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
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
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!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2025
Latest News
Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
R. W. Ostensen, W. F. Murphy, B. J. Wrona, L. W. Deitrich, J. C. Florek
Nuclear Technology | Volume 36 | Number 2 | December 1977 | Pages 200-214
Technical Paper | International Safeguard / Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT77-A31927
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
In a transient-undercooling accident in a liquid-metal fast breeder reactor with a small sodium void coefficient, steel cladding melts prior to disruption of the oxide fuel pellets. If molten steel could wet the fuel and penetrate into the interior of the fuel pin through the surface cracks, steel vapor pressure could cause an early breakup and possibly a dispersal of the fuel. The wetting and capillary properties of molten steel in contact with solid oxide fuel have been examined. Based on available indirect in-pile and out-of-pile experimental results, the known surface properties of steel and UO2, the behavior of similar materials, and direct experiments on steel-UO2 wetting properties, it is concluded that in an accident situation, molten Type 316 stainless steel will not wet oxide fuel at temperatures below the point of disruption of the fuel. Steel intrusions in the fuel will have no significant impact on the accident sequence.
