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Division Spotlight
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
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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Nuclear new build procurement considerations
It may seem counterintuitive, but the best time to enhance the ability to support operations and maintenance for a new plant is before construction starts. This is one of many lessons learned by the currently operating nuclear fleet. As construction and startup of many nuclear facilities was completed, it quickly became evident that the ability to efficiently support operations and maintenance was limited. Most of the information necessary to establish and manage procurement of spare and replacement items, maintenance, and configuration of the facilities was unavailable and had to be gathered on a case-by-case, “on-demand” basis. Absence of necessary information and the associated challenges resulted in the need for staff augmentation and multiyear-long projects to develop equipment bills of material and maintenance programs and to perform technical evaluations for the huge quantities of spare and replacement items being requested.
Geoffrey R. Bull, Jason O. Oakley, Michael L. Corradini
Nuclear Science and Engineering | Volume 193 | Number 3 | March 2019 | Pages 299-313
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295639.2018.1514195
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The fissioning of uranium in an aqueous solution creates 99Mo, the precursor to 99mTc, but also generates large amounts of hydrogen and oxygen from the radiolysis of the water. When the dissolved gases reach a critical concentration, bubbles will form in the solution, affecting both the fission power and the heat transfer out of the solution. Magnesium sulfate (MgSO4) was chosen as a surrogate for uranium sulfate salt in an aqueous solution for the experiments. A high aspect ratio tank was constructed to measure heat transfer from the solution with internal gas and heat generation. A fritted glass air injection manifold allowed the exploration of bubble characteristics and flow patterns on heat transfer from the heated pool to the cold walls. Experimental data analysis provided heat transfer coefficient values as a function of axial position, power density, and the superficial gas velocity in the pool. Results, including a recommended correlation for average heat transfer coefficients, are provided for superficial gas velocities between 0 and 0.3 cm/s and power densities of 200 and 400 W/L in pH 7 and pH 1 MgSO4 solutions.