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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.
Yacine Aounallah
Nuclear Technology | Volume 145 | Number 2 | February 2004 | Pages 163-176
Technical Paper | Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT04-A3467
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
CORETRAN-01 is the Electric Power Research Institute core analysis computer program that couples the neutronic code ARROTTA to the thermal-hydraulic code VIPRE-02 to achieve an integrated three-dimensional representation of the core for both steady-state and transient applications. The thermal-hydraulic module VIPRE-02, the two-fluid version of the one-fluid code VIPRE-01, has been the object of relatively few assessment studies, and the work presented seeks to reduce this lacuna. The priority has been given to the assessment of the void fraction prediction due to the importance of the void feedback on the core power generation. The assessment data are experimental void fractions obtained from X- and gamma-ray attenuation techniques applied at assembly-averaged as well as subchannel level for both steady-state and transient conditions. These experiments are part of the NUPEC (Japan) program where full-scale boiling water reactor (BWR) assemblies of different types, including assemblies with part-length rods, and pressurized water reactor subassemblies were tested at nominal reactor operating conditions, as well as for a range of flow rates and pressures. Generally, the code performance ranged from adequate to good, except for configurations exhibiting a strong gradient in power-to-flow ratio. Critical power predictions have also been assessed and code limitations identified, based on measurements on full-scale BWR 8 × 8 and high-burnup assemblies operated over a range of thermal-hydraulic conditions.