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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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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.
Plenary Session
Monday, October 10, 2022|8:30–10:00AM EDT|Salon A/B
Rita BaranwalWestinghouse
Alina JuganANS Student Chapter President NC State University
Andrew GriffithDeputy Assistant Secretary Office of Nuclear EnergyU.S. Department of Energy
Assil HalimiPh.D. StudentMassachusetts Institute of Technology
Ala F. AlzabenSenior Vice President Commercial & Customer Center Fuel Business UnitFramatome
The TopFuel conference will feature an engaging keynote session focused on the meeting theme, Sustainovation: The time is now!! ANS NC State University Student Section President Alina Jugan will moderate an interactive discussion on innovation in nuclear fuel and what is needed to sustain the existing fleet as well as propel us into the future. The conversation will be fueled by questions from the audience that will be answered by a panel of leading experts in the light water reactor fuel field. This immersive discussion will help provide a vision into the future of nuclear energy through insightful and thoughtful dialogue. Speakers include: • Rita Baranwal (TopFuel 2022 General Chair), Chief Technology Officer, Westinghouse • Ala Alzaben, Commercial & Customer Center, Fuel Business Unit, Framatome • Andrew Griffith, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of Nuclear Energy, U.S. Department of Energy • Assil Halimi, PhD Student, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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