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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.
Min Woo Seo, Jae Woo Park
Nuclear Technology | Volume 168 | Number 3 | December 2009 | Pages 938-942
Miscellaneous | Special Issue on the 11th International Conference on Radiation Shielding and the 15th Topical Meeting of the Radiation Protection and Shielding Division (PART 3) / Radiation Protection | doi.org/10.13182/NT09-A9330
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A fiber-optic dosimeter model is constructed with a small piece of Gd2SiO5 (GSO) scintillator optically attached to a low attenuating plastic optical fiber. The lights generated in the scintillator are transmitted through the fiber and read by a current-type photomultiplier tube (PMT). The dosimeter model was tested with two 60Co standard sources of 1.85 and 37 MBq by measuring the PMT current as a function of the source-to-detector distance. It was then tested in a 60Co irradiation chamber with an activity of [approximately]244.2 TBq. MCNPX simulations were performed for the source and dosimeter arrangements to calculate the deposited energy in the GSO scintillator. When tested with standard 60Co sources of 1.85 and 37 MBq, the dosimeter model did not produce satisfactory results. However, better results were obtained with the higher-activity source. In the test in a 60Co irradiation chamber of 244.2 TBq, the measured data well coincide with the MCNPX simulation results. In a direct comparison with a Farmer-type ion chamber, it is found the dosimeter readings can be simply converted to the air kerma doses by proper calibration.
