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Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
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ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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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
First astatine-labeled compound shipped in the U.S.
The Department of Energy’s National Isotope Development Center (NIDC) on March 31 announced the successful long-distance shipment in the United States of a biologically active compound labeled with the medical radioisotope astatine-211 (At-211). Because previous shipments have included only the “bare” isotope, the NIDC has described the development as “unleashing medical innovation.”
Kune Y. Suh
Nuclear Technology | Volume 106 | Number 3 | June 1994 | Pages 274-291
Technical Paper | Nuclear Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT94-A34958
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A fast-running computational model has been developed that deals with the nuclear steam supply system heat sink as a two-dimensional slice of steel with its inner and outer surfaces subjected to different thermal and material boundary conditions imposed by such surrounding media as core material, steel layer, water, and gas. This model is generally applicable to two- or one-dimensional heat sinks in the process of heatup and cooldown including liquefaction and resolidification. The numerical model and its solution technique were validated against a set of well-defined initial and boundary value problems. The computer model was applied to analyzing the temperature response of the lower head in a pressurized water reactor large-break loss of coolant accident (LOCA) with ex-vessel cooling. It was of importance to properly account for radiative heat transfer between the two exposed surfaces of the heat sink and the debris bed in the lower plenum, incorporating the physically based view factors, and to allow the heat sink to melt and relocate to the lower plenum. The model was also applied to analyzing the thermal behavior of the lower head in a boiling water reactor large-break LOCA without ex-vessel cooling. It was indicated that the vessel lower head could undergo a noticeable ablation due to the decay power generated from the debris bed in the absence of external cooling. The computer model was demonstrated to produce consistent results for the applications of practical interest in the severe accident arena.