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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
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!
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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.
Jack Galloway, Cetin Unal
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 182 | Number 4 | April 2016 | Pages 523-537
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NSE15-7
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
While Zircaloy-based claddings have been the workhorse for the nuclear power industry for decades, they have also demonstrated problems, particularly regarding accident scenarios. Work has been performed to assess the viability of stainless steel–based cladding in traditional light water reactors. This paper assesses the reactivity penalty of moving to stainless steel cladding using Monteburns, while attempting to minimize this penalty by increasing the fuel pellet radius and decreasing the cladding thickness. Fuel performance simulations using BISON have also been performed to quantify gains or losses in structural integrity when moving to thinner, stainless steel claddings. Thermal and irradiation creep, along with fission gas swelling, thermal swelling, and fuel relocation, are accounted for in the models for both Zircaloy and stainless steel claddings. Additional models for the lower-oxidation stainless steel APMT are also invoked where available, with irradiation data for HT9 used as a fallback in the absence of appropriate models. In this study the isotopic vectors within each natural element are varied to assess potential reactivity gains if advanced enrichment capabilities were levied toward cladding technologies. Recommendations on cladding thicknesses for a robust cladding as well as the constitutive components of a less penalizing composition are provided.