ANS is committed to advancing, fostering, and promoting the development and application of nuclear sciences and technologies to benefit society.
Explore the many uses for nuclear science and its impact on energy, the environment, healthcare, food, and more.
Explore membership for yourself or for your organization.
Conference Spotlight
2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
Latest Magazine Issues
Jul 2026
Jan 2026
2026
Latest Journal Issues
Nuclear Science and Engineering
September 2026
Nuclear Technology
August 2026
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
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.
Gabor Nagy, Péter Tilky, Ákos Horváth, Tamás Pintér, Robert Schiller
Nuclear Technology | Volume 136 | Number 3 | December 2001 | Pages 331-341
Technical Paper | Nuclear Plant Operations and Control | doi.org/10.13182/NT01-A3249
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The results of chemical and radiochemical analyses of the primary circuit coolant liquid, obtained between 1995 and 1999 at the four VVER-type blocks of the Paks (Hungary) nuclear power station, are assessed. A model has been developed regarding the pressure vessel with its auxiliary parts plus the fuel elements as the zone, with the six steam generators as one single unit. The stream from the steam generator is split, with its larger part returning to the zone through the main circulating pump and the smaller one passing through the purifier column. Based on this flowchart, the formation kinetics of corrosion products and of radioactive substances are evaluated. Correlation analysis is applied to reveal any eventual interdependence of the processes, whereas the range-per-scatter (R/S) method is used to characterize the random or deterministic nature of a process. The evaluation of the t → limits of the kinetic equations enables one to conclude that (a) the total amount of corrosion products per element during one cycle is almost always <15 kg and (b) the zone acts as a highly efficient filter with an efficiency of ~1. The R/S results show that the fluctuations in the concentrations of the corrosion products are persistent; this finding indicates that random effects play here little if any role and that the processes in the coolant are under control. Correlation analyses show that the variations of the concentrations are practically uncorrelated and that the processes are independent of each other.