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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.
Jean-Marie Seiler, Angélique Fouquet, Karine Froment, Francoise Defoort
Nuclear Technology | Volume 141 | Number 3 | March 2003 | Pages 233-243
Technical Paper | Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT03-A3364
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A model is proposed describing the corium pool behavior with a material composition presenting a miscibility gap. The model is described in the first part of this paper, and the state of its validation is developed in the second part, against SIMECO experiments. Qualitatively the model predicts the experimental behavior (domain of existence of two layers, phase separation in the boundary layers, and power split). Applicability to the reactor situation is discussed. It is also concluded that the time delay to obtain physicochemical equilibrium between liquid phases is of the same order of magnitude as the time delay necessary to obtain thermal-hydraulic steady state (established heat flux distribution).