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Accelerator Applications
The division was organized to promote the advancement of knowledge of the use of particle accelerator technologies for nuclear and other applications. It focuses on production of neutrons and other particles, utilization of these particles for scientific or industrial purposes, such as the production or destruction of radionuclides significant to energy, medicine, defense or other endeavors, as well as imaging and diagnostics.
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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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General Kenneth Nichols and the Manhattan Project
Nichols
The Oak Ridger has published the latest in a series of articles about General Kenneth D. Nichols, the Manhattan Project, and the 1954 Atomic Energy Act. The series has been produced by Nichols’ grandniece Barbara Rogers Scollin and Oak Ridge (Tenn.) city historian David Ray Smith. Gen. Nichols (1907–2000) was the district engineer for the Manhattan Engineer District during the Manhattan Project.
As Smith and Scollin explain, Nichols “had supervision of the research and development connected with, and the design, construction, and operation of, all plants required to produce plutonium-239 and uranium-235, including the construction of the towns of Oak Ridge, Tennessee, and Richland, Washington. The responsibility of his position was massive as he oversaw a workforce of both military and civilian personnel of approximately 125,000; his Oak Ridge office became the center of the wartime atomic energy’s activities.”
Dylan R. Harp, Philip H. Stauffer, Phoolendra K. Mishra, Daniel G. Levitt, Bruce A. Robinson
Nuclear Technology | Volume 187 | Number 3 | September 2014 | Pages 294-307
Technical Paper | Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT13-110
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Salt formations have received recent attention for geologic disposal of heat-generating, high-level nuclear waste (HLW). Existing investigations are summarized and expanded upon using analytical and numerical models to investigate simulated temperatures in the salt after emplacement of HLW. Analytical modeling suggests that temperature variations near canisters will be smooth, indicating that the system can be approximated by a coarsely discretized numerical model. Two multidimensional parameter studies explore canister configuration using characteristics from (a) defense HLW and (b) spent nuclear fuel (SNF) waste. Numerical modeling was conducted for a disposal concept consisting of emplacement of waste canisters on the floor of drifts and covering each with salt backfill. Results indicate that waste forms with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) waste characteristics can be easily configured to maintain simulated temperatures far below 200°C at spacings as close as 0.3 m (∼1 ft), the minimum feasible spacing that could practically be achieved. For SNF waste packaged into canisters with heat loads of 1500 or 1000 W with canister spacing of 6 m (∼20 ft) and 3 m (∼10 ft), respectively, simulated temperatures can be maintained below 200°C; much higher maximum temperatures would result for designs with higher canister heat loads and smaller spacings. These results indicate that from a thermal loading perspective, in-drift disposal of HLW in salt deposits is feasible for DOE-managed waste as long as the maximum temperature is managed through proper selection of canister heat loads and spacings. The results will aid in the design of potential future field tests to confirm this conclusion.