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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
Meeting Spotlight
ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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
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Nuclear Technology
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Latest News
Norway’s Halden reactor takes first step toward decommissioning
The government of Norway has granted the transfer of the Halden research reactor from the Institute for Energy Technology (IFE) to the state agency Norwegian Nuclear Decommissioning (NND). The 25-MWt Halden boiling water reactor operated from 1958 to 2018 and was used in the research of nuclear fuel, reactor internals, plant procedures and monitoring, and human factors.
Joshua A. Hubbard, Timothy J. Boyle, Ethan T. Zepper, Alexander Brown, Taylor Settecerri, Joshua L. Santarpia, Paul Kotula, Bonnie McKenzie, Gabriel A. Lucero, Laura J. Lemieux, Joseph A. Zigmond, Nicole D. Zayas, Rose Preston, Brenda Maes, Andres L. Sanchez, Dora K. Wiemann, Fernando Guerrero, Xavier J. Robinson, Dianna Perales
Nuclear Technology | Volume 207 | Number 1 | January 2021 | Pages 103-118
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2020.1739995
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Airborne contaminants from fires containing nuclear waste represent significant health hazards and shape the design and operation of nuclear facilities. Much of the data used to formulate DOE-HDBK-3010-94, “Airborne Release Fractions/Rates and Respirable Fractions for Nonreactor Nuclear Facilities,” from the U.S. Department of Energy, were taken over 40 years ago. The objectives of this study were to reproduce experiments from Pacific Northwest Laboratories conducted in June 1973 employing current aerosol measurement methods and instrumentation, develop an enhanced understanding of particulate formation and transport from fires containing nuclear waste, and provide modeling and experimental capabilities for updating current standards and practices in nuclear facilities. A special chamber was designed to conduct small fires containing 25 mL of flammable waste containing lutetium nitrate, ytterbium nitrate, or depleted uranium nitrate. Carbon soot aerosols showed aggregates of primary particles ranging from 20 to 60 nm in diameter. In scanning electron microscopy, ~200-nm spheroidal particles were also observed dispersed among the fractal aggregates. The 200-nm spherical particles were composed of metal phosphates. Airborne release fractions (ARFs) were characterized by leaching filter deposits and quantifying metal concentrations with mass spectrometry. The average mass-based ARF for 238U experiments was 1.0 × 10−3 with a standard deviation of 7.5 × 10−4. For the original experiments, DOE-HDBK-3010-94 states, “Uranium ARFs range from 2 × 10−4 to 3 × 10−3, an uncertainty of approximately an order of magnitude.” Thus, current measurements were consistent with DOE-HDBK-3010-94 values. ARF values for lutetium and ytterbium were approximately one to two orders of magnitude lower than 238U. Metal nitrate solubility may have varied with elemental composition and temperature, thereby affecting ARF values for uranium surrogates (Yb and Lu). In addition to ARF data, solution boiling temperatures and evaporation rates can also be deduced from experimental data.