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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.
Tapas C. Maiti, MOnty R. Smith, Jagdish C. Laul
Nuclear Technology | Volume 84 | Number 1 | January 1989 | Pages 82-87
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management | doi.org/10.13182/NT89-A34197
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Colloid formation of uranium, thorium, radium, lead, polonium, strontium, rubidium, and cesium in briny (high ionic strength) groundwaters is studied to predict their capability as vectors for transporting radionuclides. This knowledge is essential in developing models to infer the transport of radionuclides from the source region to the surrounding environment. Except polonium, based on the experimental results, colloid formation of uranium, thorium, radium, lead, strontium, rubidium, and cesium is unlikely in brines with compositions similar to the synthetic Palo Duro Basin brine. This observation of no colloid formation is explained by electrokinetic theory and inorganic solution chemistry.