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Division Spotlight
Reactor Physics
The division's objectives are to promote the advancement of knowledge and understanding of the fundamental physical phenomena characterizing nuclear reactors and other nuclear systems. The division encourages research and disseminates information through meetings and publications. Areas of technical interest include nuclear data, particle interactions and transport, reactor and nuclear systems analysis, methods, design, validation and operating experience and standards. The Wigner Award heads the awards program.
Meeting Spotlight
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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August 2024
Nuclear Technology
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Latest News
Vogtle-3 shuts down for valve issue
One of the new Vogtle units in Georgia was shut down unexpectedly on Monday last week for a valve issue that has since been investigated and repaired. According to multiple local news outlets, Georgia Power reported on July 17 that Unit 3 was back in service.
Southern Company spokesperson Jacob Hawkins confirmed that Vogtle-3 went off line at 9:25 p.m. local time on July 8 “due to lowering water levels in the steam generators caused by a valve issue on one of the three main feedwater pumps.”
Youssef A. Shatilla, Eric P. Loewen
Nuclear Technology | Volume 151 | Number 3 | September 2005 | Pages 239-249
Technical Paper | Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT05-A3646
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The need for a new steady-state fast-neutron reactor has been the subject of numerous national meetings and discussions. This type of reactor will be able to open new frontiers of research for Generation IV reactors, the Space Propulsion Program, and the Advanced Fuel Cycle Initiative. With the confluence of these three programs' fast-spectrum testing needs, we set out to conceptualize a new system by looking at previous successful reactor concepts. This paper presents a new concept for a fast-spectrum test reactor that is horizontal in orientation, with individual pressure tubes running the entire length of the scattering-medium tank filled with a liquid heavy metal. This approach for a test reactor will provide more flexibility in refueling, sample removal, and ability to completely reconfigure the core to meet different users' requirements. Full core neutronic analysis of more than 14 combinations showed that a large hexagonal steam-cooled U-10Zr fuel, with a core power of 267 MW(thermal), produced a fast flux (>0.1 MeV) of 1.3 × 1015 n/cm2s averaged over the whole length of the irradiation channel. A depletion run with an initial enrichment of 20 wt% 235U had a flat reactivity curve for the first 180 days of cycle due to in-core breeding. Although considerable neutronic optimization and a thermal-hydraulic analysis remain to be performed, it appears that a reactor core with this innovative geometry could meet future fast flux testing needs.