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
Mathematics & Computation
Division members promote the advancement of mathematical and computational methods for solving problems arising in all disciplines encompassed by the Society. They place particular emphasis on numerical techniques for efficient computer applications to aid in the dissemination, integration, and proper use of computer codes, including preparation of computational benchmark and development of standards for computing practices, and to encourage the development on new computer codes and broaden their use.
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!
Latest Magazine Issues
Jun 2024
Jan 2024
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2024
Nuclear Technology
July 2024
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
NRC engineers share their expertise at the University of Puerto Rico
Robert Roche-Rivera and Marcos Rolón-Acevedo are licensed professional engineers who work at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. They are also alumni of the University of Puerto Rico–Mayagüez (UPRM) and have been sharing their knowledge and experience with students at their alma mater since last year, serving as adjunct professors in the university’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. During the 2023–2024 school year, they each taught two courses: Fundamentals of Nuclear Science and Engineering, and Nuclear Power Plant Engineering.
Jaeha Kim, Mohammad Abdul Motalab, Yonghee Kim, Gwangsoo Kim
Nuclear Technology | Volume 201 | Number 2 | February 2018 | Pages 138-154
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2017.1415087
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The power coefficient of reactivity (PCR) needs to be negative to achieve the inherent safety of a reactor. However, the possibility that the PCR of CANada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU) reactors can be positive has been raised in recent studies. In such circumstances, there was an experimental approach on evaluating the PCR of CANDU in 2012 at an in-operation CANDU reactor, Wolsong Unit 2. In the evaluation, the PCR was indirectly measured by a method that required estimating the reactivity variation due to Xe, liquid zone controllers (LZCs), and fuel depletion based on the measurement data. In this study, the PCR of a CANDU was reevaluated by the same methodology with more proper and detailed methods to estimate all the factors in addition to some minor reactivity corrections. The estimation of Xe and LZC reactivity was performed by an in-house three-dimensional code and Serpent2 in addition to RFSP-IST. Furthermore, several short studies regarding the factors that result in uncertainty of the Xe/LZC reactivity estimation were done in detail. First, a method to determine 14 LZC levels at a certain time based on the measurement data was appropriately selected through determining the features of the measurement data. The influence of the power transient scheme and the impact of local refueling transients due to daily refueling of CANDU reactors on xenon reactivity estimation were also analyzed briefly. Finally, the PCR of the CANDU in operational conditions was evaluated to be ~0.5 pcm/%P on average at a measurement time of 5 to 20 min after the power perturbation.