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2026 Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
August 24–27, 2026
Dallas, TX|Hilton Anatole
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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.
Jamal Al Zain, O. El Hajjaji, T. El Bardouni, M. Lahdour
Nuclear Technology | Volume 206 | Number 4 | April 2020 | Pages 620-636
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2019.1662669
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The Syrian miniature neutron source reactor (MNSR), a 30-kW, 90.0% highly enriched uranium fueled (U-Al) MNSR-type reactor has gone critical. Under operating conditions of 2 h per day for 5 days a week at a peak thermal neutron flux of 1.0 × 1012 n/cm2·s, the estimated core life is 10 years. After the fuel is depleted, the full spent-fuel assembly will be replaced with new low-enriched uranium. This study presents the results of a multigroup fuel burnup and depletion analysis of the MNSR fuel lattice using the DRAGON5 transport lattice code. Furthermore, infinite multiplication factor k∞ and several two-group macroscopic parameters, including scattering cross section, fission cross section, total cross section, and diffusion coefficient, and the transport mean free path have been studied. In addition to this, fuel isotopic composition dependency on burnup was calculated as a part of this study. The results contained in this study can be used as a microscopic database for performing criticality safety analysis and shielding computations for the design of a spent-fuel storage cask for the MNSR reactor core.