Concerns over the planet's limited energy sources are not new. For the past half-century, scientists from around the world have explored substitutes for fossil fuels. Among them, developed nations have invested considerable resources in the development of nuclear fusion technology. Thus, in 1978, scientists and engineers from Europe, Japan, the United States, and the former Soviet Union joined together under the banner of the INTOR Workshop (INternational group working on a TOkamak Reactor) to share their individual research on nuclear fusion's viability as an energy source. Their ten years of cooperative work on the design and development possibilities for harnessing nuclear energy planted the seeds for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), construction of which began in 2008 and whose goal it is to demonstrate the scientific and technical feasibility of fusion power. Weston Stacey served as the INTOR Workshop's vice-chairman (and U.S. representative) and kept a journal in which he detailed both the scientific participants' technical work as well as their more political interactions. In this first person narrative, Stacey provides an accessible account (introducing explanatory material when necessary) of the research and development activities conducted to determine the viability of designing, constructing, and operating a tokamak experimental power reactor. Of more human interest were the obstacles the Workshop leaders and participants faced as they advanced their own countries' priorities while striving to make progress on the global future of nuclear fusion technology. Personal anecdotes illuminate the mixing of cultures and the challenges presented by the Cold War's unique political climate. While the focus of the book centers on the history of the INTOR Workshop, Stacey paints a full picture of the people and places involved in the work, how decisions were made, and how these efforts laid the groundwork for ITER's subsequent development. This text will appeal not only to those studying fusion science and engineering, but to anyone interested in a unique story of how international relations and scientific study intersect, ultimately one of collaboration for the sake of a common goal.

This book is a complete update of the classic 1981 FAST BREEDER REACTORS textbook authored by Alan E. Waltar and Albert B. Reynolds, which, along with the Russian translation, served as a major reference book for fast reactors systems. Major updates include transmutation physics (a key technology to substantially ameliorate issues associated with the storage of high-level nuclear waste ), advances in fuels and materials technology(including metal fuels and cladding materials capable of high-temperature and high burnup), and new approaches to reactor safety (including passive safety technology), New chapters on gas-cooled and lead-cooled fast spectrum reactors are also included.

Key international experts contributing to the text include Chaim Braun, (Stanford University) Ronald Omberg, (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Massimo Salvatores (CEA, France), Baldev Raj, (Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research, India), John Sackett (Argonne National Laboratory), Kevan Weaver, (TerraPower Corporation), James Seinicki(Argonne National Laboratory). Russell Stachowski (General Electric), Toshikazu Takeda (University of Fukui, Japan), and Yoshitaka Chikazawa (Japan Atomic Energy Agency). "

For operators of nuclear research facilities, it is of particular importance to investigate minor incidents: indeed, as safety demonstrations are generally based on the presence of several independent "lines of defence," only through attentive investigation of every occurrence, usually minor and of no consequence, can the level of trust placed in each of these defensive lines be confirmed, or the potential risks arising out of a possible weakness in the system be anticipated.

The efficiency of the system is based on a rigorous procedure: stringent attention to all incidents, consideration of the potential consequences of the incidents in their most pessimistic scenarios, and promotion of a broad conception of transpositions of the events, in time and space, for experience feedback.

This efficiency presumes motivation on the part of all those involved, hence the importance of dissociating from the concept of an "incident" any notion of "error" or "blame" both in internal analysis and in public communications.

The nuclear industry has developed some very progressive tools for experience feedback, which could interest also management of other technological risks.

This book presents the proceedings of a NATO Advanced Workshop dedicated to this important matter of concern.

For the first time a book has been written on the technological and scientific knowledge, acquired during, buiding , operation and even dismantling of the Superphenix plant. This reactor remains today the most powerful sodium fast breeder reactor operated in the world.(1200 MWe). The last fast breeder reactor operated in the world is BN 800 in Russia that reached his nominal power (800 MWe) in 2016. Joel Guidez began his career in the field of sodium-cooled fast reactors after leaving Ecole Centrale-Paris, in 1973. He has held various positions at Cadarache, Phenix and Superphenix, including as the head of the thermal hydraulic laboratory conducting tests for Phenix, Superphenix and the EFR European Fast Reactor project. He was also head of the OSIRIS research reactor, located at SACLAY, and of the HFR European Commission reactor, located in the Netherlands and spent two years as nuclear attache at the French embassy in Berlin. His 2012 book "Phenix: the experience feedback" was translated into English and republished in 2013, and this new book on Superphenix is in the same spirit of thematic analysis of a reactor experience feedback. Gerard Prele graduated from the Ecole Centrale-Lyon and entered EDF and the field of sodium-cooled fast reactors in 1983. In 1985 he joined Superphenix, where he was a duty engineer and was later in charge of safety. He has held various positions at Superphenix and Phenix and was a fast neutron reactor (SFR) engineer at the EDF Centre Lyonnais d'Ingenierie (CLI). He worked as Safety Security Environment and Radiation Protection Mission head in Superphenix at the beginning of dismantling and then in the field of PWR for two years. Since 2006 he has been involved in the Gen IV and the SFR/Astrid projects. Today, as an SFR/system and operations expert, one of his major roles is assisting the CEA in the preliminary design of the ASTRID reactor.

In this global wake-up call, nuclear physicist Jeff Eerkens explores remedies for the impending energy crisis, when oil and natural gas are depleted. The Nuclear Imperative demonstrates that solar, wind, and biomass power are incapable of supplying the enormous quantities of electricity and heat needed for manufacturing portable synthetic fuels to replace our current use of fossil fuels. It offers a fresh look at uranium-produced energy as the optimal affordable solution.

Energy comes in many shapes and forms, from wind, solar power, geothermal, and biomass to coal, natural gas, and petroleum. The energy we consume is constantly changing, but the use of these resources-whether renewable or nonrenewable-has long-term impacts on our planet. While there has been this recent shift to renewable energy within the United States, the worldwide demand for all energy types continues to increase at a rapid rate. In fact, it has increased by 84% over the past twenty years. Despite their dwindling supply, these resources are still heavily relied on today. Coal still accounts for 30% of the electricity generated by the United States, even though natural gas is now the primary energy used to produce electricity. Likewise, only 7% of electricity usage worldwide is linked to solar and wind energy. In The Changing Energy Mix, Paul F. Meier compares twelve renewable and nonrenewable energy types using twelve common technical criteria. These criteria span projected reserves, cost to the consumer and supplier, energy balances, environmental issues, land area required, and lasting impacts. While explaining the pros and cons of these resources, Meier takes readers through the history of energy in the United States and world. He provides insight into energy sources, such as wind-powered and solar-powered electricity (which did not exist until the mid and late 80s, respectively), and he explains the constantly evolving world of energy. Breaking down the potential promises and struggles of transitioning to a more renewable energy-based economy, Meier explains the positive and negative implications of these various sources of energy. The resulting book equips readers with a unique understanding of the history, availability, technology, implementation cost, and concerns of renewable and nonrenewable energy.

A great number of nuclear submarines are due to be decommissioned before 2000. The political decisions surrounding the disposal of nuclear compartments, radioactive wastes and spent fuel differ appreciably between the countries that own the boats. The decision makers involved thus need help in comparing and assessing alternative options for the decommissioning of their nuclear submarine fleets. The present volume offers such assistance, with its discussions of the risks associated with long-term water storage of the boats, radioactive and chemical contamination, spent fuel and waste management, and handling and recycling reactor compartments.

The aim of this book is to summarize probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) of nuclear power plants (NPPs), and to demonstrate that NPPs can be considered a safe method of producing energy, even in light of the Fukushima accident. The book examines level 1 and 2 full power, low power and shutdown probabilistic safety assessment of WWER440 reactors, and summarizes the author s experience gained during the last 35 years. It provides useful examples taken from PSA training courses delivered by the author and organized by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Such training courses were organised in Argonne National Laboratory (Chicago, IL, USA), Abdus Salaam International Centre for Theoretical Physics (Trieste, Italy) in Malaysia, Vietnam and Jordan to support experts from developing countries.

The role of probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) for NPPs (nuclear power plants) is an estimation of the risks in absolute terms and in comparison with other risks of the technical and the natural world. Plant-specific PSAs are being prepared for the NPPs and being applied for detection of weaknesses, design improvement and backfitting, incident analysis, accident management, emergency preparedness, prioritization of research & development and support of regulatory activities.

There are three levels of PSA, being performed for full power and low power operation and shutdown operating modes of the plant: Level 1 PSA, Level 2 PSA and Level 3 PSA. The nuclear regulatory authorities do not require the level 3 PSA for NPPs in the member countries of the European Union. So, only limited number of NPPs has available the level 3 PSA in Europe. However, in the light of the Fukushima accident the performance of such analyses is strongly recommended in the future. This book is intended for professionals working in the nuclear industry, and researchers and students interested in nuclear research.

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LESLIE J. JARDINE Lmvrence Livermore National LaboratOlY Livermore, CA 94551 U. S. A. The Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) on Nuc1ear Materials Safety held lune 8-10, 1998, in St. Petersburg, Russia, was attended by 27 Russian experts from 14 different Russian organizations, seven European experts from six different organizations, and 14 V. S. experts from seven different organizations. The ARW was conducted at the State Education Center (SEC), a former Minatom nuc1ear training center in St. Petersburg. Thirty-three technical presentations were made using simultaneous translations. These presentations are reprinted in this volume as a formal ARW Proceedings in the NATO Science Series. The representative technical papers contained here cover nuc1ear material safety topics on the storage and disposition of excess plutonium and high enriched uranium (HEU) fissile materials, inc1uding vitrification, mixed oxide (MOX) fuel fabrication, plutonium ceramics, reprocessing, geologic disposal, transportation, and Russian regulatory processes. This AR W completed discussions by experts of the nuc1ear materials safety topics that were not covered in the previous, companion ARW on Nuc1ear Materials Safety held in Amarillo, Texas, in March 1997. These two workshops, when viewed together as a set, have addressed most nuc1ear material aspects of the storage and disposition operations required for excess HEV and plutonium (see Fig. 1, Opening Remarks).

The "VOLGA" conferences, hosted in odd-numbered years by the Department of Theoretical and Experimental Reactor Physics of the Moscow Engineering Physics Institute (MEPhI), are some of the most prestigious technical meetings held in Russia. Traditionally, these conferences present the opportunity for reactor physicists from around the world to gather at MEPhI's holiday camp on the banks of the Volga river (near Tver) to exchange ideas and explore innovative concepts related to nuclear power development. In 1997, NATO became involved in the "VOLGA" meetings for the first time by co-sponsoring "VOLGA97" as an advanced research workshop. This workshop broke with tradition a bit in that the venue was moved from MEPhI's holiday camp to a location nearer Moscow. The workshop program was effectively organized in order to cover a broad range of topics relating to the theme of the meeting. Generally, the papers concerned safety related questions associated with utilizing both weapons-grade and reactor-grade plutonium in the nuclear fuel cycle, including facility requirements, licensing issues, proliferation risks, and a variety of advanced concepts for alternative fuel cycles. The program contained a total of ninety-nine papers presented in five days of sessions."

With the end of the Cold War, new opportunities for interaction have opened up between the United States and the countries of the Former Soviet Union. Many of these important initiatives involve the US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Ministry of the Russian Federation for Atomic Energy (MINA TOM). Currently, collaboration is under way which involves reactor safety, the disposition of fissile materials from the weapons program, radioactive waste disposal, and the safety of nuclear warheads. Another fruitful area of interchange resulted from the radiochemical storage tank accident at the site of the Siberian Chemical Compound at Tomsk-7 in 1993. DOE and MINATOM agreed to meet and exchange information about the accident for the purposes of improving safety. A meeting on the Tomsk tank accident was held in Hanford, Washington in 1993, followed by a second meeting in st. Petersburg, Russia in 1994 in which the agenda expanded to include radiochemical processing safety. A third exchange took place in 1995 in Los Alamos, New Mexico, and additional papers were presented on nonreactor nuclear safety. Following a planning session in 1996 in Seattle, Washington, it was decided to hold a fourth technical exchange on the broader subject of nuclear materials safety management. Through a grant from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Disarmament Programme, the meeting took place on March 17- 21, 1997, in Amarillo, Texas as a NATO Advanced Research Workshop (ARW) through grant no. DISRM 961315.

The management and disposal of radioactive wastes are key international issues requiring a sound, fundamental scientific basis to insure public and environmental protection. Large quantities of existing nuclear waste must be treated to encapsulate the radioactivity in a form suitable for disposal. The treatment of this waste, due to its extreme diversity, presents tremendous engineering and scientific challenges. Geologic isolation of transuranic waste is the approach currently proposed by all nuclear countries for its final disposal. To be successful in this endeavor, it is necessary to understand the behavior of plutonium and the other actinides in relevant environmental media. Conceptual models for stored high level waste and waste repository systems present many sCientific difficulties due to their complexity and non-ideality. For example, much of the high level nuclear waste in the US is stored as alkaline concentrated electrolyte materials, where the chemistry of the actinides under such conditions is not well understood. This lack of understanding limits the successful separation and treatment of these wastes. Also, countries such as the US and Germany plan to dispose of actinide bearing wastes in geologic salt deposits. In this case, understanding the speciation and transport properties of actinides in brines is critical for confidence in repository performance and risk assessment activities. Many deep groundwaters underlying existing contaminated sites are also high in ionic strength. Until recently, the scientific basis for describing actinide chemistry in such systems was extremely limited."

Nuclear technology in all countries of the world is subject to controls from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to prevent its misuse for military purposes. Recently these controls (or "safeguards") have come under criticism for lack of effectiveness, and the IAEA has now elaborated a strengthened safeguards system reaching deep into the domains of national sovereignty. Problems and prospects of the new system are discussed in this book by a team of German and international scholars, practitioners and officials.

This book describes recent technological developments in next generation nuclear reactors that have created renewed interest in nuclear process heat for industrial applications. The author's discussion mirrors the industry's emerging focus on combined cycle Next Generation Nuclear Plants' (NGNP) seemingly natural fit in producing electricity and process heat for hydrogen production. To utilize this process heat, engineers must uncover a thermal device that can transfer the thermal energy from the NGNP to the hydrogen plant in the most performance efficient and cost effective way possible. This book is written around that vital quest, and the author describes the usefulness of the Intermediate Heat Exchanger (IHX) as a possible solution. The option to transfer heat and thermal energy via a single-phase forced convection loop where fluid is mechanically pumped between the heat exchangers at the nuclear and hydrogen plants is presented, and challenges associated with this tactic are discussed. As a second option, heat pipes and thermosyphons, with their ability to transport very large quantities of heat over relatively long distance with small temperature losses, are also examined.

The Advanced Research Workshop on "Nuclear Submarine Decommissioning and Related Problems" was held at the Russian Academy of Sciences in Moscow, Russia on June 19-22, 1995. On June 17 and 18, 1995 some of the workshop participants visited the Zwezdochka Shipyard at Severodvinsk which is a repair and dismantlement facility for Russian nuclear submarines. Attendance at the workshop was approximately 115 with participants from Russia, United States, France, Norway, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia, and Germany. The workshop was sponsored by the Disarmament Panel of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Science Committee. The sponsorship and the financial support of NATO is gratefully acknowledged. The workshop was organized in Russia by the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences (IBRAE). The efforts of many individuals from IBRAE in producing both a technically challenging workshop and an almost flawless one are also gratefully acknowledged. In addition, the support of the Russian Academy of Sciences, the State Committee of the Russian Federation on Defense Technologies, the Ministry of the Russian Federation on Atomic Energy, the Navy of the Russian Federation, and the United States Department of Energy is acknowledged. xi CURRENT STATUS OF NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DECOMMISSIONING PROBLEMS OF NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DECOMMISSIONING AND RECYCLING N. I. SHUMKOV State Committee for Defense Industry (Goseomoboronprom) Moscow, Russia 1. General Description of the Problem Undoubtedly, the problem of nuclear submarine decommissioning and recycling has been worrying Russian civil and military specialists involved in development, building and operation of submarines for many years.

Purpose ofthe Workshop In the spirit of enhancing developments in science and technology by facilitating international scientific cooperation, the Science Committee of NATO is sponsoring AR W's in several selected priority areas. The objective of this workshop was to discuss what microbial mediated problems have been experienced in the area of nuclear waste management and spent fuel storage. Long term storage of high-level wastes in repositories is just starting in some countries. However, low and medium level wastes have been stored for several decades. In the area of spent fuel interim, storage has been extended at many locations far beyond the intended time. It was a priority of the workshop to examine and discuss what deleterious effects have been observed under these storage conditions or under conditions used in simulated trial tests for predicting material performance under the storage conditions. For example, one chronic problem that was discussed was possibility that microbial influenced corrosion (MIC) could be taking place in the wet storage of spent fuel thereby initiating or accelerating the process of corrosion. Another discussion in the area of waste forms, focused on the presence ofbiofilms which may be breaking down the structure of the waste form and thereby jeopardizing its integrity. The meeting focused on discussing the observations and data collected relating to problems encountered in the storage of these types of wastes, and sharing this information with others that have not monitored their facilities for similar problems.

The issue of nuclear energy excites strong emotions and there are widely differing views as to whether nuclear power can or should make a major contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. With the nuclear issue back on the agenda worldwide, this highly topical collection steers a path through these controversies, presenting the views of proponents of nuclear expansion, examining the challenges that face them and exploring the arguments of those who support alternative approaches.

In a comprehensive and lucid manner this book presents an understanding of the aging degradation of the major pressurized and boiling water reactor structures and components. The design and fabrication of each structure or component is briefly described followed by information on the associated stressors. Interactions between the design, materials, and various stressors that cause aging degradation are reviewed. In many cases, aging degradation problems have occurred, and the plant experience to date is analysed. The discussions summarize the available aging-related information and are supported with extensive references, including references to U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) documents, Electric Power Research Institute reports, U.S. and international conference proceedings and other publications. The book will prove a useful reference for engineers engaged in the operation and life extension of the present generation of nuclear power plants and for those engaged in the design of advanced light water reactors. It will also provide engineering students with insight into the practical materials-related issues associated with the design and operation of nuclear power plants. The work will also serve as a basis for programs to address the new aging-related issues likely to arise as plants get older.

As the re-emergence of nuclear power as an acceptable energy source on an international basis continues, the need for safe and reliable ways to dispose of radioactive waste becomes ever more critical. The ultimate goal for designing a predisposal waste-management system depends on producing waste containers suitable for storage, transportation and permanent disposal. "Cement-Based Materials for Nuclear-Waste Storage "provides a roadmap for the use of cementation as an applied technique for the treatment of low- and intermediate-level radioactive wastes. Coverage includes, but is not limited to, a comparison of cementation with other solidification techniques, advantages of calcium-silicate cements over other materials and a discussion of the long-term suitability and safety of waste packages as well as cement barriers.

This book focuses on the issue of 'resurgence of nuclear power' and discusses the feasibility of nuclear in the energy mix of Asian economies. It discusses nuclear energy sector in detail in the context of India, a country where currently overseas supply of hydrocarbon fuels plays a major role in meeting the domestic energy needs. The book presents an in-depth analysis of nuclear energy policy as well as regional and global politics surrounding the nuclear industry, and the relevance of nuclear energy from the low-carbon energy perspective. To do so, it explores three different perspectives. To start with, the resurgence of nuclear power is discussed from a global energy perspective to understand whether and how it has been increasingly gaining policy attention among Asian economies. Secondly, it highlights the role of nuclear power in Asia and examines how the collaboration with the global nuclear sector is influencing that role. While the epicentre of nuclear power growth can be seen shifting to the Global East, there is a growing need for strengthening the industry, its legal and regulatory infrastructure and knowledge management. The third perspective focuses on the challenges and opportunities for the nuclear power industry and explores, to what extent the public perception is in favor of nuclear sector in the region. The perceived risks of nuclear power, public perception related to legal and regulatory issues, and concerns regarding land acquisition for nuclear facilities are also discussed. The book contains contributions from specialists in the global energy and nuclear sector, and examines some of the most sought-after topics related to the energy policy studies, especially in the Asian context.