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 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Swiss nuclear power and the case for long-term operation
Designed for 40 years but built to last far longer, Switzerland’s nuclear power plants have all entered long-term operation. Yet age alone says little about safety or performance. Through continuous upgrades, strict regulatory oversight, and extensive aging management, the country’s reactors are being prepared for decades of continued operation, in line with international practice.
Stella Maris Oggianu, Hee Cheon No, Mujid S. Kazimi
Nuclear Technology | Volume 146 | Number 3 | June 2004 | Pages 221-229
Technical Paper | Fuel Cycle and Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT04-A3501
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
To evaluate the burnup potential of a fuel pin, a simplified fuel rod analysis code called FUEL-SIMplified model (FUELSIM) was developed using the general-purpose software VENSIM. FUELSIM is based on FRAPCON-3 models and validated against it. A sensitivity analysis was done using FUELSIM to determine the fuel parameters that have high importance in limiting the burnup potential of a fuel material. Among 16 parameters, 10 were identified as having high importance. For six fuel materials (uranium metal, UC, UN, Th/U metal, UO2/ThO2 fuels, and UO2), a simplified model for the pressure rise and volumetric changes inside the fuel is developed to estimate the operational index of each fuel; these models include only the variables with high importance. It was found that the highest burnup potential is that of the nitride fuel, followed by the UO2/ThO2 fuel.
