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Fusion Energy
This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
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2025 ANS Annual Conference
June 15–18, 2025
Chicago, IL|Chicago Marriott Downtown
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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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Smarter waste strategies: Helping deliver on the promise of advanced nuclear
At COP28, held in Dubai in 2023, a clear consensus emerged: Nuclear energy must be a cornerstone of the global clean energy transition. With electricity demand projected to soar as we decarbonize not just power but also industry, transport, and heat, the case for new nuclear is compelling. More than 20 countries committed to tripling global nuclear capacity by 2050. In the United States alone, the Department of Energy forecasts that the country’s current nuclear capacity could more than triple, adding 200 GW of new nuclear to the existing 95 GW by mid-century.
C. Eric Triplett, Robert E. Canaan, Dale E. Klein
Nuclear Technology | Volume 130 | Number 1 | April 2000 | Pages 99-110
Technical Note | Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT00-A3080
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Natural convection heat transfer was experimentally investigated in a staggered array of heated cylinders, oriented horizontally within a rectangular isothermal enclosure. The test conditions were characteristic of a spent-fuel assembly during transport or horizontal dry storage. The assembly was configured with a pitch-to-diameter ratio of 1.33 and backfilled with pressurized helium or nitrogen. The backfill pressure was varied between 1 and 5 atm, while the assembly power was varied between 1 and 5 W per heater rod. The resulting data are presented in the form of Nusselt-Rayleigh number correlations, where the Nusselt number has been corrected for thermal radiation using a numerical technique. The staggered-array data are compared to previous data for a similar-pitch aligned rod array (a simulated boiling water reactor fuel assembly) to determine if convective heat transfer is enhanced or hindered in a staggered configuration. For the overall array, both the staggered and aligned configurations yield Nusselt-Rayleigh curves with a three-regime trend, which suggests distinct conduction and convection regimes separated by a transition regime. For lower Rayleigh numbers (<106), representative of the conduction regime, the aligned-array Nusselt number is 10 to 12% higher than the corresponding staggered-array value. However, in the convection regime at higher Rayleigh numbers, the staggered-array Nusselt number slightly exceeds the aligned- array Nusselt number. This is attributed to the fact that the staggered array begins to transition into the convection regime at lower Rayleigh number than the aligned array. For both configurations, the slope of the Nusselt-Rayleigh curve in the convection regime suggests turbulent flow conditions.
