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
Operations & Power
Members focus on the dissemination of knowledge and information in the area of power reactors with particular application to the production of electric power and process heat. The division sponsors meetings on the coverage of applied nuclear science and engineering as related to power plants, non-power reactors, and other nuclear facilities. It encourages and assists with the dissemination of knowledge pertinent to the safe and efficient operation of nuclear facilities through professional staff development, information exchange, and supporting the generation of viable solutions to current issues.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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
May 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
TerraPower begins U.K. regulatory approval process
Seattle-based TerraPower signaled its interest this week in building its Natrium small modular reactor in the United Kingdom, the company announced.
TerraPower sent a letter to the U.K.’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, formally establishing its intention to enter the U.K. generic design assessment (GDA) process. This is TerraPower’s first step in deployment of its Natrium technology—a 345-MW sodium fast reactor coupled with a molten salt energy storage unit—on the international stage.
J. L. Stakebake, H. N. Robinson
Nuclear Technology | Volume 33 | Number 1 | April 1977 | Pages 30-39
Technical Paper | Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT77-A31761
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The release of PuO2 from plutonium-contaminated burning sodium and liquid sodium under a nitrogen atmosphere has been measured. Also investigated was the release of β-Na4PuO5 from burning sodium. Plutonium concentrations in the initial sodium pool ranged from 13 to 250 ppm. Plutonium dioxide concentrations in the aerosol released from the burning sodium ranged from 5.6 to 1360 ppb. The PuO2 released along with the sodium metal, when the sodium pool was heated in nitrogen at 540°C, varied from 67 to 3632 ppb. The release of β-Na4PuO5 from burning sodium was very small and could only be detected using nuclear track techniques and extended alpha counting. Aerosol particles followed a log-normal particle size distribution. The count mean diameter was 0.48 µm for PuO2 and 0.98 µm for Na2Ox.
