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
Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
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
First astatine-labeled compound shipped in the U.S.
The Department of Energy’s National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) on March 31 announced the successful long-distance shipment in the United States of a biologically active compound labeled with the medical radioisotope astatine-211 (At-211). Because previous shipments have included only the “bare” isotope, the NIDC has described the development as “unleashing medical innovation.”
Bin Liu, Juan Fu, Xuefeng Lyu, Wenqiang Li, Jinsheng Han
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 192 | Number 3 | December 2018 | Pages 298-310
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2018.1509570
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Using the MCNP code, we explore three different 99Tc loading patterns in pressurized water reactor (PWR) burnable poison rods (BPRs). We also calculate the effects on the PWR keff and boric acid concentration readjusted amount after loading 99Tc transmutation material into PWR BPRs. Finally, we carry out the transmutation rate and depletion calculation.
After the 99Tc transmutation material is mixed homogeneously with burnable poison (BP) in the BPRs, keff slightly increases. As the amount of 99Tc coating on the BPRs increases, keff decreases gradually and slightly; this result is similar to the tendency of keff to decrease after applying a thin-layer coating of minor actinide in the BPRs. Our calculation results show that as the coating thickness of 99Tc in the water gap of BPRs increases, keff decreases correspondingly. The more BPR water gaps are filled in with 99Tc transmutation material, the sharper is the decrease of keff. If 99Tc fills in the water gaps of 12 BPRs of each fuel assembly, the coating thickness is 0.02 cm, and the corresponding total 99Tc coating amount is 206.76 kg. This is the annual 99Tc yield of more than three PWRs.
Our calculations also indicate that the more 99Tc is loaded into the PWR, the more boric acid concentration needs to be reduced in the coolant. For instance, if the 99Tc coating thickness in the water gaps is 0.02 cm, when 99Tc fills in 12 BPR water gaps of each fuel assembly, a boric acid concentration of 75 parts per million must be reduced from the PWR primary coolant to allow the PWR return to criticality. The transmutation rate and burnup calculation results indicate that 99Tc mixed homogeneously with BP may be a satisfactory 99Tc loading pattern in 99Tc transmutation in PWRs.
