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Reactor Physics
The division's objectives are to promote the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the fundamental physical phenomena characterizing nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems. The division encourages research and disseminates information through meetings and publications. Areas of technical interest include nuclear data, particle interactions and transport, reactor and nuclear systems analysis, methods, design, validation and operating experience and standards. The Wigner Award heads the awards program.
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2025 ANS Annual Conference
June 15–18, 2025
Chicago, IL|Chicago Marriott Downtown
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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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BREAKING NEWS: Trump issues executive orders to overhaul nuclear industry
The Trump administration issued four executive orders today aimed at boosting domestic nuclear deployment ahead of significant growth in projected energy demand in the coming decades.
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K. Chen, C. A. Erdman, M. F. Kennedy, A. B. Reynolds
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 83 | Number 4 | April 1983 | Pages 459-472
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE83-A18649
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A homogeneous nucleation-condensation growth model was developed for calculating particle-size distributions measured in capacitor discharge vaporization (CDV) experiments conducted at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Uranium dioxide pellets were partially vaporized in an argon environment by rapid energy deposition through capacitor discharge. This was followed by rapid expansion and subsequent condensation of the UO2 vapor. Measured primary particle-size distributions of the resulting aerosols were lognormal, with a geometric mean particle diameter of (0.014 ± 0.002) µm and a geometric standard deviation of 1.7 ± 0.1. It was postulated that the expanding UO2 vapor compressed the surrounding argon as in a spherical shock tube and that the aerosol was generated by homogeneous nucleation and condensation growth in the resulting rarefaction wave. The calculated motion of the U02-argon interface is in approximate agreement with the movies of the expansion process. The calculated particle-size distributions are in agreement with the measured distributions except at the large particle end. This agreement indicates that the small primary particles from the CDV tests resulted from homogeneous nucleation and condensation growth, as assumed in the analytical model.