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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!
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Powering the future: How the DOE is fueling nuclear fuel cycle research and development
As global interest in nuclear energy surges, the United States must remain at the forefront of research and development to ensure national energy security, advance nuclear technologies, and promote international cooperation on safety and nonproliferation. A crucial step in achieving this is analyzing how funding and resources are allocated to better understand how to direct future research and development. The Department of Energy has spearheaded this effort by funding hundreds of research projects across the country through the Nuclear Energy University Program (NEUP). This initiative has empowered dozens of universities to collaborate toward a nuclear-friendly future.
Louis B. Freeman, Herbert C. Hecker
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 80 | Number 2 | February 1982 | Pages 338-341
Technical Note | doi.org/10.13182/NSE82-A21437
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
In a thorium-fueled reactor, the conversion of 232Th to 233U involves the intermediate nuclide 233Pa. This isotope has a significant reactivity effect in any thorium reactor, especially one with an important epithermal flux component. The light water breeder reactor, operating in the Shippingport atomic power station, is a 233U-Th reactor with about half the power produced at energies above thermal. The reactivity effect of full-power equilibrium 233Pa has been inferred from critical position measurements and control element reactivity worths to be ∼2.5% Δρ in this reactor, confirming calculational predictions.
