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This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
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June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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Strontium: Supply-and-demand success for the DOE’s Isotope Program
The Department of Energy’s Isotope Program (DOE IP) announced last week that it would end its “active standby” capability for strontium-82 production about two decades after beginning production of the isotope for cardiac diagnostic imaging. The DOE IP is celebrating commercialization of the Sr-82 supply chain as “a success story for both industry and the DOE IP.” Now that the Sr-82 market is commercially viable, the DOE IP and its National Isotope Development Center can “reassign those dedicated radioisotope production capacities to other mission needs”—including Sr-89.
F. Jorion, X. Deschanels, T. Advocat, F. Desmouliere, J. N. Cachia, S. Peuget, D. Roudil, G. Leturcq
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 153 | Number 3 | July 2006 | Pages 262-271
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE06-A2612
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Zirconolite is a potential matrix for the immobilization of the minor actinides: neptunium, curium, americium, and small quantities of unrecyclable plutonium, produced by the reprocessing of the spent fuel.In order to check the incorporation of actinides into the structure, zirconolite ceramic pellets doped with 10 wt% of 239PuO2 were sintered. Characterization by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Structure (XANES) spectroscopy have been done on this material. The microstructure of the pellets is homogeneous, and their relative density is higher than 90% of the theoretical density. XANES spectroscopy shows that Pu is at oxidation state (IV) in this material.To investigate the effects of radiation damage on zirconolite structure, pellets doped with 10 wt% of 238PuO2 were fabricated. 238Pu accelerates the radiation damage relative to the 239Pu because of its much higher specific activity (632 × 109 Bq/g for 238Pu versus 2.2 × 109 Bq/g for 239Pu). Some pellets are stored at ambient, 250 and 500°C. Up to 2.2 × 1018 g-1, macroscopic swelling of the samples stored at ambient is ~2.2%/1018 g-1, and the microscopic one near 1.3%/1018 g-1. Some microcracks are observed on these pellets. The samples started to become amorphous at 2.2 × 1018 g-1. The swelling strongly decreases with the storage temperature of the samples.Swelling results are interpreted in terms of alpha radiation damage on the structure; at this time helium accumulation does not appear to have a major role in this process.