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
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
May 2026
Jan 2026
Apr 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2026
Nuclear Technology
April 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
PJM queues a fusion project among 810 others
The breakdown by number of projects, share of megawatts, and generation types in PJM’s new interconnection cycle. (Source: PJM Interconnection)
On April 27, PJM Interconnection closed its first full interconnection cycle since 2022. Under a reformed application process, 811 developers submitted generation projects capable of generating 220 gigawatts of electricity. About 400 megawatts of that total share comes from Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which submitted an application for its ARC fusion power plant. This is a notable milestone for the industry: it is the first time a developer has requested to connect a commercial fusion power plant to a major grid.
Juho Lehmusto, J. Matthew Kurley, III, Ercan Cakmak, James R. Keiser, Daniel Lindberg, Markus Engblom, Bruce A. Pint, Stephen S. Raiman
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 198 | Number 3 | March 2024 | Pages 727-734
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2023.2204175
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A new apparatus was built to rapidly cool molten salts in liquid argon to prevent contamination during quenching and enable new insight into the structure in the liquid state. To test the applicability of the apparatus, several industrially relevant chloride salt compositions were first melted, rapidly solidified, and then characterized. The design proved applicable for the rapid quenching of molten salt. Furthermore, the structure of the apparatus prevented exposure of the rapidly quenched salt to impurities (humidity, oxygen, etc.). X-ray diffraction of salt specimens cooled with and without liquid argon showed differences including a structure further from the expected stoichiometric equilibrium with rapid cooling. Of particular interest is the chemical state of metallic impurities, and this may be probed using electron paramagnetic resonance.