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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.
J. H. Lee, K. H. Oh, Y. H. Kang, S. C. Hwang, H. S. Lee, J. B. Shim, E. H. Kim, S. W. Park
Nuclear Technology | Volume 165 | Number 3 | March 2009 | Pages 370-379
Technical Paper | Reprocessing | doi.org/10.13182/NT09-A4108
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Assessment of a high-throughput electrorefiner for a spent metallic fuel was carried out by using a commercial computational fluid dynamics code, CFX, and its performance was validated experimentally with a surrogate material. An electrorefiner equipped with a graphite cathode bundle was designed to continuously recover a high-purity uranium product without a noble metal contamination. The performance of the process for a decontamination of a noble metal in a uranium product was evaluated numerically as a function of the process parameters such as the rotation speed of the stirrer and the anode basket, and was validated experimentally. The distributions of the electric field and the electrodeposition behavior were also evaluated numerically, and an optimum electrode configuration was suggested.