This paper provides a brief description of the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and its regulatory process for the current nuclear fuel cycle for light water power reactors (LWRs). It focuses on the regulatory framework for the licensing of facilities in the fuel cycle. The first part of the paper provides an overview of the NRC and its regulatory program including a description of its organization, function, authority, and responsibilities.

Burnup credit (BUC) is a concept applied in the criticality safety analysis of spent nuclear fuel
in which credit or partial credit is taken for the reduced reactivity worth of the fuel due to both fissile
depletion and the buildup of actinides and fission products that act as net neutron absorbers.
Typically, a two-step process is applied in BUC analysis: first, depletion calculations are performed
to estimate the isotopic content of spent fuel based on its burnup history; second, three-dimensional

Slides - 2014 WM Symposia, March 2-6, 2014, Phoenix, AZ

A comprehensive, integrated data and analysis tool—the Used Nuclear Fuel-Storage, Transportation & Disposal Analysis Resource and Data System (UNF-ST&DARDS) —is being developed for the US DOE Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE) Nuclear Fuels Storage and Transportation Planning Project (NFST). The overarching goal of UNF-ST&DARDS is to provide a comprehensive controlled source of technical data integrated with key analysis capabilities to characterize inputs to the overall US waste management system from reactor power production through ultimate disposition.