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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.
B. K. Sapra, Y. S. Mayya, Arshad Khan, Faby Sunny, Sunil Ganju, H. S. Kushwaha
Nuclear Technology | Volume 163 | Number 2 | August 2008 | Pages 228-244
Technical Paper | Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT08-A3983
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
An experimental nuclear aerosol test facility has been built at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre for validating the aerosol behavior computer codes used in nuclear reactor safety assessment. Its essential components are the 10-m3 stainless steel test vessel, plasma torch aerosol generator, and aerosol instrumentation to study the aerosol characteristics. Studies have been conducted with metal/metal oxide aerosols in dry environments under varying turbulence conditions and the results have been compared with the predictions of NAUA (Mod 5) code. The code predictions were found to differ from the experimental observations. To explain the differences under calm conditions, a gravity-induced spatial stratification model was formulated and solved. It was found that NAUA prediction agrees fairly well with the depletion of total airborne mass given by this model. In the presence of turbulence, the code overestimated the airborne concentrations. This is attributed to the noninclusion of particle removal by inertial impaction. Accordingly, the deposition velocity formula used in the code was modified based on the Crump-Seinfeld approach. With this modification, the results of airborne mass depletion agreed quite well with the measured data. On the whole, the study provides validated modifications in the NAUA (Mod 5) code to include turbulence effects and a formulation of gravity-induced stratification of aerosols under calm conditions.