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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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Utility Working Conference and Vendor Technology Expo (UWC 2024)
August 4–7, 2024
Marco Island, FL|JW Marriott Marco Island
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
Virginia utility considers SMRs
Dominion Energy Virginia has issued a request for proposals from leading nuclear companies to study the feasibility of putting a small modular reactor at its North Anna nuclear power plant.
While the utility says it is not a commitment to build an SMR at the site, the RFP is “an important first step in evaluating the technology and the North Anna site to support Dominion Energy customers’ future energy needs consistent with the company’s most recent Integrated Resource Plan.”
Wolfgang Goll, Hans-Peter Fuchs, Reiner Manzel, Fritz U. Schlemmer
Nuclear Technology | Volume 102 | Number 1 | April 1993 | Pages 29-46
Technical Paper | Mixed-Oxide Fuel / Nuclear Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT93-A34800
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Recycling of plutonium in light water reactors in the Federal Republic of Germany began in 1966, and through the subsequent years, has reached a commercial state. Irradiation programs and postirradiation examinations (PIEs) of modern, highly soluble mixed-oxide (MOX) fuel of the ammonium uranyl plutonyl carbonate/optimized co-milling type have been carried out since 1981 to evaluate fuel performance and to verify the data base for design. The results of PIEs on MOX fuel rods with burnups ranging from 6 to 47 G Wd/tonne heavy metal are described. The dimensional behavior of the MOX fuel rods is found to be almost identical to that of UO2 fuel rods. Densification and swelling of MOX fuel are governed by the behavior of the UO2 matrix as well as the porosity that develops in the MOX agglomerates. Little uranium-plutonium interdiffusion occurs in MOX fuel irradiated under normal power reactor conditions, but substantial redistribution is found in the high-temperature region of transient-tested fuel. Fission gas release from the MOX agglomerates occurs via the UO2 matrix, resulting in release behavior similar to that of UO2 fuel. A comparison of the relevant physical properties of UO2 and MOX fuel shows that no distinct difference in the fission product release behavior of defective MOX fuel is to be expected. The available data base does not indicate any MOX-specific characteristic that could limit the burnup potential of this fuel compared with UO2 fuel.