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Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2025)
February 3–6, 2025
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
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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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Article considers incorporation of AI into nuclear power plant operations
The potential application of artificial intelligence to the operation of nuclear power plants is explored in an article published in late December in the Washington Examiner. The article, written by energy and environment reporter Callie Patteson, presents the views of a number of experts, including Yavuz Arik, a strategic energy consultant.
Gunzo Uchiyama, Sachio Fujine, Shinobu Hotoku, Mitsuru Maeda
Nuclear Technology | Volume 102 | Number 3 | June 1993 | Pages 341-352
Technical Paper | Enrichment and Reprocessing System | doi.org/10.13182/NT93-A17033
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A new neptunium, plutonium, and uranium separation process using n- and iso-butyraldehydes as reductantsfor Np(VI) and Pu(IV), respectively, is described for nuclear fuel reprocessing. A kinetics study and a chemical flow sheet study are conducted to develop the selective separation process for neptunium, plutonium, and uranium. In the kinetics study, it is found that n-butyraldehyde reduces Np(VI) to Np(V) in the Purex solution but does not reduce Pu(IV) and U(VI), and iso-butyraldehyde reduces Np(VI) and Pu(IV) but does not reduce U(VI). Based on these results, a new process to separate neptunium, plutonium, and uranium selectively is proposed. The process consists mainly of three steps: the codecontamination step, the neptunium separation step [in which Np(VI) extracted by a solvent of 30% tri-n-butyl phosphate (TBP)/n-dodecane together with Pu(IV) and U(VI) is reduced to Np(V) by n-butyraldehyde and is back-extracted from the solvent], and the uranium/plutonium (U/Pu) partition step using iso-butyraldehyde as a Pu(IV) reductant. In the chemical flow sheet study, the effectiveness of the separation process is demonstrated by the use of miniature mixer-settlers. In the neptunium separation step, ∼99.98% of the neptunium extracted by the 30% TBP/n-dodecane solvent along with U(VI) in the uranium/neptunium coextraction step is reduced by n-butyraldehyde and separated from the uranium stream. In the U/Pu partition step, >99% of the plutonium is reduced by iso-butyraldehyde and separated from the uranium stream.