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.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 ANS Annual Conference
May 31–June 3, 2026
Denver, CO|Sheraton Denver
Latest Magazine Issues
Mar 2026
Jan 2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
April 2026
Nuclear Technology
February 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Oklo provides updates on DOE, NRC approvals
On March 17, Oklo released a series of four press releases in the span of a few hours containing some of the first substantial updates the company has given on its various approval processes with the Department of Energy and Nuclear Regulatory Commission since January.
Specifically, Oklo announced that it has received two nuclear safety design agreement (NSDA) approvals from the DOE and a materials license from the NRC.
R. F. Domagala, T. C. Wiencek, H. R. Thresh
Nuclear Technology | Volume 62 | Number 3 | September 1983 | Pages 353-360
Technical Note | Nuclear Fuel | doi.org/10.13182/NT83-A33258
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
As part of the National Reduced Enrichment Research and Test Reactor Program, Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) is engaged in a fuel alloy development project. The reduction of the 235U enrichment from above 90% to below 20% for such fuels would lessen the risk of diversion of the fuel for nonpeaceful uses. Fuel alloy powder prepared with low-enrich-ment uranium (<20% 235U) is dispersed in an aluminum matrix, and metallurgically roll bonded within a cladding of 6061 aluminum alloy. Miniplates with up to 55 vol% fuel alloy (up to 7.0 g total U/cm3) have been successfully fabricated. Fifty-five of these plates have been or are being irradiated in the Oak Ridge Research Reactor. Three fuel alloys have been used in the ANL miniplates: U3Si (U+4 wt% Si), U3Si2 (U + 7.5 wt% Si), and “U3SiAl” (U + 3.5 wt% Si + 1.5 wt% Al). All are candidates for permitting higher fuel loadings and thus lower enrichments of 235U than would be possible with either UAlx or U3O8, the current fuels for plate-type elements. A target loading of up to 7.0 g U/cm3 in the fuel zone was selected. To date the fabrication and irradiation results with the silicide fuels have been encouraging, and as an adjunct to the development effort, ANL is engaged in the early stages of technology transfer with commercial fabricators of fuel elements for research reactors. Continuing effort also involves the development of a technology for full-sized plate fabrication and the irradiation of miniplates to a burnup of ∼90% 235 U depletion.