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Division Spotlight
Isotopes & Radiation
Members are devoted to applying nuclear science and engineering technologies involving isotopes, radiation applications, and associated equipment in scientific research, development, and industrial processes. Their interests lie primarily in education, industrial uses, biology, medicine, and health physics. Division committees include Analytical Applications of Isotopes and Radiation, Biology and Medicine, Radiation Applications, Radiation Sources and Detection, and Thermal Power Sources.
Meeting Spotlight
Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2025)
February 3–6, 2025
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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A series of firsts delivers new Plant Vogtle units
Southern Nuclear was first when no one wanted to be.
The nuclear subsidiary of the century-old utility Southern Company, based in Atlanta, Ga., joined a pack of nuclear companies in the early 2000s—during what was then dubbed a “nuclear renaissance”—bullish on plans for new large nuclear facilities and adding thousands of new carbon-free megawatts to the grid.
In 2008, Southern Nuclear applied for a combined construction and operating license (COL), positioning the company to receive the first such license from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2012. Also in 2008, Southern became the first U.S. company to sign an engineering, procurement, and construction contract for a Generation III+ reactor. Southern chose Westinghouse’s AP1000 pressurized water reactor, which was certified by the NRC in December 2011.
Fast forward a dozen years—which saw dozens of setbacks and hundreds of successes—and Southern Nuclear and its stakeholders celebrated the completion of Vogtle Units 3 and 4: the first new commercial nuclear power construction project completed in the U.S. in more than 30 years.
J. Miller, S. Ercanbrack, C. L. Pope
Nuclear Technology | Volume 209 | Number 11 | November 2023 | Pages 1666-1679
PSA 2021 Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2022.2129273
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The foundation of the Versatile Economic Risk Tool is based on the methodologies of the Generation Risk Assessment (GRA) and uses a systematic approach to prioritizing systems, structures, and components based on estimated operation reliability and the impact on future power generation. The GRA provides management with insight that helps with decisions on maintenance, component repair/replacement, design modifications, and other issues associated with electricity generation and equipment reliability programs. Although the benefit of the GRA is understood in the nuclear community, there are negative aspects associated with the current approaches. Traditional GRA modeling is time consuming, convoluted, and considers only the static portion of generation risks. The Versatile Economic Risk Tool addresses the drawbacks of the traditional GRA through simplifying and/or automating the requirements for an effective GRA model. The Versatile Economic Risk Tool also integrates in-depth parametric variability within models to evaluate system, structure, and component generation risks as a function of time. The Versatile Economic Risk Tool addresses the shortcomings of the GRA by automating the study of equipment reliability and degradation from an electricity generation perspective by coupling fault tree analysis and statistical analysis software that support repetitive, parametric analyses. Versatile Economic Risk Tool case studies are presented to provide insight into the potential benefit provided.
