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.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Swiss nuclear power and the case for long-term operation
Designed for 40 years but built to last far longer, Switzerland’s nuclear power plants have all entered long-term operation. Yet age alone says little about safety or performance. Through continuous upgrades, strict regulatory oversight, and extensive aging management, the country’s reactors are being prepared for decades of continued operation, in line with international practice.
John Parmentola, John Rawls
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 61 | Number 1 | January 2012 | Pages 9-14
Plenary | Proceedings of the Fifteenth International Conference on Emerging Nuclear Energy Systems | doi.org/10.13182/FST12-A13389
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Nuclear power has much to offer in addressing the nation's energy security needs in an environmentally acceptable manner. But today's fission technology cannot accomplish this without adding to the ever-increasing volume of high-level waste; these waste concerns may be the limiting factor in the use of nuclear power. Breeder reactors had been considered as a way to solve this problem; however, because of cost and proliferation concerns, breeders are increasingly unlikely to be commercialized. In an attempt to allow nuclear power to reach its full economic potential, General Atomics is developing the Energy Multiplier Module (EM2). EM2 is a gas-cooled compact fast reactor that augments its fissile fuel load with either spent fuel or depleted uranium. This provides the additional fertile material to allow the reactor to both create and burn fuel in situ. This results in a core that will last decades without fuel supplementation or shuffling. The end-of-cycle fuel can be treated in a manner that does not separate actinides, permitting reuse in subsequent generations at reduced proliferation risk. Proliferation resistance is further enhanced because no enrichment is required beyond that needed for the first generation fuel load. Waste problems are mitigated by several factors: higher burnup, fuel use in multiple generations, and conversion of existing waste to energy.