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Division Spotlight
Materials Science & Technology
The objectives of MSTD are: promote the advancement of materials science in Nuclear Science Technology; support the multidisciplines which constitute it; encourage research by providing a forum for the presentation, exchange, and documentation of relevant information; promote the interaction and communication among its members; and recognize and reward its members for significant contributions to the field of materials science in nuclear technology.
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.
Yoshiyuki Asaoka, Kunihiko Okano, Tomoaki Yoshida, Ryouji Hiwatari, Koji Tokimatsu
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 39 | Number 2 | March 2001 | Pages 518-522
Fusion Economic Studies | doi.org/10.13182/FST01-A11963288
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Maximum implementation capacity of commercial fusion reactors based on breeding and supply of tritium has been investigated. The implementation capacity of fusion power reactors depends upon the net tritium breeding gain and a requirement of the initial supply of tritium for a steady commercial operation. In the reference case, the maximum implementation capacity is 7 GWe in 10 years after the year of fusion introduction, 118 GWe in 20 years and 488 GWe in 25 years. It is mainly limited by the industrial construction capacity after 25 years. The maximum implementation capacity is largely depends on the preparation interval of operation as well as the tritium breeding performance. It means that subsequent reactors must start operation as soon as possible not to leave produced tritium. The requirement to the tritium breeding for a satisfactory implementation of fusion power plants is also discussed. In the case that fusion implementation is similar to the increase of fission reactors in last 40 years, tritium breeding ratio of 1.08 will be required for the early plants. On the other hand, tritium breeding ratio of 1.02 is sufficient when fusion plants are widely deployed.