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 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jul 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2026
Nuclear Technology
August 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
The human factor in licensing and operating the next generation of nuclear plants
As human factors specialists working at the intersection of human performance and nuclear operations, we are witnessing one of the nuclear sector’s most significant transitions in decades. The emergence of small modular reactors, microreactors, and other advanced designs is reshaping the industry’s landscape. Digital instrumentation and controls, passive safety systems, and increased automation are creating opportunities for greater safety margins and more flexible operation. These same features also fundamentally redefine what it means to “operate” a nuclear plant. Interactions among human roles, automation, and passive systems shape how people maintain awareness, exercise judgment, and intervene when necessary. These developments affect both operational realities and the regulatory foundations on which nuclear safety is built.
K. G. Veinot, J. S. Bogard
Nuclear Technology | Volume 168 | Number 2 | November 2009 | Pages 364-368
Neutron Measurements | Special Issue on the 11th International Conference on Radiation Shielding and the 15th Topical Meeting of the Radiation Protection and Shielding Division (Part 2) / Radiation Protection | doi.org/10.13182/NT09-A9210
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A new 252Cf source has been procured for use at the Dosimetry Applications and Research facility at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). This source was encapsulated by the Californium Facility at ORNL; however, the encapsulation differs from previous designs designated as SR-Cf-100. The new encapsulation, designated SR-Cf-3000, has a similar cylindrical radius to the previous generation but is 1.6 cm longer. Since the encapsulation geometries differ, the amount of internal scattering of neutrons will also differ, leading to changes in anisotropy factors between the two designs. Additionally, the different encapsulations will affect the absorbed dose and dose equivalent delivered per neutron emitted by the source since both the quantity and energy distribution of the emitted neutrons will vary with irradiation angle. This work presents the fluence anisotropy factors for the SR-Cf-3000 series encapsulation as well as absorbed dose and dose equivalent values calculated for various angles of irradiation. The fluence anisotropy factors were found to range from a maximum of 1.037 to a minimum of 0.641 for irradiation angles perpendicular and parallel to the source axis, respectively. Anisotropy in absorbed dose varied from a maximum of 1.033 to a minimum of 0.676 while anisotropy of dose equivalent varied from 1.035 to 0.657. Anisotropy in the region most commonly used was found to be +3.2% for absorbed dose and +3.3% for dose equivalent, and these effects should be included when performing dosimeter irradiations.
