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
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
60 Years of U: Perspectives on resources, demand, and the evolving role of nuclear energy
Recent years have seen growing global interest in nuclear energy and rising confidence in the sector. For the first time since the early 2000s, there is renewed optimism about the industry’s future. This change is driven by several major factors: geopolitical developments that highlight the need for secure energy supplies, a stronger focus on resilient energy systems, national commitments to decarbonization, and rising demand for clean and reliable electricity.
T. Venhaus, J. Poths
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 48 | Number 1 | July-August 2005 | Pages 601-604
Technical Paper | Tritium Science and Technology - Materials Interaction and Permeation | doi.org/10.13182/FST05-A997
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
We have hydrided thin (500 nm) films of Er with tritium to a stoichiometry of ErT2, and have been observing their 3He release characteristics at very low 3He/Er ratios. The films are stored in vacuum-tight metal containers and sampled on a timescale ranging from a day to several months. Analysis is performed with very high sensitivity using static noble gas mass spectrometry. For the first several years, 3He release is a fairly constant function of helium generation, and does not depend on the amount of helium accumulated in the film. There appears to be somewhat higher helium release at very early times (up to 2%), decreasing over 6 months to a fairly flat value (0.7%). This observation is consistent with a bubble nucleation and growth mechanism. The very early release behavior does not appear to be dependent upon the presence or growth of surface oxide layers.