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The human factor in licensing and operating the next generation of nuclear plants
As human factors specialists working at the intersection of human performance and nuclear operations, we are witnessing one of the nuclear sector’s most significant transitions in decades. The emergence of small modular reactors, microreactors, and other advanced designs is reshaping the industry’s landscape. Digital instrumentation and controls, passive safety systems, and increased automation are creating opportunities for greater safety margins and more flexible operation. These same features also fundamentally redefine what it means to “operate” a nuclear plant. Interactions among human roles, automation, and passive systems shape how people maintain awareness, exercise judgment, and intervene when necessary. These developments affect both operational realities and the regulatory foundations on which nuclear safety is built.
K. H. Finken, D. Reiter, T. Denner, K. H. Dippel, J. Hobirk, G. Mank, H. Kever, G. H. Wolf, N. Noda, A. Miyahara, T. Shoji, K. N. Sato, K. Akaishi, J. A. Boedo, J. N. Brooks, R. W. Conn, W. J. Corbett, R. P. Doerner, D. Goebel, D. S. Gray, D. L. Hillis, J. Hogan, R. T. McGrath, M. Matsunaga, R. Moyer, R. E. Nygren, J. Watkins
Fusion Science and Technology | Volume 47 | Number 2 | February 2005 | Pages 126-137
Technical Paper | TEXTOR: Plasma-Wall Interactions | doi.org/10.13182/FST05-A694
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Advanced Limiter Test (ALT) project is the focus of a fruitful and intense International Energy Agreement collaboration on TEXTOR. The pump limiter is a mechanical boundary that is laid out for taking the full heat load of TEXTOR, namely 8 MW (assuming 2 MW radiated power) for 10 s, and provides a pumping efficiency of at least 5% of the working gas. This layout is adopted from the requirements of a fusion reactor: It is mandatory to remove both the full power that is convected to the limiter or divertor and the helium ash that is generated in the fusion process. In order to obtain pumping for all gases, the ALT-II is equipped with turbomolecular pumps. A short description of ALT-II is given, and the power and particle fluxes to the limiter surface and into the exhaust scoops are discussed. Requirements of the helium removal rate for a reactor and relevant measurements are discussed, and particle removal and the power distribution to the limiters are treated. Related topics of the ALT-II program were hydrogen recycling and the measurement of turbulence-induced anomalous particle transport in the plasma edge.