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
Reactor Physics
The division's objectives are to promote the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the fundamental physical phenomena characterizing nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems. The division encourages research and disseminates information through meetings and publications. Areas of technical interest include nuclear data, particle interactions and transport, reactor and nuclear systems analysis, methods, design, validation and operating experience and standards. The Wigner Award heads the awards program.
Meeting Spotlight
Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2025)
February 3–6, 2025
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
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 Science and Engineering
February 2025
Nuclear Technology
January 2025
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Latest News
Reboot: Nuclear needs a success . . . anywhere
The media have gleefully resurrected the language of a past nuclear renaissance. Beyond the hype and PR, many people in the nuclear community are taking a more measured view of conditions that could lead to new construction: data center demand, the proliferation of new reactor designs and start-ups, and the sudden ascendance of nuclear energy as the power source everyone wants—or wants to talk about.
Once built, large nuclear reactors can provide clean power for at least 80 years—outlasting 10 to 20 presidential administrations. Smaller reactors can provide heat and power outputs tailored to an end user’s needs. With all the new attention, are we any closer to getting past persistent supply chain and workforce issues and building these new plants? And what will the election of Donald Trump to a second term as president mean for nuclear?
As usual, there are more questions than answers, and most come down to money. Several developers are engaging with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission or have already applied for a license, certification, or permit. But designs without paying customers won’t get built. So where are the customers, and what will it take for them to commit?
B. R. Dickey, B. R. Wheeler, J. A. Buckham
Nuclear Technology | Volume 24 | Number 3 | December 1974 | Pages 371-382
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste | doi.org/10.13182/NT74-A31500
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Candidate processes for commercial high-level waste solidification are radiant-heat spray calcination, rotary-kiln calcination, and fluidized-bed calcination. Radiant-heat spray and rotary-kiln calcination have been studied only on a pilot-plant scale; plant-scale fluidizeded solidification of U.S. Atomic Energy Commission high-level wastes has been operating for more than 10 years. Cold pilotlant studies using the radiant-heat spray and fluidized-bed processes are currently underway on simulated commercial wastes. Encouraging results to date show that the existing fluid-bed solidification process pioneered at the Idaho Chemical Processing Plant is applicable to commercial waste processing with some process and equipment modifications. These modifications are mainly in areas connected with uncontrolled heating during postulated collapse of the fluidized bed, off-gas cleanup, and equipment design for compatibility with total remote maintenance.
