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Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver 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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Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
Amir N. Nahavandi, Richard F. von Hollen
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 20 | Number 4 | December 1964 | Pages 392-413
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE64-A20982
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A one-dimensional space-dependent dynamic analysis of boiling water reactors, for direct, indirect or dual cycle systems with forced or natural circulation is presented. The analytical model consists of space-dependent neutron kinetics equations for the reactor core, and flow-conservation equations for the reactor coolant system developed in terms of length along the flow path and time. The resulting set of non-linear partial differential equations is expressed spatially in finite-difference form and integrated numerically in time to obtain the space- and time-dependent system variables. The effect of system-pressure variation is neglected. The mathematical model and numerical procedures employed in this study are verified against available test data from the Levy and Beckjord experimental boiling loop. Analytical predictions of the threshold of instability and the frequency of oscillations are shown to be in agreement with the test data. Studies of the uncontrolled and controlled behavior of a 110-MWe direct cycle boiling water nuclear power station confirm that, in contrast with natural-circulation loops, forced-circulation boiling systems have a high degree of hydrodynamic stability. However, an inappropriate selection of control-system parameters may induce nuclear power instability in both natural- and forced-circulation plants. The theoretical approach presented maybe successfully employed as a powerful tool for the determination of the system stability, as well as for evaluation of the degree of effectiveness and relative merits of various system power-control techniques.