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
Mathematics & Computation
Division members promote the advancement of mathematical and computational methods for solving problems arising in all disciplines encompassed by the Society. They place particular emphasis on numerical techniques for efficient computer applications to aid in the dissemination, integration, and proper use of computer codes, including preparation of computational benchmark and development of standards for computing practices, and to encourage the development on new computer codes and broaden their use.
Meeting Spotlight
2025 ANS Annual Conference
June 15–18, 2025
Chicago, IL|Chicago Marriott 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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
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.
Kristina Skagius, Gunnar Svedberg, Ivars Neretnieks
Nuclear Technology | Volume 59 | Number 2 | November 1982 | Pages 302-313
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT82-A33033
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A significant retardation of radionuclides leaking from an underground repository can be expected if large parts of the rock body act as a sink for the radionuclides. To calculate the retardation, it is necessary to know the sorption properties and the diffusivities in the rock matrix for the radionuclides in the rock. The diffusivity will determine to what extent the rock matrix may be penetrated. Sorption experiments have been performed to determine the diffusion and sorption properties of cesium and strontium in crushed granite particles with one granite from Finnsjoen outside Forsmark on the east coast of Sweden, and one granite from the Stripa mine in central Sweden. Granite samples have been crushed and screened, and six different particle size fractions from 0.10 to 0.12 mm and 4 to 5 mm of each rock have been used in the experiments. The initial concentrations of inactive cesium and strontium were 10 to 15 ppm. A “synthetic” groundwater was used. The adsorption isotherm was found to be linear for strontium but nonlinear for cesium. One conclusion from this is that a prediction of cesium migration velocity from one single distribution coefficient is inappropriate. The experimental data indicate that the amount of sorption is dependent not only on the mass of granite particles but also to some extent on the size of the particles. A distinction has been made between sorption on external surfaces and inner surfaces. The amount of external surface adsorption was found to vary from 15 to 40% of the total adsorption capacity for the particle size fraction of 0.10 to 0.12 mm to a few percent or less for the largest particles used. Except for the largest particles, the experimentally determined diffusivities were found to lie in the interval expected from literature data on electric conductivities. The diffusivities were found to increase with increasing particle size. This could be explained by a higher diffusion rate in grain boundaries than in a homogeneous material. Nearly all of the smallest particles consist of only one mineral each.