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Division Spotlight
Thermal Hydraulics
The division provides a forum for focused technical dialogue on thermal hydraulic technology in the nuclear industry. Specifically, this will include heat transfer and fluid mechanics involved in the utilization of nuclear energy. It is intended to attract the highest quality of theoretical and experimental work to ANS, including research on basic phenomena and application to nuclear system design.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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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Latest News
Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
Robert C. Bowden, Casey Tompkins, Sun-Kyu Yang (CNL)
Proceedings | Advances in Thermal Hydraulics 2018 | Orlando, FL, November 11-15, 2018 | Pages 751-764
In this experimental investigation, mean liquid velocity fields were investigated for turbulent flow within a horizontal 7-rod bundle geometry using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). PIV measurements were conducted at two axial locations, near the bundle inlet and also near the mid-plane, and at four Reynolds numbers ranging from approximately 8400 to 21000 based on a hydraulic diameter of 7.636 mm. The axial velocity fields in three different gap regions of the 7-rod bundle were reported, including rod-rod gaps and rod-channel gaps. Statistical techniques were used to describe the velocity fields, including mean and turbulent velocity components. The instantaneous and ensemble-averaged velocities in the gap regions are shown to be aligned in the axial (horizontal) flow direction, with a negligible mean vertical components. It was found that the maximum velocity profile was between 20 to 25% higher than the average velocity, while measured axial turbulent velocity typically ranged between 10 to 20% of the corresponding mean velocity. Profiles of local mean and turbulent velocity components in the gap regions were found to be self-similar when normalized using the maximum velocity, and local velocity, respectively.