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
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Aug 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2025
Latest News
What’s in your Dubai chocolate? Nuclear scientists test pistachios for toxins
For the uninitiated, Dubai chocolate is a candy bar filled with pistachio and tahini cream and crispy pastry recently popularized by social media influencers. While it’s easy to dismiss as a viral craze now past its peak, the nutty green confection has spiked global pistachio demand, and growers and processors are ramping up production. That means more pistachios need to be tested for aflatoxins—a byproduct of a common crop mold.
J. Hardy, Jr., G. G. Smith, J. A. Mitchell, D. Klein
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 12 | Number 2 | February 1962 | Pages 301-308
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE62-A26071
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Dancoff correction factor (1 − C) for U238 resonance neutron capture was measured for cylindrical, 0.98 cm diameter fuel rods at lattice pitches of 1.81 cm and 1.44 cm. The rods were 1.3% U235, arranged in a hexagonal, H2O-moderated lattice. Measurements were done for three fuel materials: uranium metal, UO2 (density 10.5 gm/cm3), and UO2 (density 7.5 gm/cm3) according to the following method. The ratio of U238 epicadmium neutron capture per atom at rod surface to that at rod center, S/V, was measured, for each fuel composition, at both lattice pitches and in an isolated rod (i.e., no Dancoff interaction). The quantity R ≡ [(S − V)/V]lattice/[(S − V)/V]isolated rod was, within experimental error, the same for all three fuel materials at each lattice pitch. Furthermore, within experimental error, R was found to be equal to (1 − C), calculated at each lattice pitch from Dancoff's expression. This agreement was expected from an analysis of the experiment in terms of a current model of resonance capture which indicated that R equals (1 − C) multiplied by two factors: one accounting for lattice mutual shielding of capture at rod center, the other accounting for the effect on S/V of the resonance flux lethargy tilt (due to loss of neutrons by resonance capture). Approximate calculations of these two effects showed that each perturbs R by about 10% in the worst case. The effects oppose each other so that very closely R = 1 − C.