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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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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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Deep Space: The new frontier of radiation controls
In commercial nuclear power, there has always been a deliberate tension between the regulator and the utility owner. The regulator fundamentally exists to protect the worker, and the utility, to make a profit. It is a win-win balance.
From the U.S. nuclear industry has emerged a brilliantly successful occupational nuclear safety record—largely the result of an ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) process that has driven exposure rates down to what only a decade ago would have been considered unthinkable. In the U.S. nuclear industry, the system has accomplished an excellent, nearly seamless process that succeeds to the benefit of both employee and utility owner.
Y. Gu, M. Williams, R. Stubbers, G. Miley
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 30 | Number 3 | December 1996 | Pages 1342-1346
Innovative Approaches to Fusion Energy | doi.org/10.13182/FST96-A11963135
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Inertial electrostatic confinement (IEC) fusion confines high energy ions in potential wells, where their increased energy and density yields a high fusion rate. Studies of the IEC at the University of Illinois (UI) initially concentrated on steady-state operation where neutron yields of ~106 D-D n/s are routinely obtained. However, the development of a pulsed configuration has been undertaken to provide higher neutron yields. Preliminary experiments have demonstrated I2 scaling during pulsed operation when the perveance threshold of 2.2 mA/kV3/2 is exceeded. Based on these results, it appears that the present IEC could be operated with 3-A, 100-kV repetitive pulses with a 10% duty factor to produce neutron yields of ~1010 neutrons/second.