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.
Division Spotlight
Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy
The mission of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Policy Division (NNPD) is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear technology while simultaneously preventing the diversion and misuse of nuclear material and technology through appropriate safeguards and security, and promotion of nuclear nonproliferation policies. To achieve this mission, the objectives of the NNPD are to: Promote policy that discourages the proliferation of nuclear technology and material to inappropriate entities. Provide information to ANS members, the technical community at large, opinion leaders, and decision makers to improve their understanding of nuclear nonproliferation issues. Become a recognized technical resource on nuclear nonproliferation, safeguards, and security issues. Serve as the integration and coordination body for nuclear nonproliferation activities for the ANS. Work cooperatively with other ANS divisions to achieve these objective nonproliferation policies.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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
May 2024
Jan 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
June 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Bipartisan Fusion Energy Act pushes for regulatory clarity
Padilla
Sen. Alex Padilla (D., Calif.) introduced the Fusion Energy Act (S. 4151) last month with a bipartisan group of cosponsors—John Cornyn (R., Texas), Cory Booker (D., N.J.), Todd Young (R., Ind.), and Patty Murray (D., Wash.). The legislation would codify the Nuclear Regulatory Commission’s regulatory authority over commercial fusion energy systems to streamline the creation of clear federal regulations that will support the development of commercial fusion power plants—and would require a report within one year on a study of risk- and performance-based, design-specific licensing frameworks for “mass-manufactured fusion machines.
“Congress must do everything in its power to ensure continued U.S. leadership in developing commercial fusion energy facilities,” said Padilla as he introduced the bill. “The Fusion Energy Act would provide regulatory certainty for investors as the NRC develops and streamlines frameworks for such facilities.”
Charles Forsberg, Daniel Curtis
Nuclear Technology | Volume 185 | Number 3 | March 2014 | Pages 281-295
Technical Paper | Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT13-58
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The traditional role of nuclear power has been the production of base-load electricity. However, the needs of the electricity grid are changing because of (a) the introduction of significant electricity generation by nondispatchable wind and solar and (b) increasing restrictions on using fossil fuels because of concerns about climate change. To meet these changing requirements, a fluoride-salt–cooled high-temperature reactor (FHR) with a nuclear air-Brayton combined-cycle power system is proposed. This technology (a) can be the enabling technology for a low-carbon nuclear-renewables electrical grid and (b) can substantially improve nuclear power plant economics by increasing plant revenue by 50% or more relative to a base-load nuclear power plant. This is because the plant can be operated at full power to produce base-load electricity, stabilize the grid, produce process heat to reduce sales of low-priced electricity, and produce peak electricity with auxiliary natural gas or hydrogen. The market basis for this reactor is described with implications on the design requirements for an FHR.