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
Mathematics & Computation
Division members promote the advancement of mathematical and computational methods for solving problems arising in all disciplines encompassed by the Society. They place particular emphasis on numerical techniques for efficient computer applications to aid in the dissemination, integration, and proper use of computer codes, including preparation of computational benchmark and development of standards for computing practices, and to encourage the development on new computer codes and broaden their use.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Apr 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
April 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
General Kenneth Nichols and the Manhattan Project
Nichols
The Oak Ridger has published the latest in a series of articles about General Kenneth D. Nichols, the Manhattan Project, and the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. The series has been produced by Nichols’ grandniece Barbara Rogers Scollin and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) city historian David Ray Smith. Gen. Nichols (1907–2000) was the district engineer for the Manhattan Engineer District during the Manhattan Project.
As Smith and Scollin explain, Nichols “had supervision of the research and development connected with, and the design, construction, and operation of, all plants required to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235, including the construction of the towns of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington. The responsibility of his position was massive as he oversaw a workforce of both military and civilian personnel of approximately 125,000; his Oak Ridge office became the center of the wartime atomic energy’s activities.”
Deanne Dickinson, G. Elliott Whitesides
Nuclear Technology | Volume 30 | Number 2 | August 1976 | Pages 166-189
Technical Paper | Criticality Array Data and Calculational Method / Chemical Processing | doi.org/10.13182/NT76-A31614
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Monte Carlo method for solving neutron transport problems consists of mathematically tracing paths of individual neutrons collision by collision until they are lost by absorption or leakage. The fate of the neutron after each collision is determined by the probability distribution functions that are formed from the neutron cross-section data. These distributions are sampled statistically to establish the successive steps in the neutron’s path. The resulting data, accumulated from following a large number of batches, are analyzed to give estimates of keff and other collision-related quantities. The use of electronic computers to produce the simulated neutron histories, initiated at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, made the use of the Monte Carlo method practical for many applications. In analog Monte Carlo simulation, the calculation follows the physical events of neutron scattering, absorption, and leakage. To increase calculational efficiency, modifications such as the use of statistical weights are introduced. The Monte Carlo method permits the use of a three-dimensional geometry description and a detailed cross-section representation. Some of the problems in using the method are the selection of the spatial distribution for the initial batch, the preparation of the geometry description for complex units, and the calculation of error estimates for region-dependent quantities such as fluxes. The Monte Carlo method is especially appropriate for criticality safety calculations since it permits an accurate representation of interacting units of fissile material. Dissimilar units, units of complex shape, moderators between units, and reflected arrays may be calculated. Monte Carlo results must be correlated with relevant experimental data, and caution must be used to ensure that a representative set of neutron histories is produced.