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Members focus on the dissemination of knowledge and information in the area of power reactors with particular application to the production of electric power and process heat. The division sponsors meetings on the coverage of applied nuclear science and engineering as related to power plants, non-power reactors, and other nuclear facilities. It encourages and assists with the dissemination of knowledge pertinent to the safe and efficient operation of nuclear facilities through professional staff development, information exchange, and supporting the generation of viable solutions to current issues.
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ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Argonne research aims to improve nuclear fuel recycling and metal recovery
Servis
Scientists at Argonne National Laboratory are investigating a used nuclear fuel recycling technology that could lead to a scaled-down and more efficient approach to metal recovery, according to a recent news article from the lab. The research, led by Argonne radiochemist Anna Servis with funding from the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E), could have an impact beyond the nuclear fuel cycle and improve other high-value metal processing, such as rare earth recovery, according to Argonne.
The research: Servis’s work is being carried out under ARPA-E’s CURIE (Converting UNF Radioisotopes Into Energy) program. The specific project—Radioisotope Capture Intensification Using Rotating Packed Bed Contactors—started in 2023 and is scheduled to end in January 2026.
P. T. Lang, B. Ploeckl, M. Bernert, A. Bock, R. Dux, A. Kallenbach, V. Rohde, M. Siccinio, W. Suttrop, A. Zito, and the ASDEX Upgrade Team
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 77 | Number 1 | January 2021 | Pages 42-50
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2020.1842713
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Xenon is a potential candidate as a pedestal and edge radiator in DEMO, but it is considered troublesome in cases where larger amounts have to be handled in the fuel cycle. Hence, direct and efficient codeposition inside the confined plasma with the fuel injected by means of solid cryogenic pellets is regarded as more favorable than simple gas puffing. At ASDEX Upgrade, investigations are underway to develop a versatile reactor-relevant pellet actuator. Equipped with an accordingly set up pellet launching system and well diagnosed, this all-metal-wall tokamak is well suited for this task. Here, we report on efforts to produce and inject pellets made from deuterium with a reasonable amount of admixed xenon. Results indicate xenon supply via carrier fueling pellets is possible while showing advanced performance. Compared to xenon gas puffing where long latency is observed, presumably due to wall sticking, doped pellets provide much shorter response times. Hence, this first exploration suggests fueling pellets with admixed auxiliary gases can be a versatile, efficient, and fast actuator for additional control features such as, e.g., radiative plasma cooling.