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 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2026
Nuclear Technology
July 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Launching into tomorrow: NRIC guides new era of research and deployment
In June 2025, the Department of Energy announced the Reactor Pilot Program, an authorization pathway that allowed reactor developers to partner with the DOE to get first-of-a-kind (FOAK) reactors built and tested. Soon after, the DOE rolled out a complementary Fuel Line Pilot Program, which aimed to fast-track fuel projects. In all, 20 projects were accepted into the new programs.
V. K. Dhir, W. E. Kastenberg, D. W. Varela
Nuclear Technology | Volume 46 | Number 3 | December 1979 | Pages 447-452
Technical Paper | Nuclear Power Reactor Safety / Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT79-A32352
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Generally, the blockages that may form in the reactor core when molten fuel is ejected into the coolant channels during a transient overpower accident can be divided into two categories. The first type of blockage forms when semi-molten fuel particles hit a wire wrap and freeze on the wire wrap, whereas the second type of blockage forms when solid or semi-solid particles get stuck in the coolant channels. The thermal-hydraulic analysis of these proposed blockages indicates that under certain specific conditions, the blockages can lead to melting of the wire wrap and cladding and also to in-channel voiding. The second type of blockage, if formed as a plug, may remelt before being quenched by subcooled or saturated sodium.