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.
Division Spotlight
Decommissioning & Environmental Sciences
The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2025
Nuclear Technology
May 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Sam Altman steps down as Oklo board chair
Advanced nuclear company Oklo Inc. has new leadership for its board of directors as billionaire Sam Altman is stepping down from the position he has held since 2015. The move is meant to open new partnership opportunities with OpenAI, where Altman is CEO, and other artificial intelligence companies.
W. Bennett Lewis
Nuclear Technology | Volume 2 | Number 2 | April 1966 | Pages 171-181
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NT66-A27498
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Fuel may be designed for fission gas containment within the fuel clad or for venting, also to survive possible ruptures of the clad. Fission gas behavior varies widely with the UO2 starting material and, like the baking of bread, with its irradiation history of time and temperature. Below 1000° C, most gas remains trapped; between 1000 and 1800° C, most gas becomes trapped at some time in small closed pores. Expansion of the pores causes swelling. Escape from the pores is by cracking or by radiation-induced reabsorption. Fuel rods are commonly designed with a plenum to collect gas, but the high density of pores and plasticity of the oxide delays or prevents much of the gas from reaching the plenum. For irraditions up to 12 000 MWd/t, satisfactory designs have been achieved without a plenum. Above 1800° C, most gas escapes, but the process of escape is not well established and requires consideration in each case by the design engineer. Available knowledge most relevant to design is briefly reviewed and illustrated in photographs and graphs.