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Division Spotlight
Radiation Protection & Shielding
The Radiation Protection and Shielding Division is developing and promoting radiation protection and shielding aspects of nuclear science and technology — including interaction of nuclear radiation with materials and biological systems, instruments and techniques for the measurement of nuclear radiation fields, and radiation shield design and evaluation.
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
Latest News
TerraPower begins U.K. regulatory approval process
Seattle-based TerraPower signaled its interest this week in building its Natrium small modular reactor in the United Kingdom, the company announced.
TerraPower sent a letter to the U.K.’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, formally establishing its intention to enter the U.K. generic design assessment (GDA) process. This is TerraPower’s first step in deployment of its Natrium technology—a 345-MW sodium fast reactor coupled with a molten salt energy storage unit—on the international stage.
H. Oomura, M. Akiyama, K. Hiya
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 8 | Number 1 | July 1985 | Pages 625-629
Blanket and First-Wall Engineering | Proceedings of the Sixth Topical Meeting on the Technology of Fusion Energy (San Francisco, California, March 3-7, 1985) | doi.org/10.13182/FST85-A40109
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The lifetime evaluation study for a fusion reactor first wall was performed using newly developed one-dimensional analysis code. Since the in-vessel components are exposed to a severe and complex environment, the evaluation of their lifetime is required for the design of fusion reactors. In the present paper, the first wall was assumed to be a flat plate and free to expand but not bend. Linear fracture mechanies was used to investigate the crack growth behavior and parametric surveillance was performed changing the swelling rate, initial crack length and wall loading. It is concluded that 1) the crack growth from the plasma side will limit the lifetime of the first wall, and 2) fracture toughness and initial crack length are the most important limiting factors for the first wall lifetime.