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Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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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.
K. Vinjamuri, D. E. Owen
Nuclear Technology | Volume 47 | Number 1 | January 1980 | Pages 119-124
Technical Paper | Fuel | doi.org/10.13182/NT80-A32416
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Instrumented Fuel Assembly 429, an experimental assembly designed to study helium fill gas absorption and fission gas release in pressurized uranium dioxide (UO2) fuel rods used in light water reactors, is operating in the Halden Heavy Boiling Water Reactor in Halden, Norway. Preliminary assessment of results from fuel rod internal pressure measurements and from the postirradiation examination of selected fuel rods indicates that helium fill gas is absorbed into the UO2 during the first several months of operation. The fuel absorbs ∼5.7 × 10−3 cm3 He (STP)/g UO2 at the irradiation conditions of a 5.4-MPa helium pressure and a peak steady-state fuel temperature of 1500 K. The estimated effective helium diffusion coefficient is ∼1 × 10−8 cm2/s. Periodic transients with power increases of up to 50% do not drive the helium from the UO2 matrix.
