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Going Nuclear: Notes from the officially unofficial book tour
I work in the analytical labs at one of Europe’s oldest and largest nuclear sites: Sellafield, in northwestern England. I spend my days at the fume hood front, pipette in one hand and radiation probe in the other (and dosimeter pinned to my chest, of course). Outside the lab, I have a second job: I moonlight as a writer and public speaker. My new popular science book—Going Nuclear: How the Atom Will Save the World—came out last summer, and it feels like my life has been running at full power ever since.
Hatice Akkurt
Nuclear Technology | Volume 209 | Number 8 | August 2023 | Pages 1215-1228
Research Article | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2023.2196234
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Neutron absorber materials are used in spent fuel pool (SFP) storage racks to increase storage capacity while maintaining criticality safety margins. BORAL is the most commonly used neutron absorber material in SFPs in the United States and is used in many countries, including England, Mexico, Korea, and Taiwan. This paper presents the results from an analysis of neutron absorber panels that were removed from an operating SFP. These panels provide very valuable data points due to their age and unique history since they represent rack modules that were placed in two separate SFPs. Given their history and service time, these neutron absorber panels mostly bound the absorber panels within the industry.