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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
Meeting 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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Latest News
NRC’s David Wright visits the Hill and more NRC news
Wright
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission is in the spotlight today for three very different reasons. First, NRC Chair David Wright was on Capitol Hill yesterday for his renomination hearing in front of the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee. Second, the NRC released its updated milestone schedules according to the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA) and the executive orders signed by President Trump last month; and third, as reported by Reuters on Tuesday, 28 former NRC officials have condemned the dismissal of Commissioner Hanson earlier this month.
Renomination: EPW Committee chair Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R., W.Va.) opened the hearing with a statement praising Wright’s experience and emphasized the urgency of stable leadership at the NRC.
“China is executing a rapid build-out of its nuclear industry,” Capito said. “The demand for clean, baseload power is skyrocketing as we position America to win the AI race.”
T. Ozawa, T. Abe
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 152 | Number 1 | January 2006 | Pages 37-47
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE06-A2561
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
In order to improve fast reactor performance, optimization of the design margin is required. Consequently, a probabilistic method for fuel rod design is being considered, and the Baysian Oriented Fuel Rod Performance Evaluation (BORNFREE) probabilistic code, which computed the statistical responses of several performance parameters concerning fuel rod integrity, was developed. The probability that the performance parameter exceeds the criterion and the design margin can be quantitatively estimated by using this code. In this study, uncertainties that affect the cladding stress, which is one of the performance parameters that restricts the lifetime of a fuel rod, were statistically simulated, and the probabilistic results were compared with the deterministic results of the conventional method. As a result of the trial computation, it was confirmed that the deterministic results were adequately conservative and exceeded the 3 upper level of the probabilistic results for any case. Furthermore, the deterministic results showed significant overestimation as compared with the probabilistic results. Consequently, it is suggested that the probabilistic method is a feasible option to optimize the design evaluation to expand the lifetime of a fuel rod.