image: Guillermo Daniel (Bill) DelCul was elected fellow of the American Nuclear Society for his outstanding accomplishments in actinide and fission product separations, uranium processing chemistry and advanced fuel cycle development. view more
Credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory, U.S. Dept. of Energy
OAK RIDGE, Tenn., Oct. 31, 2017--Two researchers from the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory have been elected fellows of the American Nuclear Society (ANS), a professional society that promotes the advancement and awareness of nuclear science and technology.
Guillermo Daniel (Bill) DelCul was cited by the ANS for his outstanding accomplishments in actinide and fission product separations, uranium processing chemistry and advanced fuel cycle development.
"Dr. Del Cul has developed new concepts to improve the nuclear fuel cycle and advance separations and waste treatment technologies. His innovations are being applied to many nuclear processes both nationally and internationally," the ANS citation reads.
DelCul's long career in nuclear science and engineering includes research and development activities in actinide separations, processing of used nuclear fuel, high temperature molten salts, technical support of enrichment activities and national security-related research.
The distinguished research staff member in the Process Engineering & Research group of ORNL's Nuclear Security and Isotopes Technology Division was also honored with the Glenn T. Seaborg Award at the 40th Actinide Separations Conference in 2016.
Brian David Wirth, who holds the University of Tennessee (UT)-ORNL Governor's Chair of Computational Nuclear Engineering, is a joint appointee of UT and ORNL, where he leads Scientific Discovery through Advanced Computing (SciDAC) projects on fusion plasma surface interactions and fission gas bubble evolution in nuclear fuel. Wirth previously served as a focus area lead for Fuels, Materials and Chemistry with DOE's Consortium for the Advanced Simulation of Light Water Reactors modeling and simulation hub, where he continues to study nuclear fuels and structural materials to improve future nuclear energy production.
He was cited by the ANS "for seminal contributions to fundamental understanding of radiation damage in nuclear reactor materials providing the scientific basis for improved predictions of reactor performance and development of more damage tolerant materials for advanced fission and fusion power systems."
Wirth is a recipient of the 2014 DOE Ernest Orlando Lawrence Award in Energy Science and Innovation, as well as the 2016 Mishima Award from the ANS for outstanding work in nuclear fuels and materials research.
DelCul and Wirth were recognized as new fellows Monday at the ANS Winter Meeting's opening session in Washington, D.C.
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