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2024 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
November 17–21, 2024
Orlando, FL|Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld
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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.
J. J. KEPES, L. A. MIKOLEIT, R. G. SERENKA
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 14 | Number 1 | September 1962 | Pages 11-16
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE62-A26194
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Differential measurements of the epicadmium and total U238 radiative capture have been obtained in thin natural uranium-niobium plates and compared to several theoretical models. These fuel elements were located in Zircaloy-2 boxes, which in turn were placed in a light water moderated critical assembly at ambient temperatures. A Monte Carlo calculation with the assumption of a smooth 3.3 b contribution predicted the spatial epicadmium activation through a natural uranium fuel plate positioned in the center of the Zircaloy-2 box. It was observed that the integrated epicadmium U238 radiative capture in the end fuel plate of the Zircaloy-2 box was 1.27 times the capture in the center fuel plate. This sharp end-to-center dipping was due to a water channel located next to the fuel box. An analytic calculation based on the thin resonance theory of Stein gave a value of 1.16 for this end-to-center ratio. The experimental integrated values for ρ28, the ratio of epicadmium to thermal captures, were 0.893 ± 0.009 in the center fuel plate, 0.765 ± 0.014 in the second from the end plate, and 0.851 ± 0.011 in the end plate. The value of ρ28 obtained using a diffusion theory approximation for these plates was 4.7%, 7.5%, and 21.7% below experiment. The prediction in the end plate was improved when the Stein theory was utilized to calculate the resonance capture.