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Division Spotlight
Radiation Protection & Shielding
The Radiation Protection and Shielding Division is developing and promoting radiation protection and shielding aspects of nuclear science and technology — including interaction of nuclear radiation with materials and biological systems, instruments and techniques for the measurement of nuclear radiation fields, and radiation shield design and evaluation.
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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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.
The tour starts at the Talbot Laboratory where the department of Nuclear Plasma and Radiological Engineering is located. Here, students will get to see the Virtual Education and Research Laboratory and learn how virtual reality technology can be adapted and applied to educational methods. After, they will walk across the Engineering Quad to the Center for Plasma-Material Interactions where students conduct experiments on the stellarator-tokamak, HIDRA. There are also many other historical artifacts on display for participants to see. Group 1 will depart from the iHotel at 9:00 am and return at 10:55 am. Group 2 will depart at 11:00 am ad return at 12:55 pm
Group 1: April 14th, 9:00-10:55 am
Group 2: April 14th, 11:00 am-12:55 pm
Starfire Industries is located at the south end of campus and works with federal organizations such as DARPA, Homeland Security, NASA, and others. They offer services in areas like neutron radiography, fabrication, and prototyping. Starfire’s collaboration with government agencies and propensity for solving big problems related to plasma engineering make them a great place to learn about plasma processing applications. The tour departs from I-Hotel at 9:50 am and arrives at the I-Hotel at 11:10 am
April 14th: 9:50-11:10 am
Located in Morris, IL. Dresden Nuclear Generating Station was the first commercial nuclear power plant in the United States. Dresden has two operating BWR reactors, Units 2 and 3, as well as the original “death star,” reactor Unit 1, that can be toured.
April 14th: 7:30am-4:30pm
Triptych brews beer on a modern 3-vessel, 15 barrel, steam-powered brew system capable of producing almost anything our brewers can dream up. At any given time, they are fermenting more than 300 barrels of up to 12 different beers in a facility that has been lovingly dubbed “The Memery”. This tour departs from I-Hotel at 11:50 am and arrives at the I-Hotel at 3:10 pm
April 14th: 11:50-3:10pm
Cost $15 (Must be 21 or older)
Workshop
Description
HIDRA (2-5pm)
Learn about the stellarator-tokamak fusion device at the Center for Plasma-Material Interactions along with exciting experiments to solve some of the toughest problems in fusion energy.
Resume/Career Building (2pm-5pm)
This workshop helps students prepare resumes and interview skills before the career fair at the conference.
Advanced Reactors Focus Group (9am-12pm)
Opportunity to discuss with members of the Department of Energy Loans Program which reactor types excite you the most.
Introduction to Machine Learning (9am-12pm)
Come learn about the exciting applications of machine learning in reactor physics and core design.
Scientific Computing (2-5pm)
Learn some of the key concepts needed to use powerful computing resources.
Last modified April 6, 2022, 10:08am CDT
