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Division Spotlight
Reactor Physics
The division's objectives are to promote the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the fundamental physical phenomena characterizing nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems. The division encourages research and disseminates information through meetings and publications. Areas of technical interest include nuclear data, particle interactions and transport, reactor and nuclear systems analysis, methods, design, validation and operating experience and standards. The Wigner Award heads the awards program.
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!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
March 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
February 2025
Latest News
WEST claims latest plasma confinement record
The French magnetic confinement fusion tokamak known as WEST maintained a plasma in February for more than 22 minutes—1,337 seconds, to be precise—and “smashed” the previous record plasma duration for a tokamak with a 25 percent improvement, according to the CEA, which operates the machine. The previous 1,006-second record was set by China’s EAST just a few weeks prior. Records are made to be broken, but this rapid progress illustrates a collective, global increase in plasma confinement expertise, aided by tungsten in key components.
Hideko Komoriya, Wallace F. Walters
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 64 | Number 2 | October 1977 | Pages 576-581
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE77-A27391
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The effectiveness of the energy-dependent finite element method (EDFEM) as applied to two-dimensional multigroup diffusion problems is investigated. The EDFEM couples the finite element method (FEM) formalism with the energy-dependent element size scheme. The EDFEM allows the elements to straddle material interfaces if certain conditions are satisfied; this method is especially suitable for heterogeneous reactor calculations. Comparisons of the results obtained by the EDFEM, the FEM, and the finite difference method for a ZION I pressurized water reactor model are presented. A significant reduction of the total number of unknowns involved in the problem is accomplished by using the EDFEM, which yields a reduction of the computing time by 30%.
