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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
Utility Working Conference and Vendor Technology Expo (UWC 2024)
August 4–7, 2024
Marco Island, FL|JW Marriott Marco Island
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
NRC engineers share their expertise at the University of Puerto Rico
Robert Roche-Rivera and Marcos Rolón-Acevedo are licensed professional engineers who work at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. They are also alumni of the University of Puerto Rico–Mayagüez (UPRM) and have been sharing their knowledge and experience with students at their alma mater since last year, serving as adjunct professors in the university’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. During the 2023–2024 school year, they each taught two courses: Fundamentals of Nuclear Science and Engineering, and Nuclear Power Plant Engineering.
Nicolae Bidica, Anisia Bornea, Nicolae Sofilca, Ciprian Bucur, Marian Curuia
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 76 | Number 3 | April 2020 | Pages 275-283
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2019.1705751
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The control of tritium permeation through the structural materials of fusion reactors is an important safety issue, and because both deuterium and tritium are fuel constituents, the effects of isotopes have to be taken into account in permeation assessments. Although various mathematical models and experiments regarding hydrogen isotope permeation through metals have been carried out so far, there are still unresolved issues like those regarding synergistic isotope effects (by which an isotope influences the permeation of another isotope when multiple isotopes permeate simultaneously). Some controversial issues of other previous steady-state work have led us to set up a non-steady-state model for multi-isotope permeation in a surface-limited regime (SLR). The mathematical model and the results obtained by numerical simulation (which are published elsewhere) have shown that in contrast to some previous steady-state approaches, the permeation flux of a heavier isotope is not reduced by the presence of a lighter one; to the contrary, it is increased. This theoretical prediction has to be verified against experimental data, and this is the goal of future work. But, the differences between multi-isotope and single-isotope permeations are not so large, and some deviations of the experimental model from the assumptions of the theoretical model (like SLR, constant partial pressures in retentate, or vacuum on the permeate side) could affect the theoretical predictions or could lead to misinterpretations of the experimental data. Therefore, these kinds of deviations and their effects have been analyzed within this work with the aim of implementing, in the experimental model, appropriate measures to mitigate these undesirable effects. The conceptual design of the proposed experimental setup and a procedure for setting some key operating parameters (like flow rates and pressure of the purge gas) are also presented.