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
Education, Training & Workforce Development
The Education, Training & Workforce Development Division provides communication among the academic, industrial, and governmental communities through the exchange of views and information on matters related to education, training and workforce development in nuclear and radiological science, engineering, and technology. Industry leaders, education and training professionals, and interested students work together through Society-sponsored meetings and publications, to enrich their professional development, to educate the general public, and to advance nuclear and radiological science and engineering.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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
May 2024
Jan 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
July 2024
Nuclear Technology
June 2024
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Bowman & Smith on NRC security programs
Greg Bowman and George Smith work for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in implementing programs that deal with risk, whether to nuclear power plants or from nuclear materials, such as radiological sabotage and theft or diversion of materials. Bowman is the director of the NRC’s Division of Physical and Cybersecurity Policy in the Office of Nuclear Security and Incident Response. Smith is the senior project manager for security in the Source Management & Protection Branch of the Division of Materials Safety, Security, State, and Tribal Programs in the Office of Nuclear Material Safety and Safeguards.
The three initiatives Bowman and Smith discussed with Nuclear News editor-in-chief Rick Michal are the Insider Threat Program, the Cybersecurity Program, and the Domestic Safeguards Program.
Jacopo Buongiorno, Eric P. Loewen, Kenneth Czerwinski, Christopher Larson
Nuclear Technology | Volume 147 | Number 3 | September 2004 | Pages 406-417
Technical Paper | Medium-Power Lead-Alloy Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT04-A3539
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The isotope 210Po is the main product of neutron activation in fast reactors cooled by molten lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE). The isotope 210Po is a pure alpha emitter with a half-life of 138.38 days. For typical values of the neutron flux the 210Po concentration in the coolant can reach 1-10 Ci/kg. While exposure of plant personnel to Po is prevented under normal operating conditions because the primary system is sealed, Po does pose a radiological hazard during maintenance activities for which access to submerged structures is required as well as during accidents resulting in breach of the primary-system barrier. Obviously, continuous removal of Po from the LBE reduces this hazard. Therefore, it is important to understand the mechanisms by which Po is formed in and released from the LBE. We summarize research performed at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to investigate the basic chemistry of four mechanisms of Po release, which could serve as the basis for a coolant cleanup system in LBE-cooled reactors. The mechanisms explored are lead polonide evaporation, formation of polonium hydride, rare-earth filtering, and alkaline extraction. For the key chemical species involved expressions are given for useful quantities such as formation energy, release, and deposition rates. It is concluded that the most promising removal mechanism is alkaline extraction, although a more systematic investigation of this mechanism is needed.