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Swiss nuclear power and the case for long-term operation
Designed for 40 years but built to last far longer, Switzerland’s nuclear power plants have all entered long-term operation. Yet age alone says little about safety or performance. Through continuous upgrades, strict regulatory oversight, and extensive aging management, the country’s reactors are being prepared for decades of continued operation, in line with international practice.
Chien C. Lin, J. H. Chao
Nuclear Technology | Volume 160 | Number 2 | November 2007 | Pages 244-250
Technical Paper | Radioisotopes | doi.org/10.13182/NT07-A3896
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The main function of radiochemical surveillance in a nuclear power plant is to monitor the transport of radioactive materials in and out of various systems, including the fuel integrity evaluation and the control of radioactive material release to the environment. Radiochemical analyses of iodine activities in the reactor coolant to assess fuel integrity during normal operation and to characterize the nature of fuel failure are demonstrated. Assessment of fission products released by the so-called recoil process is emphasized in the study. Measurements of 91Sr and 92Sr in reactor water are recommended as the recoil indicators and to determine the fuel particle contamination on fuel surfaces. In an operating BWR/6 with a recoil level at ~1.2 × 1013 fission/s operated at ~2980 MW(thermal), ~30 g of fuel particle contamination was estimated.