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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.
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Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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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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Strontium: Supply-and-demand success for the DOE’s Isotope Program
The Department of Energy’s Isotope Program (DOE IP) announced last week that it would end its “active standby” capability for strontium-82 production about two decades after beginning production of the isotope for cardiac diagnostic imaging. The DOE IP is celebrating commercialization of the Sr-82 supply chain as “a success story for both industry and the DOE IP.” Now that the Sr-82 market is commercially viable, the DOE IP and its National Isotope Development Center can “reassign those dedicated radioisotope production capacities to other mission needs”—including Sr-89.
Augustus Merwin, Dev Chidambaram
Nuclear Technology | Volume 195 | Number 2 | August 2016 | Pages 204-212
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.13182/NT15-126
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
INCONEL alloy 625® (I625) was exposed to molten LiCl-Li2O-Li to evaluate the material reliability for applications involving the electrolytic reduction of uranium oxide. Samples of I625 were exposed to solutions of LiCl with 1 and 2 wt% Li2O, containing either 0, 0.5, or 1 wt% metallic lithium for 20 h at 650°C. Additional experiments exposed samples to LiCl saturated with Li2O to investigate the mechanism of interaction between materials and the melt. Postexposure sample surface morphology and chemistry were studied using scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Additionally, inductively coupled plasma–optical emission spectroscopy was used to analyze the melt to determine the alloy constituents that leached out of the coupon during the exposure. The inclusion of 0.5 wt% metallic lithium in the molten solution was found to increase the stability of chromium-rich surface films and suppress the dissolution rate of alloying elements, compared to melts of LiCl-Li2O containing no metallic Li. Alternatively, samples exposed to solutions containing 1 wt% metallic lithium did not form surface films and demonstrated evidence of chromium depletion. The degradation of materials exposed to solutions containing 1 wt% metallic lithium was observed to be different from samples exposed to solutions saturated with lithium oxide, demonstrating a chemical effect other than, or in addition to, salt basicity.