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Fusion Energy
This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
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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Sam Altman steps down as Oklo board chair
Advanced nuclear company Oklo Inc. has new leadership for its board of directors as billionaire Sam Altman is stepping down from the position he has held since 2015. The move is meant to open new partnership opportunities with OpenAI, where Altman is CEO, and other artificial intelligence companies.
S. J. Meitner, L. R. Baylor
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 79 | Number 8 | November 2023 | Pages 1065-1070
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2023.2174335
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A continuous pellet fueling system (CPFS) for use on the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) stellarator has been fabricated and assembled with commissioning tests completed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). Continuous fueling is accomplished by cutting pellets from the cross section of a continuous solid extrusion produced by a twin-screw extruder and accelerated by a gas gun cutter mechanism. The pellets travel through a series of straight guide tubes before entering the stellarator through a curved guide tube. The CPFS has an array of diagnostics that include the extruder torque, rotation rate, and thrust. A shock and pressure sensor provide verification of proper pellet cutting and acceleration. Two ORNL-developed microwave cavity diagnostics within the injection line guide tubes provide pellet speed and relative mass measurements. For commissioning, a high-speed camera has been positioned at the base of the extruder to verify extrusion speed and quality as well as the pellet cutting process, and a third microwave cavity has been mounted after the curved guide tube to verify pellet quality and size. Maximum injection rate, pellet speed, barrel and guide tube induced erosion, and pellet survivability data have been recorded. This paper presents the laboratory experimental setup and results of these commissioning tests.