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Division Spotlight
Fusion Energy
This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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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Fusion Science and Technology
May 2025
Latest News
Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
H. Y. Khater, M. E. Sawan, I. N. Sviatoslavsky, L. J. Wittenberg
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 21 | Number 3 | May 1992 | Pages 2023-2028
Safety, Recycling, and Waste Management | doi.org/10.13182/FST92-A30018
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Activation and safety analysis has been performed for the chamber, shield and Li2O coolant of the inertial confinement fusion (IFE) reactor SOMBRERO. The total activities generated in the reactor graphite chamber and steel-reinforced concrete shield at shutdown are 0.054 and 10.12 MCi, respectively. The biological dose rate at the back of the shield drops to 1.6 mrem/hr after one day of shutdown allowing for hands-on maintenance. Radwaste classification has shown that both the chamber and shield would easily qualify as Class A low level waste (LLW) according to the 10CFR61 waste disposal concentration limits (WDL). At the same time, the Li2O granules would qualify as Class C LLW. The maximum public dose from atmospheric effluents is 0.93 mrem/yr. The dose is due to tritium and its maximum value occurs at the reactor site boundary which is 1 km away from the point of tritium release. Only a small fraction (0.44%) of the graphite first wall would be mobilized during a loss of coolant accident (LOCA). During such an accident, the shield temperature would only increase by a few degrees releasing a very small fraction of its radioactive inventory. The total tritium inventory in the containment building which is assumed to be released at the onset of a severe accident is 182.6 grams. The estimated whole body (WB) early dose from a severe accident resulting in the failure of the reactor containment is 2.22 rem. The very low off-site dose eliminates the need for N-stamp nuclear grade components in SOMBRERO.
