ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Division Spotlight
Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
April 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
First astatine-labeled compound shipped in the U.S.
The Department of Energy’s National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) on March 31 announced the successful long-distance shipment in the United States of a biologically active compound labeled with the medical radioisotope astatine-211 (At-211). Because previous shipments have included only the “bare” isotope, the NIDC has described the development as “unleashing medical innovation.”
D. A. Humphreys, R. D. Deranian, J. R. Ferron, A. W. Hyatt, R. D. Johnson, R. R. Khayrutdinov, R. J. La Haye, J. A. Leuer, B. G. Penaflor, J. T. Scoville, M. L. Walker, A. S. Welander
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 48 | Number 2 | October 2005 | Pages 1249-1263
Technical Paper | DIII-D Tokamak - Technologies for Next-Step Devices | doi.org/10.13182/FST05-A1075
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The integrated plasma control approach provides a systematic method for designing plasma control algorithms with high reliability and for confirming their performance off-line prior to experimental implementation. This approach includes construction of plasma and system response models, validation of models against operating experiments, design of integrated controllers that operate in concert with one another as well as with supervisory modules, simulation of control action against off-line and actual machine control platforms, and iteration of the design-test loop to optimize performance. Using this approach, required levels of robustness to model uncertainties and off-normal events can be quantified and incorporated in the design process. The DIII-D digital plasma control system (PCS) enables application of this method by providing a flexible programming environment and an architecture for real-time parallel operation of a set of computers that executes the large set of control algorithms needed for exploration of the advanced tokamak regime. The present work describes the DIII-D PCS and the approach, benefits, and progress made in integrated plasma control as applied to the DIII-D tokamak, with implications for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor design and other next-generation tokamaks.