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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
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?
K. Vinjamuri, D. E. Owen
Nuclear Technology | Volume 47 | Number 1 | January 1980 | Pages 119-124
Technical Paper | Fuel | doi.org/10.13182/NT80-A32416
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Instrumented Fuel Assembly 429, an experimental assembly designed to study helium fill gas absorption and fission gas release in pressurized uranium dioxide (UO2) fuel rods used in light water reactors, is operating in the Halden Heavy Boiling Water Reactor in Halden, Norway. Preliminary assessment of results from fuel rod internal pressure measurements and from the postirradiation examination of selected fuel rods indicates that helium fill gas is absorbed into the UO2 during the first several months of operation. The fuel absorbs ∼5.7 × 10−3 cm3 He (STP)/g UO2 at the irradiation conditions of a 5.4-MPa helium pressure and a peak steady-state fuel temperature of 1500 K. The estimated effective helium diffusion coefficient is ∼1 × 10−8 cm2/s. Periodic transients with power increases of up to 50% do not drive the helium from the UO2 matrix.
