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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy
The mission of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Division (NNPD) is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology while simultaneously preventing the diversion and misuse of nuclear material and technology through appropriate safeguards and security, and promotion of nuclear nonproliferation policies. To achieve this mission, the objectives of the NNPD are to: Promote policy that discourages the proliferation of nuclear technology and material to inappropriate entities. Provide information to ANS members, the technical community at large, opinion leaders, and decision makers to improve their understanding of nuclear nonproliferation issues. Become a recognized technical resource on nuclear nonproliferation, safeguards, and security issues. Serve as the integration and coordination body for nuclear nonproliferation activities for the ANS. Work cooperatively with other ANS divisions to achieve these objective nonproliferation policies.
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
Take steps on SNF and HLW disposal
Matt Bowen
With a new administration and Congress, it is time once again to ponder what will happen—if anything—on U.S. spent nuclear fuel and high-level waste management policy over the next few years. One element of the forthcoming discussion seems clear: The executive and legislative branches are eager to talk about recycling commercial SNF. Whatever the merits of doing so, it does not obviate the need for one or more facilities for disposal of remaining long-lived radionuclides. For that reason, making progress on U.S. disposal capabilities remains urgent, lest the associated radionuclide inventories simply be left for future generations to deal with.
In March, Rick Perry, who was secretary of energy during President Trump’s first administration, observed that during his tenure at the Department of Energy it became clear to him that any plan to move SNF “required some practical consent of the receiving state and local community.”1
V. Tiwari, T. F. Abbink, J. A. Ocádiz Flores, J. L. Flèche, C. Gueneau, S. Chatain, A. L. Smith, J. Martinet, C. Venard
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 197 | Number 12 | December 2023 | Pages 3035-3057
YMSR Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2023.2223745
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A thorough understanding of the corrosion chemistry between molten salt fuel and structural materials (e.g., steel) is key for the advancement of Molten Salt Reactor technology. In this work, we consider more specifically the case of a chloride fuel salt mixture and the thermochemistry of a salt mixture such as (NaCl-MgCl2-PuCl3) in interaction with (Fe, Cr, Ni). The present work aims at the development of a thermodynamic model of the key subsystems NaCl-CrCl2, NaCl-CrCl3, and FeCl2-CrCl2 to predict corrosion products that may form between molten salt and structural materials. The Modified Quasichemical Model in the quadruplet approximation is used to describe the Gibbs energy of the liquid phase. A critical review of the existing phase diagram and thermodynamic data on theses systems is first presented. To alleviate the lack of data, ab initio calculations coupled with a quasi-harmonic approach are performed to estimate the thermodynamic properties for the intermediate solid compounds Na2CrCl4 and Na3CrCl6, which exist in the NaCl-CrCl2 and NaCl-CrCl3 systems, respectively. These atomistic simulation data together with selected experimental data are then used as input for the thermodynamic assessment of the three subsystems.