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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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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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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.
José M. Aragonés, Carol Ahnert, Oscar Cabellos
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 124 | Number 1 | September 1996 | Pages 111-124
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE96-A24228
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
New reactor physics and computation methods have been developed in our three-dimensional pressurized water reactor (PWR) core dynamics SIMTRAN code for on-line surveillance and prediction. The accuracy of the coupled neutronic thermal-hydraulic solution is improved, and its scope is extended to provide, mainly, the calculation of the fission reaction rates at the in-core minidetectors, the responses at the ex-core detectors, and the in-vessel coolant flow and temperature distributions.The functional capabilities implemented in the on-line SIMTRAN code include on-line surveillance, in-core-ex-core calibration, evaluation of peak power factors and thermal margins, nominal cycle follow, prediction of maneuvers, and diagnosis offast transients and oscillations. The new code has been operating on-line at the Vandellós-II PWR unit in Spain since the startup of its cycle 7 in mid-June 1994, including the machine-man interfaces for on-line acquisition of measured data and interactive graphical utilization. The agreement of the simulations with the measurements, along the full cycle 7 and the first months of cycle 8 operation, is well within the accuracy requirements. The performance and usefulness for operational support shown during the demo and routine use phases have proved that the on-line SIMTRAN code has the qualities for the accurate, reliable, comprehensive, and user-friendly on-line core surveillance and prediction.