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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.
Sümer Şahın
Nuclear Technology | Volume 92 | Number 1 | October 1990 | Pages 93-105
Technical Paper | Development of Nuclear Gas Cleaning and Filtering Techniques / Fission Reactor | doi.org/10.13182/NT90-A34489
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A straightforward numerical-graphical method is applied to achieve a flat fission power density (FPD) in a catalyzed deuterium-deuterium fusion-driven hybrid blanket by using a mixed fuel made of a nuclear waste actinide (244CmCO2) and natural UO2 with variable fractions of fuel components in the radial direction. The FPD could be kept quasi-constant over a relatively long plant lifetime. The peak-to-average FPD increases from 1.071 at start-up to ∼ 1.074 after 18 months’ operation. The plant availability factor is 60% under a first-wall fusion neutron flux load of 1014 x 2.45- and 1014 x 14.1-MeV neutron/cm2.s, corresponding to ∼2.64 MW/m2. This eliminates the fuel management requirements for at least 18 months of plant operation. The investigated blanket breeds high-quality nuclear fuel (239Pu and 245Cm) and also produces electricity. The overall blanket multiplication factor M increases from 9.4 to only 9.8 in 18 months. This allows an optimal exploitation of the nonnuclear part of the power plant.
