RPD Committee Messages

ANS 2008 Winter Meeting, Reno, NV

By Bojan Petrovic

The 2008 Winter Meeting was held in Reno, NV, November 9-13, 2008. A total of 38 papers were presented in 7 sessions. In addition to our three standing topics (Reactor Physics General - 7 papers, Reactor Analysis Methods - 14 papers in 2 sessions, and Reactor Physics Design, Validation and Operating Experience - 7 papers), two special sessions were organized (Use of Coupled 3D Transport Theory and Depletion Methods in Reactor Physics, organizer Mark DeHart - 4 papers; BWR Stability, organizer Albert Gu - 6 papers), and one panel (International Collaboration in Reactor Physics and Engineering Technology Education, organizers: Pavel Tsvetkov and Ivan Maldonado).

Best Paper Award (ANS 2008 Winter Meeting)

By Bojan Petrovic

Based on the scores provided during the paper review process, selection was narrowed down to three papers to be considered for the RPD Best Paper Award at the ANS 2008 Winter Meeting. A panel of judges attended the presentations, and selected the paper entitled entitled "Thermal Feedback Transient Analysis of a Pebble Fuel Based on the Two-Temperature Homogenized Model," by Nam Zin Cho, Hui Yu, and Jong Woon Kim (KAIST). Congratulations to the authors and appreciation to the judges!

ANS 2009 Annual Meeting, Atlanta, GA

By Fausto Franceschini

Please plan to attend the upcoming ANS 2009 Annual Meeting in Atlanta (June 14-18), and RPD sessions in particular. We have a total of 42 papers in 5 sessions: a favorable response overall and even more so in light of two "competing" meetings scheduled in April and May (ANFM IV and M&C 2009). In addition to our standing sessions (Reactor Physics General - 6 papers, Reactor Analysis Methods - 9 papers in 2 sessions, and Reactor Physics Design, Validation and Operating Experience - 6 papers), we will have two special sessions, Advances in Small and Medium Sized Reactor Designs (organizers Youssef Shatilla and Pavel Hejzlar - 16 papers in 3 sessions and a great success for a topic of strong interest), and Recent Progress and Applications of Resonance Calculation Methods (organizer: Akio Yamamoto - 5 papers). Thanks and congratulations to the session organizers for their brilliant work.

ANS 2009 Winter Meeting, Washington, DC

By Fausto Franceschini

Get ready! Submission of summaries will be possible starting May 1, with a deadline of June 12. There will be a number of RPD sessions that you may consider submitting to, including our standing sessions (Reactor Physics General, Reactor Analysis Methods, and Reactor Physics Design, Validation and Operating Experience) and special sessions (Fuel Isotopic Benchmarks and Applications to Code Validation, Advanced Burnable Poison Designs and Analysis Methods, Validation of Advanced Depletion Approaches for High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor Fuel Designs, plus the panel Experiences with International Collaborations in Nuclear Engineering Research and Educational Exchanges). Reviewers will be needed as well (and greatly appreciated). If you would like to be added to the RPD list of reviewers please send your request to Fausto Franceschini at: FranceF@westinghouse.com.

Special Sessions at Upcoming ANS Meetings

By Fausto Franceschini

Please consider organizing a special session or panel at one of the upcoming ANS meetings, such as the 2010 ANS Annual Meeting in San Diego. Timely special sessions and panels on topics of interest to academia and industry, with good quality contributions, have kept RPD one of the most active and relevant divisions.

Participation in Program Committee Activities

By Fausto Franceschini

The success of our division is due to active involvement of its members. We would like to encourage you to continue to contribute by submitting technical papers, organizing special sessions, reviewing papers, chairing sessions, and as members of the Program Committee and RPD governance in general.

Advances in Nuclear Fuel Management (ANFM-IV) Conference - Hilton Head Island, SC, April 12 - 15, 2009

By Ivan Maldonado, ANFM-IV TPC Co-Chair

The ANFM-IV conference was once again a resounding success in large part to the strong support from within the RPD leadership provided to the organization and technical committee. The photo included shows the "relieved" TPC Co-Chairs; Ivan Maldonado and Atul Karve alongside Dave Kropaczek (Past ANFM-IV Chair and Advisor, and former RPD Chair). In particular, we highlight and recognize the monumental support provided by our current RPD Chair, Jeff Bradfute, who served as the Arrangements Chair, but in practice helped this meeting be successful on many fronts. Thank you, Jeff! The meeting led off with enlightening and entertaining plenary sessions provided by Kurt Edsinger (EPRI), Paul Turinsky (NC State), Kord Smith (Studsvik), and Jim Malone (Exelon). The included "program-at-a-glance" helps us recognize the many session organizers and chairs who supported this conference, while it also provides an excellent overview of the 28 technical sessions covered in 4 parallel tracks over 3 days, which included; 112 papers, 3 technical panels ("World Perspective on Nuclear Fuel Management Needs," "Adequacy of Methods for Nuclear Fuel Management," "Zero by Ten - Zero Fuel Leakers by 2010"), and a workshop on the SCALE Lattice Physics organized and provided by Mark DeHart and Steve Bowman from ORNL. All in all, the meeting attracted more than 200 registered participants and their guests and the most common congratulatory remark was: "why do you folks not have this meeting more often?!" The finances of this meeting were equally successful with solid profits expected to go toward the local and national ANS sponsoring sections and divisions, including RPD

PHYSOR 2010 "Advances in Reactor Physics to Power the Nuclear Renaissance" - Pittsburgh, PA May 9 - 14, 2010

By Vefa N. Kucukboyaci, Organizing Committee

The next PHYSOR Topical Meeting will be held in Pittsburgh the week of May 9-14, 2010. In light of the nuclear renaissance, PHYSOR 2010 aims to provide a platform for international experts to exchange ideas and latest developments in reactor physics and related nuclear technologies. This conference is sponsored by the American Nuclear Society (ANS) Reactor Physics Division and co-sponsored by the ANS Mathematics and Computation Division and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME). 'Call for Papers' for PHYSOR 2010 will be distributed via e-mail in April and advertised in an upcoming Issue of Nuclear News. Opening for paper submissions is planned for September 1, 2009. Note that authors will be required to submit Full Papers; abstracts and summaries will not be accepted for submission. Important deadlines for the conference are: September 2009, full papers submission opens, December 2009, notification of acceptance;, February 2010, final paper deadline;, March 2010, early registration deadline. If you would like to be part of the reviewer committee, or would like to contribute to the technical program, please contact us at info@physor2010.org or visit the conference web site (http://physor2010.org) where updated information on the conference and the technical program is posted.

RPD Financial Report

By Ivan Maldonado, RPD Treasurer

The Reactor Physics Division continues to enjoy a healthy balance sheet this year, with an obvious focus upon primarily supporting students. As the enclosed table shows, our end of year balance sheet in 2008 was $28,493. As in the past, this is the result of continued low operating expenses for RPD, excellent participation in ANS national meetings by RPD members and the associated support provided from ANS Headquarters, a self-sustaining scholarship fund and, a growing membership and associated allocation.