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
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jan 2025
Jul 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
February 2025
Nuclear Technology
January 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
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?
H. Thomas Blair
Nuclear Technology | Volume 49 | Number 2 | July 1980 | Pages 267-273
Nuclear Fuel Cycle | Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT80-A32489
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A full-scale nonradioactive in-can melter became operational at Pacific Northwest Laboratory in April of 1977. The furnace has six independently controlled hot zones capable of providing 30 kW each at 1200°C and is able to accommodate cans up to 710 mm (28 in.) in diameter and 2.3 m (7ft) tall. New design concepts such as placing the entire can inside the furnace, supporting the can from the bottom, and charging the in-can melter through a water-cooled spout were demonstrated with this equipment. These new concepts have resulted in the elimination both of accumulations of the materials to be melted (batch) on top of the heat-transfer plates in the cans and of unvitrified waste in the top of the can. Melting rates of 100 kg/h (220 lb/h) were attained in 610-mm-diam (24-in.-diam) cans using test batches composed of calcined simulated waste from a nitric acid solution combined with borosilicate glass-forming frit. A 10-day continuous run was made in conjunction with a heated-wall spray calciner to demonstrate the reliability and operability of the equipment. Control of the in-can melting process using only remote monitoring equipment not attached to the can was also demonstrated.