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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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2024 ANS Annual Conference
June 16–19, 2024
Las Vegas, NV|Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino
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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Latest News
Proving DRACO will deliver
The United States is now closer than it has been in over five decades to launching the first nuclear thermal rocket into space, thanks to DRACO—the Demonstration Rocket for Agile Cislunar Orbit.
Hangbok Choi, Robert W. Schleicher, John Bolin
Nuclear Technology | Volume 206 | Number 7 | July 2020 | Pages 993-1009
Regular Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2019.1698936
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Fuel performance analysis was conducted for the silicon carbide (SiC) composite clad uranium carbide (UC) fuel of a 500-MW(thermal) gas-cooled fast reactor, specifically the energy multiplier module (EM2) under normal operation. The analysis consists of two parts: Part I (this paper) includes a description of design bases and criteria, fuel element design specifications, and material properties and models, while Part II includes the fuel modeling approach, computer code, and fuel design evaluation. In Part I, the design bases and criteria describe the maximum allowed material temperature, cladding stress limit for structural integrity, and cladding strain limit for hermeticity. The material properties and models have been collected from open literature and recent measurements for the UC and SiC composites, respectively. As a result of reviewing legacy UC properties and models, it is recommended to measure the as-fabricated EM2 fuel properties with high priority to the thermal conductivity, swelling rate, and mechanical strength. For the SiC composite cladding, it is recommended to refine the creep rate for its temperature and time dependence. The stress-strain model also needs to be refined for its strain rate, irradiation, and temperature dependence.