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2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
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AI at work: Southern Nuclear’s adoption of Copilot agents drives fleet forward
Southern Nuclear is leading the charge in artificial intelligence integration, with employee-developed applications driving efficiencies in maintenance, operations, safety, and performance.
The tools span all roles within the company, with thousands of documented uses throughout the fleet, including improved maintenance efficiency, risk awareness in maintenance activities, and better-informed decision-making. The data-intensive process of preparing for and executing maintenance operations is streamlined by leveraging AI to put the right information at the fingertips for maintenance leaders, planners, schedulers, engineers, and technicians.
Mikio Sakai, Kazuya Shibata, Seiichi Koshizuka
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 154 | Number 1 | September 2006 | Pages 63-73
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE06-A2618
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Particle dynamics of nuclear fuel material has not been considered in conventional nuclear criticality evaluations. However, the particle motion influences nuclear criticality significantly. In the present study, the criticality calculation is combined with the discrete element method (DEM) to investigate the effects of the particle macroscopic behavior on nuclear criticality. Particle motion is analyzed in a rotating drum by the DEM, and then, the nuclear calculation is carried out. This paper focuses on particle size distribution, size segregation, and change of surface area of the particle bed. The particle size distribution has an important influence on the nuclear criticality evaluation because it affects not only the particle movement but also the atomic number densities in the bed. The surface area of the particle bed shows a close correlation with the multiplication factor. On the other hand, the size segregation does not have a significant effect on nuclear criticality.