The Safety Feature Test of QNX RTOS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Jang Yeol; Lee, Young Jun

2010-01-01

Benchmarking is a point of reference by which something can be measured. The QNX is a kind of Real Time Operating System(RTOS) developed by QSSL(QNX Software Systems Ltd.) in Canada. The ELMSYS is the brand name of commercially available PC to be applied such as Cabinet Operator Module(COM) of Digital Plant Protection System(DPPS) and COM of Digital Engineered Safety Features Actuation System(DESFAS-AC). The ELMSYS PC Hardware will be qualified by KTL(Korea Testing Lab.) in order to use as a Cabinet Operator Module(COM). QNX RTOS is dedicating by KAERI now. This paper describes the outline and some safety features among benchmarking test for QNX RTOS under the ELMSYS PC platform

Modeling for safety in a synthesis-centric systems engineering framework

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Markovski, J.; Mortel - Fronczak, van de J.M.; Ortmeier, F.; Daniel, P.

2012-01-01

The ever-increasing complexity of safety-critical systems puts high demands on safety assurance and certification. We focus on the development of control software, where safety) requirements engineering plays a crucial and delicate role. Nowadays, most of the safety features are ensured by the

Reliability and safety engineering

CERN Document Server

Verma, Ajit Kumar; Karanki, Durga Rao

2016-01-01

Reliability and safety are core issues that must be addressed throughout the life cycle of engineering systems. Reliability and Safety Engineering presents an overview of the basic concepts, together with simple and practical illustrations. The authors present reliability terminology in various engineering fields, viz.,electronics engineering, software engineering, mechanical engineering, structural engineering and power systems engineering. The book describes the latest applications in the area of probabilistic safety assessment, such as technical specification optimization, risk monitoring and risk informed in-service inspection. Reliability and safety studies must, inevitably, deal with uncertainty, so the book includes uncertainty propagation methods: Monte Carlo simulation, fuzzy arithmetic, Dempster-Shafer theory and probability bounds. Reliability and Safety Engineering also highlights advances in system reliability and safety assessment including dynamic system modeling and uncertainty management. Cas...

The verification methodologies for a software modeling of Engineered Safety Features- Component Control System (ESF-CCS)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Young-Jun; Cheon, Se-Woo; Cha, Kyung-Ho; Park, Gee-Yong; Kwon, Kee-Choon

2007-01-01

The safety of a software is not guaranteed through a simple testing of the software. The testing reviews only the static functions of a software. The behavior, dynamic state of a software is not reviewed by a software testing. The Ariane5 rocket accident and the failure of the Virtual Case File Project are determined by a software fault. Although this software was tested thoroughly, the potential errors existed internally. There are a lot of methods to solve these problems. One of the methods is a formal methodology. It describes the software requirements as a formal specification during a software life cycle and verifies a specified design. This paper suggests the methods which verify the design to be described as a formal specification. We adapt these methods to the software of a ESF-CCS (Engineered Safety Features-Component Control System) and use the SCADE (Safety Critical Application Development Environment) tool for adopting the suggested verification methods

Maintenance of civil engineering structures important to safety of Nuclear Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2002-03-01

Civil engineering structures in nuclear installations form an important feature having implications to safety performance of these installations. This safety standard is written to specify the objectives and minimum requirements for the design of civil engineering buildings/structures that are to be fulfilled to provide adequate assurance for safety of nuclear installations in India

Generic Safety Issue (GSI) 171 -- Engineered Safety Feature (ESF) failure from a loop subsequent to LOCA: Assessment of plant vulnerability and CDF contributions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martinez-Guridi, G.; Samanta, P.; Chu, L.; Yang, J.

1998-01-01

Generic Safety Issue 171 (GSI-171), Engineered Safety Feature (ESF) from a Loss Of Offsite Power (LOOP) subsequent to a Loss Of Coolant Accident (LOCA), deals with an accident sequence in which a LOCA is followed by a LOOP. This issue was later broadened to include a LOOP followed by a LOCA. Plants are designed to handle a simultaneous LOCA and LOOP. In this paper, the authors address the unique issues that are involved i LOCA with delayed LOOP (LOCA/LOOP) and LOOP with delayed LOCA (LOOP/LOCA) accident sequences. LOCA/LOOP accidents are analyzed further by developing event-tree/fault-tree models to quantify their contributions to core-damage frequency (CDF) in a pressurized water reactor and a boiling water reactor (PWR and a BWR). Engineering evaluation and judgments are used during quantification to estimate the unique conditions that arise in a LOCA/LOOP accident. The results show that the CDF contribution of such an accident can be a dominant contributor to plant risk, although BWRs are less vulnerable than PWRs

Environmental, safety, and health engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodside, G.; Kocurek, D.

1997-01-01

A complete guide to environmental, safety, and health engineering, including an overview of EPA and OSHA regulations; principles of environmental engineering, including pollution prevention, waste and wastewater treatment and disposal, environmental statistics, air emissions and abatement engineering, and hazardous waste storage and containment; principles of safety engineering, including safety management, equipment safety, fire and life safety, process and system safety, confined space safety, and construction safety; and principles of industrial hygiene/occupational health engineering including chemical hazard assessment, personal protective equipment, industrial ventilation, ionizing and nonionizing radiation, noise, and ergonomics

FISSION 2120: a program for assessing the need for engineered safety feature grade air cleaning systems in post accident environments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martin, G. Jr.; Michlewicz, D.; Thomas, J.

1979-01-01

A computer program FISSION 2120, has been developed to evaluate the need for various engineered Safety Feature grade air cleaning systems to mitigate radiation exposures resulting from accidential releases of radioactivity. Those systems which are generally investigated include containment sprays with chemical additives, containment fan coolers with charcoal filters, and negative pressure maintenance systems for double barrier containments with either one-pass filtration or recirculation with filtration. The program can also be used to calculate the radiation doses to control room personnel. This type of analysis is directed towards the various protection aspects of the emergency ventilation system and involves the modeling of the radiological source terms and the atmospheric transport of the radioactive releases. The modeling is enhanced by the inherent capability of the program to accommodate simultaneous release of activity from several sources and to perform a dose evaluation for a wide range of the design characteristics of control room emergency air filtration systems. Use of the program has resulted in considerable savings in the time required to perform such analyses and in the selection of the most cost-effective Engineered Safety Features

OASIS: An automotive analysis and safety engineering instrument

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mader, Roland; Armengaud, Eric; Grießnig, Gerhard; Kreiner, Christian; Steger, Christian; Weiß, Reinhold

2013-01-01

In this paper, we describe a novel software tool named OASIS (AutOmotive Analysis and Safety EngIneering InStrument). OASIS supports automotive safety engineering with features allowing the creation of consistent and complete work products and to simplify and automate workflow steps from early analysis through system development to software development. More precisely, it provides support for (a) model creation and reuse, (b) analysis and documentation and (c) configuration and code generation. We present OASIS as a part of a tool chain supporting the application of a safety engineering workflow aligned with the automotive safety standard ISO 26262. In particular, we focus on OASIS' (1) support for property checking and model correction as well as its (2) support for fault tree generation and FMEA (Failure Modes and Effects Analysis) table generation. Finally, based on the case study of hybrid electric vehicle development, we demonstrate that (1) and (2) are able to strongly support FTA (Fault Tree Analysis) and FMEA

Safety risk management of underground engineering in China: Progress, challenges and strategies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qihu Qian

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Underground construction in China is featured by large scale, high speed, long construction period, complex operation and frustrating situations regarding project safety. Various accidents have been reported from time to time, resulting in serious social impact and huge economic loss. This paper presents the main progress in the safety risk management of underground engineering in China over the last decade, i.e. (1 establishment of laws and regulations for safety risk management of underground engineering, (2 implementation of the safety risk management plan, (3 establishment of decision support system for risk management and early-warning based on information technology, and (4 strengthening the study on safety risk management, prediction and prevention. Based on the analysis of the typical accidents in China in the last decade, the new challenges in the safety risk management for underground engineering are identified as follows: (1 control of unsafe human behaviors; (2 technological innovation in safety risk management; and (3 design of safety risk management regulations. Finally, the strategies for safety risk management of underground engineering in China are proposed in six aspects, i.e. the safety risk management system and policy, law, administration, economy, education and technology.

Safety engineering with COTS components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Halloran, Mark; Hall, Jon G.; Rapanotti, Lucia

2017-01-01

Safety-critical systems are becoming more widespread, complex and reliant on software. Increasingly they are engineered through (COTS) (Commercial Off The Shelf) components to alleviate the spiralling costs and development time, often in the context of complex supply chains. A parallel increased concern for safety has resulted in a variety of safety standards, with a growing consensus that a safety life cycle is needed which is fully integrated with the design and development life cycle, to ensure that safety has appropriate influence on the design decisions as system development progresses. In this article we explore the application of an integrated approach to safety engineering in which assurance drives the engineering process. The paper reports on the outcome of a case study on a live industrial project with a view to evaluate: its suitability for application in a real-world safety engineering setting; its benefits and limitations in counteracting some of the difficulties of safety engineering with (COTS) components across supply chains; and, its effectiveness in generating evidence which can contribute directly to the construction of safety cases. - Highlights: • Assurance as effective driver for COTS-based safety-critical system development. • Engages stakeholders, captures requirements and provides rich traceability. • Shares appropriate safety requirements across the supply chain.

X-ray and nuclear radiation facilities: personnel safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mason, W.J.; Pipes, E.W.; Rucker, T.R.; Smith, D.N.; West, C.M.

1976-10-01

The Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant is a research and production installation. The nature and versatility of this work require the use of a large number and variety of x-ray and radiographic sources for nondestructive testing and material analyses. Presently, there are over 80 x-ray generators in the plant, which range in size from small, portable units which operate at a less than 50 kilovolts potential and 0.1 milliampere current to an electron linear accelerator which operates at 12-million electron volts and produces a radiation beam of such intensity that it could deliver a lethal dose to man in a fraction of a minute. There are also almost 50 gamma and neutron sources in use in the plant. These units range in size from a few millicuries to several hundred curies. Although the radiation safety at each of these facilities was considered adequate, the administrative and maintenance procedures became unduly complicated. Accordingly, engineering standards and uniform operating procedures were considered necessary to alleviate these complications and, in so doing, provide an improved measure of radiation safety. Development and implementation of these standards are described and the general philosophy and approach to these standards are outlined. Use of a matrix (type of installation versus radiation safety feature) to facilitate equipment classification and personnel safety feature requirements is presented. Included is a set of the standards showing formats, matrices, etc., and the detailed standards for each safety feature

Systems Safety and Engineering Division

Data.gov (United States)

Federal Laboratory Consortium — Volpe's Systems Safety and Engineering Division conducts engineering, research, and analysis to improve transportation safety, capacity, and resiliency. We provide...

Safety features of the MAPLE-X10 reactor design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, A.G.; Bishop, W.E.; Heeds, W.

1990-09-01

The MAPLE-X10 reactor is a D 2 0-reflected, H 2 0-cooled and -moderated pool-type reactor under construction at the Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories. This 10-MW reactor will produce key medical and industrial radio-isotopes such as 99 Mo, 125 I, and 192 Ir. As the prototype for the MAPLE research reactor concept, the reactor incorporates diverse safety features both inherent in the design and in the added engineered systems. The safety requirements are analogous to those of the Canadian CANDU power reactor since standards for the licensing of new research reactors have not been developed yet by the licensing authority in Canada

Safety features of the MAPLE-X10 reactor design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, A.G.; Bishop, W.E.; Heeds, W.

1990-01-01

This paper reports on the MAPLE-X10 reactor D 2 O-reflected, H 2 O-cooled and -moderated pool- type reactor, under construction at the Chalk River Nuclear Laboratories. This 10-MW will produce key medical and industrial radioisotopes such as 99 Mo, 125 I, and 192 Ir. The prototype for the MAPLE research reactor concept, the reactor incorporates diverse safety features both inherent in the design and in the added engineered systems. The safety requirements are analogous to those of the Canadian CANDU power reactor as standards for the licensing of new research reactors have not been developed by the licensing authority in Canada

Systematic evaluation program review of NRC Safety Topic VI-10.A associated with the electrical, instrumentation and control portions of the testing of reactor trip system and engineered safety features, including response time for the Dresden station, Unit II nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

St Leger-Barter, G.

1980-11-01

This report documents the technical evaluation and review of NRC Safety Topic VI-10.A, associated with the electrical, instrumentation, and control portions of the testing of reactor trip systems and engineered safety features including response time for the Dresden II nuclear power plant, using current licensing criteria

System safety engineering analysis handbook

Science.gov (United States)

Ijams, T. E.

1972-01-01

The basic requirements and guidelines for the preparation of System Safety Engineering Analysis are presented. The philosophy of System Safety and the various analytic methods available to the engineering profession are discussed. A text-book description of each of the methods is included.

Education and Training of Safety Regulation for Nuclear Safety Infrastructure: Its Necessity and Unique Features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Young Sung; Choi, Young Joon; Lee, Jae Cheon

2009-01-01

Faced with global warming and electricity demands, countries over the world recognize the comparative advantages of nuclear energy. It is estimated that about 300 nuclear power plants (NPPs) expect to be constructed until 2030 worldwide. In addition, according to the IAEA, approximately 20 new countries might have their first NPP in operation by 2030 in the high projection compared with bout 5 new countries in the low projection. When introducing nuclear power, the implementation of an appropriate infrastructure to address all of the relevant issues is a central concern of international community. In particular, nuclear power program requires, at an earlier stage than when construction starts, the development of a legal and regulatory framework and training of regulators and safety experts whose combined knowledge adequately covers all areas of nuclear safety and regulation applied at a NPP construction and operation. As an essential component of such human resource development, special attention was paid to the provision of education and training to regulators of which countries plan to introduce NPPs. In term of education theory, safety regulation has some unique features in learning and teaching, which are different from those of nuclear engineering or development. This paper overviews nuclear safety infrastructure, explores the roles of exporting countries, and presents features and components in education of nuclear safety regulation

Suitability review of FMEA and reliability analysis for digital plant protection system and digital engineered safety features actuation system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, I. S.; Kim, T. K.; Kim, M. C.; Kim, B. S.; Hwang, S. W.; Ryu, K. C. [Hanyang Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2000-11-15

Of the many items that should be checked out during a review stage of the licensing application for the I and C system of Ulchin 5 and 6 units, this report relates to a suitability review of the reliability analysis of Digital Plant Protection System (DPPS) and Digital Engineered Safety Features Actuation System (DESFAS). In the reliability analysis performed by the system designer, ABB-CE, fault tree analysis was used as the main methods along with Failure Modes and Effect Analysis (FMEA). However, the present regulatory technique dose not allow the system reliability analysis and its results to be appropriately evaluated. Hence, this study was carried out focusing on the following four items ; development of general review items by which to check the validity of a reliability analysis, and the subsequent review of suitability of the reliability analysis for Ulchin 5 and 6 DPPS and DESFAS L development of detailed review items by which to check the validity of an FMEA, and the subsequent review of suitability of the FMEA for Ulchin 5 and 6 DPPS and DESFAS ; development of detailed review items by which to check the validity of a fault tree analysis, and the subsequent review of suitability of the fault tree for Ulchin 5 and 6 DPPS and DESFAS ; an integrated review of the safety and reliability of the Ulchin 5 and 6 DPPS and DESFAS based on the results of the various reviews above and also of a reliability comparison between the digital systems and the comparable analog systems, i.e., and analog Plant Protection System (PPS) and and analog Engineered Safety Features Actuation System (ESFAS). According to the review mentioned above, the reliability analysis of Ulchin 5 and 6 DPPS and DESFAS generally satisfies the review requirements. However, some shortcomings of the analysis were identified in our review such that the assumed test periods for several equipment were not properly incorporated in the analysis, and failures of some equipment were not included in the

Physical principle and engineering features of the deep pool reactor for residential heating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shi Gong; Zhao Zhaoyi; Guo Jingren; Tian Jiafu

1999-01-01

The use of nuclear energy for low temperature heating is confronted with challenges of safety and economy. The deep pool reactor, a low temperature heating reactor based on novel design principles, has been studied in detail. Results show that it has excellent safety and economic features, and is very suitable for low temperature heating purposes. The whole heating system including the nuclear reactor will be a simple and easy engineering system with the characteristics of reliability, safety and economy because the system and all its devices are based on low temperature and ordinary pressure

Technical features of ABWR safety systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugisaki, Toshihiko; Tominaga, Kenji; Horiuchi, Tetsuo

1986-01-01

The engineering safety facilities of ABWRs have been disigned so as to have many excellent characteristics such as safety, reliability and economy, reflecting the merit of adopting new technology such as internal pumps and new control rod driving mechanism, and coupled with the safety peculiar to BWRs. In this paper, about ECCS, containment vessels and others which compose the engineering safety facilities of ABWRs, the characteristics related to the safety owing to the adoption of internal pumps and others, and the evaluation of the performance at the time of various accidents are discussed. As the results of safety evaluation, it was clarified that due to the safety peculiar to ABWRs and the characteristics of the safety facilities, the large increases of safety, reliability and economy have been planned in the ABWRs, and for example, core flooding can be maintained even at the time of a hypothetical loss of coolant accident. BWRs have the simple system constitution, good self controllability, large natural circulation ability, simple operation control method and excellent ability of confining heat and radioactivity. BWRs have three safety functions to stop reactors, to remove heat from reactors, and to confine radioactive substances. These functions of ABWRs were evaluated, and very high safety was confirmed. (Kako, I.)

Inherent safety features in balance-of-plant layout

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wattelet, P.L.; Green, K.J.

1992-01-01

Future nuclear units must be more economical to construct and operate, and, at the same time, clearly incorporate advances in safety over the current generation of light water reactors. To achieve these goals, the root causes of safety issues must be addressed. In this way, global, cost-effective solutions can be implemented. With simple, direct design approaches, the licensing risk is minimized and configuration control is enhanced. With proper planning in the early stages of plant design, postulated accidents and events can often be mitigated by passive features inherent in the basic structure and layout, eliminating expensive added protective structures and components often found in current designs. Korea Electric Power Corporation's Yonggwang (YGN) Units 3 and 4, shown in an artist's rendering in Figure 1, are now under construction in Korea. Engineering is more than 85% complete, and Unit 3 construction is more than 50% complete. Significant steps toward design simplification and safety enhancement have been made by addressing safety concerns very early in the design effort. The tools used to achieve this were improved symmetry and separation, isolation of potential hazards, and an improved design process

Gaseous core nuclear-driven engines featuring a self-shutoff mechanism to provide nuclear safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heidrich, J.; Pettibone, J.; Chow, Tze-Show; Condit, R.; Zimmerman, G.

1991-11-01

Nuclear driven engines are described that could be run in either pulsed or steady state modes. In the pulsed mode nuclear energy is released by fissioning of uranium or plutonium in a supercritical assembly of fuel and working gas. In a steady state mode a fuel-gas mixture is injected into a magnetic nozzle where it is compressed into a critical state and produces energy. Engine performance is modeled using a code that calculates hydrodynamics, fission energy production, and neutron transport self-consistently. Results are given demonstrating a large negative temperature coefficient that produces self-shutoff or control of energy production. Reduced fission product inventory and the self-shutoff provide inherent nuclear safety. It is expected that nuclear engine reactor units could be scaled up from about 100 MW e

Advances in global development and deployment of small modular reactors and incorporating lessons learned from the Fukushima Daiichi accident into the designs of engineered safety features of advanced reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hadid Subki, M.; )

2014-01-01

The IAEA has been facilitating the Member States in incorporating the lessons-learned from the Fukushima Dai-ichi Accident into the designs of engineered safety features of advanced reactors, including small modular reactors. An extended assessment is required to address challenges for advancing reactor safety in the new evolving generation of SMR plants to preserve the historic lessons in safety, through: assuring the diversity in emergency core cooling systems following loss of onsite AC power; ensuring diversity in reactor depressurization following a transient or accident; confirming independence in reactor trip and safety systems for sensors, power supplies and actuation systems, and finally diversity in maintaining containment integrity following a severe accident

Passive Safety Features for Small Modular Reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ingersoll, Daniel T.

2010-01-01

The rapid growth in the size and complexity of commercial nuclear power plants in the 1970s spawned an interest in smaller, simpler designs that are inherently or intrinsically safe through the use of passive design features. Several designs were developed, but none were ever built, although some of their passive safety features were incorporated into large commercial plant designs that are being planned or built today. In recent years, several reactor vendors are actively redeveloping small modular reactor (SMR) designs with even greater use of passive features. Several designs incorporate the ultimate in passive safety they completely eliminate specific accident initiators from the design. Other design features help to reduce the likelihood of an accident or help to mitigate the accidents consequences, should one occur. While some passive safety features are common to most SMR designs, irrespective of the coolant technology, other features are specific to water, gas, or liquid-metal cooled SMR designs. The extensive use of passive safety features in SMRs promise to make these plants highly robust, protecting both the general public and the owner/investor. Once demonstrated, these plants should allow nuclear power to be used confidently for a broader range of customers and applications than will be possible with large plants alone.

46. The goals of safety engineering department of the plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanov, A.V.

1993-01-01

The goals of safety engineering department of the plant, including elaboration of instructions on safety engineering on all specialities, safety engineering training of all labours working on the plant and control for abidance by the instructions on safety engineering were discussed.

Space transportation main engine reliability and safety

Science.gov (United States)

Monk, Jan C.

1991-01-01

Viewgraphs are used to illustrate the reliability engineering and aerospace safety of the Space Transportation Main Engine (STME). A technology developed is called Total Quality Management (TQM). The goal is to develop a robust design. Reducing process variability produces a product with improved reliability and safety. Some engine system design characteristics are identified which improves reliability.

Reference to the Safety Engineering Undergraduate Courses to Improve the Subjects and Contents of the Certified Safety Engineer Qualification and Examination System of China

OpenAIRE

Haibin Qiu; Shanghong Shi; Tingdi Zhao; Yiwei Qiao; Jiangshi Zhang

2013-01-01

The aim of this paper is to recommend that the subjects and contents of certified safety engineers use safety engineering undergraduate curriculum system for reference. Human resources play an important role in accident prevention and loss control. Education on safety engineering develops quickly in China. Moreover, the State Administration of Work Safety and the National Human Resources and Social Security Ministry have implemented a certified safety engineer qualification and examination sy...

Risk assessment of safety data link and network communication in digital safety feature control system of nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sang Hun; Son, Kwang Seop; Jung, Wondea; Kang, Hyun Gook

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Safety data communication risk assessment framework and quantitative scheme were proposed. • Fault-tree model of ESFAS unavailability due to safety data communication failure was developed. • Safety data link and network risk were assessed based on various ESF-CCS design specifications. • The effect of fault-tolerant algorithm reliability of safety data network on ESFAS unavailability was assessed. - Abstract: As one of the safety-critical systems in nuclear power plants (NPPs), the Engineered Safety Feature-Component Control System (ESF-CCS) employs safety data link and network communication for the transmission of safety component actuation signals from the group controllers to loop controllers to effectively accommodate various safety-critical field controllers. Since data communication failure risk in the ESF-CCS has yet to be fully quantified, the ESF-CCS employing data communication systems have not been applied in NPPs. This study therefore developed a fault tree model to assess the data link and data network failure-induced unavailability of a system function used to generate an automated control signal for accident mitigation equipment. The current aim is to provide risk information regarding data communication failure in a digital safety feature control system in consideration of interconnection between controllers and the fault-tolerant algorithm implemented in the target system. Based on the developed fault tree model, case studies were performed to quantitatively assess the unavailability of ESF-CCS signal generation due to data link and network failure and its risk effect on safety signal generation failure. This study is expected to provide insight into the risk assessment of safety-critical data communication in a digitalized NPP instrumentation and control system.

Technical evaluation of the electrical, instrumentation, and control design aspects of the override of containment purge valve isolation and other engineered safety feature signals for the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Power Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hackett, D.B.

1980-01-01

This report documents the technical evaluation of the electrical, instrumentation, and control design aspects of the override of containment purge valve isolation and other engineered safety feature signals for the Fort Calhoun nuclear power plant. The review criteria are based on IEEE Std-279-1971 requirements for the safety signals to all purge and ventilation isolation valves. This report is supplied as part of the Selected Electrical, Instrumentation, and Control Systems Issues Program being conducted for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission by Lawrence Livermore Laboratory

Curriculum: Integrating Health and Safety Into Engineering Curricula.

Science.gov (United States)

Talty, John T.

1985-01-01

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health instituted a project in 1980 to encourage engineering educators to focus on occupational safety and health issues in engineering curricula. Progress to date is outlined, considering specific results in curriculum development, engineering society interaction, and formation of a teaching…

Fire safety engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, D.N.

1989-01-01

The periodic occurrence of large-scale, potentially disastrous industrial accidents involving fire in hazardous environments such as oilwell blowouts, petrochemical explosions and nuclear installations highlights the need for an integrated approach to fire safety engineering. Risk reduction 'by design' and rapid response are of equal importance in the saving of life and property in such situations. This volume of papers covers the subject thoroughly, touching on such topics as hazard analysis, safety design and testing, fire detection and control, and includes studies of fire hazard in the context of environment protection. (author)

Study of long-term loss of all AC power supply sources for VVER-1000/V320 in connection with application of new engineering safety features for SAMG

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Borisov, Evgeni; Grigorov, Dobrin; Mancheva, Kaliopa

2013-01-01

Highlights: • In this study we presented analysis for a new SAMG approach. • The approach is applicable for all PWR reactors from 2nd generation. • We investigated two scenarios with total black out. • The RELAP/MOD 3.2 computer code is used in performing the analyses. - Abstract: This paper presents the results of analysis for application of a new Severe Accident Management Guideline (SAMG) approach which is specifically applied for VVER-1000/B320 reactor installations. In general, this innovative approach is fully applicable for all the pressurized water reactors from second generation. The purposes of the analysis for the new SAMG approach application are as follows: • To represent suggestions for new engineering safety features application for SAMG strategies. • To assess the applicability of the new engineering safety features and means for SAMG strategies in case of loss of all off-site power supply sources for VVER-1000/B320 reactor installations. • To represent important operator actions and to analyse the effectiveness of these actions for accidents management in compliance with the new approach. • The RELAP5/MOD3.3 computer code has been used in performing the analyses in a VVER-1000 Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) model. The input data deck for the analysis is optimized, verified and validated

An engineer-constructor's view of nuclear power plant safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Landis, J.W.; Jacobs, S.B.

1984-01-01

At SWEC we have been involved in the development of safety features of nuclear power plants ever since we served as the engineer-constructur for the first commerical nuclear power station at Shippingport, Pennsylvania, in the 1950s. Our personnel have pioneered a number of safety innovations and improvements. Among these innovations is the subatmospheric containment for pressurized water reactor (PWR) power plants. This type of containment is designed so that leakage will terminate within 1 to 2 hours of the worst postulated loss of coolant accident. Other notable contributions include first use of reinforced-concrete atmospheric containments for PWR power plants and of reinforced-concrete, vapor-suppression containments for boiling water reactor (BWR) power plants. Both concepts meet rigorous U.S. safety requirements. SWEC has performed a substantial amount of work on developing standardized plant designs and has developed standardized engineering and construction techniques and procedures. Standardization concepts are being developed in Canada, France, USSR, and Germany, as well as in the United States. The West German convoy concept, which involves developing a number of standardized plants in a common effort, has been quite successful. We believe standardization contributes to safety in a number of ways. Use of standardized designs, procedures, techniques, equipment, and methods increases efficiency and results in higher quality. Standardization also reduces the design variations with which plant operators, emergency teams, and regulatory personnel must be familiar, thus increasing operator capability, and permits specialized talents to be focused on important safety considerations. (orig./RW)

Reactor engineering and engineered reactor safety in France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1987-01-01

The proceedings give the full text of the lectures held by acknowledged French experts at the KTG Seminar in Mainz on March 10, 1987, all dealing with the leading topic of the current status of reactor engineering and development in France. Although the basic engineering principles and construction lines as well as the safety philosophy are the same in France as in West Germany, there have been distinctive developments over many years in the two countries that by now are not well known even among experts in this field, and hence cannot be properly assessed. Non-availability of relevant surveys or other type of literature in the German language reviewing the French developments is another factor that hitherto was a handicap to mutual exchange of information. The seminar was intended to close this gap. The proceedings should be read by all those in West Germany who wish to be informed about the developments in reactor engineering and reactor safety in France. (orig./DG) [de

Engineering features of ISX

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lousteau, D.C.; Jernigan, T.C.; Schaffer, M.J.; Hussung, R.O.

1975-01-01

ISX, an Impurity Study Experiment, is presently being designed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory as a joint scientific effort between ORNL and General Atomic Company. ISX is a moderate size tokamak dedicated to the study of impurity production, diffusion, and control. The significant engineering features of this device are discussed

Recent Development of the Two-Stroke Engine. II - Design Features. 2; Design Features

Science.gov (United States)

Zeman, J.

1945-01-01

Completing the first paper dealing with charging methods and arrangements, the present paper discusses the design forms of two-stroke engines. Features which largely influence piston running are: (a) The shape and surface condition of the sliding parts. (b) The cylinder and piston materials. (c) Heat conditions in the piston, and lubrication. There is little essential difference between four-stroke and two-stroke engines with ordinary pistons. In large engines, for example, are always found separately cast or welded frames in which the stresses are taken up by tie rods. Twin piston and timing piston engines often differ from this design. Examples can be found in many engines of German or foreign make. Their methods of operation will be dealt with in the third part of the present paper, which also includes the bibliography. The development of two-stroke engine design is, of course, mainly concerned with such features as are inherently difficult to master; that is, the piston barrel and the design of the gudgeon pin bearing. Designers of four-stroke engines now-a-days experience approximately the same difficulties, since heat stresses have increased to the point of influencing conditions in the piston barrel. Features which notably affect this are: (a) The material. (b) Prevailing heat conditions.

Engineered safeguards and passive safety features (safety analysis detailed report no. 6)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1988-01-15

The Safety-Analysis Summary lists the reactor's safety aspects for passive and active prevention of severe accidents and mitigation of accident consequences, i.e., intrinsic and passive protections of the plant; intrinsic and passive protections of the core; inherent decay-heat removal systems; rapid-shutdown systems; four physical containment barriers. This report goes into further details regarding some of this aspects.

Integrating system safety into the basic systems engineering process

Science.gov (United States)

Griswold, J. W.

1971-01-01

The basic elements of a systems engineering process are given along with a detailed description of what the safety system requires from the systems engineering process. Also discussed is the safety that the system provides to other subfunctions of systems engineering.

Main engineering features driving design concept and engineering design constraints

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saito, Ryusei; Kobayashi, Takeshi; Yamada, Masao

1987-09-01

Major engineering design philosophies are described, which are essential bases for an engineering design and may have significant impacts on a reactor design concept. Those design philosophies are classified into two groups, engineering design drivers and engineering design constraints. The design drivers are featured by the fact that a designer is free to choose and the choice may be guided by his opinion, such as coil system, a mechanical configuration, a tritium breeding scenario, etc.. The design constraints may follow a natural law or engineering limit, such as material strength, coil current density, and so on. (author)

LFR safety features through intrinsic negative reactivity feedbacks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grasso, Giacomo

2012-01-01

The safety of Lead-cooled Fast Reactors can rely on intrinsic features such as: • the impossibility of Lead boiling, hence the unreliability of core (only) voiding; • the buoyancy of Control Rods in Lead, allowing their safe positioning also below the active region. For heightening the safety features of LFRs in safety analyses it could be required to approach the evaluation of the reactivity coefficients from a more physical point of view, including more elementary mechanisms, each one related to the proper driving temperature

Determination of engineering safety factor -routine in Hungary (a methodology for the normal operation local power engineering safety factors)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szecsenyi, Z.; Korpas, L.; Bona, G.; Kereszturi, A.

2010-01-01

From the late nineties Paks Nuclear Power Plant-in collaboration with KFKI Atomic Energy Research Institute (KFKI AEKI)- is developing a system for determining the normal operation local power engineering safety factors. The system is based on a Monte Carlo sampling of the uncertain model input parameters. Additionally, the comparison of the calculation to the in-core measurements plays essential role for determining some important input parameters. By using new fuel types and the corresponding more recent detailed technological data, the applied method is being improved from time to time. Presently, the actually used and authorized engineering safety factors at Paks NPP are determined by using this method. In the paper, the system.s main properties are described (not going beyond the possible extent). The main points are as follows:-Mathematical definition of the engineering safety factor;-Sources of the uncertainties;-Input error propagation method constituting the basis of the system;-Flow-chart of the subsequent steps of the determination Finally, in the paper the engineering safety factors values of some selected parameters are presented as examples for demonstration of the capability of the method. (Authors)

Safety engineering experiments of explosives

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ishikawa, Noboru

1987-07-24

The outline of large scale experiments carried out every year since 1969 to obtain fundamental data and then establish the safety engineering standards concerning the manufacturing, storage and transportation, etc. of all explosives was described. Because it becomes recently difficult to ensure the safety distance in powder magazines and powder plants, the sandwich structure with sand is thought to be suitable as the neighboring barrier walls. The special vertical structure for embankments to provide against a emergency explosion is effective to absorb the blast. Explosion behaviors such as initiating sensitivity, detonation, sympathetic detonation, and shock occurence of the ANFO explosives in place of dynamite and the slurry explosives were studied. The safety engineering standards for the manufacturing and application of explosives were studied to establish because accidents by tabacco fire are not still distinguished. Much data concerning early stage fire fighting, a large quantity of flooding and shock occurence from a assumption of ignition during machining in the propellants manufacturing plant, could be obtained. Basic studies were made to prevent pollution in blasting sites. Collected data are utilized for the safety administration after sufficient discussion. (4 figs, 2 tabs, 3 photos, 17 refs)

Segmentation Scheme for Safety Enhancement of Engineered Safety Features Component Control System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sangseok; Sohn, Kwangyoung; Lee, Junku; Park, Geunok

2013-01-01

Common Caused Failure (CCF) or undetectable failure would adversely impact safety functions of ESF-CCS in the existing nuclear power plants. We propose the segmentation scheme to solve these problems. Main function assignment to segments in the proposed segmentation scheme is based on functional dependency and critical function success path by using the dependency depth matrix. The segment has functional independence and physical isolation. The segmentation structure is that prohibit failure propagation to others from undetectable failures. Therefore, the segmentation system structure has robustness to undetectable failures. The segmentation system structure has functional diversity. The specific function in the segment defected by CCF, the specific function could be maintained by diverse control function that assigned to other segments. Device level control signals and system level control signals are separated and also control signal and status signals are separated due to signal transmission paths are allocated independently based on signal type. In this kind of design, single device failure or failures on signal path in the channel couldn't result in the loss of all segmented functions simultaneously. Thus the proposed segmentation function is the design scheme that improves availability of safety functions. In conventional ESF-CCS, the single controller generates the signal to control the multiple safety functions, and the reliability is achieved by multiplication within the channel. This design has a drawback causing the loss of multiple functions due to the CCF (Common Cause Failure) and single failure Heterogeneous controller guarantees the diversity ensuring the execution of safety functions against the CCF and single failure, but requiring a lot of resources like manpower and cost. The segmentation technology based on the compartmentalization and functional diversification decreases the CCF and single failure nonetheless the identical types of controllers

Segmentation Scheme for Safety Enhancement of Engineered Safety Features Component Control System

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sangseok; Sohn, Kwangyoung [Korea Reliability Technology and System, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Junku; Park, Geunok [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-05-15

Common Caused Failure (CCF) or undetectable failure would adversely impact safety functions of ESF-CCS in the existing nuclear power plants. We propose the segmentation scheme to solve these problems. Main function assignment to segments in the proposed segmentation scheme is based on functional dependency and critical function success path by using the dependency depth matrix. The segment has functional independence and physical isolation. The segmentation structure is that prohibit failure propagation to others from undetectable failures. Therefore, the segmentation system structure has robustness to undetectable failures. The segmentation system structure has functional diversity. The specific function in the segment defected by CCF, the specific function could be maintained by diverse control function that assigned to other segments. Device level control signals and system level control signals are separated and also control signal and status signals are separated due to signal transmission paths are allocated independently based on signal type. In this kind of design, single device failure or failures on signal path in the channel couldn't result in the loss of all segmented functions simultaneously. Thus the proposed segmentation function is the design scheme that improves availability of safety functions. In conventional ESF-CCS, the single controller generates the signal to control the multiple safety functions, and the reliability is achieved by multiplication within the channel. This design has a drawback causing the loss of multiple functions due to the CCF (Common Cause Failure) and single failure Heterogeneous controller guarantees the diversity ensuring the execution of safety functions against the CCF and single failure, but requiring a lot of resources like manpower and cost. The segmentation technology based on the compartmentalization and functional diversification decreases the CCF and single failure nonetheless the identical types of

Reliability and Maintainability Engineering - A Major Driver for Safety and Affordability

Science.gov (United States)

Safie, Fayssal M.

2011-01-01

The United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is in the midst of an effort to design and build a safe and affordable heavy lift vehicle to go to the moon and beyond. To achieve that, NASA is seeking more innovative and efficient approaches to reduce cost while maintaining an acceptable level of safety and mission success. One area that has the potential to contribute significantly to achieving NASA safety and affordability goals is Reliability and Maintainability (R&M) engineering. Inadequate reliability or failure of critical safety items may directly jeopardize the safety of the user(s) and result in a loss of life. Inadequate reliability of equipment may directly jeopardize mission success. Systems designed to be more reliable (fewer failures) and maintainable (fewer resources needed) can lower the total life cycle cost. The Department of Defense (DOD) and industry experience has shown that optimized and adequate levels of R&M are critical for achieving a high level of safety and mission success, and low sustainment cost. Also, lessons learned from the Space Shuttle program clearly demonstrated the importance of R&M engineering in designing and operating safe and affordable launch systems. The Challenger and Columbia accidents are examples of the severe impact of design unreliability and process induced failures on system safety and mission success. These accidents demonstrated the criticality of reliability engineering in understanding component failure mechanisms and integrated system failures across the system elements interfaces. Experience from the shuttle program also shows that insufficient Reliability, Maintainability, and Supportability (RMS) engineering analyses upfront in the design phase can significantly increase the sustainment cost and, thereby, the total life cycle cost. Emphasis on RMS during the design phase is critical for identifying the design features and characteristics needed for time efficient processing

Patient safety trilogy: perspectives from clinical engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Gieras, Izabella; Sherman, Paul; Minsent, Dennis

2013-01-01

This article examines the role a clinical engineering or healthcare technology management (HTM) department can play in promoting patient safety from three different perspectives: a community hospital, a national government health system, and an academic medical center. After a general overview, Izabella Gieras from Huntington Hospital in Pasadena, CA, leads off by examining the growing role of human factors in healthcare technology, and describing how her facility uses clinical simulations in medical equipment evaluations. A section by Paul Sherman follows, examining patient safety initiatives from the perspective of the Veterans Health Administration with a focus on hazard alerts and recalls. Dennis Minsent from Oregon Health & Science University writes about patient safety from an academic healthcare perspective, and details how clinical engineers can engage in multidisciplinary safety opportunities.

Demonstration of inherent safety features of HTGRs using the HTTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tachibana, Yukio; Nakagawa, Shigeaki; Nakazawa, Toshio; Iyoku, Tatsuo

2004-01-01

Safety demonstration tests using the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) are conducted for the purpose of demonstrating inherent safety features of High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors (HTGRs) quantitatively as well as providing the core and plant transient data for validation of HTGR analysis codes for safety evaluation. The safety demonstration test are divided to the first phase and second phase tests. In the first phase tests, simulation tests of anticipated operational occurrences and anticipated transients without scram (ATWS) are conducted. The second phase tests will simulate accidents such as a depressurization accident (loss of coolant accident). The first phase test simulating reactivity insertion events and coolant flow reduction events stared in FY 2002. Post-test analyses have been conducted to reproduced the test results by using the core and plant dynamics analysis code, ACCORD and Monte Carlo code, MVP. The analysis results agreed fairly well with the test results of a control rod withdrawal test simulating reactivity insertion, and gas circulators trip test simulating coolant flow reduction, at power levels of 50% and 30% of the rated power, respectively. It is shown that improvement of the ACCORD code by taking into consideration vertical and horizontal temperature distribution gives better analysis results in the control rod withdrawal test. The fist phase safety demonstration tests will continue until FY 2005, and the second phase tests are planned to be started in FY 2006. (author)

Engineering design guidelines for nuclear criticality safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Waltz, W.R.

1988-08-01

This document provides general engineering design guidelines specific to nuclear criticality safety for a facility where the potential for a criticality accident exists. The guide is applicable to the design of new SRP/SRL facilities and to major modifications Of existing facilities. The document is intended an: A guide for persons actively engaged in the design process. A resource document for persons charged with design review for adequacy relative to criticality safety. A resource document for facility operating personnel. The guide defines six basic criticality safety design objectives and provides information to assist in accomplishing each objective. The guide in intended to supplement the design requirements relating to criticality safety contained in applicable Department of Energy (DOE) documents. The scope of the guide is limited to engineering design guidelines associated with criticality safety and does not include other areas of the design process, such as: criticality safety analytical methods and modeling, nor requirements for control of the design process

Experience with performance based training of nuclear criticality safety engineers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, R.G.

1993-01-01

For non-reactor nuclear facilities, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) does not require that nuclear criticality safety engineers demonstrate qualification for their job. It is likely, however, that more formalism will be required in the future. Current DOE requirements for those positions which do have to demonstrate qualification indicate that qualification should be achieved by using a systematic approach such as performance based training (PBT). Assuming that PBT would be an acceptable mechanism for nuclear criticality safety engineer training in a more formal environment, a site-specific analysis of the nuclear criticality safety engineer job was performed. Based on this analysis, classes are being developed and delivered to a target audience of newer nuclear criticality safety engineers. Because current interest is in developing training for selected aspects of the nuclear criticality safety engineer job, the analysis is incompletely developed in some areas

Integral fast reactor concept inherent safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marchaterre, J.F.; Sevy, R.H.; Cahalan, J.E.

1987-01-01

The Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) is an innovative liquid-metal-cooled reactor concept being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. The two major goals of the IFT development effort are improved economics and enhanced safety. The design features that together fulfill these goals are: 1) a liquid metal (sodium) coolant, 2) a pool-type reactor primary system configuration, 3) an advanced ternary alloy metallic fuel, and 4) an integral fuel cycle. This paper reviews the design features that contribute to the safety margins inherent to the IFR concept. Special emphasis is placed on the ability of the IFR design to accommodate anticipated transients without scram (ATWS)

Integral Fast Reactor concept inherent safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marchaterre, J.F.; Sevy, R.H.; Cahalan, J.E.

1986-01-01

The Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) is an innovative liquid-metal-cooled reactor concept being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. The two major goals of the IFR development effort are improved economics and enhanced safety. The design features that together fulfill these goals are: (1) a liquid metal (sodium) coolant, (2) a pool-type reactor primary system configuration, (3) an advanced ternary alloy metallic fuel, and (4) an integral fuel cycle. This paper reviews the design features that contribute to the safety margins inherent to the IFR concept. Special emphasis is placed on the ability of the IFR design to accommodate anticipated transients without scram (ATWS)

Reactor protection system including engineered features actuation system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Palmaers, W.

1982-01-01

The safety concept requires to ensure that - the reactor protection system - the active engineered safeguard - and the necessary auxiliary systems are so designed and interfaced in respect of design and mode of action that, in the event of single component failure reliable control of the consequences of accidents remains ensured at all times and that the availability of the power plant is not limited unnecessarily. In order to satisfy these requirements due, importance was attached to a consistent spacial separation of the mutually redundant subsystems of the active safety equipment. The design and layout of the reactor protection system, of the power supply (emergency power supply), and of the auxiliary systems important from the safety engineering point of view, are such that their subsystems also largely satisfy the requirements of independence and spacial separation. (orig./RW)

Innovative safety features of the modular HTGR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silady, F.A.; Simon, W.A.

1992-04-01

In this document the innovative safety features of the MHTGR are reviewed by examining the safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal are examined, including a loss of helium pressure and a simultaneous loss of forced cool of the core

Developing safety culture in nuclear power engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tevlin, S.A.

2000-01-01

The new issue (no. 11) of the IAEA publications series Safety Reports, devoted to the safety culture in nuclear engineering Safety culture development in the nuclear activities. Practical recommendations to achieve success, is analyzed. A number of recommendations of international experts is presented and basic general indicators of satisfactory and insufficient safety culture in the nuclear engineering are indicated. It is shown that the safety culture has two foundations: human behavior and high quality of the control system. The necessity of creating the confidence by the management at all levels of the enterprise, development of individual initiative and responsibility of the workers, which make it possible to realize the structural hierarchic system, including technical, human and organizational constituents, is noted. Three stages are traced in the process of introducing the safety culture. At the first stage the require,emts of scientific-technical documentation and provisions of the governmental, regional and control organs are fulfilled. At the second stage the management of the organization accepts the safety as an important direction in its activities. At the third stage the organization accomplishes its work, proceeding from the position of constant safety improvement. The general model of the safety culture development is considered [ru

Integral fast reactor safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cahalan, J.E.; Kramer, J.M.; Marchaterre, J.F.; Mueller, C.J.; Pedersen, D.R.; Sevy, R.H.; Wade, D.C.; Wei, T.Y.C.

1988-01-01

The integral fast reactor (IFR) is an advanced liquid-metal-cooled reactor concept being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. The two major goals of the IFR development effort are improved economics and enhanced safety. In addition to liquid metal cooling, the principal design features that distinguish the IFR are: a pool-type primary system, and advanced ternary alloy metallic fuel, and an integral fuel cycle with on-site fuel reprocessing and fabrication. This paper focuses on the technical aspects of the improved safety margins available in the IFR concept. This increased level of safety is made possible by the liquid metal (sodium) coolant and pool-type primary system layout, which together facilitate passive decay heat removal, and a sodium-bonded metallic fuel pin design with thermal and neutronic properties that provide passive core responses which control and mitigate the consequences of reactor accidents

HTGR safety philosophy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Joksimovic, V.; Fisher, C. R. [General Atomic Co., San Diego, CA (USA)

1981-01-15

The accident at the Three Mile Island has focused public attention on reactor safety. Many public figures advocate a safer method of generating nuclear electricity for the second nuclear era in the U.S. The paper discusses the safety philosophy of a concept deemed suitable for this second nuclear era. The HTGR, in the course of its evolution, included safety as a significant determinant in design philosophy. This is particularly evident in the design features which provide inherent safety. Inherent features cause releases from a wide spectrum of accident conditions to be low. Engineered features supplement inherent features. The significance of HTGR safety features is quantified and order-of-magnitude type of comparisons are made with alternative ways of generating electricity.

HTGR safety philosophy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joksimovic, V.; Fisher, C.R.

1981-01-01

The accident at the Three Mile Island has focused public attention on reactor safety. Many public figures advocate a safer method of generating nuclear electricity for the second nuclear era in the U.S. The paper discusses the safety philosophy of a concept deemed suitable for this second nuclear era. The HTGR, in the course of its evolution, included safety as a significant determinant in design philosophy. This is particularly evident in the design features which provide inherent safety. Inherent features cause releases from a wide spectrum of accident conditions to be low. Engineered features supplement inherent features. The significance of HTGR safety features is quantified and order-of-magnitude type of comparisons are made with alternative ways of generating electricity. (author)

HTGR safety philosophy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joskimovic, V.; Fisher, C.R.

1980-08-01

The accident at the Three Mile Island has focused public attention on reactor safety. Many public figures advocate a safer method of generating nuclear electricity for the second nuclear era in the US. The paper discusses the safety philosophy of a concept deemed suitable for this second nuclear era. The HTGR, in the course of its evolution, included safety as a significant determinant in design philosophy. This is particularly evident in the design features which provide inherent safety. Inherent features cause releases from a wide spectrum of accident conditions to be low. Engineered features supplement inherent features. The significance of HTGR safety features is quantified and order-of-magnitude type of comparisons are made with alternative ways of generating electricity

Experience with performance based training of nuclear criticality safety engineers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, R.G.

1993-01-01

Historically, new entrants to the practice of nuclear criticality safety have learned their job primarily by on-the-job training (OJT) often by association with an experienced nuclear criticality safety engineer who probably also learned their job by OJT. Typically, the new entrant learned what he/she needed to know to solve a particular problem and accumulated experience as more problems were solved. It is likely that more formalism will be required in the future. Current US Department of Energy requirements for those positions which have to demonstrate qualification indicate that it should be achieved by using a systematic approach such as performance based training (PBT). Assuming that PBT would be an acceptable mechanism for nuclear criticality safety engineer training in a more formal environment, a site-specific analysis of the nuclear criticality safety engineer job was performed. Based on this analysis, classes are being developed and delivered to a target audience of newer nuclear criticality safety engineers. Because current interest is in developing training for selected aspects of the nuclear criticality safety engineer job, the analysis i's incompletely developed in some areas. Details of this analysis are provided in this report

Fire-safety engineering and performance-based codes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Lars Schiøtt

project administrators, etc. The book deals with the following topics: • Historical presentation on the subject of fire • Legislation and building project administration • European fire standardization • Passive and active fire protection • Performance-based Codes • Fire-safety Engineering • Fundamental......Fire-safety Engineering is written as a textbook for Engineering students at universities and other institutions of higher education that teach in the area of fire. The book can also be used as a work of reference for consulting engineers, Building product manufacturers, contractors, building...... thermodynamics • Heat exchange during the fire process • Skin burns • Burning rate, energy release rate and design fires • Proposal to Risk-based design fires • Proposal to a Fire scale • Material ignition and flame spread • Fire dynamics in buildings • Combustion products and toxic gases • Smoke inhalation...

Modeling crash injury severity by road feature to improve safety.

Science.gov (United States)

Penmetsa, Praveena; Pulugurtha, Srinivas S

2018-01-02

The objective of this research is 2-fold: to (a) model and identify critical road features (or locations) based on crash injury severity and compare it with crash frequency and (b) model and identify drivers who are more likely to contribute to crashes by road feature. Crash data from 2011 to 2013 were obtained from the Highway Safety Information System (HSIS) for the state of North Carolina. Twenty-three different road features were considered, analyzed, and compared with each other as well as no road feature. A multinomial logit (MNL) model was developed and odds ratios were estimated to investigate the effect of road features on crash injury severity. Among the many road features, underpass, end or beginning of a divided highway, and on-ramp terminal on crossroad are the top 3 critical road features. Intersection crashes are frequent but are not highly likely to result in severe injuries compared to critical road features. Roundabouts are least likely to result in both severe and moderate injuries. Female drivers are more likely to be involved in crashes at intersections (4-way and T) compared to male drivers. Adult drivers are more likely to be involved in crashes at underpasses. Older drivers are 1.6 times more likely to be involved in a crash at the end or beginning of a divided highway. The findings from this research help to identify critical road features that need to be given priority. As an example, additional advanced warning signs and providing enlarged or highly retroreflective signs that grab the attention of older drivers may help in making locations such as end or beginning of a divided highway much safer. Educating drivers about the necessary skill sets required at critical road features in addition to engineering solutions may further help them adopt safe driving behaviors on the road.

Engineering systems reliability, safety, and maintenance an integrated approach

CERN Document Server

Dhillon, B S

2017-01-01

Today, engineering systems are an important element of the world economy and each year billions of dollars are spent to develop, manufacture, operate, and maintain various types of engineering systems around the globe. Many of these systems are highly sophisticated and contain millions of parts. For example, a Boeing jumbo 747 is made up of approximately 4.5 million parts including fasteners. Needless to say, reliability, safety, and maintenance of systems such as this have become more important than ever before.　 Global competition and other factors are forcing manufacturers to produce highly reliable, safe, and maintainable engineering products. Therefore, there is a definite need for the reliability, safety, and maintenance professionals to work closely during design and other phases. Engineering Systems Reliability, Safety, and Maintenance: An Integrated Approach eliminates the need to consult many different and diverse sources in the hunt for the information required to design better engineering syste...

Integral fast reactor safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cahalan, J.E.; Kramer, J.M.; Marchaterre, J.F.; Mueller, C.J.; Pedersen, D.R.; Sevy, R.H.; Wade, D.C.; Wei, T.Y.C.

1988-01-01

The Integral Fast Reactor (IFR) is an advanced liquid-metal-cooled reactor concept being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. The two major goals of the IFR development effort are improved economics and enhanced safety. In addition to liquid metal cooling, the principal design features that distinguish the IFR are: (1) a pool-type primary system, (2) an advanced ternary alloy metallic fuel, and (3) an integral fuel cycle with on-site fuel reprocessing and fabrication. This paper focuses on the technical aspects of the improved safety margins available in the IFR concept. This increased level of safety is made possible by (1) the liquid metal (sodium) coolant and pool-type primary system layout, which together facilitate passive decay heat removal, and (2) a sodium-bonded metallic fuel pin design with thermal and neutronic properties that provide passive core responses which control and mitigate the consequences of reactor accidents

2012 national state safety engineers and traffic engineers peer-to-peer workshop.

Science.gov (United States)

2013-11-01

The Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) and the Illinois Center for Transportation (ICT) sponsored and hosted the : 2012 National State Safety Engineers and Traffic Engineers Peer-to-Peer Workshop on November 14 and 15, 2012, at the : Hyatt ...

Engineering judgement and bridging the fire safety gap in existing nuclear facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qamheiah, G.; Wu, Y., E-mail: gqamheiah@plcfire.com, E-mail: dwu@plcfire.com [PLC Fire Safety Solutions, Mississauga, ON (Canada)

2014-07-01

Canadian nuclear power plants were constructed in the 1960's through the 1980's. Fire safety considerations were largely based on guidance from general building and fire codes in effect at the time. Since then, nuclear specific fire safety standards have been developed and adopted by the Regulator, increasing the expected level of fire safety in the process. Application of the standards to existing plants was largely limited to operational requirements viewed as retroactive. However, as existing facilities undergo modifications or refurbishment for the purpose of life extension, the expectation is that the design requirements of these fire safety standards also be satisfied. This creates considerable challenges for existing nuclear power plants as fire safety requirements such as those intended to assure means for safe egress, prevention of fire spread and protection of redundancy rely upon fire protection features that are inherent in the physical infrastructural design. This paper focuses on the methodology for conducting fire safety gap analyses on existing plants, and the integral role that engineering judgement plays in the development of viable and cost effective solutions to achieve the objectives of the current fire safety standards. (author)

Criticality safety engineer training at WSRC

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williamson, T.G.; Mincey, J.F.

1993-01-01

Two programs designed to prepare engineers for certification as criticality safety engineers are offered at Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC). One program, Student On Loan Criticality Engineer Training (SOLCET), is an intensive 2-yr course involving lectures, rigorous problem assignments, and mentoring. The other program, In-Field Criticality Engineer Training (IN-FIELD), is a less intensive series of lectures and problem assignments. Both courses are conducted by members of the Applied Physics Group (APG) of the Savannah River Technical Center, the organization at WSRC responsible for the operation and maintenance of criticality codes and for training of code users

Passive safety features in current and future water cooled reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-11-01

Better understanding of the passive safety systems and components in current and future water-cooled reactors may enhance the safety of present reactors, to the extend passive features are backfitted. This better understanding should also improve the safety of future reactors, which can incorporate more of these features. Passive safety systems and components may help to prevent accidents, core damage, or release radionuclides to the environment. The Technical Committee Meeting which was hosted by the USSR State Committee for Utilization of Nuclear Energy was attended by about 80 experts from 16 IAEA Member States and the NEA-OECD. A total of 21 papers were presented during the meeting. The objective of the meeting was to review and discuss passive safety systems and features of current and future water cooled reactor designs and to exchange information in this area of activity. A separate abstract was prepared for each of the 21 papers published in this proceedings. Refs, figs and tabs

Safety in offshore engineering an academic course covering safety in offshore wind

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cerda Salzmann, D.J.

2011-01-01

Offshore projects are known for their challenging conditions, generally leading to high risks. Therefore no offshore project can go without a continuous and extensive assessment on safety issues. The Delft University of Technology is currently developing a course "Safety in Offshore Engineering"

New engineering safety factors for Loviisa NPP core calculations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kuopanportti, Jaakko; Saarinen, Simo; Lahtinen, Tuukka; Ekstroem, Karoliina [Fortum Power and Heat Ltd., Fortum (Finland)

2017-09-15

In Loviisa NPP, there are two limiting thermal margins called the enthalpy rise margin and the linear heat rate margin that are monitored during normal operation. Engineering safety factors are applied in determination of both of these factors. The factors take into account the effect of various manufacturing tolerances, impact of the irradiation and simulation uncertainties on the local heat rate and on the enthalpy of the coolant. The engineering factors were re-evaluated during 2015 and the factors were approved by the Finnish radiation and nuclear safety authority in 2016. The re-evaluation was performed by considering all of the identified phenomena that affect the local heat rate or the enthalpy of the coolant. This paper summarizes the work that was performed during the re-evaluation of the engineering safety factors and presents the results for each uncertainty component. The new engineering safety factors are 1.115 for the linear heat rate and 1.100 for the enthalpy rise margin when the old factors were 1.12 and 1.16, respectively. The new factors improve the fuel economy by about 1%.

Inherent Safety Feature of Hybrid Low Power Research Reactor during Reactivity Induced Accident

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, DongHyun; Yum, Soo Been; Hong, Sung Teak; Lim, In-Cheol [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

Hybrid low power research reactor(H-LPRR) is the new design concept of low power research reactor for critical facility as well as education and training. In the case of typical low power research reactor, the purposes of utilization are the experiments for education of nuclear engineering students, Neutron Activation Analysis(NAA) and radio-isotope production for research purpose. H-LPRR is a light-water cooled and moderated research reactor that uses rod-type LEU UO{sub 2} fuels same as those for commercial power plants. The maximum core thermal power is 70kW and, the core is placed in the bottom of open pool. There are 1 control rod and 2 shutdown rods in the core. It is designed to cool the core by natural convection, retain negative feedback coefficient for entire fuel periods and operate for 20 years without refueling. Inherent safety in H-LPRR is achieved by passive design features such as negative temperature feedback coefficient and core cooling by natural convection during normal and emergency conditions. The purpose of this study is to find out that the inherent safety characteristics of H-LPRR is able to control the power and protect the reactor from the RIA(Reactivity induced accident). RIA analysis was performed to investigate the inherent safety feature of H-LPRR. As a result, it was found that the reactor controls its power without fuel damage in the event and that the reactor remains safe states inherently. Therefore, it is believed that high degree of safety inheres in H-LPRR.

Safety design features of the IRIS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2009-01-01

The International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) is an advanced, integral, light water cooled reactor of medium generating capacity (335 MW(e)), that features an integral reactor vessel containing all the reactor primary system components, including steam generators, coolant pumps, pressurizer and heaters, and control rod drive mechanisms; in addition to the typical core, internals, control rods and neutron reflector. This integral configuration allows for the use of a small, high design pressure, spherical steel containment which results in a significant reduction in the size of the nuclear island. Other IRIS innovations include a simplified passive safety system concept and equipment features that derive from the 'safety-by-design' philosophy. This design approach allows for elimination of certain accident initiators at the design stage, or when outright elimination is not possible, decreases accident consequences and/or their probability of occurrence. Major design characteristics of the IRIS are given. As part of the IRIS pre-application licensing review by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the IRIS design team has developed a test plan that will provide the necessary data for safety analysis computer model verification, as well as for verifying the manufacturing feasibility, operability, and durability of new component designs

Systems engineered health and safety criteria for safety analysis reports

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beitel, G.A.; Morcos, N.

1993-01-01

The world of safety analysis is filled with ambiguous words: codes and standards, consequences and risks, hazard and accident, and health and safety. These words have been subject to disparate interpretations by safety analysis report (SAR) writers, readers, and users. open-quotes Principal health and safety criteriaclose quotes has been one of the most frequently misused phrases; rarely is it used consistently or effectively. This paper offers an easily understood definition for open-quotes principal health and safety criteriaclose quotes and uses systems engineering to convert an otherwise mysterious topic into the primary means of producing an integrated SAR. This paper is based on SARs being written for environmental restoration and waste management activities for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Requirements for these SARs are prescribed in DOE Order 5480-23, open-quotes Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports.close quotes

Safety design of Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ouyang Yu; Zhang Lian; Du Shenghua; Zhao Jiayu

1984-01-01

Safety issues have been greatly emphasized through the design of the Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant. Reasonable safety margine has been taken into account in the plant design parameters, the design incorporated various safeguard systems, such as engineering safety feature systems, safety protection systems and the features to resist natural catastrophes, e. g. earthquake, hurricanes, tide and so on. Preliminary safety analysis and environmental effect assessment have been done and anti-accident provisions and emergency policy were carefully considered. Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant safety related systems are designed in accordance with the common international standards established in the late 70's, as well as the existing engineering standard of China

Identification of informative features for predicting proinflammatory potentials of engine exhausts.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Chia-Chi; Lin, Ying-Chi; Lin, Yuan-Chung; Jhang, Syu-Ruei; Tung, Chun-Wei

2017-08-18

The immunotoxicity of engine exhausts is of high concern to human health due to the increasing prevalence of immune-related diseases. However, the evaluation of immunotoxicity of engine exhausts is currently based on expensive and time-consuming experiments. It is desirable to develop efficient methods for immunotoxicity assessment. To accelerate the development of safe alternative fuels, this study proposed a computational method for identifying informative features for predicting proinflammatory potentials of engine exhausts. A principal component regression (PCR) algorithm was applied to develop prediction models. The informative features were identified by a sequential backward feature elimination (SBFE) algorithm. A total of 19 informative chemical and biological features were successfully identified by SBFE algorithm. The informative features were utilized to develop a computational method named FS-CBM for predicting proinflammatory potentials of engine exhausts. FS-CBM model achieved a high performance with correlation coefficient values of 0.997 and 0.943 obtained from training and independent test sets, respectively. The FS-CBM model was developed for predicting proinflammatory potentials of engine exhausts with a large improvement on prediction performance compared with our previous CBM model. The proposed method could be further applied to construct models for bioactivities of mixtures.

A Quantitative Feasibility Study on Potential Safety Improvement Effects of Advanced Safety Features in APR-1400 when Applied to OPR-1000

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ualikhan Zhiyenbayev [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Chung, Dae Wook [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

This study aims to test the feasibility of the applications using Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA). Particularly, three of those advanced safety features are selected as follows: 1. Providing an additional Emergency Diesel Generator (EDG); 2. Increasing the capacity of Class 1E batteries; 3. Placing a Refueling Water Storage Tank (RWST) inside containment, i.e., change from RWST to IRWST. The Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR-1400) adopts several advanced safety features compared to its predecessor, the Optimized Power Reactor 1000 (OPR-1000), which includes an additional Emergency Diesel Generator, increase in battery capacity, in-containment refueling water storage tank (IRWST), and so on. Considering the remarkable advantages of these safety features in safety improvement and the design similarities between APR-1400 and OPR-1000, it is feasible to apply key advanced safety features of APR-1400 to OPR-1000 to enhance the safety. The selected safety features are incorporated into OPR-1000 PSA model using the Advanced Information Management System (AIMS) for PSA and CDFs are re-evaluated for each application and combination of three applications. Based on current results, it is concluded that three of key advanced safety features of APR-1400 can be effectively applied to OPR-1000, resulting in considerable safety improvement. In aggregate, three advanced safety features, which are an additional EDG, increased battery capacity and IRWST, can reduce the CDF of OPR-1000 by more than 15% when applied altogether.

A Quantitative Feasibility Study on Potential Safety Improvement Effects of Advanced Safety Features in APR-1400 when Applied to OPR-1000

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ualikhan Zhiyenbayev; Chung, Dae Wook

2015-01-01

This study aims to test the feasibility of the applications using Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA). Particularly, three of those advanced safety features are selected as follows: 1. Providing an additional Emergency Diesel Generator (EDG); 2. Increasing the capacity of Class 1E batteries; 3. Placing a Refueling Water Storage Tank (RWST) inside containment, i.e., change from RWST to IRWST. The Advanced Power Reactor 1400 (APR-1400) adopts several advanced safety features compared to its predecessor, the Optimized Power Reactor 1000 (OPR-1000), which includes an additional Emergency Diesel Generator, increase in battery capacity, in-containment refueling water storage tank (IRWST), and so on. Considering the remarkable advantages of these safety features in safety improvement and the design similarities between APR-1400 and OPR-1000, it is feasible to apply key advanced safety features of APR-1400 to OPR-1000 to enhance the safety. The selected safety features are incorporated into OPR-1000 PSA model using the Advanced Information Management System (AIMS) for PSA and CDFs are re-evaluated for each application and combination of three applications. Based on current results, it is concluded that three of key advanced safety features of APR-1400 can be effectively applied to OPR-1000, resulting in considerable safety improvement. In aggregate, three advanced safety features, which are an additional EDG, increased battery capacity and IRWST, can reduce the CDF of OPR-1000 by more than 15% when applied altogether

Do Undergraduate Engineering Faculty Include Occupational and Public Health and Safety in the Engineering Curriculum?

Science.gov (United States)

Farwell, Dianna; And Others

1995-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine whether and, if so, why engineering faculty include occupational and public health and safety in their undergraduate engineering courses. Data were collected from 157 undergraduate engineering faculty from 65 colleges of engineering in the United States. (LZ)

The safety features of an integrated maritime reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miyakoshi, Junichi; Yamada, Nobuyuki; Kuwahara, Shin-ichi

1975-01-01

The EFDR-80, a typical integrated maritime reactor, which is being developed in West Germany is outlined. The safety features of the integrated maritime reactor are presented with the analysis of reactor accidents and hazards, and are compared with those of the separated maritime reactor. Furthermore, the safety criteria of maritime reactors in Japan and West Germany are compared, and some of the differences are presented from the viewpoint of reactor design and safety analysis. In this report the authors express an earnest desire that the definite and reasonable safety criteria of the integrated maritime reactor should be established and that the safety criteria of the nuclear ship should be standardized internationally. (auth.)

A survey of characteristic engine features for technology-sustained pervasive games

CERN Document Server

Nevelsteen, Kim JL

2015-01-01

This book scrutinizes pervasive games from a technological perspective, focusing on the sub-domain of games that satisfy the criteria that they make use of virtual game elements. In the computer game industry, the use of a game engine to build games is common, but current game engines do not support pervasive games. Since the computer game industry is already rich with game engines, this book investigates: (i) if a game engine can be repurposed to stage pervasive games; (ii) if features describing a would-be pervasive game engine can be identified; (iii) using those features, if an architectu

Safety Features of Material and Personnel Movement Devices. Module SH-25. Safety and Health.

Science.gov (United States)

Center for Occupational Research and Development, Inc., Waco, TX.

This student module on safety features of material and personnel movement devices is one of 50 modules concerned with job safety and health. This module covers safe conditions and operating practices for conveyors, elevators, escalators, moving walks, manlifts, forklifts, and motorized hand trucks. Following the introduction, 10 objectives (each…

Psychological Safety and Norm Clarity in Software Engineering Teams

OpenAIRE

Lenberg, Per; Feldt, Robert

2018-01-01

In the software engineering industry today, companies primarily conduct their work in teams. To increase organizational productivity, it is thus crucial to know the factors that affect team effectiveness. Two team-related concepts that have gained prominence lately are psychological safety and team norms. Still, few studies exist that explore these in a software engineering context. Therefore, with the aim of extending the knowledge of these concepts, we examined if psychological safety and t...

Safety outcomes for engineering asset management organizations: Old problem with new solutions?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Novak, Jeremy; Farr-Wharton, Ben; Brunetto, Yvonne; Shacklock, Kate; Brown, Kerry

2017-01-01

The issue of safety and longevity of engineering assets is of increasing importance because of their impact when disasters happen. This paper addresses a literature gap by examining the role of workplace relationships in employees' safety behaviour, and builds on the Resilience Engineering (RE) framework by examining some organisational culture factors affecting how employees behave. A Social Exchange framework is used to examine the impact of supervisor-employee relationships, employee commitment to safety practices, and the type of maintenance culture upon employees’ commitment to safety and safety outcomes. Survey data from 284 technical and engineering employees in engineering asset management organisations within Australia were analyzed using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). Effective employee relationships with management and a proactive maintenance culture were associated with employee commitment to safety culture and safety outcomes. The findings provide empirical support for embedding an effective organisational culture focused on a proactive maintenance approach, along with ensuring employees are committed to safety processes, to ensure safety outcomes and also asset longevity. One study contribution is that good safety outcomes do not develop in a vacuum; instead they are built on effective workplace relationships. Therefore, SET helps to explain the forming of effective safety culture. - Highlights: • Effective workplace relationships with management positively affect organisational safety outcomes. • Supported maintenance cultures positively affect organisational safety outcomes. • Asset longevity requires strong focus on maintenance and safety embedded in the work cultures and everyday practices of employees.

Safety features of subcritical fluid fueled systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bell, C.R.

1995-01-01

Accelerator-driven transmutation technology has been under study at Los Alamos for several years for application to nuclear waste treatment, tritium production, energy generation, and recently, to the disposition of excess weapons plutonium. Studies and evaluations performed to date at Los Alamos have led to a current focus on a fluid-fuel, fission system operating in a neutron source-supported subcritical mode, using molten salt reactor technology and accelerator-driven proton-neutron spallation. In this paper, the safety features and characteristics of such systems are explored from the perspective of the fundamental nuclear safety objectives that any reactor-type system should address. This exploration is qualitative in nature and uses current vintage solid-fueled reactors as a baseline for comparison. Based on the safety perspectives presented, such systems should be capable of meeting the fundamental nuclear safety objectives. In addition, they should be able to provide the safety robustness desired for advanced reactors. However, the manner in which safety objectives and robustness are achieved is very different from that associated with conventional reactors. Also, there are a number of safety design and operational challenges that will have to be addressed for the safety potential of such systems to be credible

Safety features of subcritical fluid fueled systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bell, C.R.

1994-01-01

Accelerator-driven transmutation technology has been under study at Los Alamos for several years for application to nuclear waste treatment, tritium production, energy generation, and recently, to the disposition of excess weapons plutonium. Studies and evaluations performed to date at Los Alamos have led to a current focus on a fluid-fuel, fission system operating in a neutron source-supported subcritical mode, using molten salt reactor technology and accelerator-driven proton-neutron spallation. In this paper, the safety features and characteristics of such systems are explored from the perspective of the fundamental nuclear safety objectives that any reactor-type system should address. This exploration is qualitative in nature and uses current vintage solid-fueled reactors as a baseline for comparison. Based on the safety perspectives presented, such systems should be capable of meeting the fundamental nuclear safety objectives. In addition, they should be able to provide the safety robustness desired for advanced reactors. However, the manner in which safety objectives and robustness are achieved in very different from that associated with conventional reactors. Also, there are a number of safety design and operational challenges that will have to be addressed for the safety potential of such systems to be credible

Safety features of subcritical fluid fueled systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bell, C.R. [Los Alamos National Laboratory, NM (United States)

1995-10-01

Accelerator-driven transmutation technology has been under study at Los Alamos for several years for application to nuclear waste treatment, tritium production, energy generation, and recently, to the disposition of excess weapons plutonium. Studies and evaluations performed to date at Los Alamos have led to a current focus on a fluid-fuel, fission system operating in a neutron source-supported subcritical mode, using molten salt reactor technology and accelerator-driven proton-neutron spallation. In this paper, the safety features and characteristics of such systems are explored from the perspective of the fundamental nuclear safety objectives that any reactor-type system should address. This exploration is qualitative in nature and uses current vintage solid-fueled reactors as a baseline for comparison. Based on the safety perspectives presented, such systems should be capable of meeting the fundamental nuclear safety objectives. In addition, they should be able to provide the safety robustness desired for advanced reactors. However, the manner in which safety objectives and robustness are achieved is very different from that associated with conventional reactors. Also, there are a number of safety design and operational challenges that will have to be addressed for the safety potential of such systems to be credible.

Human and organization factors: engineering operating safety into offshore structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bea, Robert G.

1998-01-01

History indicates clearly that the safety of offshore structures is determined primarily by the humans and organizations responsible for these structures during their design, construction, operation, maintenance, and decommissioning. If the safety of offshore structures is to be preserved and improved, then attention of engineers should focus on to how to improve the reliability of the offshore structure 'system,' including the people that come into contact with the structure during its life-cycle. This article reviews and discusss concepts and engineering approaches that can be used in such efforts. Two specific human factor issues are addressed: (1) real-time management of safety during operations, and (2) development of a Safety Management Assessment System to help improve the safety of offshore structures

Potential safety features and safety analysis aspects for high performance light water reactor (HPLWR)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aksan, N.; Schulenberg, T.; Squarer, D.

2003-01-01

Research Activities are ongoing worldwide to develop advanced nuclear power plants with high thermal efficiency for the purpose to improve their economical competitiveness. Within the 5th Framework Programme of the European Commission, a project has been launched with the main objective to assess the technical and economical feasibility of a high efficiency LWR operating at super critical pressure conditions. Several European research institutions, industrial partners and the University of Tokyo participated and worked in this common research project. Within the aims of the development of the HPLWR is to use both passive and active safety systems for performing safety related functions in the event of transients or accidents. Consequently substantial effort has been invested in order to define the safety features of the plant in a European environment, as well as to incorporate passive safety features into the design. Throughout this process, the European Utility Requirements (EUR) and requirements known from Generation IV initiative were considered as a guideline in general terms in order to include further advanced ideas. The HPLWR general features were compared to both requirements, indicating a potential to meet these. Since, the supercritical HPLWR represents a challenge for best-estimate safety codes like RELAP5, CATHARE and TRAB due to the fact that these codes were developed for two-phase or single-phase coolant at pressures far below critical point, work on the preliminary assessment of the appropriateness of these codes have been performed for selected relevant phenomena, and application of the codes to the selected transients on the basis of defined 'reference design'. An overview on their successful upgrade to supercritical pressures and application to some plant safety analysis are provided in the paper. Further elaborations in relation to future needs are also discussed. (author)

Patient safety - the role of human factors and systems engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Carayon, Pascale; Wood, Kenneth E

2010-01-01

Patient safety is a global challenge that requires knowledge and skills in multiple areas, including human factors and systems engineering. In this chapter, numerous conceptual approaches and methods for analyzing, preventing and mitigating medical errors are described. Given the complexity of healthcare work systems and processes, we emphasize the need for increasing partnerships between the health sciences and human factors and systems engineering to improve patient safety. Those partnerships will be able to develop and implement the system redesigns that are necessary to improve healthcare work systems and processes for patient safety.

Patient Safety: The Role of Human Factors and Systems Engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Carayon, Pascale; Wood, Kenneth E.

2011-01-01

Patient safety is a global challenge that requires knowledge and skills in multiple areas, including human factors and systems engineering. In this chapter, numerous conceptual approaches and methods for analyzing, preventing and mitigating medical errors are described. Given the complexity of healthcare work systems and processes, we emphasize the need for increasing partnerships between the health sciences and human factors and systems engineering to improve patient safety. Those partnerships will be able to develop and implement the system redesigns that are necessary to improve healthcare work systems and processes for patient safety. PMID:20543237

Understanding safety and production risks in rail engineering planning and protection.

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, John R; Ryan, Brendan; Schock, Alex; Ferreira, Pedro; Smith, Stuart; Pitsopoulos, Julia

2009-07-01

Much of the published human factors work on risk is to do with safety and within this is concerned with prediction and analysis of human error and with human reliability assessment. Less has been published on human factors contributions to understanding and managing project, business, engineering and other forms of risk and still less jointly assessing risk to do with broad issues of 'safety' and broad issues of 'production' or 'performance'. This paper contains a general commentary on human factors and assessment of risk of various kinds, in the context of the aims of ergonomics and concerns about being too risk averse. The paper then describes a specific project, in rail engineering, where the notion of a human factors case has been employed to analyse engineering functions and related human factors issues. A human factors issues register for potential system disturbances has been developed, prior to a human factors risk assessment, which jointly covers safety and production (engineering delivery) concerns. The paper concludes with a commentary on the potential relevance of a resilience engineering perspective to understanding rail engineering systems risk. Design, planning and management of complex systems will increasingly have to address the issue of making trade-offs between safety and production, and ergonomics should be central to this. The paper addresses the relevant issues and does so in an under-published domain - rail systems engineering work.

Safety design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kunitomi, Kazuhiko; Shiozawa, Shusaku

2004-01-01

JAERI established the safety design philosophy of the HTTR based on that of current reactors such as LWR in Japan, considering inherent safety features of the HTTR. The strategy of defense in depth was implemented so that the safety engineering functions such as control of reactivity, removal of residual heat and confinement of fission products shall be well performed to ensure safety. However, unlike the LWR, the inherent design features of the high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) enables the HTTR meet stringent regulatory criteria without much dependence on active safety systems. On the other hand, the safety in an accident typical to the HTGR such as the depressurization accident initiated by a primary pipe rupture shall be ensured. The safety design philosophy of the HTTR considers these unique features appropriately and is expected to be the basis for future Japanese HTGRs. This paper describes the safety design philosophy and safety evaluation procedure of the HTTR especially focusing on unique considerations to the HTTR. Also, experiences obtained from an HTTR safety review and R and D needs for establishing the safety philosophy for the future HTGRs are reported

Innovative safety features of the modular HTGR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Silady, F.A.; Simon, W.A.

1992-01-01

The Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is an advanced reactor concept under development through a cooperative program involving the US Government, the nuclear industry, and the utilities. Near-term development is focused on electricity generation. The top-level safety requirement is that the plant's operation not disturb the normal day-to-day activities of the public. Quantitatively, this requires that the design meet the US Environmental Protection Agency's Protective Action Guides at the site boundary and hence preclude the need for sheltering or evacuation of the public. To meet these stringent safety requirements and at the same time provide a cost competitive design requires the innovative use of the basic high temperature gas-cooled reactor features of ceramic fuel, helium coolant, and a graphite moderator. The specific fuel composition and core size and configuration have been selected to the use the natural characteristics of these materials to develop significantly higher margins of safety. In this document the innovative safety features of the MHTGR are reviewed by examining the safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal are examined, including a loss of helium pressure of a simultaneous loss of forced cooling of the core. The challenges to control of heat generation consider not only the failure to insert the reactivity control systems but also the withdrawal of control rods. Finally, challenges to control of chemical attack of the ceramic-coated fuel are considered, including catastrophic failure of the steam generator, which allows water ingress, or failure of the pressure vessels, which allows air ingress. The plant's response to these extreme challenges is not dependent on operator action, and the events considered encompass conceivable operator errors

Criticality safety engineering at the Savannah River Site - the 1990s

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chandler, J.R.; Apperson, C.E. Jr.

1996-01-01

The privatization and downsizing effort that is ongoing within the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is requiring a change in the management of criticality safety engineering resources at the Savannah River Site (SRS). Downsizing affects the number of criticality engineers employed by the prime contractor, Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC), and privatization affects the manner in which business is conducted. In the past, criticality engineers at the SRS have been part of the engineering organizations that support each facility handling fissile material. This practice led to different criticality safety engineering organizations dedicated to fuel fabrication activities, reactor loading and unloading activities, separation and waste management operations, and research and development

Engineering and Safety Partnership Enhances Safety of the Space Shuttle Program (SSP)

Science.gov (United States)

Duarte, Alberto

2007-01-01

Project Management must use the risk assessment documents (RADs) as tools to support their decision making process. Therefore, these documents have to be initiated, developed, and evolved parallel to the life of the project. Technical preparation and safety compliance of these documents require a great deal of resources. Updating these documents after-the-fact not only requires substantial increase in resources - Project Cost -, but this task is also not useful and perhaps an unnecessary expense. Hazard Reports (HRs), Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEAs), Critical Item Lists (CILs), Risk Management process are, among others, within this category. A positive action resulting from a strong partnership between interested parties is one way to get these documents and related processes and requirements, released and updated in useful time. The Space Shuttle Program (SSP) at the Marshall Space Flight Center has implemented a process which is having positive results and gaining acceptance within the Agency. A hybrid Panel, with equal interest and responsibilities for the two larger organizations, Safety and Engineering, is the focal point of this process. Called the Marshall Safety and Engineering Review Panel (MSERP), its charter (Space Shuttle Program Directive 110 F, April 15, 2005), and its Operating Control Plan emphasizes the technical and safety responsibilities over the program risk documents: HRs; FMEA/CILs; Engineering Changes; anomalies/problem resolutions and corrective action implementations, and trend analysis. The MSERP has undertaken its responsibilities with objectivity, assertiveness, dedication, has operated with focus, and has shown significant results and promising perspectives. The MSERP has been deeply involved in propulsion systems and integration, real time technical issues and other relevant reviews, since its conception. These activities have transformed the propulsion MSERP in a truly participative and value added panel, making a

Supervisor's experiments on radiation safety trainings in school of engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nomura, Kiyoshi

2005-01-01

Radiation safety training courses in School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, were introduced. The number of radiation workers and the usage of radiation and radioisotopes have been surveyed for past 14 years. The number of radiation workers in School of Engineering has increased due to the treatment of X-ray analysis of materials, recently. It is important for workers to understand the present situation of School of Engineering before the treatment of radiation and radioisotopes. What the supervisor should tell to radiation workers were presented herewith. The basic questionnaires after the lecture are effective for radiation safety trainings. (author)

Adding a visualization feature to web search engines: it's time.

Science.gov (United States)

Wong, Pak Chung

2008-01-01

It's widely recognized that all Web search engines today are almost identical in presentation layout and behavior. In fact, the same presentation approach has been applied to depicting search engine results pages (SERPs) since the first Web search engine launched in 1993. In this Visualization Viewpoints article, I propose to add a visualization feature to Web search engines and suggest that the new addition can improve search engines' performance and capabilities, which in turn lead to better Web search technology.

Design of concrete structures important to safety of nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-10-01

Civil engineering structures in nuclear installations form an important feature having implications to safety performance of these installations. The objective and minimum requirements for the design of civil engineering buildings/structures to be fulfilled to provide adequate assurance for safety of nuclear installations in India (such as pressurised heavy water reactor and related systems) are specified in the Safety standard for civil engineering structures important to safety of nuclear facilities. This standard is written by AERB to specify guidelines for implementation of the above civil engineering safety standard in the design of concrete structures important to safety

Compilation of contract research for the Materials Engineering Branch, Division of Engineering: Annual report for FY 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1988-06-01

This compilation of annual reports by contractors to the Materials Engineering Branch of the NRC Office of Research concentrates on achievements in safety research for the primary system of commercial light water power reactors, particularly with regard to reactor vessels, primary system piping, steam generators, nondestructive examination of primary components, and in safety research for decommissioning and decontamination, on-site storage, and engineered safety features. This report, covering research conducted during Fiscal Year 1987 is the sixth volume of the series of NUREG-0975, ''Compilation of Contractor Research for the Materials Engineering Branch, Division of Engineering.''

System safety engineering in the development of advanced surface transportation vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Arnzen, H. E.

1971-01-01

Applications of system safety engineering to the development of advanced surface transportation vehicles are described. As a pertinent example, the paper describes a safety engineering efforts tailored to the particular design and test requirements of the Tracked Air Cushion Research Vehicle (TACRV). The test results obtained from this unique research vehicle provide significant design data directly applicable to the development of future tracked air cushion vehicles that will carry passengers in comfort and safety at speeds up to 300 miles per hour.

A Comparison of the mechanical engineering and safety engineering student’s ICT attitudes at the Obuda University

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kiss Gabor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Communication and technology are critical to education. However, using technology in education is not an easy task as communication barriers emerge. The aim of this research is to analyze the ICT attitudes from different faculties at the Obuda University that is between the mechanical engineering students and safety engineering students from the Donát Bánki Mechanical Safety Engineer Faculty. The students from these two groups will use different ICT tool at work after their graduation; the mechanical engineering students will work mostly with designer ICT tools, the safety engineering students will use security systems. It would be important to know whether instructors, when using ICT, have to follow different teaching methods and approaches in these two different groups or not. We measured the ICT attitude with a tool consisting of 23 items (Likert scaled. We worked with 361 students. The data analysis was performed with SPSS software using descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney test. The results show both groups having the same positive ICT attitude however with one difference.

Engineering approach to relative quantitative assessment of safety culture and related social issues in NPP operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sivokon, V.; Gladyshev, M.; Malkin, S.

2005-01-01

The report is devoted to presentation of engineering approach and software tool developed for Safety Culture (SC) assessment as well as to the results of their implementation at Smolensk NPP. The engineering approach is logic evolution of the IAEA ASSET method broadly used at European NPPs in 90-s. It was implemented at Russian and other plants including Olkiluoto NPP in Finland. The approach allows relative quantitative assessing and trending the aspects of SC by the analysis of evens features and causes, calculation and trending corresponding indicators. At the same time plant's operational performances and related social issues, including efficiency of plant operation and personnel reliability, can be monitored. With the help of developed tool the joint team combined from personnel of Smolensk NPP and RRC 'Kurchatov Institute' ('KI') issued the SC self-assessment report, which identifies: families of recurrent events, main safety and operational problems ; their trends and importance to SC and plant efficiency; recommendations to enhance SC and operational performance

The design and safety features of the IRIS reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carelli, Mario D.; Conway, L.E.; Oriani, L.; Petrovic, B.; Lombardi, C.V.; Ricotti, M.E.; Barroso, A.C.O.; Collado, J.M.; Cinotti, L.; Todreas, N.E.; Grgic, D.; Moraes, M.M.; Boroughs, R.D.; Ninokata, H.; Ingersoll, D.T.; Oriolo, F.

2004-01-01

Salient features of the International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) are presented here. IRIS, an integral, modular, medium size (335 MWe) PWR, has been under development since the turn of the century by an international consortium led by Westinghouse and including over 20 organizations from nine countries. Described here are the features of the integral design which includes steam generators, pumps and pressurizer inside the vessel, together with the core, control rods, and neutron reflector/shield. A brief summary is provided of the IRIS approach to extended maintenance over a 48-month schedule. The unique IRIS safety-by-design approach is discussed, which, by eliminating accidents, at the design stage, or decreasing their consequences/probabilities when outright elimination is not possible, provides a very powerful first level of defense in depth. The safety-by-design allows a significant reduction and simplification of the passive safety systems, which are presented here, together with an assessment of the IRIS response to transients and postulated accidents

Inherent safety features of the HTTR revealed in the accident condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kunitomi, K.; Shinozaki, M.; Baba, O.; Saito, S.

1992-01-01

The High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR) being constructed by JAERI (Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute) is a graphite-moderated and helium-cooled reactor with an outlet gas temperature of 950degC. The inherent safety characteristics in the HTTR prevent temperature increase of reactor fuels and fission product release from the reactor core in postulated accident conditions. The reactor core can be cooled by a Vessel Cooling System (VCS) indirectly, even in the case that no forced cooling is expected during the accident such as primary pipe break. The VCS consists of independent water cooling loop and cooling panel around the reactor pressure vessel. The cooling panel whose temperature of 60-90degC cools the reactor pressure vessel by radiation and removes the decay heat from the core indirectly. Furthermore, even if failure of VCS is assumed during this accident as a severe accident, the reactor core is remained safe despite the temperature increase of biological concrete shield around the reactor pressure vessel. This paper describes the inherent safety features of the HTTR specially focused on the accident condition without forced cooling. The detailed analytical results of such an accident are described together with clarifying the role of the VCS. (author)

Radiological protection. Responsibility of the Safety Engineering Company

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Netto, A.L.

1987-01-01

This subject takes care of the Safety Engineering at the Radiologic Protection area on the X and Gama Rays Services. It mainly emphasis the case of that companies that, due do not have proper X and Gama Rays Services utilize partime task force on this area, but answer themselves for the safety of their employees in case of any accident occurence. (author) [pt

Human factors and systems engineering approach to patient safety for radiotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Rivera, A Joy; Karsh, Ben-Tzion

2008-01-01

The traditional approach to solving patient safety problems in healthcare is to blame the last person to touch the patient. But since the publication of To Err is Human, the call has been instead to use human factors and systems engineering methods and principles to solve patient safety problems. However, an understanding of the human factors and systems engineering is lacking, and confusion remains about what it means to apply their principles. This paper provides a primer on them and their applications to patient safety.

Human Factors and Systems Engineering Approach to Patient Safety for Radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rivera, A. Joy; Karsh, Ben-Tzion

2008-01-01

The traditional approach to solving patient safety problems in healthcare is to blame the last person to touch the patient. But since the publication of To Err is Human, the call has been instead to use human factors and systems engineering methods and principles to solve patient safety problems. However, an understanding of the human factors and systems engineering is lacking, and confusion remains about what it means to apply their principles. This paper provides a primer on them and their applications to patient safety

Proceedings of the SRESA national conference on reliability and safety engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Varde, P.V.; Vaishnavi, P.; Sujatha, S.; Valarmathi, A.

2014-01-01

The objective of this conference was to provide a forum for technical discussions on recent developments in the area of risk based approach and Prognostic Health Management of critical systems in decision making. The reliability and safety engineering methods are concerned with the way which the product fails, and the effects of failure is to understand how a product works and assures acceptable levels of safety. The reliability engineering addresses all the anticipated and possibly unanticipated causes of failure to ensure the occurrence of failure is prevented or minimized. The topics discussed in the conference were: Reliability in Engineering Design, Safety Assessment and Management, Reliability analysis and Assessment , Stochastic Petri nets for reliability Modeling, Dynamic Reliability, Reliability Prediction, Hardware Reliability, Software Reliability in Safety Critical Issues, Probabilistic Safety Assessment, Risk Informed Approach, Dynamic Models for Reliability Analysis, Reliability based Design and Analysis, Prognostics and Health Management, Remaining Useful Life (RUL), Human Reliability Modeling, Risk Based Applications, Hazard and Operability Study (HAZOP), Reliability in Network Security and Quality Assurance and Management etc. The papers relevant to INIS are indexed separately

Quantitative Image Feature Engine (QIFE): an Open-Source, Modular Engine for 3D Quantitative Feature Extraction from Volumetric Medical Images.

Science.gov (United States)

Echegaray, Sebastian; Bakr, Shaimaa; Rubin, Daniel L; Napel, Sandy

2017-10-06

The aim of this study was to develop an open-source, modular, locally run or server-based system for 3D radiomics feature computation that can be used on any computer system and included in existing workflows for understanding associations and building predictive models between image features and clinical data, such as survival. The QIFE exploits various levels of parallelization for use on multiprocessor systems. It consists of a managing framework and four stages: input, pre-processing, feature computation, and output. Each stage contains one or more swappable components, allowing run-time customization. We benchmarked the engine using various levels of parallelization on a cohort of CT scans presenting 108 lung tumors. Two versions of the QIFE have been released: (1) the open-source MATLAB code posted to Github, (2) a compiled version loaded in a Docker container, posted to DockerHub, which can be easily deployed on any computer. The QIFE processed 108 objects (tumors) in 2:12 (h/mm) using 1 core, and 1:04 (h/mm) hours using four cores with object-level parallelization. We developed the Quantitative Image Feature Engine (QIFE), an open-source feature-extraction framework that focuses on modularity, standards, parallelism, provenance, and integration. Researchers can easily integrate it with their existing segmentation and imaging workflows by creating input and output components that implement their existing interfaces. Computational efficiency can be improved by parallelizing execution at the cost of memory usage. Different parallelization levels provide different trade-offs, and the optimal setting will depend on the size and composition of the dataset to be processed.

Development of quantitative goals for inherent safety feature design and licensing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kastenberg, W.E.; Apostolakis, G.; Dhir, V.K.; Okrent, D.

1987-01-01

There is now considerable interest in the development of advanced fast reactors whose major focus is inherent safety. The achievement of inherent safety can be viewed from several aspects. In the Integral Fast Reactor Concept the approach is to utilize the intrinsic characteristics of pool-type liquid metal fast breeder reactors (LMFBRs) and the properties of metal fuels to integrate a high degree of inherent safety into the design. The PRISM and SAFR concepts focus on other inherent safety features. The reactors discussed above represent a radical departure from existing LWR designs as well as previous LMFBR designs (e.g., CRBRP) which are based, for the most part, on the General Design Criteria found in 10CFR50 Appendix. In view of these parallel developments (advanced reactors exploiting inherent safety and the use of quantitative goals to augment licensing), there appears to be a need to perform research on the development of methods for designing, assessing, and licensing inherent safety features in advanced reactors. The objectives of such research are outlined

LOFT integral test system final safety analysis report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1974-03-01

Safety analyses are presented for the following LOFT Reactor systems: engineering safety features; support buildings and facilities; instrumentation and controls; electrical systems; and auxiliary systems. (JWR)

Safety systems and features of boiling and pressurized water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Khair, H. O. M.

2012-06-01

The safe operation of nuclear power plants (NPP) requires a deep understanding of the functioning of physical processes and systems involved. This study was carried out to present an overview of the features of safety systems of boiling and pressurized water reactors that are available commercially. Brief description of purposes and functions of the various safety systems that are employed in these reactors was discussed and a brief comparison between the safety systems of BWRs and PWRs was made in an effort to emphasize of safety in NPPs.(Author)

The role of engineering judgement, safety culture, and organizational factors in risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muzumdar, Ajit; Professor, Visiting

1996-01-01

This paper reviews the role of engineering judgement, safety culture, and organizational factors in risk assessment by examining the reasons for human-based error. The need for more emphasis on producing engineers with good engineering judgement is described. The progress in quantifying the role of safety culture and organizational factors in risk assessment studies is summarized

Investigation of road network features and safety performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xuesong; Wu, Xingwei; Abdel-Aty, Mohamed; Tremont, Paul J

2013-07-01

The analysis of road network designs can provide useful information to transportation planners as they seek to improve the safety of road networks. The objectives of this study were to compare and define the effective road network indices and to analyze the relationship between road network structure and traffic safety at the level of the Traffic Analysis Zone (TAZ). One problem in comparing different road networks is establishing criteria that can be used to scale networks in terms of their structures. Based on data from Orange and Hillsborough Counties in Florida, road network structural properties within TAZs were scaled using 3 indices: Closeness Centrality, Betweenness Centrality, and Meshedness Coefficient. The Meshedness Coefficient performed best in capturing the structural features of the road network. Bayesian Conditional Autoregressive (CAR) models were developed to assess the safety of various network configurations as measured by total crashes, crashes on state roads, and crashes on local roads. The models' results showed that crash frequencies on local roads were closely related to factors within the TAZs (e.g., zonal network structure, TAZ population), while crash frequencies on state roads were closely related to the road and traffic features of state roads. For the safety effects of different networks, the Grid type was associated with the highest frequency of crashes, followed by the Mixed type, the Loops & Lollipops type, and the Sparse type. This study shows that it is possible to develop a quantitative scale for structural properties of a road network, and to use that scale to calculate the relationships between network structural properties and safety. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The design features and safety concepts of the nuclear heating reactor developed in China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Wenxiang; Wang Dazhong

1995-01-01

Based on the specific conditions of the nuclear heat applications and the development objectives of the advanced reactors, the nuclear heating reactor (NHR) exploited in China has adhered to the new safety concepts and been designed with a number of advanced features, including the integrated arrangement, full power natural circulation capacity, self-pressurized performance, dynamically-hydraulic control rod drive and passive safety systems, so that higher standard of safety as well as simplification in the plant systems and improvement in economic viability has been achieved. This paper describes the special consideration in the design as well as the main design features and safety concepts of the NHR. Some experimental and analytical results are also presented to demonstrate the NHR safety features

Nuclear power plants near consumers from a safety-engineering point of view

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kroeger, W.

1986-11-01

Special safety requirements must be met by a nuclear power station near the consumer. These requirements may not be formulated in a purely probabilistic way because of the methodological deficiencies identified. The existing protection concept is rather extended so as to include the requirement of engineered safeguards in order to limit the damage in case of a worst reactor accident. The suggested individual dose limit together with the calculation rules should ensure that the consequences of a worst accident are essentially limited to the plant and that no emergency protection measures and countermeasures need to be considered either in the short term or in the longer term to prevent health damage. The resulting features of a reactor near the consumer aim at better inherent safety characteristics, which is shown to be possible by reasonable technical means and which seems to have already been realized to a large extent in plants of small and perhaps also medium power already conceived. The way of thinking behind this suggestion is applicable to other sectors of industrial technology. Furthermore, it might serve as a basis in the discussion about general advanced safety criteria, which has been stimulated due to 'Chernobyl'. (orig./HP) [de

Safety assessment of complex engineered and natural systems: radioactive waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McNeish, J.A.; Vallikat, V.; Atkins, J.; Balady, M.A.

1997-01-01

Evaluation of deep, geologic disposal of nuclear waste requires the probabilistic safety assessment of a complex system from the coupling of various processes and sub-systems, parameter and model uncertainties, spatial and temporal variabilities, and the multiplicity of designs and scenarios. Both the engineered and natural system are included in the evaluation. Each system has aspects with considerable uncertainty both in important parameters and in overall conceptual models. The study represented herein provides a probabilistic safety assessment of a potential respository system for multiple engineered barrier system (EBS) design and conceptual model configurations (CRWMS M and O, 1996a) and considers the effects of uncertainty on the overall results. The assessment is based on data and process models available at the time of the study and doesnt necessarily represent the current safety evaluation. In fact, the percolation flux through the repository system is now expected to be higher than the estimate used for this study. The potential effects of higher percolation fluxes are currently under study. The safety of the system was assessed for both 10,000 and 1,000,000 years. Use of alternative conceptual models also produced major improvement in safety. For example, use of a more realistic engineered system release model produced improvement of over an order of magnitude in safety. Alternative measurement locations for the safety assessment produced substantial increases in safety, through the results are based on uncertain dilution factors in the transporting groundwater. (Author)

Improving Safety through Human Factors Engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Siewert, Bettina; Hochman, Mary G

2015-10-01

Human factors engineering (HFE) focuses on the design and analysis of interactive systems that involve people, technical equipment, and work environment. HFE is informed by knowledge of human characteristics. It complements existing patient safety efforts by specifically taking into consideration that, as humans, frontline staff will inevitably make mistakes. Therefore, the systems with which they interact should be designed for the anticipation and mitigation of human errors. The goal of HFE is to optimize the interaction of humans with their work environment and technical equipment to maximize safety and efficiency. Special safeguards include usability testing, standardization of processes, and use of checklists and forcing functions. However, the effectiveness of the safety program and resiliency of the organization depend on timely reporting of all safety events independent of patient harm, including perceived potential risks, bad outcomes that occur even when proper protocols have been followed, and episodes of "improvisation" when formal guidelines are found not to exist. Therefore, an institution must adopt a robust culture of safety, where the focus is shifted from blaming individuals for errors to preventing future errors, and where barriers to speaking up-including barriers introduced by steep authority gradients-are minimized. This requires creation of formal guidelines to address safety concerns, establishment of unified teams with open communication and shared responsibility for patient safety, and education of managers and senior physicians to perceive the reporting of safety concerns as a benefit rather than a threat. © RSNA, 2015.

Technical and institutional safety features of nuclear power plants in Brazil

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosa, L.P.

1986-01-01

This work reports technical, political and institutional safety features of nuclear power plants in Brazil. It is mainly concerned with reactor accidents and personnel safety. The three mile Island and Chernobyl accidents are also discussed and taken as examples. (A.C.A.S.)

Prevent recurrence of nuclear disaster (3). Agenda on nuclear safety from earthquake engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kameda, Hiroyuki; Takada, Tsuyoshi; Ebisawa, Katsumi; Nakamura, Susumu

2012-01-01

Based on results of activities of committee on seismic safety of nuclear power plants (NPPs) of Japan Association for Earthquake Engineering, which started activities after Chuetsu-oki earthquake and then experienced Great East Japan Earthquake, (under close collaboration with the committee of Atomic Energy Society of Japan started activities simultaneously), and taking account of further development of concept, agenda on nuclear safety were proposed from earthquake engineering. In order to prevent recurrence of nuclear disaster, individual technical issues of earthquake engineering and comprehensive issues of integration technology, multidisciplinary collaboration and establishment of technology governance based on them were of prime importance. This article described important problems to be solved; (1) technical issues and mission of seismic safety of NPPs, (2) decision making based on risk assessment - basis of technical governance, (3) framework of risk, design and regulation - framework of required technology governance, (4) technical issues of earthquake engineering for nuclear safety, (5) role of earthquake engineering in nuclear power risk communication and (6) importance of multidisciplinary collaboration. Responsibility of engineering would be attributed to establishment of technology governance, cultivation of individual technology and integration technology, and social communications. (T. Tanaka)

Engineering features of the INTOR conceptual design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shannon, T.E.

1981-01-01

The INTOR engineering design has been strongly influenced by considerations for assembly and maintenance. A maintenance philosophy was established at the outset of the conceptual design to insure that the tokamak configuration would be developed to accommodate maintenance requirements. The main features of the INTOR design are summarized in this paper with primary emphasis on the impact of maintenance considerations

Perspective on Secure Development Activities and Features of Safety I and C Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Youngdoo; Yu, Yeong Jin; Kim, Hyungtae; Kwon, Yong il; Park, Yeunsoo; Choo, Jaeyul; Son, Jun Young; Jeong, Choong Heui

2015-01-01

The Enforcement Decree of the Act on Physical Protection and Radiological Emergency (ED-APPRE) was revised December 2013 to include security requirements on computer systems at nuclear facilities to protect those systems against malicious cyber-attacks. It means Cyber-Security-related measures, controls and activities of safety I and C systems against cyber-attacks shall meet the requirements of ED-APPRE. Still regulation upon inadvertent access or non-malicious modifications to the safety I and C systems is covered under the Nuclear Safety Act. The objective of this paper is to propose KINS' regulatory perspective on secure development and features against non-malicious access or modification of safety I and C systems. Secure development activities and features aim to prevent inadvertent and non-malicious access, and to prevent unwanted action from personnel or connected systems for ensuring reliable operation of safety I and C systems. Secure development activities of safety I and C systems are life cycle activities to ensure unwanted, unneeded and undocumented code is not incorporated into the systems. Secure features shall be developed, verified and qualified throughout the development life cycle

Perspective on Secure Development Activities and Features of Safety I and C Systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, Youngdoo; Yu, Yeong Jin; Kim, Hyungtae; Kwon, Yong il; Park, Yeunsoo; Choo, Jaeyul; Son, Jun Young; Jeong, Choong Heui [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

The Enforcement Decree of the Act on Physical Protection and Radiological Emergency (ED-APPRE) was revised December 2013 to include security requirements on computer systems at nuclear facilities to protect those systems against malicious cyber-attacks. It means Cyber-Security-related measures, controls and activities of safety I and C systems against cyber-attacks shall meet the requirements of ED-APPRE. Still regulation upon inadvertent access or non-malicious modifications to the safety I and C systems is covered under the Nuclear Safety Act. The objective of this paper is to propose KINS' regulatory perspective on secure development and features against non-malicious access or modification of safety I and C systems. Secure development activities and features aim to prevent inadvertent and non-malicious access, and to prevent unwanted action from personnel or connected systems for ensuring reliable operation of safety I and C systems. Secure development activities of safety I and C systems are life cycle activities to ensure unwanted, unneeded and undocumented code is not incorporated into the systems. Secure features shall be developed, verified and qualified throughout the development life cycle.

The function of specialized organization in work safety engineering for nuclear installations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salvatore, J.E.L.

1989-01-01

The attributions of Brazilian CNEN in the licensing procedures of any nuclear installation are discussed. It is shown that the work safety engineering and industrial safety constitute important functions for nuclear safety. (M.C.K.) [pt

Development of an Owner Engineer's independent capability in NPP safety and licensing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auglaire, M.; Bayart, D.; D'Eer, A.; Polet, F.; Vanhoenacker, L.; Zhang, J.

2002-01-01

As Owner's Engineer to Electrabel, the Belgian utility which owns and operates the 7 NPPs in Belgium, Tractebel Energy Engineering has gained considerable experience in the field of ten-yearly safety overhauls of NPPs since 1983. It has developed a methodology leading to proposing corrective actions by means of a global and integrated approach in which safety improvement costs are optimized. Safety issues addressed during those projects encompass the writing of Probabilistic Safety Assessment studies, post-TMI recommendations implementation, the installation of autocatalytic recombiners, accident studies, protection against pressurized thermal shock, impact of flooding of internal or external origin, implementation of severe accident management guidelines, re-evaluation of the environment, verification of extreme climate conditions, updating of the Safety Analysis Reports, operation review. (author)

Assessment of safety engineering of circuits with dc micromotors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Pavlyuchenko, L.A.; Starchuk, S.E.

1986-01-01

Presents an assessment of safety engineering in d.c. micromotors operating as part of actuating devices in mining equipment. These micromotors should have RO (especially explosion proof) protection. The safety engineering should be assessed with an intermittent fault in the power line. Equations are given for calculation of the equivalent inductance of the micromotor circuit with an intermittent power line fault. If the circuit is not intrinsically safe, a diode in the forward direction is recommended for connection in series with the micromotor. If the power line is not intrinsically safe, a diode shunt is recommended. Comparative data for power sources (IBP) and micromotors (DPM, DPR, with permanent magnets) are given in tables. 4 refs.

Engineering Hematopoietic Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy: Strategies to Address Safety and Toxicity Concerns.

Science.gov (United States)

Resetca, Diana; Neschadim, Anton; Medin, Jeffrey A

2016-09-01

Advances in cancer immunotherapies utilizing engineered hematopoietic cells have recently generated significant clinical successes. Of great promise are immunotherapies based on chimeric antigen receptor-engineered T (CAR-T) cells that are targeted toward malignant cells expressing defined tumor-associated antigens. CAR-T cells harness the effector function of the adaptive arm of the immune system and redirect it against cancer cells, overcoming the major challenges of immunotherapy, such as breaking tolerance to self-antigens and beating cancer immune system-evasion mechanisms. In early clinical trials, CAR-T cell-based therapies achieved complete and durable responses in a significant proportion of patients. Despite clinical successes and given the side effect profiles of immunotherapies based on engineered cells, potential concerns with the safety and toxicity of various therapeutic modalities remain. We discuss the concerns associated with the safety and stability of the gene delivery vehicles for cell engineering and with toxicities due to off-target and on-target, off-tumor effector functions of the engineered cells. We then overview the various strategies aimed at improving the safety of and resolving toxicities associated with cell-based immunotherapies. Integrating failsafe switches based on different suicide gene therapy systems into engineered cells engenders promising strategies toward ensuring the safety of cancer immunotherapies in the clinic.

Safety review for human factors engineering and control rooms of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Mengzhuo

1998-01-01

Safety review for human factors engineering and control rooms of nuclear power plants (NPP) is in a forward position of science and technology, which began at American TMI severe accident and had been implemented in China. The importance and the significance of the safety review are expounded, the requirements of its scope and profundity are explained in detail. In addition, the situation of the technical document system for nuclear safety regulation on human factors engineering and control rooms of NPP in China is introduced briefly, on which the safety review is based

Design, fabrication and erection of steel structures important to safety of nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2001-10-01

Civil engineering structures in nuclear installations form an important feature having implications to safety performance of these installations. The objective and minimum requirements for the design of civil engineering buildings/structures to be fulfilled to provide adequate assurance for safety of nuclear installations in India (such as pressurised heavy water reactor and related systems) are specified in the Safety Standard for Civil Engineering Structures Important to Safety of Nuclear Facilities. This standard is written by AERB to specify guidelines for implementation of the above civil engineering safety standard in the design, fabrication and erection of steel structures important to safety

Assessment of NPP safety taking into account seismic and engineering-geological factors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yakovlev, E.A.

1990-01-01

Consideration is given to the problem of probabilistic analysis of NPP safety with account of risk of destructive effect of earthquakes and the danger of accidental geological processes (diapirism, karst etc.) under NPP operation. It is shown that account of seismic and engineering-geological (engineering-seismological) risk factors in probabilistic analysis of safety enables to perform anticipatory analysis of behaviour of principle plant objects and to improve safety of their operation by revealing the most unstable elements of geotechnical system forming the main contribution to the total NPP risk

Integrated system of safety features for spent fuel interim storage

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pantazi, Doina; Stanciu, Marcela; Mateescu, Silvia; Marin, Ion

1999-01-01

The design of the spent fuel interim storage facility (SFISF) must meet the applicable safety requirements in order to ensure radiological protection of the personnel, public and environment during all phases of the facility. To elaborate the safety documentation necessary for licensing, we were trying to chose the most appropriate approach related to safety features for SFISF, based on national and international regulations, standards and recommendations, as well as on the experience of other countries with similar facilities and finally, on our own experience in designing other nuclear objectives in Romania. The paper presents the issues that we consider important for the safety evaluation and are developed as a detailed diagram. The diagram contains in a logical succession the following issues: - fundamental principles of radioprotection; - fundamental safety principles of radioactive waste management; - safety objectives of SFISF; - safety criteria for SFISF; - safety requirements for SFISF; - siting criteria for SFISF; - siting requirements for SFISF. (authors)

Improvement of Safety Features in Standard Operation Procedure of Tc-99m Generator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Manisah Saedon; Mohd Khairul Hakimi; Shyen, A.K.S.

2011-01-01

This paper describes the improvements proposed to the original production procedures for Tc-99m generators. Improvements are intended to add safety and health features for workers into the existing procedures. The difference between the new safe work procedures from the original work procedures; is the concern about the safety and health of employees other than the product safety. One of the suggested safety characteristics is by using the visual aid so that the workers can easily see and read the procedures when they perform their duties, whereas the previous procedures are kept in the manual and difficult to access. The purpose of this paper is to share information about the importance of safety and health features for the workers in the procedures established in addition to provide awareness to all parties involved. (author)

TELEPERM XS: I and C systems for safety application in NPP's - features, developments, references and feedback

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prehler, Heinz Josef

2007-01-01

In the field of digital I and C AREVA NP is focused on concepts that on the one hand make allowance for development cycles getting shorter in the technology competition and on the other hand assure a long-term system support with the ability to deliver spare parts in the long run. The system platform TELEPERM XS, which was developed especially for safety I and C application of nuclear power plants, meets requirements effectively and thus provides a great benefit for the customer. The typical applications of TELEPERM XS are in the field of Reactor Protection and ESFAS functions (Engineered Safety Features Actuation System). High demands are defined for system reliability and availability, as well as for failure prevention and tolerance. The requirements of corresponding international codes and standards of nuclear installations are also implemented in the development and engineering processes of TELEPERM XS. The system platform is integrated into a sustainable program for service life management of electronic systems and equipment. Its ongoing future-oriented development ensures the long-term availability of hardware and software components for installed TELEPERM XS applications already installed in the plants. The further development of platform and components continues to be based on the robust, service-proven TELEPERM XS architecture, with the aim of minimizing the risks associated with equipment qualification and project licensing. A further development feature is the completion and extension of TELEPERM XS applications. This continuous innovation process, combined with maximized compatibility, makes TELEPERM XS unique, and provides the basis for a sustainable system with a service life guaranteed for the long term. Within the past 10 years, the majority of all comprehensive modernization projects worldwide were implemented or are contracted using TELEPERM XS. TELEPERM XS has been implemented in two new nuclear power plants and there are orders for four more

Systems Engineering and Safety Issues in Scientific Facilities Subject to Ionizing Radiations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pierre Bonnal

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The conception and development of large-scale scientific facilities emitting ionizing radiations rely more on project management practices in use in the process industry than on systems engineering practices. This paper aims to highlight possible reasons for this present situation and to propose some ways to enhance systems engineering so that the specific radiation safety requirements are considered and integrated in the approach. To do so, we have reviewed lessons learned from the management of large-scale scientific projects and more specifically that of the Large Hadron Collider project at CERN. It is shown that project management and systems engineering practices are complementary and can beneficially be assembled in an integrated and lean managerial framework that grants the appropriate amount of focus to safety and radiation safety aspects.

Automated Flight Safety Inference Engine (AFSIE) System, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — We propose to develop an innovative Autonomous Flight Safety Inference Engine (AFSIE) system to autonomously and reliably terminate the flight of an errant launch...

Engineering Solutions to Enhance Traffic Safety Performance on Two-Lane Highways

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lina Wu

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Improving two-lane highway traffic safety conditions is of practical importance to the traffic system, which has attracted significant research attention within the last decade. Many cost-effective and proactive solutions such as low-cost treatments and roadway safety monitoring programs have been developed to enhance traffic safety performance under prevailing conditions. This study presents research perspectives achieved from the Highway Safety Enhancement Project (HSEP that assessed safety performance on two-lane highways in Beijing, China. Potential causal factors are identified based on proposed evaluation criteria, and primary countermeasures are developed against inferior driving conditions such as sharp curves, heavy gradients, continuous downgrades, poor sight distance, and poor clear zones. Six cost-effective engineering solutions were specifically implemented to improve two-lane highway safety conditions, including (1 traffic sign replacement, (2 repainting pavement markings, (3 roadside barrier installation, (4 intersection channelization, (5 drainage optimization, and (6 sight distance improvement. The effectiveness of these solutions was examined and evaluated based on Empirical Bayes (EB models. The results indicate that the proposed engineering solutions effectively improved traffic safety performance by significantly reducing crash occurrence risks and crash severities.

Product Engineering Class in the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy for Building Safety-Critical Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Hill, Janice; Victor, Daniel

2008-01-01

When software safety requirements are imposed on legacy safety-critical systems, retrospective safety cases need to be formulated as part of recertifying the systems for further use and risks must be documented and managed to give confidence for reusing the systems. The SEJ Software Development Risk Taxonomy [4] focuses on general software development issues. It does not, however, cover all the safety risks. The Software Safety Risk Taxonomy [8] was developed which provides a construct for eliciting and categorizing software safety risks in a straightforward manner. In this paper, we present extended work on the taxonomy for safety that incorporates the additional issues inherent in the development and maintenance of safety-critical systems with software. An instrument called a Software Safety Risk Taxonomy Based Questionnaire (TBQ) is generated containing questions addressing each safety attribute in the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy. Software safety risks are surfaced using the new TBQ and then analyzed. In this paper we give the definitions for the specialized Product Engineering Class within the Software Safety Risk Taxonomy. At the end of the paper, we present the tool known as the 'Legacy Systems Risk Database Tool' that is used to collect and analyze the data required to show traceability to a particular safety standard

Compilation of contract research for the Materials Engineering Branch, Division of Engineering: Annual report for FY 1988

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1989-05-01

This compilation of annual reports by contractors to the Materials Engineering Branch of the NRC Office of Research concentrates on achievements in safety research for the primary system of commercial light water power reactors, particularly with regard to reactor vessels, primary system piping, steam generators, nondestructive examination of primary components, and in safety research for decommissioning and decontamination, on-site storage and engineered safety features. The Materials Engineering Branch assembles abbreviated reports from all the branch contractors and publishes them in a single annual report as soon after the end of the year as possible so that the information developed throughout the year can be promptly used in the safety-regulatory process. This report, covering research conducted during Fiscal Year 1988 is the seventh volume of the series of NUREG-0975, ''Compilation of Contractor Research for the Materials Engineering Branch, Division of Engineering.'' Individual projects are processed separately for the data bases

Application of software engineering to development of reactor-safety codes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilburn, N.P.; Niccoli, L.G.

1980-11-01

As a result of the drastically increasing cost of software and the lack of an engineering approach, the technology of Software Engineering is being developed. Software Engineering provides an answer to the increasing cost of developing and maintaining software. It has been applied extensively in the business and aerospace communities and is just now being applied to the development of scientific software and, in particular, to the development of reactor safety codes at HEDL

Factors Affecting the Behavior of Engineering Students toward Safety Practices in the Machine Shop

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jessie Kristian M. Neria

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This study aimed to determine the factors that affect the behavior of engineering student toward safety practices in the machine shop. Descriptive type of research was utilized in the study. Results showed that most of the engineering students clearly understand the signage shown in the machine shop. Students are aware that they should not leave the machines unattended. Most of the engineering students handle and use the machine properly. The respondents have an average extent of safety practices in the machine shop which means that they are applying safety practices in their every activity in machine shop. There is strong relationship between the safety practices and the factors affecting behavior in terms of signage, reminder of teacher and rules and regulation.

Engineering thinking in emergency situations: A new nuclear safety concept.

Science.gov (United States)

Guarnieri, Franck; Travadel, Sébastien

2014-11-01

The lessons learned from the Fukushima Daiichi accident have focused on preventive measures designed to protect nuclear reactors, and crisis management plans. Although there is still no end in sight to the accident that occurred on March 11, 2011, how engineers have handled the aftermath offers new insight into the capacity of organizations to adapt in situations that far exceed the scope of safety standards based on probabilistic risk assessment and on the comprehensive identification of disaster scenarios. Ongoing crises in which conventional resources are lacking, but societal expectations are high, call for "engineering thinking in emergency situations." This is a new concept that emphasizes adaptability and resilience within organizations-such as the ability to create temporary new organizational structures; to quickly switch from a normal state to an innovative mode; and to integrate a social dimension into engineering activities. In the future, nuclear safety oversight authorities should assess the ability of plant operators to create and implement effective engineering strategies on the fly, and should require that operators demonstrate the capability for resilience in the aftermath of an accident.

Interaction between systems and software engineering in safety-critical systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Knight, J.

1994-01-01

There are three areas of concern: when is software to be considered safe; what, exactly, is the role of the software engineer; and how do systems, or sometimes applications, engineers and software engineers interact with each other. The author presents his perspective on these questions which he feels differ from those of many in the field. He argues for a clear definition of safety in the software arena, so the engineer knows what he is engineering toward. Software must be viewed as part of the entire system, since it does not function on its own, or isolation. He argues for the establishment of clear specifications in this area

Atomic power engineering under falsified safety standards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ackerman, A.J.

1974-01-01

In July 1970 the United States Department of Justice accused the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act and of acting in restraint of trade by restricting the ASME Certificate of Authorization and the use of the Code Symbol Stamps to boilers and pressure vessels manufactured in the United States and Canada. During the succeeding two years attorneys for the parties in the case formulated a Consent Decree without a public confrontation in the Court. Furthermore, the membership of ASME was kept uninformed until October of 1972, after the Consent and Final Judgment had become effective and new procedures had been developed for allowing foreign manufacturers to apply the ASME Code Symbol Stamps to their products. As a consequence, a breakdown in engineered safety standards has been sanctioned and this is undermining the engineering profession's overriding reponsibility to protect the public health and safety. This breakdown of professional responsibility is especially serious in the new technology of atomic power. American insurance companies, which have traditionally written 100% insurance coverage for property damage and third party liability against explosions of high pressure steam boilers bearing the ASME Code Stamp, have refused to write such insurance coverage on nuclear reactors. In the author's opinion there is evidence that the Consent was formulated under collusive proceedings and he calls on the members and the Council of ASME to appeal for dismissal of the Consent Decree. 24 refs

Evaluation of features to support safety and quality in general practice clinical software

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-01

Background Electronic prescribing is now the norm in many countries. We wished to find out if clinical software systems used by general practitioners in Australia include features (functional capabilities and other characteristics) that facilitate improved patient safety and care, with a focus on quality use of medicines. Methods Seven clinical software systems used in general practice were evaluated. Fifty software features that were previously rated as likely to have a high impact on safety and/or quality of care in general practice were tested and are reported here. Results The range of results for the implementation of 50 features across the 7 clinical software systems was as follows: 17-31 features (34-62%) were fully implemented, 9-13 (18-26%) partially implemented, and 9-20 (18-40%) not implemented. Key findings included: Access to evidence based drug and therapeutic information was limited. Decision support for prescribing was available but varied markedly between systems. During prescribing there was potential for medicine mis-selection in some systems, and linking a medicine with its indication was optional. The definition of 'current medicines' versus 'past medicines' was not always clear. There were limited resources for patients, and some medicines lists for patients were suboptimal. Results were provided to the software vendors, who were keen to improve their systems. Conclusions The clinical systems tested lack some of the features expected to support patient safety and quality of care. Standards and certification for clinical software would ensure that safety features are present and that there is a minimum level of clinical functionality that clinicians could expect to find in any system.

Design data and safety features of commerical nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heddleson, F.A.

1976-06-01

Design data, safety features, and site characteristics are summarized for 34 nuclear power units in 17 power stations in the United States. Six pages of data are presented for each plant, consisting of thermal-hydraulic and nuclear factors, containment features, emergency-core-cooling systems, site features, circulating water system data, and miscellaneous factors. An aerial perspective is also presented for each plant. This volume covers Light Water Reactors (LWRs) with dockets 50-508 through 50-549, four HTGRs--50-171, 50-267, 50-450/451, 50-463/464, the Atlantic Floating Station 50-477/478, and the Clinch River Breeder 50-537

Study of Cost Effective Large Advanced Pressurized Water Reactors that Employ Passive Safety Features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winters, J.W.; Corletti, M.M.; Hayashi, Y.

2003-01-01

A report of DOE sponsored portions of AP1000 Design Certification effort. On December 16, 1999, The United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission issued Design Certification of the AP600 standard nuclear reactor design. This culminated an 8-year review of the AP600 design, safety analysis and probabilistic risk assessment. The AP600 is a 600 MWe reactor that utilizes passive safety features that, once actuated, depend only on natural forces such as gravity and natural circulation to perform all required safety functions. These passive safety systems result in increased plant safety and have also significantly simplified plant systems and equipment, resulting in simplified plant operation and maintenance. The AP600 meets NRC deterministic safety criteria and probabilistic risk criteria with large margins. A summary comparison of key passive safety system design features is provided in Table 1. These key features are discussed due to their importance in affecting the key thermal-hydraulic phenomenon exhibited by the passive safety systems in critical areas. The scope of some of the design changes to the AP600 is described. These changes are the ones that are important in evaluating the passive plant design features embodied in the certified AP600 standard plant design. These design changes are incorporated into the AP1000 standard plant design that Westinghouse is certifying under 10 CFR Part 52. In conclusion, this report describes the results of the representative design certification activities that were partially supported by the Nuclear Energy Research Initiative. These activities are unique to AP1000, but are representative of research activities that must be driven to conclusion to realize successful licensing of the next generation of nuclear power plants in the United States

Educating Next Generation Nuclear Criticality Safety Engineers at the Idaho National Laboratory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

J. D. Bess; J. B. Briggs; A. S. Garcia

2011-09-01

One of the challenges in educating our next generation of nuclear safety engineers is the limitation of opportunities to receive significant experience or hands-on training prior to graduation. Such training is generally restricted to on-the-job-training before this new engineering workforce can adequately provide assessment of nuclear systems and establish safety guidelines. Participation in the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP) and the International Reactor Physics Experiment Evaluation Project (IRPhEP) can provide students and young professionals the opportunity to gain experience and enhance critical engineering skills. The ICSBEP and IRPhEP publish annual handbooks that contain evaluations of experiments along with summarized experimental data and peer-reviewed benchmark specifications to support the validation of neutronics codes, nuclear cross-section data, and the validation of reactor designs. Participation in the benchmark process not only benefits those who use these Handbooks within the international community, but provides the individual with opportunities for professional development, networking with an international community of experts, and valuable experience to be used in future employment. Traditionally students have participated in benchmarking activities via internships at national laboratories, universities, or companies involved with the ICSBEP and IRPhEP programs. Additional programs have been developed to facilitate the nuclear education of students while participating in the benchmark projects. These programs include coordination with the Center for Space Nuclear Research (CSNR) Next Degree Program, the Collaboration with the Department of Energy Idaho Operations Office to train nuclear and criticality safety engineers, and student evaluations as the basis for their Master's thesis in nuclear engineering.

Educating Next Generation Nuclear Criticality Safety Engineers at the Idaho National Laboratory

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bess, J.D.; Briggs, J.B.; Garcia, A.S.

2011-01-01

One of the challenges in educating our next generation of nuclear safety engineers is the limitation of opportunities to receive significant experience or hands-on training prior to graduation. Such training is generally restricted to on-the-job-training before this new engineering workforce can adequately provide assessment of nuclear systems and establish safety guidelines. Participation in the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP) and the International Reactor Physics Experiment Evaluation Project (IRPhEP) can provide students and young professionals the opportunity to gain experience and enhance critical engineering skills. The ICSBEP and IRPhEP publish annual handbooks that contain evaluations of experiments along with summarized experimental data and peer-reviewed benchmark specifications to support the validation of neutronics codes, nuclear cross-section data, and the validation of reactor designs. Participation in the benchmark process not only benefits those who use these Handbooks within the international community, but provides the individual with opportunities for professional development, networking with an international community of experts, and valuable experience to be used in future employment. Traditionally students have participated in benchmarking activities via internships at national laboratories, universities, or companies involved with the ICSBEP and IRPhEP programs. Additional programs have been developed to facilitate the nuclear education of students while participating in the benchmark projects. These programs include coordination with the Center for Space Nuclear Research (CSNR) Next Degree Program, the Collaboration with the Department of Energy Idaho Operations Office to train nuclear and criticality safety engineers, and student evaluations as the basis for their Master's thesis in nuclear engineering.

Monitor for safety engineering facility

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, Akira; Kaneda, Mitsunori.

1982-01-01

Purpose: To improve the reactor safety and decrease misoperation upon periodical inspection by instantly obtaining the judgement for the stand-by states in engineering safety facilities of a nuclear power plant. Constitution: Process inputs representing the states of valves, pumps, flowrates or the likes of the facility are gathered into an input device and inputted to a status monitor. The status of the facility inputted to the input device are judged for each of the inputs in a judging section and recognized as a present system stand-by pattern of the system (Valve) to be inspected. While on the other hand, a normal system stand-by pattern previously stored in a memory unit is read out by an instruction from an operator console and judged by comparison with the system stand-by pattern in a comparison section. The results are displayed on a display device. Upon periodical inspection, inspection procedures stored in the memory unit are displayed on the display device by the instruction from the operator console. (Seki, T.)

Safety features and research needs of westinghouse advanced reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carelli, M.D.; Winters, J.W.; Cummins, W.E.; Bruschi, H.J.

2002-01-01

The three Westinghouse advanced reactors - AP600, AP1000 and IRIS - are at different levels of readiness. AP600 has received a Design Certification, its larger size version AP1000 is currently in the design certification process and IRIS has just completed its conceptual design and will initiate soon a licensing pre-application. The safety features of the passive designs AP600/AP1000 are presented, followed by the features of the more revolutionary IRIS, a small size modular integral reactor. A discussion of the IRIS safety by design approach is given. The AP600/AP1000 design certification is backed by completed testing and development which is summarized, together with a research program currently in progress which will extend AP600 severe accident test data to AP1000 conditions. While IRIS will of course rely on applicable AP600/1000 data, a very extensive testing campaign is being planned to address all the unique aspects of its design. Finally, IRIS plans to use a risk-informed approach in its licensing process. (authors)

Conceptual Design of Hybrid Safety Features for NPP by Utilizing Solar Updraft Tower

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Sub Lee [Handong Global University, Pohang (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Young Jae; Kim, Yong Jin [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Park, Hyo Chan; Park, Youn Won [BEES, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

In this study, hybrid safety features for NPP with solar updraft tower (SUT) is conceptually suggested to cope with loss of ultimate heat sink accident. The hybrid safety features utilizing SUT target NPPs in seashore of Arabian Gulf. Usually NPPs are constructed near seashore to utilize sea water as an ultimate heat sink. Residual heat or decay heat of nuclear reactor will diffuse into the ocean through the condenser. NPPs in Middle East are expected to be placed in seashore of Arabian Gulf. The NPP site of Barakah is an actual example. For NPPs in seashore of Arabian Gulf, an additional safety concern should be considered. Arabian Gulf is the largest oil transporting route in the world. The oil spill risk in Arabian Gulf will be the largest simultaneously. Unfortunately, not like other oceans, Arabian Gulf is a kind of closed ocean which does not have strong ocean currents connected to out of the gulf. If once oil spill is occurred, its influence can be propagated more than our expectation. The spilled oil also can affect to NPPs in seashore by covering surfaces of condenser. It will directly cause loss of ultimate heat sink. The hybrid safety features of SUT system are expected to aid normal operation of safety system and mitigate consequence of severe accident. Detail analysis and technology development is ongoing now.

Conceptual Design of Hybrid Safety Features for NPP by Utilizing Solar Updraft Tower

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Song, Sub Lee; Choi, Young Jae; Kim, Yong Jin; Park, Hyo Chan; Park, Youn Won

2016-01-01

In this study, hybrid safety features for NPP with solar updraft tower (SUT) is conceptually suggested to cope with loss of ultimate heat sink accident. The hybrid safety features utilizing SUT target NPPs in seashore of Arabian Gulf. Usually NPPs are constructed near seashore to utilize sea water as an ultimate heat sink. Residual heat or decay heat of nuclear reactor will diffuse into the ocean through the condenser. NPPs in Middle East are expected to be placed in seashore of Arabian Gulf. The NPP site of Barakah is an actual example. For NPPs in seashore of Arabian Gulf, an additional safety concern should be considered. Arabian Gulf is the largest oil transporting route in the world. The oil spill risk in Arabian Gulf will be the largest simultaneously. Unfortunately, not like other oceans, Arabian Gulf is a kind of closed ocean which does not have strong ocean currents connected to out of the gulf. If once oil spill is occurred, its influence can be propagated more than our expectation. The spilled oil also can affect to NPPs in seashore by covering surfaces of condenser. It will directly cause loss of ultimate heat sink. The hybrid safety features of SUT system are expected to aid normal operation of safety system and mitigate consequence of severe accident. Detail analysis and technology development is ongoing now

Safety analysis for key design features of KALIMER-600 design concept

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Yong-Bum; Kwon, Y. M.; Kim, E. K.; Suk, S. D.; Chang, W. P.; Joeng, H. Y.; Ha, K. S.; Heo, S.

2005-03-01

KAERI is developing the conceptual design of a Liquid Metal Reactor, KALIMER-600 (Korea Advanced LIquid MEtal Reactor) under the Long-term Nuclear R and D Program. KALIMER-600 addresses key issues regarding future nuclear power plants such as plant safety, economics, proliferation, and waste. In this report, key safety design features are described and safety analyses results for typical ATWS accidents, containment design basis accidents, and flow blockages in the KALIMER design are presented. First, the basic approach to achieve the safety goal and main design features of KALIMER-600 are introduced in Chapter 1, and the event categorization and acceptance criteria for the KALIMER-600 safety analysis are described in Chapter 2, In Chapter 3, results of inherent safety evaluations for the KALIMER-600 conceptual design are presented. The KALIMER-600 core and plant system are designed to assure benign performance during a selected set of events without either reactor control or protection system intervention. Safety analyses for the postulated anticipated transient without scram (ATWS) have been performed using the SSC-K code to investigate the KALIMER-600 system response to the events. The objectives of Chapter 4, are to assess the response of KALIMER-600 containment to the design basis accidents and to evaluate whether the consequences are acceptable or not in the aspect of structural integrity and the exposure dose rate. In Chapter 5, the analysis of flow blockage for KALIMER-600 with the MATRA-LMR-FB code, which has been developed for the internal flow blockage in a LMR subassembly, are described. The cases with a blockage of 6-subchannel, 24-subchannel, and 54-subchannel are analyzed

Design features of SMART for barge mounted application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doo-Jeong Lee; Ju-Hyeon Yoon; Ju-Pyung Kim; Jong-In Kim; Moon-Hee Chang

2000-01-01

SMART is an integral reactor of 330 MWt capacity with passive safety features being developed for a wide range of applications including the barge mounted co-generation plant. Its design strives to combine the firmly-established commercial reactor design with new advanced technologies. Thus the use of the industry proven KOFA (Korea Optimized Fuel Assembly) based nuclear fuels is pursued while such radically new technologies as self-pressurizing pressurizer, helical once-through steam generators, and advanced control concepts are being developed. The safety of SMART centers around enhancing the inherent safety characteristics of the reactor and salient features include low core power density, integral arrangement to eliminate large break loss of coolant accident, etc. The progression of emergency situations into accidents is prevented with a number of advanced engineered safety features such as Passive Residual Heat Removal System, Passive Emergency Core Cooling System, Safeguard Vessel, Passive Containment Over-pressure Protection. This paper presents the status of current SMART development, characteristics of SMART safety systems and the possibility of SMART application to barge mounted environment. (author)

Main design and safety features of a 200MW nuclear heating reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng, Wenxiang; Gao, Zuying; Wang, Dazhong

1992-01-01

Inept has been in charge of the development of a nuclear heating reactor since 1980s, which is one of the national key R and D Programs in China. A 5MWt experimental NCR was completed at Inept in 1989 and has operated successfully for space heating since then. In order to realize the commercialization of the NCR, it has been decided to construct a 200MW demonstration NCR in 1993. A number of advanced features, including natural circulation, integrated arrangement, self-pressurized performance, dual vessel structure, hydraulic control rod drive and passive safety systems, have been incorporated into the NCR-200 to achieve its safety goal and economic viability. This makes the NCR safe, simple, reliable, easy-constructed and maintained. At present, the design work of the NCR-200 have shown that its safety characteristics are excellent. The NCR could play an important role in resolving future energy and environmental problems in China. The paper will mainly cover the key design considerations, main technical features and safety analysis results of the NCR-200

Safety Design Approach for the Development of Safety Requirements for Design of Commercial HTGR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ohashi, Hirofumi; Sato, Hiroyuki; Nakagawa, Shigeaki; Tachibana, Yukio; Nishihara, Tetsuo; Yan, Xing; Sakaba, Nariaki; Kunitomi, Kazuhiko

2014-01-01

The research committee on “Safety requirements for HTGR design” was established in 2013 under the Atomic Energy Society of Japan to develop the draft safety requirements for the design of commercial High Temperature Gas-cooled Reactors (HTGRs), which incorporate the HTGR safety features demonstrated using the High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR), lessons learned from the accident of Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station and requirements for the integration of the hydrogen production plants. The safety design approach for the commercial HTGRs which is a basement of the safety requirements is determined prior to the development of the safety requirements. The safety design approaches for the commercial HTGRs are to confine the radioactive materials within the coated fuel particles not only during normal operation but also during accident conditions, and the integrity of the coated fuel particles and other requiring physical barriers are protected by the inherent and passive safety features. This paper describes the main topics of the research committee, the safety design approaches and the safety functions of the commercial HTGRs determined in the research committee. (author)

The approaches of safety design and safety evaluation at HTTR (High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iigaki, Kazuhiko; Saikusa, Akio; Sawahata, Hiroaki; Shinozaki, Masayuki; Tochio, Daisuke; Honma, Fumitaka; Tachibana, Yukio; Iyoku, Tatsuo; Kawasaki, Kozo; Baba, Osamu

2006-06-01

Gas Cooled Reactor has long history of nuclear development, and High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor (HTGR) has been expected that it can be supply high temperature energy to chemical industry and to power generation from the points of view of the safety, the efficiency, the environment and the economy. The HTGR design is tried to installed passive safety equipment. The current licensing review guideline was made for a Low Water Reactor (LWR) on safety evaluation therefore if it would be directly utilized in the HTGR it needs the special consideration for the HTGR. This paper describes that investigation result of the safety design and the safety evaluation traditions for the HTGR, comparison the safety design and safety evaluation feature for the HTGT with it's the LWR, and reflection for next HTGR based on HTTR operational experiment. (author)

A new design concept for offshore nuclear power plants with enhanced safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Kihwan; Lee, Kang-Heon; Lee, Jeong Ik; Jeong, Yong Hoon; Lee, Phill-Seung

2013-01-01

Highlights: ► A new design concept for offshore nuclear power plants is proposed. ► The total general arrangement for the concept is suggested. ► A new emergency passive containment cooling system (EPCCS) is proposed. ► A new emergency passive reactor-vessel cooling system (EPRVCS) is proposed. ► Safety features against earthquakes, tsunamis, and storms are discussed. - Abstract: In this paper, we present a new concept for offshore nuclear power plants (ONPP) with enhanced safety features. The design concept of a nuclear power plant (NPP) mounted on gravity-based structures (GBSs), which are widely used offshore structures, is proposed first. To demonstrate the feasibility of the concept, a large-scale land-based nuclear power plant model APR1400, which is the most recent NPP model in the Republic of Korea, is mounted on a GBS while minimizing modification to the original features of APR1400. A new total general arrangement (GA) and basic design principles are proposed and can be directly applied to any existing land based large scale NPPs. The proposed concept will enhance the safety of a NPP due to several aspects. A new emergency passive containment cooling system (EPCCS) and emergency passive reactor-vessel cooling system (EPRVCS) are proposed; their features of using seawater as coolant and safety features against earthquakes, Tsunamis, storms, and marine collisions are also described. We believe that the proposed offshore nuclear power plant is more robust than conventional land-based nuclear power plants and it has strong potential to provide great opportunities in nuclear power industries by decoupling the site of construction and that of installation.

Dynamics and inherent safety features of small modular high temperature gas-cooled reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harrington, R.M.; Ball, S.J.; Cleveland, J.C.

1986-01-01

Investigations were made at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to characterize the dynamics and inherent safety features of various modular high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) designs. This work was sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission's HTGR Safety Research program. The US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Gas Cooled Reactor Associates (GCRA) have sponsored studies of several modular HTGR concepts, each having it own unique advantageous economic and inherent safety features. The DOE design team has recently choses a 350-MW(t) annular core with prismatic, graphite matrix fuel for its reference plant. The various safety features of this plant and of the pebble-bed core designs similar to those currently being developed and operated in the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) are described. A varity of postulated accident sequences involving combinations of loss of forced circulation of the helium primary coolant, loss of primary coolant pressurization, and loss of normal and backup heat sinks were studied and are discussed. Results demonstrate that each concept can withstand an uncontrolled heatup accident without reaching excessive peak fuel temperatures. Comparisons of calculated and measured response for a loss of forced circulation test on the FRG reactor, AVR, are also presented. 10 refs

Safety culture for engineering companies. Licensing and design bases for Cofrentes NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nhorte Gomez, M.D.

1994-01-01

Safety culture must be given higher priority by all organisations. It must not be considered a separate concept, attributable to just one particular organisation, or a single responsible party. It is important to apply this criterion throughout the different phases of a nuclear power plant project (design, construction, commissioning and operation) without becoming isolated or dissociated. Nevertheless, it is absolutely essential to apply and consider it during operation, so to ensure highest possible safety standards. Consideration must also be given to the interfaces and interconnections between the different parties involved in the project (Owner of the NPP, Main Engineering Company, Main Supplier, Regulatory Body, etc) to build a SAFETY CULTURE in a collective and effective way. In applying the safety culture, an engineering company emphasises the following concepts: - Personal dedication and sense of responsibility in all those involved in any activity related to the safety of Nuclear Power Plants. - Clearly defined and readily accessible areas of responsibility and channels of communication - Strict adherence to procedures - Internal review of activities (Design review) (Author)

Improvement of the abnormal diagnosis technology by the development of an abnormal parts assignment system for the engineered safety features actuating system of the HTTR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hirato, Yoji; Kozawa, Takayuki; Saito, Kenji

2015-01-01

The safety protection sequence panel of HTTR is a control panel to actuate an engineering safety system for protecting the reactor core, reactor coolant pressure boundary, and containment vessel boundary at the time of an accident of the nuclear reactor facilities. The safety code stipulates that the control panel should receive safety check at a frequency of once a month during reactor operation. When abnormality has been found, it is required to eliminate its causes and restore normal operation as soon as possible. However, since this control panel is composed of a complex control circuit, the cause check during abnormality requires the confirmation by a knowledgeable person spending quite a lot of time for chart checking, which leads to a delay of restoration. To achieve a rapid restoration, the abnormal part assignment system (APAS), which can specify abnormality instantaneously even by a common operator, was developed. It has been confirmed that with this system, rapid initial response and prompt restoration can be effectively made. (A.O.)

Image processing for safety assessment in civil engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrer, Belen; Pomares, Juan C; Irles, Ramon; Espinosa, Julian; Mas, David

2013-06-20

Behavior analysis of construction safety systems is of fundamental importance to avoid accidental injuries. Traditionally, measurements of dynamic actions in civil engineering have been done through accelerometers, but high-speed cameras and image processing techniques can play an important role in this area. Here, we propose using morphological image filtering and Hough transform on high-speed video sequence as tools for dynamic measurements on that field. The presented method is applied to obtain the trajectory and acceleration of a cylindrical ballast falling from a building and trapped by a thread net. Results show that safety recommendations given in construction codes can be potentially dangerous for workers.

Rasmussen's legacy: A paradigm change in engineering for safety.

Science.gov (United States)

Leveson, Nancy G

2017-03-01

This paper describes three applications of Rasmussen's idea to systems engineering practice. The first is the application of the abstraction hierarchy to engineering specifications, particularly requirements specification. The second is the use of Rasmussen's ideas in safety modeling and analysis to create a new, more powerful type of accident causation model that extends traditional models to better handle human-operated, software-intensive, sociotechnical systems. Because this new model has a formal, mathematical foundation built on systems theory (as was Rasmussen's original model), new modeling and analysis tools become possible. The third application is to engineering hazard analysis. Engineers have traditionally either omitted human from consideration in system hazard analysis or have treated them rather superficially, for example, that they behave randomly. Applying Rasmussen's model of human error to a powerful new hazard analysis technique allows human behavior to be included in engineering hazard analysis. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Design of plant safety model in plant enterprise engineering environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gabbar, Hossam A.; Suzuki, Kazuhiko; Shimada, Yukiyasu

2001-01-01

Plant enterprise engineering environment (PEEE) is an approach aiming to manage the plant through its lifecycle. In such environment, safety is considered as the common objective for all activities throughout the plant lifecycle. One approach to achieve plant safety is to embed safety aspects within each function and activity within such environment. One ideal way to enable safety aspects within each automated function is through modeling. This paper proposes a theoretical approach to design plant safety model as integrated with the plant lifecycle model within such environment. Object-oriented modeling approach is used to construct the plant safety model using OO CASE tool on the basis of unified modeling language (UML). Multiple views are defined for plant objects to express static, dynamic, and functional semantics of these objects. Process safety aspects are mapped to each model element and inherited from design to operation stage, as it is naturally embedded within plant's objects. By developing and realizing the plant safety model, safer plant operation can be achieved and plant safety can be assured

Safety, reliability, risk management and human factors: an integrated engineering approach applied to nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasconcelos, Vanderley de; Silva, Eliane Magalhaes Pereira da; Costa, Antonio Carlos Lopes da; Reis, Sergio Carneiro dos

2009-01-01

Nuclear energy has an important engineering legacy to share with the conventional industry. Much of the development of the tools related to safety, reliability, risk management, and human factors are associated with nuclear plant processes, mainly because the public concern about nuclear power generation. Despite the close association between these subjects, there are some important different approaches. The reliability engineering approach uses several techniques to minimize the component failures that cause the failure of the complex systems. These techniques include, for instance, redundancy, diversity, standby sparing, safety factors, and reliability centered maintenance. On the other hand system safety is primarily concerned with hazard management, that is, the identification, evaluation and control of hazards. Rather than just look at failure rates or engineering strengths, system safety would examine the interactions among system components. The events that cause accidents may be complex combinations of component failures, faulty maintenance, design errors, human actions, or actuation of instrumentation and control. Then, system safety deals with a broader spectrum of risk management, including: ergonomics, legal requirements, quality control, public acceptance, political considerations, and many other non-technical influences. Taking care of these subjects individually can compromise the completeness of the analysis and the measures associated with both risk reduction, and safety and reliability increasing. Analyzing together the engineering systems and controls of a nuclear facility, their management systems and operational procedures, and the human factors engineering, many benefits can be realized. This paper proposes an integration of these issues based on the application of systems theory. (author)

Safety, reliability, risk management and human factors: an integrated engineering approach applied to nuclear facilities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vasconcelos, Vanderley de; Silva, Eliane Magalhaes Pereira da; Costa, Antonio Carlos Lopes da; Reis, Sergio Carneiro dos [Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nuclear (CDTN/CNEN-MG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil)], e-mail: vasconv@cdtn.br, e-mail: silvaem@cdtn.br, e-mail: aclc@cdtn.br, e-mail: reissc@cdtn.br

2009-07-01

Nuclear energy has an important engineering legacy to share with the conventional industry. Much of the development of the tools related to safety, reliability, risk management, and human factors are associated with nuclear plant processes, mainly because the public concern about nuclear power generation. Despite the close association between these subjects, there are some important different approaches. The reliability engineering approach uses several techniques to minimize the component failures that cause the failure of the complex systems. These techniques include, for instance, redundancy, diversity, standby sparing, safety factors, and reliability centered maintenance. On the other hand system safety is primarily concerned with hazard management, that is, the identification, evaluation and control of hazards. Rather than just look at failure rates or engineering strengths, system safety would examine the interactions among system components. The events that cause accidents may be complex combinations of component failures, faulty maintenance, design errors, human actions, or actuation of instrumentation and control. Then, system safety deals with a broader spectrum of risk management, including: ergonomics, legal requirements, quality control, public acceptance, political considerations, and many other non-technical influences. Taking care of these subjects individually can compromise the completeness of the analysis and the measures associated with both risk reduction, and safety and reliability increasing. Analyzing together the engineering systems and controls of a nuclear facility, their management systems and operational procedures, and the human factors engineering, many benefits can be realized. This paper proposes an integration of these issues based on the application of systems theory. (author)

Study on the experimental VHTR safety with analysis for a hypothetical rapid depressurization accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitake, S.; Suzuki, K.; Ohno, T.; Okada, T.

1982-01-01

A hypothetical rapid depressurization accident of the experimental VHTR has been analyzed, including all phenomena in the accident, from its initiating depressurization of the coolant to consequential radiological hazard. Based on reliability analysis of the engineered safety features, all possible sequences, in which the safety systems are in success or in failure, have been investigated with event tree analysis. The result shows the inherent safety characteristics of the reactor and the effectiveness of the engineered safety features. And through the analysis, it has been indicated that further investigations on some phenomena in the accident, e.g., air ingress by natural circulation flow and fission product transport in the plant, will bring forth more reasonable and sufficient safety of the reactor

Anomaly Analysis: NASA's Engineering and Safety Center Checks Recurring Shuttle Glitches

Science.gov (United States)

Morring, Frank, Jr.

2004-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), set up in the wake of the Columbia accident to backstop engineers in the space shuttle program, is reviewing hundreds of recurring anomalies that the program had determined don't affect flight safety to see if in fact they might. The NESC is expanding its support to other programs across the agency, as well. The effort, which will later extend to the International Space Station (ISS), is a principal part of the attempt to overcome the normalization of deviance--a situation in which organizations proceeded as if nothing was wrong in the face of evidence that something was wrong--cited by sociologist Diane Vaughn as contributing to both space shuttle disasters.

Legal bases of safety regulations in electrical engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeiter, W

1981-12-01

Apart from the governmental regulations the rule for the prevention of accidents 'Electric plants and equipment' must be observed in order to protect the insurants. Actually, all these regulations do not contain any independent instructions. They rather utilize the VDE regulations and refer to them. The laws of electrical safety engineering are strongly influenced by harmonization efforts particularly within the European Communitties.

Effects of organizational safety practices and perceived safety climate on PPE usage, engineering controls, and adverse events involving liquid antineoplastic drugs among nurses.

Science.gov (United States)

DeJoy, David M; Smith, Todd D; Woldu, Henok; Dyal, Mari-Amanda; Steege, Andrea L; Boiano, James M

2017-07-01

Antineoplastic drugs pose risks to the healthcare workers who handle them. This fact notwithstanding, adherence to safe handling guidelines remains inconsistent and often poor. This study examined the effects of pertinent organizational safety practices and perceived safety climate on the use of personal protective equipment, engineering controls, and adverse events (spill/leak or skin contact) involving liquid antineoplastic drugs. Data for this study came from the 2011 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Health and Safety Practices Survey of Healthcare Workers which included a sample of approximately 1,800 nurses who had administered liquid antineoplastic drugs during the past seven days. Regression modeling was used to examine predictors of personal protective equipment use, engineering controls, and adverse events involving antineoplastic drugs. Approximately 14% of nurses reported experiencing an adverse event while administering antineoplastic drugs during the previous week. Usage of recommended engineering controls and personal protective equipment was quite variable. Usage of both was better in non-profit and government settings, when workers were more familiar with safe handling guidelines, and when perceived management commitment to safety was higher. Usage was poorer in the absence of specific safety handling procedures. The odds of adverse events increased with number of antineoplastic drugs treatments and when antineoplastic drugs were administered more days of the week. The odds of such events were significantly lower when the use of engineering controls and personal protective equipment was greater and when more precautionary measures were in place. Greater levels of management commitment to safety and perceived risk were also related to lower odds of adverse events. These results point to the value of implementing a comprehensive health and safety program that utilizes available hazard controls and effectively communicates

The safety feature of hydraulic driving system of control rod for 200 MW nuclear heating reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chi Zongbo; Wu Yuanqiang

1997-01-01

The hydraulic driving system of control rod is used as control rod drive mechanism in 200 MW nuclear heating reactor. Design of this system is based on passive system, integrating drive and guide of control rod. The author analyzes the inherent safety and the design safety of this system, with mechanism of control rod not ejecting when the pressure of pressure vessel is lost, and calculating result of core not exposing when the amount of coolant is drained by broken pipe. The results indicate that this system has good safety feature, and assures reactor safety under any accident conditions, providing important technology support for 200 MW nuclear heating reactor with inherent safety feature

Turboprop Engine Nacelle Optimization for Flight Increased Safety and Pollution Reduction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cristian DOROBAT

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Commuter airplanes defined in CS-23 as being propeller driven, twin-engine, nineteen seats and maximum certified take-off weight of 8618 Kg had lately a special development due to advantages of turboprop engine compared with piston or jet engines. Nacelle optimization implies a sound and vibrations proof engine frame, engine fuel consumption reduction (through smaller nacelle drag and weight, better lift, better pressure recovery in air induction system, smaller drag of exhaust nozzles, engine cooling and nacelle ventilation more efficient, composite nacelle fairings with noise reduction properties, etc.. Nacelle aerodynamic experimental model, air induction experimental model and other nacelle experimental systems tested independently allow construction efficiency due to minimizing modifications on nacelle assembly and more safety in operation [1].

Online probabilistic operational safety assessment of multi-mode engineering systems using Bayesian methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Yufei; Chen, Maoyin; Zhou, Donghua

2013-01-01

In the past decades, engineering systems become more and more complex, and generally work at different operational modes. Since incipient fault can lead to dangerous accidents, it is crucial to develop strategies for online operational safety assessment. However, the existing online assessment methods for multi-mode engineering systems commonly assume that samples are independent, which do not hold for practical cases. This paper proposes a probabilistic framework of online operational safety assessment of multi-mode engineering systems with sample dependency. To begin with, a Gaussian mixture model (GMM) is used to characterize multiple operating modes. Then, based on the definition of safety index (SI), the SI for one single mode is calculated. At last, the Bayesian method is presented to calculate the posterior probabilities belonging to each operating mode with sample dependency. The proposed assessment strategy is applied in two examples: one is the aircraft gas turbine, another is an industrial dryer. Both examples illustrate the efficiency of the proposed method

Systems engineering applied to integrated safety management for high consequence facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barter, R; Morais, B.

1998-01-01

Integrated Safety Management is a concept that is being actively promoted by the U.S. Department of Energy as a means of assuring safe operation of its facilities. The concept involves the integration of safety precepts into work planning rather than adjusting for safe operations after defining the work activity. The system engineering techniques used to design an integrated safety management system for a high consequence research facility are described. An example is given to show how the concepts evolved with the system design

The LAILAPS search engine: a feature model for relevance ranking in life science databases.

Science.gov (United States)

Lange, Matthias; Spies, Karl; Colmsee, Christian; Flemming, Steffen; Klapperstück, Matthias; Scholz, Uwe

2010-03-25

Efficient and effective information retrieval in life sciences is one of the most pressing challenge in bioinformatics. The incredible growth of life science databases to a vast network of interconnected information systems is to the same extent a big challenge and a great chance for life science research. The knowledge found in the Web, in particular in life-science databases, are a valuable major resource. In order to bring it to the scientist desktop, it is essential to have well performing search engines. Thereby, not the response time nor the number of results is important. The most crucial factor for millions of query results is the relevance ranking. In this paper, we present a feature model for relevance ranking in life science databases and its implementation in the LAILAPS search engine. Motivated by the observation of user behavior during their inspection of search engine result, we condensed a set of 9 relevance discriminating features. These features are intuitively used by scientists, who briefly screen database entries for potential relevance. The features are both sufficient to estimate the potential relevance, and efficiently quantifiable. The derivation of a relevance prediction function that computes the relevance from this features constitutes a regression problem. To solve this problem, we used artificial neural networks that have been trained with a reference set of relevant database entries for 19 protein queries. Supporting a flexible text index and a simple data import format, this concepts are implemented in the LAILAPS search engine. It can easily be used both as search engine for comprehensive integrated life science databases and for small in-house project databases. LAILAPS is publicly available for SWISSPROT data at http://lailaps.ipk-gatersleben.de.

Purpose, Principles, and Challenges of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center

Science.gov (United States)

Gilbert, Michael G.

2016-01-01

NASA formed the NASA Engineering and Safety Center in 2003 following the Space Shuttle Columbia accident. It is an Agency level, program-independent engineering resource supporting NASA's missions, programs, and projects. It functions to identify, resolve, and communicate engineering issues, risks, and, particularly, alternative technical opinions, to NASA senior management. The goal is to help ensure fully informed, risk-based programmatic and operational decision-making processes. To date, the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) has conducted or is actively working over 600 technical studies and projects, spread across all NASA Mission Directorates, and for various other U.S. Government and non-governmental agencies and organizations. Since inception, NESC human spaceflight related activities, in particular, have transitioned from Shuttle Return-to-Flight and completion of the International Space Station (ISS) to ISS operations and Orion Multi-purpose Crew Vehicle (MPCV), Space Launch System (SLS), and Commercial Crew Program (CCP) vehicle design, integration, test, and certification. This transition has changed the character of NESC studies. For these development programs, the NESC must operate in a broader, system-level design and certification context as compared to the reactive, time-critical, hardware specific nature of flight operations support.

Safety Analysis for Key Design Features of KALIMER-600 Design Concept

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Yong Bum; Kwon, Y. M.; Kim, E. K.; Suk, S. D.; Chang, W. P.; Jeong, H. Y.; Ha, K. S

2007-02-15

This report contains the safety analyses of the KALIMER-600 conceptual design which KAERI has been developing under the Long-term Nuclear R and D Program. The analyses have been performed reflecting the design developments during the second year of the 4th design phase in the program. The specific presentations are the key design features with the safety principles for achieving the safety objectives, the event categorization and safety criteria, and results on the safety analyses for the DBAs and ATWS events, the containment performance, and the channel blockages. The safety analyses for both the DBAs and ATWS events have been performed using SSC-K version 1.3., and the results have shown the fulfillment of the safety criteria for DBAs with conservative assumptions. The safety margins as well as the inherent safety also have been confirmed for the ATWS events. For the containment performance analysis, ORIGEN-2.1 and CONTAIN-LMR have been used. In results, the structural integrity has been acceptable and the evaluated exposure dose rate has been complied with 10 CFR 100 and PAG limits. The analysis results for flow blockages of 6-subchannels, 24-subchannels, and 54- subchannels with the MATRA-LMR-FB code, have assured the integrity of subassemblies.

A software engineering process for safety-critical software application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Byung Heon; Kim, Hang Bae; Chang, Hoon Seon; Jeon, Jong Sun

1995-01-01

Application of computer software to safety-critical systems in on the increase. To be successful, the software must be designed and constructed to meet the functional and performance requirements of the system. For safety reason, the software must be demonstrated not only to meet these requirements, but also to operate safely as a component within the system. For longer-term cost consideration, the software must be designed and structured to ease future maintenance and modifications. This paper presents a software engineering process for the production of safety-critical software for a nuclear power plant. The presentation is expository in nature of a viable high quality safety-critical software development. It is based on the ideas of a rational design process and on the experience of the adaptation of such process in the production of the safety-critical software for the shutdown system number two of Wolsung 2, 3 and 4 nuclear power generation plants. This process is significantly different from a conventional process in terms of rigorous software development phases and software design techniques, The process covers documentation, design, verification and testing using mathematically precise notations and highly reviewable tabular format to specify software requirements and software requirements and software requirements and code against software design using static analysis. The software engineering process described in this paper applies the principle of information-hiding decomposition in software design using a modular design technique so that when a change is required or an error is detected, the affected scope can be readily and confidently located. it also facilitates a sense of high degree of confidence in the 'correctness' of the software production, and provides a relatively simple and straightforward code implementation effort. 1 figs., 10 refs. (Author)

Cost reduction and safety design features of ABWR-II. Annex 5

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koh, F.; Moriya, K.; Anegawa, T.

2002-01-01

The ABWR-II, which is aimed to be the next generation reactor following the latest BWR: Advanced Boiling Reactor (ABWR), is now under development jointly by the Japanese BWR utilities, General Electric Company, Hitachi Limited, and Toshiba Corporation. The key objectives of ABWR-II development include improvement in economics and further sophistication in safety for commercialization in the late 2010's and after. This paper summarizes the current status of ABWR-II development focusing on economics and safety. Plant power rating, fuel size, CRD rationalization and outage period are discussed from a cost reduction perspective. In terms of safety, the features such as diversification in emergency power sources and passive system application against severe accidents are being introduced. (author)

Key features and progress of the KSTAR tokamak engineering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bak, J.S.; Choi, C.H.; Oh, Y.K.

2003-01-01

Substantial progress of the KSTAR tokamak engineering has been made on major tokamak structures, superconducting magnets, in-vessel components, diagnostic system, heating system, and power supplies. The engineering design has been elaborated to the extent necessary to allow a realistic assessment of its feasibility, performance, and cost. The prototype fabrication has been carried out to establish the reliable fabrication technologies and to confirm the validation of analyses employed for the KSTAR design. The completion of experimental building with beneficial occupancy for machine assembly was accomplished in Sep. 2002. The construction of special utility such as cryo-plant, de-ionized water-cooling system, and main power station will begin upon completion of building construction. The commissioning, construction, fabrication, and assembly of the whole facility will be going on by the end of 2005. This paper describes the main design features and engineering progress of the KSTAR tokamak, and elaborates the work currently underway. (author)

Most common road safety engineering deficiencies in South Eastern Europe as a part of safe system approach

Science.gov (United States)

Jovanov, D.; Vollpracht, H. J.; Beles, H.; Popa, V.; Tolea, B. A.

2017-10-01

Most common road safety engineering deficiencies identified by the authors in South Eastern Europe, including Romania, have been collected together and presented in this paper as a part of road safety unbreakably connected to the safe system approach (driver-vehicle-road). In different South Eastern Europe countries Road Safety Audit (RSA), Road Safety Inspection (RSI), as well as Black Spot Management (BSM) was introduced and practical implementation experience enabled the authors to analyze the road safety problems. Typical road safety engineering deficiencies have been presented in 8 different subsections, based on PIARC (World Road Association) RSA approach. This paper presents collected common road safety problems with relevant illustrations (real pictures) with associated accident risks.

SRP reactor safety evolution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rankin, D.B.

1984-01-01

The Savannah River Plant reactors have operated for over 100 reactor years without an incident of significant consequence to on or off-site personnel. The reactor safety posture incorporates a conservative, failure-tolerant design; extensive administrative controls carried out through detailed operating and emergency written procedures; and multiple engineered safety systems backed by comprehensive safety analyses, adapting through the years as operating experience, changes in reactor operational modes, equipment modernization, and experience in the nuclear power industry suggested. Independent technical reviews and audits as well as a strong organizational structure also contribute to the defense-in-depth safety posture. A complete review of safety history would discuss all of the above contributors and the interplay of roles. This report, however, is limited to evolution of the engineered safety features and some of the supporting analyses. The discussion of safety history is divided into finite periods of operating history for preservation of historical perspective and ease of understanding by the reader. Programs in progress are also included. The accident at Three Mile Island was assessed for its safety implications to SRP operation. Resulting recommendations and their current status are discussed separately at the end of the report. 16 refs., 3 figs

Fuel elements and safety engineering goals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schulten, R.; Bonnenberg, H.

1990-01-01

There are good prospects for silicon carbide anti-corrosion coatings on fuel elements to be realised, which opens up the chance to reduce the safety engineering requirements to the suitable design and safe performance of the ceramic fuel element. Another possibility offered is combined-cycle operation with high efficiencies, and thus good economic prospects, as with this design concept combining gas and steam turbines, air ingress due to turbine malfunction is an incident that can be managed by the system. This development will allow economically efficient operation also of nuclear power reactors with relatively small output, and hence contribute to reducing CO 2 emissions. (orig./DG) [de

Design of 3D simulation engine for oilfield safety training

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hua-Ming; Kang, Bao-Sheng

2015-03-01

Aiming at the demand for rapid custom development of 3D simulation system for oilfield safety training, this paper designs and implements a 3D simulation engine based on script-driven method, multi-layer structure, pre-defined entity objects and high-level tools such as scene editor, script editor, program loader. A scripting language been defined to control the system's progress, events and operating results. Training teacher can use this engine to edit 3D virtual scenes, set the properties of entity objects, define the logic script of task, and produce a 3D simulation training system without any skills of programming. Through expanding entity class, this engine can be quickly applied to other virtual training areas.

Proposal of criteria for evaluation of engineering safety factors of VVER core parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shishkov, L.; Tsyganov, S.; Dementiev, V.

2009-01-01

The paper states that the regulatory documentation, as a rule, do not give explicit recommendations on formation techniques of engineering safety factors for design limited parameters of normal operation (K eng ). The AER countries use different approaches to K eng evaluation (sometimes even one country in relation of various power units). The paper suggests the development of uniform rules to be used in calculation of engineering safety factor for all VVER reactors. The paper presents principal problems that must be solved in the course of the discussion, and in the form of an exercise suggests the way of their solution. (authors)

Proposal of criteria for evaluation of engineering safety factors of WWER core parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shishkov, L.; Tsyganov, S.; Dementiev, V.

2009-01-01

The paper states that the regulatory documentation, as a rule, do not give explicit recommendations on formation techniques of engineering safety factors for design limited parameters of normal operation. The AER countries use different approaches to evaluation (sometimes even one country in relation of various power units). The paper suggests the development of uniform rules to be used in calculation of engineering safety factor for all WWER reactors. The paper presents principal problems that must be solved in the course of the discussion, and in the form of an exercise suggests the way of their solution. (Authors)

On the status of the EFR Euro-Breeder and its passive safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marth, W.

1992-01-01

The Project of the EFR, the European Fast Reactor, is characterized by close European cooperation among power utilities, plant vendors, and research centers. In the present phase up until 1993 a consistent design of the nuclear part of the plant is being elaborated with the inclusion of a site-independent safety report. The most important design features, especially those in the field of passive safety, must be backed up by reliable R and D findings. These findings will enable the ad hoc Safety Club, a body of European safety experts, to pass its vote on the general licensability of the plant concept. (orig.) [de

On the development of an International Curriculum on Hydrogen Safety Engineering and its Implementation into Educational Programmes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dahoe, A.E.; Molkov, V.V.

2006-01-01

The present paper provides an overview of the development of an International Curriculum on Hydrogen Safety Engineering and its implementation into new educational programmes. The curriculum has a modular structure, and consists of five basic, six fundamental and four applied modules. The reasons for this particular structure are explained. To accelerate the development of teaching materials and their implementation in training/educational programmes, an annual European Summer School on Hydrogen Safety will be held (the first Summer School is from 15-24 Aug 2006, Belfast, UK), where leading experts deliver keynote lectures to an audience of researchers on topics covering the state-of-the-art in Hydrogen Safety Science and Engineering. The establishment of a Postgraduate Certificate course in Hydrogen Safety Engineering at the University of Ulster (starting in September 2006) as a first step in the development of a worldwide system of Hydrogen Safety education and training is described. (authors)

Preliminary safety analysis for key design features of KALIMER

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hahn, D. H.; Kwon, Y. M.; Chang, W. P.; Suk, S. D.; Lee, S. O.; Lee, Y. B.; Jeong, K. S

2000-07-01

KAERI is currently developing the conceptual design of a liquid metal reactor, KALIMER(Korea Advanced Liquid Metal Reactor) under the long-term nuclear R and D program. In this report, descriptions of the KALIMER safety design features and safety analyses results for selected ATWS accidents are presented. First, the basic approach to achieve the safety goal is introduced in chapter 1, and the safety evaluation procedure for the KALIMER design is described in chapter 2. It includes event selection, event categorization, description of design basis events, and beyond design basis events. In chapter 3, results of inherent safety evaluations for the KALIMER conceptual design are presented. The KALIMER core and plant system are designed to assure design performance during a selected set of events without either reactor control or protection system intervention. Safety analyses for the postulated anticipated transient without scram(ATWS) have been performed to investigate the KALIMER system response to the events. They are categorized as bounding events(BEs) because of their low probability of occurrence. In chapter 4, the design of the KALIMER containment dome and the results of its performance analysis are presented. The designs of the existing LMR containment and the KALIMER containment dome have been compared in this chapter. Procedure of the containment performance analysis and the analysis results are described along with the accident scenario and source terms. Finally, a simple methodology is introduced to investigate the core kinetics and hydraulic behavior during HCDA in chapter 5. Mathematical formulations have been developed in the framework of the modified bethe-tait method, and scoping analyses have been performed for the KALIMER core behavior during super-prompt critical excursions.

LOFT Engineering Simulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Venhuizen, J.R.

1982-02-01

The LOFT Engineering Simulator was developed to supply plant equivalent data for evaluating graphic aids and advanced control concepts for nuclear plant operators. The Simulator, a combination of hardware and software, combines some of the features of best estimate (safety analysis) computer codes with reactor operator training simulators. The LOFT Engineering Simulator represents an attempt to develop a simulation with sufficient physical detail (solution of the conservation equations) for moderate accident simulation, but which will still run in real time and provide an interface for the operator to interact with the model. As a result of this combination, a real time simulation of the LOFT plant has been developed which yields realistic transient results. These data can be used for evaluating reactor control room aids such as Safety Parameter Displays and Janus Predictive Displays

Compilation of contract research for the Chemical Engineering Branch, Division of Engineering Technology. Annual report for FY 1985

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-07-01

This compilation of annual research reports by the contractors to the Chemical Engineering Branch, DET, is published to disseminate information from ongoing programs and covers research conducted during fiscal year 1985. The programs covered in this document include research on: (1) engineered safety feature (ESF) system effectiveness in terms of fission product retention under severe accident conditions; (2) effectiveness and safety aspects of selected decontamination methods; (3) decontamination impacts on solidification and waste disposal; (4) evaluation of nuclear facility decommissioning projects and concepts, and (5) operational schemes to prevent or mitigate the effects of hydrogen combustion during LWR accidents

Improved safety features in the design of Alto Lazio NPP

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bava, G.; Cianciolo, T.; Del Nero, G.

1988-01-01

The ALTO LAZIO Nuclear Power Plant, two 1000Mwe units, is a BWR 6/MARK III located about 100 km north of Rome, on the Tyrrhenian Sea Coasts. The construction of the plant started in 1978, but it has recently been stopped by a Government decision following a national referendum, when the units were about 70% completed. This paper is mainly intended to illustrate the major safety features which have been implemented as result of specific requirements issued by the safety authority (ENEA DISP) during the construction permit stage or the subsequent licensing process. One of the tools used to identify the need for design modifications has been a comprehensive reliability analysis of safety system: in the paper the methods used and the major results obtained by this study are briefly presented. Also, the approach used in the investigation of severe accidents and major applications in the area of plant design and emergency procedures are briefly discussed; furthermore the trend toward a simpler mitigation concept is described

Nuclear safety chains

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Robbins, M.C.; Eames, G.F.; Mayell, J.R.

1981-01-01

An original scheme has been developed for expressing the complex interrelationships associated with the engineered safeguards provided for a nuclear power station. This management tool, based upon network diagrams called Nuclear Safety Chains, looks at the function required of a particular item of safety plant, defines all of the vital supplies and support features necessary for successful operation, and expresses them in visual form, to facilitate analysis and optimisation for operations and maintenance staff. The safety chains are confined to manual schemes at present, although they are designed to be compatible with modern computer techniques. Their usefulness with any routine maintenance planning application on high technology plant is already being appreciated. (author)

Identification and characterization of passive safety system and inherent safety feature building blocks for advanced light-water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Forsberg, C.W.

1989-01-01

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is investigating passive and inherent safety options for Advanced Light-Water Reactors (ALWRs). A major activity in 1989 includes identification and characterization of passive safety system and inherent safety feature building blocks, both existing and proposed, for ALWRs. Preliminary results of this work are reported herein. This activity is part of a larger effort by the US Department of Energy, reactor vendors, utilities, and others in the United States to develop improved LWRs. The Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) program and the Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor (APWR) program have as goals improved, commercially available LWRs in the early 1990s. The Advanced Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ASBWR) program and the AP-600 program are developing more advanced reactors with increased use of passive safety systems. It is planned that these reactors will become commercially available in the mid 1990s. The ORNL program is an exploratory research program for LWRs beyond the year 2000. Desired long-term goals for such reactors include: (1) use of only passive and inherent safety, (2) foolproof against operator errors, (3) malevolence resistance against internal sabotage and external assault and (4) walkaway safety. The acronym ''PRIME'' [Passive safety, Resilient operation, Inherent safety, Malevolence resistance, and Extended (walkaway) safety] is used to summarize these desired characteristics. Existing passive and inherent safety options are discussed in this document

Expertise preservation in nuclear technology - the new master course ''nuclear safety engineering'' at the RWTH Aachen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Backus, Sabine; Heuters, Michael

2011-01-01

The energy concept of the German federal Government in 2010 emphasizes the importance of nuclear energy within the energy policy. The lifetime extension of German nuclear power plants and the long-term safety of radioactive waste storage is the new challenge with respect to the expertise preservation in Germany. The owners of nuclear utilities have started to assist new research programs in the field of nuclear engineering at the German universities. RWE Power and ThyssenKrupp have signed a cooperation contract in 2007 with the RWTH Aachen. The companies bear the expenses for professorships ''nuclear fuel cycle'', ''simulation in nuclear engineering'' and ''reactor safety and engineering''. An elongation of the contract is planned. A master course ''nuclear safety engineering'' over 4 semesters covers the complete fuel cycle. The authors discuss issues concerning the information of students, experiences with the expectations of students concerning their future employment, acceptance of nuclear energy and related topics.

SAFETY ENGINEERING FOR THE RELATIVISTIC HEAVY ION COLLIDER AT THE BROOKHAVEN NATIONAL LABORATORY

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Musolino, S.V.; Kane, S.F.; Levesque, J.W.

1999-01-01

THERE ARE ONLY A FEW OTHER HIGH ENERGY PARTICLE ACCELERATORS LIKE RHIC IN THE WORLD. THEREFORE, THE DESIGNERS OF THE MACHINE DO NOT ALWAYS HAVE CONSENSUS DESIGN STANDARDS AND REGULATORY GUIDANCE AVAILABLE TO ESTABLISH THE ENGINEERING PARAMETERS FOR SAFETY. SOME OF THE AREAS WHERE STANDARDS ARE NOT AVAILABLE RELATE TO THE CRYOGENIC SYSTEM, CONTAINMENT OF LARGE VOLUMES OF FLAMMABLE GAS IN FRAGILE VESSELS IN THE EXPERIMENTAL APPARATUS AND MITIGATION OF A DESIGN BASIS ACCIDENT WITH A STORED PARTICLE BEAM. UNIQUE BUT EQUIVALENT SAFETY ENGINEERING MUST BE DETERMINED. SPECIAL DESIGN CRITERIA FOR PROMPT RADIATION WERE DEVELOPED TO PROVIDE GUIDANCE FOR THE DESIGN OF RADIATION SHIELDING

Safety analysis report 231-Z Building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Powers, C.S.

1989-03-01

This report provides an intensive review of the nuclear safety of the operation of the 231-Z Building. For background information complete descriptions of the floor plan, building services, alarm systems, and glove box systems are included in this report. In addition, references are included to The Plutonium Laboratory Radiation Work Procedures, Safety Guides, 231-Z Operating Procedures Manual and Nuclear Materials accountability Procedures. Engineered and administrative features contribute to the overall safety of personnel, the building, and environs. The consequences of credible incidents were considered and are discussed.

77 FR 62224 - Hanford Tank Farms Flammable Gas Safety Strategy

Science.gov (United States)

2012-10-12

... (Board) believes that current operations at the Hanford Tank Farms require safety- significant active... administrative control in lieu of an engineered feature is also contrary to DOE's established hierarchy of...

The Use of a Parametric Feature Based CAD System to Teach Introductory Engineering Graphics.

Science.gov (United States)

Howell, Steven K.

1995-01-01

Describes the use of a parametric-feature-based computer-aided design (CAD) System, AutoCAD Designer, in teaching concepts of three dimensional geometrical modeling and design. Allows engineering graphics to go beyond the role of documentation and communication and allows an engineer to actually build a virtual prototype of a design idea and…

The Qualification Experiences for Safety-critical Software of POSAFE-Q

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Jang Yeol; Son, Kwang Seop; Cheon, Se Woo; Lee, Jang Soo; Kwon, Kee Choon [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2009-05-15

Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) have been applied to the Reactor Protection System (RPS) and the Engineered Safety Feature (ESF)-Component Control System (CCS) as the major safety system components of nuclear power plants. This paper describes experiences on the qualification of the safety-critical software including the pCOS kernel and system tasks related to a safety-grade PLC, i.e. the works done for the Software Verification and Validation, Software Safety Analysis, Software Quality Assurance, and Software Configuration Management etc.

Transport fire safety engineering in the European Union - project TRANSFEU

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jolanta Maria RADZISZEWSKA-WOLIŃSKA

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Article presents European Research project (of FP7-SST-2008-RTD-1 for Surface transportation TRANSFEU. Projects undertakes to deliver both a reliable toxicity measurement methodology and a holistic fire safety approach for all kind of surface transport. It bases on a harmonized Fire Safety Engineering methodology which link passive fire security with active fire security mode. This all embracing system is the key to attain optimum design solutions in respect to fire safety objectives as an alternative to the prescriptive approach. It will help in the development of innovative solutions (design and products used for the building of the surface transport which will better respect the environment.In order to reach these objectives new toxicity measurement methodology and related classification of materials, new numerical fire simulation tools, fire test methodology (laboratory and full scale and a decisive tool to optimize or explore new design in accordance to the fire safety requirements will be developed.

A Co-modeling Method Based on Component Features for Mechatronic Devices in Aero-engines

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Bin; Zhao, Haocen; Ye, Zhifeng

2017-08-01

Data-fused and user-friendly design of aero-engine accessories is required because of their structural complexity and stringent reliability. This paper gives an overview of a typical aero-engine control system and the development process of key mechatronic devices used. Several essential aspects of modeling and simulation in the process are investigated. Considering the limitations of a single theoretic model, feature-based co-modeling methodology is suggested to satisfy the design requirements and compensate for diversity of component sub-models for these devices. As an example, a stepper motor controlled Fuel Metering Unit (FMU) is modeled in view of the component physical features using two different software tools. An interface is suggested to integrate the single discipline models into the synthesized one. Performance simulation of this device using the co-model and parameter optimization for its key components are discussed. Comparison between delivery testing and the simulation shows that the co-model for the FMU has a high accuracy and the absolute superiority over a single model. Together with its compatible interface with the engine mathematical model, the feature-based co-modeling methodology is proven to be an effective technical measure in the development process of the device.

ESRS guidelines for software safety reviews. Reference document for the organization and conduct of Engineering Safety Review Services (ESRS) on software important to safety in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2000-01-01

The IAEA provides safety review services to assist Member States in the application of safety standards and, in particular, to evaluate and facilitate improvements in nuclear power plant safety performance. Complementary to the Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) and the International Regulatory Review Team (IRRT) services are the Engineering Safety Review Services (ESRS), which include reviews of siting, external events and structural safety, design safety, fire safety, ageing management and software safety. Software is of increasing importance to safety in nuclear power plants as the use of computer based equipment and systems, controlled by software, is increasing in new and older plants. Computer based devices are used in both safety related applications (such as process control and monitoring) and safety critical applications (such as reactor protection). Their dependability can only be ensured if a systematic, fully documented and reviewable engineering process is used. The ESRS on software safety are designed to assist a nuclear power plant or a regulatory body of a Member State in the review of documentation relating to the development, application and safety assessment of software embedded in computer based systems important to safety in nuclear power plants. The software safety reviews can be tailored to the specific needs of the requesting organization. Examples of such reviews are: project planning reviews, reviews of specific issues and reviews prior final acceptance. This report gives information on the possible scope of ESRS software safety reviews and guidance on the organization and conduct of the reviews. It is aimed at Member States considering these reviews and IAEA staff and external experts performing the reviews. The ESRS software safety reviews evaluate the degree to which software documents show that the development process and the final product conform to international standards, guidelines and current practices. Recommendations are

System Coordination of Survivability and Safety of Complex Engineering Objects Operation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nataliya Pankratova

2014-11-01

Full Text Available A system strategy to estimation the guaranteed survivability and safety of complex engineering objects (CEO operation is proposed. The principles that underlie the strategy of the guaranteed safety of CEO operation provide a flexible approach to timely detection, recognition, forecast, and system diagnostics of risk factors and situations, to formulation and implementation of a rational decision in a practicable time within an unremovable time constraint. Implementation of the proposed strategy is shown on example of diagnostics of electromobile-refrigerator functioning in real mode.

Safety evaluation report. Fast Flux Test Facility. Project No. 448

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1978-08-01

Information on the safety of the FFTF Reactor is presented under the following chapter headings: site characteristics; design of structures, components, equipment, and systems; reactor; reactor coolant system and connected systems; engineered safety features; electric power; auxiliary systems; radioactive waste management systems; radiation protection; conduct of operations; initial test programs; accident analysis; and quality assurance.

Safety evaluation report. Fast Flux Test Facility. Project No. 448

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1978-01-01

Information on the safety of the FFTF Reactor is presented under the following chapter headings: site characteristics; design of structures, components, equipment, and systems; reactor; reactor coolant system and connected systems; engineered safety features; electric power; auxiliary systems; radioactive waste management systems; radiation protection; conduct of operations; initial test programs; accident analysis; and quality assurance

Human factors engineering design review acceptance criteria for the safety parameter display

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McGevna, V.; Peterson, L.R.

1981-01-01

This report contains human factors engineering design review acceptance criteria developed by the Human Factors Engineering Branch (HFEB) of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to use in evaluating designs of the Safety Parameter Display System (SPDS). These criteria were developed in response to the functional design criteria for the SPDS defined in NUREG-0696, Functional Criteria for Emergency Response Facilities. The purpose of this report is to identify design review acceptance criteria for the SPDS installed in the control room of a nuclear power plant. Use of computer driven cathode ray tube (CRT) displays is anticipated. General acceptance criteria for displays of plant safety status information by the SPDS are developed. In addition, specific SPDS review criteria corresponding to the SPDS functional criteria specified in NUREG-0696 are established

76 FR 78 - Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard; Engine Control Module Speed Limiter Device

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-03

... [Docket No. NHTSA-2007-26851] Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard; Engine Control Module Speed Limiter... occupants. IIHS stated that on-board electronic engine control modules (ECM) will maintain the desired speed... be equipped with an electronic control module (ECM) that is capable of limiting the maximum speed of...

Problems of Formation of Diagnostic Features in the Diagnosis of Aircraft Engines

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pronyakin V.I.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the evaluation of current technical condition of aircraft engines. Deals with the choice of the detection method of diagnostic features required for degradation assessment, emergency protection and detection of incipient defects on the example of cyclic machines and mechanisms. For the formation of diagnostic features in the diagnosis of aircraft engines use different physical effects (vibration, shock, heat radiation, electrodynamic and thermal processes, wear debris in oil, etc.. Classification of defects and requirements for the development of diagnostics systems is formed based on them. The article describes the requirements for diagnostic signs. The article provides a promising phase method that allows obtaining stable diagnostic characters in exploitation. The result of applying the method is shown. Diagnostic signs are formed. In mathematical modeling it was used the traditional theory of the description of rotary mechanisms. The data obtained are compared with experimental data.

Software safety analysis techniques for developing safety critical software in the digital protection system of the LMR

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Jang Soo; Cheon, Se Woo; Kim, Chang Hoi; Sim, Yun Sub

2001-02-01

This report has described the software safety analysis techniques and the engineering guidelines for developing safety critical software to identify the state of the art in this field and to give the software safety engineer a trail map between the code and standards layer and the design methodology and documents layer. We have surveyed the management aspects of software safety activities during the software lifecycle in order to improve the safety. After identifying the conventional safety analysis techniques for systems, we have surveyed in details the software safety analysis techniques, software FMEA(Failure Mode and Effects Analysis), software HAZOP(Hazard and Operability Analysis), and software FTA(Fault Tree Analysis). We have also surveyed the state of the art in the software reliability assessment techniques. The most important results from the reliability techniques are not the specific probability numbers generated, but the insights into the risk importance of software features. To defend against potential common-mode failures, high quality, defense-in-depth, and diversity are considered to be key elements in digital I and C system design. To minimize the possibility of CMFs and thus increase the plant reliability, we have provided D-in-D and D analysis guidelines.

Software safety analysis techniques for developing safety critical software in the digital protection system of the LMR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Jang Soo; Cheon, Se Woo; Kim, Chang Hoi; Sim, Yun Sub

2001-02-01

This report has described the software safety analysis techniques and the engineering guidelines for developing safety critical software to identify the state of the art in this field and to give the software safety engineer a trail map between the code and standards layer and the design methodology and documents layer. We have surveyed the management aspects of software safety activities during the software lifecycle in order to improve the safety. After identifying the conventional safety analysis techniques for systems, we have surveyed in details the software safety analysis techniques, software FMEA(Failure Mode and Effects Analysis), software HAZOP(Hazard and Operability Analysis), and software FTA(Fault Tree Analysis). We have also surveyed the state of the art in the software reliability assessment techniques. The most important results from the reliability techniques are not the specific probability numbers generated, but the insights into the risk importance of software features. To defend against potential common-mode failures, high quality, defense-in-depth, and diversity are considered to be key elements in digital I and C system design. To minimize the possibility of CMFs and thus increase the plant reliability, we have provided D-in-D and D analysis guidelines

Development of Draft Regulatory Guide on Accident Analysis for Nuclear Power Plants with New Safety Design Features

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bang, Young Seok; Woo, Sweng Woong; Hwang, Tae Suk [KINS, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Sim, Suk K; Hwang, Min Jeong [Environment and Energy Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

The present paper discusses the development process of the draft version of regulatory guide (DRG) on accident analysis of the NPP having the NSFD and its result. Based on the consideration on the lesson learned from the previous licensing review, a draft regulatory guide (DRG) on accident analysis for NPP with new safety design features (NSDF) was developed. New safety design features (NSDF) have been introduced to the new constructing nuclear power plants (NPP) since the early 2000 and the issuance of construction permit of SKN Units 3 and 4. Typical examples of the new safety features includes Fluidic Device (FD) within Safety Injection Tanks (SIT), Passive Auxiliary Feedwater System (PAFS), ECCS Core Barrel Duct (ECBD) which were adopted in APR1400 design and/or APR+ design to improve the safety margin of the plants for the postulated accidents of interest. Also several studies of new concept of the safety system such as Hybrid ECCS design have been reported. General and/or specific guideline of accident analysis considering the NSDF has been requested. Realistic evaluation of the impact of NSDF on accident with uncertainty and separated accident analysis accounting the NSDF impact were specified in the DRG. Per the developmental process, identification of key issues, demonstration of the DRG with specific accident with specific NSDF, and improvement of DGR for the key issues and their resolution will be conducted.

Health and safety implications of occupational exposure to engineered nanomaterials.

Science.gov (United States)

Stebounova, Larissa V; Morgan, Hallie; Grassian, Vicki H; Brenner, Sara

2012-01-01

The rapid growth and commercialization of nanotechnology are currently outpacing health and safety recommendations for engineered nanomaterials. As the production and use of nanomaterials increase, so does the possibility that there will be exposure of workers and the public to these materials. This review provides a summary of current research and regulatory efforts related to occupational exposure and medical surveillance for the nanotechnology workforce, focusing on the most prevalent industrial nanomaterials currently moving through the research, development, and manufacturing pipelines. Their applications and usage precedes a discussion of occupational health and safety efforts, including exposure assessment, occupational health surveillance, and regulatory considerations for these nanomaterials. Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Cloud/Fog Computing System Architecture and Key Technologies for South-North Water Transfer Project Safety

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yaoling Fan

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In view of the real-time and distributed features of Internet of Things (IoT safety system in water conservancy engineering, this study proposed a new safety system architecture for water conservancy engineering based on cloud/fog computing and put forward a method of data reliability detection for the false alarm caused by false abnormal data from the bottom sensors. Designed for the South-North Water Transfer Project (SNWTP, the architecture integrated project safety, water quality safety, and human safety. Using IoT devices, fog computing layer was constructed between cloud server and safety detection devices in water conservancy projects. Technologies such as real-time sensing, intelligent processing, and information interconnection were developed. Therefore, accurate forecasting, accurate positioning, and efficient management were implemented as required by safety prevention of the SNWTP, and safety protection of water conservancy projects was effectively improved, and intelligential water conservancy engineering was developed.

Conservation of Life as a Unifying Theme for Process Safety in Chemical Engineering Education

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, James A.; Davis, Richard A.

2011-01-01

This paper explores the use of "conservation of life" as a concept and unifying theme for increasing awareness, application, and integration of process safety in chemical engineering education. Students need to think of conservation of mass, conservation of energy, and conservation of life as equally important in engineering design and analysis.…

Adequate engineering for lowering the frequency of initiating events at Siemens/KWU

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gremm, O.

1988-01-01

The analysis of TMI and Chernobyl events shows weak points and deficits in the field of preventive safety features. This should not be forgotten during the ongoing discussion on severe accidents. Therefore the paper explains special preventive safety features which were the results of the development of Siemens/KWU reactor technology. With respect to the present discussion on new reactor concepts special attention is given to the inherent and passive safety features and the engineering which results in low core melt frequency. Such an analysis leads to knowledge modules which are based on experience during licensing procedures and plant operation and should be the starting points for reactor technology of the future

Operational safety at the FFTF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baird, Q.L.; Hagan, J.W.; Seeman, S.E.; Baker, S.M.

1981-02-01

An extensive operational nuclear safety program has been an integral part of the design, startup, and initial operating phases of the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF). During the design and construction of the facility, a program of independent safety overviews and analyses assured the provision of responsible safety margins within the plant, protective systems, and engineered safety features for protection of the public, operating staff, and the facility. The program is continuing through surveillance of operations to verify continued adherence to the established operating envelope and for timely identification of any trends potentially adverse to those margins. Experience from operation of FFTF is being utilized in the development of enhanced operational nuclear safety aids for application in follow-on breeder reactor power systems. The commendable plant and personnel safety experiences of FFTF through its startup and ascension to full power demonstrate the overall effectiveness of the FFTF operational nuclear safety program

More safety for emergency diesel engines for the Belgium nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laire, Ch.; Scauflaire, O.; D'ans, G.; Moland, G. de; Bresseleers, J.

2002-01-01

Each nuclear plant in Belgium is equipped with a series of ultimate power supply (UPS) units, also called emergency power units. These consist of generators driven by multi-cylinder (typically 18) diesel engines, which are marine derivatives. Unlike marine applications, the steady-state load does not produce pulsating torques. However, these diesel engines are designed to start upon short notice following a blackout and reach full power within a few seconds to guarantee the availability or all safety valves and ventilators. Such sharp and quasi-cold starts, periodically performed to guarantee the UPS availability, may spell utter failures of the crank shaft, as demonstrated by a fatigue failure observed on the fillets connecting the crank pin to the web faces. The fillet cracks initiate in bending mode and then progress in torsion mode to excessive transient torques arising in the power train during successive starts. Aware of the potential risk and conforming to the Belgian nuclear safety rules, the plant operator of Doel sponsored the development of a nondestructive technique enabling the inspection of each fillet for cracks without first removing each piston rod from its crank pin. As a result, Laborelec developed a specific eddy-current probe which avoids fully dismantling the engine, as is done during ten-yearly overhauls with dye-checks for cracks. Inspecting crank shaft fillet integrity with this least obtrusive technique requires 24 hours per engine. It can thus be performed more frequently to prevent total crank shaft failures in time and monitor the engine fatigue caused following the mandatory monthly start-up tests. This promising technique may also find marine applications. Measuring the transient torque arising between the engine and the generator showed that this reached very high values shortly after starting the engine and injecting fuel at full throttle to reach full power within seconds. The pulsating torque of the 18-cylinders engine occurring 9

Engineering nanomaterials-based biosensors for food safety detection.

Science.gov (United States)

Lv, Man; Liu, Yang; Geng, Jinhui; Kou, Xiaohong; Xin, Zhihong; Yang, Dayong

2018-05-30

Food safety always remains a grand global challenge to human health, especially in developing countries. To solve food safety pertained problems, numerous strategies have been developed to detect biological and chemical contaminants in food. Among these approaches, nanomaterials-based biosensors provide opportunity to realize rapid, sensitive, efficient and portable detection, overcoming the restrictions and limitations of traditional methods such as complicated sample pretreatment, long detection time, and relying on expensive instruments and well-trained personnel. In this review article, we provide a cross-disciplinary perspective to review the progress of nanomaterials-based biosensors for the detection of food contaminants. The review article is organized by the category of food contaminants including pathogens/toxins, heavy metals, pesticides, veterinary drugs and illegal additives. In each category of food contaminant, the biosensing strategies are summarized including optical, colorimetric, fluorescent, electrochemical, and immune- biosensors; the relevant analytes, nanomaterials and biosensors are analyzed comprehensively. Future perspectives and challenges are also discussed briefly. We envision that our review could bridge the gap between the fields of food science and nanotechnology, providing implications for the scientists or engineers in both areas to collaborate and promote the development of nanomaterials-based biosensors for food safety detection. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Fundamentals of automotive and engine technology standard drives, hybrid drives, brakes, safety systems

CERN Document Server

2014-01-01

Hybrid drives and the operation of hybrid vehicles are characteristic of contemporary automotive technology. Together with the electronic driver assistant systems, hybrid technology is of the greatest importance and both cannot be ignored by today’s car drivers. This technical reference book provides the reader with a firsthand comprehensive description of significant components of automotive technology. All texts are complemented by numerous detailed illustrations. Contents History of the automobile.- History of the Diesel engine.- Areas of use for Diesel engines.- Basic principles of the Diesel engine.- Basic principles of Diesel fuel-injection.- Basic principles of the gasoline engine.- Inductive ignition system.- Transmissions for motor vehicles.- Motor vehicle safety.- Basic principles of vehicle dynamics.- Car braking systems.- Vehicle electrical systems.- Overview of electrical and electronic systems in the vehicle.- Control of gasoline engines.- Control of Diesel engines.- Lighting technology.- Elec...

Study of In-Pile test facility for fast reactor safety research: performance requirements and design features

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nonaka, N.; Kawatta, N.; Niwa, H.; Kondo, S.; Maeda, K

1996-12-31

This paper describes a program and the main design features of a new in-pile safety facility SERAPH planned for future fast reactor safety research. The current status of R and D on technical developments in relation to the research objectives and performance requirements to the facility design is given.

EC6 design features and pre-project licensing review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, S.; Lee, A.G.; Dinh, N.B.; Soulard, M. [CANDU Energy Inc., Mississauga, Ontario, (Canada)

2013-07-01

The Enhanced CANDU 6 (EC6) is the new Generation III CANDU reactor design that meets the most up to date Canadian regulatory requirements and customer expectations. Candu Energy Inc. is finalizing development of the EC6 which incorporates the CANDU 6's well-proven features, and adds enhancements that strengthened reactor safety margin and improved operability. The EC6 builds on the proven high performance design and the defence-in-depth features of CANDU 6 units, and has incorporated extensive operational feedback including lessons learned from Fukushima. This paper will provide status of the engineering program including progress on the pre-licensing review of the EC6 design by the Canadian Regulator, CNSC, and will also highlight the design and safety enhancements incorporated in the EC6 product. Safety enhancements to meet safety goals and to improve robustness of systems to respond to design basis accidents and beyond design basis accidents include: new severe accident recovery and heat removal system; improved emergency heat removal system; faster shutoff rods with improved safety margins; mechanical guaranteed shutdown rods; daily load cycling capability; robust containment with containment filter venting system; and improved backed-up electrical supply and cooling services. (author)

The reactor safety study of experimental multi-purpose VHTR design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yasuno, T.; Mitake, S.; Ezaki, M.; Suzuki, K.

1981-01-01

Over the past years, the design works of the Experimental Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) plant have been conducted at Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. The conceptual design has been completed and the more detailed design works and the safety analysis of the experimental VHTR plant are continued. The purposes of design studies are to show the feasibility of the experimental VHTR program, to specify the characteristics and functions of the plant components, to point out the R and D items necessary for the experimental VHTR plant construction, and to analyze the feature of the plant safety. In this paper the summary of system design and safety features of the experimental reactor are indicated. Main issues are the safety philosophy for the design basis accident, the accidents assumed and the engineered safety systems adopted in the design works

Integrating RAMS engineering and management with the safety life cycle of IEC 61508

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lundteigen, Mary Ann; Rausand, Marvin; Utne, Ingrid Bouwer

2009-01-01

This article outlines a new approach to reliability, availability, maintainability, and safety (RAMS) engineering and management. The new approach covers all phases of the new product development process and is aimed at producers of complex products like safety instrumented systems (SIS). The article discusses main RAMS requirements to a SIS and presents these requirements in a holistic perspective. The approach is based on a new life cycle model for product development and integrates this model into the safety life cycle of IEC 61508. A high integrity pressure protection system (HIPPS) for an offshore oil and gas application is used to illustrate the approach.

Safety of mechanical devices. Safety of automation systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pahl, G.; Schweizer, G.; Kapp, K.

1985-01-01

The paper deals with the classic procedures of safety engineering in the sectors mechanical engineering, electrical and energy engineering, construction and transport, medicine technology and process technology. Particular stress is laid on the safety of automation systems, control technology, protection of mechanical devices, reactor safety, mechanical constructions, transport systems, railway signalling devices, road traffic and protection at work in chemical plans. (DG) [de

Ethical issues in engineering design processes ; regulative frameworks for safety and sustainability

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Gorp, A. van

2007-01-01

The ways designers deal with ethical issues that arise in their consideration of safety and sustainability in engineering design processes are described. In the case studies, upon which this article is based, a difference can be seen between normal and radical design. Designers refer to regulative

The Development, Content, Design, and Conduct of the 2011 Piloted US DOE Nuclear Criticality Safety Program Criticality Safety Engineering Training and Education Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hopper, Calvin Mitchell

2011-01-01

In May 1973 the University of New Mexico conducted the first nationwide criticality safety training and education week-long short course for nuclear criticality safety engineers. Subsequent to that course, the Los Alamos Critical Experiments Facility (LACEF) developed very successful 'hands-on' subcritical and critical training programs for operators, supervisors, and engineering staff. Since the inception of the US Department of Energy (DOE) Nuclear Criticality Technology and Safety Project (NCT and SP) in 1983, the DOE has stimulated contractor facilities and laboratories to collaborate in the furthering of nuclear criticality as a discipline. That effort included the education and training of nuclear criticality safety engineers (NCSEs). In 1985 a textbook was written that established a path toward formalizing education and training for NCSEs. Though the NCT and SP went through a brief hiatus from 1990 to 1992, other DOE-supported programs were evolving to the benefit of NCSE training and education. In 1993 the DOE established a Nuclear Criticality Safety Program (NCSP) and undertook a comprehensive development effort to expand the extant LACEF 'hands-on' course specifically for the education and training of NCSEs. That successful education and training was interrupted in 2006 for the closing of the LACEF and the accompanying movement of materials and critical experiment machines to the Nevada Test Site. Prior to that closing, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) was commissioned by the US DOE NCSP to establish an independent hands-on NCSE subcritical education and training course. The course provided an interim transition for the establishment of a reinvigorated and expanded two-week NCSE education and training program in 2011. The 2011 piloted two-week course was coordinated by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and jointly conducted by the Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) classroom education and facility training, the Sandia National

Specific features of medicines safety and pharmacovigilance in Africa

Science.gov (United States)

Pal, Shanthi N.; Olsson, Sten; Dodoo, Alexander; Bencheikh, Rachida Soulayami

2012-01-01

The thalidomide tragedy in the late 1950s and early 1960s served as a wakeup call and raised questions about the safety of medicinal products. The developed countries rose to the challenge putting in place systems to ensure the safety of medicines. However, this was not the case for low-resource settings because of prevailing factors inherent in them. This paper reviews some of these features and the current status of pharmacovigilance in Africa. The health systems in most of the 54 countries of Africa are essentially weak, lacking in basic infrastructure, personnel, equipment and facilities. The recent mass deployment of medicines to address diseases of public health significance in Africa poses additional challenges to the health system with notable safety concerns. Other safety issues of note include substandard and counterfeit medicines, medication errors and quality of medicinal products. The first national pharmacovigilance centres established in Africa with membership of the World Health Organization (WHO) international drug monitoring programme were in Morocco and South Africa in 1992. Of the 104 full member countries in the programme, there are now 24 African countries with a further nine countries as associate members. The pharmacovigilance systems operational in African countries are based essentially on spontaneous reporting facilitated by the introduction of the new tool Vigiflow. The individual case safety reports committed to the WHO global database (Vigibase) attest to the growth of pharmacovigilance in Africa with the number of reports rising from 2695 in 2000 to over 25,000 in 2010. There is need to engage the various identified challenges of the weak pharmacovigilance systems in the African setting and to focus efforts on how to provide resources, infrastructure and expertise. Raising the level of awareness among healthcare providers, developing training curricula for healthcare professionals, provisions for paediatric and geriatric

Identification of features of electronic prescribing systems to support quality and safety in primary care using a modified Delphi process.

Science.gov (United States)

Sweidan, Michelle; Williamson, Margaret; Reeve, James F; Harvey, Ken; O'Neill, Jennifer A; Schattner, Peter; Snowdon, Teri

2010-04-15

Electronic prescribing is increasingly being used in primary care and in hospitals. Studies on the effects of e-prescribing systems have found evidence for both benefit and harm. The aim of this study was to identify features of e-prescribing software systems that support patient safety and quality of care and that are useful to the clinician and the patient, with a focus on improving the quality use of medicines. Software features were identified by a literature review, key informants and an expert group. A modified Delphi process was used with a 12-member multidisciplinary expert group to reach consensus on the expected impact of the features in four domains: patient safety, quality of care, usefulness to the clinician and usefulness to the patient. The setting was electronic prescribing in general practice in Australia. A list of 114 software features was developed. Most of the features relate to the recording and use of patient data, the medication selection process, prescribing decision support, monitoring drug therapy and clinical reports. The expert group rated 78 of the features (68%) as likely to have a high positive impact in at least one domain, 36 features (32%) as medium impact, and none as low or negative impact. Twenty seven features were rated as high positive impact across 3 or 4 domains including patient safety and quality of care. Ten features were considered "aspirational" because of a lack of agreed standards and/or suitable knowledge bases. This study defines features of e-prescribing software systems that are expected to support safety and quality, especially in relation to prescribing and use of medicines in general practice. The features could be used to develop software standards, and could be adapted if necessary for use in other settings and countries.

Safety studies on Korean fusion DEMO plant using integrated safety assessment methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oh, Kyemin; Kang, Myoung-suk; Heo, Gyunyoung; Kim, Hyoung-chan

2014-01-01

Highlights: •The purpose of this paper is to suggest methodology that can investigate safety issues and provides a case study for Korean fusion DEMO plant. •The concepts of integrated safety assessment methodology (ISAM) that can be applied in addressing regulatory requirements and recognizing safety issues for K-DEMO were emphasized. •Phenomena identification and ranking table (PIRT) was proposed. It can recognize vulnerabilities of systems and identify the gaps in technical areas requiring additional researches. •This work is expected to contribute on the conceptual design of safety features for K-DEMO to design engineers and the guidance for regulatory requirements to licensers. -- Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to suggest methodology that can investigate safety issues and provides a case study for Korean fusion DEMO plant (K-DEMO) as a part of R and D program through the National Fusion Research Institute of Korea. Even though nuclear regulation and licensing framework is well setup due to the operating and design experience of Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs) since 1970s, the regulatory authority of South Korea has concerns on the challenge of facing new nuclear facilities including K-DEMO due to the differences in systems, materials, and inherent safety feature from conventional PWRs. Even though the follow-up of the ITER license process facilitates to deal with significant safety issues of fusion facilities, a licensee as well as a licenser should identify the gaps between ITER and DEMO in terms of safety issues. First we reviewed the methods of conducting safety analysis for unprecedented nuclear facilities such as Generation IV reactors, particularly very high temperature reactor (VHTR), which is called as integrated safety assessment methodology (ISAM). Second, the analysis for the conceptual design of K-DEMO on the basis of ISAM was conducted. The ISAM consists of five analytical tools to develop the safety requirements from licensee

Safety studies on Korean fusion DEMO plant using integrated safety assessment methodology

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oh, Kyemin; Kang, Myoung-suk [Kyung Hee University, Youngin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-701 (Korea, Republic of); Heo, Gyunyoung, E-mail: gheo@khu.ac.kr [Kyung Hee University, Youngin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-701 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Hyoung-chan [National Fusion Research Institute, Daejeon-si 305-333 (Korea, Republic of)

2014-10-15

Highlights: •The purpose of this paper is to suggest methodology that can investigate safety issues and provides a case study for Korean fusion DEMO plant. •The concepts of integrated safety assessment methodology (ISAM) that can be applied in addressing regulatory requirements and recognizing safety issues for K-DEMO were emphasized. •Phenomena identification and ranking table (PIRT) was proposed. It can recognize vulnerabilities of systems and identify the gaps in technical areas requiring additional researches. •This work is expected to contribute on the conceptual design of safety features for K-DEMO to design engineers and the guidance for regulatory requirements to licensers. -- Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to suggest methodology that can investigate safety issues and provides a case study for Korean fusion DEMO plant (K-DEMO) as a part of R and D program through the National Fusion Research Institute of Korea. Even though nuclear regulation and licensing framework is well setup due to the operating and design experience of Pressurized Water Reactors (PWRs) since 1970s, the regulatory authority of South Korea has concerns on the challenge of facing new nuclear facilities including K-DEMO due to the differences in systems, materials, and inherent safety feature from conventional PWRs. Even though the follow-up of the ITER license process facilitates to deal with significant safety issues of fusion facilities, a licensee as well as a licenser should identify the gaps between ITER and DEMO in terms of safety issues. First we reviewed the methods of conducting safety analysis for unprecedented nuclear facilities such as Generation IV reactors, particularly very high temperature reactor (VHTR), which is called as integrated safety assessment methodology (ISAM). Second, the analysis for the conceptual design of K-DEMO on the basis of ISAM was conducted. The ISAM consists of five analytical tools to develop the safety requirements from licensee

Quantifying the Metrics That Characterize Safety Culture of Three Engineered Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tucker, Julie; Ernesti, Mary; Tokuhiro, Akira

2002-01-01

With potential energy shortages and increasing electricity demand, the nuclear energy option is being reconsidered in the United States. Public opinion will have a considerable voice in policy decisions that will 'road-map' the future of nuclear energy in this country. This report is an extension of the last author's work on the 'safety culture' associated with three engineered systems (automobiles, commercial airplanes, and nuclear power plants) in Japan and the United States. Safety culture, in brief is defined as a specifically developed culture based on societal and individual interpretations of the balance of real, perceived, and imagined risks versus the benefits drawn from utilizing a given engineered systems. The method of analysis is a modified scale analysis, with two fundamental Eigen-metrics, time- (t) and number-scales (N) that describe both engineered systems and human factors. The scale analysis approach is appropriate because human perception of risk, perception of benefit and level of (technological) acceptance are inherently subjective, therefore 'fuzzy' and rarely quantifiable in exact magnitude. Perception of risk, expressed in terms of the psychometric factors 'dread risk' and 'unknown risk', contains both time- and number-scale elements. Various engineering system accidents with fatalities, reported by mass media are characterized by t and N, and are presented in this work using the scale analysis method. We contend that level of acceptance infers a perception of benefit at least two orders larger magnitude than perception of risk. The 'amplification' influence of mass media is also deduced as being 100- to 1000-fold the actual number of fatalities/serious injuries in a nuclear-related accident. (authors)

Application of system safety engineering techniques for hazard prevention at the Superconducting Super Collider

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hendrix, B.L.

1991-01-01

A primary goal of the Superconducting Super Collider Laboratory (SSCL) is to establish an exemplary safety program. Achieving this goal requires leadership, planning, coordination, and technical know-how. To ensure that safety is an inherent part of the design, the Environment, Safety and Health Office employs a systems engineering discipline and process known as System Safety. The goal of System Safety - hazard prevention - is accomplished by analyzing systems to identify hazards and to evaluate design and procedural options and countermeasures to prevent, eliminate, mitigate, or control hazards and risks. Establishment of safety and human factors design criteria at the outset of the project prevents unsafe designs and safety violations, reduces risks, and helps in avoiding costly design changes later. This process requires a considerable amount of coordination with a variety of technical disciplines and safety professionals to integrate methods of hazard prevention, mitigation, and risk reduction throughout the system life-cycle

Engineered barrier systems (EBS) in the context of the entire safety case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2003-01-01

A joint NEA-EC workshop entitled 'Engineered Barrier Systems (EBS) in the Context of the Entire Safety Case' was organised in Oxford on 25-27 September 2002 and hosted by United Kingdom Nirex Limited. The main objectives of the workshop were to provide a status report on engineered barrier systems in various national radioactive waste management programmes considering deep geological disposal; to establish the value to member countries of a project on EBS; and to define such a project's scope, timetable and modus operandi. This report presents the outcomes of this workshop. (author)

Engineered Barrier Systems (EBS) in the Context of the Entire Safety Case

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

A joint NEA-EC workshop entitled ''Engineered Barrier Systems (EBS) in the Context of the Entire Safety Case'' was organised in Oxford on 25-27 September 2002 and hosted by United Kingdom Nirex Limited. The main objectives of the workshop were to provide a status report on engineered barrier systems in various national radioactive waste management programmes considering deep geological disposal; to establish the value to member countries of a project on EBS; and to define such a project scope, timetable and modus operandi. This report presents the outcomes of this workshop. (author)

Application of software engineering to development of reactor safety codes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilburn, N.P.; Niccoli, L.G.

1981-01-01

Software Engineering, which is a systematic methodology by which a large scale software development project is partitioned into manageable pieces, has been applied to the development of LMFBR safety codes. The techniques have been applied extensively in the business and aerospace communities and have provided an answer to the drastically increasing cost of developing and maintaining software. The five phases of software engineering (Survey, Analysis, Design, Implementation, and Testing) were applied in turn to development of these codes, along with Walkthroughs (peer review) at each stage. The application of these techniques has resulted in SUPERIOR SOFTWARE which is well documented, thoroughly tested, easy to modify, easier to use and maintain. The development projects have resulted in lower overall cost. (orig.) [de

The arrangement of deformation monitoring project and analysis of monitoring data of a hydropower engineering safety monitoring system

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Wanshun; Chen, Zhuo; Li, Xiuwen

2018-03-01

The safety monitoring is very important in the operation and management of water resources and hydropower projects. It is the important means to understand the dam running status, to ensure the dam safety, to safeguard people’s life and property security, and to make full use of engineering benefits. This paper introduces the arrangement of engineering safety monitoring system based on the example of a water resource control project. The monitoring results of each monitoring project are analyzed intensively to show the operating status of the monitoring system and to provide useful reference for similar projects.

Assessment of shaft safety and management system of controlling engineering information

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu Rui-xin; Xu Yan-chun [Yanzhou Mining Group Ltd., Zoucheng (China)

2008-02-15

Evaluating shaft safety and establishing a system for controlling engineering information is very important because more than 90 shafts in thick alluvial areas suddenly have shaft wall fracturing or breaking problems and there are more than a few hundred shafts of similar geologic conditions. Taking shaft control in the Yangzhou Coal Mining Group as an example, an assessment and management system and related software were established. This system includes basic information of the mine, measurement results and analysis, and functions of empirical and theoretical forecasting and finite element analysis, which are confirmed to be very effective for guiding shaft well control engineering in practice. 8 refs., 3 figs., 2 tabs.

Safety considerations in the design of the fusion engineering device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrett, R.J.

1983-01-01

Safety considerations play a significant role in the design of a near-term Fusion Engineering Device (FED). For the safety of the general public and the plant workers, the radiation environment caused by the reacting plasma and the potential release of tritium fuel are the dominant considerations. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) regulations and guidelines for radiation protection have been reviewed and are being applied to the device design. Direct radiation protection is provided by the device shield and the reactor building walls. Radiation from the activated device components and the tritium fuel is to be controlled with shielding, contamination control, and ventilation. The potential release of tritium from the plant has influenced the selection of reactor building and plant designs and specifications. The safety of the plant workers is affected primarily by the radiation from the activated device components and from plasma chamber debris. The highly activated device components make it necessary to design many of the maintenance activities in the reactor building for totally remote operation. The hot cell facility has evolved as a totally remote maintenance facility due to the high radiation levels of the device components. Safety considerations have had substantial impacts on the design of FED. Several examples of safety-related design impacts are discussed in the paper. Feasible solutions have been identified for all outstanding safety-related items, and additional optimization of these solutions is anticipated in future design studies

Appraisal of the PREP, KITT, and SAMPLE computer codes for the evaluation of the reliability characteristics of engineered systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, P; White, R F

1976-01-01

For the probabilistic approach to reactor safety assessment by the use of event tree and fault tree techniques it is essential to be able to estimate the probabilities of failure of the various engineered safety features provided to mitigate the effects of postulated accident sequences. The PREP, KITT and SAMPLE computer codes, which incorporate Kinetic Tree Theory, perform these calculations and have been used extensively to evaluate the reliability characteristics of engineered safety features of American nuclear reactors. Working versions of these computer codes are now available in SRD, and this report explains the merits, capabilities and ease of application of the PREP, KITT, and SAMPLE programs for the solution of system reliability problems.

Resilience Engineering in Critical Long Term Aerospace Software Systems: A New Approach to Spacecraft Software Safety

Science.gov (United States)

Dulo, D. A.

Safety critical software systems permeate spacecraft, and in a long term venture like a starship would be pervasive in every system of the spacecraft. Yet software failure today continues to plague both the systems and the organizations that develop them resulting in the loss of life, time, money, and valuable system platforms. A starship cannot afford this type of software failure in long journeys away from home. A single software failure could have catastrophic results for the spaceship and the crew onboard. This paper will offer a new approach to developing safe reliable software systems through focusing not on the traditional safety/reliability engineering paradigms but rather by focusing on a new paradigm: Resilience and Failure Obviation Engineering. The foremost objective of this approach is the obviation of failure, coupled with the ability of a software system to prevent or adapt to complex changing conditions in real time as a safety valve should failure occur to ensure safe system continuity. Through this approach, safety is ensured through foresight to anticipate failure and to adapt to risk in real time before failure occurs. In a starship, this type of software engineering is vital. Through software developed in a resilient manner, a starship would have reduced or eliminated software failure, and would have the ability to rapidly adapt should a software system become unstable or unsafe. As a result, long term software safety, reliability, and resilience would be present for a successful long term starship mission.

Recent Experiences of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) GN and C Technical Discipline Team (TDT)

Science.gov (United States)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.

2010-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC), initially formed in 2003, is an independently funded NASA Program whose dedicated team of technical experts provides objective engineering and safety assessments of critical, high risk projects. The GN&C Technical Discipline Team (TDT) is one of fifteen such discipline-focused teams within the NESC organization. The TDT membership is composed of GN&C specialists from across NASA and its partner organizations in other government agencies, industry, national laboratories, and universities. This paper will briefly define the vision, mission, and purpose of the NESC organization. The role of the GN&C TDT will then be described in detail along with an overview of how this team operates and engages in its objective engineering and safety assessments of critical NASA projects. This paper will then describe selected recent experiences, over the period 2007 to present, of the GN&C TDT in which they directly performed or supported a wide variety of NESC assessments and consultations.

Safety Aspects of Sustainable Storage Dams and Earthquake Safety of Existing Dams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Martin Wieland

2016-09-01

Full Text Available The basic element in any sustainable dam project is safety, which includes the following safety elements: ① structural safety, ② dam safety monitoring, ③ operational safety and maintenance, and ④ emergency planning. Long-term safety primarily includes the analysis of all hazards affecting the project; that is, hazards from the natural environment, hazards from the man-made environment, and project-specific and site-specific hazards. The special features of the seismic safety of dams are discussed. Large dams were the first structures to be systematically designed against earthquakes, starting in the 1930s. However, the seismic safety of older dams is unknown, as most were designed using seismic design criteria and methods of dynamic analysis that are considered obsolete today. Therefore, we need to reevaluate the seismic safety of existing dams based on current state-of-the-art practices and rehabilitate deficient dams. For large dams, a site-specific seismic hazard analysis is usually recommended. Today, large dams and the safety-relevant elements used for controlling the reservoir after a strong earthquake must be able to withstand the ground motions of a safety evaluation earthquake. The ground motion parameters can be determined either by a probabilistic or a deterministic seismic hazard analysis. During strong earthquakes, inelastic deformations may occur in a dam; therefore, the seismic analysis has to be carried out in the time domain. Furthermore, earthquakes create multiple seismic hazards for dams such as ground shaking, fault movements, mass movements, and others. The ground motions needed by the dam engineer are not real earthquake ground motions but models of the ground motion, which allow the safe design of dams. It must also be kept in mind that dam safety evaluations must be carried out several times during the long life of large storage dams. These features are discussed in this paper.

Development and application of digital safety system in NPPs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwon, Keechoon; Kim, Changhwoi; Lee, Dongyoung

2012-01-01

This paper describes the development of digital safety system in NPPs based on safety- grade programmable logic controller (PLC) platform and its application to real NPP construction. The digital safety system consists of a reactor protection system and an engineered safety feature-component control system. The safety-grade PLC platform was developed so that it meets the requirements of the regulation. The PLC consists of various modules such as a power module, a processor module, communication modules, digital input/output modules, analog input/output modules, a LOCA bus extension module, and a high-speed pulse counter module. The reactor protection system is designed with a redundant 4-channel architecture, and every channel is implemented with the same architecture. A single channel consists of a redundant bi-stable processor, a redundant coincidence processor, an automatic test and interface processor, and a cabinet operator module. The engineered safety feature-component control system is designed with four redundant divisions, and implemented with the PLC platform. The principal components of an individual division are fault tolerant group controllers, loop controllers, a test and interface processor, a cabinet operator module and a control channel gateway. The topical report is submitted to the regulatory body, and got safety evaluation report from the regulatory body. Also, the developed system is tested in the integrated performance validation facility. It is decided that the digital safety system applied to Shin-Uljin unit 1 and 2 after a topical report approval and validation test. Design changes occur in the digital safety system that is applied to an actual nuclear power plant construction, and the PLC has also been upgraded

Development and application of digital safety system in NPPs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kwon, Keechoon; Kim, Changhwoi; Lee, Dongyoung [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2012-03-15

This paper describes the development of digital safety system in NPPs based on safety- grade programmable logic controller (PLC) platform and its application to real NPP construction. The digital safety system consists of a reactor protection system and an engineered safety feature-component control system. The safety-grade PLC platform was developed so that it meets the requirements of the regulation. The PLC consists of various modules such as a power module, a processor module, communication modules, digital input/output modules, analog input/output modules, a LOCA bus extension module, and a high-speed pulse counter module. The reactor protection system is designed with a redundant 4-channel architecture, and every channel is implemented with the same architecture. A single channel consists of a redundant bi-stable processor, a redundant coincidence processor, an automatic test and interface processor, and a cabinet operator module. The engineered safety feature-component control system is designed with four redundant divisions, and implemented with the PLC platform. The principal components of an individual division are fault tolerant group controllers, loop controllers, a test and interface processor, a cabinet operator module and a control channel gateway. The topical report is submitted to the regulatory body, and got safety evaluation report from the regulatory body. Also, the developed system is tested in the integrated performance validation facility. It is decided that the digital safety system applied to Shin-Uljin unit 1 and 2 after a topical report approval and validation test. Design changes occur in the digital safety system that is applied to an actual nuclear power plant construction, and the PLC has also been upgraded.

Passive safety features for next generation CANDU power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Natalizio, A.; Hart, R.S.; Lipsett, J.J.; Soedijono, P.; Dick, J.E.

1989-01-01

CANDU offers an evolutionary approach to simpler and safer reactors. The CANDU 3, an advanced CANDU, currently in the detailed design stage, offers significant improvements in the areas of safety, design simplicity, constructibility, operability, maintainability, schedule and cost. These are being accomplished by retaining all of the well known CANDU benefits, and by relying on the use of proven components and technologies. A major safety benefit of CANDU is the moderator system which is separate from the coolant. The presence of a cold moderator reduces the consequences arising from a LOCA or loss of heat sink event. In existing CANDU plants even the severe accident - LOCA with failure of the emergency core cooling system - is a design basis event. Further advances toward a simpler and more passively safe reactor will be made using the same evolutionary approach. Building on the strength of the moderator system to mitigate against severe accidents, a passive moderator cooling system, depending only on the law of gravity to perform its function, will be the next step of development. AECL is currently investigating a number of other features that could be incorporated in future evolutionary CANDU designs to enhance protection against accidents, and to limit off-site consequences to an acceptable level, for even the worst event. The additional features being investigated include passive decay heat removal from the heat transport system, a simpler emergency core cooling system and a containment pressure suppression/venting capability for beyond design basis events. Central to these passive decay heat removal schemes is the availability of a short-term heat sink to provide a decay heat removal capability of at least three days, without any station services. Preliminary results from these investigations confirm the feasibility of these schemes. (author)

Application and problems of probability methods in technical safety assessment in the field of nuclear engineering and other technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heuser, F.W.

1980-01-01

On the basis of a deterministic safety concept that has been developed in nuclear engineering, approaches for a probabilistic interpretation of existing safety requirements and for a further risk assessment are described. The procedures in technical reliability analysis and its application in nuclear engineering are discussed. By the example of a reliability analysis for a reactor protection system the author discusses the question as to what extent methods of reliability analysis can be used to interpret deterministically derived safety requirements. The the author gives a survey of the current value and application of probabilistic reliability assessments in non-nuclear technology. The last part of this report deals with methods of risk analysis and its use for safety assessment in nuclear engineering. On the basis of WASH 1,400 the most important phases and tasks of research work in risk assessment are explained, showing the basic criteria and the methods to be applied in risk analysis. (orig./HSCH) [de

Safety philosophy of gas turbine high temperature reactor (GTHTR300)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shoji Katanishi; Kazuhiko Kunitomi; Shusaku Shiozawa

2002-01-01

Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) has undertaken the study of an original design concept of gas turbine high temperature reactor, the GTHTR300. The general concept of this study is development of a greatly simplified design that leads to substantially reduced technical and cost requirements. Newly proposed design features enable the GTHTR300 to be an efficient and economically competitive reactor in 2010's. Also, the GTHTR300 fully takes advantage of its inherent safety characteristics. The safety philosophy of the GTHTR300 is developed based on the HTTR (High Temperature Engineering Test Reactor) of JAERI which is the first HTGR in Japan. Major features of the newly proposed safety philosophy for the GTHTR300 are described in this article. (authors)

Safety margin improvement by adopting the feature of interleaving in 700 MWe PHWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Nrependra; Yadav, S.K.; Khan, T.A.; Dixit, A.; Singhal, Mukesh; Nair, Suma R.

2015-01-01

Indian Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (IPHWRs) of 700 MWe are under construction at Kakrapar Atomic Power Project -3,4 and Rajasthan Atomic Power Project-7,8. These units have enhanced safety features with respect to standard IPHWRs. One of the enhanced features is interleaving of feeders/channels. In interleaved feeder configuration, each header located at either end of reactor gets connected to one quarter of core channels, which are uniformly distributed. The core is divided into two loops with feeder connected in interleaved fashioned. In this paper a comparative study has been performed between the two cases: 1) The core splits in two vertical halves and each vertical half is a loop of PHT (TAPS-3 and 4 Type configuration). 2) The core is divided into two loops with feeders/ channels connected in interleaved fashioned (700 MWe Configuration). LOCA studies have been performed for 700 MWe PHWR considering interleaving of feeders configuration using in-house developed computer code ATMIKA and 3-D neutron kinetics code IQS-3D. The issue of interleaving is closely linked to an inherent reactivity characteristic of PHWR reactors (viz., positive void reactivity coefficient) which leads to a power increase following a Large LOCA. In 700 MWe PHWR with intent to improve the safety margin, adopted the feature of interleaving of feeders which causes in reduction in the magnitude of void coefficient and results in reduction of peak power during LBLOCA. The systematic LBLOCA study demonstrates that interleaved configuration of feeder/channels of two loops has higher safety margins (i.e. with respect to peak power, prompt-criticality margin, adiabatic heat deposition on the fuel pins, sheath temperature excursion and clad oxidation) with regard to the effectiveness of shutdown system. (author)

Safety risk assessment for vertical concrete formwork activities in civil engineering construction.

Science.gov (United States)

López-Arquillos, Antonio; Rubio-Romero, Juan Carlos; Gibb, Alistair G F; Gambatese, John A

2014-01-01

The construction sector has one of the worst occupational health and safety records in Europe. Of all construction tasks, formwork activities are associated with a high frequency of accidents and injuries. This paper presents an investigation of the activities and related safety risks present in vertical formwork for in-situ concrete construction in the civil engineering sector. Using the methodology of staticized groups, twelve activities and ten safety risks were identified and validated by experts. Every safety risk identified in this manner was quantified for each activity using binary methodology according to the frequency and severity scales developed in prior research. A panel of experts was selected according to the relevant literature on staticized groups. The results obtained show that the activities with the highest risk in vertical formwork tasks are: Plumbing and leveling of forms, cutting of material, handling materials with cranes, and climbing or descending ladders. The most dangerous health and safety risks detected were falls from height, cutting and overexertion. The research findings provide construction practitioners with further evidence of the hazardous activities associated with concrete formwork construction and a starting point for targeting worker health and safety programmes.

Safety culture of complex risky systems: the Nuclear Engineering Institute case study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Obadia, Isaac Jose; Vidal, Mario Cesar Rodriguez; Melo, Paulo Fernando F. Frutuoso e

2002-01-01

Analysis of industrial accidents have demonstrated that safe and reliable operation of complex industrial processes that use risky technology and/or hazard material depends not only on technical factors but on human and organizational factors as well. After the Chernobyl nuclear accident in 1986, the International Atomic Energy Agency established the safety culture concept and started a safety culture enhancement program within nuclear organizations worldwide. The Nuclear Engineering Institute, IEN, is a research and technological development unit of the Brazilian Nuclear Energy Commission, CNEN, characterized as a nuclear and radioactive installation where processes presenting risks to operators and to the environment are executed. In 1999, IEN started a management change program, aiming to achieve excellence of performance, based on the Model of Excellence of the National Quality Award. IEN's safety culture project is based on IAEA methodology and has been incorporated to the organizational management process. This work presents IEN's safety culture project; the results obtained on the initial safety culture assessment and the following project actions. (author)

Design features of APWR in Japan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, H.; Aeba, Y.; Weiss, E.H.

1999-01-01

Development of the Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor (APWR) was executed in the Improvement and Standardization Program which was organized by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry, Japanese utilities (Hokkaido, Kansai, Shikoku, Kyushu Electric Power Companies and the Japan Atomic Power Company) and manufacturers (Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Westinghouse Electric). Improvements in terms of safety, reliability, operability, maintainability and economy have been incorporated based on comprehensive evaluations of both the advanced technologies available today, and the experience associated with construction and operation of current PWR plants. The main design improvement features applied in APWR include a core design that contributes to effective use of uranium resource, safety enhancement in the engineered safeguard system, and reliability enhancement in the reactor internal structures. This paper briefly describes the main features of the APWR design focusing on the following two items: the radial reflector, which enhances reliability of the reactor internal structures as well as neutron economy in the core region; and an advanced accumulator, which enhances Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) reliability and contributes to system simplification due to passive low pressure injection function. (author)

The engineering project and reliability research of the safety interlock slow control system in BESIII

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Yinhong; Zhao Jingwei; Li Xiaonan; Xie Xiaoxi; Gao Cuishan; Bai Jingzhi; Chen Xihui; Min Jian; Nie Zhendong

2008-01-01

The new safety interlock slow control system of BESIII is designed to ensure that the BESIII interior equipments and the accelerator control center to work in coordination, and to guarantee the safety of the operating staff and all the important equipments at the same time. This paper introduces the hardware and software design of safety interlock system from the engineering requirements angle, including a detailed research on the software implementation technique of the state machine on PLC and the reliability of the system. (authors)

SWR 1000: an advanced boiling water reactor with passive safety features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brettschuh, W.

1999-01-01

The SWR 1000, an advanced BWR, is being developed by Siemens under contract from Germany's electric utilities and with the support of European partners. The project is currently in the basic design phase to be concluded in mid-1999 with the release of a site-independent safety report and costing analysis. The development goals for the project encompass competitive costs, use of passive safety systems to further reduce probabilities of occurrence of severe accidents, assured control of accidents so no emergency response actions for evacuation of the local population are needed, simplification of plant systems based on operator experience, and planning and design based on German codes, standards and specifications put forward by the Franco-German Reactor Safety Commission for future nuclear power plants equipped with PWRs, as well as IAEA specifications and the European Utility Requirements. These goals led to a plant concept with a low power density core, with large water inventories stored above the core inside the reactor pressure vessel, in the pressure suppression pool, and in other locations. All accident situations arising from power operation can be controlled by passive safety features without rise in core temperature and with a grace period of more than three days. In addition, postulated core melt is controlled by passive equipment. All new passive systems have been successfully tested for function and performance using large-scale components in experimental testing facilities at PSI in Switzerland and at the Juelich Research Centre in Germany. In addition to improvements of the safety systems, the plant's operating systems have been simplified based on operating experience. The design's safety concept, simplified operating systems and 48 months construction time yield favourable plant construction costs. The level of concept maturity required to begin offering the SWR 1000 on the power generation market is anticipated to be reached, as planned in the year

[Examination of safety improvement by failure record analysis that uses reliability engineering].

Science.gov (United States)

Kato, Kyoichi; Sato, Hisaya; Abe, Yoshihisa; Ishimori, Yoshiyuki; Hirano, Hiroshi; Higashimura, Kyoji; Amauchi, Hiroshi; Yanakita, Takashi; Kikuchi, Kei; Nakazawa, Yasuo

2010-08-20

How the maintenance checks of the medical treatment system, including start of work check and the ending check, was effective for preventive maintenance and the safety improvement was verified. In this research, date on the failure of devices in multiple facilities was collected, and the data of the trouble repair record was analyzed by the technique of reliability engineering. An analysis of data on the system (8 general systems, 6 Angio systems, 11 CT systems, 8 MRI systems, 8 RI systems, and the radiation therapy system 9) used in eight hospitals was performed. The data collection period assumed nine months from April to December 2008. Seven items were analyzed. (1) Mean time between failures (MTBF) (2) Mean time to repair (MTTR) (3) Mean down time (MDT) (4) Number found by check in morning (5) Failure generation time according to modality. The classification of the breakdowns per device, the incidence, and the tendency could be understood by introducing reliability engineering. Analysis, evaluation, and feedback on the failure generation history are useful to keep downtime to a minimum and to ensure safety.

Design and construction of safety devices utilizing methods of measurement and control engineering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Greiner, B; Weidlich, S

1982-08-01

This article considers a proposed concept for the design and construction of measurement and control devices for the safety of chemical plants with the aim of preventing danger to persons and the environment and damage. Such measurement and control devices are generally employed when primary measures adopted for plant safety, such as safety valves, collection vessels, etc. are not applicable or insufficient by themselves. The concept regards the new sheet no. 3 of the VDI/VDE code draft 2180 ''Safety of chemical engineering plant'' and proposes a further subdivision of class A into safety classes A0, A1, and A2. Overall, it is possible, on the basis of the measures for raising the availability of measurement and control equipment which are presented in this article, to make selection appropriate to the potential danger involved. The proposed procedure should not, however, be regarded as a rigid scheme but rather as leading to a systematic view and supporting decisions resting on sound operating experience.

ALWR safety approaches and trends. Implementation of passive safety features in the design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ignatiev, V

1995-11-01

Reactor vendors world-wide are examining various advanced light water reactors (ALWR) options to reach utility goals. The amount of information available about each design varies essentially depending on its maturity. Some advanced reactor designs are the evolutionary results of combining old structures, systems and components in new ways, others use innovative solutions. A summary review is given for better understanding of new ALWR design trends and approaches in different countries and subsequent R and D activities. An attempt was made to describe and assess specific innovative and passive features implemented in the leading ALWR designs for further plant design safety improvements. The advantages and disadvantages of these innovations in obtaining reliable systems have been considered. Also, this report indicates the importance of uncertainties remaining and identifies the additional work needed. 51 refs, 27 figs, 7 tabs.

ALWR safety approaches and trends. Implementation of passive safety features in the design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ignatiev, V.

1995-11-01

Reactor vendors world-wide are examining various advanced light water reactors (ALWR) options to reach utility goals. The amount of information available about each design varies essentially depending on its maturity. Some advanced reactor designs are the evolutionary results of combining old structures, systems and components in new ways, others use innovative solutions. A summary review is given for better understanding of new ALWR design trends and approaches in different countries and subsequent R and D activities. An attempt was made to describe and assess specific innovative and passive features implemented in the leading ALWR designs for further plant design safety improvements. The advantages and disadvantages of these innovations in obtaining reliable systems have been considered. Also, this report indicates the importance of uncertainties remaining and identifies the additional work needed. 51 refs, 27 figs, 7 tabs

Development of Risk Assessment Matrix for NASA Engineering and Safety Center

Science.gov (United States)

Malone, Roy W., Jr.; Moses, Kelly

2004-01-01

This paper describes a study, which had as its principal goal the development of a sufficiently detailed 5 x 5 Risk Matrix Scorecard. The purpose of this scorecard is to outline the criteria by which technical issues can be qualitatively and initially prioritized. The tool using this score card has been proposed to be one of the information resources the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) takes into consideration when making decisions with respect to incoming information on safety concerns across the entire NASA agency. The contents of this paper discuss in detail each element of the risk matrix scorecard, definitions for those elements and the rationale behind the development of those definitions. This scorecard development was performed in parallel with the tailoring of the existing Futron Corporation Integrated Risk Management Application (IRMA) software tool. IRMA was tailored to fit NESC needs for evaluating incoming safety concerns and was renamed NESC Assessment Risk Management Application (NAFMA) which is still in developmental phase.

Development of feature extraction analysis for a multi-functional optical profiling device applied to field engineering applications

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Xu; Xie, Guangping; Laflen, Brandon; Jia, Ming; Song, Guiju; Harding, Kevin G.

2015-05-01

In the real application environment of field engineering, a large variety of metrology tools are required by the technician to inspect part profile features. However, some of these tools are burdensome and only address a sole application or measurement. In other cases, standard tools lack the capability of accessing irregular profile features. Customers of field engineering want the next generation metrology devices to have the ability to replace the many current tools with one single device. This paper will describe a method based on the ring optical gage concept to the measurement of numerous kinds of profile features useful for the field technician. The ring optical system is composed of a collimated laser, a conical mirror and a CCD camera. To be useful for a wide range of applications, the ring optical system requires profile feature extraction algorithms and data manipulation directed toward real world applications in field operation. The paper will discuss such practical applications as measuring the non-ideal round hole with both off-centered and oblique axes. The algorithms needed to analyze other features such as measuring the width of gaps, radius of transition fillets, fall of step surfaces, and surface parallelism will also be discussed in this paper. With the assistance of image processing and geometric algorithms, these features can be extracted with a reasonable performance. Tailoring the feature extraction analysis to this specific gage offers the potential for a wider application base beyond simple inner diameter measurements. The paper will present experimental results that are compared with standard gages to prove the performance and feasibility of the analysis in real world field engineering. Potential accuracy improvement methods, a new dual ring design and future work will be discussed at the end of this paper.

Research and development on reduced-moderation light water reactor with passive safety features (Contract research)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iwamura, Takamichi; Okubo, Tsutomu; Akie, Hiroshi; Kugo, Teruhiko; Yonomoto, Taisuke; Kureta, Masatoshi; Ishikawa, Nobuyuki; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Araya, Fumimasa; Okajima, Shigeaki; Okumura, Keisuke; Suzuki, Motoe; Mineo, Hideaki; Nakatsuka, Toru

2004-06-01

The present report contains the achievement of 'Research and Development on Reduced-moderation Light Water Reactor with Passive Safety Features', which was performed by Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), Hitachi Ltd., Japan Atomic Power Company and Tokyo Institute of Technology in FY2000-2002 as the innovative and viable nuclear energy technology (IVNET) development project operated by the Institute of Applied Energy (IAE). In the present project, the reduced-moderation water reactor (RMWR) has been developed to ensure sustainable energy supply and to solve the recent problems of nuclear power and nuclear fuel cycle, such as economical competitiveness, effective use of plutonium and reduction of spent fuel storage. The RMWR can attain the favorable characteristics such as high burnup, long operation cycle, multiple recycling of plutonium (Pu) and effective utilization of uranium resources based on accumulated LWR technologies. Our development target is 'Reduced-moderation Light Water Reactor with Passive Safety Features' with innovative technologies to achieve above mentioned requirement. Electric power is selected as 300 MWe considering anticipated size required for future deployment. The reactor core consists of MOX fuel assemblies with tight lattice arrangement to increase the conversion ratio. Design targets of the core specification are conversion ratio more than unity, negative void reactivity feedback coefficient to assure safety, discharged burnup more than 60 GWd/t and operation cycle more than 2 years. As for the reactor system, a small size natural circulation BWR with passive safety systems is adopted to increase safety and reduce construction cost. The results obtained are as follows: As regards core design study, core design was performed to meet the goal. Sequence of startup operation was constructed for the RMWR. As the plant design, plant system was designed to achieve enhanced economy using passive safety system effectively. In

Development of a draft of human factors safety review procedures for the Korean Next Generation Reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Jung Woon; Moon, B. S.; Park, J. C.; Lee, Y. H.; Oh, I. S.; Lee, H. C.

2000-02-01

In this study, a draft of Human Factors Engineering (HFE) Safety Review Procedures (SRP) was developed for the safety review of KNGR based on HFE Safety and Regulatory Requirements and Guidelines (SRRG). This draft includes acceptance criteria, review procedure, and evaluation findings for the areas of review including HFE program management, human factors analyses, human factors design, and HFE verification and validation, based on section 15.1 'human factors engineering design process' and 15.2 'control room human factors engineering' of KNGR specific safety requirements and chapter 15 'human factors engineering' of KNGR safety regulatory guides. For the effective review, human factors concerns or issues related to advanced HSI design that have been reported so far should be extensively examined. In this study, a total of 384 human factors issues related to the advanced HSI design were collected through our review of a total of 145 documents. A summary of each issue was described and the issues were identified by specific features of HSI design. These results were implemented into a database system

Issues affecting advanced passive light-water reactor safety analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beelman, R.J.; Fletcher, C.D.; Modro, S.M.

1992-01-01

Next generation commercial reactor designs emphasize enhanced safety through improved safety system reliability and performance by means of system simplification and reliance on immutable natural forces for system operation. Simulating the performance of these safety systems will be central to analytical safety evaluation of advanced passive reactor designs. Yet the characteristically small driving forces of these safety systems pose challenging computational problems to current thermal-hydraulic systems analysis codes. Additionally, the safety systems generally interact closely with one another, requiring accurate, integrated simulation of the nuclear steam supply system, engineered safeguards and containment. Furthermore, numerical safety analysis of these advanced passive reactor designs wig necessitate simulation of long-duration, slowly-developing transients compared with current reactor designs. The composite effects of small computational inaccuracies on induced system interactions and perturbations over long periods may well lead to predicted results which are significantly different than would otherwise be expected or might actually occur. Comparisons between the engineered safety features of competing US advanced light water reactor designs and analogous present day reactor designs are examined relative to the adequacy of existing thermal-hydraulic safety codes in predicting the mechanisms of passive safety. Areas where existing codes might require modification, extension or assessment relative to passive safety designs are identified. Conclusions concerning the applicability of these codes to advanced passive light water reactor safety analysis are presented

ENGINEERED BARRIER SYSTEM FEATURES, EVENTS AND PROCESSES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaros, W.

2005-01-01

The purpose of this report is to evaluate and document the inclusion or exclusion of engineered barrier system (EBS) features, events, and processes (FEPs) with respect to models and analyses used to support the total system performance assessment for the license application (TSPA-LA). A screening decision, either Included or Excluded, is given for each FEP along with the technical basis for exclusion screening decisions. This information is required by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) at 10 CFR 63.114 (d, e, and f) [DIRS 173273]. The FEPs addressed in this report deal with those features, events, and processes relevant to the EBS focusing mainly on those components and conditions exterior to the waste package and within the rock mass surrounding emplacement drifts. The components of the EBS are the drip shield, waste package, waste form, cladding, emplacement pallet, emplacement drift excavated opening (also referred to as drift opening in this report), and invert. FEPs specific to the waste package, cladding, and drip shield are addressed in separate FEP reports: for example, ''Screening of Features, Events, and Processes in Drip Shield and Waste Package Degradation'' (BSC 2005 [DIRS 174995]), ''Clad Degradation--FEPs Screening Arguments (BSC 2004 [DIRS 170019]), and Waste-Form Features, Events, and Processes'' (BSC 2004 [DIRS 170020]). For included FEPs, this report summarizes the implementation of the FEP in the TSPA-LA (i.e., how the FEP is included). For excluded FEPs, this analysis provides the technical basis for exclusion from TSPA-LA (i.e., why the FEP is excluded). This report also documents changes to the EBS FEPs list that have occurred since the previous versions of this report. These changes have resulted due to a reevaluation of the FEPs for TSPA-LA as identified in Section 1.2 of this report and described in more detail in Section 6.1.1. This revision addresses updates in Yucca Mountain Project (YMP) administrative procedures as they

EC6 safety design improvements

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yu, S.; Lee, A.G.; Soulard, M. [Candu Energy Inc., Mississauga, ON (Canada)

2014-07-01

The Enhanced CANDU 6 (EC6) builds on the proven high performance design such as the Qinshan CANDU 6 reactor, and has made improvements to safety, operational performance, and has incorporated extensive operational feedback. Completion of all three phases of the pre-licensing design review by the Canadian Regulator - the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission has provided a higher level of assurance that the EC6 reference design has taken modern regulatory requirements and expectations into account and further confirmed that there are no fundamental barriers to licensing the EC6 design in Canada. The EC6 design is based on the defence-in-depth principles in INSAG-10 and provides further safety features that address the lessons learned from Fukushima. With these safety features, the EC6 design has strengthened accident prevention as the first priority in the defence-in-depth strategy, as outlined in INSAG-10. As well, the EC6 design has incorporated further mitigation measures to provide additional protection of the public and the environment if the preventive measures fail. The EC6 design has an appropriate combination of inherent, passive safety characteristics, engineered features and administrative safety measures to effectively prevent and mitigate severe accident progressions. A strong contributor to the robustness and redundancy of CANDU design is the two-group separation philosophy. This ensures a high degree of independence between safety systems as well as physical separation and functional independence in how fundamental safety functions are provided. This paper will describe the following safety features based on the application of defence-in-depth and design approach to prevent beyond design basis events progressing to severe accidents and to mitigate the consequences if it occurs: Improved steam generator heat sink via a more reliable emergency heat removal system; Increased time before manual field actions are required via enhanced capacity of

Safety leadership in the teaching laboratories of electrical and electronic engineering departments at Taiwanese Universities.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Tsung-Chih

2008-01-01

Safety has always been one of the principal goals in teaching laboratories. Laboratories cannot serve their educational purpose when accidents occur. The leadership of department heads has a major impact on laboratory safety, so this study discusses the factors affecting safety leadership in teaching laboratories. This study uses a mail survey to explore the perceived safety leadership in electrical and electronic engineering departments at Taiwanese universities. An exploratory factor analysis shows that there are three main components of safety leadership, as measured on a safety leadership scale: safety controlling, safety coaching, and safety caring. The descriptive statistics also reveals that among faculty, the perception of department heads' safety leadership is in general positive. A two-way MANOVA shows that there are interaction effects on safety leadership between university size and instructor age; there are also interaction effects between presence of a safety committee and faculty gender and faculty age. It is therefore necessary to assess organizational factors when determining whether individual factors are the cause of differing perceptions among faculty members. The author also presents advice on improving safety leadership for department heads at small universities and at universities without safety committees.

State-of-the-art WEB -technologies and ecological safety of nuclear power engineering facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Batij, V.G.; Batij, E.V.; Rud'ko, V.M.; Kotlyarov, V.T.

2004-01-01

Prospects of web-technologies using in the field of improvement radiation safety level of nuclear power engineering facilities is seen. It is shown that application of such technologies will enable entirely using the data of all information systems of radiation control

Preliminary safety analysis for key design features of KALIMER with breakeven core

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hahn, Do Hee; Kwon, Y. M.; Chang, W. P.; Suk, S. D.; Lee, Y. B.; Jeong, K. S

2001-06-01

KAERI is currently developing the conceptual design of a Liquid Metal Reactor, KALIMER (Korea Advanced Liquid MEtal Reactor) under the Long-term Nuclear R and D Program. KALIMER addresses key issues regarding future nuclear power plants such as plant safety, economics, proliferation, and waste. In this report, descriptions of safety design features and safety analyses results for selected ATWS accidents for the breakeven core KALIMER are presented. First, the basic approach to achieve the safety goal is introduced in Chapter 1, and the safety evaluation procedure for the KALIMER design is described in Chapter 2. It includes event selection, event categorization, description of design basis events, and beyond design basis events.In Chapter 3, results of inherent safety evaluations for the KALIMER conceptual design are presented. The KALIMER core and plant system are designed to assure benign performance during a selected set of events without either reactor control or protection system intervention. Safety analyses for the postulated anticipated transient without scram (ATWS) have been performed to investigate the KALIMER system response to the events. In Chapter 4, the design of the KALIMER containment dome and the results of its performance analyses are presented. The design of the existing containment and the KALIMER containment dome are compared in this chapter. Procedure of the containment performance analysis and the analysis results are described along with the accident scenario and source terms. Finally, a simple methodology is introduced to investigate the core energetics behavior during HCDA in Chapter 5. Sensitivity analyses have been performed for the KALIMER core behavior during super-prompt critical excursions, using mathematical formulations developed in the framework of the Modified Bethe-Tait method. Work energy potential was then calculated based on the isentropic fuel expansion model.

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program: Risk-Informed Safety Margins Characterization (RISMC) Pathway Technical Program Plan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, Curtis; Rabiti, Cristian; Martineau, Richard; Szilard, Ronaldo

2016-01-01

Safety is central to the design, licensing, operation, and economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). As the current Light Water Reactor (LWR) NPPs age beyond 60 years, there are possibilities for increased frequency of Systems, Structures, and Components (SSCs) degradations or failures that initiate safety-significant events, reduce existing accident mitigation capabilities, or create new failure modes. Plant designers commonly ''over-design'' portions of NPPs and provide robustness in the form of redundant and diverse engineered safety features to ensure that, even in the case of well-beyond design basis scenarios, public health and safety will be protected with a very high degree of assurance. This form of defense-in-depth is a reasoned response to uncertainties and is often referred to generically as ''safety margin.'' Historically, specific safety margin provisions have been formulated, primarily based on ''engineering judgment.''

Safety I-II, resilience and antifragility engineering: a debate explained through an accident occurring on a mobile elevating work platform.

Science.gov (United States)

Martinetti, Alberto; Chatzimichailidou, Maria Mikela; Maida, Luisa; van Dongen, Leo

2018-04-24

Occupational health and safety (OHS) represents an important field of exploration for the research community: in spite of the growth of technological innovations, the increasing complexity of systems involves critical issues in terms of degradation of the safety levels. In such a situation, new safety management approaches are now mandatory in order to face the safety implications of the current technological evolutions. Along these lines, performing risk-based analysis alone seems not to be enough anymore. The evaluation of robustness, antifragility and resilience of a socio-technical system is now indispensable in order to face unforeseen events. This article will briefly introduce the topics of Safety I and Safety II, resilience engineering and antifragility engineering, explaining correlations, overlapping aspects and synergies. Secondly, the article will discuss the applications of those paradigms to a real accident, highlighting how they can challenge, stimulate and inspire research for improving OHS conditions.

Safety-I, Safety-II and Resilience Engineering.

Science.gov (United States)

Patterson, Mary; Deutsch, Ellen S

2015-12-01

In the quest to continually improve the health care delivered to patients, it is important to understand "what went wrong," also known as Safety-I, when there are undesired outcomes, but it is also important to understand, and optimize "what went right," also known as Safety-II. The difference between Safety-I and Safety-II are philosophical as well as pragmatic. Improving health care delivery involves understanding that health care delivery is a complex adaptive system; components of that system impact, and are impacted by, the actions of other components of the system. Challenges to optimal care include regular, irregular and unexampled threats. This article addresses the dangers of brittleness and miscalibration, as well as the value of adaptive capacity and margin. These qualities can, respectively, detract from or contribute to the emergence of organizational resilience. Resilience is characterized by the ability to monitor, react, anticipate, and learn. Finally, this article celebrates the importance of humans, who make use of system capabilities and proactively mitigate the effects of system limitations to contribute to successful outcomes. Copyright © 2015 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Report to NASA Committee on Aircraft Operating Problems Relative to Aviation Safety Engineering and Research Activities

Science.gov (United States)

1963-01-01

The following report highlights some of the work accomplished by the Aviation Safety Engineering and Research Division of the Flight Safety Foundations since the last report to the NASA Committee on Aircraft Operating Problems on 22 May 1963. The information presented is in summary form. Additional details may be provided upon request of the reports themselves may be obtained from AvSER.

Nuclear technology and reactor safety engineering. The situation ten years after the Chernobyl reactor accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Birkhofer, A.

1996-01-01

Ten years ago, on April 26, 1986 the most serious accident ever in the history of nuclear tgechnology worldwide happened in unit 4 of the nuclear power plant in Chernobyl in the Ukraine, this accident unveiling to the world at large that the Soviet reactor design lines are bearing unthought of safety engineering deficits. The dimensions of this reactor accident on site, and the radioactive fallout spreading far and wide to many countries in Europe, vividly nourished the concern of great parts of the population in the Western world about the safety of nuclear technology, and re-instigated debates about the risks involved and their justification. Now that ten years have elapsed since the accident, it is appropriate to strike a balance and analyse the situation today. The number of nuclear power plants operating worldwide has been growing in the last few years and this trend will continue, primarily due to developments in Asia. The Chernobyl reactor accident has pushed the international dimension of reactor safety to the foreground. Thus the Western world had reason enough to commit itself to enhancing the engineered safety of reactors in East Europe. The article analyses some of the major developments and activities to date and shows future perspectives. (orig.) [de

Detonation Jet Engine. Part 2--Construction Features

Science.gov (United States)

Bulat, Pavel V.; Volkov, Konstantin N.

2016-01-01

We present the most relevant works on jet engine design that utilize thermodynamic cycle of detonative combustion. Detonation engines of various concepts, pulse detonation, rotational and engine with stationary detonation wave, are reviewed. Main trends in detonation engine development are discussed. The most important works that carried out…

Design and safety features of commercial nuclear power plants in Japan, 1976 edition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Izumi, Fumio; Harayama, Yasuo

1976-10-01

The December 1975 edition (JAERI-M 5959) contained design particulars and safety features of 20 commercial nuclear power plants in Japan as of December 1974. Subsequently new plants have been put into operation and some plants under construction have undergone design modifications. The present edition presents similar data of the commercial nuclear power plants in Japan up to June 1976, compiled by computer processing. (auth.)

Reaction Control Engine for Space Launch Initiative

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

Engineers at the Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) have begun a series of engine tests on a new breed of space propulsion: a Reaction Control Engine developed for the Space Launch Initiative (SLI). The engine, developed by TRW Space and Electronics of Redondo Beach, California, is an auxiliary propulsion engine designed to maneuver vehicles in orbit. It is used for docking, reentry, attitude control, and fine-pointing while the vehicle is in orbit. The engine uses nontoxic chemicals as propellants, a feature that creates a safer environment for ground operators, lowers cost, and increases efficiency with less maintenance and quicker turnaround time between missions. Testing includes 30 hot-firings. This photograph shows the first engine test performed at MSFC that includes SLI technology. Another unique feature of the Reaction Control Engine is that it operates at dual thrust modes, combining two engine functions into one engine. The engine operates at both 25 and 1,000 pounds of force, reducing overall propulsion weight and allowing vehicles to easily maneuver in space. The low-level thrust of 25 pounds of force allows the vehicle to fine-point maneuver and dock while the high-level thrust of 1,000 pounds of force is used for reentry, orbit transfer, and coarse positioning. SLI is a NASA-wide research and development program, managed by the MSFC, designed to improve safety, reliability, and cost effectiveness of space travel for second generation reusable launch vehicles.

Optimization of the nuclear power engineering safety on the basis of social and economic parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kozlov, V.F.; Kuz'min, I.I.; Lystsov, V.N.; Amosova, T.V.; Makhutov, N.A.; Men'shikov, V.F.

1995-01-01

Principle of optimization of nuclear power engineering safety is presented on the basis of estimating the risks to the man's health with an account of peculiarities of socio-economic system and other types of economic activities in the region. Average expected duration of forthcoming life and costs of its prolongation serve as a unit for measuring the man's safety. It is shown that if the expenditures on NPP technical safety exceed the scientifically substantiated costs for this region with application of the above principle, than the risk for population will exceed the minimum achievable level. 8 refs., 2 figs., 1 tab

Framework of nuclear safety and safety assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furuta, Kazuo

2007-01-01

Since enormous energy is released by nuclear chain reaction mainly as a form of radiation, a great potential risk accompanies utilization of nuclear energy. Safety has been continuously a critical issue therefore from the very beginning of its development. Though the framework of nuclear safety that has been established at an early developmental stage of nuclear engineering is still valid, more comprehensive approaches are required having experienced several events such as Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and JCO. This article gives a brief view of the most basic principles how nuclear safety is achieved, which were introduced and sophisticated in nuclear engineering but applicable also to other engineering domains in general. (author)

Use of the self-organizing feature map to diagnose abnormal engineering change

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Ruei-Shan; Wu, Zhi-Ting; Peng, Kuo-Wei; Yu, Tai-Yi

2015-07-01

This study established identification manners with self-organizing feature map (SOM) to achieve the goal of monitoring Engineering Change (EC) based on historical data of a company that specializes in computers and peripherals. The product life cycle of this company is 3-6 months. The historical data were divided into three parts, each covering four months. The first part, comprising 2,343 records from January to April (the training period), comprise the Control Group. The second and third parts comprise Experimental Groups (EG) 1 and 2, respectively. For EG 1 and 2, the successful rate of recognizing information on abnormal ECs was approximately 96% and 95%, respectively. This paper shows the importance and screening procedures of abnormal engineering change for a particular company specializing in computers and peripherals.

The impact of the European health and safety directives on engineering in higher education

Science.gov (United States)

Crisp, Alan Roy

This thesis examines the effect that six sets of Health and Safety legislation introduced in 1993 have had on working practices at the University, particularly within the Engineering Departments. The legislation, collectively known colloquially as "the six pack", had much in common with extant United Kingdom (UK) law but, because it emanated from the European Union (EU), it appears to be viewed in the UK as unduly restrictive and time consuming. Much of the thesis is therefore devoted to examining this suspicion in which the EU and its legislation is held by UK employers and employees. The thesis begins by examining the general background and recent history of the EU, before going on to look in greater detail at the development of Health and Safety legislation in particular. The area of interest is then further narrowed to look at the impact of this legislation on Higher Education Institutions by comparing recent accident statistics with those for industry and commerce. The main outcome of this section is that Higher Education has a similar accident profile by 'type' to industry and commerce and therefore would act in a similar manner when implementing the legislation. It is argued that industry and commerce can benefit from this similarity by emulating two case studies at the University where legislation is applied to some engineering equipment and procedures. These are described in detail and the point is made that safety is an approach that pervades all stages of an engineering process, commencing with the design or ordering of equipment. This is reinforced with the results of a primary survey of purchasing at similar institutions with regards to observance of current safety practices. It is concluded that suspicion of the "six pack" legislation is largely the result of overloading of those people responsible for safety by the arrival of a plethora of legislation all at once. Ironically this overloading appears to have influenced safety officers to pay attention

A systems engineering approach to implementation of safety management systems in the Norwegian fishing fleet

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McGuinness, Edgar; Utne, Ingrid B.

2014-01-01

The fishing industry is plagued by a long history of fatality and injury occurrence. Commercial fishing is hence recognized as the most dangerous and difficult of professional callings, in all jurisdictions. Fishing vessels have their own unique set of hazards, a myriad collection of complex occupational accident potentials, barely controlled, co-existing in a perilous work environment. The work in this article is directed by the Norwegian Systematic Health, Environmental and Safety Activities in Enterprises (1997) (Internal Control Regulations [1]), the ISM Code [2] for vessels and their recent applicability to the fishing fleet of Norway. Both safety management works place requirements on the vessel operators and crew to actively manage safety as an on-going concern. The application of these safety management system (SMS) control documents to fishing vessels is just the latest instalment in a continual drive to improve safety in this sector. The difficulty is that there has been no previous systematic approach to safety within the fishing fleet. This article uses the tenants of systems engineering to determine the requirements for such a SMS, detailing the limiting factors and restrictive issues of this complex operating environment. - Highlights: • Systems engineer is applied as a tool for determining requirements for design and construction of a safety management system (SMS). • Outlining a simplistic format, identifying, designingand facilitating improvement opportunities in the conduction and application of SMS’s on fishing vessels. • Knowledge provision is a key requirement of management systems, through provision of understanding, detail orientation and applicable skills for realization. • Outlining, what is to be done and how it is to be completed to accomplish compliance with pertinent legislative requirements. • Promoting a combination of documentation and communication arrangements by which the actionsnecessary for management can be

ENGINEERED BARRIER SYSTEM FEATURES, EVENTS AND PROCESSES

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jaros, W.

2005-08-30

The purpose of this report is to evaluate and document the inclusion or exclusion of engineered barrier system (EBS) features, events, and processes (FEPs) with respect to models and analyses used to support the total system performance assessment for the license application (TSPA-LA). A screening decision, either Included or Excluded, is given for each FEP along with the technical basis for exclusion screening decisions. This information is required by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) at 10 CFR 63.114 (d, e, and f) [DIRS 173273]. The FEPs addressed in this report deal with those features, events, and processes relevant to the EBS focusing mainly on those components and conditions exterior to the waste package and within the rock mass surrounding emplacement drifts. The components of the EBS are the drip shield, waste package, waste form, cladding, emplacement pallet, emplacement drift excavated opening (also referred to as drift opening in this report), and invert. FEPs specific to the waste package, cladding, and drip shield are addressed in separate FEP reports: for example, ''Screening of Features, Events, and Processes in Drip Shield and Waste Package Degradation'' (BSC 2005 [DIRS 174995]), ''Clad Degradation--FEPs Screening Arguments (BSC 2004 [DIRS 170019]), and Waste-Form Features, Events, and Processes'' (BSC 2004 [DIRS 170020]). For included FEPs, this report summarizes the implementation of the FEP in the TSPA-LA (i.e., how the FEP is included). For excluded FEPs, this analysis provides the technical basis for exclusion from TSPA-LA (i.e., why the FEP is excluded). This report also documents changes to the EBS FEPs list that have occurred since the previous versions of this report. These changes have resulted due to a reevaluation of the FEPs for TSPA-LA as identified in Section 1.2 of this report and described in more detail in Section 6.1.1. This revision addresses updates in Yucca Mountain Project

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program Risk-Informed Safety Margins Characterization (RISMC) PathwayTechnical Program Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Curtis Smith; Cristian Rabiti; Richard Martineau

2012-11-01

Safety is central to the design, licensing, operation, and economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). As the current Light Water Reactor (LWR) NPPs age beyond 60 years, there are possibilities for increased frequency of Systems, Structures, and Components (SSCs) degradations or failures that initiate safety-significant events, reduce existing accident mitigation capabilities, or create new failure modes. Plant designers commonly “over-design” portions of NPPs and provide robustness in the form of redundant and diverse engineered safety features to ensure that, even in the case of well-beyond design basis scenarios, public health and safety will be protected with a very high degree of assurance. This form of defense-in-depth is a reasoned response to uncertainties and is often referred to generically as “safety margin.” Historically, specific safety margin provisions have been formulated, primarily based on “engineering judgment.”

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program: Risk-Informed Safety Margins Characterization (RISMC) Pathway Technical Program Plan

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smith, Curtis [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Rabiti, Cristian [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Martineau, Richard [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States); Szilard, Ronaldo [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

2016-09-01

Safety is central to the design, licensing, operation, and economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). As the current Light Water Reactor (LWR) NPPs age beyond 60 years, there are possibilities for increased frequency of Systems, Structures, and Components (SSCs) degradations or failures that initiate safety-significant events, reduce existing accident mitigation capabilities, or create new failure modes. Plant designers commonly “over-design” portions of NPPs and provide robustness in the form of redundant and diverse engineered safety features to ensure that, even in the case of well-beyond design basis scenarios, public health and safety will be protected with a very high degree of assurance. This form of defense-in-depth is a reasoned response to uncertainties and is often referred to generically as “safety margin.” Historically, specific safety margin provisions have been formulated, primarily based on “engineering judgment.”

FEATURES ROAD SAFETY AUDIT

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. Abramova

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Development of the road network, increasing motorization of the population significantly increase the risk of accidents. Experts in the field of traffic are developing methods to reduce the probability of accidents. The ways of solving the problems of road safety audit at various stages of the «life» of roads are considered.

A Methodological Framework for Software Safety in Safety Critical Computer Systems

OpenAIRE

P. V. Srinivas Acharyulu; P. Seetharamaiah

2012-01-01

Software safety must deal with the principles of safety management, safety engineering and software engineering for developing safety-critical computer systems, with the target of making the system safe, risk-free and fail-safe in addition to provide a clarified differentaition for assessing and evaluating the risk, with the principles of software risk management. Problem statement: Prevailing software quality models, standards were not subsisting in adequately addressing the software safety ...

Design data and safety features of commercial nuclear power plants. Vol. IV. Dockets 50-452 through 50-503

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heddleson, F.A.

1975-03-01

Design data, safety features, and site characteristics are summarized for 36 nuclear power units in 18 power stations in the United States. Six pages of data are presented for each plant consisting of thermal-hydraulic and nuclear factors, containment features, emergency-core-cooling systems, site features, circulating water system data, and miscellaneous factors. An aerial perspective is also presented for each plant. The volume covers reactors with dockets 50-452 through 50-503. (U.S.)

The Design of Transportation Equipment in Terms of Human Capabilities. The Role of Engineering Psychology in Transport Safety.

Science.gov (United States)

McFarland, Ross A.

Human factors engineering is considered with regard to the design of safety factors for aviation and highway transportation equipment. Current trends and problem areas are identified for jet air transportation and for highway transportation. Suggested solutions to transportation safety problems are developed by applying the techniques of human…

Use of FPGA and CPLD in nuclear reactor safety systems and its regulatory review requirements for reactor safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roy, Suvadip; Biswas, Animesh; Pradhan, S.K.

2015-01-01

Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) and Complex Programmable Logic Devices (CPLD) is being used widely in safety critical and safety related systems in nuclear power plans like in trip logic units, Engineered Safety Feature (ESF) actuation decision logic and neutronic signal processing for their reprogrammability feature and compact design. These HDL Programmable devices (HPD) are complex devices consisting of both hardware and software which is used to implement the logic on the FPGA. It is observed that these Programmable devices suffer from various modes of failure and the major failures in these devices are due to Single Event Upset (SEU), where a highly energetic ionizing radiation may lead to device failure which can even occur in radiologically benign environment. Other failures can occur during steps of developing the hardware using software tools like during Synthesis and placement and routing of the desired hardware. Here a study on use of such devices in Nuclear Reactors, study on mode of failures of these devices, way to tackle such failure and development of review guidelines for review of such devices used in safety critical and safety related systems with special emphasis on choice of software tools, way to mitigate effects of SEU and simulation and hardware testing results to be reviewed by regulatory body during design safety review is done. (author)

Development of a draft of human factors safety review procedures for the Korean next generation reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Jung Woon; Moon, B. S.; Park, J. C.; Lee, Y. H.; Oh, I. S.; Lee, H. C. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejeon (Korea)

2000-02-01

In this study, a draft of human factors engineering (HFE) safety review procedures (SRP) was developed for the safety review of KNGR based on HFE Safety and Regulatory Requirements and Guidelines (SRRG). This draft includes acceptance criteria, review procedure, and evaluation findings for the areas of review including HFE Program Management, Human Factors Analyses, Human Factors Design, and HFE Verification and Validation, based on Section 15.1 'Human Factors Engineering Design Process' and 15.2 'Control Room Human Factors Engineering' of KNGR Specific Safety Requirements and Chapter 15 'Human Factors Engineering' of KNGR Safety Regulatory Guides. For the effective review, human factors concerns or issues related to advanced HSI design that have been reported so far should be extensively examined. In this study, a total of 384 human factors issues related to the advanced HSI design were collected through our review of a total of 145 documents. A summary of each issue was described and the issues were identified by specific features of HSI design. These results were implemented into a database system. 8 refs., 2 figs. (Author)

Safety assessment of unit 5 (WWER-440/W-213) of the Greifswald nuclear power station

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1992-02-01

The report represents the common results of the program of German-Soviet cooperation in reactor safety and radiation protection. The technical plant and features of type WWER-440/W-213 nuclear power plants, basic legal licensing principles, reactor core and pressurized components, load resulting from accidents, systems engineering, spreading impacts, civil engineering aspects, and the evaluation of operating experience are described. (DG)

Features of FJR 710 engine

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Miyatake, Hirokazu; Kobayashi, Hideo [Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co., Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1989-03-01

The FJR 710/600 high by-pass ratio turbofan engine was outlined, which was developed under the National Research and Development Program of Agency of Industrial Science and Technology, MITI dated from 1971. Results of developmental tests and flying tests of the engine were reported, which were performed to install the engine on the quiet STOL research aircraft under development by the National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL), the Science and Technology Agency, and the STOL aircraft was also outlined. Developmental tests of FJR 710 (design specification : thrust of 50kN, specific fuel consumption of 37.4g/N.h, turbine inlet temperature of 1.250{degree}C) were performed for 4,800 hours to verify airworthiness, and from those test results, the results of such environmental resistance tests as a foreign object strike test, icing test, inlet distortion test, cross wind test, and noise and exhaust measurement were reported in detail. 20 flying tests by a flying test bed (FTB) aircraft and flight tests by the STOL aircraft were also outlined. 10 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs.

Evaluation of special safety features of the SNR-300 in view of the Chernobyl accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vossebrecker, H.

1987-03-01

A comparison of those characteristics, which decisively influenced the accident in the RMBK-1000 reactor, with the safety features of SNR-300 has been performed. The conclusions of this comparison are presented in the present report. The SNR-300 is characterized by a stable reactivity behaviour and good controllability, whereas RBMK-1000 has an instable behaviour and complex spatial dependencies in the core. Among other points, design deficiencies in the protection and emergency shutdown systems were responsible for the Chernobyl accident. The protection and scram systems of the SNR-300 are unquestionably superior to those of the RBMK-1000 with regard to redundancy, diversity, degree of automation, separation of operational and safety-relevant tasks, protection against inadmissible interventions, effectiveness and safety reserves. Therefore, excursion accidents can be classified as hypothetical for SNR-300. Due to elementary physical properties, possible energy releases during hypothetical excursions are substantially lower for SNR-300 and would be controlled by the design of the primary system and containment systems. No damage limiting measures are provided in the RBMK-100 for excursion accidents. Finally, exothermal processes augmented the consequences of the accident in the RBMK-1000 and the long-lasting graphite fire intensified the release of radioactivity. In the SNR-300, however, inertisation of the containment, the steel plate lining and the floor troughs ensure that activity enclosure inside the containment after leakage or hypothetical excursion accident is not endangered by exothermal reactions. Further safety aspects are presented in the report, which can be linked with the accident in Chernobyl. In summary, it is obvious that the disadvantageous physical and technical features of the RBMK-1000 do either not exist in the SNR-300 or are covered by the safety design

Engineered-safety-feature air-cleaning systems for commercial light-water-cooled nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burchsted, C.A.

1975-01-01

Substantial improvement has been observed in the design and construction of ESF air cleaning systems in some of the newer power plants, as compared to earlier practice, but there is still much to be done. Adequate space must be provided for these facilities in the earliest containment and building layout, and system designers, equipment designers, and building layout engineers must give adequate consideration to easy access to facilitate maintenance and testing. Finally, constructors and utilities must provide for proper storage of critical components such as HEPA filters and adsorber cells during construction and during the period awaiting startup of the plant. (U.S.)

Specific features of goal setting in road traffic safety

Science.gov (United States)

Kolesov, V. I.; Danilov, O. F.; Petrov, A. I.

2017-10-01

Road traffic safety (RTS) management is inherently a branch of cybernetics and therefore requires clear formalization of the task. The paper aims at identification of the specific features of goal setting in RTS management under the system approach. The paper presents the results of cybernetic modeling of the cause-to-effect mechanism of a road traffic accident (RTA); in here, the mechanism itself is viewed as a complex system. A designed management goal function is focused on minimizing the difficulty in achieving the target goal. Optimization of the target goal has been performed using the Lagrange principle. The created working algorithms have passed the soft testing. The key role of the obtained solution in the tactical and strategic RTS management is considered. The dynamics of the management effectiveness indicator has been analyzed based on the ten-year statistics for Russia.

Improving the efficacy and safety of engineered T cell therapy for cancer.

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Huan; Liu, Lin; Wang, Zhehai

2013-01-28

Adoptive T-cell therapy (ACT) using tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) is a powerful immunotherapeutics approach against metastatic melanoma. The success of TIL therapy has led to novel strategies for redirecting normal T cells to recognize tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) by genetically engineering tumor antigen-specific T cell receptors (TCRs) or chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) genes. In this manner, large numbers of antigen-specific T cells can be rapidly generated compared with the longer term expansion of TILs. Great efforts have been made to improve these approaches. Initial clinical studies have demonstrated that genetically engineered T cells can mediate tumor regression in vivo. In this review, we discuss the development of TCR and CAR gene-engineered T cells and the safety concerns surrounding the use of these T cells in patients. We highlight the importance of judicious selection of TAAs for modified T cell therapy and propose solutions for potential "on-target, off-organ" toxicity. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preliminary safety examination on thorium molten-salt nuclear energy synergetics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Furukawa, Kazuo

1991-01-01

The new global fission industry for the next century should keep a strong public acceptance, which means to ensure an enough rational safety feature not only in the engineering issue but also in all issues of integral fuel-cycle system. In this sense, the safety characteristics of the Thorium Molten-Salt Nuclear Energy Synergetic System (THORIMS-NES) is widely examined relating with the several aspects of environmental (including resources, radio-waste, etc.) social (including anti-nuclear proliferation and terrorism, etc), basic technological, engineering, institutional, and economical aspects. From this examination it seems that this system is verified as one of the most promising measures of North-South problem, greenhouse effect, etc in the world. (author). 11 refs., 3 figs., 5 tabs

Improvement of inherent safety features in CSR (Coupled Spectrum Reactor) for treating MA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aziz, F.; Kitamoto, Asashi.

1996-01-01

Burning and/or transmutation (B/T) of MA is proposed here using a CSR (Coupled Spectrum Reactor) concept. CSR was based on a modified conventional 1150 MWe-PWR system, and consisted of two core regions for thermal and fast neutrons, respectively. The B/T fuel used was supposed such that MA discharged from 1 GWe-LWR were mixed homogeneously in LWR fuel. The geometry of B/T fuel in the outer region was left the same with that of PWR, while in the inner region the B/T fuel was arranged in a tight-lattice geometry that allowed a higher fuel to coolant volume ratio, (V m /V f ). In order to improve its inherent safety features, several cases of CSR were studied and compared, each case used different fuel type in the inner region. The result of the calculations showed that safety features can be improved by using composite fuel of ( 235 U-Pu- 238 U) in the inner region. The equilibrium of main isotopes in CSR can be achieved after about 5 recycle stages. This study also showed that the CSR can burn and transmute MA up to 808 kg/stage in a single reactor operated with a reactivity swing of 2.8 % Δk/kk'. (author)

Payload Safety: Risk and Characteristic-Based Control of Engineered Nanomaterials

Science.gov (United States)

Abou, Seraphin Chally; Saad, Maarouf

2013-09-01

In the last decade progress has been made to assist organizations that are developing payloads intended for flight on the International Space Station (ISS) and/or Space Shuttle. Collaboration programs for comprehensive risk assessment have been initiated between the U.S. and the European Union to generate requirements and data needed to comply with payloads safety and to perform risk assessment and controls guidance. Yet, substantial research gaps remain, as do challenges in the translation of these research findings to control for exposure to nanoscale material payloads, and the health effects. Since nanomaterial structures are different from traditional molecules, some standard material properties can change at size of 50nm or less. Changes in material properties at this scale challenge our understanding of hazards posed by nanomaterial payloads in the ISS realistic exposure conditions, and our ability to anticipate, evaluate, and control potential health issues, and safety. The research question addressed in this framework is: what kind of descriptors can be developed for nanomaterial payloads risks assessment? Methods proposed incorporate elements of characteristic- based risk an alysis: (1) to enable characterization of anthropogenic nanomaterials which can result in incidental from natural nanoparticles; and (2) to better understand safety attributes in terms of human health impacts from exposure to varying types of engineered nanomaterials.

Safety applications of computer based systems for the process industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bologna, Sandro; Picciolo, Giovanni; Taylor, Robert

1997-11-01

Computer based systems, generally referred to as Programmable Electronic Systems (PESs) are being increasingly used in the process industry, also to perform safety functions. The process industry as they intend in this document includes, but is not limited to, chemicals, oil and gas production, oil refining and power generation. Starting in the early 1970's the wide application possibilities and the related development problems of such systems were recognized. Since then, many guidelines and standards have been developed to direct and regulate the application of computers to perform safety functions (EWICS-TC7, IEC, ISA). Lessons learnt in the last twenty years can be summarised as follows: safety is a cultural issue; safety is a management issue; safety is an engineering issue. In particular, safety systems can only be properly addressed in the overall system context. No single method can be considered sufficient to achieve the safety features required in many safety applications. Good safety engineering approach has to address not only hardware and software problems in isolation but also their interfaces and man-machine interface problems. Finally, the economic and industrial aspects of the safety applications and development of PESs in process plants are evidenced throughout all the Report. Scope of the Report is to contribute to the development of an adequate awareness of these problems and to illustrate technical solutions applied or being developed

18th International Congress on Project Management and Engineering

CERN Document Server

Blanco, José; Capuz-Rizo, Salvador

2016-01-01

This volume features papers from the 18th International Congress on Project Management and Engineering, held by the University of Zaragoza in collaboration with the Spanish Association of Project Management and Engineering (AEIPRO). It illustrates the state of the art in this emerging area. Readers will discover ways to increase the effectiveness of project engineering as well as the efficiency of project management. The papers, written by international researchers and professionals, cover civil engineering and urban planning, product and process engineering, environmental engineering, energy efficiency and renewable energies, rural development, safety, labor risks and ergonomics, and training in project engineering. Overall, this book contributes to the improvement of project engineering research and enhances the transfer of results to the job of project engineers and project managers around the world. It will appeal to all professionals in the field as well as researchers and teachers involved in the traini...

Engineered nanomaterials: toward effective safety management in research laboratories.

Science.gov (United States)

Groso, Amela; Petri-Fink, Alke; Rothen-Rutishauser, Barbara; Hofmann, Heinrich; Meyer, Thierry

2016-03-15

It is still unknown which types of nanomaterials and associated doses represent an actual danger to humans and environment. Meanwhile, there is consensus on applying the precautionary principle to these novel materials until more information is available. To deal with the rapid evolution of research, including the fast turnover of collaborators, a user-friendly and easy-to-apply risk assessment tool offering adequate preventive and protective measures has to be provided. Based on new information concerning the hazards of engineered nanomaterials, we improved a previously developed risk assessment tool by following a simple scheme to gain in efficiency. In the first step, using a logical decision tree, one of the three hazard levels, from H1 to H3, is assigned to the nanomaterial. Using a combination of decision trees and matrices, the second step links the hazard with the emission and exposure potential to assign one of the three nanorisk levels (Nano 3 highest risk; Nano 1 lowest risk) to the activity. These operations are repeated at each process step, leading to the laboratory classification. The third step provides detailed preventive and protective measures for the determined level of nanorisk. We developed an adapted simple and intuitive method for nanomaterial risk management in research laboratories. It allows classifying the nanoactivities into three levels, additionally proposing concrete preventive and protective measures and associated actions. This method is a valuable tool for all the participants in nanomaterial safety. The users experience an essential learning opportunity and increase their safety awareness. Laboratory managers have a reliable tool to obtain an overview of the operations involving nanomaterials in their laboratories; this is essential, as they are responsible for the employee safety, but are sometimes unaware of the works performed. Bringing this risk to a three-band scale (like other types of risks such as biological, radiation

Safety effects of low-cost engineering measures. An observational study in a Portuguese multilane road.

Science.gov (United States)

Vieira Gomes, Sandra; Cardoso, João Lourenço

2012-09-01

Single carriageway multilane roads are not, in general, a very safe type of road, mainly because of the high number of seriously injured victims in head-on collisions, when compared with dual carriageway multilane roads, with a median barrier. In this paper the results of a study on the effect of the application of several low cost engineering measures, aimed at road infrastructure correction and road safety improvement on a multilane road (EN6), are presented. The study was developed by the National Laboratory of Civil Engineering (LNEC) for the Portuguese Road Administration and involved a comparison of selected aspects of motorized traffic behaviour (traffic volumes and speeds) measured in several sections of EN6, as well as monitoring of road safety developments in the same road. The applied low cost engineering measures allowed a reduction of 10% in the expected annual number of personal injury accidents and a 70% decrease in the expected annual number of head-on collisions; the expected annual frequency of accidents involving killed and seriously injured persons was reduced by 26%. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Proceedings of the 2007 annual conference of the Canadian Society for Civil Engineering : where the road ends, ingenuity begins : cold regions civil engineering in Canada's North

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hodgins, K.L.W.

2007-01-01

This conference provided a forum to discuss recent developments in all areas of civil engineering. It provided an opportunity for national and international delegates from industrial, research, and academic institutions to interact and learn about innovative technologies in the different areas of civil engineering and to identify future directions. The presentations addressed a broad range of issues, such as the need for sustainable infrastructure while improving the safety of roads, dams, water supply and sewage treatment systems. Technical sessions addressed infrastructure management issues, risk assessment, hydrotechnical engineering and transportation engineering. The conference featured 98 presentations, of which 25 have been catalogued separately for inclusion in this database

An assessment system for the system safety engineering capability maturity model in the case of spent fuel reprocessing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Xiaohua; Liu Zhenghai; Liu Zhiming; Wan Yaping; Bai Xiaofeng

2012-01-01

We can improve the processing, the evaluation of capability and promote the user's trust by using system security engineering capability maturity model (SSE-CMM). SSE-CMM is the common method for organizing and implementing safety engineering, and it is a mature method for system safety engineering. Combining capability maturity model (CMM) with total quality management and statistic theory, SSE-CMM turns systems security engineering into a well-defined, mature, measurable, advanced engineering discipline. Lack of domain knowledge, the size of data, the diversity of evidences, the cumbersomeness of processes, and the complexity of matching evidences with problems are the main issues that SSE-CMM assessment has to face. To improve effectively the efficiency of assessment of spent fuel reprocessing system security engineering capability maturity model (SFR-SSE-CMM), in this paper we de- signed an intelligent assessment software based on domain ontology and that uses methods such as ontology, evidence theory, semantic web, intelligent information retrieval and intelligent auto-matching techniques. This software includes four subsystems, which are domain ontology creation and management system, evidence auto collection system, and a problem and evidence matching system. The architecture of the software is divided into five layers: a data layer, an oncology layer, a knowledge layer, a service layer arid a presentation layer. (authors)

67. The safety engineering at driving of destroyed hearth and repair of bath fettling during operation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivanov, A.V.

1993-01-01

The safety engineering at driving of destroyed hearth and repair of bath fettling during operation was considered. All operational conditions at driving of destroyed hearth and repair of bath fettling during operation were studied.

Investigation of the impact of low cost traffic engineering measures on road safety in urban areas.

Science.gov (United States)

Yannis, George; Kondyli, Alexandra; Georgopoulou, Xenia

2014-01-01

This paper investigates the impact of low cost traffic engineering measures (LCTEMs) on the improvement of road safety in urban areas. A number of such measures were considered, such as speed humps, woonerfs, raised intersections and other traffic calming measures, which have been implemented on one-way, one-lane roads in the Municipality of Neo Psychiko in the Greater Athens Area. Data were analysed using the before-and-after safety analysis methodology with large control group. The selected control group comprised of two Municipalities in the Athens Greater Area, which present similar road network and land use characteristics with the area considered. The application of the methodology showed that the total number of crashes presented a statistically significant reduction, which can be possibly attributed to the introduction of LCTEMs. This reduction concerns passenger cars and single-vehicle crashes and is possibly due to the behavioural improvement of drivers of 25 years old or more. The results of this research are very useful for the identification of the appropriate low cost traffic engineering countermeasures for road safety problems in urban areas.

Effect of engineered safety features on the risk of hypothetical LMFBR accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cybulskis, P.

1978-01-01

The risks of hypothetical core-disruptive accidents in liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactors which involve meltthrough of the reactor vessel are compared for two plant designs: one design without specific provisions to accommodate such an accident and the other design with an ex-vessel core catcher and a cvity hot liner. The approach to risk analysis used is that developed in the Reactor Safety Study (WASH-1400). Since the probability of occurrence of such an event has not been evaluated, however, insight into the potential risk is gained only on a relative basis. The principal conclusions of this study are: (1) adding a core catcher--hot liner reduces the probabilty of accidents having major consequences; (2) the degree to which hot liner--core catcher systems can reduce the risk of melt-through accidents is limited by the failure probability of these systems; (3) fractional radioactive releases to the environment in the liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor accidents considered are comparable to those from the light-water reactors evaluated in WASH-1400; (4) since sodium--concrete reactions are a dominant driving force during the accident, the integrity of the cavity liner is as important as the function of the core catcher; (5) there may be other accidents or paths to radioactive releases that are not affected by the addition of a hot liner--core catcher

The role of structural integrity in liquid metal fast breeder reactor safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holmes, J.A.G.

1982-01-01

Extensive studies have demonstrated the favourable safety characteristics of liquid metal fast breeder reactors, which are attributable to both their inherent features and the engineered safeguards which are included. This requires demonstration that there is no risk of sudden catastrophic failure of the core support system allowing the core to drop off the control rods to give a prompt critical reactivity excursion. An important part of our work in support of the safety case for the U.K. Commercial Demonstration Fast Reactor is to demonstrate that such a failure is virtually incredible. This covers design features, study of the fracture behaviour of stainless steel structures, and inspection and monitoring during fabrication and service. The paper gives a broad description of the relevant design features and supporting work programme

Knowledge, attitude and practices for design for safety: A study on civil & structural engineers.

Science.gov (United States)

Goh, Yang Miang; Chua, Sijie

2016-08-01

Design for safety (DfS) (also known as prevention through design, safe design and Construction (Design and Management)) promotes early consideration of safety and health hazards during the design phase of a construction project. With early intervention, hazards can be more effectively eliminated or controlled leading to safer worksites and construction processes. DfS is practiced in many countries, including Australia, the UK, and Singapore. In Singapore, the Manpower Ministry enacted the DfS Regulations in July 2015, which will be enforced from August 2016 onwards. Due to the critical role of civil and structural (C&S) engineers during design and construction, the DfS knowledge, attitude and practices (KAP) of C&S engineers have significant impact on the successful implementation of DfS. Thus, this study aims to explore the DfS KAP of C&S engineers so as to guide further research in measuring and improving DfS KAP of designers. During the study, it was found that there is a lack of KAP studies in construction management. Therefore, this study also aims to provide useful lessons for future applications of the KAP framework in construction management research. A questionnaire was developed to assess the DfS KAP of C&S engineers. The responses provided by 43 C&S engineers were analyzed. In addition, interviews with experienced construction professionals were carried out to further understand perceptions of DfS and related issues. The results suggest that C&S engineers are supportive of DfS, but the level of DfS knowledge and practices need to be improved. More DfS guidelines and training should be made available to the engineers. To ensure that DfS can be implemented successfully, there is a need to study the contractual arrangements between clients and designers and the effectiveness of different implementation approaches for the DfS process. The questionnaire and findings in this study provided the foundation for a baseline survey with larger sample size, which is

Passive safety features of low sodium void worth metal fueled cores in a bottom supported reactor vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, Y.I.; Marchaterre, J.F.; Wade, D.C.; Wigeland, R.A.; Kumaoka, Yoshio; Suzuki, Masao; Endo, Hiroshi; Nakagawa, Hiroshi

1991-01-01

A study has been performed on the passive safety features of low-sodium-void-worth metallic-fueled reactors with emphasis on using a bottom-supported reactor vessel design. The reactor core designs included self-sufficient types as well as actinide burners. The analyses covered the reactor response to the unprotected, i.e. unscrammed, transient overpower accident and the loss-of-flow accident. Results are given demonstrating the safety margins that were attained. 4 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs

Maximising safety in the boiler house.

Science.gov (United States)

Derry, Carr

2013-03-01

Last month's HEJ featured an article, the second in our new series of guidance pieces aimed principally at Technician-level engineers, highlighting some of the key steps that boiler operators can take to maximise system performance and efficiency, and thus reduce running both costs and carbon footprint. In the third such article, Derry Carr, C.Env, I.Eng, BSc (Hons), M.I.Plant.E., M.S.O.E., technical manager & group gas manager at Dalkia, who is vice-chairman of the Combustion Engineering Association, examines the key regulatory and safety obligations for hospital energy managers and boiler technicians, a number of which have seen changes in recent years with revision to guidance and other documentation.

Technical self reliance of digital safety systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kwon, Kee Choon; Lee, Dong Young [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Kook Hun [Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction, Changwon (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Seung Gap [POSCON, Pohang (Korea, Republic of)

2009-04-15

This paper summarizes the development results of the Korea Nuclear Instrumentation and Control System (KNICS) project sponsored by the Korean government. In this project, Man Machine Interface System (MMIS) architecture, two digital platforms, and several control systems are developed. One platform is a programmable Logic Controller (PLC) for a safety system and another platform is a Distributed Control System (DCS) for a non safety system. With the POSAFE Q PLC, a Reactor Protection System (RPS) and an Engineered Safety Feature Component Control System (ESF CCS) are developed. A Power Control System (PCS) is developed based on the DCS. The safety grade platform and the digital safety systems obtained approval for the Topical Report from the Korean regulatory body in February of 2009. Also a Korean utility and a vendor company determined KNICS results to apply them to the planned Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in March 2009. This paper introduces the technical self reliance experiences of the safety grade platform and the digital safety systems developed in the KNICS R and D project.

Safety research for evolutionary light water reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cacuci, D.G.

1996-01-01

The development of nuclear energy has been characterized by a continuous evolution of the technological and philosophical underpinnings of reactor safety to enable operation of the plant without causing harm to either the plant operators or the public. Currently, the safety of a nuclear plant is assured through the combined use of procedures and engineered safety features together with a system of multiple protective barriers against the release of radioactivity. This approach is embodied in the concept of Design-Basis Accidents (DBA), which requires the designers to demonstrate that all credible accidents have been identified and that all safety equipment and procedures perform their functions extremely reliably. Particularly important functions are the automatic protection to shut the reactor down and to remove the decay heat while ensuring the integrity of the containment structure. Within the DBA concept, the so-called severe accidents were conveniently defined to be those accidents that lie beyond the DBA envelope; hence, they did not form part of the safety case. (author)

Safety research for evolutionary light water reactors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cacuci, D G [Karlsruhe Univ. (T.H.) (Germany). Universitaetsbibliothek

1996-12-01

The development of nuclear energy has been characterized by a continuous evolution of the technological and philosophical underpinnings of reactor safety to enable operation of the plant without causing harm to either the plant operators or the public. Currently, the safety of a nuclear plant is assured through the combined use of procedures and engineered safety features together with a system of multiple protective barriers against the release of radioactivity. This approach is embodied in the concept of Design-Basis Accidents (DBA), which requires the designers to demonstrate that all credible accidents have been identified and that all safety equipment and procedures perform their functions extremely reliably. Particularly important functions are the automatic protection to shut the reactor down and to remove the decay heat while ensuring the integrity of the containment structure. Within the DBA concept, the so-called severe accidents were conveniently defined to be those accidents that lie beyond the DBA envelope; hence, they did not form part of the safety case. (author).

North American Engineering, Procurement, Fabrication and Construction Worker Safety Climate Perception Affected by Job Position

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clint Pinion

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Understanding and implementing the results of Safety Climate surveys can assist in decreasing occupational injuries and illnesses. The following article presents findings of a cross-sectional study that assessed the relationship between safety climate perceptions and job position among engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction (EPFC employees using a 15-item survey. Descriptive statistics (means and frequencies and an ANACOVA (analysis of covariance were performed on a saturated model. The study had a 62% response rate. Results indicate a statistically significant in mean safety climate scores between job position among EPFC employees when controlling for years in industry and location type (i.e., construction versus fabrication [F (9, 603 = 5.28, p < 0.0001, adjusted R-square = 0.07]. Employee perception of safety climate differed based on the employee’s job position (i.e., laborer, foreman, etc.. Project management reported the highest safety climate scores (0.91, followed by supervisors (0.86, technical support employees and foremen (0.84 and laborers (0.81.

Activities on safety for the cross-cutting issue of research reactors in the IAEA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perrotta, J.A.; Boado Magan, H.J.

2003-01-01

IAEA activities in the field of research reactor safety are included in the programme of the Division of Nuclear Installations Safety and implemented by the Engineering Safety Section through its Research Reactor Safety Unit. Following the objectives of the Division, the results of the IAEA missions and the recommendations from International Advisory Groups, the IAEA has conducted in recent years a certain number of activities aiming to enhance the safety of research reactors. The following activities are discussed in this paper: (a) the new Requirements for the Safety of Research Reactors, main features and differences with previous standards (SS-35-S1 and SS-35-S2) and the grading approach for implementation; (b) new documents being developed (safety guides, safety reports and TECDOCs); (c) activities related to the Incident Reporting System for Research Reactor (IRSRR); (d) the new features implemented for the (Integrated Safety Assessment of Research Reactors) INSARR missions; (e) the Code of Conduct on the Safety of Research Reactors developed, following the General Conference Resolution GC(45)/RES/10; and (f) the survey on the safety of research reactors conducted in the year 2002 and the results obtained. (author)

Integrating Safety and Mission Assurance into Systems Engineering Modeling Practices

Science.gov (United States)

Beckman, Sean; Darpel, Scott

2015-01-01

During the early development of products, flight, or experimental hardware, emphasis is often given to the identification of technical requirements, utilizing such tools as use case and activity diagrams. Designers and project teams focus on understanding physical and performance demands and challenges. It is typically only later, during the evaluation of preliminary designs that a first pass, if performed, is made to determine the process, safety, and mission quality assurance requirements. Evaluation early in the life cycle, though, can yield requirements that force a fundamental change in design. This paper discusses an alternate paradigm for using the concepts of use case or activity diagrams to identify safety hazard and mission quality assurance risks and concerns using the same systems engineering modeling tools being used to identify technical requirements. It contains two examples of how this process might be used in the development of a space flight experiment, and the design of a Human Powered Pizza Delivery Vehicle, along with the potential benefits to decrease development time, and provide stronger budget estimates.

From learning from accidents to teaching about accident causation and prevention: Multidisciplinary education and safety literacy for all engineering students

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saleh, Joseph H.; Pendley, Cynthia C.

2012-01-01

In this work, we argue that system accident literacy and safety competence should be an essential part of the intellectual toolkit of all engineering students. We discuss why such competence should be taught and nurtured in engineering students, and provide one example for how this can be done. We first define the class of adverse events of interest as system accidents, distinct from occupational accidents, through their (1) temporal depth of causality and (2) diversity of agency or groups and individuals who influence or contribute to the accident occurrence/prevention. We then address the question of why the interest in this class of events and their prevention, and we expand on the importance of system safety literacy and the contributions that engineering students can make in the long-term towards accident prevention. Finally, we offer one model for an introductory course on accident causation and system safety, discuss the course logistics, material and delivery, and our experience teaching this subject. The course starts with the anatomy of accidents and is grounded in various case studies; these help illustrate the multidisciplinary nature of the subject, and provide the students with the important concepts to describe the phenomenology of accidents (e.g., initiating events, accident precursor or lead indicator, and accident pathogen). More importantly, the case studies invite a deep reflection on the underlying failure mechanisms, their generalizability, and the various safety levers for accident prevention. The course then proceeds to an exposition of defense-in-depth, safety barriers and principles, essential elements for an education in accident prevention, and it concludes with a presentation of basic concepts and tools for uncertainty and risk analysis. Educators will recognize the difficulties in designing a new course on such a broad subject. It is hoped that this work will invite comments and contributions from the readers, and that the journal will

Safety evaluation report related to the operation of WPPSS Nuclear Project No. 2. Docket No. 50-397, Washington Public Power Supply System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-08-01

Information is presented concerning site characteristics; design criteria for structures, systems, and components; engineered safety features; instrumentation and control; auxiliary systems; conduct of operations; and financial qualifications

Safety evaluation of the loss of fluid test facility project No. 394

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1975-05-01

Assessment of the safety of the LOFT facility and subsequent recommendations have been based on a comparison of the LOFT facility to requirements for commercial power reactors. In this comparison, the many unique features of the LOFT facility were considered including the low power level, the limited operational use as a test reactor, and the remoteness of the site. Based on this assessment, it is concluded, that while the likelihood of an accidental release of fission products may be greater than for a commercial power reactor, the consequences of such a release are reduced by the lower fission product inventory, the remoteness of the site and the capability of evacuating the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) and adjacent areas. There is reasonable assurance that the public health and safety will not be endangered due to operation of this facility, specifically: The INEL site is acceptable with respect to location, land use, population distribution, controlled access, hydrology, meteorology, geology and seismology. Sufficient engineered safety features have been included to assure that the potential offsite doses are well within 10 CFR Part 100 guidelines. The LOFT facility has been designed in general accordance with standards, guides and codes which are comparable to those applied to commercial power reactors and any exceptions to these have been based on the unique features of the LOFT facility. Certain matters including the final safety analyses based on detailed component designs, Technical Specifications, LOCE controls and detailed program plan have not been reviewed but we assume will properly be resolved by ERDA, which has the ultimate responsibility for the safety of this facility. Changes to the facility design or program plan such as removal of the fueled Mobile Test Assembly or blowdowns to the containment vessel also will require additional analyses and review. (U.S.)

Present status of high temperature engineering test and research, 1994

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-10-01

High temperature gas-cooled reactors have excellent features such as the generation of high temperature close to 1000degC, very high inherent safety and high fuel burnup. By the advanced basic research under high temperature irradiation condition, the creation of various new technologies which become the momentum of future technical innovation can be expected. The construction of the high temperature engineering test reactor (HTTR) was decided in 1987, which aims at the thermal output of 30 MW and the coolant temperature at reactor exit of 950degC. The initial criticality is scheduled in 1998. Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute has advanced the high temperature engineering test and research, and plans the safety verifying test of the HTTR, the test of connecting heat utilization plants and so on. In this report, mainly the results obtained for one year from May, 1993 are summarized. The outline of the high temperature engineering test and development of the HTTR technologies are reported. (K.I.)

Safety research experiment facilities, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho. Final environmental impact statement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liverman, J.L.

1977-09-01

This environmental statement was prepared for the Safety Research Experiment Facilities (SAREF) Project. The purpose of the proposed project is to modify some existing facilities and provide a new test facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) for conducting fast breeder reactor (FBR) safety experiments. The SAREF Project proposal has been developed after an extensive study which identified the FBR safety research needs requiring in-reactor experiments and which evaluated the capability of various existing and new facilities to meet these needs. The proposed facilities provide for the in-reactor testing of large bundles of prototypical FBR fuel elements under a wide variety of conditions, ranging from those abnormal operating conditions which might be expected to occur during the life of an FBR power plant to the extremely low probability, hypothetical accidents used in the evaluation of some design options and in the assessment of the long-term potential risk associated with wide-acale deployment of the FBR

Recent Experiences of the NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) Guidance Navigation and Control (GN and C) Technical Discipline Team (TDT)

Science.gov (United States)

Dennehy, Cornelius J.

2011-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) is an independently funded NASA Program whose dedicated team of technical experts provides objective engineering and safety assessments of critical, high risk projects. NESC's strength is rooted in the diverse perspectives and broad knowledge base that add value to its products, affording customers a responsive, alternate path for assessing and preventing technical problems while protecting vital human and national resources. The Guidance Navigation and Control (GN&C) Technical Discipline Team (TDT) is one of fifteen such discipline-focused teams within the NESC organization. The TDT membership is composed of GN&C specialists from across NASA and its partner organizations in other government agencies, industry, national laboratories, and universities. This paper will briefly define the vision, mission, and purpose of the NESC organization. The role of the GN&C TDT will then be described in detail along with an overview of how this team operates and engages in its objective engineering and safety assessments of critical NASA.

Advanced Vibration Analysis Tool Developed for Robust Engine Rotor Designs

Science.gov (United States)

Min, James B.

2005-01-01

The primary objective of this research program is to develop vibration analysis tools, design tools, and design strategies to significantly improve the safety and robustness of turbine engine rotors. Bladed disks in turbine engines always feature small, random blade-to-blade differences, or mistuning. Mistuning can lead to a dramatic increase in blade forced-response amplitudes and stresses. Ultimately, this results in high-cycle fatigue, which is a major safety and cost concern. In this research program, the necessary steps will be taken to transform a state-of-the-art vibration analysis tool, the Turbo- Reduce forced-response prediction code, into an effective design tool by enhancing and extending the underlying modeling and analysis methods. Furthermore, novel techniques will be developed to assess the safety of a given design. In particular, a procedure will be established for using natural-frequency curve veerings to identify ranges of operating conditions (rotational speeds and engine orders) in which there is a great risk that the rotor blades will suffer high stresses. This work also will aid statistical studies of the forced response by reducing the necessary number of simulations. Finally, new strategies for improving the design of rotors will be pursued.

Safety issues for superconducting fusion magnets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hsieh, S.Y.; Reich, M.; Powell, J.R.

1978-01-01

Safety issues for future superconducting fusion magnet systems are examined. It is found that safety and failure experience with existing superconducting magnets is not very applicable to predictions as to the safety and reliability of fusion magnets. Such predictions will have to depend on analysis and judgement for many years to come, rather than on accumulated experience. A number of generic potential structural, thermal-hydraulic, and electrical safety problems are identified and analyzed. Prevention of quenches and non-uniform temperature distributions, if quenches should occur, is of great importance, since such events can trigger processes which lead to magnet damage or failure. Engineered safety features will be necessary for fusion magnets. Two of these, an energy dispersion system and external coil containment, appear capable of reducing the probability of coil disruption to very low levels. However, they do not prevent loss of function accidents which are of economic concern. Elaborate detector, temperature equalization, and energy removal systems will be required to minimize the chances of loss of function accidents

Accommodation of unprotected accidents by inherent safety design features in metallic and oxide-fueled LMFBRs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Su, S.F.; Cahalan, J.E.; Sevy, R.H.

1985-01-01

This paper presents the results of a systematic study of the effectiveness of intrinsic design features to mitigate the consequences of unprotected accidents in metallic and oxide-fueled LMFBRs. The accidents analyzed belong to the class generally considered to lead to core disruption; unprotected loss-of-flow (LOF) and transient over-power (TOP). The results of the study demonstrate the potential for design features to meliorate accident consequences, and in some cases to render them benign. Emphasis is placed on the relative performance of metallic and oxide-fueled core designs, and safety margins are quantified in sensitivity studies. All analyses were carried out using the SASSYS LMFBR systems analysis code (1)

Proposed American National Standard ANS 8.22: Nuclear criticality safety based on limiting and controlling moderators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bullington, J.S.

1996-01-01

This proposed standard features guidance for dealing with the combination of fissile material and moderators in moderator control areas. The main points include nuclear criticality safety practices, encompassing administrative practices and process evaluations, and engineering practices, encompassing moderator control area barriers, equipment and containers, penetrations, fire prevention and suppression, and active engineered controls. Four appendixes follow the standard; the subject of these appendixes are typical moderating materials, potential sources of moderators, moderator control measurements, and engineered barriers to control moderators

The Attitude of Civil Engineering Students towards Health and Safety Risk Management: A Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Petersen, A. K.; Reynolds, J. H.; Ng, L. W. T.

2008-01-01

The highest rate of accidents and injuries in British industries has been reported by the construction industry during the past decade. Since then stakeholders have recognised that a possible solution would be to inculcate a good attitude towards health and safety risk management in undergraduate civil engineering students and construction…

The Increase of Operational Safety of Ships by Improving Diagnostic Methods for Marine Diesel Engine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazimierz Witkowski

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This article shows the importance of the diagnostic improvement methods of marine engines to boost the economy and safety of operation of marine cargo ships. The need to implement effective diagnostic methods is justified by presenting statistical data of marine diesel engines failure and the cost of their operation. Based on the own research has been proven, for the chosen example, that indicator diagrams and analysis of indicated parameters have limited utility in the diagnosis of damages of marine engine, although this is a method commonly used in operational practice. To achieve greater diagnostic effectiveness, when, based on indicator diagrams, are calculated and then the characteristics of heat release is analyzed - net of heat release characteristics and the intensity of the heat release, it was demonstrated. This procedure is particularly effective in the diagnosis of damage of injection system components marine diesel engine.

Krypton-85 hydrofracture engineering feasibility and safety evaluation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Peretz, F.J.; Muller, M.E.; Pan, P.Y.

1981-07-01

Engineering studies have been made to determine the hazards associated with the disposal of /sup 85/Kr using the hydrofracture process. To assess the hazards, an effort has been made to identify the equipment required to entrain and dissolve the noble gas into the grout stream at hydrofracture pressure (up to 350 bar). Off-the-shelf or slightly modified equipment has been identified for safe and effective compression and gas-grout mixing. Each monthly injection disposes of 1.6 x 10/sup 6/ Ci of /sup 85/Kr. By connecting only one gas cylinder to the injection system at a time, the maximum amount of krypton likely to be released as a result of equipment failure is limited to 128,000 Ci. An evaluation by Los Alamos Technical Associates shows that releasing this amount of gas in less than one hour under worst-case meteorological conditions through a 30-m stack would result in a whole-body dose of 170 millirem at a distance of 1 km from the facility. A krypton collection and recovery system can further reduce this dose to 17 millirem; increasing the distance to the site boundary to 3 km can also reduce the dose by a factor of ten. Lung and skin dose estimates are 1.6 and 120 times the whole-body dose, respectively. These are all worst-case values; releases under more typical conditions would result in a significantly lower dose. No insurmountable safety or engineering problems have been identified.

Krypton-85 hydrofracture engineering feasibility and safety evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peretz, F.J.; Muller, M.E.; Pan, P.Y.

1981-07-01

Engineering studies have been made to determine the hazards associated with the disposal of 85 Kr using the hydrofracture process. To assess the hazards, an effort has been made to identify the equipment required to entrain and dissolve the noble gas into the grout stream at hydrofracture pressure (up to 350 bar). Off-the-shelf or slightly modified equipment has been identified for safe and effective compression and gas-grout mixing. Each monthly injection disposes of 1.6 x 10 6 Ci of 85 Kr. By connecting only one gas cylinder to the injection system at a time, the maximum amount of krypton likely to be released as a result of equipment failure is limited to 128,000 Ci. An evaluation by Los Alamos Technical Associates shows that releasing this amount of gas in less than one hour under worst-case meteorological conditions through a 30-m stack would result in a whole-body dose of 170 millirem at a distance of 1 km from the facility. A krypton collection and recovery system can further reduce this dose to 17 millirem; increasing the distance to the site boundary to 3 km can also reduce the dose by a factor of ten. Lung and skin dose estimates are 1.6 and 120 times the whole-body dose, respectively. These are all worst-case values; releases under more typical conditions would result in a significantly lower dose. No insurmountable safety or engineering problems have been identified

Innovative safety features of VVER for ensuring high degree of autonomy during beyond design basis accidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Abhay; Mohan, Joe; Kumar, Devesh; Chaudhry, S.M.; Rao, Srinivasa; Gupta, S.K.

2010-01-01

The effectiveness of Passive Heat Removal System (PHRS) in during a station black-out (SBO) accident was assessed by using SCDAP/Relap5. The analysis gave evidence that (i) the Passive Heat Removal System (PHRS) is capable of limiting the consequences of station black out (SBO) and acts as an effective engineered safety system, and (ii) the PHRS intervention prevents core degradation and excessive core heat-up. (P.A.)

Effects of exhaust gas recirculation in diesel engines featuring late PCCI type combustion strategies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D’Ambrosio, S.; Ferrari, A.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • The effects that a high EGR rate can have on PCCI type combustion strategies have been analyzed. • The dependence of engine emissions and combustion noise on EGR has been addressed. • The time histories of the main in-cylinder variables have been plotted for different EGR rates. - Abstract: The influence of exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) has been analyzed considering experimental results obtained from a Euro 5 diesel engine calibrated with an optimized pilot-main double injection strategy. The engine features a late premixed charge compression ignition (PCCI) type combustion mode. Different steady-state key-points that are representative of the engine application in a passenger car over the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) have been studied. The engine was fully instrumented to obtain a complete overview of the most important variables. The pressure time history in the combustion chamber has been measured to perform calculations with single and three-zone combustion diagnostic models. These models allow the in-cylinder emissions and the temperature of the burned and unburned zones to be evaluated as functions of the crankshaft angle. The EGR mass fraction was experimentally varied within the 0–50% range. The results of the investigation have shown the influence that high EGR rates can have on intake and exhaust temperatures, in-cylinder pressure and heat release rate time histories, engine-out emissions (CO, HC, NO_x, soot), brake specific fuel consumption and combustion noise for a PCCI type combustion strategy. The outputs of the diagnostic models have been used to conduct a detailed analysis of the cause-and-effect relationships between the EGR rate variations and the engine performance. Finally, the effect of the EGR on the cycle-to-cycle variability of the engine torque has been experimentally investigated.

Overheads, Safety Analysis and Engineering FY 1995 Site Support Program Plan WBS 6.3.5

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

DiVincenzo, E.P.

1994-09-27

The Safety Analysis & Engineering (SA&E) department provides core competency for safety analysis and risk documentation that supports achievement of the goals and mission as described in the Hanford Mission Plan, Volume I, Site Guidance (DOE-RL 1993). SA&E operations are integrated into the programs that plan and conduct safe waste management, environmental restoration, and operational activities. SA&E personnel are key members of task teams assigned to eliminate urgent risks and inherent threats that exist at the Hanford Site. Key to ensuring protection of public health and safety, and that of onsite workers, are the products and services provided by the department. SA&E will continue to provide a leadership role throughout the DOE complex with innovative, cost-effective approaches to ensuring safety during environmental cleanup operations. The SA&E mission is to provide support to direct program operations through safety analysis and risk documentation and to maintain an infrastructure responsive to the evolutionary climate at the Hanford Site. SA&E will maintain the appropriate skills mix necessary to fulfill the customers need to conduct all operations in a safe and cost-effective manner while ensuring the safety of the public and the onsite worker.

Cost-benefit comparison of nuclear and nonnuclear health and safety protective measures and regulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Donnell, E.P.; Mauro, J.J.

1979-01-01

This article compares the costs and benefits of health and safety measures and regulations in the nuclear and nonnuclear fields. A cost-benefit methodology for nuclear safety concerns is presented and applied to existing nuclear plant engineered safety features. Comparisons in terms of investment costs to achieve reductions in mortality rates are then made between nuclear plant safety features and the protective measures and regulations associated with nonnuclear risks, particularly with coal-fired power plants. These comparisons reveal a marked inconsistency in the cost effectiveness of health and safety policy, in which nuclear regulatory policy requires much greater investments to reduce the risk of public mortality than is required in nonnuclear areas where reductions in mortality rates could be achieved at much lower cost. A specific example of regulatory disparity regarding gaseous effluent limits for nuclear and fossil-fuel power plants is presented. It is concluded that a consistent health and safety regulatory policy based on uniform risk and cost-benefit criteria should be adopted and that future proposed Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulatory requirements should be critically evaluated from a cost-benefit viewpoint

Investigation of ability to guess safety signs based on cognitive features in one of the petrochemical industries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. A. Shirali

2015-07-01

.Conclusion: According to results of this study, use of principles of ergonomic design of signs and training are necessary to promote the ability to guess the safety signs to the minimum available standards. Therefore, it is possible to balance cognitive features especially “familiarity”, with the lowest score, and “meaningfulness” and “semantic closeness”, with the highest influential relationship with the ability to guess of signs. The developed regression model for this industry can be used to predict the ability to guess of safety signs in future studies

Safety case for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. Features, events and processes 2012

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-12-15

Features, Events and Processes sits within Posiva Oy's Safety Case 'TURVA-2012' portfolio and has the objective of presenting the main features, events and processes (FEPs) that are considered to be potentially significant for the long-term safety of the planned KBS-3V repository for spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. The primary purpose of this report is to support Performance Assessment, Formulation of Radionuclide Release Scenarios, Assessment of the Radionuclide Release Scenarios for the Repository System and Biosphere Assessment by ensuring that the scenarios are comprehensive and take account of all significant FEPs. The main FEPs potentially affecting the disposal system are described for each relevant subsystem component or barrier (i.e. the spent nuclear fuel, the canister, the buffer and tunnel backfill, the auxiliary components, the geosphere and the surface environment). In addition, a small number of external FEPs that may potentially influence the evolution of the disposal system are described. The conceptual understanding and operation of each FEP is described, together with the main features (variables) of the disposal system that may affect its occurrence or significance. Olkiluoto-specific issues are considered when relevant. The main uncertainties (conceptual and parameter/data) associated with each FEP that may affect understanding are also documented. Indicative parameter values are provided, in some cases, to illustrate the magnitude or rate of a process, but it is not the intention of this report to provide the complete set of numerical values that are used in the quantitative safety assessment calculations. Many of the FEPs are interdependent and, therefore, the descriptions also identify the most important direct couplings between the FEPs. This information is used in the formulation of scenarios to ensure the conceptual models and calculational cases are both comprehensive and representative. (orig.)

Safety case for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. Features, events and processes 2012

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2012-12-15

Features, Events and Processes sits within Posiva Oy's Safety Case 'TURVA-2012' portfolio and has the objective of presenting the main features, events and processes (FEPs) that are considered to be potentially significant for the long-term safety of the planned KBS-3V repository for spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. The primary purpose of this report is to support Performance Assessment, Formulation of Radionuclide Release Scenarios, Assessment of the Radionuclide Release Scenarios for the Repository System and Biosphere Assessment by ensuring that the scenarios are comprehensive and take account of all significant FEPs. The main FEPs potentially affecting the disposal system are described for each relevant subsystem component or barrier (i.e. the spent nuclear fuel, the canister, the buffer and tunnel backfill, the auxiliary components, the geosphere and the surface environment). In addition, a small number of external FEPs that may potentially influence the evolution of the disposal system are described. The conceptual understanding and operation of each FEP is described, together with the main features (variables) of the disposal system that may affect its occurrence or significance. Olkiluoto-specific issues are considered when relevant. The main uncertainties (conceptual and parameter/data) associated with each FEP that may affect understanding are also documented. Indicative parameter values are provided, in some cases, to illustrate the magnitude or rate of a process, but it is not the intention of this report to provide the complete set of numerical values that are used in the quantitative safety assessment calculations. Many of the FEPs are interdependent and, therefore, the descriptions also identify the most important direct couplings between the FEPs. This information is used in the formulation of scenarios to ensure the conceptual models and calculational cases are both comprehensive and representative. (orig.)

Safety case for the disposal of spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. Features, events and processes 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2012-12-01

Features, Events and Processes sits within Posiva Oy's Safety Case 'TURVA-2012' portfolio and has the objective of presenting the main features, events and processes (FEPs) that are considered to be potentially significant for the long-term safety of the planned KBS-3V repository for spent nuclear fuel at Olkiluoto. The primary purpose of this report is to support Performance Assessment, Formulation of Radionuclide Release Scenarios, Assessment of the Radionuclide Release Scenarios for the Repository System and Biosphere Assessment by ensuring that the scenarios are comprehensive and take account of all significant FEPs. The main FEPs potentially affecting the disposal system are described for each relevant subsystem component or barrier (i.e. the spent nuclear fuel, the canister, the buffer and tunnel backfill, the auxiliary components, the geosphere and the surface environment). In addition, a small number of external FEPs that may potentially influence the evolution of the disposal system are described. The conceptual understanding and operation of each FEP is described, together with the main features (variables) of the disposal system that may affect its occurrence or significance. Olkiluoto-specific issues are considered when relevant. The main uncertainties (conceptual and parameter/data) associated with each FEP that may affect understanding are also documented. Indicative parameter values are provided, in some cases, to illustrate the magnitude or rate of a process, but it is not the intention of this report to provide the complete set of numerical values that are used in the quantitative safety assessment calculations. Many of the FEPs are interdependent and, therefore, the descriptions also identify the most important direct couplings between the FEPs. This information is used in the formulation of scenarios to ensure the conceptual models and calculational cases are both comprehensive and representative. (orig.)

Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) Environmental Restoration (ER) Program Baseline Safety Analysis File (BSAF)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1995-09-01

The Baseline Safety Analysis File (BSAF) is a facility safety reference document for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) environmental restoration activities. The BSAF contains information and guidance for safety analysis documentation required by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for environmental restoration (ER) activities, including: Characterization of potentially contaminated sites. Remedial investigations to identify and remedial actions to clean up existing and potential releases from inactive waste sites Decontamination and dismantlement of surplus facilities. The information is INEL-specific and is in the format required by DOE-EM-STD-3009-94, Preparation Guide for U.S. Department of Energy Nonreactor Nuclear Facility Safety Analysis Reports. An author of safety analysis documentation need only write information concerning that activity and refer to BSAF for further information or copy applicable chapters and sections. The information and guidance provided are suitable for: sm-bullet Nuclear facilities (DOE Order 5480-23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports) with hazards that meet the Category 3 threshold (DOE-STD-1027-92, Hazard Categorization and Accident Analysis Techniques for Compliance with DOE Order 5480.23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports) sm-bullet Radiological facilities (DOE-EM-STD-5502-94, Hazard Baseline Documentation) Nonnuclear facilities (DOE-EM-STD-5502-94) that are classified as open-quotes lowclose quotes hazard facilities (DOE Order 5481.1B, Safety Analysis and Review System). Additionally, the BSAF could be used as an information source for Health and Safety Plans and for Safety Analysis Reports (SARs) for nuclear facilities with hazards equal to or greater than the Category 2 thresholds, or for nonnuclear facilities with open-quotes moderateclose quotes or open-quotes highclose quotes hazard classifications

Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) Environmental Restoration (ER) Program Baseline Safety Analysis File (BSAF)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-09-01

The Baseline Safety Analysis File (BSAF) is a facility safety reference document for the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) environmental restoration activities. The BSAF contains information and guidance for safety analysis documentation required by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for environmental restoration (ER) activities, including: Characterization of potentially contaminated sites. Remedial investigations to identify and remedial actions to clean up existing and potential releases from inactive waste sites Decontamination and dismantlement of surplus facilities. The information is INEL-specific and is in the format required by DOE-EM-STD-3009-94, Preparation Guide for U.S. Department of Energy Nonreactor Nuclear Facility Safety Analysis Reports. An author of safety analysis documentation need only write information concerning that activity and refer to BSAF for further information or copy applicable chapters and sections. The information and guidance provided are suitable for: {sm_bullet} Nuclear facilities (DOE Order 5480-23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports) with hazards that meet the Category 3 threshold (DOE-STD-1027-92, Hazard Categorization and Accident Analysis Techniques for Compliance with DOE Order 5480.23, Nuclear Safety Analysis Reports) {sm_bullet} Radiological facilities (DOE-EM-STD-5502-94, Hazard Baseline Documentation) Nonnuclear facilities (DOE-EM-STD-5502-94) that are classified as {open_quotes}low{close_quotes} hazard facilities (DOE Order 5481.1B, Safety Analysis and Review System). Additionally, the BSAF could be used as an information source for Health and Safety Plans and for Safety Analysis Reports (SARs) for nuclear facilities with hazards equal to or greater than the Category 2 thresholds, or for nonnuclear facilities with {open_quotes}moderate{close_quotes} or {open_quotes}high{close_quotes} hazard classifications.

Technical and institutional safety features of nuclear power plants in Brazil. Aspectos tecnicos e institucionais da seguranca dos reatores nucleares no Brasil

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rosa, L P [Sociedade Brasileira de Fisica, Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

1986-01-01

This work reports technical, political and institutional safety features of nuclear power plants in Brazil. It is mainly concerned with reactor accidents and personnel safety. The three mile Island and Chernobyl accidents are also discussed and taken as examples. (A.C.A.S.).

CANDU combined cycles featuring gas-turbine engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vecchiarelli, J.; Choy, E.; Peryoga, Y.; Aryono, N.A.

1998-01-01

In the present study, a power-plant analysis is conducted to evaluate the thermodynamic merit of various CANDU combined cycles in which continuously operating gas-turbine engines are employed as a source of class IV power restoration. It is proposed to utilize gas turbines in future CANDU power plants, for sites (such as Indonesia) where natural gas or other combustible fuels are abundant. The primary objective is to eliminate the standby diesel-generators (which serve as a backup supply of class III power) since they are nonproductive and expensive. In the proposed concept, the gas turbines would: (1) normally operate on a continuous basis and (2) serve as a reliable backup supply of class IV power (the Gentilly-2 nuclear power plant uses standby gas turbines for this purpose). The backup class IV power enables the plant to operate in poison-prevent mode until normal class IV power is restored. This feature is particularly beneficial to countries with relatively small and less stable grids. Thermodynamically, the advantage of the proposed concept is twofold. Firstly, the operation of the gas-turbine engines would directly increase the net (electrical) power output and the overall thermal efficiency of a CANDU power plant. Secondly, the hot exhaust gases from the gas turbines could be employed to heat water in the CANDU Balance Of Plant (BOP) and therefore improve the thermodynamic performance of the BOP. This may be accomplished via several different combined-cycle configurations, with no impact on the current CANDU Nuclear Steam Supply System (NSSS) full-power operating conditions when each gas turbine is at maximum power. For instance, the hot exhaust gases may be employed for feedwater preheating and steam reheating and/or superheating; heat exchange could be accomplished in a heat recovery steam generator, as in conventional gas-turbine combined-cycle plants. The commercially available GateCycle power plant analysis program was applied to conduct a

Perspective channel-type reactor with enhanced safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adamov, E.O.; Grozdov, I.I.; Kuznetsov, S.P.; Petrov, A.A.; Rozhdestvensky, M.I.; Cherkashov, Yu.M.

1994-01-01

Following the search for new design solutions to develop within the framework of channel trends the reactor with enhanced safety the Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering has developed the design of the multiloop boiling water reactor (MKER). The MKER enhanced safety is attained when involving the inherent safety features, passive safety systems as well as the accident consequences confinement devices. The design realizes several advantages which are typical of the channel-type reactors, namely: The design desintegration simplifying the manufacture, control, equipment delivery and decreasing, versus the pressure vessel reactors, the accident effect if it proceeds in an explosive manner; small operating reactivity margin and fuel burnup increased due to continuous refuelling; fuel cycle flexibility allowing comparatively easily to adopt the reactor to the conjuncture of the country fuel balance; multiloop circuit of the main coolant which reduces the degree and effect of the accidents connected with the equipment and pipings rupture; monitoring of the channels and fuel assemblies leak-tightness. (orig.)

MORT: a safety management program developed for ERDA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-03-01

ERDA's System Safety Development Center (SSDC) is located at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory under the EG and G Idaho, Inc., contract administered by the Idaho Operations Office. The SSDC performs a variety of tasks for ERDA's Division of Safety, Standards, and Compliance, for the purpose of improvement and application of safety program elements. Primary among these tasks are development and demonstration of new methodologies, training, consultation, and technical writing. This information package (ERDA 77-38) is an example of the later task, aimed at communicating to a general audience the nature and purpose of major features of the Management Oversight and Risk Tree (MORT) program. The SSDC also originates a guideline series of monographs (the ERDA 76-45 series) for individuals who desire more specific explanations of the MORT program

Demonstrated operational and inherent safety of the prototype fast reactor (PFR)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smedley, J.A.; Gregory, C.V.; Judd, A.M.

1983-01-01

The Prototype Fast Reactor (PFR) is sited at Dounreay, on the north coast of Scotland in the United Kingdom, and has been in operation since 1974. Three aspects of the safety of the reactor are described, including the all-important practical consideration of operational safety, a demonstration of the limited consequences of a sodium/water reaction in a steam generator and the ability of the reactor to protect itself against highly improbable incidents. Attention is drawn to the low radiation levels in the plant and the correspondingly low dose rate to personnel. A feature of PFR operation has been the stable and predictable behaviour of its core together with the high degree of reliability exhibited by the engineered safety system. No failures have occurred within the standard driver charge but two experimental fuel pins suffered cladding failure, which was detected easily by the fission gas and delayed neutron detection systems. In the steam generating units sodium and water are separated by the single steel wall of the steam tubes. Although no under-sodium leak has occurred, an experimental programme is continuing and demonstrates that were any such leak to occur its consequences would be containable and would not result in the release of sodium to the environment or any breach of the reactor containment. The final section describes the inherent safety features of the reactor which enable it to survive a range of very improbable incidents even when the engineered safeguards fail. The features considered are natural circulation, which has been demonstrated by reactor experiment; the reactor's negative power coefficient, which, for example, enables the reactor to survive a complete loss of heat sink; and the durability of the fuel pins, demonstrated by a series of boiling experiments in the Dounreay Fast Reactor (DFR). (author)

Safety Research Experiment Facilities, Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, Idaho. Draft environmental statement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1977-01-01

This environmental statement was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) in support of the Energy Research and Development Administration's (ERDA) proposal for legislative authorization and appropriations for the Safety Research Experiment Facilities (SAREF) Project. The purpose of the proposed project is to modify some existing facilities and provide a new test facility at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) for conducting fast breeder reactor (FBR) safety experiments. The SAREF Project proposal has been developed after an extensive study which identified the FBR safety research needs requiring in-reactor experiments and which evaluated the capability of various existing and new facilities to meet these needs. The proposed facilities provide for the in-reactor testing of large bundles of prototypical FBR fuel elements under a wide variety of conditions, ranging from those abnormal operating conditions which might be expected to occur during the life of an FBR power plant to the extremely low probability, hypothetical accidents used in the evalution of some design options and in the assessment of the long-term potential risk associated with wide-scale deployment of the FBR

FBR Plant Engineering Center annual report 2012

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2013-12-01

This annual report shows the last year's R and D activities of currently-reorganized FBR Plant Engineering Center, which was established on April 1, 2009. FBR Safety Technology Center was founded on April 1, 2013 by the consolidation of both the activities of 'former FBR Plant Engineering Center' and a portion of 'FBR Safety Evaluation Unit, Advanced Nuclear System Research and Development Directorate', especially concentrating on safety evaluations and analyses for severe accidents. As for FBR safety technology, it is necessary to continuously make an effort for compliance with new safety regulations in preparation for 'Monju' to restart, for safety enhancement evaluation and for safety technology upgrading. In this context, the new organization was founded in order to reinforce the safety evaluation capability, which will surely and steadily promote FBR safety-technology related activities. As a result, FBR Plant Engineering Center was abolished. This report summarizes the R and D activities at the former FBR Plant Engineering Center, aiming at contributing to the commercialization by using operation experiences and technology development results derived from the actual reactor 'Monju'. The activities are divided into five areas of operation-and-maintenance engineering, sodium engineering, reactor-core-and-fuel engineering, plant engineering, and safety engineering. This annual report is intended for a report of the activities of individual researcher in the center rather than that of the progress of the center as a whole. This will clarify the individual themes, progresses and problems of each researcher, which will, hopefully, facilitate communication with the outside researchers. (author)

V&V Plan for FPGA-based ESF-CCS Using System Engineering Approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Maerani, Restu; Mayaka, Joyce; El Akrat, Mohamed; Cheon, Jung Jae

2018-02-01

Instrumentation and Control (I&C) systems play an important role in maintaining the safety of Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) operation. However, most current I&C safety systems are based on Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) hardware, which is difficult to verify and validate, and is susceptible to software common cause failure. Therefore, a plan for the replacement of the PLC-based safety systems, such as the Engineered Safety Feature - Component Control System (ESF-CCS), with Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) is needed. By using a systems engineering approach, which ensures traceability in every phase of the life cycle, from system requirements, design implementation to verification and validation, the system development is guaranteed to be in line with the regulatory requirements. The Verification process will ensure that the customer and stakeholder’s needs are satisfied in a high quality, trustworthy, cost efficient and schedule compliant manner throughout a system’s entire life cycle. The benefit of the V&V plan is to ensure that the FPGA based ESF-CCS is correctly built, and to ensure that the measurement of performance indicators has positive feedback that “do we do the right thing” during the re-engineering process of the FPGA based ESF-CCS.

Safety Evaluation Approach with Security Controls for Safety I and C Systems on Nuclear Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, D. H.; Jeong, S. Y.; Kim, Y. M.; Park, H. S.; Lee, M. S.; Kim, T. H.

2016-01-01

This paper addresses concepts of safety and security and relations between them for assessing effects of security features in safety systems. Also, evaluation approach for avoiding confliction with safety requirements and cyber security features which may be adopted in safety-related digital I and C system will be described. In this paper, safety-security life cycle model based confliction avoidance method was proposed to evaluate the effects when the cyber security control features are implemented in the safety I and C system. Also, safety effect evaluation results using the proposed evaluation method were described. In case of technical security controls, many of them are expected to conflict with safety requirements, otherwise operational and managerial controls are not relatively. Safety measures and cyber security measures for nuclear power plants should be implemented not to conflict with one another. Where safety function and security features are both required within the systems, and also where security features are implemented within safety systems, they should be justified

Safety Evaluation Approach with Security Controls for Safety I and C Systems on Nuclear Power Plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, D. H.; Jeong, S. Y.; Kim, Y. M.; Park, H. S. [KINS, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, M. S.; Kim, T. H. [Formal Works Inc., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

This paper addresses concepts of safety and security and relations between them for assessing effects of security features in safety systems. Also, evaluation approach for avoiding confliction with safety requirements and cyber security features which may be adopted in safety-related digital I and C system will be described. In this paper, safety-security life cycle model based confliction avoidance method was proposed to evaluate the effects when the cyber security control features are implemented in the safety I and C system. Also, safety effect evaluation results using the proposed evaluation method were described. In case of technical security controls, many of them are expected to conflict with safety requirements, otherwise operational and managerial controls are not relatively. Safety measures and cyber security measures for nuclear power plants should be implemented not to conflict with one another. Where safety function and security features are both required within the systems, and also where security features are implemented within safety systems, they should be justified.

Technical evaluation of the noise and isolation testing of the safety features actuation system at the Davis Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Selan, J.C.

1981-07-01

This report documents the technical evaluation of the noise and isolation testing of the safety features actuation system at the Davis Besse Nuclear Power Station, Unit 1. The tests were to verify that faults on the non-Class 1E circuits would not propagate to the Class 1E circuits and degrade them below acceptable levels. The tests conducted demonstrated that the safety features actuation system did not degrade below acceptable levels nor was the system's ability to perform its protective functions affected

An Online Risk Monitor System (ORMS) to Increase Safety and Security Levels in Industry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zubair, M; Ur Rahman, Khalil; Ul Hassan, Mehmood

2013-01-01

The main idea of this research is to develop an Online Risk Monitor System (ORMS) based on Living Probabilistic Safety Assessment (LPSA). The article highlights the essential features and functions of ORMS. The basic models and modules such as, Reliability Data Update Model (RDUM), running time update, redundant system unavailability update, Engineered Safety Features (ESF) unavailability update and general system update have been described in this study. ORMS not only provides quantitative analysis but also highlights qualitative aspects of risk measures. ORMS is capable of automatically updating the online risk models and reliability parameters of equipment. ORMS can support in the decision making process of operators and managers in Nuclear Power Plants

An Online Risk Monitor System (ORMS) to Increase Safety and Security Levels in Industry

Science.gov (United States)

Zubair, M.; Rahman, Khalil Ur; Hassan, Mehmood Ul

2013-12-01

The main idea of this research is to develop an Online Risk Monitor System (ORMS) based on Living Probabilistic Safety Assessment (LPSA). The article highlights the essential features and functions of ORMS. The basic models and modules such as, Reliability Data Update Model (RDUM), running time update, redundant system unavailability update, Engineered Safety Features (ESF) unavailability update and general system update have been described in this study. ORMS not only provides quantitative analysis but also highlights qualitative aspects of risk measures. ORMS is capable of automatically updating the online risk models and reliability parameters of equipment. ORMS can support in the decision making process of operators and managers in Nuclear Power Plants.

Development of a safety case editor with assessment features

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Luo, Y.; Li, Z.; van den Brand, M.G.J.

2016-01-01

A safety case is an argumentation for showing confidence in the claimed safety assurance of a system, which should be comprehensible and well-structured. Typically, safety cases are represented in plain text, but the structure of safety cases might become ambiguous and unclear. To address this, the

A Simple Fully Passive Safety Option for SMART SBLOCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Won Jae

2012-01-01

SMART reactor, an integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR), is developed by KAERI and now under standard design licensing review. Integral reactor design of the SMART has small diameter penetrations below 2 inches at upper parts of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and the core is located at very lower part. Amount of reactor coolant inventory is around 0.55tons/MWth during normal operations, which is seven times more than that of conventional PWRs. Such intrinsic safety features of the SMART can provide prolonged core cooling during a small-break loss-of-coolant accident (SBLOCA). As an engineered safety feature for SBLOCA, electrically two-train and mechanically four-train active safety injection (SI) systems are provided to refill the RPV, whose safety been proven through safety analysis and experiments. In addition, four-train passive residual heat removal systems (PRHRSs) are provided to remove core decay heat by natural circulation in the secondary side of steam generators during transient and accident conditions. After Fukushima disaster, a passive safety of nuclear power plants has become more emphasized than conventional active safety, even though there are still debates whether it can really insure the realistic safety. Passive safety is defined such that the core safety is ensured for 72 hours after accidents without any active safety systems and operator actions. In light of this, a simple fully passive safety option for SBLOCA is proposed: low-pressure safety injection tanks (SITs) and heat pipes submerged in the PRHRS emergency coolant tanks (ECTs). Post-LOCA long-term cooling after 72 hours is provided by sump recirculation using shutdown cooling system. Realistic analysis method using MARS3.1 is used to derive fully passive safety option, and then to screen design and operating parameters and to demonstrate the safety performance of SITs. SI line break is selected as a reference SBLOCA scenario

NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) Enhanced Melamine (ML) Foam Acoustic Test (NEMFAT)

Science.gov (United States)

McNelis, Anne M.; Hughes, William O.; McNelis, Mark E.

2014-01-01

The NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) funded a proposal to achieve initial basic acoustic characterization of ML (melamine) foam, which could serve as a starting point for a future, more comprehensive acoustic test program for ML foam. A project plan was developed and implemented to obtain acoustic test data for both normal and enhanced ML foam. This project became known as the NESC Enhanced Melamine Foam Acoustic Test (NEMFAT). This document contains the outcome of the NEMFAT project.

Nitrous Oxide/Paraffin Hybrid Rocket Engines

Science.gov (United States)

Zubrin, Robert; Snyder, Gary

2010-01-01

Nitrous oxide/paraffin (N2OP) hybrid rocket engines have been invented as alternatives to other rocket engines especially those that burn granular, rubbery solid fuels consisting largely of hydroxyl- terminated polybutadiene (HTPB). Originally intended for use in launching spacecraft, these engines would also be suitable for terrestrial use in rocket-assisted takeoff of small airplanes. The main novel features of these engines are (1) the use of reinforced paraffin as the fuel and (2) the use of nitrous oxide as the oxidizer. Hybrid (solid-fuel/fluid-oxidizer) rocket engines offer advantages of safety and simplicity over fluid-bipropellant (fluid-fuel/fluid-oxidizer) rocket en - gines, but the thrusts of HTPB-based hybrid rocket engines are limited by the low regression rates of the fuel grains. Paraffin used as a solid fuel has a regression rate about 4 times that of HTPB, but pure paraffin fuel grains soften when heated; hence, paraffin fuel grains can, potentially, slump during firing. In a hybrid engine of the present type, the paraffin is molded into a 3-volume-percent graphite sponge or similar carbon matrix, which supports the paraffin against slumping during firing. In addition, because the carbon matrix material burns along with the paraffin, engine performance is not appreciably degraded by use of the matrix.

SU-E-T-785: Using Systems Engineering to Design HDR Skin Treatment Operation for Small Lesions to Enhance Patient Safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Saw, C; Baikadi, M; Peters, C; Brereton, H

2015-01-01

Purpose: Using systems engineering to design HDR skin treatment operation for small lesions using shielded applicators to enhance patient safety. Methods: Systems engineering is an interdisciplinary field that offers formal methodologies to study, design, implement, and manage complex engineering systems as a whole over their life-cycles. The methodologies deal with human work-processes, coordination of different team, optimization, and risk management. The V-model of systems engineering emphasize two streams, the specification and the testing streams. The specification stream consists of user requirements, functional requirements, and design specifications while the testing on installation, operational, and performance specifications. In implementing system engineering to this project, the user and functional requirements are (a) HDR unit parameters be downloaded from the treatment planning system, (b) dwell times and positions be generated by treatment planning system, (c) source decay be computer calculated, (d) a double-check system of treatment parameters to comply with the NRC regulation. These requirements are intended to reduce human intervention to improve patient safety. Results: A formal investigation indicated that the user requirements can be satisfied. The treatment operation consists of using the treatment planning system to generate a pseudo plan that is adjusted for different shielded applicators to compute the dwell times. The dwell positions, channel numbers, and the dwell times are verified by the medical physicist and downloaded into the HDR unit. The decayed source strength is transferred to a spreadsheet that computes the dwell times based on the type of applicators and prescribed dose used. Prior to treatment, the source strength, dwell times, dwell positions, and channel numbers are double-checked by the radiation oncologist. No dosimetric parameters are manually calculated. Conclusion: Systems engineering provides methodologies to

Time Based Workload Analysis Method for Safety-Related Operator Actions in Safety Analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Yun Goo; Oh, Eung Se [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

During the design basis event, the safety system performs safety functions to mitigate the event. The most of safety system is actuated by automatic system however, there are operator manual actions that are needed for the plant safety. These operator actions are classified as important human actions in human factors engineering design. The human factors engineering analysis and evaluation is needed for these important human actions to assure that operator successfully perform their tasks for plant safety and operational goals. The work load analysis is one of the required analysis for the important human actions.

Time Based Workload Analysis Method for Safety-Related Operator Actions in Safety Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Yun Goo; Oh, Eung Se

2016-01-01

During the design basis event, the safety system performs safety functions to mitigate the event. The most of safety system is actuated by automatic system however, there are operator manual actions that are needed for the plant safety. These operator actions are classified as important human actions in human factors engineering design. The human factors engineering analysis and evaluation is needed for these important human actions to assure that operator successfully perform their tasks for plant safety and operational goals. The work load analysis is one of the required analysis for the important human actions.

Tools for plant safety engineer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fabic, S.

1996-01-01

This paper contains: - review of tools for monitoring plant safety equipment reliability and readiness, before and accident (performance indicators for monitoring the risk and reliability performance and for determining when degraded performance alert levels are achieved) - brief reviews of tools for use during an accident: Emergency Operating Procedures (EOPs), Emergency Response Data System (ERDS), Reactor Safety Assessment System (RSAS), Computerized Accident Management Support

Novel modular natural circulation BWR design and safety evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishii, Mamoru; Shi, Shanbin; Yang, Won Sik; Wu, Zeyun; Rassame, Somboon; Liu, Yang

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Introduction of BWR-type natural circulation small modular reactor preliminary design (NMR-50). • Design of long fuel cycle length for the NMR-50. • Design of double passive safety systems for the NMR-50. • RELAP5 analyses of design basis accidents for the NMR-50. - Abstract: The Purdue NMR (Novel Modular Reactor) represents a BWR-type small modular reactor with a significantly reduced reactor pressure vessel (RPV) height. Specifically, it has one third the height of a conventional BWR RPV with an electrical output of 50 MWe. The preliminary design of the NMR-50 including reactor, fuel cycle, and safety systems is described and discussed. The improved neutronics design of the NMR-50 extends the fuel cycle length up to 10 years. The NMR-50 is designed with double passive engineering safety system, which is intended to withstand a prolonged station black out with loss of ultimate heat sink accident such as experienced at Fukushima. In order to evaluate the safety features of the NMR-50, two representative design basis accidents, i.e. main steam line break (MSLB) and bottom drain line break (BDLB), are simulated by using the best-estimate thermal–hydraulic code RELAP5. The RPV water inventory, containment pressure, and the performance of engineering safety systems are investigated for about 33 h after the initiation of the accidents

A proactive method for safety management in nuclear facilities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grecco, Claudio Henrique dos Santos; Carvalho, Paulo Victor Rodrigues de; Santos, Isaac Antonio Luquetti dos

2014-01-01

Due to the modern approach to address the safety of nuclear facilities which highlights that these organizations must be able to assess and proactively manage their activities becomes increasingly important the need for instruments to evaluate working conditions. In this context, this work presents a proactive method of managing organizational safety, which has three innovative features: 1) the use of predictive indicators that provide current information on the performance of activities, allowing preventive actions and not just reactive in safety management, different from safety indicators traditionally used (reactive indicators) that are obtained after the occurrence of undesired events; 2) the adoption of resilience engineering approach in the development of indicators - indicators are based on six principles of resilience engineering: top management commitment, learning, flexibility, awareness, culture of justice and preparation for the problems; 3) the adoption of the concepts and properties of fuzzy set theory to deal with subjectivity and consistency of human trials in the evaluation of the indicators. The fuzzy theory is used primarily to map qualitative models of decision-making, and inaccurate representation methods. The results of this study aim an improvement in performance and safety in organizations. The method was applied in a radiopharmaceutical shipping sector of a nuclear facility. The results showed that the method is a good monitoring tool objectively and proactively of the working conditions of an organizational domain

Operational safety assessment of underground test facilities for mined geologic waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elder, H.K.

1993-01-01

This paper describes the operational safety assessment for the underground facilities for the exploratory studies facility (ESF) at the Yucca Mountain Project. The systematic identification and evaluation of hazards related to the ESF is an integral part of the systems engineering process; whereby safety is considered during planning, design, testing, and construction. A largely qualitative approach based on the analysis of potential accidents was used since radiological safety analysis was not required. The risk assessment summarized credible accident scenarios and the design provides mitigation of the risks to a level that the facility can be constructed and operated with an adequate level of safety. The risk assessment also provides reasonable assurance that all identifiable major accident scenarios have been reviewed and design mitigation features provided to ensure an adequate level of safety

Design Review Report for formal review of safety class features of exhauster system for rotary mode core sampling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

JANICEK, G.P.

2000-01-01

Report documenting Formal Design Review conducted on portable exhausters used to support rotary mode core sampling of Hanford underground radioactive waste tanks with focus on Safety Class design features and control requirements for flammable gas environment operation and air discharge permitting compliance

Design Review Report for formal review of safety class features of exhauster system for rotary mode core sampling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

JANICEK, G.P.

2000-06-08

Report documenting Formal Design Review conducted on portable exhausters used to support rotary mode core sampling of Hanford underground radioactive waste tanks with focus on Safety Class design features and control requirements for flammable gas environment operation and air discharge permitting compliance.

Overheads, Safety Analysis and Engineering FY 1995 Site Support Program Plan WBS 6.3.5

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

DiVincenzo, E.P.

1994-01-01

The Safety Analysis ampersand Engineering (SA ampersand E) department provides core competency for safety analysis and risk documentation that supports achievement of the goals and mission as described in the Hanford Mission Plan, Volume I, Site Guidance (DOE-RL 1993). SA ampersand E operations are integrated into the programs that plan and conduct safe waste management, environmental restoration, and operational activities. SA ampersand E personnel are key members of task teams assigned to eliminate urgent risks and inherent threats that exist at the Hanford Site. Key to ensuring protection of public health and safety, and that of onsite workers, are the products and services provided by the department. SA ampersand E will continue to provide a leadership role throughout the DOE complex with innovative, cost-effective approaches to ensuring safety during environmental cleanup operations. The SA ampersand E mission is to provide support to direct program operations through safety analysis and risk documentation and to maintain an infrastructure responsive to the evolutionary climate at the Hanford Site. SA ampersand E will maintain the appropriate skills mix necessary to fulfill the customers need to conduct all operations in a safe and cost-effective manner while ensuring the safety of the public and the onsite worker

India's power program and its concern over environmental safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prasad, G.E.; Mittra, J.

2001-01-01

India's need of electrical power is enormous and per capita consumption of power is to be increased at least by ten times to reach the level of world average. Thermal Power generation faces two fold problems. First, there is scarcity of good quality fuel and second, increasing environmental pollution. India's self reliant, three stage, 'closed-fuel-cycle' nuclear power program is promising better solution to the above problems. To ensure Radiation Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources, Indian Nuclear Power program emphasizes upon design and engineering safety by incorporating necessary safety features in the design, operational safety through structured training program and typically through software packages to handle rare unsafe events and regulation by complying safety directives. A health survey among the radiation workers indicates that there is no extra threat to the public from nuclear power program. Based on latest technology, as available in case of nuclear power option, it is quite possible to meet high energy requirement with least impact on the environment.. (authors)

Teaching science, technology, and society to engineering students: a sixteen year journey.

Science.gov (United States)

Ozaktas, Haldun M

2013-12-01

The course Science, Technology, and Society is taken by about 500 engineering students each year at Bilkent University, Ankara. Aiming to complement the highly technical engineering programs, it deals with the ethical, social, cultural, political, economic, legal, environment and sustainability, health and safety, reliability dimensions of science, technology, and engineering in a multidisciplinary fashion. The teaching philosophy and experiences of the instructor are reviewed. Community research projects have been an important feature of the course. Analysis of teaching style based on a multi-dimensional model is given. Results of outcome measurements performed for ABET assessment are provided. Challenges and solutions related to teaching a large class are discussed.

Engineer Ethics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Dae Sik; Kim, Yeong Pil; Kim, Yeong Jin

2003-03-01

This book tells of engineer ethics such as basic understanding of engineer ethics with history of engineering as a occupation, definition of engineering and specialized job and engineering, engineer ethics as professional ethics, general principles of ethics and its limitation, ethical theory and application, technique to solve the ethical problems, responsibility, safety and danger, information engineer ethics, biotechnological ethics like artificial insemination, life reproduction, gene therapy and environmental ethics.

TOWARDS FINANCING AND PLANNING ROAD SAFETY AUDIT OPERATIONS IN NIGERIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joshua Adetunji ODELEYE, M.Sc.

2000-01-01

Finally, this paper suggests commissioning of a National Road Research Fund, with a view to developing an efficient road safety audit operational system. Also, the introduction of private initiatives and a Community-based Approach in road administration, as well as decentralization of road administration framework at all levels, will greatly help “engineer out” potentially unsafe features across Nigerian roads, towards a better road traffic environment in the 21st century.

Comparison of advanced mid-sized reactors regarding passive features, core damage frequencies and core melt retention features

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wider, H.

2005-01-01

New Light Water Reactors, whose regular safety systems are complemented by passive safety systems, are ready for the market. The special aspect of passive safety features is their actuation and functioning independent of the operator. They add significantly to reduce the core damage frequency (CDF) since the operator continues to play its independent role in actuating the regular safety devices based on modern instrumentation and control (I and C). The latter also has passive features regarding the prevention of accidents. Two reactors with significant passive features that are presently offered on the market are the AP1000 PWR and the SWR 1000 BWR. Their passive features are compared and also their core damage frequencies (CDF). The latter are also compared with those of a VVER-1000. A further discussion about the two passive plants concerns their mitigating features for severe accidents. Regarding core-melt retention both rely on in-vessel cooling of the melt. The new VVER-1000 reactor, on the other hand features a validated ex-vessel concept. (author)

Russia power engineering and power safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

D'yakov, A.F.

1995-01-01

Results of work of the International consultative meeting: Russian-Europe: strategy of energy safety is described. The purpose of the meeting consisted in discussion of energy situation in Russia and Europe, prospects for provision of reliability, efficiency and safety of fuel and power supply in Russia and the role of the Russian fuel and power resonances in energy supply of Europe. The reporters at the meeting dealt with various aspects related to energy safety

Criticality safety evaluations - a open-quotes stalking horseclose quotes for integrated safety assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Williams, R.A.

1995-01-01

The Columbia Fuel Fabrication Facility of the Westinghouse Commercial Nuclear Fuel Division manufactures low-enriched uranium fuel and associated components for use in commercial pressurized water power reactors. To support development of a comprehensive integrated safety assessment (ISA) for the facility, as well as to address increasing U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) expectations regarding such a facility's criticality safety assessments, a project is under way to complete criticality safety evaluations (CSEs) of all plant systems used in processing nuclear materials. Each CSE is made up of seven sections, prepared by a multidisciplinary team of process engineers, systems engineers, safety engineers, maintenance representatives, and operators. This paper provides a cursory outline of the type of information presented in a CSE

76 FR 2199 - Locomotive Safety Standards

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-12

..., alcohol and drug testing, locomotive engineer certification, and workplace safety. In 1980, FRA issued the...) Association of State Rail Safety Managers (ASRSM) Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET... desirable to minimize the health and safety effects of temperature extremes. Depending upon the workplace...

Data-driven technology for engineering systems health management design approach, feature construction, fault diagnosis, prognosis, fusion and decisions

CERN Document Server

Niu, Gang

2017-01-01

This book introduces condition-based maintenance (CBM)/data-driven prognostics and health management (PHM) in detail, first explaining the PHM design approach from a systems engineering perspective, then summarizing and elaborating on the data-driven methodology for feature construction, as well as feature-based fault diagnosis and prognosis. The book includes a wealth of illustrations and tables to help explain the algorithms, as well as practical examples showing how to use this tool to solve situations for which analytic solutions are poorly suited. It equips readers to apply the concepts discussed in order to analyze and solve a variety of problems in PHM system design, feature construction, fault diagnosis and prognosis.

System safety education focused on industrial engineering

Science.gov (United States)

Johnston, W. L.; Morris, R. S.

1971-01-01

An educational program, designed to train students with the specific skills needed to become safety specialists, is described. The discussion concentrates on application, selection, and utilization of various system safety analytical approaches. Emphasis is also placed on the management of a system safety program, its relationship with other disciplines, and new developments and applications of system safety techniques.

The effectiveness of insurer-supported safety and health engineering controls in reducing workers' compensation claims and costs.

Science.gov (United States)

Wurzelbacher, Steven J; Bertke, Stephen J; Lampl, Michael P; Bushnell, P Timothy; Meyers, Alysha R; Robins, David C; Al-Tarawneh, Ibraheem S

2014-12-01

This study evaluated the effectiveness of a program in which a workers' compensation (WC) insurer provided matching funds to insured employers to implement safety/health engineering controls. Pre- and post-intervention WC metrics were compiled for the employees designated as affected by the interventions within 468 employers for interventions occurring from 2003 to 2009. Poisson, two-part, and linear regression models with repeated measures were used to evaluate differences in pre- and post-data, controlling for time trends independent of the interventions. For affected employees, total WC claim frequency rates (both medical-only and lost-time claims) decreased 66%, lost-time WC claim frequency rates decreased 78%, WC paid cost per employee decreased 81%, and WC geometric mean paid claim cost decreased 30% post-intervention. Reductions varied by employer size, specific industry, and intervention type. The insurer-supported safety/health engineering control program was effective in reducing WC claims and costs for affected employees. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A regression-based Kansei engineering system based on form feature lines for product form design

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yan Xiong

2016-06-01

Full Text Available When developing new products, it is important for a designer to understand users’ perceptions and develop product form with the corresponding perceptions. In order to establish the mapping between users’ perceptions and product design features effectively, in this study, we presented a regression-based Kansei engineering system based on form feature lines for product form design. First according to the characteristics of design concept representation, product form features–product form feature lines were defined. Second, Kansei words were chosen to describe image perceptions toward product samples. Then, multiple linear regression and support vector regression were used to construct the models, respectively, that predicted users’ image perceptions. Using mobile phones as experimental samples, Kansei prediction models were established based on the front view form feature lines of the samples. From the experimental results, these two predict models were of good adaptability. But in contrast to multiple linear regression, the predict performance of support vector regression model was better, and support vector regression is more suitable for form regression prediction. The results of the case showed that the proposed method provided an effective means for designers to manipulate product features as a whole, and it can optimize Kansei model and improve practical values.

SYSTEMS SAFETY ANALYSIS FOR FIRE EVENTS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ECRB CROSS DRIFT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

R. J. Garrett

2001-01-01

The purpose of this analysis is to systematically identify and evaluate fire hazards related to the Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project (YMP) Enhanced Characterization of the Repository Block (ECRB) East-West Cross Drift (commonly referred to as the ECRB Cross-Drift). This analysis builds upon prior Exploratory Studies Facility (ESF) System Safety Analyses and incorporates Topopah Springs (TS) Main Drift fire scenarios and ECRB Cross-Drift fire scenarios. Accident scenarios involving the fires in the Main Drift and the ECRB Cross-Drift were previously evaluated in ''Topopah Springs Main Drift System Safety Analysis'' (CRWMS M and O 1995) and the ''Yucca Mountain Site Characterization Project East-West Drift System Safety Analysis'' (CRWMS M and O 1998). In addition to listing required mitigation/control features, this analysis identifies the potential need for procedures and training as part of defense-in-depth mitigation/control features. The inclusion of this information in the System Safety Analysis (SSA) is intended to assist the organization(s) (e.g., Construction, Environmental Safety and Health, Design) responsible for these aspects of the ECRB Cross-Drift in developing mitigation/control features for fire events, including Emergency Refuge Station(s). This SSA was prepared, in part, in response to Condition/Issue Identification and Reporting/Resolution System (CIRS) item 1966. The SSA is an integral part of the systems engineering process, whereby safety is considered during planning, design, testing, and construction. A largely qualitative approach is used which incorporates operating experiences and recommendations from vendors, the constructor and the operating contractor. The risk assessment in this analysis characterizes the scenarios associated with fires in terms of relative risk and includes recommendations for mitigating all identified hazards. The priority for recommending and implementing mitigation control features is: (1) Incorporate

Improved design features of KSNP+ BOP Fluid System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Heung Gyu; Yoon, Kyung Sup

2002-01-01

KOPEC (Korea Power Engineering Co.) in conjunction with the client KHNP (Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co.) has been developing the KSNP + (Improved Korean Standard Nuclear Power Plants) design concept since 1998. The main objective of the KSNP + is to enhance safety and economy of KSNP. The design concepts of the KSNP + will be implemented in Shin-Kori Units 1 and 2 Shin-Wolsung Units 1 and 2. This paper provides on an introduction to the improved design features of the KSNP + BOP fluid system consisting of 45 design improvement items. The design improvement concepts of the BOP fluid system have been developed as follows: optimization of system configuration and capacity, simplification of system, and adoption of advanced design features. Improved design features of the BOP fluid system allow additional benefits due to making a contribution to the optimization of plant arrangement and the reduction of operating costs during the plant life time. In conclusion, design improvement to the BOP fluid system have contributed to the KSNP + design concept being more reliable, safe and economically competitive

Utility requirements for safety in the passive advanced light-water reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marston, T.U.; Layman, W.H.; Bockhold, G. Jr.

1993-01-01

The objective of the passive plant design is to use passive systems to replace all the active engineered safety systems presently used in light-water reactors. The benefits derived from such an approach to safety design are multiple. First, it is expected that a passive design approach will significantly simplify the overall plant design, including a reduction in the number of components, and reduce the operation and maintenance burden. Second, it is expected that the overall safety and reliability of the passive systems will be improved over active systems, which will result in extremely low risk to public health and safety. Third, challenges to the operating staff will be minimized during transient and emergency conditions, which will reduce the uncertainty associated with human behavior. Finally, it is expected that reliance on passive safety features will lead to a better understanding by the general public and recognition that a major improvement in public safety has been achieved

Design data and safety features of commercial nuclear power plants including cumulative index for Volumes I--VI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heddleson, F.A.

1977-01-01

Design data, safety features, and site characteristics are summarized for 12 nuclear power units in 6 power stations in the United States. Six pages of data are presented for each station, consisting of thermal-hydraulic and nuclear factors, containment features, emergency-core-cooling systems, site features, circulating water system data, and miscellaneous factors. In addition, an aerial perspective is presented for each plant. This volume covers plants with docket numbers 50-553 through 50-569 (Phipps Bend, Black Fox, Yellow Creek, and NEP) and two earlier plants not previously reported--Hope Creek (50-354, 50-355) and WPPSS 1 and 4 (50-460, 50-513). Indexes for this volume and the five earlier volumes are presented in three forms--by docket number, by plant name, and by participating utility