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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.
Chih-Tien Liu, Hund-Der Yeh
Nuclear Technology | Volume 143 | Number 3 | September 2003 | Pages 322-334
Technical Paper | Radioactive Waste Management and Disposal | doi.org/10.13182/NT03-A3420
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This paper is to study the effects of fracture width on the transport of a radionuclide in a multiple and parallel fractured rock formation. The equation describing the transport of the radionuclide released from the geological repository includes the following mechanisms: advection, dispersion, radioactive decay, and adsorption on the fracture surfaces. The concentration at the inlet of each fracture is assumed constant. An analytical solution was derived based on such a mathematical model by the Laplace transform technique. The solution indicates that identical concentration distributions can be observed in each fracture of the equal-width parallel fractured system. In an unequal-width fractured system, the penetration distances along wide fractures are generally larger than that in a single uniform fractured system. The radionuclide concentration in the wide fracture quickly reaches source concentration in the near-field environment, confirming that the fracture width plays an important role in radionuclide transport through a system of multiple and parallel fractured media.