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Division Spotlight
Accelerator Applications
The division was organized to promote the advancement of knowledge of the use of particle accelerator technologies for nuclear and other applications. It focuses on production of neutrons and other particles, utilization of these particles for scientific or industrial purposes, such as the production or destruction of radionuclides significant to energy, medicine, defense or other endeavors, as well as imaging and diagnostics.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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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Nuclear Technology
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February 2024
Latest News
From South Korea to Belgium: Testing a high-density research reactor fuel
The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute has developed a high-density uranium silicide fuel designed to replace high-enriched uranium in research reactors. Recent irradiation tests appear to be successful, KAERI reports, which means the fuel could be commercialized to continue a key global nuclear nonproliferation effort—converting research reactors to run on low-enriched uranium fuel.
J. S. Baek, A. Cuadra, L.-Y. Cheng, A. L. Hanson, N. R. Brown, D. J. Diamond
Nuclear Technology | Volume 185 | Number 1 | January 2014 | Pages 1-20
Technical Paper | Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT13-26
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Reactivity insertion accidents have been analyzed for the 20-MW D2O-moderated research reactor (NBSR) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The analysis has been carried out for the present core, which contains highly enriched uranium fuel, and for a proposed equilibrium core with low-enriched uranium fuel. The time-dependent analysis of the primary system is performed with a RELAP5 model that includes the reactor vessel, primary coolant pump, heat exchanger, fuel element geometry, and flow channels for both the 6 inner and 24 outer fuel elements. Postprocessing of the simulation results has been conducted to evaluate minimum critical heat flux (CHF) ratio and minimum onset of flow instability (OFI) ratio using the Sudo-Kaminaga correlations and Saha-Zuber criteria, respectively. Evaluations are carried out for the control rod withdrawal start-up accident and the maximum reactivity insertion accident. In both cases the RELAP5 results indicate that no damage to the fuel will occur and there is adequate margin to CHF and OFI because of sufficient coolant flow through the fuel channels and the negative reactivity insertion due to scram.