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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.
Meeting Spotlight
International Conference on Mathematics and Computational Methods Applied to Nuclear Science and Engineering (M&C 2025)
April 27–30, 2025
Denver, CO|The Westin Denver Downtown
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
Argonne’s METL gears up to test more sodium fast reactor components
Argonne National Laboratory has successfully swapped out an aging cold trap in the sodium test loop called METL (Mechanisms Engineering Test Loop), the Department of Energy announced April 23. The upgrade is the first of its kind in the United States in more than 30 years, according to the DOE, and will help test components and operations for the sodium-cooled fast reactors being developed now.
Michael A. Vest, Edward F. Lewandowski, R. Dean Pierce, James L. Smith
Nuclear Technology | Volume 120 | Number 3 | December 1997 | Pages 232-242
Technical Note | Nuclear Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT97-A35414
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Design of an inductively heated bench-scale distillation furnace (retort) capable of processing actinides is described. The apparatus consists of a vacuum/inert gas bell jar, a bell-jar lift, a nonwater-cooled induction coil, the induction tank circuit, and a series of components designed to contain the metal melts and vapors. The apparatus is located within a nitrogen glovebox and is designed to process plutonium-containing feeds. The electrical parameters of the induction coil and tank circuit necessary for design were determined by two different methods; one is based solely on calculated impedance values, and the other used high-frequency impedance measurements on a mock-up of the induction coil/susceptor arrangement. During the design stage, the two methods of determining electrical parameters gave similar results. With the as-built system, the impedance meter did detect some efficiency loss to the metal bell jar and coil support that the calculational method did not predict. These losses were not significant enough to cause operating problems, and thus, both methods were shown to be adequate for the intended purpose. Zinc and magnesium were distilled, and uranium was melted in a successful series of shake-down runs.