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 Winter Conference & Expo
November 15–18, 2026
Phoenix, AZ|Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
Latest Magazine Issues
Aug 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2026
Nuclear Technology
September 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2026
Latest News
LLNL, Ampera partner to develop thorium-based TRISO fuel
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory has formed a strategic partnership with Ampera to develop the company’s nuclear fuel concept through a project named THUNDER, for Thorium Unimodal Droplet Ejection for Reactors.
The focus of THUNDER is fabricating TRISO made with kernels of thorium rather than the usual uranium. LLNL and Ampera will evaluate and optimize liquid metal–jetting technology to produce highly uniform, spherical kernels of thorium-232 for later processing into TRISO fuel.
Morris E. Battat, L. A. Ronald Dierckx,+, C. Robert Emigh
Nuclear Technology | Volume 43 | Number 3 | May 1979 | Pages 338-348
Technical Paper | Material | doi.org/10.13182/NT79-A19222
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A detailed analysis is made showing the feasibility of producing a neutron spectrum that will closely match the first wall neutron environment of any proposed future fusion reactor. An intense neutron source based on the deuterium-tritium reaction and producing 1 to 3 × 1015 14-MeV neutrons per second in a small volume, <1 cm3, is used as the primary source. The spectrum is tailored by surrounding this source with a spherical blanket composed of concentric shells of lithium, uranium (93% 235U), and beryllium. The irradiation volume of ∼100 cm3 is located between the source and the inside of the blanket and can be used for the purpose of radiation damage evaluations.