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Division Spotlight
Decommissioning & Environmental Sciences
The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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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Feb 2025
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
March 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
February 2025
Latest News
Colin Judge: Testing structural materials in Idaho’s newest hot cell facility
Idaho National Laboratory’s newest facility—the Sample Preparation Laboratory (SPL)—sits across the road from the Hot Fuel Examination Facility (HFEF), which started operating in 1975. SPL will host the first new hot cells at INL’s Materials and Fuels Complex (MFC) in 50 years, giving INL researchers and partners new flexibility to test the structural properties of irradiated materials fresh from the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) or from a partner’s facility.
Materials meant to withstand extreme conditions in fission or fusion power plants must be tested under similar conditions and pushed past their breaking points so performance and limitations can be understood and improved. Once irradiated, materials samples can be cut down to size in SPL and packaged for testing in other facilities at INL or other national laboratories, commercial labs, or universities. But they can also be subjected to extreme thermal or corrosive conditions and mechanical testing right in SPL, explains Colin Judge, who, as INL’s division director for nuclear materials performance, oversees SPL and other facilities at the MFC.
SPL won’t go “hot” until January 2026, but Judge spoke with NN staff writer Susan Gallier about its capabilities as his team was moving instruments into the new facility.
Nuclear Criticality Safety Division 2025 Conference
Nuclear Engineering Teaching Laboratory
Director
John J. McKetta Energy
Professor
Dr. William (Bill) Charlton is a Professor in the Nuclear and Radiation Engineering Program within the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Texas at Austin (UT-Austin). At UT-Austin, he also serves as the Director of the Nuclear Engineering Teaching Laboratory (NETL) which houses the newest research reactor in the U.S. Since 2023, he has served as the UT-Sandia Faculty Liaison. He is an expert in the application of nuclear science and engineering for societal solutions (including national security, health care, and the environment). He has over 25 years of technical expertise in the design, development, testing, and evaluation of nuclear systems, analytical techniques, and instrumentation. From 2015-2017, he was the Research Director for the National Strategic Research Institute (NSRI) and the Associate Vice Chancellor for Research at the University of Nebraska. NSRI is the University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) for the U.S. Strategic Command and the U.S. Department of Defense for Combatting Weapons of Mass Destruction. From 2003-2015, Dr. Charlton served on the faculty of the Department of Nuclear Engineering at Texas A&M University (TAMU) and was the founding Director of the Nuclear Security Science & Policy Institute (NSSPI) from 2006-2015. He previously served as an Assistant Professor at UT-Austin from 2000-2003 and as a Technical Staff Member in the Nonproliferation and International Security Division at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) from 1998-2000. Dr. Charlton earned a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from Texas A&M University. Among his many awards, Dr. Charlton earned the Special Service Award from the Institute of Nuclear Materials Management in 2010. He has over 200 technical publications in referred journals and conference proceedings.
Last modified January 6, 2025, 12:04pm CST
