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.
Hiroshi Endo, Yoshio Kumaoka, Simcha Golan, Hiroshi Nakagawa
Nuclear Technology | Volume 99 | Number 3 | September 1992 | Pages 318-329
Technical Paper | Nuclear Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT92-A34716
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A system dynamics analysis is applied to a pool-type fast breeder reactor to examine the influence of a bottom-supported reactor vessel (BSRV) design on anticipated transient without scram (ATWS) events such as an unprotected loss of flow (ULOF), an unprotected loss of heat sink (ULOHS), and an unprotected transient overpower (UTOP) by using the ARGO safety analysis code. The BSRV enhances negative feedback because of the differential displacement between the core and the control rod as compared with a top-supported reactor vessel. In particular, the BSRV has the potential, especially in a mixed-oxide-fueled core, to mitigate the design requirements to prevent boiling of the coolant during an ULOF and ULOHS through the elongation of the primary flow coastdown and enhancement of the axial expansion of the control rod drive line. In the metallic-fueled core, the effects of the BSRV on the ATWS events are diminished by the limitation of the sodium temperature increase.