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Division Spotlight
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.
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.
Eugene A. Eschbach
Nuclear Technology | Volume 41 | Number 2 | December 1978 | Pages 168-179
Technical Paper | Extraction of Energy From Nuclear Fuels Without Reprocessing to Separate Plutonium / Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT78-A32102
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A review of the plutonium fuel recycle program (1955–1967) did not reveal an economically compelling alternative fuel cycle to slightly enriched uranium, plutonium recycle, or the plutonium breeder. The review included systems involving no chemical separations compared with slightly enriched uranium once through. Nor did freestanding thorium systems appear economic, although synergisms between uranium and thorium may be worth considering, including reduced-density thorium fuels with high fuel durability as an alternative to uranium load following and peaking fuel. The crossed progeny system involving 233U enrichment of uranium in light water reactors (LWRs) and conversion of the plutonium to 233U in fast reactors may offer a method of providing a high-performance denatured LWR fuel for the period beyond the availability of economic slightly enriched uranium.
