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
Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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
Jul 2025
Jan 2025
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2025
Nuclear Technology
August 2025
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Deep Space: The new frontier of radiation controls
In commercial nuclear power, there has always been a deliberate tension between the regulator and the utility owner. The regulator fundamentally exists to protect the worker, and the utility, to make a profit. It is a win-win balance.
From the U.S. nuclear industry has emerged a brilliantly successful occupational nuclear safety record—largely the result of an ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) process that has driven exposure rates down to what only a decade ago would have been considered unthinkable. In the U.S. nuclear industry, the system has accomplished an excellent, nearly seamless process that succeeds to the benefit of both employee and utility owner.
Toru Hiraoka, Kiyoshi Sako, Hideki Takano, Takeshi Ishii, Mitsuru Sato
Nuclear Technology | Volume 93 | Number 3 | March 1991 | Pages 305-329
Technical Paper | Fission Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT91-A34526
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A high-breeding fast reactor with fission product gas purge/tube-in-shell metallic fuel assemblies is proposed. Its reactor doubling time is <10 yr because fast reactors must have economical fuel breeding as well as economical electricity generation. The core has a high volume fraction of fuel (>50%) and realizes a very hard neutron spectrum. Thus, a fast-breeding 670-MW(electric) reactor with a high breeding ratio (1.84) and a short reactor doubling time (6.7 yr) is proposed. The structure of the fuel assembly, its fabrication, and the fission product gas purging mechanism are assessed and the new fuel assembly concept is determined to be feasible. Purging of the fission product gas does not affect the shielding requirement and can be managed by a small-scale cover gas treatment system because of the good fission product retention characteristics of the sodium in the fuel assemblies. The entire reactor configuration, including the intermediate heat exchangers, was assessed utilizing conventional reactor components.