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
July 2026
Nuclear Technology
June 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
May 2026
Latest News
INL reports findings on unusual quantum behavior of plutonium
Scientists at Idaho National Laboratory have discovered that plutonium hexaboride (PuB6) displays a type of unusual quantum property called a topological Kondo insulating state. Materials with this property are neither typical electricity conductors nor regular insulators. Rather, they have exterior surfaces that strongly conduct electricity and interiors that block electricity.
Allen J. Edwards, M. J. Bird, Michael K. Denham
Nuclear Technology | Volume 98 | Number 1 | April 1992 | Pages 70-78
Technical Paper | Fast Reactor Safety / Nuclear Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT92-A34651
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
In the Sodium Entry Series (SES) experiments carried out at the Winfrith Technology Centre’s Molten Fuel Test Facility, thermite-generated, molten uranium dioxide is injected into test sections that represent fullscale typical geometries of a fast reactor subassembly. The test sections are initially full of sodium at 500°C. Comparisons with previous studies without sodium show that the molten material progressed for similar distances before freezing. In addition, there is a complete absence of molten fuel/coolant interactions in all the SES experiments. Consequently, it is concluded that the presence of sodium has little influence on the propagation of molten fuel through initially intact subassembly geometries.