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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.
Michael J. Zavisca, J. Michael Doster
Nuclear Technology | Volume 109 | Number 1 | January 1995 | Pages 76-86
Technical Paper | Heat Transfer and Fluid Flow | doi.org/10.13182/NT95-A35069
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Finite difference schemes currently applied to the modeling of two-phase flows in flow networks exhibit difficulties in properly simulating certain spatial and temporal discontinuities. These discontinuities include points along the one-dimensional flow axis where density and other thermophysical properties become discontinuous or experience rapid state domain changes. A methodology for treating spatial and temporal discontinuities is presented. This methodology consists of three main features: (a) subnode time-averaged do-noring of thermodynamic properties, (b) a variable pressure-at-discontinuity staggered mesh discretization, and (c) a variable point state equation linearization. The proposed scheme is similar in form to standard semi-implicit, staggered mesh discretizations, requires little extra overhead, and results in substantially improved accuracy and code execution times. Comparisons are made with standard time and spatial discretizations, as well as with two simpler alternate methods for recognizing and tracking discontinuities. The first of these attempts is to adjust the time-step size such that the fluid discontinuity arrives at a node boundary, or a change in fluid state occurs precisely at the end of a time advancement. The second attempts to redistribute mass and energy to correct for improperly donored values when a discontinuity crosses a node boundary during a time step. Neither of these alternatives proved adequate.