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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.
Tetsuo Tamaoki, Takuhiko Sakai, Hiroshi Endo, Kazuo Haga, Ryoichi Takahashi
Nuclear Technology | Volume 99 | Number 1 | July 1992 | Pages 58-69
Technical Paper | Nuclear Fuel Cycle | doi.org/10.13182/NT92-A34703
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Delayed neutron noise measurements were carried out in an in-pile sodium loop, the Fission Product Loop 2 (FPL-2), installed on the Toshiba Training Reactor I. To clarify the characteristics and origin of delayed neutron count rate noise, a noise propagation mechanism was identified using a multivariate autoregressive model. The results show that a simulated fuel failure in the FPL-2, with recoil as the principal fission product release phenomena, produces a white spectrum of delayed neutron count rate noise. It was also found that the loop temperature fluctuation strongly affects the delayed neutron count rate noise at temperatures below 300°C, through the deposition of fission products on the surface of structures. These results provide useful information for the development of an early fuel failure detection method based on the delayed neutron signal.