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Division Spotlight
Decommissioning & Environmental Sciences
The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
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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
Siting of Canadian repository gets support of tribal nation
Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) announced that Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation has indicated its willingness to support moving forward to the next phase of the site selection process to host a deep geological repository for Canada’s spent nuclear fuel.
Luciano Ondir Freire, Delvonei Alves de Andrade
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 78 | Number 4 | May 2022 | Pages 259-274
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/15361055.2021.2000327
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Scientists detected 2.45-MeV neutrons and in smaller yields 4- and 5-MeV neutrons in deuterated metals under a 2.9-MeV electron beam. Such discovery could allow the use of deuterated metals at temperatures below their melting point to provide nuclear fusion reactions. Such reactions could provide fast neutrons and energy in the form of heat. This work analyzed the results of some experiments to infer the neutron multiplication rate in such environments. It also considered the possible roles that such phenomena could play in a commercial nuclear power reactor under economic and compactness constraints. It seems the best way to promote nuclear fusion is the irradiation of deuterated metals by fast neutrons. This work presents the concept of a hybrid fusion–fission reactor using fissile or fertile fuel to generate heat and fast neutrons along deuterated metals providing excess neutrons (reactivity boost). Additionally, deuterated metals also may have a role in neutron moderation requiring less volume than other moderators (water or graphite). Such a reactor, given its reactivity boost, may burn radioactive residuals (transmutation) at affordable costs while generating power. Alternatively, this hybrid fusion–fission concept could also breed fissile fuel from fertile isotopes using natural uranium as seed.