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
Thermal Hydraulics
The division provides a forum for focused technical dialogue on thermal hydraulic technology in the nuclear industry. Specifically, this will include heat transfer and fluid mechanics involved in the utilization of nuclear energy. It is intended to attract the highest quality of theoretical and experimental work to ANS, including research on basic phenomena and application to nuclear system design.
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
Fusion Science and Technology
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.
Elmar Eidelpes, Luis F. Ibarra, Ricardo A. Medina
Nuclear Technology | Volume 205 | Number 8 | August 2019 | Pages 1095-1118
Regular Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2019.1575127
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This study presents two statistical models that were developed to estimate the expected peak cladding hoop stress (CHS) and the amount of hydrogen in pressurized water reactor (PWR) spent nuclear fuel (SNF) rod cladding. Peak CHS is caused by high rod internal pressure during vacuum drying performed when transferring SNF to dry storage. During in-reactor operation of PWR fuel, the rod cladding tends to corrode and uptake hydrogen. The hydrogen content and CHS control hydride-related cladding embrittlement at low material temperatures. The two methodologies developed in this study were used to create a generic rod database with information on PWR SNF conditions. This database provides information on 100 000 randomly selected rods that form part of the current U.S. SNF inventory. According to the statistical results, the expected hydrogen content of PWR rod cladding is in a sensitive interval that may facilitate hydride reorientation. However, the modeling results suggest that the expected peak CHS of the selected rods is significantly below 90 MPa, which is the estimated lower bound stress necessary to trigger significant radial hydride embrittlement in cladding after being cooled to room temperature. Further, the results indicate that hydride embrittlement due to excessive hydrogen in cladding is unlikely. Therefore, a low probability of hydride-related embrittlement of PWR SNF cladding currently stored in the U.S. inventory is anticipated, even under consideration of low cladding temperatures after long-term SNF dry storage.