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Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
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2027 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
October 31–November 4, 2027
Washington, DC|The Westin Washington, DC 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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Latest News
Disney World should have gone nuclear
There is extra significance to the American Nuclear Society holding its annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, this past week. That’s because in 1967, the state of Florida passed a law allowing Disney World to build a nuclear power plant.
Ahmed Hassanein
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 30 | Number 3 | December 1996 | Pages 713-719
Divertor Design and Experiments | doi.org/10.13182/FST96-A11963020
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Damage to plasma-facing components and structural materials of fusion reactors during abnormal plasma instabilities such as hard disruptions, edge-localized modes (ELMs), and vertical displacement events (VDEs) is considered a serious life-limiting concern for these components and materials. Plasma-facing components (PFCs) such as the divertor, limiter, and first wall will be subjected to intense energy deposition during these plasma instabilities. High erosion losses of material surfaces, large temperature increases in structural materials, and high heat flux levels and possible burnout of coolant tubes are critical issues that severely limit component lifetime and therefore diminish reactor safety and economics.
A comprehensive model that integrates various stages of plasma interaction with plasma-facing materials (PFMs) is extended to analyze and evaluate the damage that results from various plasma instabilities. Models for thermal evolution and phase change of a multilayer structural material, for the developed vapor cloud magnetohydrodynamics above the surface of the material, and for calculating the resulting radiation and its transport through this vapor cloud due to plasma/vapor interaction are dynamically coupled in a self-consistent way to evaluate various aspects of detailed time-dependent responses of PFMs. The extent of the damage to PFMs, structural materials, and coolant channels depends mainly on the total deposited plasma energy, deposition time, and the coating or surface material. During short disruption events (τd ≤ 1 ms), the initially intense evaporated material can significantly shield the PFM and reduce its further erosion. When plasma instabilities occur at longer durations, however, such as in VDEs (τd=100-300 ms), no significant self-shielding is expected; therefore, serious erosion and melting can occur. In addition, hydrodynamic instabilities and other mechanisms will further erode melt layers of metallic PFMs. Plasma instabilities of longer duration may also allow more time for conduction of deposited plasma energy from the surface to the structural material and finally to the coolant channels, where it can cause burnout. These events are analyzed parametrically for the expected range of plasma parameters for various surface materials such as beryllium, carbon, and tungsten, and for structural materials such as copper.
