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Conference Spotlight
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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The RAIN scale: A good intention that falls short
Radiation protection specialists agree that clear communication of radiation risks remains a vexing challenge that cannot be solved solely by finding new ways to convey technical information.
Earlier this year, an article in Nuclear News described a new radiation risk communication tool, known as the Radiation Index, or, RAIN (“Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication,” NN, Jan. 2025, p. 36). The authors of the article created the RAIN scale to improve radiation risk communication to the general public who are not well-versed in important aspects of radiation exposures, including radiation dose quantities, units, and values; associated health consequences; and the benefits derived from radiation exposures.
W. M. Stacey, K. A. Boakye, S. K. Brashear, A. C. Bryson, K. A. Burns, E. J. Bruch, S. A. Chandler, O. M. Chen, S. S. Chiu, J.-P. Floyd, C. J. Fong, S. P. Hamilton, P. B. Johnson, S. M. Jones, M. Kato, B. A. MacLaren, R. P. Manger, B. L. Meriwether, C. Mitra, K. R. Riggs, B. H. Shrader, J. C. Schulz, C. M. Sommer, T. S. Sumner, J. S. Wagner, J. B. Weathers, C. P. Wells, F. H. Willis, Z. W. Friis, J. I. Marquez-Danian, R. W. Johnson, C. de Oliveira, H. K. Park, D. W. Tedder
Nuclear Technology | Volume 159 | Number 1 | July 2007 | Pages 72-105
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management and Disposal | doi.org/10.13182/NT07-A3857
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The design concept for a subcritical, He-cooled, fast reactor, fueled with transuranics (TRUs) from spent nuclear fuel in coated TRISO particles and driven by a tokamak D-T fusion neutron source, is being developed at Georgia Institute of Technology. The basic concept has been developed in two previous papers. This paper reports (a) advances in the design concept intended to enable achievement of "deep-burn" of the TRUs and passive safety, (b) investigations of the possibility of reprocessing the TRISO TRU fuel and of extending the strength of the fusion neutron source, (c) more extensive analyses to confirm and improve the design with respect to the adequacy of the fuel and nuclear performance, heat removal, tritium self-sufficiency and shielding, (d) more extensive analyses to confirm that the International Tokamak Experimental Reactor divertor, magnet and heating/current drive systems can be adapted, and (e) fuel cycle analyses to further investigate the contribution that such a reactor could make to closing the nuclear fuel cycle.