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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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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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Powering the future: How the DOE is fueling nuclear fuel cycle research and development
As global interest in nuclear energy surges, the United States must remain at the forefront of research and development to ensure national energy security, advance nuclear technologies, and promote international cooperation on safety and nonproliferation. A crucial step in achieving this is analyzing how funding and resources are allocated to better understand how to direct future research and development. The Department of Energy has spearheaded this effort by funding hundreds of research projects across the country through the Nuclear Energy University Program (NEUP). This initiative has empowered dozens of universities to collaborate toward a nuclear-friendly future.
Katherine A. Daniels, Jon F. Harrington (British Geological Survey), Mark Jensen (NWMO)
Proceedings | 16th International High-Level Radioactive Waste Management Conference (IHLRWM 2017) | Charlotte, NC, April 9-13, 2017 | Pages 826-833
The Bruce nuclear site in Canada has been proposed to host a Deep Geologic Repository (DGR) for Low and Intermediate Level Radioactive Waste (L&ILW). The repository would be constructed within a low permeability, argillaceous limestone, the Upper Ordovician age Cobourg Formation. Here, we present the results of two steady-state laboratory hydraulic conductivity tests performed to measure the intrinsic permeability of rock core samples from the Cobourg and overlying Queenston shale formations; both samples were measured under an isotropic confining pressure using a constant head approach. Pump pressures and volumes were recorded for upstream and downstream pumps, throughout testing. The resulting hydraulic inflow and outflow rates were measured for each sample under two different pressure gradients, yielding exceptionally low values of permeability (on the order of 10-22 m2 or 0.1 nD). These data provide further evidence of the applicability of existing steady-state experimental methods to obtain reliable estimates of extremely low permeabilities from rock core samples under re-established in-situ stress conditions. The exceptionally low permeability of these formations, consistent with in-situ testing and formation scale estimates obtained during the site characterisation program, along with their low porosities, renders them an effective barrier to hydraulic flow for the purpose of geological isolation.