ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jul 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2025
Nuclear Technology
August 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
A. N. Perevezentsev, A. C. Bell, B. M. Andreev, M. B. Rozenkevich, Yu. S. Pak, A. V. Ovcharov
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 56 | Number 4 | November 2009 | Pages 1455-1461
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/FST56-1455
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This paper evaluates detritiation of air contaminated with tritium in the form of water vapor using a scrubber column filled with structured packing. This technique is based on isotopic exchange between tritiated water vapor and liquid water. In combination with a catalytic oxidizer operated at room or slightly elevated temperature, the scrubber column can also decontaminate air contaminated with tritiated molecular hydrogen. Mass transfer rates measured for structured packings made of stainless steel and copper alloy confirmed high efficiency of the detritiation process. Study of the effect of various operation parameters on column efficiency allows optimization of column operation. It was demonstrated that this technique is competitive with the drying technique with respect to the decontamination factor (DF) provided and the amount of tritiated water to be generated. Benefits offered by the wet scrubber technology are based on the nature of the isotopic exchange process. No need for regeneration allows reduction in the number of units and as such decreases the capital cost of the facility for continuous operation. The DF can be controlled by changing the flow rate of feedwater.