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Division Spotlight
Materials Science & Technology
The objectives of MSTD are: promote the advancement of materials science in Nuclear Science Technology; support the multidisciplines which constitute it; encourage research by providing a forum for the presentation, exchange, and documentation of relevant information; promote the interaction and communication among its members; and recognize and reward its members for significant contributions to the field of materials science in nuclear technology.
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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!
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Report: New York state adding 1 GW of nuclear to fleet
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has instructed the state’s public electric utility to add at least 1 gigawatt of new nuclear by building a large-scale nuclear plant or a collection of smaller modular reactors, according to the Wall Street Journal.
S. Chatzidakis, S. Cetiner, H. Santos-Villalobos, J. J. Jarrell, J. M. Scaglione (ORNL)
Proceedings | 2018 International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP 2018) | Charlotte, NC, April 8-11, 2018 | Pages 714-720
Over 2,000 canisters are being used for dry storage of commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF) in the United States, and each year, between 150–200 new canisters are loaded. There is evidence that these welded stainless steel canisters are susceptible to stress corrosion cracking (SCC) under certain conditions (1). Undetected crack development may result in a loss of confinement. SCC is very difficult to predict with crack opening displacements of 15–30 ?m, which are much smaller than what can be detected with current visual inspections (~100 ?m) (2, 3). The lack of initial cracks does not preclude formation of cracks in the future. This observation is particularly critical for SCC, which is characterized by a long incubation period, after which crack initiation and growth evolution is depth dependent. If crack growth is rapid, SCC may not be detected in time to prevent the loss of canister confinement without frequent nondestructive examination (NDE) inspections (4).
Proposed NDE techniques include periodic inspections using eddy currents, bulk ultrasonic waves, guided and surface waves, as well as continuous noncontact monitoring methods such as passive acoustic emission. To develop monitoring systems for SCC, sensor requirements must be carefully considered and evaluated with respect to radiation resistance, size, power consumption, defect sensitivity, axial and lateral resolution, signal-to-noise ratio, and scanning time. This paper examines monitoring requirements, and a variety of sensor types are considered and compared against these metrics. This work focuses on detection and characterization of SCC in welded stainless steel canisters placed within concrete overpacks. Potential compromises, advantages, disadvantages, and compatibility with other state-of-the-art and complementary monitoring techniques such as thermographic phosphors are discussed.