ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
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Division Spotlight
Fuel Cycle & Waste Management
Devoted to all aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle including waste management, worldwide. Division specific areas of interest and involvement include uranium conversion and enrichment; fuel fabrication, management (in-core and ex-core) and recycle; transportation; safeguards; high-level, low-level and mixed waste management and disposal; public policy and program management; decontamination and decommissioning environmental restoration; and excess weapons materials disposition.
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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Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2024
Nuclear Technology
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Latest News
ARPA-E announces $40 million to develop transmutation technologies for UNF
The Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy (ARPA-E) announced $40 million in funding to develop cutting-edge technologies to enable the transmutation of used nuclear fuel into less-radioactive substances. According to ARPA-E, the new initiative addresses one of the agency’s core goals as outlined by Congress: to provide transformative solutions to improve the management, cleanup, and disposal of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel.
Avinash Sahu, Tessy Vincent
Nuclear Technology | Volume 192 | Number 2 | November 2015 | Pages 160-164
Technical Paper | Reprocessing | doi.org/10.13182/NT15-9
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A nonelectrolytic method for uranous preparation, deploying catalytic reduction with hydrogen and leading to highly improved kinetics and near total conversion of uranyl nitrate to uranous nitrate, has been developed. Detailed experimental studies up to 5-ℓ scale, involving selection of stable supports for the platinum-based catalyst, optimized process parameters with regard to catalyst-to-uranium (C/U) ratio, acidity, hydrazine concentration, temperature, and pressures, have led to a deployable flow sheet, for near total conversion of uranyl nitrate to uranous nitrate.
Based on the studies at various stages, a facility for making 70 ℓ of uranous per batch in 0.5-h duration has been installed, and the process has been demonstrated on a pilot scale. Active runs have been taken, with various C/U ratios, namely, 1:200, 1:250, 1:300, and 1:350, in a gas induction reactor with uranyl nitrate solution generated from the reprocessing plant.