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Division Spotlight
Decommissioning & Environmental Sciences
The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
Meeting Spotlight
Utility Working Conference and Vendor Technology Expo (UWC 2024)
August 4–7, 2024
Marco Island, FL|JW Marriott Marco Island
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!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2024
Nuclear Technology
August 2024
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Taking shape: Fusion energy ecosystems built with public-private partnerships
It’s possible to describe fusion in simple terms: heat and squeeze small atoms to get abundant clean energy. But there’s nothing simple about getting fusion ready for the grid.
Private developers, national lab and university researchers, suppliers, and end users working toward that goal are developing a range of complex technologies to reach fusion temperatures and pressures, confounded by science and technology gaps linked to plasma behavior; materials, diagnostics, and electronics for extreme environments; fuel cycle sustainability; and economics.
Rosendo Borjas Nevarez, Bruce McNamara, Frederic Poineau
Nuclear Technology | Volume 207 | Number 2 | February 2021 | Pages 263-269
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2020.1757961
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
For several decades, extensive research has been performed on the recovery and purification of zirconium from spent nuclear fuel cladding using a variety of chlorination reaction processes. After the reaction between fuel cladding and chlorine gas, zirconium tetrachloride is separated from other chloride species based on their boiling/sublimation points; however, the presence of iron and niobium chloride impurities limits the efficiency of these processes. In this work, chlorination products of Zr, Fe, and Nb mixtures were analyzed by thermogravimetric analysis, and the results suggest that Fe impurities cannot be removed via chlorination alone. Purification of zirconium from Zircaloy-2, Zircaloy-4, and a Zr-Nb alloy was performed via hydrochlorination using a sealed tube reaction system. The purity of the final ZrCl4 products is higher than 99.99% after successful removal of Fe and Nb.