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
Robotics & Remote Systems
The Mission of the Robotics and Remote Systems Division is to promote the development and application of immersive simulation, robotics, and remote systems for hazardous environments for the purpose of reducing hazardous exposure to individuals, reducing environmental hazards and reducing the cost of performing work.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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
Apr 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
April 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
General Kenneth Nichols and the Manhattan Project
Nichols
The Oak Ridger has published the latest in a series of articles about General Kenneth D. Nichols, the Manhattan Project, and the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. The series has been produced by Nichols’ grandniece Barbara Rogers Scollin and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) city historian David Ray Smith. Gen. Nichols (1907–2000) was the district engineer for the Manhattan Engineer District during the Manhattan Project.
As Smith and Scollin explain, Nichols “had supervision of the research and development connected with, and the design, construction, and operation of, all plants required to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235, including the construction of the towns of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington. The responsibility of his position was massive as he oversaw a workforce of both military and civilian personnel of approximately 125,000; his Oak Ridge office became the center of the wartime atomic energy’s activities.”
A. H. Fleitman, A. J. Romano and C. J. Klamut
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 22 | Number 1 | May 1965 | Pages 24-32
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE65-A19759
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Mercury corrosion of Si-deoxidized, low-carbon steel was studied in 5000-h tests using four natural circulation loops with once-through boilers operating at 593°C and with 111°C of superheat. The relative effects of very small quantities of Ti or Zr additions to the Hg and the effectiveness of steel pretreatment (for 500 h at 590–620°C with a liquid Hg-Zr solution), prior to contact with boiling Hg, were determined. A fourth loop, which had no additives nor loop pretreatment, was run simultaneously. With the exception of the Hg-Zr pretreated loop, maximum depth of corrosion did not exceed 50 µm and occurred near the superheater exit where the temperature was the highest. Boiler and condenser corrosion were less than 30 µm in these latter loops. Corrosion 300–1000 µm deep was found on the downstream side of the superheater of the Hg-Zr pretreated loop, and the severity of the attack was attributed to boiling instabilities, which caused liquid Hg to come into contact with the superheater walls. Adherent iron deposits were found in the boilers and cooler liquid regions of three of the loops, but no discernible iron deposits were found in the loop with Zr added. The total quantity of mass-transferred iron (deposits and particulate) was estimated to be approximately 0.2 gm in the Zr-added loop, 0.5 gm in the Ti-added loop, 1 gm in the loop with no additions and 2 gm in the loop pretreated with Hg-Zr solution.