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Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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ANS Student Conference 2025
April 3–5, 2025
Albuquerque, NM|The University of New Mexico
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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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Latest News
El Salvador: Looking to nuclear
In 2022, El Salvador’s leadership decided to expand its modest, mostly hydro- and geothermal-based electricity system, which is supported by expensive imported natural gas and diesel generation. They chose to use advanced nuclear reactors, preferably fueled by thorium-based fuels, to power their civilian efforts. The choice of thorium was made to inform the world that the reactor program was for civilian purposes only, and so they chose a fuel that was plentiful, easy to source and work with, and not a proliferation risk.
Mariia Iakovleva, Jeremy Rayner, Ken Coates
Nuclear Technology | Volume 207 | Number 9 | September 2021 | Pages 1351-1365
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2020.1855947
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Small modular reactors (SMRs) are currently framed as a clean energy innovation with a vital role to play in decarbonizing power production. We review two popular sustainability transitions frameworks—strategic niche management and technological innovation systems— for case studies of analogous clean technology innovations. We focus on those that include policy-relevant recommendations that could be applied to the challenges posed by successfully scaling up SMRs from prototypes to commercial production. Particular attention is paid to how each approach understands the linkages between technology and the broader social and economic context. Innovative features of this paper include a systematic review of the lessons from renewable energy case studies for engagement with policy practitioners; reflections on the challenges of applying Euro-centric approaches in the sustainability transitions literature to non-European environments, including remote, northern, and indigenous communities; and some preliminary lessons for policy development that reflect the current situation with SMRs and support evidence-informed decision making in communities currently considering SMRs as part of a future clean energy mix.