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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.
Marti Jeltsov, Walter Villanueva, Pavel Kudinov
Nuclear Technology | Volume 190 | Number 1 | April 2015 | Pages 1-10
Technical Paper | Fission Reactors | doi.org/10.13182/NT14-8
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Risks related to sloshing of liquid metal coolant due to seismic excitation need to be investigated. Sloshing effects on reactor performance include first, fluid-structure interaction and second, gas entrapment in the coolant with subsequent transport of void to the core region. While the first can hypothetically lead to structural damage or coolant spill, the second increases the risk of a reactivity insertion accident and/or local dryout of the fuel. A two-dimensional computational fluid dynamics study is carried out in order to obtain insights into the modes of sloshing depending on the parameters of seismic excitation. The applicability and performance of the numerical mesh and the Eulerian volume of fluid method used to track the free surface are evaluated by modeling a simple dam break experiment. Sloshing in the cold plenum free surface region of the European Lead-cooled SYstem (ELSY) conceptual pool-type lead-cooled fast reactor (LFR) is studied. Various sinusoidal excitations are used to imitate the seismic response at the reactor level. The goal is to identify the domain of frequencies and magnitudes of the seismic response that can lead to loads threatening the structural integrity and possible core voiding due to sloshing. A map of sloshing modes has been developed to characterize the sloshing response as a function of excitation parameters. Pressure forces on vertical walls and the lid have been calculated. Finally, insight into coolant voiding has been provided.