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Fusion Energy
This division promotes the development and timely introduction of fusion energy as a sustainable energy source with favorable economic, environmental, and safety attributes. The division cooperates with other organizations on common issues of multidisciplinary fusion science and technology, conducts professional meetings, and disseminates technical information in support of these goals. Members focus on the assessment and resolution of critical developmental issues for practical fusion energy applications.
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2024 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
November 17–21, 2024
Orlando, FL|Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld
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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
Siting of Canadian repository gets support of tribal nation
Canada’s Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) announced that Wabigoon Lake Ojibway Nation has indicated its willingness to support moving forward to the next phase of the site selection process to host a deep geological repository for Canada’s spent nuclear fuel.
Bruce A. Robinson, Ned Z. Elkins, Joe T. Carter
Nuclear Technology | Volume 180 | Number 1 | October 2012 | Pages 122-138
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management and Disposal | doi.org/10.13182/NT12-A14524
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
With the United States rethinking its strategy for the management and disposal of defense high-level radioactive waste and civilian used nuclear fuel (UNF), it is an opportune time to evaluate the near-term and long-term options and requirements for the U.S. geologic repository program. In this paper, we outline a research program investigating the behavior of salt when subjected to thermal loads like those that would be present in a high-level-waste (HLW) repository. This program builds upon the knowledge base developed as a result of previous repository program efforts and the successful licensing and operation of the Waste Isolation Pilot Project Transuranic waste repository. We present a preliminary evaluation of a conceptual repository design that, in principle, exploits the positive attributes of salt as a disposal medium while balancing heat management issues against other considerations such as efficiency of disposal operations and cost. The coupled thermal-mechanical behavior of the intact and crushed salt, which influences and is influenced by the liberation and movement of water present in the salt and hydrous minerals, will ultimately control the thermal and hydrochemical conditions in the repository and at the waste package. To address key scientific issues, we advocate a combination of laboratory-scale investigations, a thermal test in the field for a configuration that replicates a small portion of our conceptual repository design, and numerical simulations conducted to develop a validated model that can be used for future repository design or performance assessment purposes. Accompanying this testing program would be a broader set of investigations that we advocate be conducted in the context of an iterative and adaptive process for systematically reducing uncertainties as we build a science-based safety case for HLW disposal in salt.