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
Aerospace Nuclear Science & Technology
Organized to promote the advancement of knowledge in the use of nuclear science and technologies in the aerospace application. Specialized nuclear-based technologies and applications are needed to advance the state-of-the-art in aerospace design, engineering and operations to explore planetary bodies in our solar system and beyond, plus enhance the safety of air travel, especially high speed air travel. Areas of interest will include but are not limited to the creation of nuclear-based power and propulsion systems, multifunctional materials to protect humans and electronic components from atmospheric, space, and nuclear power system radiation, human factor strategies for the safety and reliable operation of nuclear power and propulsion plants by non-specialized personnel and more.
Meeting Spotlight
Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2025)
February 3–6, 2025
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
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
February 2025
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
Let it RAIN: A new approach to radiation communication
Despite its significant benefits, the public perception of radiation is generally negative due to its inherent nature: it is ubiquitous yet cannot be seen, heard, smelled, or touched—as if it were a ghost roaming around uncensored. The public is frightened of this seemingly creepy phantom they cannot detect with their senses. This unfounded fear has hampered the progress of the nuclear industry and radiation professions.
G. Black, D. Shropshire, K. Araújo, A. van Heek
Nuclear Technology | Volume 209 | Number 1 | January 2023 | Pages S1-S20
Critical Review | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2022.2118626
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The nuclear energy sector is actively developing a new class of very small advanced reactors, called microreactors. This technology has disruptive potential as an alternative to carbon-intensive energy technologies based on its mobility and transportability, resilience, and independence from the grid, as well as its capacity for long refueling intervals and low-carbon emissions. Microreactors may extend nuclear energy to a new set of international customers, many of which are located where energy is at a price premium and/or limited to fossil sources. Developers are creating designs geared toward factory production where quality and costs may be optimized. This paper reviews the existing literature on the technology, potential markets, economic viability, and regulatory and institutional challenges of nuclear microreactors. The technological characteristics are reviewed to describe the wide range of microreactor designs and to distinguish them from large nuclear power plants and small modular reactor (SMR) designs.
The expanding literature on the cost competitiveness of SMRs relative to other nuclear and nonnuclear technologies is also reviewed, with an emphasis on understanding the challenges of making microreactors economically viable. A major part of this study focuses on the deployment potential of microreactors across global markets. Previous work on SMR market assessment is reviewed, and the adaptation of these studies to the deployment of microreactors is more fully examined. Characteristics that differentiate microreactors from SMRs and other energy technologies may make microreactors suitable for unique and localized applications if they can be economically competitive with other energy technologies, as well as meet regulatory and other societal requirements. Recent research on global markets for microreactors is evaluated and extended in this paper to a previously unevaluated use case in which microreactors can play a role in grid resiliency and integration with renewables. Further challenges associated with the commercialization of microreactors, in addition to cost competitiveness, are explored by examining the regulatory and safety challenges of microreactor deployment.
