ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
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Division Spotlight
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
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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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.
Ralph W. Seidensticker, Howard L. Schreyer
Nuclear Technology | Volume 51 | Number 3 | December 1980 | Pages 489-498
Technical Paper | Mechanics Applications to Fast Breeder Reactor Safety / Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT80-A32584
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Prestressed concrete containment structures can withstand the highest pressures resulting from the worst accident conditions postulated for liquid-metal fast breeder reactor plants. However, in addition to pressure loads, other potential hazards exist, such as internally generated missiles, hydrogen deflagration, and sodium fire. The latter is potentially the most critical because of the high temperatures that are involved. Preliminary indications are that with a reasonable research effort focused on experiments, appropriate constitutive models, and innovative design concepts, it would be shown that this threat could also be contained. The research is proposed because there is a good possibility that prestressed concrete could withstand in a completely passive mode all of the accident scenarios that are currently being postulated. If this could be shown in a definitive sense, the social and economic benefits would be very significant.