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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.
E. Royer, E. Raimond, D. Caruge
Nuclear Technology | Volume 142 | Number 2 | May 2003 | Pages 154-165
Technical Paper | OECD/NRC MSLB Benchmark | doi.org/10.13182/NT03-A3381
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development/Nuclear Energy Agency Main Steam Line Break (MSLB) benchmark provides a comparison of state-of-the-art and best-estimate models used to compute reactivity accidents. A comprehensive study has been carried out by Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique and Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire with the CATHARE, CRONOS2, and FLICA4 codes. The effect of mixing between primary loops in the core vessel is analyzed, then zero-dimensional and three-dimensional (3-D) kinetics are compared, and finally, the effect of the core thermal-hydraulic model is presented. The aim of this analysis is to assess the 3-D effects in the MSLB accident and to explain the return-to-power occurrence.
