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Division Spotlight
Radiation Protection & Shielding
The Radiation Protection and Shielding Division is developing and promoting radiation protection and shielding aspects of nuclear science and technology — including interaction of nuclear radiation with materials and biological systems, instruments and techniques for the measurement of nuclear radiation fields, and radiation shield design and evaluation.
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?
Alireza Behbahani, Don W. Miller
Nuclear Technology | Volume 67 | Number 1 | October 1984 | Pages 14-22
Technical Paper | Fission Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT84-A33525
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An analytical neutron sensor response model and methods for measurement of neutron sensor (compensated ionization chamber) transient response have been developed and evaluated. In situ measurement methods to meet the provisions of the Instrument Society of America Draft Standard dS67.06, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 338-1977, and U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Guide 1.118 are included. In one in situ method, the high-voltage sensor power supply is perturbed and subsequent sensor response measured. The response is analytically and experimentally related to the response of the sensor to a transient change in radiation flux. Random signal analysis was a second in situ technique evaluated to monitor the transient response of the neutron sensor. In this method the power spectrum of the inherent random fluctuations from the neutron sensor output is measured and analyzed. Transient response was experimentally and analytically evaluated to identify mechanisms that may cause degradation in the response of neutron sensors. Response time degradation was investigated by changing the sensor and signal cable response time in a predictable manner (through changes in the detector fill gas and the use of a delay line and different terminations in series or parallel with the signal cable). Sensors and attached cables having different response times were evaluated using power supply perturbation, transient change in radiation flux, and analysis of the random signals from the neutron sensor. The primary objectives of the experimental evaluation were to correlate the measured response time using transient radiation flux changes with response to a power supply perturbation and to confirm the analytical model. The primary objectives of developing the analytical model of sensor response were to predict response time and to evaluate degradation mechanisms. It is shown that degradation in neutron sensor response time, which may not be significant to the operation of a reactor protection system, is related to degradation in sensitivity and linearity, and that simulated degradation in response time can be detected through the two techniques developed.
