decan

Noun

decan (plural decans)

1. One of a collection of 36 small constellations or zodiacal subdivisions that appear heliacally at intervals of 10 days or are separated by approximately 10 degrees.

Verb

IPA/di.kæn/

decan (third-person singular simple present decans, present participle decanning, simple past and past participle decanned)

1. To remove (something, especially nuclear reactor fuel) from a can or similar protective enclosure, cladding, etc.
   • (4) The time required to decan the elements should be minimized due to the highly reactive nature of the exposed fuel even in the inert atmosphere of the cell. Remote Repair. The decanning machine is to be remotely operated, [...]1962, American Nuclear Society, Hot Laboratory Division, Winter Meeting, Proceedings of the tenth Conference on Hot Laboratories and Equipment
   • A machine to decan the blanket elements contained in the core, outer, and inner blanket subassemblies is being designed. The machine will consist of transfer magazines, a cutting unit, an ejector unit and a sampling unit.1965, Argonne National Laboratory, U.S. Atomic Energy Commission, Reactor Development Program Progress Report

Proper noun capitalized: Decan

Decan

1. (alternative) Alternative spelling of Deccan.