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.
Division Spotlight
Education, Training & Workforce Development
The Education, Training & Workforce Development Division provides communication among the academic, industrial, and governmental communities through the exchange of views and information on matters related to education, training and workforce development in nuclear and radiological science, engineering, and technology. Industry leaders, education and training professionals, and interested students work together through Society-sponsored meetings and publications, to enrich their professional development, to educate the general public, and to advance nuclear and radiological science and engineering.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
November 17–21, 2024
Orlando, FL|Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld
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
Aug 2024
Jan 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
October 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
August 2024
Latest News
New laws offer nuclear industry incentives for existing power plant uprates
This year, the U.S. nuclear industry received a much-needed economic boost that could help preserve operating nuclear power plants and incentivize upgrades that extend their lifespan and power output.
Signed into law in 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act offers production tax credits (PTCs) for existing nuclear power plants and either PTCs or investment tax credits (ITCs) for new carbon-free generation. These credits could make power uprates—increasing the maximum power level at which a commercial plant may operate—a much more appealing option for utilities.
Harry McNeill, Martin Becker
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 42 | Number 2 | November 1970 | Pages 220-229
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE70-A19502
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Acoustic wave propagation in a gaseous core nuclear rocket is investigated by a theoretical model. Slab geometry in a long initially uniform cavity is assumed for simplicity and the reflector-heat sink is taken to be of infinite thickness. Blackness theory is used to determine the transmission of thermal neutrons (and thereby the generation of heat) in the fissionable gas of the cavity. Mutual feedback between neutron dynamics and gas dynamics occurs by means of the density-dependence of the blackness coefficients. Numerical results indicate that neutronic feedback can be a significant influence toward stabilization of acoustic oscillations. The critical wave length (which is twice the critical core length) without neutronic feedback is calculated to be 100 cm while critical wave lengths of 150 and 232 cm were obtained for carbon and beryllium reflectors, respectively. These results show that the critical core lengths are still comparable to or shorter than typical reference core lengths (300 cm). Thus, while neutronic feedback has an effect on acoustic instability, the effect is not strong enough to alter the general conclusion that acoustic instability is a potential problem area for gaseous reactor development.