ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jul 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2025
Nuclear Technology
August 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
The Frisch-Peierls memorandum: A seminal document of nuclear history
The Manhattan Project is usually considered to have been initiated with Albert Einstein’s letter to President Franklin Roosevelt in October 1939. However, a lesser-known document that was just as impactful on wartime nuclear history was the so-called Frisch-Peierls memorandum. Prepared by two refugee physicists at the University of Birmingham in Britain in early 1940, this manuscript was the first technical description of nuclear weapons and their military, strategic, and ethical implications to reach high-level government officials on either side of the Atlantic. The memorandum triggered the initiation of the British wartime nuclear program, which later merged with the Manhattan Engineer District.
I. Popescu, Gh. Ionita, I. Stefanescu, A. Kitamoto
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 48 | Number 1 | July-August 2005 | Pages 108-111
Technical Paper | Tritium Science and Technology - Tritium Science and Technology - Detritiation, Purification, and Isotope Separation | doi.org/10.13182/FST05-41
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The hydrophobic catalysts were originally conceived in Canada for the deuterium enrichment and tritium separation by hydrogen-liquid water isotopic exchange in nuclear field. Unlike the conventional hydrophilic catalysts, which becomes inefficient to direct contact with liquid water, the hydrophobic catalysts kept a high catalytic activity and stability, even under the direct contact with liquid water or in presence of humid gas. Based on the long experience of the authors, in the preparation, testing and evaluation of the performances of hydrophobic catalysts, and based on the reviewed references, this paper presents up-to-date R&D activities on the preparation methods and applications of the hydrophobic catalysts, in tritium separation. The objectives of the paper are: (1) to provide a database for selection of the most appropriate catalyst and catalytic packing for above mentioned processes (2) to asses and to find a new procedure for preparation of a new improved hydrophobic catalyst. From reviewed references we consider that platinum remains the most active and efficient catalytic metal and the TEFLON is the best wetproofing agent. A new improved hydrophobic Pt-catalyst has been proposed and is now underway. The main steps and experimental conditions of preparation are largely discussed. A new wet-proofing agent and a new binding agents (titanium oxide, cerium oxide, zirconium oxide) with catalytic role are proposed and tested. The physico-structural parameters of new improved catalyst have been determined and are discussed in details. The new proposal is a promising idea to improve the performances of conventional hydrophobic Pt-catalysts.