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 Winter Conference & Expo
November 15–18, 2026
Phoenix, AZ|Arizona Grand Resort & Spa
Latest Magazine Issues
Sep 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2026
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Studsvik announces partnership to deploy four BWRX-300s in Sweden
Swedish engineering services firm Studsvik and its partners have teamed up on a four-unit BWRX-300 new build project in southern Sweden. On Thursday, Studsvik entered into a joint development agreement with GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy, GE Vernova Financial Services, DS Investment Partners, and Samsung C&T to advance the 1.2-GW ReFirm program, with the expectation the first unit will commence operations in the mid-2030s.
Jung-Kun Lee, Sumin Bae, Sajib A. Dahr
Nuclear Technology | Volume 210 | Number 4 | April 2024 | Pages 772-780
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2023.2277027
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) technology offers technical benefits such as high temperature operation, virtually no loss of coolant accidents, and operation at atmospheric pressure. Liquid lead is nonreactive with air and water, has a high boiling point, poor neutron absorption, and excellent heat transfer properties. Regardless of substantial advantages, the corrosive nature of liquid lead is a critical challenge in implementing LFR technology. This problem is especially pronounced at higher temperatures (>500°C). These issues have motivated research on materials and sensing capabilities in liquid lead. The University of Pittsburgh has developed a pool-type materials testing facility in international collaboration with universities, national labs, and industry. This new facility is a complement to existing loop-type facilities by being able to confirm corrosion testing results at high temperatures and higher coolant velocities, as well as by providing a large open volume of liquid lead to allow for the versatile testing of sensing instruments. In the design and manufacturing of the new facility, several important factors, such as temperature, oxygen concentration, and fluid velocity, were carefully considered. Successful running of the new testing facility will help industry demonstrate the reliability of structural materials and sensing instruments for LFRs.