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Decommissioning & Environmental Sciences
The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
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?
George Emanuel*
Nuclear Technology | Volume 51 | Number 2 | December 1980 | Pages 238-243
Technical Paper | Argonne National Laboratory Specialists’ Workshop on Basic Research Needs for Nuclear Waste Management / Isotopes Separation | doi.org/10.13182/NT80-A32605
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The performance of small isotope enrichment cascades that have large separation factors is examined. A quantity called the separative work gain is derived under the assumption of a small inlet assay. This concept simplifies the determination of optimum separation factors, and verifies the common practice of using the same values for these factors for each stage in a cascade. Simple relations are provided for a non-ideal, counter-current cascade of arbitrary size. They are utilized to determine a pricing strategy and to estimate a value for the U.S. stockpile of diffusion plant UF6 tailings. The value depends on the separation factors and cost of separative work, but may well be several billion dollars.