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
May 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2026
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
WIPP: Lessons in transportation safety
As part of a future consent-based approach by the federal government to site new deep geologic repositories for nuclear waste, local communities and states that are considering hosting such facilities are sure to have many questions. Currently, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico is the only example of such a repository in operation, and it offers the opportunity for state and local officials to visit and judge for themselves the risks and benefits of hosting a similar facility. But its history can also provide lessons for these officials, particularly the political process leading up to the opening of WIPP, the safety of WIPP operations and transportation of waste from generator facilities to the site, and the economic impacts the project has had on the local area of Carlsbad, as well as the rest of the state of New Mexico.
B. P. Bromley, Z. Cheng, A. Nava Dominguez, A. V. Colton
Nuclear Technology | Volume 207 | Number 10 | October 2021 | Pages 1511-1537
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2020.1827658
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This paper reports the results of subchannel thermal-hydraulic studies (using the ASSERT-PV code) of the effects of variations and uncertainties in operating/boundary conditions and geometry on the predictions of pressure drop, dryout power, and dryout location for two types of advanced, nonconventional fuels in a pressure tube heavy water reactor (PT-HWR) fuel channel with 12 fuel bundles. The fuel bundles tested include a 37-element fuel bundle made with SEUO2 (1.2 wt% 235U/U), with a central fuel element made of ThO2, and 35-element fuel bundle made with (LEU,Th)O2, using 5 wt% 235U/U low-enriched uranium (LEU), 50 wt% LEUO2, and 50 wt% ThO2. Results indicate that for a range of flow conditions, the dryout power for the thorium-based 35-element fuel bundle is 10% to 26% higher than that for the uranium-based 37-element fuel bundle. Variation/uncertainty in the pressure tube diameter has the most significant impact on the pressure drop, dryout power, and dryout location. Results from these studies may have implications for the operations of PT-HWRs with advanced fuels, and further modifications may be desirable to further enhance thermal-hydraulic margins.
