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Latest News
NRC updating GEIS rule for new nuclear technology
The Nuclear Regulatory Agency is issuing a proposed generic environmental impact statement (GEIS) for use in reviewing applications for new nuclear reactors.
In an April 17 memo, NRC secretary Carrie Safford wrote that the commission approved NRC staff’s recommendation to publish in the Federal Register a proposed rule amending 10 CFR Part 51, “Environmental Protection Regulations for Domestic Licensing and Related Regulatory Functions.”
Steven J. Piet
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 10 | Number 1 | July 1986 | Pages 31-48
Technical Paper | Safety/Environmental Aspect | doi.org/10.13182/FST86-A24744
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The potential value of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) tools to fusion safety and economic issues is discussed. The main results and implications of a systematic examination of these general issues via PRA tools are reported. It is concluded that PRA methodology, tools, and thinking are useful to fusion research in the process of further improving fusion concepts and ideas. The MARS and STARFIRE designs are examined for possible answers to questions posed by using PRA tools. Several general magnetic-fusion design insights result from the study, including the following: 1. possible fault interactions must be minimized by decoupling fault conditions 2. the reliability of the vacuum boundary appears vital to maximizing facility availability and minimizing safety risk 3. economic analyses appear to be incomplete without consideration of potential availability loss from forced outages. A modification to PRA formalism called the “fault interaction matrix” is introduced. The fault interaction matrix contains information concerning what initial fault condition could lead to another fault condition, with what frequency. Thus, the fault interaction matrix represents a way to present and measure the degree to which a designer has decoupled possible fault conditions in his design. Such decoupling is crucial to enhancing fusion safety and facility availability.