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Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
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August 11–11, 2020
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The ongoing effort to convert the world’s research reactors
The Ghana Research Reactor-1, located in Accra, Ghana, was converted from HEU fuel to LEU in 2017. Photo: Argonne National Laboratory
In late 2018, Nigeria’s sole operating nuclear research reactor, NIRR-1, switched to a safer uranium fuel. Coming just 18 months on the heels of a celebrated conversion in Ghana, the NIRR-1 reboot passed without much fanfare. However, the switch marked an important global milestone: NIRR-1 was the last of Africa’s 11 operating research reactors to run on high-enriched uranium fuel.
The 40-year effort to make research reactors safer and more secure by replacing HEU fuel with low-enriched uranium is marked by a succession of quiet but immeasurably significant milestones like these. Before Africa, a team of engineers from many organizations, including the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory, concluded its conversion work in South America and Australia. Worldwide, 71 reactors in nearly 40 countries have undergone conversions to LEU, defined as less than 20 percent uranium-235. Another 31 research reactors have been permanently shut down.
George Yadigaroglu, Djamel Lakehal
Nuclear Technology | Volume 196 | Number 3 | December 2016 | Pages 409-420
Technical Paper | dx.doi.org/10.13182/NT16-49
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An attempt is made in the first part of this paper to review the history of reactor safety and draw conclusions about trends that could be avoided and directions that could lead to robust reactor designs that would not be susceptible to severe accidents. In the second part, progress in reactor thermal hydraulics is observed by reviewing the list of conference sessions. Finally, a report is made on some recent work on two computational problems: the prediction of departure from nucleate boiling and the potential spatial coupling of computational multifluid dynamics methods to achieve multiscale, high-resolution simulations.
