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Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
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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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?
Robert D. Nininger
Nuclear Technology | Volume 30 | Number 3 | September 1976 | Pages 224-231
Technical Paper | Uranium Resource / Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT76-A31638
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Uranium resources continue to be an important concern in assessing energy options and strategies. The question of the uranium supply for the development of nuclear power has also become one of the major focal points in the controversy over the breeder reactor program and nuclear fission energy in general. World reserves at a cutoff cost of production up to $15/lb of U3O8 are ∼1.1 million MTU, and the estimate of undiscovered potential resources ∼1.7 million MT. Exploration throughout the world has not yet identified significant numbers of new types of uranium deposits that might begin to fill the apparent gap between long-term demand and supply; that is, large intermediate-grade deposits containing 100 to 700 ppm uranium. In 1973 the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission initiated an accelerated and expanded resource evaluation program to ascertain the total U.S. uranium resource base, including the potential of areas largely ignored in past exploration. Preliminary investigations to date have indicated additional potential resources in the possible and speculative categories of ∼850 000 MT at a production cutoff cost of up to $30/lb. It is unlikely, however, that the annual production of ∼100 000 MT projected by the year 2000 could be achieved from the presently estimated resource base of 2.7 million MT—reserves plus potential—80% of which remains to be found. Thus, information to date continues to support the need for the early introduction of the breeder reactor.