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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.
Yosuke Iwamoto, Mitsuhiro Fukuda, Yukio Sakamoto, Atsushi Tamii, Kichiji Hatanaka, Keiji Takahisa, Keiichi Nagayama, Hiroaki Asai, Kenji Sugimoto, Isamu Nashiyama
Nuclear Technology | Volume 173 | Number 2 | February 2011 | Pages 210-217
Technical Paper | Techniques for Measurements of Nuclear Data | doi.org/10.13182/NT11-A11550
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The 30-deg white neutron beam at the Research Center for Nuclear Physics (RCNP) cyclotron facility has been characterized as a probe suitable for testing of single-event effects (SEE) in semiconductor devices in the neutron energy range from 1 to 300 MeV using the 392-MeV proton incident reaction on a 6.5-cm-thick tungsten target. The neutron spectrum obtained by time-of-flight measurements reproduced the terrestrial neutron flux distribution at sea level, and neutron intensity increased by a factor of 1.5 × 108 became available. The average neutron intensity and spectrum in the energy region from 10 to 100 MeV at RCNP were almost the same as those at the Weapons Neutron Research (WNR). The calculated RCNP neutron flux using Particle and Heavy Ion Transport code System (PHITS) generally agreed with the measured RCNP data within a factor of 2. The neutron density per pulse at RCNP, which is around 500 times lower than that for WNR, has the advantage in reduction of the pileup probability of single-event transient currents and false multiple-bit upsets. Such conditions at RCNP are suitable for accelerated SEE testing to get meaningful results in a realistic time frame.