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
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
July 2025
Latest News
World Bank, IAEA partner to fund nuclear energy
The World Bank and the International Atomic Energy Agency signed an agreement last week to cooperate on the construction and financing of advanced nuclear projects in developing countries, marking the first partnership since the bank ended its ban on funding for nuclear energy projects.
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.