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2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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Fusion Science and Technology
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DOE awards ANS-backed workforce consortium $19.2M
The Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy recently awarded about $49.7 million to 10 university-led projects aiming to develop nuclear workforce training programs around the country.
DOE-NE issued its largest award, $19.2 million, to the newly formed Great Lakes Partnership to Enhance the Nuclear Workforce (GLP). This regional consortium, which is led by the University of Toledo and includes the American Nuclear Society, will use the funds to fill a variety of existing gaps in the nuclear workforce pipeline.
Devaaya Latta, Trey Gebhart, Tim Bigelow, Shane Frank, Nance Ericson, Mathias Dibon, Stefan Jachmich, Uron Kruezi
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 82 | Number 1 | January-February 2026 | Pages 20-31
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2025.2504101
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The shattered pellet injection (SPI) method has been chosen as the disruption mitigation system (DMS) for ITER. To protect the device from plasma disruptions that cause damaging heat and electromagnetic loads, SPI is used to inject high-Z material into the plasma. The process of SPI utilizes cryogenic cooling to form solid pellets. Pellets are accelerated down a barrel and into an angled surface, causing the pellet to shatter prior to entering the tokamak chamber. For the DMS to function reliably, the 27 separate shattered pellet injectors planned for ITER must rely on many components to provide accurate feedback data and for control functions.
Each component in the DMS is exposed to an elevated background magnetic field depending on its placement and proximity to the plasma chamber. A Helmholtz coil test stand that is operated at Oak Ridge National Laboratory was utilized to test the components in relevant background field levels to assess component performance. This paper details the test design and results for in-field component operation for a variety of components. This list includes the following components: two different network switches for camera connectivity, a VAT fast shutter valve intended to reduce the flow of SPI propellant gas into the torus, a solenoid control valve intended for use in the pellet formation process, pressure/vacuum switches to be used for feedback and control, a printed circuit board piezo pressure sensor to be used to measure breech pressure, and various relays for the high-voltage pulsed power supply used to drive the SPI propellant valve.