ORP, Bechtel collaborate on plan for completing Hanford’s HLW Facility

May 22, 2024, 7:00AMRadwaste Solutions
Lourdes Legaspi, engineering automation supervisor (center) and her team are designing pipe and equipment components for the Hanford Site’s partially completed HLW Facility. A collaboration between the DOE and Bechtel National set a foundation for requirements engineers will follow in continuing the design of the facility. (Photo: DOE)

The Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management announced that its Office of River Protection (ORP) recently created a plan with contractor Bechtel National for completing the High-Level Waste Facility at the Hanford Site’s Waste Treatment and Immobilization Plant, also known as the Vit Plant.

DEI webinar highlights parents and caregivers in nuclear

May 21, 2024, 3:02PMANS News

The Diversity and Inclusion in ANS Committee on May 9 hosted a webinar titled “Our nuclear family: Empowering parents and caregivers in the nuclear industry.” The speakers, who are parents and caregivers as well as nuclear industry professionals, highlighted how the nuclear industry supports caregivers facing life transitions or focusing on parental responsibilities. They also discussed challenges and areas where the industry has room for improvement in supporting caregivers. Some of the panelists have made their own contributions to fostering inclusiveness for caregivers in the industry.

The full webinar is available for anyone to view online at ans.org/webinars/view-family24/.

Safety board has concerns about WIPP’s new ventilation system

May 21, 2024, 12:04PMRadwaste Solutions
A 125-foot-tall exhaust stack towers over the Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System’s filter building at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant. (Photo: DOE)

The Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (DNFSB), an independent government organization responsible for overseeing public health and safety issues at Department of Energy defense nuclear facilities, has alerted the DOE because of safety concerns it has regarding the use of continuous air monitors (CAM) at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant in New Mexico.

Part of WIPP’s new Safety Significant Confinement Ventilation System (SSCVS), the CAM system is intended to detect a radiological release in the repository and automatically close vent dampers to prevent the escape of radioactive particles to the outside environment. The SSCVS, which began commissioning in November 2023, is intended to increase airflow to the underground to allow for simultaneous underground waste emplacement, mining, and ground control work.

BWXT employees trained as Nuclear Ambassadors

May 21, 2024, 9:30AMANS News

BWX Technologies has partnered with the American Nuclear Society to offer customized ANS Nuclear Ambassadors training to BWXT employees. The training kicked off in February with an initial two-hour virtual event that was presented to more than 60 BWXT employees, and it wrapped in April.

BWXT is the first company to participate in ANS’s newly revamped curriculum, which trains experts in K-12 learning.

IAEA issues incident-tracking database fact sheet

May 21, 2024, 7:00AMNuclear News

Last year, 168 incidents of illegal or unauthorized activities involving nuclear and other radioactive materials were reported to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s Incident and Trafficking Database (ITDB). According to the agency, this number is in line with historical averages. These incidents were reported by 31 IAEA member states; as of 2023, a total of 145 member states have participated in the ITDB.

ORISE report focuses on nuclear engineering degrees and enrollments

May 20, 2024, 3:04PMNuclear News

There is a mix of good news and bad in the latest Nuclear Engineering Enrollment and Degrees Survey, 2021–2022 Data. According to this report from the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), compiled with data initially released in November 2023 and updated in February 2024, the number of doctoral degrees awarded in nuclear engineering at the end of the 2022 academic year in the United States—211 Ph.D.s—was the highest since the beginning of this survey’s data collection in 1966. However, the overall numbers of nuclear engineering degrees awarded in 2021 and 2022 were at their lowest levels in more than a decade. In addition, both undergraduate and graduate enrollment numbers were down compared with 2018 and 2019.

Savannah River contractor receives NSC safety awards

May 20, 2024, 9:33AMRadwaste Solutions
SRMC operators demonstrate procedure compliance during a job at the Savannah River Site’s Saltstone Production Facility. SRMC recently won national awards for demonstrating a commitment to working safely. (Photo: SRMC)

Department of Energy cleanup contractor Savannah River Mission Completion (SRMC) has garnered national recognition for its commitment to safety, recently receiving three awards from the National Safety Council: the Occupational Excellence Award, the Perfect Record Award, and the Superior Safety Performance Award.

Securing the advanced reactor fleet

May 17, 2024, 3:00PMNuclear NewsBen Cipiti, Katya Le Blanc, and Cory Hatch

Physical protection accounts for a significant portion of a nuclear power plant’s operational costs. As the U.S. moves toward smaller and safer advanced reactors, similar protection strategies could prove cost prohibitive. For tomorrow’s small modular reactors and microreactors, security costs must remain appropriate to the size of the reactor for economical operation.

Special ANS event: “Past DOE Nuclear Energy Officials Roundtable”

May 17, 2024, 12:00PMANS News

The American Nuclear Society is hosting a special online panel discussion featuring former officials from the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy. The event, “Past DOE Nuclear Energy Officials Roundtable,” will be held on Monday, May 20, from 11:00 to 12:00 p.m. (EDT).

ANS is holding the webinar in honor of Peter Lyons (1943-2021), an ANS Fellow who also was served as assistant secretary of energy for the Office of Nuclear Energy from 2011 to 2015.

Register Now: The event is complimentary and open only to ANS members. Registration will also give you access to a video recording of the panel discussion.

ANS names new Fellows, award winners ahead of Annual Meeting

May 17, 2024, 7:07AMANS News

The American Nuclear Society extends its congratulations to the new ANS Fellows and recipients of this year’s honors and awards, which will be presented at the Opening Plenary and President’s Special Session during the 2024 ANS Annual Conference. Those being honored this year have made outstanding contributions to nuclear science and technology. The full list of awards follows below.

Oklo to collaborate with Atomic Alchemy on isotope production

May 16, 2024, 3:00PMNuclear News
Oklo Inc. (Image: Gensler)

Fast reactor developer Oklo, which recently went public on the New York Stock Exchange, announced on May 13 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Atomic Alchemy to cooperate on the production of radioisotopes for medical, energy, industry, and science applications.

Upcoming ANS event: “Unlocking Africa’s Potential with Nuclear Energy”

May 16, 2024, 12:01PMANS News

The American Nuclear Society is hosting an online panel discussion exploring the future of nuclear energy in Africa. The event, “Unlocking Africa’s Potential with Nuclear Energy,” will be held on Friday, May 17, from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. (EDT).

Register now. The event is complimentary and open to all. Registration will also give you access to a video recording of the panel discussion.

Fuel cycle players signal next moves as Russian uranium ban becomes law

May 16, 2024, 7:02AMNuclear News
Uranium yellowcake is used in the preparation of uranium fuel that is used in nuclear reactors. (Photo: DOE)

On May 13, President Biden signed the Prohibiting Russian Uranium Imports Act, unlocking the $2.72 billion that Congress conditionally appropriated in March to increase production of low-enriched uranium (LEU) and high-assay low-enriched uranium (HALEU).

Join ANS for a webinar on exploring background radiation

May 15, 2024, 3:00PMANS News

The American Nuclear Society, in partnership with the Department of Energy’s Office of Nuclear Energy, is hosting its next Educator Training event, “K-12 Classroom Investigations: Exploring Background Radiation,” this Thursday, May 16, from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. (EDT).

Register now. The event is complimentary and open to all.

NEI's Korsnick delivers State of the Nuclear Energy Industry address

May 15, 2024, 11:40AMNuclear News

Korsnick

Nuclear Energy Institute president and CEO Maria Korsnick delivered her State of the Nuclear Energy Industry address at NEI’s 2024 Nuclear Energy Policy Forum yesterday. The forum this year is taking place May 14–16 in Washington, D.C., and serves to gather industry leaders, executives, and experts for pivotal conversations about the federal and state nuclear policy landscapes.

Korsnick updated attendees on policy priorities of the industry and gave her perspective on nuclear energy’s present and future.

She centered her talk on national and global priorities to secure a clean energy future at the same time as achieving energy independence and security—all while meeting a massive increase in demand for power. “Nuclear energy remains the key” to addressing these priorities, she said.

Reducing global radiological risk, moving alternative technologies forward

May 15, 2024, 9:28AMNuclear NewsKristin Hirsch

Kristin Hirsch

Radioactive materials are used in medical, research, and commercial facilities to treat cancer, irradiate blood, sterilize food and equipment, and build economies worldwide. In the wrong hands, however, even a small amount of radioactive material can do a great deal of harm. A radiological dispersal device (RDD), otherwise known as a “dirty bomb,” is believed to be an attractive weapon for terrorist groups due to its scale of impact—panic, physical contamination, costly remediation, and denial of access to facilities and locations.

The Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration Office of Radiological Security (ORS) enhances global security by preventing high-activity radioactive materials from being used in acts of terrorism. ORS implements its mission through three strategies: protecting radioactive sources used for vital medical, research, and commercial purposes by securing facilities that utilize radioactive isotopes; removing and disposing of disused sources; and encouraging the adoption and development of nonradioisotopic alternative technologies such as X-ray and electron beam irradiators.