Research and Advanced Reactors Consensus Committee (RARCC)

The RARCC is responsible for the preparation and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards for the design, operation, maintenance, operator selection and training, and quality requirements for current and future research and test reactors including pulsed critical facilities, reactors used for the production of isotopes for industrial, educational, and medical purposes and current and advanced non-large LWRs. The scope includes but is not limited to: water-cooled and non-water cooled Small Modular Reactors, Generation III+ and IV reactors, and future non-light water cooled/moderated large commercial reactors.

The RARCC standards include but are not limited to the design and operation of the nuclear island, the balance of plant, and other systems within the plant boundary affecting safety and operations. The ANS Standards Committee Procedures Manual for Consensus Committees shall be used to guide the activities of this consensus committee.

If you are interested in participating in the following standards, complete and submit the Standards Volunteer Form.

The RARCC oversees the following 3 subcommittees:

Advanced Reactors

ANS-20.2, Nuclear Safety Design Criteria and Functional Performance Requirements for Liquid-Fuel Molten-Salt Reactor Nuclear Power Plants
Scope: This standard establishes the nuclear safety design criteria and functional performance requirements for liquid-fuel molten-salt reactor nuclear power plants. The document uses performance-based, risk-informed criteria wherever possible. It also describes the design process to be followed to establish those criteria and perform structures, systems, and component classifications.
ANS-20.3, Oxygen Concentration Measurement in Molten Salt by Inert Gas Fusion Analysis
Scope: This standard establishes a standardized protocol for analyzing oxygen concentration in molten salts using inert gas fusion analysis. The comprehensive methodology includes the development of precise analytical procedures, optimized sample preparation techniques, and detailed analysis protocols to ensure accuracy and repeatability. The standardization effort covers a broad range of analyzers, ensuring compatibility and reliability across different instrumentation. This work aims to provide a universally applicable guideline for determining oxygen content in molten salts, facilitating consistency and comparability between users.
ANS-31.1, Testing and Facilities for Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion Reactors
Scope: This standard provides criteria for the testing of nuclear reactors to be utilized for in-space related applications such as the production of electrical power for use on space platforms, on the surface of the moon or other solar system bodies and for the propulsion of space platforms and vehicles. This standard provides criteria to be used by the developers, analyzers, and evaluators of space reactors when considering the ground and in-space testing of space reactors and their associated equipment, as well as the facilities in which such testing is conducted. This standard is intended to be design, mission, sponsor, location, and facility agnostic.
ANS-53.1, Nuclear Safety Criteria for the Design of High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor Plants
Scope: This standard provides a process for establishing top-level safety criteria (TLSC); safety functions; top-level design criteria (TLDC); potential licensing-basis events (LBEs); potential design-basis accidents (DBAs); safety classification of systems, structures, and components (SSCs); safety analyses; defense-in-depth (DID); and adequate assurance of special treatment requirements for safety-related SSCs throughout the operating life of the plant. This standard does not provide detailed guidance for design.
ANS-54.1, Nuclear Safety Criteria and Design Process for Sodium Fast Reactor Nuclear Power Plants
Scope: This standard applies to all sodium fast reactor nuclear power plants, irrespective of level of power production and energy end use. It also applies to configurations in which there are one or more reactor units (modules) on a site. It is intended to apply to all fuel types. The heat transport system is not restricted to a particular configuration and thus the standard applies to loop, pool, hybrid, or other arrangements. The standard also pertains to on-site storage of spent fuel prior to its removal for recycling or long-term storage.
ANS-54.8, Liquid Metal Fire Protection
Scope: This standard establishes guidelines and requirements to ensure that the fundamental performance of liquid-metal fire detection, alarm, suppression, control, and structural protection systems are adequate to protect the public health and safety, facility personnel, and minimize or limit the economic loss in the event of a sodium/NaK leak.

Research and Test Reactors (previously ANS-15)

ANS-14.1, Operation of Fast Pulse Reactors
Scope: This standard is for those involved in the design, operation, and review of fast pulse reactors. It has been formulated in general terms to be applicable to all current fast pulse reactors. This standard does not apply to periodically pulsed reactors or booster assemblies.
ANS-15.1, The Development of Technical Specifications for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard identifies and establishes the content of technical specifications (TS) for research and test reactors. Areas addressed are: Definitions, Safety Limits (SL), Limiting Safety System Settings (LSSS), Limiting Conditions for Operation (LCO), Surveillance Requirements, Design Features, and Administrative Controls. Sufficient detail is incorporated so that applicable specifications can be derived or extracted.
ANS-15.2, Quality Control for Plate-Type Uranium-Aluminum Fuel Elements
Scope: This standard sets forth general requirements for the establishment and execution of a program designed to verify that the qualify of plate-type uranium-aluminum fuel elements being purchased for research reactors conforms to the requirements of the contract and applicable technical documents, including specifications, standards, and drawings.
ANS-15.4, Selection and Training of Personnel for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard provides criteria for the selection and training of research reactor operating personnel. It addresses their qualifications, training, initial licensing, requalification, and relicensing. This standard is predicated on levels of responsibility rather than on a particular organizational concept.
ANS-15.8, Quality Assurance Program Requirements for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard provides criteria for quality assurance in the design, construction, operation, and decommissioning of research reactors.
ANS-15.11, Radiation Protection at Research Reactors
Scope: This standard establishes the elements of a radiation protection program and the criteria necessary to provide an acceptable level of radiation protection for personnel at research reactor facilities and the public consistent with keeping exposures and releases as low as is reasonably achievable (ALARA).
ANS-15.15, Criteria for the Reactor Safety Systems of Research Reactors
Scope: This standard documents the criteria from which appropriate specific design requirements may be established for the reactor safety system of an individual research reactor.
ANS-15.16, Emergency Planning for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard identifies the elements of an emergency plan which describes the approach to coping with emergencies and minimizing the consequences of accidents at research reactor facilities. The emphasis given each of these elements shall be commensurate with the potential risk involved. The emergency plan shall be implemented by emergency procedures.
ANS-15.21, Format and Content for Safety Analysis Reports for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard provides the criteria for the format and content for safety analysis reports for research reactors.
ANS-15.22, Classification of Structures, Systems and Components for Research Reactors
Scope: This standard provides one technology neutral SSC classification process for research reactors that is, where possible, performance based and risk informed. This standard applies to existing and future research and test reactors.
ANS-15.23, Medical Certification and Monitoring of Personnel Requiring Operator Licenses for Research and Test Reactors
Scope: This standard defines the physical and mental health requirements for licensing of research and test reactor facility operators and senior operators. It also addresses the content, extent, methods of examination, and monitoring during the term of the license.

Technology Inclusive

ANS-1, Conduct of Critical Experiments
Scope: This standard provides for the safe conduct of critical experiments. Such experiments study neutron behavior in a fission device where the energy produced is insufficient to require auxiliary cooling, and the power history is such that the inventory of long-lived fission products is insignificant.
ANS-30.2, Categorization and Classification of Structures, Systems, and Components for New Nuclear Power Plants
Scope: This standard provides a single technology neutral categorization and classification process for Structures, Systems, and Components (SSCs) for new nuclear power plants that is, where possible, risk informed and performance based. This process will then be used to determine special treatment of SSCs to meet the safety basis. This standard applies only to those new design facilities (i.e. greater than Generation III) that must obtain an operating license from the proper regulatory authority. It provides a complete (e.g., necessary and sufficient) repeatable logical process based upon risk-informed, performance-based objectives. Other voluntary consensus standards may often be required in order to complete the entire process for all SSCs. Those standards are incorporated by reference.
ANS-30.3, Light-Water Reactor Risk-Informed Performance-Based Design
Scope: This standard is advanced LWR-specific and applicable to new reactor designs. It specifies objectives for augmenting deterministic nuclear safety design practices using risk-informed, performance-based (RIPB) methods. The application of RIPB methods to high level safety criteria selection, nuclear safety functions and margin, licensing-basis-event selection and acceptance criteria, equipment classification and categorization, demonstrating defense-in-depth adequacy and evaluating conformance with regulatory positions described to ensure RIPB-augmentation of nuclear safety design practices is consistently applied for all new advanced LWR reactor technologies. The application of this standard to existing reactors is beyond the scope of this standard.
ANS-GS-30.1, Integrating Risk and Performance Objectives into New Reactor Nuclear Safety Designs
Scope: This technology-neutral guidance standard provides information for preparation of technology-specific new reactor design standards and supporting documents. New reactor designs include modular reactors using light water nuclear technologies and advanced reactors using non-light water nuclear technologies as the basis for design. This guidance standard addresses the objectives for facilitating the incorporation of risk- and performance-based information into a new reactor safety design process through all stages of the facility lifecycle. This guidance standard is focused at a high level to enable risk-informed and performance-based (RIPB) results to be consistently applied across all stages of plant lifecycle and to be integrated throughout design development. The information of this guidance standard supports RIPB input to key safety aspects such as high-level criteria selection, licensing basis event selection, safety margin, equipment classification, and defense in depth as well as integration of these aspects with multiple design needs.