Practical Application of PRA as an Integrated Design Tool for Space Systems

Science.gov (United States)

Kalia, Prince; Shi, Ying; Pair, Robin; Quaney, Virginia; Uhlenbrock, John

2013-01-01

This paper presents the application of the first comprehensive Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) during the design phase of a joint NASA/NOAA weather satellite program, Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite Series R (GOES-R). GOES-R is the next generation weather satellite primarily to help understand the weather and help save human lives. PRA has been used at NASA for Human Space Flight for many years. PRA was initially adopted and implemented in the operational phase of manned space flight programs and more recently for the next generation human space systems. Since its first use at NASA, PRA has become recognized throughout the Agency as a method of assessing complex mission risks as part of an overall approach to assuring safety and mission success throughout project lifecycles. PRA is now included as a requirement during the design phase of both NASA next generation manned space vehicles as well as for high priority robotic missions. The influence of PRA on GOES-R design and operation concepts are discussed in detail. The GOES-R PRA is unique at NASA for its early implementation. It also represents a pioneering effort to integrate risks from both Spacecraft (SC) and Ground Segment (GS) to fully assess the probability of achieving mission objectives. PRA analysts were actively involved in system engineering and design engineering to ensure that a comprehensive set of technical risks were correctly identified and properly understood from a design and operations perspective. The analysis included an assessment of SC hardware and software, SC fault management system, GS hardware and software, common cause failures, human error, natural hazards, solar weather and infrastructure (such as network and telecommunications failures, fire). PRA findings directly resulted in design changes to reduce SC risk from micro-meteoroids. PRA results also led to design changes in several SC subsystems, e.g. propulsion, guidance, navigation and control (GNC

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA): A Practical and Cost Effective Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Lydia L.; Ingegneri, Antonino J.; Djam, Melody

2006-01-01

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) is the first mission of the Robotic Lunar Exploration Program (RLEP), a space exploration venture to the Moon, Mars and beyond. The LRO mission includes spacecraft developed by NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) and seven instruments built by GSFC, Russia, and contractors across the nation. LRO is defined as a measurement mission, not a science mission. It emphasizes the overall objectives of obtaining data to facilitate returning mankind safely to the Moon in preparation for an eventual manned mission to Mars. As the first mission in response to the President's commitment of the journey of exploring the solar system and beyond: returning to the Moon in the next decade, then venturing further into the solar system, ultimately sending humans to Mars and beyond, LRO has high-visibility to the public but limited resources and a tight schedule. This paper demonstrates how NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Mission project office incorporated reliability analyses in assessing risks and performing design tradeoffs to ensure mission success. Risk assessment is performed using NASA Procedural Requirements (NPR) 8705.5 - Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Procedures for NASA Programs and Projects to formulate probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). As required, a limited scope PRA is being performed for the LRO project. The PRA is used to optimize the mission design within mandated budget, manpower, and schedule constraints. The technique that LRO project office uses to perform PRA relies on the application of a component failure database to quantify the potential mission success risks. To ensure mission success in an efficient manner, low cost and tight schedule, the traditional reliability analyses, such as reliability predictions, Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA), and Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), are used to perform PRA for the large system of LRO with more than 14,000 piece parts and over 120 purchased or contractor

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) update in light of the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station - 15461

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maeda, K.; Abe, H.; Hirokawa, N.; Satou, C.

2015-01-01

We have performed internal and external event probabilistic risk assessments (PRA) for boiling water reactor power nuclear plants to identify the important accident sequence groups and to evaluate the effectiveness of the additional severe accident measures, regarding to the new regulatory requirements implemented after the accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station in Japan in 2011. In addition, we will further update our PRA by extracting problems and improvements from the current PRA, by catching up the state-of-the-art knowledge, modern PRA methodologies in order to contribute voluntarily to safety improvement as well as to comply with regulations. In this document, prior to the extensive PRA updates, we would describe technical contents and qualitative results about PRA updates that have been performed preliminary so far, especially about the external event (seismic) PRA and how to model the additionally deployed severe accident measures (e.g. power supply car, fire engine) so that they can be function external hazards, such as component failure rate of equipment, human reliability 'out of control room', and mission time extension. (authors)

PRA research and the development of risk-informed regulation at the U.S. nuclear regulatory commission

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siu, Nathan; Collins, Dorothy

2008-01-01

Over the years, Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) research activities conducted at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) have played an essential role in support of the agency's move towards risk-informed regulation. These research activities have provided the technical basis for NRC's regulatory activities in key areas; provided PRA methods, tools, and data enabling the agency to meet future challenges; supported the implementation of NRC's 1995 PRA Policy Statement by assessing key sources of risk; and supported the development of necessary technical and human resources supporting NRC's risk-informed activities. PRA research aimed at improving the NRC's understanding of risk can positively affect the agency's regulatory activities, as evidenced by three case studies involving research on fire PRA, Human Reliability Analysis (HRA), and Pressurized Thermal Shock (PTS) PRA. These case studies also show that such research can take a considerable amount of time, and that the incorporation of research results into regulatory practice can take even longer. The need for sustained effort and appropriate lead time is an important consideration in the development of a PRA research program aimed at helping the agency address key sources of risk for current and potential future facilities

PRA and the implementation of quantitative safety goals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okrent, D.

1983-01-01

With the adoption by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in January, 1983, of a Policy Statement on Safety Goals for the Operation of Nuclear Power Plants, probabilitstic risk assessment (PRA) has taken on increased importance in nuclear reactor safety. Although the Reactor Safety Study, WASH-1400, was a major pioneering effort that revolutionized thinking about reactor safety, PRA was used only on occasion by the NRC regulatory staff prior to the accident at Three Mile Island. Since then, PRA has been used more and more as an important factor in decision making, usually for specific issues. The nuclear industry has also employed PRA, sometimes to make its case on specific issues, sometimes to present a position on overall risk. The advent of the Zion and Indian Point PRAs, with their treatment of risks from fire, wind, and earthquakes, and their examination of the course of core melt accidents, has added a new dimension to the overall picture. Although the NRC has stated that during the next two year evolution period, its quantitative design objectives and PRA are not to enter directly into the licensing process, many important issues will be influenced significantly by the results of risk and reliability studies. In fact, PRA may be coming into a position of great importance before the methodology, data, and process are sufficiently mature for the task. Large gaps still exist in our understanding of phenomena and in input information; and much of the final result depends on subjective input; large differences of opinion can and should be expected to persist. Accepted standards for quality assurance, and adequacy and depth of independent, peer review remain to be formulated and achieved. This paper will summarize the recently adopted NRC safety policy and the two-year evaluation plan, and will provide, by example, some words of caution concerning a few of the difficulties which may arise. (orig.)

Dynamic Positioning System (DPS) Risk Analysis Using Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA)

Science.gov (United States)

Thigpen, Eric B.; Boyer, Roger L.; Stewart, Michael A.; Fougere, Pete

2017-01-01

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Safety & Mission Assurance (S&MA) directorate at the Johnson Space Center (JSC) has applied its knowledge and experience with Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) to projects in industries ranging from spacecraft to nuclear power plants. PRA is a comprehensive and structured process for analyzing risk in complex engineered systems and/or processes. The PRA process enables the user to identify potential risk contributors such as, hardware and software failure, human error, and external events. Recent developments in the oil and gas industry have presented opportunities for NASA to lend their PRA expertise to both ongoing and developmental projects within the industry. This paper provides an overview of the PRA process and demonstrates how this process was applied in estimating the probability that a Mobile Offshore Drilling Unit (MODU) operating in the Gulf of Mexico and equipped with a generically configured Dynamic Positioning System (DPS) loses location and needs to initiate an emergency disconnect. The PRA described in this paper is intended to be generic such that the vessel meets the general requirements of an International Maritime Organization (IMO) Maritime Safety Committee (MSC)/Circ. 645 Class 3 dynamically positioned vessel. The results of this analysis are not intended to be applied to any specific drilling vessel, although provisions were made to allow the analysis to be configured to a specific vessel if required.

Reliability design of a critical facility: An application of PRA methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Souza Vieira Neto, A.; Souza Borges, W. de

1987-01-01

Although a general agreement concerning the enforcement of reliability (probabilistic) design criteria for nuclear utilities is yet to be achieved. PRA methodology can still be used successfully as a project design and review tool, aimed at improving system's prospective performance or minimizing expected accident consequences. In this paper, the potential of such an application of PRA methods is examined in the special case of a critical design project currently being developed in Brazil. (orig.)

PRA and Conceptual Design

Science.gov (United States)

DeMott, Diana; Fuqua, Bryan; Wilson, Paul

2013-01-01

Once a project obtains approval, decision makers have to consider a variety of alternative paths for completing the project and meeting the project objectives. How decisions are made involves a variety of elements including: cost, experience, current technology, ideologies, politics, future needs and desires, capabilities, manpower, timing, available information, and for many ventures management needs to assess the elements of risk versus reward. The use of high level Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Models during conceptual design phases provides management with additional information during the decision making process regarding the risk potential for proposed operations and design prototypes. The methodology can be used as a tool to: 1) allow trade studies to compare alternatives based on risk, 2) determine which elements (equipment, process or operational parameters) drives the risk, and 3) provide information to mitigate or eliminate risks early in the conceptual design to lower costs. Creating system models using conceptual design proposals and generic key systems based on what is known today can provide an understanding of the magnitudes of proposed systems and operational risks and facilitates trade study comparisons early in the decision making process. Identifying the "best" way to achieve the desired results is difficult, and generally occurs based on limited information. PRA provides a tool for decision makers to explore how some decisions will affect risk before the project is committed to that path, which can ultimately save time and money.

An evaluation of risk methods for prioritizing fire protection features: a procedure for fire barrier penetration seals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dey, M.K.

2004-01-01

This paper generally evaluates risk methods available for prioritizing fire protection features. Risk methods involving both the use of qualitative insights, and quantitative results from a fire probabilistic risk analysis are reviewed. The applicability of these methods to develop a prioritized list of fire barrier penetration seals in a plant based on risk significance is presented as a procedure to illustrate the benefits of the methods. The paper concludes that current fire risk assessment methods can be confidently used to prioritize plant fire protection features, specifically fire barrier penetration seals. Simple prioritization schemes, using qualitative assessments and insights from fire PRA methodology may be implemented without the need for quantitative results. More elaborate prioritization schemes that allow further refinements to the categorization process may be implemented using the quantitative results of the screening processes in good fire PRAs. The use of the quantitative results from good fire PRAs provide several benefits for risk prioritization of fire protection features at plants, mainly from the plant systems analyses conducted for a fire PRA

Managing wildland fires: integrating weather models into fire projections

Science.gov (United States)

Anne M. Rosenthal; Francis Fujioka

2004-01-01

Flames from the Old Fire sweep through lands north of San Bernardino during late fall of 2003. Like many Southern California fires, the Old Fire consumed susceptible forests at the urban-wildland interface and spread to nearby city neighborhoods. By incorporating weather models into fire perimeter projections, scientist Francis Fujioka is improving fire modeling as a...

Issues and insights of PRA methodology in nuclear and space applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hsu, F.

2005-01-01

This paper presents some important issues and technical insights on the scope, conceptual framework, and essential elements of nuclear power plant Probabilistic Risk Assessments (PRAs) and that of the PRAs in general applications of the aerospace industry, such as the Space Shuttle PRA being conducted by NASA. Discussions are focused on various lessons learned in nuclear power plant PRA applications and their potential applicability to the PRAs in the aerospace and launch vehicle systems. Based on insights gained from PRA projects for nuclear power plants and from the current Space Shuttle PRA effort, the paper explores the commonalities and the differences between the conduct of the different PRAs and the key issues and risk insights derived from extensive modeling practices in both industries of nuclear and space. (author)

Using level-I PRA for enhanced safety of the advanced neutron source reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ramsey, C.T.; Linn, M.A.

1995-01-01

The phase-1, level-I probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) of the Advanced Neutron Source (ANS) reactor has been completed as part of the conceptual design phase of this proposed research facility. Since project inception, PRA and reliability concepts have been an integral part of the design evolutions contributing to many of the safety features in the current design. The level-I PRA has been used to evaluate the internal events core damage frequency against project goals and to identify systems important to safety and availability, and it will continue to guide and provide support to accident analysis, both severe and nonsevere. The results also reflect the risk value of defense-in-depth safety features in reducing the likelihood of core damage

Review of PRA methodology for LMFBR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, J. E.

1999-02-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) has been widely used as a tool to evaluate the safety of NPPs (Nuclear Power Plants), which are in the design stage as well as in operation. Recently, PRA becomes one of the licensing requirements for many existing and new NPPs. KALIMER is a Liquid Metal Fast Breeder Reactor (LMFBR) being developed by KAERI. Since the design concept of KALIMER is similar to that of the PRISM plant developed by GE, it would be appropriate to review the PRA methodology of PRISM as the first step of KALIMER PRA. Hence, in this report summarizes the PRA methodology of PRISM plant, and the required works for the PSA of KALIMER based on the reviewed results. The PRA technology of PRISM plant consists of following five major tasks: (1) development of initiating event list, (2) development of system event tree, (3) development of core response event tree, (4) development of containment response event tree, and (5) consequences and risk estimation. The estimated individual and societal risk measures show that the risk from a PRISM module is substantially less than the NRC goal. Each task is compared to the PRA methodology of Light Water Reactor (LWR)/Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR). In the report, each task of PRISM PRA methodology is reviewed and compared to the corresponding part of LWR/PHWR PSA performed in Korea. The parts that are not modeled appropriately in PRISM PRA are identified, and the recommendations for KALIMER PRA are stated. (author). 14 refs., 9 tabs., 4 figs

Internal fire analysis screening methodology for the Salem Nuclear Generating Station

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eide, S.; Bertucio, R.; Quilici, M.; Bearden, R.

1989-01-01

This paper reports on an internal fire analysis screening methodology that has been utilized for the Salem Nuclear Generating Station (SNGS) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA). The methodology was first developed and applied in the Brunswick Steam Electric Plant (BSEP) PRA. The SNGS application includes several improvements and extensions to the original methodology. The SNGS approach differs significantly from traditional fire analysis methodologies by providing a much more detailed treatment of transient combustibles. This level of detail results in a model which is more usable for assisting in the management of fire risk at the plant

PRA -- Now that operators have it, what do they do with it?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasmussen, M.A.; Kolo, R.J.

1996-01-01

Many utilities have had Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) projects underway for several years in order to satisfy the NRC Generic Letter 88-20 requirement for an Individual Plant Examination, or IPE. Typically the studies have reached the conclusion that there are significant differences in the contribution of different plant components to preventing core damage should a major plant transient occur. How nuclear plant operators can use this knowledge to DECREASE the overall risk of performing the routine tasks of testing and maintenance is not an easy task. 10CFR50.65; ''The Maintenance Rule,'' requires that any plant maintenance performed with the unit on line be evaluated for risk. Byron Station will satisfy the 10CFR50.65 requirement by using PRA methodology to evaluate testing and maintenance activities performed with the unit at power. The challenge is to effectively use the results of PRA studies to aid in plant operations without having to make on shift plant operations personnel experts in PRA. At Byron, PRA is used to help build the weekly work schedules. Operations personnel tasked with reviewing the work schedule are the departmental experts on the use of the PRA results. The on shift SRO's role in implementing the program is to accurately execute and monitor the work week schedule as written, and to react to unforeseen equipment failures with an appropriate level of response. The response to such emergent work items is also predefined. Handling emergent work in a prescribed manner minimizes the overall risk to the unit and also eliminates the need to have PRA expertise available to make emergent work risk evaluations. Thus the on shift operators' required knowledge of PRA methods and intricacies is minimized. PRA is just another of the many tools used by the shift operator to run the plant in a safe, conservative manner

Load out and offshore lifting of the PRA-1 platform modules; Embarque e icamento offshore dos modulos de PRA-1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barbosa, Fernando; Raigorodsky, Jacques; Mitidieri, Jorge L.U.; Ricardi, Paulo S. [Construtora Norberto Odebrecht S.A., Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2008-07-01

The technology innovations are characteristics of offshore Engineering around the world. These technologies just make sense when they aim the productivity, security and costs gains compared to ordinary methods. It is in this context that the proposal of the Consorcio PRA-1 (Odebrecht e UTC) team makes sense, in the definition of basic methodology for the PRA-1 platform construction and installation. Through the innovative concept, It was defined (still in the proposal phase) the basic premise that the modules construction and assembly were onshore ending up that just few hours after the offshore installation the modules should be operational in minimal habitability conditions. This innovative method allowed the lack of Flotel, that is a platform which provide support to the offshore construction and assembly (Flotel represents a high costs to the project) and, as consequence, the contract signature by CONSORCIO PRA-1. This work aims to describe the method used for the LOUD-OUT of the PRA-1 modules and the installation of them on the jacket through a vessel provide with cranes the has performed the lifting. Theses operations became unique in Brazil due its challengers characteristics: Module 12 weight = 7203 tf and Module 35 = 5725 tf. For the accomplishment of the Load-out and offshore lifting, was performed a detailed planning and a high level of subcontract interface management. The operations mentioned above were filmed/photographed and published in the specialized media. (author)

Cable Hot Shorts and Circuit Analysis in Fire Risk Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

LaChance, Jeffrey; Nowlen, Steven P.; Wyant, Frank

1999-01-01

Under existing methods of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), the analysis of fire-induced circuit faults has typically been conducted on a simplistic basis. In particular, those hot-short methodologies that have been applied remain controversial in regards to the scope of the assessments, the underlying methods, and the assumptions employed. To address weaknesses in fire PRA methodologies, the USNRC has initiated a fire risk analysis research program that includes a task for improving the tools for performing circuit analysis. The objective of this task is to obtain a better understanding of the mechanisms linking fire-induced cable damage to potentially risk-significant failure modes of power, control, and instrumentation cables. This paper discusses the current status of the circuit analysis task

Risk Assessment of the Main Control Room Fire Using Fire Simulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Dae Il; Kim, Kilyoo; Jang, Seung Cheol

2013-01-01

KAERI is performing a fire PSA for a reference plant, Ulchin Unit 3, as part of developing the Korean site risk profile (KSRP). Fire simulations of the MCR fire were conducted using the CFAST (Consolidated Fire Growth and Smoke Transport) model and FDS (fire dynamic simulator) to improve the uncertainty in the MCR fire risk analysis. Using the fire simulation results, the MCR abandonment risk was evaluated. Level 1 PSA (probabilistic safety assessment) results of Ulchin Unit 3 using the EPRI PRA (probabilistic risk assessment) implementation guide showed that the MCR (main control room) fire was the main contributor to the core damage frequency. Recently, U. S. NRC and EPRI developed NUREG/CR-6850 to provide state-of-the-art methods, tools, and data for the conduct of a fire PSA for a commercial NPP

PRA studies: results, insights and applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Levine, S.; Stetson, F.T.

1983-01-01

This paper deals with Probalistic Risk Assessment (PRA) studies and their results. The PRA is a combination of logic structures and analytical techniques that can be used to estimate the likelihood and consequences of events that have not been observed because of their low frequency occurrence. At first attitudes concerning PRA reports were controversial principally because of their new techniques and complex multidisciplinary nature. However these attitudes changed following the accident at Three Mile Island in 1979. Many people after this event came to appreciate the risks associated with the operation of nuclear power plants, and since the TMI accident there has been a rapid expansion, in the use of PRA in the US and other countries. (NEA) [fr

PRA and Risk Informed Analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernsen, Sidney A.; Simonen, Fredric A.; Balkey, Kenneth R.

2006-01-01

The Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (BPVC) of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) has introduced a risk based approach into Section XI that covers Rules for Inservice Inspection of Nuclear Power Plant Components. The risk based approach requires application of the probabilistic risk assessments (PRA). Because no industry consensus standard existed for PRAs, ASME has developed a standard to evaluate the quality level of an available PRA needed to support a given risk based application. The paper describes the PRA standard, Section XI application of PRAs, and plans for broader applications of PRAs to other ASME nuclear codes and standards. The paper addresses several specific topics of interest to Section XI. Important consideration are special methods (surrogate components) used to overcome the lack of PRA treatments of passive components in PRAs. The approach allows calculations of conditional core damage probabilities both for component failures that cause initiating events and failures in standby systems that decrease the availability of these systems. The paper relates the explicit risk based methods of the new Section XI code cases to the implicit consideration of risk used in the development of Section XI. Other topics include the needed interactions of ISI engineers, plant operating staff, PRA specialists, and members of expert panels that review the risk based programs

Practical PRA applications at Consumers Power Company

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blanchard, D.P.

1985-01-01

Consumers Power Company has completed two probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs), one each at its Big Rock Point and Midland plants and is in the process of performing a third study at its Palisades Plant. Each PRA is summarized briefly in this paper. Each PRA has been used to evaluate specific plant design features and make operating and design recommendations to plant and Company management as well as to the regulator. This paper is a sumary of those issues on which Consumers Power Company has applied PRAs to date. The technique used in applying PRA to these issues has varied as more was learned about the plants from the PRA and about PRA itself. Some issue resolutions involved deriving technical arguments from small parts of the PRA only, such as the logic models or consequence analysis. Still others required use of the entire PRA including sequence quantification, plant and containment response, consequence analysis and eventually cost-benefit evaluation of proposed resolutions. The benefits derived from these analyses have also varied and include not only a perceived reduction in the risks associated with plant operation but also economic benefit to the Company in that cost-effective alternatives to resolving safety issues have been permitted

Standardized procedure for tsunami PRA by AESJ

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirimoto, Yukihiro; Yamaguchi, Akira; Ebisawa, Katsumi

2013-01-01

After Fukushima Accident (March 11, 2011), the Atomic Energy Society of Japan (AESJ) started to develop the standard of Tsunami Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) for nuclear power plants in May 2011. As Japan is one of the countries with frequent earthquakes, a great deal of efforts has been made in the field of seismic research since the early stage. To our regret, the PRA procedures guide for tsunami has not yet been developed although the importance is held in mind of the PRA community. Accordingly, AESJ established a standard to specify the standardized procedure for tsunami PRA considering the results of investigation into the concept, the requirements that should have and the concrete methods regarding tsunami PRA referring the opinions of experts in the associated fields in December 2011 (AESJ-SC-RK004:2011). (author)

Quantitative Risk Modeling of Fire on the International Space Station

Science.gov (United States)

Castillo, Theresa; Haught, Megan

2014-01-01

The International Space Station (ISS) Program has worked to prevent fire events and to mitigate their impacts should they occur. Hardware is designed to reduce sources of ignition, oxygen systems are designed to control leaking, flammable materials are prevented from flying to ISS whenever possible, the crew is trained in fire response, and fire response equipment improvements are sought out and funded. Fire prevention and mitigation are a top ISS Program priority - however, programmatic resources are limited; thus, risk trades are made to ensure an adequate level of safety is maintained onboard the ISS. In support of these risk trades, the ISS Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) team has modeled the likelihood of fire occurring in the ISS pressurized cabin, a phenomenological event that has never before been probabilistically modeled in a microgravity environment. This paper will discuss the genesis of the ISS PRA fire model, its enhancement in collaboration with fire experts, and the results which have informed ISS programmatic decisions and will continue to be used throughout the life of the program.

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) reference document. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murphy, J.A.

1984-09-01

This document describes the current status of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) as practiced in the nuclear reactor regulatory process. The PRA studies that have been completed or are under way are reviewed. The levels of maturity of the methodologies used in a PRA are discussed. Insights derived from PRAs are listed. The potential uses of PRA results for regulatory purposes are discussed. This document was issued for comment in February 1984 entitled Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA): Status Report and Guidance for Regulatory Application. The comments received on the draft have been considered for this final version of the report

Probabilistic risk assessment course documentation. Volume 1: PRA fundamentals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Breeding, R.J.; Leahy, T.J.; Young, J.

1985-08-01

The full range of PRA topics is presented, with a special emphasis on systems analysis and PRA applications. Systems analysis topics include system modeling such as fault tree and event tree construction, failure rate data, and human Reliability. The discussion of PRA applications is centered on past and present PRA based programs, such as WASH-1400 and the Interim Reliability Evaluation Program, as well as on some of the potential future applications of PRA. The relationship of PRA to generic safety issues such as station blackout and Anticipated Transient Without Scram (ATWS) is also discussed. In addition to system modeling, the major PRA tasks of accident process analysis, and consequence analysis are presented. An explanation of the results of these activities, and the techniques by which these results are derived, forms the basis for a discussion of these topics. An additional topic which is presented in this course is the topic of PRA management, organization, and evaluation. 84 figs., 41 tabs

PRA: an evaluation of state-of-the-art

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joksimovich, V.

1985-01-01

Some elements of the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) methodology can be characterized as mature and are even ready for some kind of a standardization effort. Other elements are still, however, in a rapid state of evolution. Questions are continuously being asked regarding maturity of PRA techniques vis-a-vis a regulatory decision-making process. Establishing a framework for evaluating state-of-the-art in any technological field is a challenging task. An implementation of a selected framework to a satisfactory conclusion is a monumental task. Of course, these types of issues can be discussed meaningfully only if they are tied to a particular application. The author's participation in the NSF-sponsored risk assessment project is discussed in the paper. The evaluation employed here makes use of the following five evaluation criteria: logical soundness, completeness, accuracy, acceptability, and practicality

The tsunami probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). Example of accident sequence analysis of tsunami PRA according to the standard for procedure of tsunami PRA for nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ohara, Norihiro; Hasegawa, Keiko; Kuroiwa, Katsuya

2013-01-01

After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (NPP) accident, standard for procedure of tsunami PRA for NPP had been established by the Standardization Committee of AESJ. Industry group had been conducting analysis of Tsunami PRA for PWR based on the standard under the cooperation with electric utilities. This article introduced overview of the standard and examples of accident sequence analysis of Tsunami PRA studied by the industry group according to the standard. The standard consisted of (1) investigation of NPP's composition, characteristics and site information, (2) selection of relevant components for Tsunami PRA and initiating events and identification of accident sequence, (3) evaluation of Tsunami hazards, (4) fragility evaluation of building and components and (5) evaluation of accident sequence. Based on the evaluation, countermeasures for further improvement of safety against Tsunami could be identified by the sensitivity analysis. (T. Tanaka)

International collaborative fire modeling project (ICFMP). Summary of benchmark

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roewekamp, Marina; Klein-Hessling, Walter; Dreisbach, Jason; McGrattan, Kevin; Miles, Stewart; Plys, Martin; Riese, Olaf

2008-09-01

This document was developed in the frame of the 'International Collaborative Project to Evaluate Fire Models for Nuclear Power Plant Applications' (ICFMP). The objective of this collaborative project is to share the knowledge and resources of various organizations to evaluate and improve the state of the art of fire models for use in nuclear power plant fire safety, fire hazard analysis and fire risk assessment. The project is divided into two phases. The objective of the first phase is to evaluate the capabilities of current fire models for fire safety analysis in nuclear power plants. The second phase will extend the validation database of those models and implement beneficial improvements to the models that are identified in the first phase of ICFMP. In the first phase, more than 20 expert institutions from six countries were represented in the collaborative project. This Summary Report gives an overview on the results of the first phase of the international collaborative project. The main objective of the project was to evaluate the capability of fire models to analyze a variety of fire scenarios typical for nuclear power plants (NPP). The evaluation of the capability of fire models to analyze these scenarios was conducted through a series of in total five international Benchmark Exercises. Different types of models were used by the participating expert institutions from five countries. The technical information that will be useful for fire model users, developers and further experts is summarized in this document. More detailed information is provided in the corresponding technical reference documents for the ICFMP Benchmark Exercises No. 1 to 5. The objective of these exercises was not to compare the capabilities and strengths of specific models, address issues specific to a model, nor to recommend specific models over others. This document is not intended to provide guidance to users of fire models. Guidance on the use of fire models is currently being

A model for assessing human cognitive reliability in PRA studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hannaman, G.W.; Spurgin, A.J.; Lukic, Y.

1985-01-01

This paper summarizes the status of a research project sponsored by EPRI as part of the Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) technology improvement program and conducted by NUS Corporation to develop a model of Human Cognitive Reliability (HCR). The model was synthesized from features identified in a review of existing models. The model development was based on the hypothesis that the key factors affecting crew response times are separable. The inputs to the model consist of key parameters the values of which can be determined by PRA analysts for each accident situation being assessed. The output is a set of curves which represent the probability of control room crew non-response as a function of time for different conditions affecting their performance. The non-response probability is then a contributor to the overall non-success of operating crews to achieve a functional objective identified in the PRA study. Simulator data and some small scale tests were utilized to illustrate the calibration of interim HCR model coefficients for different types of cognitive processing since the data were sparse. The model can potentially help PRA analysts make human reliability assessments more explicit. The model incorporates concepts from psychological models of human cognitive behavior, information from current collections of human reliability data sources and crew response time data from simulator training exercises

Observations on PRA and its applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yeh, Y.-C.; Shieh, S.-L.

2004-01-01

An overview on the experience of PRA and its prospective application in Taiwan's three nuclear power plants is presented. Through the PRA, plant design improvements are performed and several engineering findings are illuminated. The sensitivity study including the internal, seismic, and typhoon events are conducted to justify items that can significantly reduce core meltdown risk. Its resulted plant betterment plans are thus highlighted accordingly. For PRA application, a risk-based inspection program for allocating inspection human resources has been resulted following the importance ranking of each component. The developing risk-based regulation to rationalize technical specification and maintenance program will also be entailed. To enhance the accuracy of the PRA model and its reproducibility, several issues are considered to have high priority for improvement such as external event data and analyses, uncertainty, common mode failure, human reliability, and the relative component importance. Highlight of their significance along with some typical sensitivity analyses are discussed for further investigation. (author)

Uses of PRA in nuclear reactor regulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Congel, F.

1987-01-01

For the past five years, more than ten probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) studies were conducted by the owners of nuclear utilities and were submitted for the review of US Nuclear Regulatory Commission staff. These PRA studies were reviewed under various types of regulatory activities depending on the nature of plant licensing stage. The reviews of these PRAs provided very valuable uses to both the staff and the licensees on safety matters of the plant operation. The licensees developed perspectives using PRA models on the safety profiles of their plants. These PRA perspectives influenced licensees' major decisions to implement improvements to plant design and operating and emergency procedures to reduce and/or eliminate the plant's vulnerability to core damage accidents. The staff's review of these PRAs particularly emphasized the dominant accident sequences. The resulting findings led to the identification of dominant risk contributors, critical areas of plant locations, mechanisms leading to potential early containment failures, and instances of noncompliances of staff's deterministic criteria. Specific examples include single failure criterion and separation requirements to assess the need for any additional measures to further improve the safety of the plant. Some of these PRAs were reviewed under regulatory activities other than safety review such as environmental review, final design review, and licensing hearings. Most importantly, the risk profiles of generic PRAs will continue to be used in reviewing and evaluating unresolved safety issues and other generic issues. The major regulatory uses of PRAs, a summary of full scope PRA review, a summary of plant improvements as a result of PRA reviews, and the future role of PRA reviews are presented

Insights on PRA Review Practices: Necessity for Model Shaking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Inn Seock; Jang, Mi suk; Kim, Seoung Rae [NESS, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is increasingly used as a technique to help ensure design and operational safety of nuclear power plants (NPPs) in the nuclear industry. Hence, there is considerable interest in the PRA quality, and as a result, a peer review of the PRA model is typically performed to ensure its technical adequacy as part of the PRA development process or for any other reason (e.g., regulatory requirement). For the PRA model to be used as a valuable vehicle for risk-informed applications, it is essential that the PRA model must yield correct and physically meaningful accident sequences and minimal cutsets for specific plant configurations or conditions relating to the applications. Hence, the existing peer review guidelines need to be updated to reflect these insights so that risk-informed applications could be more actively pursued with confidence.

Qualitative Analysis Results for Applications of a New Fire Probabilistic Safety Assessment Method to Ulchin Unit 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Daeil; Kim, Kilyoo; Jang, Seungcheol

2013-01-01

The fire PRA Implementation Guide has been used for performing a fire PSA for NPPs in Korea. Recently, US NRC and EPRI developed a new fire PSA method, NUREG/CR-6850, to provide state-of-the-art methods, tools, and data for the conduct of a fire PSA for a commercial nuclear power plant (NPP). Due to the limited budget and man powers for the development of KSRP, hybrid PSA approaches, using NUREG/CR-6850 and Fire PRA Implementation Guide, will be employed for conducting a fire PSA of Ulchin Unit 3. In this paper, the qualitative analysis results for applications of a new fire PSA method to Ulchin Unit 3 are presented. This paper introduces the qualitative analysis results for applications of a new fire PSA method to Ulchin Unit 3. Compared with the previous industry, the number of fire areas for quantification identified and the number of equipment selected has increased

Use of PRA in Shuttle Decision Making Process

Science.gov (United States)

Boyer, Roger L.; Hamlin, Teri L.

2010-01-01

How do you use PRA to support an operating program? This presentation will explore how the Shuttle Program Management has used the Shuttle PRA in its decision making process. It will reveal how the PRA has evolved from a tool used to evaluate Shuttle upgrades like Electric Auxiliary Power Unit (EAPU) to a tool that supports Flight Readiness Reviews (FRR) and real-time flight decisions. Specific examples of Shuttle Program decisions that have used the Shuttle PRA as input will be provided including how it was used in the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) manifest decision. It will discuss the importance of providing management with a clear presentation of the analysis, applicable assumptions and limitations, along with estimates of the uncertainty. This presentation will show how the use of PRA by the Shuttle Program has evolved overtime and how it has been used in the decision making process providing specific examples.

Spatially Informed Plant PRA Models for Security Assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wheeler, Timothy A.; Thomas, Willard; Thornsbury, Eric

2006-01-01

Traditional risk models can be adapted to evaluate plant response for situations where plant systems and structures are intentionally damaged, such as from sabotage or terrorism. This paper describes a process by which traditional risk models can be spatially informed to analyze the effects of compound and widespread harsh environments through the use of 'damage footprints'. A 'damage footprint' is a spatial map of regions of the plant (zones) where equipment could be physically destroyed or disabled as a direct consequence of an intentional act. The use of 'damage footprints' requires that the basic events from the traditional probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) be spatially transformed so that the failure of individual components can be linked to the destruction of or damage to specific spatial zones within the plant. Given the nature of intentional acts, extensive modifications must be made to the risk models to account for the special nature of the 'initiating events' associated with deliberate adversary actions. Intentional acts might produce harsh environments that in turn could subject components and structures to one or more insults, such as structural, fire, flood, and/or vibration and shock damage. Furthermore, the potential for widespread damage from some of these insults requires an approach that addresses the impacts of these potentially severe insults even when they occur in locations distant from the actual physical location of a component or structure modeled in the traditional PRA. (authors)

PRISIM: a computer program that makes PRA useful

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fussell, J.B.; Campbell, D.J.; Glynn, J.C.; Burdick, G.R.

1986-01-01

PRISIM is an IBM personal computer program that translates probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) information and calculates additional PRA type information for use by those who are not PRA experts. Specifically, PRISIM was developed for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for use by their resident inspectors at nuclear power plants. Inspector activities are either scheduled or are in response to a particular status of a plant. PRISIM is useful for either activity

OECD-FIRE PR02. Summary report to finalize project stage 1 (2002-2005)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kolar, L.

2005-12-01

The report is structured as follows: (1) Project background; (2) Project goals; (3) Project infrastructure; (4) Database scope; (5) Data collection history and current status; (6) Database structure; (7) Statistical observations; (8) Conclusions. The following data are presented in graphs: Fire extinguishing database; Building (site) of fire incidence and total number of incidences in the database; Component on which fire was initiated; Mechanism of combustion; Root cause of the fire; Fire detection types; Technical data of the fire detection system; Fire detector type; Fuel/flammable material/fire load; Fire extinguishing type; Technical data of the fire extinguishing system; Who extinguished the fire; Fire consequences. (P.A.)

PRA: A Perspective on Strengths, Current Limitations, And Possible Improvements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mosleh, Ail

2014-01-01

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) has been used in various technological fields to assist regulatory agencies, managerial decision makers, and systems designers in assessing and mitigating the risks inherent in these complex arrangements. Has PRA delivered on its promise? How do we gage PRA performance? Are our expectations about value of PRA realistic? Are there disparities between what we get and what we think we are getting form PRA and its various derivatives? Do current PRAs reflect the knowledge gained from actual events? How do we address potential gaps? These are some of the questions that have been raised over the years since the inception of the field more than forty years ago. This paper offers a brief assessment of PRA as a technical discipline in theory and practice, its key strengths and weaknesses, and suggestions on ways to address real and perceived shortcomings

Probabilistic analysis of fires in nuclear plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Unione, A.; Teichmann, T.

1985-01-01

The aim of this paper is to describe a multilevel (i.e., staged) probabilistic analysis of fire risks in nuclear plants (as part of a general PRA) which maximizes the benefits of the FRA (fire risk assessment) in a cost effective way. The approach uses several stages of screening, physical modeling of clearly dominant risk contributors, searches for direct (e.g., equipment dependences) and secondary (e.g., fire induced internal flooding) interactions, and relies on lessons learned and available data from and surrogate FRAs. The general methodology is outlined. 6 figs., 10 tabs

Development of infrastructure for the regulatory authority to implement risk-informed regulation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2013-08-15

It is important to assure the technical adequacy of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) to implement risk-informed regulation of nuclear power plants (NPPs). JNES has been conducting various activities, such as development of PRA model, method, and data base, in order to assure the technical adequacy of PRA as development of the infrastructure for the regulatory authority to implement risk-informed regulation. In 2012, JNES updated the reliability data base used in PRA and improved PRA models to enhance the technical bases of PRA. In addition, JNES has been establishing the PRA model for fuel damage in the spent fuel storage pool in NPPs. As for improvement of PRA model for core damage in reactor, JNES conducted the study including feasibility of a simplified reliability model for digital I and C system developed by the digital I and C task group of OECD/NEA CSNI WGRISK by reproducing the sample calculation, and improvement of PRA models of individual NPPs in Japan. JNES is making effort to develop the procedures of internal fire PRA and internal flooding PRA. To improve the internal fire PRA, JNES is participating in OECD/NEA FIRE project to obtain the latest information and to validate and improve the fire propagation analysis codes and the parameters. JNES is establishing a method for analyzing internal influence due to flooding in NPPs, and this method is the base to develop the procedure of internal flooding PRA. (author)

PRA: A PERSPECTIVE ON STRENGTHS, CURRENT LIMITATIONS, AND POSSIBLE IMPROVEMENTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ALI MOSLEH

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA has been used in various technological fields to assist regulatory agencies, managerial decision makers, and systems designers in assessing and mitigating the risks inherent in these complex arrangements. Has PRA delivered on its promise? How do we gage PRA performance? Are our expectations about value of PRA realistic? Are there disparities between what we get and what we think we are getting form PRA and its various derivatives? Do current PRAs reflect the knowledge gained from actual events? How do we address potential gaps? These are some of the questions that have been raised over the years since the inception of the field more than forty years ago. This paper offers a brief assessment of PRA as a technical discipline in theory and practice, its key strengths and weaknesses, and suggestions on ways to address real and perceived shortcomings.

Management and Organization Influences in PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gertman, D.I.; Hallbert, B. P.; Blackman, H. S.

1998-01-01

The authors present a research program which aimed at increasing the quality of comprehensiveness of contemporary PRA (Probability Risk Assessment) by providing a tool that allows for incorporating M and O in PRA, at improving the quality of NRC assessments, at conducting research to support the risk informed regulation process, at identifying impact of management and organization, safety culture, workplace environment, down-sizing and deregulation on human performance and reliability

Development of insights from PRAs for non-PRA people

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reilly, H.J.; Meale, B.M.

1992-01-01

A probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) of the Savannah River K-Reactor was completed in 1990. The PRA estimated the frequency of core damage accidents caused by operational occurrences during power operation of the reactor. The US Department of Energy (DOE) requested Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) to prepare guidance based on the PRA for use by DOE personnel at the Savannah River Site (SRS). The document had the purpose of informing the DOE system engineers and site representatives about how the information in the PRA might be used to help guide their activities. Opportunities existed to develop a document somewhat different than those developed previously by other programs. The opportunities existed because the audience is different: the principal audience for the document consists of DOE engineers who have continuing oversight responsibility for activities performed by the operating contractor at the K-Reactor, but who may not be knowledgeable about PRA

PRA-Code Upgrade to Handle a Generic Problem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wilson, J. R.

1999-01-01

During the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) for the proposed Yucca Mountain nuclear waste repository, a problem came up that could not be handled by most PRA computer codes. This problem deals with dependencies between sequential events in time. Two similar scenarios that illustrate this problem are LOOP nonrecovery and sequential wearout failures with units of time. The purpose of this paper is twofold: To explain the problem generically, and to show how the PRA code at the INEEL, SAPHIRE, has been modified to solve this problem correctly

Medical Updates Number 5 to the International Space Station Probability Risk Assessment (PRA) Model Using the Integrated Medical Model

Science.gov (United States)

Butler, Doug; Bauman, David; Johnson-Throop, Kathy

2011-01-01

The Integrated Medical Model (IMM) Project has been developing a probabilistic risk assessment tool, the IMM, to help evaluate in-flight crew health needs and impacts to the mission due to medical events. This package is a follow-up to a data package provided in June 2009. The IMM currently represents 83 medical conditions and associated ISS resources required to mitigate medical events. IMM end state forecasts relevant to the ISS PRA model include evacuation (EVAC) and loss of crew life (LOCL). The current version of the IMM provides the basis for the operational version of IMM expected in the January 2011 timeframe. The objectives of this data package are: 1. To provide a preliminary understanding of medical risk data used to update the ISS PRA Model. The IMM has had limited validation and an initial characterization of maturity has been completed using NASA STD 7009 Standard for Models and Simulation. The IMM has been internally validated by IMM personnel but has not been validated by an independent body external to the IMM Project. 2. To support a continued dialogue between the ISS PRA and IMM teams. To ensure accurate data interpretation, and that IMM output format and content meets the needs of the ISS Risk Management Office and ISS PRA Model, periodic discussions are anticipated between the risk teams. 3. To help assess the differences between the current ISS PRA and IMM medical risk forecasts of EVAC and LOCL. Follow-on activities are anticipated based on the differences between the current ISS PRA medical risk data and the latest medical risk data produced by IMM.

Individual plant examination and future PRA applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Monty, B.S.; Sursock, J.P.; Thierry, R.J.

1992-01-01

PRA is being used in many areas of plant operation as has been demonstrated in previous studies. With the U.S. NRC's emphasis on the use of risk to identify plant vulnerabilities and the development of plant specific PRA models for all plants, it is expected that the use of PRA will be expanded. Key areas where this is expected to occur include the development of risk-based Technical Specifications, risk management, and risk-centered maintenance programs. This paper focuses on the Individual Plant Examination requirement and the possible uses of risk-based methods in controlling plant operation to enhance plant safety and availability, and how the IPE requirement will potentially further this area of development. (orig./DG)

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 conceptual framework for formulating a focused and cost-effective fire protection program based on analyses of risk and the dynamics of fire effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dey, M.K.

1999-01-01

This paper proposes a conceptual framework for developing a fire protection program at nuclear power plants based on probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) of fire hazards, and modeling the dynamics of fire effects. The process for categorizing nuclear power plant fire areas based on risk is described, followed by a discussion of fire safety design methods that can be used for different areas of the plant, depending on the degree of threat to plant safety from the fire hazard. This alternative framework has the potential to make programs more cost-effective, and comprehensive, since it will allow a more systematic and broader examination of fire risk, and provide a means to distinguish between high and low risk fire contributors. (orig.)

Seabrook Station Level 2 PRA Update to Include Accident Management

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lutz, Robert; Lucci, Melissa; Kiper, Kenneth; Henry, Robert

2006-01-01

A ground-breaking study was recently completed as part of the Seabrook Level 2 PRA update. This study updates the post-core damage phenomena to be consistent with the most recent information and includes accident management activities that should be modeled in the Level 2 PRA. Overall, the result is a Level 2 PRA that fully meets the requirements of the ASME PRA Standard with respect to modeling accident management in the LERF assessment and NRC requirements in Regulatory Guide 1.174 for considering late containment failures. This technical paper deals only with the incorporation of operator actions into the Level 2 PRA based on a comprehensive study of the Seabrook Station accident response procedures and guidance. The paper describes the process used to identify the key operator actions that can influence the Level 2 PRA results and the development of success criteria for these key operator actions. This addresses a key requirement of the ASME PRA Standard for considering SAMG. An important benefit of this assessment was the identification of Seabrook specific accident management insights that can be fed back into the Seabrook Station accident management procedures and guidance or the training provided to plant personnel for these procedures and guidance. (authors)

How the chemical industry can benefit from PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guymer, P.; Kaiser, G.D.; Mc Kelvey, T.W.; Hannaman, G.W.

1986-01-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) is a method of quantifying the frequency of occurrence and the magnitude of the consequences of accidents in systems that contain hazardous materials such as radioactive fission products, and toxic, flammable or explosive chemicals. The frequency and the magnitude of the consequences are the basic elements of any definition or risk, which is often simply expressed as the product of frequency and magnitude, summed over all accident sequences. PRA is now a mature technique that has been used to estimate risk for a number of industrial facilities. In this paper the author gives examples of beneficial uses of PRA

Thinning and prescribed fire and projected trends in wood product potential, financial return, and fire hazard in New Mexico.

Science.gov (United States)

Roger D. Fight; R. James Barbour; Glenn Christensen; Guy L. Pinjuv; Rao V. Nagubadi

2004-01-01

This work was undertaken under a joint fire science project "Assessing the need, costs, and potential benefits of prescribed fire and mechanical treatments to reduce fire hazard." This paper compares the future mix of timber projects under two treatment scenarios for New Mexico.We developed and demonstrated an analytical method that uses readily available...

SHARP - a framework for incorporating human interactions into PRA studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hannaman, G.W.; Joksimovich, V.; Spurgin, A.J.; Worledge, D.H.

1985-01-01

Recently, increased attention has been given to understanding the role of humans in the safe operation of nuclear power plants. By virtue of the ability to combine equipment reliability with human reliability probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) technology was deemed capable of providing significant insights about the contributions of human interations in accident scenarios. EPRI recognized the need to strengthen the methodology for incorporating human interactions into PRAs as one element of their broad research program to improve the credibility of PRAs. This research project lead to the development and detailed description of SHARP (Systematic Human Application Reliability Procedure) in EPRI NP-3583. The objective of this paper is to illustrate the SHARP framework. This should help PRA analysts state more clearly their assumptions and approach no matter which human reliability assessment technique is used. SHARP includes a structure of seven analysis steps which can be formally or informally performed during PRAs. The seven steps are termed definition, screening, breakdown, representation, impact assessment, quantification, and documentation

Relay chatter and operator response after a large earthquake: An improved PRA methodology with case studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Budnitz, R.J.; Lambert, H.E.; Hill, E.E.

1987-08-01

The purpose of this project has been to develop and demonstrate improvements in the PRA methodology used for analyzing earthquake-induced accidents at nuclear power reactors. Specifically, the project addresses methodological weaknesses in the PRA systems analysis used for studying post-earthquake relay chatter and for quantifying human response under high stress. An improved PRA methodology for relay-chatter analysis is developed, and its use is demonstrated through analysis of the Zion-1 and LaSalle-2 reactors as case studies. This demonstration analysis is intended to show that the methodology can be applied in actual cases, and the numerical values of core-damage frequency are not realistic. The analysis relies on SSMRP-based methodologies and data bases. For both Zion-1 and LaSalle-2, assuming that loss of offsite power (LOSP) occurs after a large earthquake and that there are no operator recovery actions, the analysis finds very many combinations (Boolean minimal cut sets) involving chatter of three or four relays and/or pressure switch contacts. The analysis finds that the number of min-cut-set combinations is so large that there is a very high likelihood (of the order of unity) that at least one combination will occur after earthquake-caused LOSP. This conclusion depends in detail on the fragility curves and response assumptions used for chatter. Core-damage frequencies are calculated, but they are probably pessimistic because assuming zero credit for operator recovery is pessimistic. The project has also developed an improved PRA methodology for quantifying operator error under high-stress conditions such as after a large earthquake. Single-operator and multiple-operator error rates are developed, and a case study involving an 8-step procedure (establishing feed-and-bleed in a PWR after an earthquake-initiated accident) is used to demonstrate the methodology

Human reliability analysis in support of a level 1 PRA for Surry during midloop operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, J.C.; Bley, D.C.; Chu, T.-L.

2004-01-01

The objectives of this Level 1 probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) are to evaluate the important accident sequences initiated during midloop operations and to compare the qualitative and quantitative results with those for accidents initiated during power operations. The primary types of human actions analyzed in this study involve the dynamic operator actions and recovery actions that take place during the accident sequence following an initiating event. Two parts of the human actions were analyzed: failure to diagnose and failure to perform the action. The scope of the Level 1 PRA for Surry during midloop operations includes internal, fire, and flood initiating events. The major categories of dynamic operator actions taken during the accident sequence following an initiating event are: providing makeup to the reactor coolant system (RCS), restoring residual heat removal (RHR) cooling, establishing steam generator reflux cooling, establishing primary feed and spill, establishing gravity feed from refueling water storage tank (RWST), establishing high pressure recirculation, establishing recirculation spray, and cross-connecting RWSTs. All categories are not applicable to all initiating events and all plant operating states (POS). (author)

'Living PRA' concept for plant risk: Reliability and availability tracking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sancaktar, S.; Sharp, D.R.

1985-01-01

The 'Living PRA' (Probabilistic Risk Assessment) is based on placing a PRA plant model on an interactive computer. This model consists of fault tree analyses for plant systems, event tree analyses for abnormal events and site specific consequence analysis for public and/or financial risks, for a nuclear power plant. A living PRA allows updates and sensitivity analyses by the plant owner throughout the lifetime of a plant. Recently, event and fault trees from two major PRAs were placed in a computerized format. The BYRON PRA study and the Living PRA and Economic Risk examples for Indian Point Unit-3 enabled analysts to gain experience and insight into the problems of plant operation. The above concept is well established for the Nuclear Power Plant evaluation. It has been also used for evaluation of processing facilities. In these studies, systems modeling was carried out by using the GRAFTER system for automated fault tree construction. Presently both the tools and the experience exists to set up useful and viable living PRA models for nuclear and chemical processing plants to enhance risk management by the plant owners through in-house use of micro computer based models

Fire-Protection Research for Energy-Technology Projects: FY 1981 year-end report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hasegawa, H.K.; Alvares, N.J.; Lipska-Quinn, A.E.; Beason, D.G.; Foote, K.L.; Priante, S.J.

1982-07-20

This report summarizes research conducted in fiscal year 1981 for the DOE-supported project, Fire Protection Research for Energy Technology Projects. Initiated in 1977, this ongoing research program was conceived to advance fire protection strategies for Energy Technology Projects to keep abreast of the unique fire problems that are developing with the complexity of energy technology research. We are developing an analytical methodology through detailed study of fusion energy experiments at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Employing these facilities as models for methodology development, we are simultaneously advancing three major task areas: (1) determination of unique fire hazards of current fusion energy facilities; (2) evaluation of the ability of accepted fire management measures to meet and negate hazards; and (3) performance of unique research into problem areas we have identified to provide input into analytical fire-growth and damage-assessment models.

Fire-Protection Research for Energy-Technology Projects: FY 1981 year-end report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasegawa, H.K.; Alvares, N.J.; Lipska-Quinn, A.E.; Beason, D.G.; Foote, K.L.; Priante, S.J.

1982-01-01

This report summarizes research conducted in fiscal year 1981 for the DOE-supported project, Fire Protection Research for Energy Technology Projects. Initiated in 1977, this ongoing research program was conceived to advance fire protection strategies for Energy Technology Projects to keep abreast of the unique fire problems that are developing with the complexity of energy technology research. We are developing an analytical methodology through detailed study of fusion energy experiments at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Employing these facilities as models for methodology development, we are simultaneously advancing three major task areas: (1) determination of unique fire hazards of current fusion energy facilities; (2) evaluation of the ability of accepted fire management measures to meet and negate hazards; and (3) performance of unique research into problem areas we have identified to provide input into analytical fire-growth and damage-assessment models

Advances in Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA): a look into practitioners toolbox

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mok, J.; Kaasalainen, S.; Donnelly, K.

2007-01-01

The ever-increasing emphasis on the use of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) in risk-informed decision making translates into increased expectations relating to PRA applications for the groups tasked with developing and maintaining the facility PRAs. In order to succeed in meeting the demand for PRA work, it is essential to develop methodologies and tools (or utilities) that improve the efficiency with which the PRAs are processed and manipulated to obtain a solution. Examples from the Nuclear Safety Solutions (NSS) PRA Practitioners tool box include utilities for cutting logical loops, optimizing fault trees (to decrease run-times), modularizing fault trees, and converting event trees into high level fault tree logic (an important element if the PRA study is to be used to support a risk monitor such as an Equipment Out-of-Service (EOOS) Monitor). The objective of this paper is be to briefly describe the main features of these utilities, and to illustrate the value they have in terms of improving the efficiency and effectiveness of PRA development and maintenance at NSS. (author)

The radioprotective effect of a new aminothiol (20-PRA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dolabela, M.F.; Lopes, M.T.P.; Pereira, M.T.; Steffani, G.M.; Pilo-Veloso, D.; Salas, C.E.; Nelson, D.L.

1998-01-01

We examined the radioprotective effect of aminothiol 2-N-propylamine-cyclohexane thiol (20-PRA) on a human leukemic cell line (K562) following various radiation doses (5,7.5 and 20 Gy) using a source of 60 Co γ-rays. At 5 Gy and 1nM 20-PRA, a substantial protective effect (58%) was seen 24 h after irradiation, followed by a decrease at 48 h (11%). At the high radiation dose (20 Gy) a low protective effect was also seen (35%). In addition, the anti tumorigenic potential of 10 nM 20-PRA was shown by the inhibition of crown gall formation induced by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The radioprotective potency of 20-PRA is 10 5- 10 6 times higher than that of the aminothiol WR-1065 (N(2-mercaptoethyl)-1,3-diamino propane) whose protective effect is in the 0.1 to 1.0 nM range. (author)

The radioprotective effect of a new aminothiol (20-PRA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M.F. Dolabela

1998-08-01

Full Text Available We examined the radioprotective effect of aminothiol 2-N-propylamine-cyclo-hexanethiol (20-PRA on a human leukemic cell line (K562 following various radiation doses (5, 7.5 and 20 Gy using a source of 60Co g-rays. At 5 Gy and 1 nM 20-PRA, a substantial protective effect (58% was seen 24 h after irradiation, followed by a decrease at 48 h (11%. At the high radiation dose (20 Gy a low protective effect was also seen (35%. In addition, the antitumorigenic potential of 10 nM 20-PRA was shown by the inhibition of crown gall formation induced by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. The radioprotective potency of 20-PRA is 105-106 times higher than that of the aminothiol WR-1065 (N-(2-mercaptoethyl-1,3-diaminopropane whose protective effect is in the 0.1 to 1.0 mM range.

Clinical significance of determination of SAC/PRA value in patients with primary aldosteronism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Liren; Dai Yaozong; Liu Jiumin

2003-01-01

Objective: To investigate the diagnostic significance of determining SAC/PRA valve in hyperaldosteronism. Methods: Plasma renin activity (PRA) and angiotensin (AT-II) as well as serum aldosterone contents were measured with RIA in 48 patients with primary aldosteronism and 30 controls. The SAC/PRA value was calculated. Results: Contents of PRA, AT-II and Aldo in blood of patients with primary aldosteronism were very significantly different from those in controls (p < 0.001) (PRA 0.14 ± 0.08 ng/ml/h vs 0.57 ± 0.08 ng/ml/h; AT-II 21.21 ± 7.55 ng/L vs 36.03 ± 6.11 ng/L; Aldo 1.07 ± 0.34 nmol/L vs 0.33 ± 0.04 nmol/L). Calculated SAC/PRA value was 913 ± 409 (normal upper limit 400). Conclusion: SAC/PRA value is an useful accessory diagnostic criterion for primary aldosteronism

ASSESSMENT OF DYNAMIC PRA TECHNIQUES WITH INDUSTRY AVERAGE COMPONENT PERFORMANCE DATA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yadav, Vaibhav; Agarwal, Vivek; Gribok, Andrei V.; Smith, Curtis L.

2017-06-01

In the nuclear industry, risk monitors are intended to provide a point-in-time estimate of the system risk given the current plant configuration. Current risk monitors are limited in that they do not properly take into account the deteriorating states of plant equipment, which are unit-specific. Current approaches to computing risk monitors use probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) techniques, but the assessment is typically a snapshot in time. Living PRA models attempt to address limitations of traditional PRA models in a limited sense by including temporary changes in plant and system configurations. However, information on plant component health are not considered. This often leaves risk monitors using living PRA models incapable of conducting evaluations with dynamic degradation scenarios evolving over time. There is a need to develop enabling approaches to solidify risk monitors to provide time and condition-dependent risk by integrating traditional PRA models with condition monitoring and prognostic techniques. This paper presents estimation of system risk evolution over time by integrating plant risk monitoring data with dynamic PRA methods incorporating aging and degradation. Several online, non-destructive approaches have been developed for diagnosing plant component conditions in nuclear industry, i.e., condition indication index, using vibration analysis, current signatures, and operational history [1]. In this work the component performance measures at U.S. commercial nuclear power plants (NPP) [2] are incorporated within the various dynamic PRA methodologies [3] to provide better estimates of probability of failures. Aging and degradation is modeled within the Level-1 PRA framework and is applied to several failure modes of pumps and can be extended to a range of components, viz. valves, generators, batteries, and pipes.

Risk Insights Gained from Fire Incidents

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazarians, Mardy; Nowlen, Steven P.

1999-01-01

There now exist close to 20 years of history in the application of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) for the analysis of fire risk at nuclear power plants. The current methods are based on various assumptions regarding fire phenomena, the impact of fire on equipment and operator response, and the overall progression of a fire event from initiation through final resolution. Over this same time period, a number of significant fire incidents have occurred at nuclear power plants around the world. Insights gained from US experience have been used in US studies as the statistical basis for establishing fire initiation frequencies both as a function of the plant area and the initiating fire source.To a lesser extent, the fire experience has also been used to assess the general severity and duration of fires. However, aside from these statistical analyses, the incidents have rarely been scrutinized in detail to verify the underlying assumptions of fire PRAs. This paper discusses an effort, under which a set of fire incidents are being reviewed in order to gain insights directly relevant to the methods, data, and assumptions that form the basis for current fire PRAs. The paper focuses on the objectives of the effort, the specific fire events being reviews methodology, and anticipated follow-on activities

Future fire emissions associated with projected land use change in Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Marlier, M. E.; DeFries, R. S.; Pennington, D.; Ordway, E.; Nelson, E.; Mickley, L.; Koplitz, S.

2013-12-01

Indonesia has experienced rapid land use change in past decades as forests and peatlands are cleared for agricultural development, including oil palm and timber plantations1. Fires are the predominant method of clearing and the subsequent emissions can have important public health impacts by contributing to regional particulate matter and ozone concentrations2. This regional haze was dramatically seen in Singapore during June 2013 due to the transport of emissions from fires in Sumatra. Our study is part of a larger project that will quantify the public health impact of various land use development scenarios for Sumatra over the coming decades. Here, we describe how we translate economic projections of land use change into future fire emissions inventories for GEOS-Chem atmospheric transport simulations. We relate past GFED3 fire emissions3 to detailed 1-km land use change data and MODIS fire radiative power observations, and apply these relationships to future estimates of land use change. The goal of this interdisciplinary project is to use modeling results to interact with policy makers and influence development strategies in ways that protect public health. 1Miettinen et al. 2011. Deforestation rates in insular Southeast Asia between 2000 and 2010. Glob. Change Biol.,17 (7), 2261-2270. 2Marlier et al. 2013. El Niño and health risks from landscape fire emissions in southeast Asia. Nature Clim. Change, 3, 131-136. 3van der Werf et al. 2010. Global fire emissions and the contribution of deforestation, savanna, forest, agricultural, and peat fires (1997-2009). Atmos. Chem. Physics, 10 (23), 11707-11735.

Thinning and prescribed fire and projected trends in wood product potential, financial return, and fire hazard in Montana.

Science.gov (United States)

R. James Barbour; Roger D. Fight; Glenn A. Christensen; Guy L. Pinjuv; Rao V. Nagubadi

2004-01-01

This work was undertaken under a joint fire science project "Assessing the need, costs, and potential benefits of prescribed fire and mechanical treatments to reduce fire hazard." This paper compares the future mix of timber products under two treatment scenarios for the state of Montana. We developed and demonstrated an analytical method that uses readily...

Use of PRA in the nuclear regulatory field in South Africa

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hill, T.F.

1994-01-01

The nuclear regulatory authority in South Africa (since 1988 the Council for Nuclear Safety (CNS)), established in 1973 nuclear safety criteria against which to assess the level of safety of any facility using radioactive material. It is a regulatory requirement in South Africa to develop and maintain a living PRA for each facility and thereby to provide the necessary information to demonstrate compliance against these criteria. All safety submissions to the CNS must include at least a risk statement based on an accepted PRA study. The function of the CNS is to regulate all activities in South Africa involving the use of radioactive material and posing a significant risk to the public or plant personnel. This includes most aspects of the nuclear fuel cycle and the Koeberg NPS (two 2775 MW(th) PWRs). A PRA study including source terms for the two Koeberg units was presented by the contractor in 1979. This included the risk due to power and shutdown states and non reactor related accidents involving spent fuel storage, fuel handling and waste treatment related activities. At least 20 PRA studies have been performed for other nuclear facilities in the country. The CNS maintains an in-house PRA capability to perform independent assessments of licensee submission, to participate in developments of PRA methodology in the regulatory field, to perform pro-active safety work and to assist in regulatory decision making. Present ongoing work includes the development of a risk monitor, a risk management system, improvement in PRA codes, models, data collection and analysis, off-site risk assessment methodology and associated regulatory policy. (author). 1 fig

Assessment of fires in chemical warehouses. An overview of the TOXFIRE project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

1999-01-01

The report summarises the scientific outcome of the CEC Environment project "TOXFIRE. Guidelines for Management of Fires in Chemical Warehouses". The project was performed in the period 1994 - 1996 in a multi-national co-operation between partners fromUnited Kingdom, Sweden, Finland and Denmark....... The project included micro, small, medium, and two types of large scale combustion experiments. The experiments focused on the characterization of the combustion products and scaling effects are described.Additional, a few experiments on the effects of packaging and water on the fire products have been...... performed. Also included were items as fire modelling, risk assessment to human health and the environment. Finally, the basis of guidelines for safetyengineers and fire brigades were established. The report describes the work done by each partner and the main results achieved. The references of all reports...

Level 2 PRA for a German BWR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sassen, F.; Rapp, W.; Tietsch, W.; Roess, P.

2007-01-01

A concept for a Level 2 Probabilistic Risk Assessment (L2 PRA) for a German Boiling Water Reactor (BWR) has been developed taking into account the role of L2 PRA within the German regulatory landscape. According to this concept, a plant specific evaluation of the severe accident phenomenology as well as analyses of the accident progression for the severe accident scenarios has been performed. Furthermore a plant specific MELCOR 1.8.6 model has been developed and special MELCOR source term calculations have been performed for the different release paths. This paper will present examples from the different areas described above. (author)

Risks due to fires at Big Rock Point

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brinsfield, W.A.; Blanchard, D.P.

1983-01-01

The unique and older designs of the Big Rock Point nuclear plant is such that fires contribute significantly to the probability of core damage predicted in the probabilistic risk assessment performed for this plant. The methodology employed to determine this contribution reflects the unique, as constructed, plant design, while systematically and logically addressing the true effect of fires on the operation of the plant and the safety of the public. As a result of the methodology utilized in the PRA, recommendations are made which minimize the risk of core damage due to fires. Included in these recommendations is a proposal for equipment and controls to be included on the Big Rock Point alternate shutdown panel

Esmeralda project for studying extensive sodium fire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sophy, Y.M.; Roy, D.; Bentz, A.; Gerosa, A.; Noel, H.

1979-01-01

This paper describes the Esmeralda Project for studying extensive fires involving up to 70 metric tons of sodium. The motivations which prompted the decision to create this research facility are related to construction of the Super-Phenix breeder reactor and to the scale effect problems posed by the use of very large quantities of sodium. Information is included on the dimensions of the installation, the objectives of the project, the means to be employed, the timetable to be followed, and the organization which was created for this project within the context of Franco-Italian cooperation

Fire protection research for energy technology projects; FY 79 year-end report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hasegawa, H.K.; Alvares, N.J.; Lipska, A.E.; Ford, H.; Beason, D.G.

1981-01-01

This report describes work performed in fiscal year 1979, on a DOE funded study entitled Fire Protection Research for Energy Technology Projects. The primary goal of this program is to ensure that fire protection measures for Fusion Energy Experiments (FEE) evolve concurrently with the complexity of FEE. Ultimately, it is planned that the detailed study of fusion experiments will provide an analytical methodology which can be applied to the full range of energy technology projects. We attempt to achieve this objective by coordinately advancing 3 (three) major task areas; (a) determine the fire hazards of current FEE facilities (b) assess the ability of accepted fire management strategies to meet and negate the hazard, (c) perform unique research into problem areas we have identified to provide input into analytical fire growth and damage assessment models

Chinshan living PRA model using NUPRA software package

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, S.-K.; Lin, T.-J.

2004-01-01

A living probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) model has been established for Chinshan Nuclear Power Station (BWR-4, MARK-I) using NUPRA software package. The core damage frequency due to internal events, seismic events and typhoons are evaluated in this model. The methodology and results considering the recent implementation of the 5th emergency diesel generator and automatic boron injection function are presented. The dominant sequences of this PRA model are discussed, and some possible applications of this living model are proposed. (author)

Supporting FIRE-suppression strategies combining fire spread MODelling and SATellite data in an operational context in Portugal: the FIRE-MODSAT project

Science.gov (United States)

Sá, Ana C. L.; Benali, Akli; Pinto, Renata M. S.; Pereira, José M. C.; Trigo, Ricardo M.; DaCamara, Carlos C.

2014-05-01

Large wildfires are infrequent but account for the most severe environmental, ecological and socio-economic impacts. In recent years Portugal has suffered the impact of major heat waves that fuelled records of burnt area exceeding 400.000ha and 300.000ha in 2003 and 2005, respectively. According to the latest IPCC reports, the frequency and amplitude of summer heat waves over Iberia will very likely increase in the future. Therefore, most climate change studies point to an increase in the number and extent of wildfires. Thus, an increase in both wildfire impacts and fire suppression difficulties is expected. The spread of large wildfires results from a complex interaction between topography, meteorology and fuel properties. Wildfire spread models (e.g. FARSITE) are commonly used to simulate fire growth and behaviour and are an essential tool to understand their main drivers. Additionally, satellite active-fire data have been used to monitor the occurrence, extent, and spread of wildfires. Both satellite data and fire spread models provide different types of information about the spatial and temporal distribution of large wildfires and can potentially be used to support strategic decisions regarding fire suppression resource allocation. However, they have not been combined in a manner that fully exploits their potential and minimizes their limitations. A knowledge gap still exists in understanding how to minimize the impacts of large wildfires, leading to the following research question: What can we learn from past large wildfires in order to mitigate future fire impacts? FIRE-MODSAT is a one-year funded project by the Portuguese Foundation for the Science and Technology (FCT) that is founded on this research question, with the main goal of improving our understanding on the interactions between fire spread and its environmental drivers, to support fire management decisions in an operational context and generate valuable information to improve the efficiency of the

Technical requirements for the ASME PRA standard for nuclear power plant applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fleming, Karl N.; Bernsen, Sidney A.; Simard, Ronald L.

2000-01-01

In 1998 the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) formed the Committee on Nuclear Risk Management (CNRM) and a Project Team to develop a standard on PRAs for use in risk informed applications. This ASME standard is being developed to help provide an adequate level of quality in PRAs that are being used to support ASME initiatives to risk informed in-service inspection (ISI) and in-service testing (IST) of nuclear power plant components. A related need supported by the industry and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission is to reduce the level of effort that is being expended in pilot applications of risk informed initiatives to address questions about the sufficiency of quality in the supporting PRA models. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the authors' views on some of the technical issues that were encountered in the effort to develop the ASME PRA standard. Draft 12 of this standard has been issued for comment, and is currently being finalized with the aim of releasing the standard in early 2001. (author)

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA): status report and guidance for regulatory application. Draft report for comment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1984-02-01

This document describes the current status of the methodologies used in probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) and provides guidance for the application of the results of PRAs to the nuclear reactor regulatory process. The PRA studies that have been completed or are underway are reviewed. The levels of maturity of the methodologies used in a PRA are discussed. Insights derived from PRAs are listed. The potential uses of PRA results for regulatory purposes are discussed

Technical methods for a risk-informed, performance-based fire protection program at nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dey, M.K.

1998-01-01

This paper presents a technical review and examination of technical methods that are available for developing a risk-informed, performance-based fire protection program at a nuclear plant. The technical methods include ''engineering tools'' for examining the fire dynamics of fire protection problems, reliability techniques for establishing an optimal fire protection surveillance program, fire computer codes for analyzing important fire protection safety parameters, and risk-informed approaches that can range from drawing qualitative insights from risk information to quantifying the risk impact of alternative fire protection approaches. Based on this technical review and examination, it is concluded that methods for modeling fires, and reliability and fire PRA analyses are currently available to support the initial implementation of simple risk-informed, performance-based approaches in fire protection programs. (author)

Technical methods for a risk-informed, performance-based fire protection program at nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dey, M.K.

2000-01-01

This paper presents a technical review and examination of technical methods that are available for developing a risk-informed, performance-based fire protection program at a nuclear plant. The technical methods include 'engineering tools' for examining the fire dynamics of fire protection problems, reliability techniques for establishing an optimal fire protection surveillance program, fire computer codes for analyzing important fire protection safety parameters, and risk-informed approaches that can range from drawing qualitative insights from risk information to quantifying the risk impact of alternative fire protection approaches. Based on this technical review and examination, it is concluded that methods for modeling fires, and reliability and fire probabilistic risk analyses (PRA) are currently available to support the initial implementation of simple risk-informed, performance-based approaches in fire protection programs. (orig.) [de

A desktop PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dolan, B.J.; Weber, B.J.

1989-01-01

This paper reports that Duke Power Company has completed full-scope PRAs for each of its nuclear stations - Oconee, McGuire and Catawba. These living PRAs are being maintained using desktop personal computers. Duke's PRA group now has powerful personal computer-based tools that have both decreased direct costs (computer analysis expenses) and increased group efficiency (less time to perform analyses). The shorter turnaround time has already resulted in direct savings through analyses provided in support of justification for continued station operation. Such savings are expected to continue with similar future support

Project-oriented management of industrial production of fire and rescue equipment by means of geometric modelling

OpenAIRE

Rak, Iu; Bondarenko, V.

2013-01-01

Objective: The objective of the research is to develop a method based on the geometric modelling for the purpose of improving the effectiveness of fire protection project management in industrial production of fire protection technology systems. Methods: The theoretical inheritance mode of effective management in project-organizational structure of fire protection and specialized technical equipment production using geometric modelling. Results: Mathematical and geometric models of project ma...

The ESMERALDA project for studying extensive sodium fire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sophy, Y.M.; Roy, D.; Noel, H.; Gerosa, A.

1979-08-01

This paper describes the Esmeralda Project for studying extensive fires involving up to 70 metric tons of sodium. The motivations which prompted the decision to create this research facility are related to construction of the Super-Phenix breeder reactor and to the scale effect problems posed by the use of very large quantities of sodium. Information is included on the dimensions of the installation, the objectives of the project, the means to be employed, the timetable to be followed, and the organization which was created for this project within the context of Franco-Italian cooperation

Application Study of Fire Severity Classification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, In Hwan; Kim, Hyeong Taek; Jee, Moon Hak; Kim, Yun Jung

2013-01-01

This paper introduces the Fire Incidents Severity Classification Method for Korean NPPs that may be derived directly from the data fields and feasibility study for domestic uses. FEDB was characterized in more detail and assessed based on the significance of fire incidents in the updated database and five fire severity categories were defined. The logical approach to determine the fire severity starts from the most severe characteristics, namely challenging fires, and continues to define the less challenging and undetermined categories in progress. If the FEDB is utilized for Korean NPPs, the ways of Fire Severity Classification suggested in 2.4 above can be utilized for the quantitative fire risk analysis in future. The Fire Events Database (FEDB) is the primary source of fire data which are used for fire frequency in Fire PSA (Probabilistic Safety Assessment). The purpose of its development is to calculate the quantitative fire frequency at the comprehensive and consolidated source derived from the fire incident information available for Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). Recently, the Fire Events Database (FEDB) was updated by Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in U. S. The FEDB is intended to update the fire event history up to 2009. A significant enhancement to it is the reorganization and refinement of the database structure and data fields. It has been expanded and improved data fields, coding consistency, incident detail, data review fields, and reference data source traceability. It has been designed to better support several Fire PRA uses as well

Seismic PRA of a BWR plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishio, Masahide; Fujimoto, Haruo

2014-01-01

Since the occurrence of nuclear power plant accidents in the Fukushima Daichi nuclear power station, the regulatory framework on severe accident (SA) has been discussed in Japan. The basic concept is to typify and identify the accident sequences leading to core/primary containment vessel (PCV) damage and to implement SA measures covering internal and external events extensively. As Japan is an earthquake-prone country and earthquakes and tsunami are important natural external events for nuclear safety of nuclear power plants, JNES performed the seismic probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) on a typical nuclear power plant and evaluated the dominant accident sequences leading to core/PCV damage to discuss dominant scenarios of severe accident (SA). The analytical models and the results of level-1 seismic PRA on a 1,100 MWe BWR-5 plant are shown here. Seismic PRA was performed for a typical BWR5 plant. Initiating events with large contribution to core damage frequency are the loss of all AC powers (station blackout) and the large LOCA. The top of dominant accident sequences is the simultaneous occurrence of station blackout and large LOCA. Important components to core damage frequency are electric power supply equipment. It needs to keep in mind that the results are influenced on site geologic characteristic to a greater or lesser. In the process of analysis, issues such as conservative assumptions related to damages of building or structure and success criteria for excessive LOCA are left to be resolved. These issues will be further studied including thermal hydric analysis in the future. (authors)

Hiperurisemia pada Pra Diabetes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ellyza Nasrul

2012-09-01

Full Text Available AbstrakAsam urat (AU merupakan produk akhir dari katabolisme adenin dan guanin yang berasal dari pemecahannukleotida purin. Urat dihasilkan oleh sel yang mengandung xanthine oxidase, terutama hepar dan usus kecil.Hiperurisemia adalah keadaan kadar asam urat dalam darah lebih dari 7,0 mg/dL.Pra diabetes adalah subjek yangmempunyai kadar glukosa plasma meningkat akan tetapi peningkatannya masih belum mencapai nilai minimaluntuk kriteria diagnosis diabetes melitus (DM. Glukosa darah puasa terganggu merupakan keadaan dimanapeningkatan kadar FPG≥100 mg/dL dan <126 mg/dL. Toleransi glukosa terganggu merupakan peningkatanglukosa plasma 2 jam setelah pembebanan 75 gram glukosa oral (≥140 mg/dL dan <200mg/dL dengan FPG<126 mg/dL.Insulin juga berperan dalam meningkatkan reabsorpsi asam urat di tubuli proksimal ginjal. Sehinggapada keadaan hiperinsulinemia pada pra diabetes terjadi peningkatan reabsorpsi yang akan menyebabkanhiperurisemia. Transporter urat yang berada di membran apikal tubuli renal dikenal sebagai URAT-1 berperandalam reabsorpsi urat.Kata kunci: Hiperurisemia, Pra DiabetesAbstractUric acid (AU is the end product of the catabolism of adenine and guanine nucleotides derived from thebreakdown of purines. Veins produced by cells containing xanthine oxidase, especially the liver and small intestine.Hyperuricemia is a state in the blood uric acid levels over 7.0 mg / dL.Pre-diabetes is a subject which has a plasmaglucose level will rise but the increase is still not reached the minimum value for the diagnostic criteria for diabetesmellitus (DM. Impaired fasting blood glucose is a condition in which increased levels of FPG ≥ 100 mg / dL and<126 mg / dL. Impaired glucose tolerance is an increase in plasma glucose 2 hours after 75 gram oral glucose load(≥ 140 mg / dL and <200mg/dl with FPG <126 mg / dL.Insulin also plays a role in increasing the reabsorption ofuric acid in renal proximal tubule. So that the hyperinsulinemia in the pre

Uncertainty and sensitivity studies supporting the interpretation of the results of TVO I/II PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holmberg, J.

1992-01-01

A comprehensive Level 1 probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) has been performed for the TVO I/II nuclear power units. As a part of the PRA project, uncertainties of risk models and methods were systematically studied in order to describe them and to demonstrate their impact by way of results. The uncertainty study was divided into two phases: a qualitative and a quantitative study. The qualitative study contained identification of uncertainties and qualitative assessments of their importance. The PRA was introduced, and identified assumptions and uncertainties behind the models were documented. The most significant uncertainties were selected by importance measures or other judgements for further quantitative studies. The quantitative study included sensitivity studies and propagation of uncertainty ranges. In the sensitivity studies uncertain assumptions or parameters were varied in order to illustrate the sensitivity of the models. The propagation of the uncertainty ranges demonstrated the impact of the statistical uncertainties of the parameter values. The Monte Carlo method was used as a propagation method. The most significant uncertainties were those involved in modelling human interactions, dependences and common cause failures (CCFs), loss of coolant accident (LOCA) frequencies and pressure suppression. The qualitative mapping out of the uncertainty factors turned out to be useful in planning quantitative studies. It also served as internal review of the assumptions made in the PRA. The sensitivity studies were perhaps the most advantageous part of the quantitative study because they allowed individual analyses of the significance of uncertainty sources identified. The uncertainty study was found reasonable in systematically and critically assessing uncertainties in a risk analysis. The usefulness of this study depends on the decision maker (power company) since uncertainty studies are primarily carried out to support decision making when uncertainties are

The Fire Locating and Modeling of Burning Emissions (FLAMBE) Project

Science.gov (United States)

Reid, J. S.; Prins, E. M.; Westphal, D.; Richardson, K.; Christopher, S.; Schmidt, C.; Theisen, M.; Eck, T.; Reid, E. A.

2001-12-01

The Fire Locating and Modeling of Burning Emissions (FLAMBE) project was initiated by NASA, the US Navy and NOAA to monitor biomass burning and burning emissions on a global scale. The idea behind the mission is to integrate remote sensing data with global and regional transport models in real time for the purpose of providing the scientific community with smoke and fire products for planning and research purposes. FLAMBE is currently utilizing real time satellite data from GOES satellites, fire products based on the Wildfire Automated Biomass Burning Algorithm (WF_ABBA) are generated for the Western Hemisphere every 30 minutes with only a 90 minute processing delay. We are currently collaborating with other investigators to gain global coverage. Once generated, the fire products are used to input smoke fluxes into the NRL Aerosol Analysis and Prediction System, where advection forecasts are performed for up to 6 days. Subsequent radiative transfer calculations are used to estimate top of atmosphere and surface radiative forcing as well as surface layer visibility. Near real time validation is performed using field data collected by Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) Sun photometers. In this paper we fully describe the FLAMBE project and data availability. Preliminary result from the previous year will also be presented, with an emphasis on the development of algorithms to determine smoke emission fluxes from individual fire products. Comparisons to AERONET Sun photometer data will be made.

Risk Management of NASA Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Sarper, Hueseyin

1997-01-01

Various NASA Langley Research Center and other center projects were attempted for analysis to obtain historical data comparing pre-phase A study and the final outcome for each project. This attempt, however, was abandoned once it became clear that very little documentation was available. Next, extensive literature search was conducted on the role of risk and reliability concepts in project management. Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) techniques are being used with increasing regularity both in and outside of NASA. The value and the usage of PRA techniques were reviewed for large projects. It was found that both civilian and military branches of the space industry have traditionally refrained from using PRA, which was developed and expanded by nuclear industry. Although much has changed with the end of the cold war and the Challenger disaster, it was found that ingrained anti-PRA culture is hard to stop. Examples of skepticism against the use of risk management and assessment techniques were found both in the literature and in conversations with some technical staff. Program and project managers need to be convinced that the applicability and use of risk management and risk assessment techniques is much broader than just in the traditional safety-related areas of application. The time has come to begin to uniformly apply these techniques. The whole idea of risk-based system can maximize the 'return on investment' that the public demands. Also, it would be very useful if all project documents of NASA Langley Research Center, pre-phase A through final report, are carefully stored in a central repository preferably in electronic format.

Design criteria document, Fire Protection Task, K Basin Essential Systems Recovery, Project W-405

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johnson, B.H.

1994-01-01

The K Basin were constructed in the early 1950's with a 20 year design life. The K Basins are currently in their third design life and are serving as a near term storage facility for irradiated N Reactor fuel until an interim fuel storage solution can be implemented. In April 1994, Project W-405, K Basin Essential Systems Recovery, was established to address (among other things) the immediate fire protection needs of the 100K Area. A Fire Barrier Evaluation was performed for the wall between the active and inactive areas of the 105KE and 105KW buildings. This evaluation concludes that the wall is capable of being upgraded to provide an equivalent level of fire resistance as a qualified barrier having a fire resistance rating of 2 hours. The Fire Protection Task is one of four separate Tasks included within the scope of Project W405, K Basin Essential systems Recovery. The other three Tasks are the Water Distribution System Task, the Electrical System Task, and the Maintenance Shop/Support Facility Task. The purpose of Project W-405's Fire Protection Task is to correct Life Safety Code (NFPA 101) non-compliances and to provide fire protection features in Buildings 105KE, 105KW and 190KE that are essential for assuring the safe operation and storage of spent nuclear fuel at the 100K Area Facilities' Irradiated Fuel Storage Basins (K Basins)

The Prenylated Rab GTPase Receptor PRA1.F4 Contributes to Protein Exit from the Golgi Apparatus.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Myoung Hui; Yoo, Yun-Joo; Kim, Dae Heon; Hanh, Nguyen Hong; Kwon, Yun; Hwang, Inhwan

2017-07-01

Prenylated Rab acceptor1 (PRA1) functions in the recruitment of prenylated Rab proteins to their cognate organelles. Arabidopsis ( Arabidopsis thaliana ) contains a large number of proteins belonging to the AtPRA1 family. However, their physiological roles remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated the physiological role of AtPRA1.F4, a member of the AtPRA1 family. A T-DNA insertion knockdown mutant of AtPRA1.F4 , atpra1.f4 , was smaller in stature than parent plants and possessed shorter roots, whereas transgenic plants overexpressing HA:AtPRA1.F4 showed enhanced development of secondary roots and root hairs. However, both overexpression and knockdown plants exhibited increased sensitivity to high-salt stress, lower vacuolar Na + /K + -ATPase and plasma membrane ATPase activities, lower and higher pH in the vacuole and apoplast, respectively, and highly vesiculated Golgi apparatus. HA:AtPRA1.F4 localized to the Golgi apparatus and assembled into high-molecular-weight complexes. atpra1.f4 plants displayed a defect in vacuolar trafficking, which was complemented by low but not high levels of HA : AtPRA1.F4 Overexpression of HA:AtPRA1.F4 also inhibited protein trafficking at the Golgi apparatus, albeit differentially depending on the final destination or type of protein: trafficking of vacuolar proteins, plasma membrane proteins, and trans-Golgi network (TGN)-localized SYP61 was strongly inhibited; trafficking of TGN-localized SYP51 was slightly inhibited; and trafficking of secretory proteins and TGN-localized SYP41 was negligibly or not significantly inhibited. Based on these results, we propose that Golgi-localized AtPRA1.F4 is involved in the exit of many but not all types of post-Golgi proteins from the Golgi apparatus. Additionally, an appropriate level of AtPRA1.F4 is crucial for its function at the Golgi apparatus. © 2017 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

The role of PRA in the safety assessment of VVER Nuclear Power Plants in Ukraine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kot, C.

1999-01-01

Ukraine operates thirteen (13) Soviet-designed pressurized water reactors, VVERS. All Ukrainian plants are currently operating with annually renewable permits until they update their safety analysis reports (SARs), in accordance with new SAR content requirements issued in September 1995, by the Nuclear Regulatory Authority and the Government Nuclear Power Coordinating Committee of Ukraine. The requirements are in three major areas: design basis accident (DBA) analysis, probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), and beyond design-basis accident (BDBA) analysis. The last two requirements, on PRA and BDBA, are new, and the DBA requirements are an expanded version of the older SAR requirements. The US Department of Energy (USDOE), as part of its Soviet-Designed Reactor Safety activities, is providing assistance and technology transfer to Ukraine to support their nuclear power plants (NPPs) in developing a Western-type technical basis for the new SARs. USDOE sponsored In-Depth Safety Assessments (ISAs) are in progress at three pilot nuclear reactor units in Ukraine, South Ukraine Unit 1, Zaporizhzhya Unit 5, and Rivne Unit 1, and a follow-on study has been initiated at Khmenytskyy Unit 1. The ISA projects encompass most areas of plant safety evaluation, but the initial emphasis is on performing a detailed, plant-specific Level 1 Internal Events PRA. This allows the early definition of the plant risk profile, the identification of risk significant accident sequences and plant vulnerabilities and provides guidance for the remainder of the safety assessments

System 80+TM PRA insights on severe accident prevention and mitigation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finnicum, D.J.; Jacob, M.C.; Schneider, R.E.; Weston, R.A.

2004-01-01

The System 80 + design is ABB-CE's standardized evolutionary Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) design. It incorporates design enhancements based on Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) insights, guidance from the ALWR Utility Requirements Document (URD), and US NRC's Severe Accident Policy. Major severe accident prevention and mitigation design features of the System 80 + design are described. The results of the System 80 + PRA are presented and the insights gained from the PRA sensitivity analyses are discussed. ABB-CE considered defense-in-depth for accident prevention and mitigation early in the design process and used robust design features to ensure that the System 80 + design achieved a low core damage frequency, low containment conditional failure probability, and excellent deterministic containment performance under severe accident conditions and to ensure that the risk was properly allocated among design features and between prevention and mitigation. (author)

The Evaluation of the Adequacy of PRA Results for Risk-informed Decision Makings With Respect to Incompleteness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Kyungmin; Jae, Moosung

2007-01-01

PRA(Probabilistic Risk Assessment), as a quantitative tool, has many strengths as well as weaknesses. There are several limitations on the use of PRA techniques for risk modeling and analysis. First, the true values of most model inputs are unknown. Ideally, probability distribution models are well developed and assigned to the unknown input parameters to reflect the analyst's state of knowledge of the values of this input parameter. The problem of overconfidence and lack of confidence in the values of certain model input parameters can lead to inaccurate PRA results. Secondly, the analyst's lack of knowledge of a system's practical application as opposed to its theoretical operation can lead to modeling errors. The quality of PRAs has been addressed by a number of regulatory and industry organizations Some have argued that a good PRA should be a complete, full scope, three level PRA, while others have claimed that the quality of a PRA should be measured with respect to the application and decision supported. we show by way of an example that the adequacy of a PRA results is important to risk-informed decision making process and should be measured with respect to the application and decision supported

40 CFR 180.1200 - Pseudomonas fluorescens strain PRA-25; temporary exemption from the requirement of a tolerance.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 40 Protection of Environment 23 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Pseudomonas fluorescens strain PRA-25... RESIDUES IN FOOD Exemptions From Tolerances § 180.1200 Pseudomonas fluorescens strain PRA-25; temporary... established for residues of the microbial pesticide, pseudomonas fluorescens strain PRA-25 when used on peas...

Constellation Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA): Design Consideration for the Crew Exploration Vehicle

Science.gov (United States)

Prassinos, Peter G.; Stamatelatos, Michael G.; Young, Jonathan; Smith, Curtis

2010-01-01

Managed by NASA's Office of Safety and Mission Assurance, a pilot probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) of the NASA Crew Exploration Vehicle (CEV) was performed in early 2006. The PRA methods used follow the general guidance provided in the NASA PRA Procedures Guide for NASA Managers and Practitioners'. Phased-mission based event trees and fault trees are used to model a lunar sortie mission of the CEV - involving the following phases: launch of a cargo vessel and a crew vessel; rendezvous of these two vessels in low Earth orbit; transit to th$: moon; lunar surface activities; ascension &om the lunar surface; and return to Earth. The analysis is based upon assumptions, preliminary system diagrams, and failure data that may involve large uncertainties or may lack formal validation. Furthermore, some of the data used were based upon expert judgment or extrapolated from similar componentssystemsT. his paper includes a discussion of the system-level models and provides an overview of the analysis results used to identify insights into CEV risk drivers, and trade and sensitivity studies. Lastly, the PRA model was used to determine changes in risk as the system configurations or key parameters are modified.

Selecting the seismic HRA approach for Savannah River Plant PRA revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Papouchado, K.; Salaymeh, J.

1993-10-01

The Westinghouse Savannah River Company (WSRC) has prepared a level I probabilistic risk assessment (PRA), Rev. 0 of reactor operations for externally-initiated events including seismic events. The SRS PRA, Rev. 0 Seismic HRA received a critical review that expressed skepticism with the approach used for human reliability analysis because it had not been previously used and accepted in other published PRAs. This report provides a review of published probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs), the associated methodology guidance documents, and the psychological literature to identify parameters important to seismic human reliability analysis (HRA). It also describes a recommended approach for use in the Savannah River Site (SRS) PRA. The SRS seismic event PRA performs HRA to account for the contribution of human errors in the accident sequences. The HRA of human actions during and after a seismic event is an area subject to many uncertainties and involves significant analyst judgment. The approach recommended by this report is based on seismic HRA methods and associated issues and concerns identified from the review of these referenced documents that represent the current state-of-the- art knowledge and acceptance in the seismic HRA field

An evaluation of the reliability and usefulness of external-initiator PRA (probabilistic risk analysis) methodologies

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Budnitz, R.J.; Lambert, H.E. (Future Resources Associates, Inc., Berkeley, CA (USA))

1990-01-01

The discipline of probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) has become so mature in recent years that it is now being used routinely to assist decision-making throughout the nuclear industry. This includes decision-making that affects design, construction, operation, maintenance, and regulation. Unfortunately, not all sub-areas within the larger discipline of PRA are equally mature,'' and therefore the many different types of engineering insights from PRA are not all equally reliable. 93 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab.

An evaluation of the reliability and usefulness of external-initiator PRA [probabilistic risk analysis] methodologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Budnitz, R.J.; Lambert, H.E.

1990-01-01

The discipline of probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) has become so mature in recent years that it is now being used routinely to assist decision-making throughout the nuclear industry. This includes decision-making that affects design, construction, operation, maintenance, and regulation. Unfortunately, not all sub-areas within the larger discipline of PRA are equally ''mature,'' and therefore the many different types of engineering insights from PRA are not all equally reliable. 93 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab

Use of plant-specific PRA in an EOP scope audit

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

O'Brien, J.J.

1991-01-01

Traditionally, decisions on which accident scenarios to proceduralize as emergency operating procedures (EOPs) have been based on existing design basis analyses, engineering judgment, and probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs) on generic plants. This approach has important strengths and limits. The major limitation of generic PRAs is their inability to account for plant-specific features. Use of plant-specific PRA to determine the impact of proceduralizing, or not proceduralizing, responses to scenarios considers plant-specific features. This helps to eliminate unnecessary EOPs, thus allowing resources to be concentrated on scenarios that are more important for a particular plant. In preparation for a US Nuclear Regulatory Commission audit, a plant-specific PRA was used to assess and quantify the plant's previous decision not to implement six reference emergency response guidelines (ERGs) as procedures. The original justification for nonimplementation of the ERGs was based on engineering judgment. The PRA provided a quantitative justification for implementation/nonimplementation of each guidelines. This analysis accounted for plant-specific design features not common to all reference plants

Task analysis: How far are we from usable PRA input

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gertman, D.I.; Blackman, H.S.; Hinton, M.F.

1984-01-01

This chapter reviews data collected at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory for three DOE-owned reactors (the Advanced Test Reactor, the Power Burst Facility, and the Loss of Fluids Test Reactor) in order to identify usable Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) input. Task analytic procedures involve the determination of manning and skill levels as a means of determining communication requirements, in assessing job performance aids, and in assessing the accuracy and completeness of emergency and maintenance procedures. The least understood aspect in PRA and plant reliability models is the human factor. A number of examples from the data base are discussed and offered as a means of providing more meaningful data than has been available to PRA analysts in the past. It is concluded that the plant hardware-procedures-personnel interfaces are essential to safe and efficient plant operations and that task analysis is a reasonably sound way of achieving a qualitative method for identifying those tasks most strongly associated with task difficulty, severity of consequence, and error probability

Certification plan for safety and PRA codes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Toffer, H.; Crowe, R.D.; Ades, M.J.

1990-05-01

A certification plan for computer codes used in Safety Analyses and Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) for the operation of the Savannah River Site (SRS) reactors has been prepared. An action matrix, checklists, and a time schedule have been included in the plan. These items identify what is required to achieve certification of the codes. A list of Safety Analysis and Probabilistic Risk Assessment (SA ampersand PRA) computer codes covered by the certification plan has been assembled. A description of each of the codes was provided in Reference 4. The action matrix for the configuration control plan identifies code specific requirements that need to be met to achieve the certification plan's objectives. The checklist covers the specific procedures that are required to support the configuration control effort and supplement the software life cycle procedures based on QAP 20-1 (Reference 7). A qualification checklist for users establishes the minimum prerequisites and training for achieving levels of proficiency in using configuration controlled codes for critical parameter calculations

PRA: a powerful engineering decision tool

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carvalho, H.G. de.

1988-03-01

The probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) is studied and its historical development is briefly presented. Human factors, sofware and guides, improvement of utility management of nuclear power operations are discussed. The development of a standardized LWR design, optimized for safety, reliability and economy is studied. The impact of risk assessments in public acceptance of nuclear power is discussed. (M.A.C.) [pt

Mutation of praR in Rhizobium leguminosarum enhances root biofilms, improving nodulation competitiveness by increased expression of attachment proteins.

Science.gov (United States)

Frederix, Marijke; Edwards, Anne; Swiderska, Anna; Stanger, Andrew; Karunakaran, Ramakrishnan; Williams, Alan; Abbruscato, Pamela; Sanchez-Contreras, Maria; Poole, Philip S; Downie, J Allan

2014-08-01

In Rhizobium leguminosarum bv. viciae, quorum-sensing is regulated by CinR, which induces the cinIS operon. CinI synthesizes an AHL, whereas CinS inactivates PraR, a repressor. Mutation of praR enhanced biofilms in vitro. We developed a light (lux)-dependent assay of rhizobial attachment to roots and demonstrated that mutation of praR increased biofilms on pea roots. The praR mutant out-competed wild-type for infection of pea nodules in mixed inoculations. Analysis of gene expression by microarrays and promoter fusions revealed that PraR represses its own transcription and mutation of praR increased expression of several genes including those encoding secreted proteins (the adhesins RapA2, RapB and RapC, two cadherins and the glycanase PlyB), the polysaccharide regulator RosR, and another protein similar to PraR. PraR bound to the promoters of several of these genes indicating direct repression. Mutations in rapA2, rapB, rapC, plyB, the cadherins or rosR did not affect the enhanced root attachment or nodule competitiveness of the praR mutant. However combinations of mutations in rapA, rapB and rapC abolished the enhanced attachment and nodule competitiveness. We conclude that relief of PraR-mediated repression determines a lifestyle switch allowing the expression of genes that are important for biofilm formation on roots and the subsequent initiation of infection of legume roots. © 2014 The Authors. Molecular Microbiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

MAAP4.0.7 analysis and justification for PRA level 1 mission success criteria

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Butler, J.S.; Kapitz, D.; Martin, R.P.; Seifaee, F.; Sundaram, R.K.

2008-01-01

The U.S. EPR is a 4590 MWth evolutionary pressurized water reactor that incorporates proven technology with innovative system architecture to provide an unprecedented level of safety. One of the measures of safety is provided by Probability Risk Assessment (PRA). PRA Level 1 concerns the evaluation of core damage frequency based on various initiating events and the success or failure of various plant event mitigation features. Determination of this measure requires mission success criteria, which are used to build the logic that makes up the fault trees and event trees of the Level 1 PRA. Developing mission success criteria for the wide variety of accident sequences modeled in the PRA Level 1 model requires a large number of thermal hydraulic calculations. The MAAP4 code, developed by Fauske and Associates, Inc. and distributed by EPRI, was chosen to perform these calculations because of its fast computation times relative to more sophisticated thermal-hydraulics codes This is a unique application of MAAP4, which was developed specifically for severe accident and PRA Level 2 analysis. As such, a study was performed to assess MAAP4 's thermal-hydraulic response capabilities against AREVA 's S-RELAP5 best-estimate integral systems thermal-hydraulic analysis code. (authors)

PRA quality and use

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okrent, D.; Apostolakis, G.; Whitley, R.; Garrick, B.J.

1982-10-01

This report deals with several inter-related aspects of probabilistic risk assessment. Some prior opinion regarding quality assurance, methodology and questions of peer review are reviewed, followed by comments by the authors on these and related subjects. Problems arising in decision-making by different groups concerning the meaning and validity of a PRA are examined, and the role of performance criteria in helping to achieve consensus is treated. Finally, a general approach to the development of performance criteria for systems and functions by the retrospective comparison of existing PRAs is proposed and examined in a preliminary fashion

RAVEN: a GUI and an Artificial Intelligence Engine in a Dynamic PRA Framework

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

C. Rabiti; D. Mandelli; A. Alfonsi; J. Cogliati; R. Kinoshita; D. Gaston; R. Martineau; C. Curtis

2013-06-01

Increases in computational power and pressure for more accurate simulations and estimations of accident scenario consequences are driving the need for Dynamic Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) [1] of very complex models. While more sophisticated algorithms and computational power address the back end of this challenge, the front end is still handled by engineers that need to extract meaningful information from the large amount of data and build these complex models. Compounding this problem is the difficulty in knowledge transfer and retention, and the increasing speed of software development. The above-described issues would have negatively impacted deployment of the new high fidelity plant simulator RELAP-7 (Reactor Excursion and Leak Analysis Program) at Idaho National Laboratory. Therefore, RAVEN that was initially focused to be the plant controller for RELAP-7 will help mitigate future RELAP-7 software engineering risks. In order to accomplish this task, Reactor Analysis and Virtual Control Environment (RAVEN) has been designed to provide an easy to use Graphical User Interface (GUI) for building plant models and to leverage artificial intelligence algorithms in order to reduce computational time, improve results, and help the user to identify the behavioral pattern of the Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). In this paper we will present the GUI implementation and its current capability status. We will also introduce the support vector machine algorithms and show our evaluation of their potentiality in increasing the accuracy and reducing the computational costs of PRA analysis. In this evaluation we will refer to preliminary studies performed under the Risk Informed Safety Margins Characterization (RISMC) project of the Light Water Reactors Sustainability (LWRS) campaign [3]. RISMC simulation needs and algorithm testing are currently used as a guidance to prioritize RAVEN developments relevant to PRA.

Review of KSNP LPSD PSA model based of ANS LPSD PRA standard, rev.0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, S. C.; Park, J. H.; Kim, T. W.; Lim, H. G.; Yang, J. E.; Ha, J. J.

2004-02-01

Recently, under the de-regulation environment, nuclear industry has attempted various approaches to improve the economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). One of these efforts is the Risk Informed/Performance-based Operation (RIPBO). This approach uses the risk and performance information to manage the resources effectively and efficiently that are used in the operation of NPP. In RIPBO, PSA quality is one of the most important things. The nuclear industry and regulatory body of U.S.A have developed a measure to evaluate the quality of PSA. NEI (Nuclear Energy Institute) has developed a guidance called 'NEI PRA Peer Review Guidance,' and NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Committee) and ASME have developed the 'PRA Standard.' In Korea, several projects are on going now, such as the extension of AOT/STI of RPS/ESFAS, Risk-informed In-service Inspection (RI-ISI). However, in Korea, there have been no attempts to evaluate the quality of PSA model itself. Therefore, we cannot be sure about the quality of PSA whether or not the present PSA model can be used for the risk-informed applications such as mentioned above. We can say that the evaluation of PSA model quality is the basis for the RIPBO. In this report, we have evaluated the quality of PSA model at Low power and Shutdown operation model for Yongkwang 5 and 6 units based on the ANS LPSD PRA Standard. We, also, have derived what items are to be improved to upgrade the quality of LPSD PSA model and how it can be improved. This report can be used as the base of RIPBO work in Korea

Manutenção de brinquedo em praças públicas

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabio Namiki

2007-12-01

Full Text Available O artigo apresenta o jacaré, um dos brinquedos executados no âmbito do Programa Centros de Bairro, que foi responsável pela implantação de cerca de 50 praças na cidade de São Paulo entre 2002 e 2004. O conjunto dos brinquedos deste programa foi apresentado e analisado no mestrado “Manutenção de praças na cidade de São Paulo. Estudo de caso: brinquedos do programa Centros de Bairro”, segundo metodologia que pode ser também aplicada para outros componentes de uma praça e mesmo para a praça em si. Espera-se que esta metodologia sirva como instrumento para o planejamento das ações de manutenção de praças e de mobiliários urbanos de modo geral. Neste texto, são apresentadas informações (da mesma forma que seriam em um manual de uso, operação e manutenção do projeto do brinquedo, obtidas junto aos responsáveis pelo programa, em entrevista com o executor dos brinquedos e através dos desenhos e documentos produzidos para a licitação e execução das peças. São também apresentadas as informações obtidas a partir das inspeções a campo e estimativas do custo de manutenção preventiva. Frente ao custo de reposição de um brinquedo novo, os valores da manutenção nos provam a importância econômica de tais ações.

Environmental Assessment for the Warren Station externally fired combined cycle demonstration project

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1995-04-01

The proposed Penelec project is one of 5 projects for potential funding under the fifth solicitation under the Clean Coal Technology program. In Penelec, two existing boilers would be replaced at Warren Station, PA; the new unit would produce 73 MW(e) in a combined cycle mode (using both gas-fired and steam turbines). The project would fill the need for a full utility-size demonstration of externally fire combined cycle (EFCC) technology as the next step toward commercialization. This environmental assessment was prepared for compliance with NEPA; its purpose is to provide sufficient basis for determining whether to prepare an environmental impact statement or to issue a finding of no significant impact. It is divided into the sections: purpose and need for proposed action; alternatives; brief description of affected environment; environmental consequences, including discussion of commercial operation beyond the demonstration period.

Preliminary ATWS analysis for the IRIS PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maddalena Barra; Marco S Ghisu; David J Finnicum; Luca Oriani

2005-01-01

Full text of publication follows: The pressurized light water cooled, medium power (1000 MWt) IRIS (International Reactor Innovative and Secure) has been under development for four years by an international consortium of over 21 organizations from ten countries. The plant conceptual design was completed in 2001 and the preliminary design is nearing completion. The pre-application licensing process with NRC started in October, 2002. IRIS has been primarily focused on establishing a design with innovative safety characteristics. The first line of defense in IRIS is to eliminate event initiators that could potentially lead to core damage. In IRIS, this concept is implemented through the 'safety by design' approach, which allows to minimize the number and complexity of the safety systems and required operator actions. The end result is a design with significantly reduced complexity and improved operability, and extensive plant simplifications to enhance construction. To support the optimization of the plant design and confirm the effectiveness of the safety by design approach in mitigating or eliminating events and thus providing a significant reduction in the probability of severe accidents, the PRA is being used as an integral part of the design process. A preliminary but extensive Level 1 PRA model has been developed to support the pre-application licensing of the IRIS design. As a result of the Preliminary IRIS PRA, an optimization of the design from a reliability point of view was completed, and an extremely low (about 1.2 E -8 ) core damage frequency (CDF) was assessed to confirm the impact of the safety by design approach. This first assessment is a result of a PRA model including internal initiating events. During this assessment, several assumptions were necessary to complete the CDF evaluation. In particular Anticipated Transients Without Scram (ATWS) were not included in this initial assessment, because their contribution to core damage frequency was assumed

Results and insights of a level-1 internal event PRA of a PWR during mid-loop operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, T.L.; Musicki, Z.; Kohut, P.; Yang, J.; Bozoki, G.; Hsu, C.J.; Diamond, D.J.; Wong, S.M.; Holmes, B.; Su, R.F.; Dang, V.; Siu, N.; Bley, D.; Johnson, D.; Lin, J.

1994-01-01

Traditionally, probabilistic risk assessments (PRA) of severe accidents in nuclear power plants have considered initiating events potentially occurring only during full power operation. Some previous screening analysis that were performed for other modes of operation suggested that risks during those modes were small relative to full power operation. However, more recent studies and operational experience have implied that accidents during low power and shutdown could be significant contributors to risk. During 1989, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) initiated an extensive program to carefully examine the potential risks during low power and shutdown operations. The program includes two parallel projects being performed by BNL and SNL. Two plants, Surry (pressurized water reactor) and Grand Gulf (boiling water reactor), were selected as the plants to be studied. The objectives of the program are to assess the risks of severe accidents initiated during plant operational states other than full power operation and to compare the estimated core damage frequencies, important accident sequences and other qualitative and quantitative results with those accidents initiated during full power operation as assessed in NUREG-1150. The scope of the program includes that of a level-3 PRA. The objective of this paper is to present the approach utilized in the level-1 PRA for the Surry plant, and discuss the results obtained. A comparison of the results with those of other shutdown studies is provided. Relevant safety issues such as plant and hardware configurations, operator training, and instrumentation and control is discussed

Development of a methodology for conducting an integrated HRA/PRA --

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luckas, W.J.; Barriere, M.T.; Brown, W.S. (Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)); Wreathall, J. (Wreathall (John) and Co., Dublin, OH (United States)); Cooper, S.E. (Science Applications International Corp., McLean, VA (United States))

1993-01-01

During Low Power and Shutdown (LP S) conditions in a nuclear power plant (i.e., when the reactor is subcritical or at less than 10--15% power), human interactions with the plant's systems will be more frequent and more direct. Control is typically not mediated by automation, and there are fewer protective systems available. Therefore, an assessment of LP S related risk should include a greater emphasis on human reliability than such an assessment made for power operation conditions. In order to properly account for the increase in human interaction and thus be able to perform a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) applicable to operations during LP S, it is important that a comprehensive human reliability assessment (HRA) methodology be developed and integrated into the LP S PRA. The tasks comprising the comprehensive HRA methodology development are as follows: (1) identification of the human reliability related influences and associated human actions during LP S, (2) identification of potentially important LP S related human actions and appropriate HRA framework and quantification methods, and (3) incorporation and coordination of methodology development with other integrated PRA/HRA efforts. This paper describes the first task, i.e., the assessment of human reliability influences and any associated human actions during LP S conditions for a pressurized water reactor (PWR).

Hydrogen Fire Spectroscopy Issues Project

Science.gov (United States)

Youngquist, Robert C. (Compiler)

2014-01-01

The detection of hydrogen fires is important to the aerospace community. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has devoted significant effort to the development, testing, and installation of hydrogen fire detectors based on ultraviolet, near-infrared, mid-infrared, andor far-infrared flame emission bands. Yet, there is no intensity calibrated hydrogen-air flame spectrum over this range in the literature and consequently, it can be difficult to compare the merits of different radiation-based hydrogen fire detectors.

Pemikiran Suksesi Dalam Politik Islam Masa Pra Modern

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mazro'atus Sa'adah

2016-12-01

Abstrak: Pemikiran politik Islam muncul setelah Islam melalui Nabi Muhammad SAW berhasil membentuk sebuah ummat baru, dari peralihan kekuasaan kerajaan/kesukuan kepada Nabi yang kemudian kepada umat. Nabi Muhammad dinilai berhasil dalam mengatur komunitas barunya yang dikendalikan oleh ajarannya dalam seluruh lini kehidupan. Persoalan muncul kemudian setelah beliau wafat, yang akhirnya memunculkan pemikiran tentang suksesi. Artikel ini akan membahas tentang mengapa terjadi suksesi setelah Nabi Muhammad SAW wafat, bagaimana pemikiran para tokoh politik Islam masa pra modern terkait dengan suksesi, dan apa kontribusi pemikiran suksesi ini terhadap politik Islam di Indonesia. Dengan menggunakan pendekatan sejarah, ditemukan bahwa Nabi Muhammad tidak menetapkan siapa yang akan menggantikannya, dan ketika beliau wafat (632 M, para sahabat memilih seorang pemimpin (imam/khalifah. Masa pemerintahan Abu Bakar, Umar dan Usman banyak terjadi perselisihan yang awalnya terkait kepentingan agama namun berkembang menjadi kepentingan politik. Ketika Ali bin Abi Talib diangkat sebagai khalifah, konflik politik berkepanjangan berkaitan dengan pembunuhan Usman, menjadikan timbulnya perang jamal antara Aisyah dan Ali. Pada masa ini perbedaan kepentingan aqidah dipolitisir lebih jauh menjadi sebuah kepentingan politik. Dinamika politik ini kemudian melahirkan mazhab politik Islam klasik yang terbagi dalam tiga mazhab besar yaitu Sunni, Syi'ah dan Khawarij, yang darinya muncul istilah-istilah khilafah, imamah, ahlul halli wal aqdi, bay’ah, walayah dan lain-lain. Dari ketiga mazhab politik ini, kemudian muncul ide pemikiran politik Islam yang sangat kompleks dan berkepanjangan dari para tokoh politik Islam pra modern yang banyak dipengaruhi oleh filosof Yunani. Di Indonesia, pemikiran suksesi dalam politik Islam masa pra modern ini pernah diwacanakan. Namun untuk pemilihan kepala Negara belum terealisasi mengingat Indonesia bukan Negara Islam.

Projections of 21st Century African Climate: Implications for African Savanna Fire Dynamics, Human Health and Food Security

Science.gov (United States)

Adegoke, J. O.

2015-12-01

Fire is a key agent of change in the African savannas, which are shaped through the complex interactions between trees, C4 grasses, rainfall, temperature, CO2 and fire. These fires and their emitted smoke can have numerous direct and indirect effects on the environment, water resources, air quality, and climate. For instance, veld fires in southern Africa cause large financial losses to agriculture, livestock production and forestry on an annual basis. This study contributes to our understanding of the implications of projected surface temperature evolution in Africa for fire risk, human health and agriculture over the coming decades. We use an ensemble of high-resolution regional climate model simulations of African climate for the 21st century. Regional dowscalings and recent global circulation model projections obtained for Africa indicate that African temperatures are likely to rise at 1.5 times the global rate of temperature increase in the tropics, and at almost twice the global rate of increase in the subtropics. Warming is projected to occur during the 21st century, with increases of 4-6 °C over the subtropics and 3-5 °C over the tropics plausible by the end of the century relative to present-day climate under the A2 (low mitigation) scenario. We explore the significance of the projected warming by documenting increases in projected high fire danger days and heat-wave days. General drying is projected across the continent, even for areas (e.g. tropical Africa) where an increase in rainfall is plausible. This is due to the drastic increases in temperature that are projected, which leads to drier soils (through enhanced evaporation) despite the rainfall increases. This will likely impact negatively on crop yield, particularly on the maize crop that is of crucial importance in terms of African food security.

Urgensi Pemeriksaan Psikis Pra-Nikah (Studi Pandangan Kepala KUA dan Psikolog Kota Malang

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ika Kurnia Fitriani

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Beberapa negara muslim memberikan perhatian terhadap pemeriksaan psikis pra-nikah bagi calon mempelai, sebagai upaya menanggulangi masalah rumah tangga akibat gangguan kejiwaan di masa yang akan datang. Penelitian ini bertujuan menggali informasi dari Kepala KUA dan Psikolog di Kota Malang tentang pemeriksaan psikis pra-nikah dan urgensinya bagi calon mempelai. Penelitian ini termasuk dalam penelitian lapangan (field reasearch, dengan menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif.  Alanisis data dilakukan melalui tiga tahapan yaitu reduksi data, penyajian data, dan menarik kesimpulan. Pengecekan keabsahan data menggunakan triangulasi sumber yang membandingkan hasil wawancara dengan data sekunder, dan triangulasi teori. Hasil dari penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa Kepala KUA dan Psikolog di kota Malang menyetujui diadakan pemeriksaan psikis pranikah akan tetapi harus ada aturan hukumnya dan dilakukan sosialisasi agar program menjadi efektif. Selain itu, pemeriksaan psikis pra-nikah tidak bertentangan dengan konsep maqashid al-syari’ah dan konsep sadz al-dzari’ah dalam hukum Islam.

Estrogen and progesterone receptors have distinct roles in the establishment of the hyperplastic phenotype in PR-A transgenic mice

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simian, Marina; Bissell, Mina J.; Barcellos-Hoff, Mary Helen; Shyamala, Gopalan

2009-05-11

Expression of the A and B forms of progesterone receptor (PR) in an appropriate ratio is critical for mammary development. Mammary glands of PR-A transgenic mice, carrying an additional A form of PR as a transgene, exhibit morphological features associated with the development of mammary tumors. Our objective was to determine the roles of estrogen (E) and progesterone (P) in the genesis of mammary hyperplasias/preneoplasias in PR-A transgenics. We subjected PR-A mice to hormonal treatments and analyzed mammary glands for the presence of hyperplasias and used BrdU incorporation to measure proliferation. Quantitative image analysis was carried out to compare levels of latency-associated peptide and transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF{beta}1) between PR-A and PR-B transgenics. Basement membrane disruption was examined by immunofluorescence and proteolytic activity by zymography. The hyperplastic phenotype of PR-A transgenics is inhibited by ovariectomy, and is reversed by treatment with E + P. Studies using the antiestrogen ICI 182,780 or antiprogestins RU486 or ZK 98,299 show that the increase in proliferation requires signaling through E/estrogen receptor alpha but is not sufficient to give rise to hyperplasias, whereas signaling through P/PR has little impact on proliferation but is essential for the manifestation of hyperplasias. Increased proliferation is correlated with decreased TGF{beta}1 activation in the PR-A transgenics. Analysis of basement membrane integrity showed loss of laminin-5, collagen III and collagen IV in mammary glands of PR-A mice, which is restored by ovariectomy. Examination of matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) showed that total levels of MMP-2 correlate with the steady-state levels of PR, and that areas of laminin-5 loss coincide with those of activation of MMP-2 in PR-A transgenics. Activation of MMP-2 is dependent on treatment with E and P in ovariectomized wild-type mice, but is achieved only by treatment with P in PR-A mice. These data

Development of a methodology for conducting an integrated HRA/PRA --

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luckas, W.J.; Barriere, M.T.; Brown, W.S.; Wreathall, J.; Cooper, S.E.

1993-01-01

During Low Power and Shutdown (LP ampersand S) conditions in a nuclear power plant (i.e., when the reactor is subcritical or at less than 10--15% power), human interactions with the plant's systems will be more frequent and more direct. Control is typically not mediated by automation, and there are fewer protective systems available. Therefore, an assessment of LP ampersand S related risk should include a greater emphasis on human reliability than such an assessment made for power operation conditions. In order to properly account for the increase in human interaction and thus be able to perform a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) applicable to operations during LP ampersand S, it is important that a comprehensive human reliability assessment (HRA) methodology be developed and integrated into the LP ampersand S PRA. The tasks comprising the comprehensive HRA methodology development are as follows: (1) identification of the human reliability related influences and associated human actions during LP ampersand S, (2) identification of potentially important LP ampersand S related human actions and appropriate HRA framework and quantification methods, and (3) incorporation and coordination of methodology development with other integrated PRA/HRA efforts. This paper describes the first task, i.e., the assessment of human reliability influences and any associated human actions during LP ampersand S conditions for a pressurized water reactor (PWR)

Sensitivity studies on the approaches for addressing multiple initiating events in fire events PSA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kang, Dae Il; Lim, Ho Gon [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-10-15

A single fire event within a fire compartment or a fire scenario can cause multiple initiating events (IEs). As an example, a fire in a turbine building fire area can cause a loss of the main feed-water (LOMF) and loss of off-site power (LOOP) IEs. Previous domestic fire events PSA had considered only the most severe initiating event among multiple initiating events. NUREG/CR-6850 and ANS/ASME PRA Standard require that multiple IEs are to be addressed in fire events PSA. In this paper, sensitivity studies on the approaches for addressing multiple IEs in fire events PSA for Hanul Unit 3 were performed and their results were presented. In this paper, sensitivity studies on the approaches for addressing multiple IEs in fire events PSA are performed and their results were presented. From the sensitivity analysis results, we can find that the incorporations of multiple IEs into fire events PSA model result in the core damage frequency (CDF) increase and may lead to the generation of the duplicate cutsets. Multiple IEs also can occur at internal flooding event or other external events such as seismic event. They should be considered in the constructions of PSA models in order to realistically estimate risk due to flooding or seismic events.

Evaluation of hsp65 Nested PCR-Restriction Analysis (PRA) for Diagnosing Tuberculosis in a High Burden Country

Science.gov (United States)

Macente, Sara; Fujimura Leite, Clarice Queico; Santos, Adolfo Carlos Barreto; Siqueira, Vera Lúcia Dias; Machado, Luzia Neri Cosmo; Marcondes, Nadir Rodrigues; Hirata, Mario Hiroyuki; Hirata, Rosário Dominguez Crespo

2013-01-01

Current study evaluated the hsp65 Nested PCR Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism Analysis (hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA) to detect and identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex directly in clinical samples for a rapid and specific diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB). hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA was applied directly to 218 clinical samples obtained from 127 patients suspected of TB or another mycobacterial infection from July 2009 to July 2010. The hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA showed 100% sensitivity and 95.0 and 93.1% specificity in comparison with culture and microscopy (acid fast bacillus smear), respectively. hsp65 Nested PCR-PRA was shown to be a fast and reliable assay for diagnosing TB, which may contribute towards a fast diagnosis that could help the selection of appropriate chemotherapeutic and early epidemiological management of the cases which are of paramount importance in a high TB burden country. PMID:24260739

Clinical analysis of the changes of plasma PRA, AT-II and Aid levels in patients with acute renal failure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Qiuyue; Yang Yongqing

2002-01-01

Objective: To investigate the role of changes of plasma PRA, AT-II and Ald levels in the pathogenesis of acute renal failure. Methods: Plasma PRA, AT-II and Ald levels were determined with RIA in 40 normal subjects and 72 cases of acute renal failure. Results: Plasma PRA, AT-II and Ald levels in the patients were markedly increased as compared with those in normal subjects (p < 0.05, p < 0.01, p < 0.001 respectively). There were no linearity and exponential relationship between plasma PRA, AT-II, Ald levels and the 24 h urinary sodium excretion amount (within the range of 89.1 - 365.2 mEq). Conclusion: Acute renal failure could activate the RAAS function

An integrated PRA module for fast determination of risk significance and improvement effectiveness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chao, Chun-Chang; Lin, Jyh-Der

2004-01-01

With the widely use of PRA technology in risk-informed applications, to predict the changes of CDF and LERF becomes a standard process for risk-informed applications. This paper describes an integrated PRA module prepared for risk-informed applications. The module contains a super risk engine, a super fault tree engine, an advanced PRA model and a tool for data base maintenance. The individual element of the module also works well for purpose other than risk-informed applications. The module has been verified and validated through a series of scrupulous benchmark tests with similar software. The results of the benchmark tests showed that the module has remarkable accuracy and speed even for an extremely large-size top-logic fault tree as well as for the case in which large amount of MCSs may be generated. The risk monitor for nuclear power plants in Taiwan is the first application to adopt the module. The results predicted by the risk monitor are now accepted by the regulatory agency. A tool to determine the risk significance according to the inspection findings will be the next application to adopt the module in the near future. This tool classified the risk significance into four different color codes according to the level of increase on CDF. Experience of application showed that the flexibility, the accuracy and speed of the module make it useful in any risk-informed applications when risk indexes must be determined by resolving a PRA model. (author)

Community participation in fire management planning: The Trinity county fire safe council's fire plan

Science.gov (United States)

Yvonne Everett

2008-01-01

In 1999, Trinity County CA, initiated a participatory fire management planning effort. Since that time, the Trinity County Fire Safe Council has completed critical portions of a fire safe plan and has begun to implement projects defined in the plan. Completion of a GIS based, landscape scale fuels reduction element in the plan defined by volunteer fire fighters, agency...

Performing of recent real scale cable fire experiments and presentation of the results in the frame of the international collaborative fire modeling project ICFMP. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hosser, Dietmar; Riese, Olaf; Klingenberg, Mark

2005-01-01

As a part of the Fire Risk Research Program, the German iBMB (Institut fuer Baustoffe, Massivbau und Brandschutz) of Braunschweig University of Technology and GRS (Gesellschaft fuer Anlagenund Reaktorsicherheit mbH) are participating in an International Collaborative Fire Modeling Project (ICFMP) to assess and validate fire computer codes for nuclear power plant applications. This assessment is being conducted through benchmarking and validation exercises. The tests are simulating cable fires scenarios in a single compartment. The goal of the actual cable fire series is to investigate the effects of a natural fire to vertically routed cables (worst case) with different cable insulation material (PVC and FRNC). Another important aspect of cable fire is the risk of function failure. Therefore in the test series the short circuit and the conduction loss of cables are measured. This report includes a first description of the experimental results for test 1 - test 4 of the International Collaborative Fire Model Project conducted in December 2003 at the iBMB in Germany. The experimental data are reported on the International Collaborative Fire Model Project - Platform. The measured data shall be the basis for fire simulations. The tests show that the FRNC cables have significantly better characteristics in case of fire. No substantial flame spread takes place even in case of preheating. PVC cables could be ignited with a burner output of 50 kW, in contrary, the FRNC cables could be ignited at burner output of 150 kW. The preheating has a complex effect on the fire behavior of the cables. It may occur that gases are pyrolysed which are not ignited during the phase of preheating. These gases are transported from the cable surrounding and may leave the fire room. Short circuits occur first in case ''conductor to conductor'' and later in case ''conductor to tray''. The time periods until short circuits occur are strongly dependent on the preheating of the cables. In case of

Loss of coolant accident (LOCA) analysis for McMaster Nuclear Reactor through probabilistic risk assessment (PRA)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ha, T.; Garland, W.J. [McMaster Univ., Dept. of Engineering Physics, Hamilton, Ontario (Canada)]. E-mail: hats@mcmaster.ca

2006-07-01

A probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) was conducted for the loss of coolant accident (LOCA) sequence in the McMaster Nuclear Reactor (MNR). A level 1 PRA was completed including event sequence modeling, system modeling, and quantification. To support the quantification of the accident sequence identified, data analysis using the Bayesian method and human reliability analysis (HRA) using the ASEP approach were performed. Since human performance in research reactors is significantly different from that in power reactors, a different time-oriented HRA model was proposed and applied for the estimation of the human error probability (HEP) of core relocation. This HEP estimate was less than that by the ASEP approach by a factor of about 2. These two HEP estimates were used for sensitivity analysis, and modeling uncertainty in the PRA models was quantified. This showed the necessity of appropriate human reliability models in PRA for research reactors. This method could be implemented for the operators' actions which require extensive manual execution with little cognitive load, as might be the case for some maintenance operations in power reactors. (author)

Fire as Technology

Science.gov (United States)

Rudolph, Robert N.

2011-01-01

In this article, the author describes a project that deals with fire production as an aspect of technology. The project challenges students to be survivors in a five-day classroom activity. Students research various materials and methods to produce fire without the use of matches or other modern combustion devices, then must create "fire" to keep…

Survey of seismic fragilities used in PRA studies of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Y.J.; Hofmayer, C.H.; Chokshi, N.C.

1998-01-01

In recent years, seismic PRA studies have been performed on a large number of nuclear power plants in the USA. This paper presents a summary of a survey on fragility databases and the range of evaluated fragility values of various equipment categories based on past PRAs. The survey includes the use of experience data, the interpretations of available test data, and the quantification of uncertainties. The surveyed fragility databases are limited to data available in the public domain such as NUREG reports, conference proceedings and other publicly available reports. The extent of the availability of data as well as limitations are studied and tabulated for various equipment categories. The survey of the fragility values in past PRA studies includes not only the best estimate values, but also the dominant failure modes and the estimated uncertainty levels for each equipment category. The engineering judgments employed in estimating the uncertainty in the fragility values are also studied. This paper provides a perspective on the seismic fragility evaluation procedures for equipment in order to clearly identify the engineering analysis and judgment used in past seismic PRA studies

Applicability of PRA methods and data to the financial risk assessment of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

El-Sheik, K.A.

1985-01-01

Financial risk assessment, where the probability and severity of financial consequences are estimated, offers a logical framework for organizing and evaluating data pertinent to nuclear power plant accidents. Under the sponsorship of the Electric Power Research Institute, General Electric investigated the feasibility of financial risk assessment of nuclear power plants and of applying PRA methods and data in such an assessment. This paper summarizes the main findings of this investigation. Specifically, the paper discussed the following topics: definition of financial consequences and financial risk; overall approach for financial risk assessment and how it compares with the approach for PRA used in the Reactor Safety Study; and specific financial risk assessment procedures for defining initiating events, plant response sequences, institutional scenarios, and financial consequences and how they compare to analogous procedures for PRA

Automatic Code Checking Applied to Fire Fighting and Panic Projects in a BIM Environment - BIMSCIP

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marcelo Franco Porto

2017-06-01

Full Text Available This work presents a computational implementation of an automatic conformity verification of building projects using a 3D modeling platform for BIM. This program was developed in C# language and based itself on the 9th Technical Instruction from Military Fire Brigade of the State of Minas Gerais which covers regulations of fire load in buildings and hazardous areas.

Evaluation of allowed outage time using PRA results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Johanson, G.

1985-01-01

In a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) different measures of risk importance can be established. These measures can be used as a basis for further evaluation and determination of allowed outage time for specific components, within safety systems of a nuclear power plant. In order to optimize the allowed outage time (AOT) stipulated in the plant's Technical Specification it is necessary to create a methodology which could incorporate existing PRA data into a quantitative extrapolation. In order to evaluate the plant risk status due to AOT in a quantitative manner, the risk achievement worth is utilized. Risk achievement worth is defined as follows: to measure the worth of a feature, in achieving the present risk, one approach is to remove the feature and then determine how much the risk has increased. Thus, the risk achievement worth is formally defined to be the increase in risk if the feature were assumed not be there or to be failed. Another parameter of interest for this analysis is the shutdown risk increase. The shutdown risk achievement worth must be incorporated into the accident sequence risk achievement worth to arrive at an optimal set of plant specific AOTs

Future Projections of Fire Occurrence in Brazil Using EC-Earth Climate Model

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrícia Silva

Full Text Available Abstract Fire has a fundamental role in the Earth system as it influences global and local ecosystem patterns and processes, such as vegetation distribution and structure, the carbon cycle and climate. Since, in the global context, Brazil is one of the regions with higher fire activity, an assessment is here performed of the sensitivity of the wildfire regime in Brazilian savanna and shrubland areas to changes in regional climate during the 21st Century, for an intermediate scenario (RCP4.5 of climate change. The assessment is based on a spatial and temporal analysis of a meteorological fire danger index specifically developed for Brazilian biomes, which was evaluated based on regional climate simulations of temperature, relative humidity and precipitation using the Rossby Centre Regional Climate Model (RCA4 forced by the EC-Earth earth system model. Results show a systematic increase in the extreme levels of fire danger throughout the 21st Century that mainly results from the increase in maximum daily temperature, which rises by about 2 °C between 2005 and 2100. This study provides new insights about projected fire activity in Brazilian woody savannas associated to climate change and is expected to benefit the user community, from governmental policies to land management and climate researches.

Results and insights of internal fire and internal flood analyses of the Surry Unit 1 Nuclear Power Plant during mid-loop operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, Tsong-Lun; Musicki, Z.; Kohut, P.

1995-01-01

During 1989, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) initiated an extensive program to carefully examine the potential risks during low power and shutdown operations. Two plants, Surry (pressurized water reactor) and Grand Gulf (boiling water reactor), were selected as the plants to be studied by Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). The objectives of the program are to assess the risks of severe accidents initiated during plant operational states (POSs) other than full power operation and to compare the estimated core damage frequencies (CDFs), important accident sequences and other qualitative and quantitative results with those accidents initiated during full power operation as assessed in NUREG-1150. The scope of the program includes that of a Level 3 PRA for internal events and a Level 1 PRA for seismically induced and internal fire and flood induced core damage sequences. This paper summarizes the results and highlights of the internal fire and flood analysis documented in Volumes 3 and 4 of NUREG/CR-6144 performed for the Surry plant during mid-loop operation

Fire hazards analysis for the replacement cross-site transfer system, project W-058

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sepahpur, J.B.

1996-01-01

The fire hazards analysis assess the risk from fire and determines compliance with the applicable criteria of DOE 5480.7A, DOE 6430.1A, and RLID 5480.7. (Project W-058 will provide encased pipelines to connect the SY Tank Farms in 200 West Area with the tank farms in 200 East Area via an interface with the 244-A lift station. Function of the cross-site transfer system will be to transfer radioactive waste from the SY Tank Farm to treatment, storage, and disposal facilities in 200 East Area.)

Quantifying the Carbon Balance of Forest Restoration and Wildfire under Projected Climate in the Fire-Prone Southwestern US.

Science.gov (United States)

Hurteau, Matthew D

2017-01-01

Climate projections for the southwestern US suggest a warmer, drier future and have the potential to impact forest carbon (C) sequestration and post-fire C recovery. Restoring forest structure and surface fire regimes initially decreases total ecosystem carbon (TEC), but can stabilize the remaining C by moderating wildfire behavior. Previous research has demonstrated that fire maintained forests can store more C over time than fire suppressed forests in the presence of wildfire. However, because the climate future is uncertain, I sought to determine the efficacy of forest management to moderate fire behavior and its effect on forest C dynamics under current and projected climate. I used the LANDIS-II model to simulate carbon dynamics under early (2010-2019), mid (2050-2059), and late (2090-2099) century climate projections for a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) dominated landscape in northern Arizona. I ran 100-year simulations with two different treatments (control, thin and burn) and a 1 in 50 chance of wildfire occurring. I found that control TEC had a consistent decline throughout the simulation period, regardless of climate. Thin and burn TEC increased following treatment implementation and showed more differentiation than the control in response to climate, with late-century climate having the lowest TEC. Treatment efficacy, as measured by mean fire severity, was not impacted by climate. Fire effects were evident in the cumulative net ecosystem exchange (NEE) for the different treatments. Over the simulation period, 32.8-48.9% of the control landscape was either C neutral or a C source to the atmosphere and greater than 90% of the thin and burn landscape was a moderate C sink. These results suggest that in southwestern ponderosa pine, restoring forest structure and surface fire regimes provides a reasonable hedge against the uncertainty of future climate change for maintaining the forest C sink.

Quantifying the Carbon Balance of Forest Restoration and Wildfire under Projected Climate in the Fire-Prone Southwestern US.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Matthew D Hurteau

Full Text Available Climate projections for the southwestern US suggest a warmer, drier future and have the potential to impact forest carbon (C sequestration and post-fire C recovery. Restoring forest structure and surface fire regimes initially decreases total ecosystem carbon (TEC, but can stabilize the remaining C by moderating wildfire behavior. Previous research has demonstrated that fire maintained forests can store more C over time than fire suppressed forests in the presence of wildfire. However, because the climate future is uncertain, I sought to determine the efficacy of forest management to moderate fire behavior and its effect on forest C dynamics under current and projected climate. I used the LANDIS-II model to simulate carbon dynamics under early (2010-2019, mid (2050-2059, and late (2090-2099 century climate projections for a ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa dominated landscape in northern Arizona. I ran 100-year simulations with two different treatments (control, thin and burn and a 1 in 50 chance of wildfire occurring. I found that control TEC had a consistent decline throughout the simulation period, regardless of climate. Thin and burn TEC increased following treatment implementation and showed more differentiation than the control in response to climate, with late-century climate having the lowest TEC. Treatment efficacy, as measured by mean fire severity, was not impacted by climate. Fire effects were evident in the cumulative net ecosystem exchange (NEE for the different treatments. Over the simulation period, 32.8-48.9% of the control landscape was either C neutral or a C source to the atmosphere and greater than 90% of the thin and burn landscape was a moderate C sink. These results suggest that in southwestern ponderosa pine, restoring forest structure and surface fire regimes provides a reasonable hedge against the uncertainty of future climate change for maintaining the forest C sink.

Application of determination of PRA, Ang II and IGF-1 levels in the study of typing of essential hypertension

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Yongyi; Chen Qun; Yang Yongqing

2010-01-01

Objective: To study the clinical application of determination of plasma renin activity (PRA), Angiotensin II (Ang II ) and insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) levels in typing of essential hypertension (EH). Methods: Determined the levels of PRA and Aug II in 256 patients with EH and 70 healthy volunteers (as control group) by radioimmunoassay, and measured IGF-1 level by enzyme immunoassay. Research on the typing of EH and the difference between the groups. Results: The PRA and Ang II in control group was (0.432±0.236) μg·L -1 ·h -1 and (31.7±7.4) μg/L respectively. In 256 patients with EH, PRA was increased, normal and decreased in 18.0%, 71.8% and 10.2% respectively, while the level of Ang II was increased, normal and decreased in 12.9%, 76.2% and 10.9% respectively. The IGF-1 levels in 256 patients with EH were increased following the increase of blood pressure. Conclusion: Typing of EH patients with PRA and Ang II as well as the determination of IGF-1 were useful in treating and following up the patients with EH. (authors)

The OECD FIRE database

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Angner, A.; Berg, H.P.; Roewekamp, M.; Werner, W.; Gauvain, J.

2007-01-01

Realistic modelling of fire scenarios is still difficult due to the scarcity of reliable data needed for deterministic and probabilistic fire safety analysis. Therefore, it has been recognized as highly important to establish a fire event database on an international level. In consequence, several member countries of the Nuclear Energy Agency of the OECD have decided in 2000 to establish the International Fire Data Exchange Project (OECD FIRE) to encourage multilateral co-operation in the collection and analysis of data related to fire events at nuclear power plants. This paper presents the OECD FIRE project objectives, work scope and current status of the OECD FIRE database after 3 years of operation as well as first preliminary statistical insights gained from the collected data. (orig.)

Interaction of CREDO [Centralized Reliability Data Organization] with the EBR-II [Experimental Breeder Reactor II] PRA [probabilistic risk assessment] development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, M.S.; Ragland, W.A.

1989-01-01

The National Academy of Sciences review of US Department of Energy (DOE) class 1 reactors recommended that the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II), operated by Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), develop a level 1 probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) and make provisions for level 2 and level 3 PRAs based on the results of the level 1 PRA. The PRA analysis group at ANL will utilize the Centralized Reliability Data Organization (CREDO) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to support the PRA data needs. CREDO contains many years of empirical liquid-metal reactor component data from EBR-II. CREDO is a mutual data- and cost-sharing system sponsored by DOE and the Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuels Development Corporation of Japan. CREDO is a component based data system; data are collected on components that are liquid-metal specific, associated with a liquid-metal environment, contained in systems that interface with liquid-metal environments, or are safety related for use in reliability/availability/maintainability (RAM) analyses of advanced reactors. The links between the EBR-II PRA development effort and the CREDO data collection at EBR-II extend beyond the sharing of data. The PRA provides a measure of the relative contribution to risk of the various components. This information can be used to prioritize future CREDO data collection activities at EBR-II and other sites

A probabilistic risk assessment of the LLNL Plutonium facility's evaluation basis fire operational accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brumburgh, G.

1994-01-01

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Plutonium Facility conducts numerous involving plutonium to include device fabrication, development of fabrication techniques, metallurgy research, and laser isotope separation. A Safety Analysis Report (SAR) for the building 332 Plutonium Facility was completed rational safety and acceptable risk to employees, the public, government property, and the environment. This paper outlines the PRA analysis of the Evaluation Basis Fire (EDF) operational accident. The EBF postulates the worst-case programmatic impact event for the Plutonium Facility

Climate change and fire effects on a prairie-woodland ecotone: projecting species range shifts with a dynamic global vegetation model

Science.gov (United States)

King, David A.; Bachelet, Dominique M.; Symstad, Amy J.

2013-01-01

Large shifts in species ranges have been predicted under future climate scenarios based primarily on niche-based species distribution models. However, the mechanisms that would cause such shifts are uncertain. Natural and anthropogenic fires have shaped the distributions of many plant species, but their effects have seldom been included in future projections of species ranges. Here, we examine how the combination of climate and fire influence historical and future distributions of the ponderosa pine–prairie ecotone at the edge of the Black Hills in South Dakota, USA, as simulated by MC1, a dynamic global vegetation model that includes the effects of fire, climate, and atmospheric CO2 concentration on vegetation dynamics. For this purpose, we parameterized MC1 for ponderosa pine in the Black Hills, designating the revised model as MC1-WCNP. Results show that fire frequency, as affected by humidity and temperature, is central to the simulation of historical prairies in the warmer lowlands versus woodlands in the cooler, moister highlands. Based on three downscaled general circulation model climate projections for the 21st century, we simulate greater frequencies of natural fire throughout the area due to substantial warming and, for two of the climate projections, lower relative humidity. However, established ponderosa pine forests are relatively fire resistant, and areas that were initially wooded remained so over the 21st century for most of our future climate x fire management scenarios. This result contrasts with projections for ponderosa pine based on climatic niches, which suggest that its suitable habitat in the Black Hills will be greatly diminished by the middle of the 21st century. We hypothesize that the differences between the future predictions from these two approaches are due in part to the inclusion of fire effects in MC1, and we highlight the importance of accounting for fire as managed by humans in assessing both historical species distributions

Climate change and fire effects on a prairie–woodland ecotone: projecting species range shifts with a dynamic global vegetation model

Science.gov (United States)

King, David A; Bachelet, Dominique M; Symstad, Amy J

2013-01-01

Large shifts in species ranges have been predicted under future climate scenarios based primarily on niche-based species distribution models. However, the mechanisms that would cause such shifts are uncertain. Natural and anthropogenic fires have shaped the distributions of many plant species, but their effects have seldom been included in future projections of species ranges. Here, we examine how the combination of climate and fire influence historical and future distributions of the ponderosa pine–prairie ecotone at the edge of the Black Hills in South Dakota, USA, as simulated by MC1, a dynamic global vegetation model that includes the effects of fire, climate, and atmospheric CO2 concentration on vegetation dynamics. For this purpose, we parameterized MC1 for ponderosa pine in the Black Hills, designating the revised model as MC1-WCNP. Results show that fire frequency, as affected by humidity and temperature, is central to the simulation of historical prairies in the warmer lowlands versus woodlands in the cooler, moister highlands. Based on three downscaled general circulation model climate projections for the 21st century, we simulate greater frequencies of natural fire throughout the area due to substantial warming and, for two of the climate projections, lower relative humidity. However, established ponderosa pine forests are relatively fire resistant, and areas that were initially wooded remained so over the 21st century for most of our future climate x fire management scenarios. This result contrasts with projections for ponderosa pine based on climatic niches, which suggest that its suitable habitat in the Black Hills will be greatly diminished by the middle of the 21st century. We hypothesize that the differences between the future predictions from these two approaches are due in part to the inclusion of fire effects in MC1, and we highlight the importance of accounting for fire as managed by humans in assessing both historical species distributions

Climate change and fire effects on a prairie-woodland ecotone: projecting species range shifts with a dynamic global vegetation model.

Science.gov (United States)

King, David A; Bachelet, Dominique M; Symstad, Amy J

2013-12-01

Large shifts in species ranges have been predicted under future climate scenarios based primarily on niche-based species distribution models. However, the mechanisms that would cause such shifts are uncertain. Natural and anthropogenic fires have shaped the distributions of many plant species, but their effects have seldom been included in future projections of species ranges. Here, we examine how the combination of climate and fire influence historical and future distributions of the ponderosa pine-prairie ecotone at the edge of the Black Hills in South Dakota, USA, as simulated by MC1, a dynamic global vegetation model that includes the effects of fire, climate, and atmospheric CO2 concentration on vegetation dynamics. For this purpose, we parameterized MC1 for ponderosa pine in the Black Hills, designating the revised model as MC1-WCNP. Results show that fire frequency, as affected by humidity and temperature, is central to the simulation of historical prairies in the warmer lowlands versus woodlands in the cooler, moister highlands. Based on three downscaled general circulation model climate projections for the 21st century, we simulate greater frequencies of natural fire throughout the area due to substantial warming and, for two of the climate projections, lower relative humidity. However, established ponderosa pine forests are relatively fire resistant, and areas that were initially wooded remained so over the 21st century for most of our future climate x fire management scenarios. This result contrasts with projections for ponderosa pine based on climatic niches, which suggest that its suitable habitat in the Black Hills will be greatly diminished by the middle of the 21st century. We hypothesize that the differences between the future predictions from these two approaches are due in part to the inclusion of fire effects in MC1, and we highlight the importance of accounting for fire as managed by humans in assessing both historical species distributions and

Project Administration Techniques for Successful Classroom Collaborative Writing.

Science.gov (United States)

Kryder, LeeAnne Giannone

1991-01-01

Focuses on the collaborative writing done for a large report or proposal over a period of several weeks or months in a business writing course. Discusses short-term writing projects and nonwriting tasks for project administration, meeting management, student/instructor conference, project planning and time estimates, and oral presentations. (PRA)

Rx-CADRE (Prescribed Fire Combustion-Atmospheric Dynamics Research Experiments) collaborative research in the core fire sciences

Science.gov (United States)

D. Jimenez; B. Butler; K. Hiers; R. Ottmar; M. Dickinson; R. Kremens; J. O' Brien; A. Hudak; C. Clements

2009-01-01

The Rx-CADRE project was the combination of local and national fire expertise in the field of core fire research. The project brought together approximately 30 fire scientists from six geographic regions and seven diff erent agencies. The project objectives were to demonstrate the capacity for collaborative research by bringing together individuals and teams with a...

The SKI-project External events - Phase 2. Estimation of fire frequencies per plant and per building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Poern, K.

1996-08-01

The Swedish-Finnish handbook for initiating event frequencies, I-Book, does not contain any fire frequencies. This matter of fact is not defensible considering the substantial risk contribution caused by fires. In the PSAs performed hitherto the initiating fire frequencies have been determined from case to case. Because data are usually very scarce in these areas it is very important to develop unique definitions, to systematically utilize both international and national experiences and to establish an appropriate statistical estimation method. It is also important to present the accumulated experience such that it can be used for different purposes, not only within PSA but also in the concrete fire preventive work. During phase 1 of the project External Events an inventory was made of existing methods for probabilistic fire analysis in general. During phase 2 of the project it was decided to initialize the work on a complementary handbook, called X-Book, in order to encompass the frequencies of system external events, i.e. initiating events that are caused by events occurring outside the system boundaries. In Version 1 of the X-Book the attention is mainly focussed on the estimation of initiating fire frequencies, per plant and per building. This estimation is basically founded on reports that the power companies have collected for this specific purpose. This report describes the statistical model and method that have been used in the estimation process. The methodological results achieved may, possibly after some modification, be applicable also to other types of system external events

Some insights from fire risk analysis of US nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kazarians, M.; Lambright, J.A.; Frank, M.V.

1998-01-01

Fire risk analysis has been conducted for a significant portion of the nuclear power plants in the U.S. using either Probabilistic Risk Assessments (PRAs) or FIVE or a combination of the two methodologies. Practically all fire risk studies have used step-wise, screening approach. To establish the contents of a compartment, the cable routing information collected for Appendix R compliance have been used in practically all risk studies. In several cases, the analysts have gone beyond the Appendix R and have obtained the routing of additional cables. For fire impact analysis typically an existing PRA model is used. For fire frequencies, typically, a generic data base is used. Fire scenarios are identified in varying levels of detail. The most common approach, in the early stages of screening, is based on the assumption that given a fire, the entire contents of the compartment are lost. Less conservative scenarios are introduced at later stages of the analysis which may include fire propagation patterns, fires localized to an item. and suppression of the fire before critical damage. For fire propagation and damage analysis, a large number of studies have used FIVE and many have used COMPBRN. For detection and suppression analysis, the generic suppression system unavailabilities given in FIVE have been used. The total core damage frequencies typically range between 1x10 -6 to 1x10 -4 per year. Control rooms and cable spreading rooms are the two most common areas found to be significant contributors to fire risk. Other areas are mainly from the Auxiliary Building (in the case of PWRs) and Reactor Building (in the case of BWRs). Only in one case, the main contributor to fire is the turbine building, which included several safety related equipment and cables. (author)

How Can You Support RIDM/CRM/RM Through the Use of PRA

Science.gov (United States)

DoVemto. Tpmu

2011-01-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) is one of key Risk Informed Decision Making (RIDM) tools. It is a scenario-based methodology aimed at identifying and assessing Safety and Technical Performance risks in complex technological systems.

Advanced Manufacturing Technologies (AMT): Additive Manufactured Hot Fire Planning and Testing in GRC Cell 32 Project

Science.gov (United States)

Fikes, John C.

2014-01-01

The objective of this project is to hot fire test an additively manufactured thrust chamber assembly TCA (injector and thrust chamber). GRC will install the additively manufactured Inconel 625 injector, two additively manufactured (SLM) water cooled Cu-Cr thrust chamber barrels and one additively manufactured (SLM) water cooled Cu-Cr thrust chamber nozzle on the test stand in Cell 32 and perform hot fire testing of the integrated TCA.

Results of the Level 1 probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) of internal events for heavy water production reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tinnes, S.P.; Cramer, D.S.; Logan, V.E.; Topp, S.V.; Smith, J.A.; Brandyberry, M.D.

1990-01-01

A full-scope probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is being performed for the Savannah River site (SRS) production reactors. The Level 1 PRA for the K Reactor has been completed and includes the assessment of reactor systems response to accidents and estimates of the severe core melt frequency (SCMF). The internal events spectrum includes those events related directly to plant systems and safety functions for which transients or failures may initiate an accident. The SRS PRA has three principal objectives: improved understanding of SRS reactor safety issues through discovery and understanding of the mechanisms involved. Improved risk management capability through tools for assessing the safety impact of both current standard operations and proposed revisions. A quantitative measure of the risks posed by SRS reactor operation to employees and the general public, to allow comparison with declared goals and other societal risks

The importance of fire simulation in fire prediction

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jevtić Radoje B.

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The appearance of fire in objects with lot of humans inside represents very possible real situation that could be very danger and could cause destructive consequences on human lives and material properties. Very important influence in fire prediction, fire protection, human and material properties safety could be a fire simulation in object. This simulation could give many useful information of possible fire propagation; possible and existed evacuation routes; possible and exited placing of fire, smoke, temperature conditions in object and many other information of crucial importance for human lives and material properties, such as the best places for sensors position, optimal number of sensors, projection of possible evacuation routes etc. There are many different programs for fire simulation. This paper presents complete fire simulation in Electrotechnical school Nikola Tesla in Niš in FDS.

Organizational extension of PRA models and NASA application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pate-Cornell, E.

1989-01-01

This paper describes a probabilistic method which extends classical PRA to include some characteristics of the organization that processes or manages an engineering system. Ataxonomy of errors is presented and their organizational roots are examined. An assembly model is proposed for the analysis of the resulting spectrum of capacities of the system. The management of the Thermal Protection system of the Space Shuttle is used as an illustration. The model allows assessment of the benefits of organizational improvements of the orbiter's processing

Spatial interactions database development for effective probabilistic risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liming, J. K.; Dunn, R. F.

2008-01-01

In preparation for a subsequent probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) fire risk analysis update, the STP Nuclear Operating Company (STPNOC) is updating its spatial interactions database (SID). This work is being performed to support updating the spatial interactions analysis (SIA) initially performed for the original South Texas Project Electric Generating Station (STPEGS) probabilistic safely assessment (PSA) and updated in the STPEGS Level 2 PSA and IPE Report. S/A is a large-scope screening analysis performed for nuclear power plant PRA that serves as a prerequisite basis for more detailed location-dependent, hazard-spec analyses in the PRA, such as fire risk analysis, flooding risk analysis, etc. SIA is required to support the 'completeness' argument for the PRA scope. The objectives of the current SID development effort are to update the spatial interactions analysis data, to the greatest degree practical, to be consistent with the following: the as-built plant as of December 31, 2007 the in-effect STPNOC STPEGS Units 1 and 2 PRA the current technology and intent of NUREG/CR-6850 guidance for lire risk analysis database support the requirements for PRA SIA, including fire and flooding risk analysis, established by NRC Regulatory Guide 1.200 and the ASME PRA Standard (ASME RA-S-2002 updated through ASME RA-Sc-2007,) This paper presents the approach and methodology for state-of-the-art SID development and applications, including an overview of the SIA process for nuclear power plant PRA. The paper shows how current relational database technology and existing, conventional station information sources can be employed to collect, process, and analyze spatial interactions data for the plant in an effective and efficient manner to meet the often challenging requirements of industry guidelines and standards such as NUREG/CR-6850, NRC Regulatory Guide 1.200, and ASME RA-S-2002 (updated through ASME RA-Sc 2007). This paper includes tables and figures illustrating how SIA

Advanced Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Technical Exchange Meeting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Smith, Curtis [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)

2013-09-01

During FY13, the INL developed an advanced SMR PRA framework which has been described in the report Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Detailed Technical Framework Specification, INL/EXT-13-28974 (April 2013). In this framework, the various areas are considered: Probabilistic models to provide information specific to advanced SMRs Representation of specific SMR design issues such as having co-located modules and passive safety features Use of modern open-source and readily available analysis methods Internal and external events resulting in impacts to safety All-hazards considerations Methods to support the identification of design vulnerabilities Mechanistic and probabilistic data needs to support modeling and tools In order to describe this framework more fully and obtain feedback on the proposed approaches, the INL hosted a technical exchange meeting during August 2013. This report describes the outcomes of that meeting.

Forest Management and the Evolution of Project Design in Dynamic Wildland Urban Interface Fire Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Conway, S.

2014-12-01

The Truckee Ranger District on the Tahoe National Forest, in the heart of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, has a rich history of human activities. Native American influences, comstock-era logging, fire suppression, development, and recreation have all shaped the natural environment into what it is today. Like much of our national forests in California, forest conditions that have developed are generally much more homogenous and less resistant to disturbance from fire, insect, and disease than they might have been without the myriad of human influences. However, in order to improve the resiliency of our forests to stand replacing disturbances like high severity fire, while managing for integrated anthropomorphic values, it is imperative that management evolve to meet those dynamic needs. Recent advances in remote sensing and GIS allow land managers more access to forest information and can inform site specific prescriptions to change site specific undesirable conditions. It is ecologically and politically complex, yet our forests deserve that microscope. This particular presentation will focus on how the Truckee Ranger District began this process of incorporating several values, generated from stakeholder collaboration, into one project's goals and how those lessons learned informed their most recent project.

Comparison of SKIFS 2004:1 and Tillsynshandbok PSA against the ASME PRA Standard and European requirements on PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hellstroem, Per

2005-04-01

Requirements on PSA for risk informed applications are expressed in different international documents. The ASME PRA standard published in spring 2002 is one such document, PSA requirements are also expressed in the European Utility Requirements (EUR) for new reactors. The Swedish PSA requirements are provided in the Swedish regulators (SKI) statutes SKIFS 2004:1. SKI also has a review handbook for PSA activities (SKI report 2003:48). The review handbook is a support during review of the utilities PSA activities and the PSAs themselves. The review handbook expresses SKIs expectations by providing so called important aspects for both the PSA work and the PSAs, A comparison of SKIFS requirements and the important aspects in the Review handbook, on one side, and the requirements on PSA in EUR and ASME on the other side, is presented. The comparison shows a large difference in the level of detail in the different documents, where ASME is most detailed and specific. This is expected since the SKI review handbook not is a 'PSA guide' in the same way as the ASME PRA standard. A direct comparison of the ASME PRA standard requirements with the important aspects in the review handbook cannot answer the question which ASME capacity level that is achieved by a PSA meeting all important aspects. The conclusion is that it is not likely to achieve capacity level 2 and 3, since very few ASME level 3 attributes are explicitly expressed as important aspects, though many are expressed in general terms. The review handbook important aspects that are most similar to the ASME capacity level 1 attributes are initiating events, sequence analysis, and system analysis while less similarity is found for analysis of operator actions data analysis, quantification and containment analysis (level 2). Less similarity is found for capacity level 2 and 3. However, the number of additional ASME attributes on capacity level 2 and 3 are few. There are also important aspects in the review handbook that

Critical path method applied to research project planning: Fire Economics Evaluation System (FEES)

Science.gov (United States)

Earl B. Anderson; R. Stanton Hales

1986-01-01

The critical path method (CPM) of network analysis (a) depicts precedence among the many activities in a project by a network diagram; (b) identifies critical activities by calculating their starting, finishing, and float times; and (c) displays possible schedules by constructing time charts. CPM was applied to the development of the Forest Service's Fire...

Expected proton signal sizes in the PRaVDA Range Telescope for proton Computed Tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Price, T.; Parker, D.J.; Green, S.; Esposito, M.; Waltham, C.; Allinson, N.M.; Poludniowski, G.; Evans, P.; Taylor, J.; Manolopoulos, S.; Anaxagoras, T.; Nieto-Camero, J.

2015-01-01

Proton radiotherapy has demonstrated benefits in the treatment of certain cancers. Accurate measurements of the proton stopping powers in body tissues are required in order to fully optimise the delivery of such treaments. The PRaVDA Consortium is developing a novel, fully solid state device to measure these stopping powers. The PRaVDA Range Telescope (RT), uses a stack of 24 CMOS Active Pixel Sensors (APS) to measure the residual proton energy after the patient. We present here the ability of the CMOS sensors to detect changes in the signal sizes as the proton traverses the RT, compare the results with theory, and discuss the implications of these results on the reconstruction of proton tracks

Guidelines of the Design of Electropyrotechnic Firing Circuit for Unmanned Flight and Ground Test Projects

Science.gov (United States)

Gonzalez, Guillermo A.; Lucy, Melvin H.; Massie, Jeffrey J.

2013-01-01

The NASA Langley Research Center, Engineering Directorate, Electronic System Branch, is responsible for providing pyrotechnic support capabilities to Langley Research Center unmanned flight and ground test projects. These capabilities include device selection, procurement, testing, problem solving, firing system design, fabrication and testing; ground support equipment design, fabrication and testing; checkout procedures and procedure?s training to pyro technicians. This technical memorandum will serve as a guideline for the design, fabrication and testing of electropyrotechnic firing systems. The guidelines will discuss the entire process beginning with requirements definition and ending with development and execution.

Using the Large Fire Simulator System to map wildland fire potential for the conterminous United States

Science.gov (United States)

LaWen Hollingsworth; James Menakis

2010-01-01

This project mapped wildland fire potential (WFP) for the conterminous United States by using the large fire simulation system developed for Fire Program Analysis (FPA) System. The large fire simulation system, referred to here as LFSim, consists of modules for weather generation, fire occurrence, fire suppression, and fire growth modeling. Weather was generated with...

Fire test database

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, J.A.

1989-01-01

This paper describes a project recently completed for EPRI by Impell. The purpose of the project was to develop a reference database of fire tests performed on non-typical fire rated assemblies. The database is designed for use by utility fire protection engineers to locate test reports for power plant fire rated assemblies. As utilities prepare to respond to Information Notice 88-04, the database will identify utilities, vendors or manufacturers who have specific fire test data. The database contains fire test report summaries for 729 tested configurations. For each summary, a contact is identified from whom a copy of the complete fire test report can be obtained. Five types of configurations are included: doors, dampers, seals, wraps and walls. The database is computerized. One version for IBM; one for Mac. Each database is accessed through user-friendly software which allows adding, deleting, browsing, etc. through the database. There are five major database files. One each for the five types of tested configurations. The contents of each provides significant information regarding the test method and the physical attributes of the tested configuration. 3 figs

Future projections of fire danger in Brazilian biomes in the 21st century

Science.gov (United States)

Libonati, Renata; Silva, Patrícia; DaCamara, Carlos; Bastos, Ana

2016-04-01

In the global context, Brazil is one of the regions more severely affected by fire occurrences, with important consequences in the global CO2 balance, the state of the Amazon forest and the ecological diversity of the region. Brazil is also one of the few regions experiencing a raise in annual mean temperature above 2.5o during the 20th century, which may further increase between 2o and 7o until 2100 and, likely, be accompanied by a decrease in precipitation [1]. As the fire occurrence and severity largely depends on these two variables, it is worth assessing the evolution of fire danger for the coming decades. In order to obtain a detailed characterization of the future fire patterns in the different biomes of Brazil, we use outputs from a regional-downscaling of the EC-Earth climate model at 0.44 degrees spatial resolution for two future scenarios, an intermediate (RCP4.5) and a more severe (RCP8.5) one. We use a fire danger index specifically developed for the Brazilian climate and biome characteristics, the IFR from INPE. This index relies on values of maximum temperature, accumulated precipitation over different periods, minimum relative humidity and vegetation cover to estimate the likelihood of fire occurrence. We find a systematic increase of the days with critical fire risk, which is more pronounced in RCP8.5 and mostly affects months when fire activity takes place. Temperature increase is the most determinant factor for the increase in fire danger in the dry regions of savannah and shrubland, a result to be expected as fuel is already very dry. [1] Collins, M., R. Knutti, J. Arblaster, J.-L. Dufresne, T. Fichefet, P. Friedlingstein, X. Gao, W.J. Gutowski, T. Johns, G. Krinner, M. Shongwe, C. Tebaldi, A.J. Weaver and M. Wehner, 2013: Long-term Climate Change: Projections, Commitments and Irreversibility. In: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on

Influencing factors of public support for modern coal-fired power plant projects: An empirical study from China

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Feng; Lyu, Tao; Pan, Li; Wang, Fei

2017-01-01

With the development of clean coal technology, modern coal-fired power plants have achieved the similar emission standards as gas power plants. However, due to the impressions of high pollution and high emission in traditional coal-fired power plants, such projects are often opposed by local residents, which hinder the promotion of this technology. This manuscript aims to investigate public attitudes toward these projects and to analyze the influencing mechanisms of the factors of public support. The conceptual model was built with sense of place, trust and environmental attitude as the independent variables, benefit and cost perceptions as the mediating variables and public support as the dependent variable. The model was tested and modified by structural equation modelling. The results revealed that sense of place had a slight indirect impact (−0.043) on public support through benefit perception, whereas trust had a direct impact (0.332) on public support and indirect impacts (0.298) through benefit and cost perceptions. Environmental attitude had indirect impacts on public support through benefit perception (0.180) and cost perception (−0.115). In addition, policy suggestions on decision-making, project publicity and compensation strategy are proposed to enhance public support for similar projects. - Highlights: • This manuscript aims at eliminating the NIMBY effects on modern coal-fired power plant project. • A SEM model is proposed to explore how potential factors affect public support. • Trust is the dominant influencing factor to improve public support with both direct and indirect impacts. • Environmental attitude can also have positive effect on public support through rational compensation plans.

Results of the Level 1 probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) of internal events for heavy water production reactors (U)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tinnes, S.P.; Cramer, D.S.; Logan, V.E.; Topp, S.V.; Smith, J.A.; Brandyberry, M.D.

1990-01-01

This paper reports on a full-scope probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) performed for the Savannah River Site (SRS) production reactors. The Level 1 PRA for the K Reactor has been completed and includes the assessment of reactor systems response to accidents and estimates of the severe core melt frequency (SCMF). The internal events spectrum includes those events related directly to plant systems and safety functions for which transients or failures may initiate an accident

Fire and Gas Detection in the LHC Experiments The Sniffer Project

CERN Document Server

Nunes, R W

2001-01-01

The LHC experiments, due to their complexity and size, present many safety challenges. Cryogenic gases are used in large quantities as well as certain flammable mixtures. The electrical power involved calls for analysis of the fire risks. Access is restricted to the minimum and environmental conditions are extremely harsh, due to strong magnetic fields and ionising radiation. This paper will describe the Combined Fire/Gas/Oxygen deficiency Detection systems proposed for inside the ATLAS and CMS Experiments and possibly for the two others, if they deem it necessary. The requirements of the experiments and the development and implementation of such a system will be discussed. In parallel, commercial procedures to implement these systems by industry shall be described, taking into consideration that a previous development has already been undertaken by CERN for the LEP experiments. The stage is set for inter-divisional collaboration in a project of utmost importance for the safety of people and protection of the...

Development of extreme rainfall PRA methodology for sodium-cooled fast reactor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishino, Hiroyuki; Kurisaka, Kenichi; Yamano, Hidemasa

2016-01-01

The objective of this study is to develop a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) methodology for extreme rainfall with focusing on decay heat removal system of a sodium-cooled fast reactor. For the extreme rainfall, annual excess probability depending on the hazard intensity was statistically estimated based on meteorological data. To identify core damage sequence, event trees were developed by assuming scenarios that structures, systems and components (SSCs) important to safety are flooded with rainwater coming into the buildings through gaps in the doors and the SSCs fail when the level of rainwater on the ground or on the roof of the building becomes higher than thresholds of doors on first floor or on the roof during the rainfall. To estimate the failure probability of the SSCs, the level of water rise was estimated by comparing the difference between precipitation and drainage capacity. By combining annual excess probability and the failure probability of SSCs, the event trees led to quantification of core damage frequency, and therefore the PRA methodology for rainfall was developed. (author)

Coal-fired MHD combustor development project: Phase 3D

Science.gov (United States)

1985-05-01

This fourth quarterly technical progress report of the Coal-Fired MHD Combustor Development Project (Phase 3D) presents the accomplishments during the period February 1 to April 30, 1985. The scope of work covered by this quarterly report encompasses development work on the 50 MW/sub t/ combustor related to test support at the CDIF, assembly and checkout of first and second stage hardware, second stage design verification testing, designs for a continuous slag rejector and low preheat inlet section, and planning for power train testing. Progress includes the following: assembly and checkout of the second first stage, two second stages, and PEM was completed and the hardware was shipped to CDIF and FETS; integration of first and second stage hardware on the FETS Cell No. 2 test stand was completed, cold flow functional tests were performed, and hot fire checkout testing was initiated; assembly of the continuous slag rejector test set-up was 70% completed; the low preheat air inlet section Preliminary Design Review was held (work on the detail design was initiated and is 85% complete); and the Users' Manual was updated to include material for the second stage and final revisions to the power train test plan were made.

Probabilistic risk assessment for back-end facilities: Improving the treatment of fire and explosion scenarios

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sunman, C.R.J.; Campbell, R.J.; Wakem, M.J.

1996-01-01

The nuclear reprocessing facilities at Sellafield are a key component of the International business of BNFL. The operations carried out at the site extend from the receipt and storage of irradiated fuel, chemical reprocessing, plutonium and uranium finishing, through mixed oxide fuel production. Additionally there are a wide range of supporting processes including solid waste encapsulation, vitrification, liquid waste evaporation and treatment. Decommissioning of the site's older facilities is also proceeding. The comprehensive range of these activities requires that the safety assessment team keeps up to date with developments in the field, as well as conducting and sponsoring appropriate research into methodologies and modelling in order to deliver a cost effective, timely service. This paper will review the role of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) in safety cases for operations at Sellafield and go on to describe some areas of PRA methodology development in the UK and in which BNFL is a contributor. Finally the paper will summarise some specific areas of methodology development associated with improving the modelling of fire and explosion hazards which are specific to BNFL. (author)

Revision of the AESJ Standard for Seismic Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA). Updating requirements based on the lessons learned from the Fukushima Dai-ichi NPP Accidents (3). Fragility evaluation and outline of the updated points

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamaguchi, Akira; Nakamura, Susumu; Mihara, Yoshinori

2014-01-01

Lessons learned from Great East Japan earthquake and other new findings had been accumulated on the fragility evaluation of buildings and components. And also new analysis and evaluation method had been proposed with the advancement of recent analysis and evaluation technology. These were reflected in revision of the AESJ Standard for Seismic Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA). Scope of the fragility evaluation were extended to all equipment on the site, severe accident management equipment including portable equipment and earthquake concomitant incident (such as tsunami) countermeasure equipment. This article described outlines of updating points of the fragility evaluation of the AESJ Standard for Seismic PRA; (1) requirements for seismic induced other risk evaluations such as fire, inundation and tsunami, (2) simulation technology based on recent findings such as three dimensional responses of buildings / structures and its effect on equipment, (3) requirements of the fragility evaluation for various failure mode of several equipment such as severe accident management equipment, fine failure mode of buildings / structures, failures of equipment related with earthquake concomitant incidents (embankment and seawall) and spent fuel pool, and (4) requirements for the fragility evaluation of aftershocks and soil deformation due to fault displacement. (T. Tanaka)

Enhancing fire science exchange: The Joint Fire Science Program's National Network of Knowledge Exchange Consortia

Science.gov (United States)

Vita Wright; Crystal Kolden; Todd Kipfer; Kristine Lee; Adrian Leighton; Jim Riddering; Leana Schelvan

2011-01-01

The Northern Rocky Mountain region is one of the most fire-prone regions in the United States. With a history of large fires that have shaped national policy, including the fires of 1910 and 2000 in Idaho and Montana and the Yellowstone fires of 1988, this region is projected to have many large severe fires in the future. Communication about fire science needs and...

A probabilistic risk assessment of the LLNL Plutonium Facility's evaluation basis fire operational accident. Revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brumburgh, G.P.

1995-01-01

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Plutonium Facility conducts numerous programmatic activities involving plutonium to include device fabrication, development of improved and/or unique fabrication techniques, metallurgy research, and laser isotope separation. A Safety Analysis Report (SAR) for the building 332 Plutonium Facility was completed in July 1994 to address operational safety and acceptable risk to employees, the public, government property, and the environmental. This paper outlines the PRA analysis of the Evaluation Basis Fire (EBF) operational accident. The EBF postulates the worst-case programmatic impact event for the Plutonium Facility

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...

The Fire Effects Information System - serving managers since before the Yellowstone fires

Science.gov (United States)

Jane Kapler Smith; Janet L. Fryer; Kristin Zouhar

2009-01-01

This presentation will describe the current status of the Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) and explore lessons learned from this 23-yearold project about the application of science to fire management issues. FEIS contains literature reviews covering biology and fire ecology for approximately 1,100 species in North America: plants and animals, native and nonnative...

Restoring surface fire stabilizes forest carbon under extreme fire weather in the Sierra Nevada

Science.gov (United States)

Daniel J. Krofcheck; Matthew D. Hurteau; Robert M. Scheller; E. Louise Loudermilk

2017-01-01

Climate change in the western United States has increased the frequency of extreme fire weather events and is projected to increase the area burned by wildfire in the coming decades. This changing fire regime, coupled with increased high-severity fire risk from a legacy of fire exclusion, could destabilize forest carbon (C), decrease net ecosystem exchange (...

Treatment of system dependencies and human interactions in PRA studies: a review and sensitivity study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Orvis, D.D.; Joksimovich, V.; Worledge, D.H.

1985-01-01

The Electric Power Research Institute sponsored the review and comparison of five PRA studies: Arkansas Nuclear One - Unit 1, Big Rock Point, Grand Gulf, Limerick, and Zion - Unit 1. The review has been conducted in two phases. The Phase I review may be characterized as a qualitative look into many aspects of a PRA study. The Phase II review was performed to quantify the extent that differences in analytical techniques or key assumptions in these areas affect the differences in study results. In each of the PRA studies reviewed, the general descriptions of analytical approaches and descriptions of the analyses of event tree, fault tree and human interaction analyses that affected the dominant core damage sequences were reviewed. When these descriptions aroused interest because of seeming inconsistencies within the study or with other studies, they were pursued in some depth. The approaches or assumptions were contrasted to similar elements from other studies, and sensitivity analyses were performed in many cases to test the significance of results to the analytical models or assumptions. Inferences were drawn from the results regarding significance of the item to plant-specific results and, where possible, were generalized to other PRAs. This paper describes the results of the review of system dependencies and human interactions

A Chronosequence Feasibility Assessment of Emergency Fire Rehabilitation Records within the Intermountain Western United States - Final Report to the Joint Fire Science Program - Project 08-S-08

Science.gov (United States)

Knutson, Kevin C.; Pyke, David A.; Wirth, Troy A.; Pilliod, David S.; Brooks, Matthew L.; Chambers, Jeanne C.

2009-01-01

Department of the Interior (DOI) bureaus have invested heavily (for example, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) spent more than $60 million in fiscal year 2007) in seeding vegetation for emergency stabilization and burned area rehabilitation of non-forested arid lands over the past 10 years. The primary objectives of these seedings commonly are to (1) reduce the post-fire dominance of non-native annual grasses, such as cheatgrass (Bromus tectorum) and red brome (Bromus rubens); (2) minimize the probability of recurrent fire; and (3) ultimately produce desirable vegetation characteristics (for example, ability to recover following disturbance [resilience], resistance to invasive species, and a capacity to support a diverse flora and fauna). Although these projects historically have been monitored to varying extents, land managers currently lack scientific evidence to verify whether seeding arid and semiarid lands achieves desired objectives. Given the amount of resources dedicated to post-fire seeding projects, a synthesis of information determining the factors that result in successful treatments is critically needed. Although results of recently established experiments and monitoring projects eventually will provide useful insights for the future direction of emergency stabilization and burned area rehabilitation programs, a chronosequence approach evaluating emergency stabilization and burned area rehabilitation treatments (both referenced hereafter as ESR treatments) over the past 30 years could provide a comprehensive assessment of treatment success across a range of regional environmental gradients. By randomly selecting a statistically robust sample from the population of historic ESR treatments in the Intermountain West, this chronosequence approach would have inference for most ecological sites in this region. The goal of this feasibility study was to compile and examine historic ESR records from BLM field offices across the Intermountain West to

Spacecraft Fire Safety Demonstration

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — The objective of the Spacecraft Fire Safety Demonstration project is to develop and conduct large-scale fire safety experiments on an International Space Station...

Status report on the Star Fire railgun development project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hawke, R.S.; Asay, J.R.

1988-01-01

The Star Fire Project is a joint SNLA/LLNL effort to develop a combined two-stage light-gas gun (2SLGG) and railgun into a three-stage hypervelocity launcher for equation-of-state (EOS) research. The 2SLGG is used to accelerate a projectile to a velocity of 6-9 km/s. The railgun serves as the third stage to further accelerate the projectile. The high injection velocity will minimize barrel ablation and armature contamination. Hydrogen is used as the injection gas and serves to reduce the probability of forming secondary arcs. VISAR is used for continuous precision projectile velocity measurement. This paper discusses the results of armature formation tests, the use of the railgun stage to increase projectile velocity, and armature diagnostic measurements

Variability of fire behavior, fire effects, and emissions in Scotch pine forests of central Siberia

Science.gov (United States)

D. J. McRae; Susan Conard; G. A. Ivanova; A. I. Sukhinin; Steve Baker; Y. N. Samsonov; T. W. Blake; V. A. Ivanov; A. V. Ivanov; T. V. Churkina; WeiMin Hao; K. P. Koutzenogij; Nataly Kovaleva

2006-01-01

As part of the Russian FIRE BEAR (Fire Effects in the Boreal Eurasia Region) Project, replicated 4-ha experimental fires were conducted on a dry Scotch pine (Pinus sylvestris)/lichen (Cladonia sp.)/feathermoss (Pleurozeum schreberi) forest site in central Siberia. Observations from the initial seven surface fires (2000-2001) ignited under a range of burning...

A PRA case study of extended long term decay heat removal for shutdown risk assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roglans, J.; Ragland, W.A.; Hill, D.J.

1992-01-01

A Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) of the Experimental Breeder Reactor II (EBR-II), a Department of Energy (DOE) Category A research reactor, has recently been completed at Argonne National Laboratory (ANL). The results of this PRA have shown that the decay heat removal system for EBR-II is extremely robust and reliable. In addition, the methodology used demonstrates how the actions of other systems not normally used for actions of other systems not normally used for decay heat removal can be used to expand the mission time of the decay heat removal system and further increase its reliability. The methodology may also be extended to account for the impact of non-safety systems in enhancing the reliability of other dedicated safety systems

Equipment sizing in a coal-fired municipal heating plant modernisation project with support for renewable energy and cogeneration technologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kalina, Jacek

2014-01-01

Highlights: • Sizing of biomass fired cogeneration block is performed for existing heating plant. • Mathematical model for cogeneration block optimisation is presented. • Impact of financial support mechanisms on optimal solution is discussed. • Influence of short term variations of prices and support intensity is presented. • Different design parameters are suggested by economic and technical quality indices. - Abstract: The paper presents results of design parameters optimisation of a wood chips fired steam boiler based heat and power block in a sample project of coal fired municipal heating plant modernisation. The project assumes the conversion of the heating plant into a dual fuel heat and power plant. The problem that is presented is selection of cogeneration block structure and thermodynamic parameters taking into account financial support mechanisms for cogeneration and renewable energy technologies. There are examined energy conversion and financial performances of the project. The results show that without the financial support the project is not profitable although it generates savings of primary energy of fossil fuels. If an administrative incentives are applied the optimal technical solution is different than suggested by energy conversion efficiency or fossil fuel savings. Financial calculations were performed for Polish marked conditions in the years 2011 and 2014 showing the impact of relatively short term variations of prices and support intensity on optimal plant design parameters

Use of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) in expert systems to advise nuclear plant operators and managers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Uhrig, R.E.

1988-01-01

The use of expert systems in nuclear power plants to provide advice to managers, supervisors and/or operators is a concept that is rapidly gaining acceptance. Generally, expert systems rely on the expertise of human experts or knowledge that has been codified in publications, books, or regulations to provide advice under a wide variety of conditions. In this work, a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) of a nuclear power plant performed previously is used to assess the safety status of nuclear power plants and to make recommendations to the plant personnel. Nuclear power plants have many redundant systems and can continue to operate when one or more of these systems is disabled or removed from service for maintenance or testing. PRAs provide a means of evaluating the risk to the public associated with the operation of nuclear power plants with components or systems out of service. While the choice of the source term and methodology in a PRA may influence the absolute probability and consequences of a core melt, the ratio of the PRA calculations for two configurations of the same plant, carried out on a consistent basis, can readily identify the increase in risk associated with going from one configuration to the other

Comments of the PRA Senior Review Panel on the meeting held December 1--3, 1987

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharp, D.A.

1988-01-01

This memorandum records the minutes of the PRA Senior Review Panel meeting held at Savannah River Laboratory (SRL) on December 1--3, 1987, and the report on that meeting written subsequently by the panel members. The minutes are contained as Attachment 2 of this memorandum, and the report as Attachment 1. The Panel indicated two principal concerns in their report: (1) that insufficient emphasis is being placed on the reliability data development program, and (2) that excessive detail is being built into the fault trees. These concerns have been addressed in a subsequent meeting with the Panel, held March 2--4, 1988. In addition, the members have been provided with a program document (Reference 1) indicating the extent, the timing, and the limitations of the data analysis effort for the PRA

MATILDA: A Military Laser Range Safety Tool Based on Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Techniques

Science.gov (United States)

2014-08-01

3 2.1 UK Need for a PRA-Based Approach ............................................................... 3 2.2 A Risk-Based Approach to...Figure 6: MATILDA Coordinate Transformations ....................................................... 22  Figure 7: Geocentric and MICS Coordinates...Star-Shaped Condition ................................................................................. 27  Figure 11: Points of Closest Approach

Probabilistic risk assessment course documentation. Volume 2. Probability and statistics for PRA applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iman, R.L.; Prairie, R.R.; Cramond, W.R.

1985-08-01

This course is intended to provide the necessary probabilistic and statistical skills to perform a PRA. Fundamental background information is reviewed, but the principal purpose is to address specific techniques used in PRAs and to illustrate them with applications. Specific examples and problems are presented for most of the topics

Sequence variations and protein expression levels of the two immune evasion proteins Gpm1 and Pra1 influence virulence of clinical Candida albicans isolates.

Science.gov (United States)

Luo, Shanshan; Hipler, Uta-Christina; Münzberg, Christin; Skerka, Christine; Zipfel, Peter F

2015-01-01

Candida albicans, the important human fungal pathogen uses multiple evasion strategies to control, modulate and inhibit host complement and innate immune attack. Clinical C. albicans strains vary in pathogenicity and in serum resistance, in this work we analyzed sequence polymorphisms and variations in the expression levels of two central fungal complement evasion proteins, Gpm1 (phosphoglycerate mutase 1) and Pra1 (pH-regulated antigen 1) in thirteen clinical C. albicans isolates. Four nucleotide (nt) exchanges, all representing synonymous exchanges, were identified within the 747-nt long GPM1 gene. For the 900-nt long PRA1 gene, sixteen nucleotide exchanges were identified, which represented synonymous, as well as non-synonymous exchanges. All thirteen clinical isolates had a homozygous exchange (A to G) at position 73 of the PRA1 gene. Surface levels of Gpm1 varied by 8.2, and Pra1 levels by 3.3 fold in thirteen tested isolates and these differences influenced fungal immune fitness. The high Gpm1/Pra1 expressing candida strains bound the three human immune regulators more efficiently, than the low expression strains. The difference was 44% for Factor H binding, 51% for C4BP binding and 23% for plasminogen binding. This higher Gpm1/Pra1 expressing strains result in enhanced survival upon challenge with complement active, Factor H depleted human serum (difference 40%). In addition adhesion to and infection of human endothelial cells was increased (difference 60%), and C3b surface deposition was less effective (difference 27%). Thus, variable expression levels of central immune evasion protein influences immune fitness of the human fungal pathogen C. albicans and thus contribute to fungal virulence.

Auxiliary feedwater system risk-based inspection guide for the South Texas Project nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bumgardner, J.D.; Nickolaus, J.R.; Moffitt, N.E.; Gore, B.F.; Vo, T.V.

1993-12-01

In a study sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Pacific Northwest Laboratory has developed and applied a methodology for deriving plant-specific risk-based inspection guidance for the auxiliary feedwater (AFW) system at pressurized water reactors that have not undergone probabilistic risk assessment (PRA). This methodology uses existing PRA results and plant operating experience information. Existing PRA-based inspection guidance information recently developed for the NRC for various plants was used to identify generic component failure modes. This information was then combined with plant-specific and industry-wide component information and failure data to identify failure modes and failure mechanisms for the AFW system at the selected plants. South Texas Project was selected as a plant for study. The product of this effort is a prioritized listing of AFW failures which have occurred at the plant and at other PWRs. This listing is intended for use by the NRC inspectors in preparation of inspection plans addressing AFW risk important components at the South Texas Project plant

36 CFR 327.10 - Fires.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 3 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Fires. 327.10 Section 327.10... Fires. (a) Gasoline and other fuels, except that which is contained in storage tanks of vehicles... onto or stored on the project without written permission of the District Commander. (b) Fires shall be...

Pulsa o coração da cidade: errâncias, afectos e potências no dia e na noite da Praça do Ferreira

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alice Dote

2017-12-01

Full Text Available O presente artigo aborda a potência dos usos, contra-usos e modos de habitar dos artistas de rua da Praça do Ferreira, na cidade de Fortaleza, Ceará. O trabalho apoia-se nos percursos e nas errâncias urbanas da vivência na e da Praça do Ferreira em diferentes temporalidades (diurna e noturna, especialmente no contexto de apresentações noturnas do Grupo As 10 Graças de Palhaçaria aos moradores da Praça. Através desses que têm a rua como casa, agem pelas brechas e proliferam-se pelas margens, proponho-me a perceber a potência da arte de rua, do encontro e da experiência de alteridade na Praça do Ferreira. Finalizo o texto apontando que esse local, assim ocupado, se impregna de significados outros e revela-se como um território de criação, de inventividade, de existência e resistência, portanto, de potência de vida que é, em si, potência política. Palavras-chave: Praça do Ferreira; Fortaleza; cidade; arte urbana; artista de rua

Preliminary project definition for long duration. Tests of coal fired MHD generators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Van der Laken, R.A.

1992-01-01

In its final report the Faraday Working Group recommended the CEC amongst others to explore the possibility of a long duration test of a 'state-of-the-art', MHD-generator in order to remove uncertainties concerning the lifetime and availability of such a generator design. The duration of the test should be several thousands of hours, considerably more than the duration tests carried out until now. The scope of the present study is to prepare a project definition document for a long duration test of a coal fired, state-of-the-art MHD-generator

Recovery actions in PRA [probabilistic risk assessment] for the Risk Methods Integration and Evaluation Program (RMIEP): Volume 1, Development of the data-based method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weston, L.M.; Whitehead, D.W.; Graves, N.L.

1987-06-01

In a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) for a nuclear power plant, the analyst identifies a set of potential core damage events consisting of equipment failures and human errors and their estimated probabilities of occurrence. If operator recovery from an event within some specified time is considered, then the probability of this recovery can be included in the PRA. This report provides PRA analysts with an improved methodology for including recovery actions in a PRA. A recovery action can be divided into two distinct phases: a Diagnosis Phase (realizing that there is a problem with a critical parameter and deciding upon the correct course of action) and an Action Phase (physically accomplishing the required action). In this methodology, simulator data are used to estimate recovery probabilities for the diagnosis phase. Different time-reliability curves showing the probability of failure of diagnosis as a function of time from the compelling cue for the event are presented. These curves are based on simulator exercises, and the actions are grouped based upon their operational similarities. This is an improvement over existing diagnosis models that rely greatly upon subjective judgment to obtain such estimates. The action phase is modeled using estimates from available sources. The methodology also includes a recommendation on where and when to apply the recovery action in the PRA process

Prescribed fire research in Pennsylvania

Science.gov (United States)

Patrick Brose

2009-01-01

Prescribed fire in Pennsylvania is a relatively new forestry practice because of the State's adverse experience with highly destructive wildfires in the early 1900s. The recent introduction of prescribed fire raises a myriad of questions regarding its correct and safe use. This poster briefly describes the prescribed fire research projects of the Forestry Sciences...

Numerical simulation methods of fires in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keski-Rahkonen, O.; Bjoerkman, J.; Heikkilae, L.

1992-01-01

Fire is a significant hazard to the safety of nuclear power plants (NPP). Fire may be serious accident as such, but even small fire at a critical point in a NPP may cause an accident much more serious than fire itself. According to risk assessments a fire may be an initial cause or a contributing factor in a large part of reactor accidents. At the Fire Technology and the the Nuclear Engineering Laboratory of the Technical Research Centre of Finland (VTT) fire safety research for NPPs has been carried out in a large extent since 1985. During years 1988-92 a project Advanced Numerical Modelling in Nuclear Power Plants (PALOME) was carried out. In the project the level of numerical modelling for fire research in Finland was improved by acquiring, preparing for use and developing numerical fire simulation programs. Large scale test data of the German experimental program (PHDR Sicherheitsprogramm in Kernforschungscentral Karlsruhe) has been as reference. The large scale tests were simulated by numerical codes and results were compared to calculations carried out by others. Scientific interaction with outstanding foreign laboratories and scientists has been an important part of the project. This report describes the work of PALOME-project carried out at the Fire Technology Laboratory only. A report on the work at the Nuclear Engineering Laboratory will be published separatively. (au)

Effect of antigravity suit inflation on cardiovascular, PRA, and PVP responses in humans.

Science.gov (United States)

Kravik, S E; Keil, L C; Geelen, G; Wade, C E; Barnes, P R; Spaul, W A; Elder, C A; Greenleaf, J E

1986-08-01

Blood pressure, pulse rate (PR), serum osmolality and electrolytes, as well as plasma vasopressin (PVP) and plasma renin activity (PRA), were measured in five men and two women [mean age 38.6 +/- 3.9 (SE) yr] before, during, and after inflation of an antigravity suit that covered the legs and abdomen. After 24 h of fluid deprivation the subjects stood quietly for 3 h: the 1st h without inflation, the 2nd with inflation to 60 Torr, and the 3rd without inflation. A similar control noninflation experiment was conducted 10 mo after the inflation experiment using five of the seven subjects except that the suit was not inflated during the 3-h period. Mean arterial pressure increased by 14 +/- 4 (SE) Torr (P less than 0.05) with inflation and decreased by 15 +/- 5 Torr (P less than 0.05) after deflation. Pulse pressure (PP) increased by 7 +/- 2 Torr (P less than 0.05) with inflation and PR decreased by 11 +/- 5 beats/min (P less than 0.05); PP and PR returned to preinflation levels after deflation. Plasma volume decreased by 6.1 +/- 1.5% and 5.3 +/- 1.6% (P less than 0.05) during hours 1 and 3, respectively, and returned to base line during inflation. Inflation decreased PVP from 6.8 +/- 1.1 to 5.6 +/- 1.4 pg/ml (P less than 0.05) and abolished the significant rise in PRA during hour 1. Both PVP and PRA increased significantly after deflation: delta = 18.0 +/- 5.1 pg/ml and 4.34 +/- 1.71 ng angiotensin I X ml-1 X h-1, respectively. Serum osmolality and Na+ and K+ concentrations were unchanged during the 3 h of standing.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Development of the fire PSA methodology and the fire analysis computer code system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Katsunori, Ogura; Tomomichi, Ito; Tsuyoshi, Uchida; Yusuke, Kasagawa

2009-01-01

Fire PSA methodology has been developed and was applied to NPPs in Japan for power operation and LPSD states. CDFs of preliminary fire PSA for power operation were the higher than that of internal events. Fire propagation analysis code system (CFAST/FDS Network) was being developed and verified thru OECD-PRISME Project. Extension of the scope for LPSD state is planned to figure out the risk level. In order to figure out the fire risk level precisely, the enhancement of the methodology is planned. Verification and validation of phenomenological fire propagation analysis code (CFAST/FDS Network) in the context of Fire PSA. Enhancement of the methodology such as an application of 'Electric Circuit Analysis' in NUREG/CR-6850 and related tests in order to quantify the hot-short effect precisely. Development of seismic-induced fire PSA method being integration of existing seismic PSA and fire PSA methods is ongoing. Fire PSA will be applied to review the validity of fire prevention and mitigation measures

Fire Models and Design Fires

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Poulsen, Annemarie

The aim of this project is to perform an experimental study on the influence of the thermal feedback on the burning behavior of well ventilated pre-flashover fires. For the purpose an experimental method has been developed. Here the same identical objects are tested under free burn conditions...... carried out by Carleton University and NRC-IRC performed on seven different types of fire loads representing commercial premises, comprise the tests used for the study. The results show that for some of the room test the heat release rate increased due to thermal feedback compared to free burn for a pre......-flashover fire. Two phenomena were observed, that relate well to theory was found. In an incipient phase the heat release rate rose with the temperature of the smoke layer/enclosure boundaries. This increase was also found to depend on the flammability properties of the burning object. The results also...

Insights into PRA methodologies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gallagher, D.; Lofgren, E.; Atefi, B.; Liner, R.; Blond, R.; Amico, P.

1984-08-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessments (PRAs) for six nuclear power plants were examined to gain insight into how the choice of analytical methods can affect the results of PRAs. The PRA sreflectope considered was limited to internally initiated accidents sequences through core melt. For twenty methodological topic areas, a baseline or minimal methodology was specified. The choice of methods for each topic in the six PRAs was characterized in terms of the incremental level of effort above the baseline. A higher level of effort generally reflects a higher level of detail or a higher degree of sophistication in the analytical approach to a particular topic area. The impact on results was measured in terms of how additional effort beyond the baseline level changed the relative importance and ordering of dominant accident sequences compared to what would have been observed had methods corresponding to the baseline level of effort been employed. This measure of impact is a more useful indicator of how methods affect perceptions of plant vulnerabilities than changes in core melt frequency would be. However, the change in core melt frequency was used as a secondary measure of impact for nine topics where availability of information permitted. Results are presented primarily in the form of effort-impact matrices for each of the twenty topic areas. A suggested effort-impact profile for future PRAs is presented

Mixed severity fire effects within the Rim fire: Relative importance of local climate, fire weather, topography, and forest structure

Science.gov (United States)

Van R. Kane; C. Alina Cansler; Nicholas A. Povak; Jonathan T. Kane; Robert J. McGaughey; James A. Lutz; Derek J. Churchill; Malcolm P. North

2015-01-01

Recent and projected increases in the frequency and severity of large wildfires in the western U.S. makes understanding the factors that strongly affect landscape fire patterns a management priority for optimizing treatment location. We compared the influence of variations in the local environment on burn severity patterns on the large 2013 Rim fire that burned under...

Projected costs of generating electricity from nuclear and coal-fired power stations for commissioning in 1995

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1986-01-01

This report updates and extends the previous NEA study, ''The Costs of Generating Electricity in Nuclear and Coal-fired Power Stations'', published by the OECD in late 1983. Despite the changed expectations concerning coal prices and the considerable movements in exchange rates since the first study was completed, the conclusions remain essentially the same. Nuclear Power is projected to be economically superior by a significant margin to coal-fired plants for base load electricity production in Europe, Japan and some regions of North America. In areas of North America in close proximity to supplies of cheap coal, this would be the more economic fuel, unless future nuclear investment costs can be reduced to match the best US and Canadian experience. In all regions considered, the economic advantage of both coal and nuclear over oil and gas-fired plants for commissioning in the mid-1990s is expected to be substantial. These conclusions are based on an analysis of cost projections for 900 MWe to 1400 MWe Light Water Reactors to be commissioned in 1995, operating at a levelised load factor of about 72 per cent over an assumed 25 years economic life and calculated with a 5 per cent (real) discount rate. This parallels the reference reactor selected for the NEA report ''The Economics of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle'', which was published by the OECD in June 1985, though it deviates somewhat from the reference conditions of the previous generation cost study. Contemporary coal-fired stations ranging in capacity from 330 MWe to 700 MWe with the same assumed economic life and load factor provide the basis for comparison. Some data are included on CANDU Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors, and a brief comment is annexed on the relevance of the comparisons for the smaller plants that may be of interest to countries with smaller electricity networks or where special circumstances apply

Extinguishing smouldering fires in silos. BRANDFORSK project 745-961

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tuomisaari, M.; Baroudi, D.; Latva, R. [VTT Building Technology, Espoo (Finland). Building Physics, Building Services and Fire Technology

1998-11-01

Combustible, porous materials may self-ignite during their storage time in silos as a result of internal heating. The self-ignition process may be slow, and it results in smouldering fires that are extremely difficult to extinguish. Suitable means to fight the smouldering fire were studied both theoretically and experimentally. General heat and mass transfer equations for porous media subject to fires and suppression were written. The equations together with dimensional analysis revealed critical parameters, like the grain size and moisture content, affecting the combustion and suppression process, but they also revealed the complexity of the problem. Experimental results of over 50 tests with varying combustibles and suppression agents were used as the basis for proposed qualitative guidelines on how to fight a smouldering silo fire. Among the potential gaseous agents, CO{sub 2} was found to be the most efficient one. Low expansion foam was also found to be a potential candidate, but its applicability requires further confirmation. Quantifying the guidelines requires a whole new study on the detection of a smouldering fire. The same detection system should be capable of monitoring the suppression process and - most importantly - verifying the extinguishment. (orig.) 46 refs.

Review of UCN 3,4 PSA model based on NEI PRA peer review process guidance, rev.0

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang, Joon Eon; Kang, D. I.; Kim, K. Y.; Lee, Y. H.; Jang, S. C.; Ha, J. J.; Han, S. H.; Han, S. J.; Hwang, M. J.

2003-05-01

Recently, under the de-regulation environment, nuclear industry has attempted various approaches to improve the economics of Nuclear Power Plants (NPP). One of these efforts is the Risk Informed/Performance-Based Operation (RIPBO). This approach uses the risk and performance information to manage the resources effectively and efficiently that are used in the operation of NPP. In RIPBO, PSA quality is one of the most important things. The nuclear industry and regulatory body of U.S.A have developed a measure to evaluate the quality of PSA. NEI (Nuclear Energy Institute) has developed a guidance called 'NEI PRA Peer Review Guidance,' and NRC (Nuclear Regulatory Committee) and ASME have developed the 'PRA Standard.' In Korea, several projects are on going now, such as the extension of AOT/STI of RPS/ESFAS, Risk-Informed In-Service Inspection (RI-ISI). However, in Korea, there have been no attempts to evaluate the quality of PSA model itself. Therefore, we cannot be sure about the quality of PSA whether or not the present PSA model can be used for the risk-informed applications such as mentioned above. We can say that the evaluation of PSA model quality is the basis for the RIPBO. In this report, we have evaluated the quality of PSA model for Ulchin 3 and 4 units based on the NEI guidance. We, also, have derived what items are to be improved to upgrade the quality of PSA model and how it can be improved. This report can be used as the base of RIPBO work in Korea. The review result based on ASME Standard is published as the separated technical report of KAERI

Healy Clean Coal Project: Healy coal firing at TRW Cleveland Test Facility

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koyama, T.; Petrill, E.; Sheppard, D.

1991-08-01

A test burn of two Alaskan coals was conducted at TRW's Cleveland test facility in support of the Healy Clean Coal Project, as part of Clean Coal Technology III Program in which a new power plant will be constructed using a TRW Coal Combustion System. This system features ash slagging technology combined with NO{sub x} and SO{sub x} control. The tests, funded by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) and TRW, were conducted to verify that the candidate Healy station coals could be successfully fired in the TRW coal combustor, to provide data required for scale-up to the utility project size requirements, and to produce sufficient flash-calcined material (FCM) for spray dryer tests to be conducted by Joy/NIRO. The tests demonstrated that both coals are viable candidates for the project, provided the data required for scale-up, and produced the FCM material. This report describes the modifications to the test facility which were required for the test burn, the tests run, and the results of the tests.

Results and insights of a level-1 internal event PRA of a PWR during mid-loop operations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, T.L.; Musicki, Z.; Kohut, P.

1993-01-01

Traditionally, probabilistic risk assessments (PRA) of severe accidents in nuclear power plants have considered initiating events potentially occurring only during full power operation. Some previous screening analysis that were performed for other modes of operation suggested that risks during those modes were small relative to full power operation. However, more recent studies and operational experience have implied that accidents during low power and shutdown could be significant contributors to risk. The objective of this paper is to present the approach utilized in the level-1 PRA for the Surry plant, and discuss the results obtained. A comparison of the results with those of other shutdown studies is provided. Relevant safety issues such as plant and hardware configurations, operator training, and instrumentation and control is discussed

Using ecological forecasting of future vegetation transition and fire frequency change in the Sierra Nevada to assess fire management strategies

Science.gov (United States)

Thorne, J. H.; Schwartz, M. W.; Holguin, A. J.; Moritz, M.; Batllori, E.; Folger, K.; Nydick, K.

2013-12-01

Ecological systems may respond in complex manners as climate change progresses. Among the responses, site-level climate conditions may cause a shift in vegetation due to the physiological tolerances of plant species, and the fire return interval may change. Natural resource managers challenged with maintaining ecosystem health need a way to forecast how these processes may affect every location, in order to determine appropriate management actions and prioritize locations for interventions. We integrated climate change-driven vegetation type transitions with projected change in fire frequency for 45,203 km2 of the southern Sierra Nevada, California, containing over 10 land management agencies as well as private lands. This Magnitude of Change (MOC) approach involves classing vegetation types in current time according to their climate envelopes, and identifying which sites will in the future have climates beyond what that vegetation currently occurs in. Independently, fire models are used to determine the change in fire frequency for each site. We examined 82 vegetation types with >50 grid cell occurrences. We found iconic resources such as the giant sequoia, lower slope oak woodlands, and high elevation conifer forests are projected as highly vulnerable by models that project a warmer drier future, but not as much by models that project a warmer future that is not drier than current conditions. Further, there were strongly divergent vulnerabilities of these forest types across land ownership (National Parks versus US Forest Service lands), and by GCM. For example, of 50 giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) groves and complexes, all but 3 (on Sierra National Forest) were in the 2 highest levels of risk of climate and fire under the GFDL A2 projection, while 15 groves with low-to-moderate risk were found on both the National Parks and National Forests 18 in the 2 under PCM A2. Landscape projections of potential MOC suggest that the region is likely to experience

A comparison of geospatially modeled fire behavior and fire management utility of three data sources in the southeastern United States

Science.gov (United States)

LaWen T. Hollingsworth; Laurie L. Kurth; Bernard R. Parresol; Roger D. Ottmar; Susan J. Prichard

2012-01-01

Landscape-scale fire behavior analyses are important to inform decisions on resource management projects that meet land management objectives and protect values from adverse consequences of fire. Deterministic and probabilistic geospatial fire behavior analyses are conducted with various modeling systems including FARSITE, FlamMap, FSPro, and Large Fire Simulation...

Fire safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keski-Rahkonen, O.; Bjoerkman, J.; Hostikka, S.; Mangs, J.; Huhtanen, R.; Palmen, H.; Salminen, A.; Turtola, A.

1998-01-01

According to experience and probabilistic risk assessments, fires present a significant hazard in a nuclear power plant. Fires may be initial events for accidents or affect safety systems planned to prevent accidents and to mitigate their consequences. The project consists of theoretical work, experiments and simulations aiming to increase the fire safety at nuclear power plants. The project has four target areas: (1) to produce validated models for numerical simulation programmes, (2) to produce new information on the behavior of equipment in case of fire, (3) to study applicability of new active fire protecting systems in nuclear power plants, and (4) to obtain quantitative knowledge of ignitions induced by important electric devices in nuclear power plants. These topics have been solved mainly experimentally, but modelling at different level is used to interpret experimental data, and to allow easy generalisation and engineering use of the obtained data. Numerical fire simulation has concentrated in comparison of CFD modelling of room fires, and fire spreading on cables on experimental data. So far the success has been good to fair. A simple analytical and numerical model has been developed for fire effluents spreading beyond the room of origin in mechanically strongly ventilated compartments. For behaviour of equipment in fire several full scale and scaled down calorimetric experiments were carried out on electronic cabinets, as well as on horizontal and vertical cable trays. These were carried out to supply material for CFD numerical simulation code validation. Several analytical models were developed and validated against obtained experimental results to allow quick calculations for PSA estimates as well as inter- and extrapolations to slightly different objects. Response times of different commercial fire detectors were determined for different types of smoke, especially emanating from smoldering and flaming cables to facilitate selection of proper detector

Polyfire project- an example of an industrial research project promoting safe industrial production of fire-resistant nanocomposites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vaquero, C; Lopez de Ipina, J; Galarza, N; Hargreaves, B; Weager, B; Breen, C

2011-01-01

New developments based on nanotechnology have to guarantee safe products and processes to be accepted by society. The Polyfire project will develop and scale-up techniques for processing halogen-free, fire-retardant nanocomposite materials and coatings based on unsaturated polyester resins and organoclays. The project includes a work package that will assess the Health and Environmental impacts derived from the manipulation of nanoparticles. This work package includes the following tasks: (1) Identification of Health and Environment Impacts derived from the processes, (2) Experimentation to study specific Nanoparticle Emissions, (3) Development of a Risk Management Methodology for the process, and (4) A Comparison of the Health and Environmental Impact of New and Existing Materials. To date, potential exposure scenarios to nanomaterials have been identified through the development of a Preliminary Hazard Analysis (PHA) of the new production processes. In the next step, these scenarios will be studied and simulated to evaluate potential emissions of nanomaterials. Polyfire is a collaborative European project, funded by the European Commission 7th Framework Programme (Grant Agreement No 229220). It features 11 partners from 5 countries (5 SMEs, 3 research institutes, 2 large companies, 1 association) and runs for three years (1st September 2009 - 31st August 2012). This project is an example of an industrial research development which aims to introduce to the market new products promoting the safe use of nanomaterials.

Polyfire project- an example of an industrial research project promoting safe industrial production of fire-resistant nanocomposites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vaquero, C; Lopez de Ipina, J; Galarza, N [TECNALIA, Leonardo Da Vinci No 11, 01510 Minano (Alava) (Spain); Hargreaves, B; Weager, B [NetComposites Ltd, 4A Broom Business Park, Chesterfield S41 9QG (United Kingdom); Breen, C, E-mail: celinav@leia.es [Materials and Engineering Research Institute, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S1 1WB (United Kingdom)

2011-07-06

New developments based on nanotechnology have to guarantee safe products and processes to be accepted by society. The Polyfire project will develop and scale-up techniques for processing halogen-free, fire-retardant nanocomposite materials and coatings based on unsaturated polyester resins and organoclays. The project includes a work package that will assess the Health and Environmental impacts derived from the manipulation of nanoparticles. This work package includes the following tasks: (1) Identification of Health and Environment Impacts derived from the processes, (2) Experimentation to study specific Nanoparticle Emissions, (3) Development of a Risk Management Methodology for the process, and (4) A Comparison of the Health and Environmental Impact of New and Existing Materials. To date, potential exposure scenarios to nanomaterials have been identified through the development of a Preliminary Hazard Analysis (PHA) of the new production processes. In the next step, these scenarios will be studied and simulated to evaluate potential emissions of nanomaterials. Polyfire is a collaborative European project, funded by the European Commission 7th Framework Programme (Grant Agreement No 229220). It features 11 partners from 5 countries (5 SMEs, 3 research institutes, 2 large companies, 1 association) and runs for three years (1st September 2009 - 31st August 2012). This project is an example of an industrial research development which aims to introduce to the market new products promoting the safe use of nanomaterials.

Methodology and application of surrogate plant PRA analysis to the Rancho Seco Power Plant: Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gore, B.F.; Huenefeld, J.C.

1987-07-01

This report presents the development and the first application of generic probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) information for identifying systems and components important to public risk at nuclear power plants lacking plant-specific PRAs. A methodology is presented for using the results of PRAs for similar (surrogate) plants, along with plant-specific information about the plant of interest and the surrogate plants, to infer important failure modes for systems of the plant of interest. This methodology, and the rationale on which it is based, is presented in the context of its application to the Rancho Seco plant. The Rancho Seco plant has been analyzed using PRA information from two surrogate plants. This analysis has been used to guide development of considerable plant-specific information about Rancho Seco systems and components important to minimizing public risk, which is also presented herein

Post-Fire Recovery of Eco-Hydrologic Behavior Given Historic and Projected Climate Variability in California Mediterranean Type Environments

Science.gov (United States)

Seaby, L. P.; Tague, C. L.; Hope, A. S.

2006-12-01

The Mediterranean type environments (MTEs) of California are characterized by a distinct wet and dry season and high variability in inter-annual climate. Water limitation in MTEs makes eco-hydrological processes highly sensitive to both climate variability and frequent fire disturbance. This research modeled post-fire eco- hydrologic behavior under historical and moderate and extreme scenarios of future climate in a semi-arid chaparral dominated southern California MTE. We used a physically-based, spatially-distributed, eco- hydrological model (RHESSys - Regional Hydro-Ecologic Simulation System), to capture linkages between water and vegetation response to the combined effects of fire and historic and future climate variability. We found post-fire eco-hydrologic behavior to be strongly influenced by the episodic nature of MTE climate, which intensifies under projected climate change. Higher rates of post-fire net primary productivity were found under moderate climate change, while more extreme climate change produced water stressed conditions which were less favorable for vegetation productivity. Precipitation variability in the historic record follows the El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO), and these inter-annual climate characteristics intensify under climate change. Inter-annual variation in streamflow follows these precipitation patterns. Post-fire streamflow and carbon cycling trajectories are strongly dependent on climate characteristics during the first 5 years following fire, and historic intra-climate variability during this period tends to overwhelm longer term trends and variation that might be attributable to climate change. Results have implications for water resource availability, vegetation type conversion from shrubs to grassland, and changes in ecosystem structure and function.

The status and challenge of global fire modelling

Science.gov (United States)

Hantson, Stijn; Arneth, Almut; Harrison, Sandy P.; Kelley, Douglas I.; Prentice, I. Colin; Rabin, Sam S.; Archibald, Sally; Mouillot, Florent; Arnold, Steve R.; Artaxo, Paulo; Bachelet, Dominique; Ciais, Philippe; Forrest, Matthew; Friedlingstein, Pierre; Hickler, Thomas; Kaplan, Jed O.; Kloster, Silvia; Knorr, Wolfgang; Lasslop, Gitta; Li, Fang; Mangeon, Stephane; Melton, Joe R.; Meyn, Andrea; Sitch, Stephen; Spessa, Allan; van der Werf, Guido R.; Voulgarakis, Apostolos; Yue, Chao

2016-06-01

Biomass burning impacts vegetation dynamics, biogeochemical cycling, atmospheric chemistry, and climate, with sometimes deleterious socio-economic impacts. Under future climate projections it is often expected that the risk of wildfires will increase. Our ability to predict the magnitude and geographic pattern of future fire impacts rests on our ability to model fire regimes, using either well-founded empirical relationships or process-based models with good predictive skill. While a large variety of models exist today, it is still unclear which type of model or degree of complexity is required to model fire adequately at regional to global scales. This is the central question underpinning the creation of the Fire Model Intercomparison Project (FireMIP), an international initiative to compare and evaluate existing global fire models against benchmark data sets for present-day and historical conditions. In this paper we review how fires have been represented in fire-enabled dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs) and give an overview of the current state of the art in fire-regime modelling. We indicate which challenges still remain in global fire modelling and stress the need for a comprehensive model evaluation and outline what lessons may be learned from FireMIP.

CONCEPTUAL DESIGN ASSESSMENT FOR THE CO-FIRING OF BIO-REFINERY SUPPLIED LIGNIN PROJECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ted Berglund; Jeffrey T. Ranney; Carol L. Babb; Jacqueline G. Broder

2002-01-01

The major aspects of this project are proceeding toward completion. Prior to this quarter, design criteria, tentative site selection, facility layout, and preliminary facility cost estimates were completed and issued. Processing of bio-solids was completed, providing material for the pilot operations. Pilot facility hydrolysis production has been completed to produce lignin for co-fire testing and the lignin fuel was washed and dewatered. Both the lignin and bio-solids fuel materials for co-fire testing were sent to the co-fire facility (EERC) for evaluation and co-firing. EERC has received coal typical of the fuel to the TVA-Colbert boilers. This material was used at EERC as baseline material and for mixing with the bio-fuel for combustion testing. All the combustion and fuel handling tests at EERC have been completed. During fuel preparation EERC reported no difficulties in fuel blending and handling. Preliminary co-fire test results indicate that the blending of lignin and bio-solids with the Colbert coal blend generally reduces NO(sub x) emissions, increases the reactivity of the coal, and increases the ash deposition rate on superheater surfaces. Deposits produced from the fuel blends, however, are more friable and hence easier to remove from tube surfaces relative to those produced from the baseline Colbert coal blend. The final co-fire testing report is being prepared at EERC and will be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2002. The TVA-Colbert facility has neared completion of the task to evaluate co-location of the Masada facility on the operation of the power generation facility. The TVA-Colbert fossil plant is fully capable of providing a reliable steam supply. The preferred steam supply connection points and steam pipeline routing have been identified. The environmental review of the pipeline routing has been completed and no major impacts have been identified. Detailed assessment of steam export impacts on the Colbert boiler system have been

Studi Awal Pra Desain Pabrik Bioetanol dari Nira Siwalan

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Novarian Budisetyowati

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Bioetanol kini banyak dikembangkan sebagai bahan bakar alternatif pengganti bahan bakar fosil. Bioetanol untuk campuran bensin harus memiliki kemurnian sebesar 99,5-100%. Bioetanol dapat diperoleh dengan proses fermentasi yang melibatkan mikroorganisme. Pra desain pabrik bioetanol dari nira siwalan ini menggunakan proses fermentasi. Bahan baku berupa nira siwalan diasamkan dengan menggunakan H2SO4, kemudian disterilisasi sebelum difermentasi di fermentor selama 36 jam. Adapun mikroorganisme yang digunakan adalah Saccharomyces cereviceae. Bakteri ini mampu mengurai gula tanpa kehadiran oksigen dan menghasilkan etanol dan karbondioksida. Bioetanol dapat diperoleh dengan proses fermentasi yang melibatkan mikroorganisme. Pra desain pabrik bioetanol dari nira siwalan ini menggunakan proses fermentasi. Bahan baku berupa nira siwalan diasamkan dengan menggunakan H2SO4, kemudian disterilisasi sebelum difermentasi di fermentor selama 36 jam. Adapun mikroorganisme yang digunakan adalah Saccharomyces cereviceae. Setelah dari fermentor nira yang sudah difermentasi dinetralkan pH nya menggunakan NH4OH di tangki netralisasi. Dari tangki netralisasi nira dipompakan melewati preheater sebelum masuk ke kolom distilasi. Pemurnian dilakukan dengan menggunakan kolom distilasi sebanyak 2 buah. Pada distilasi yang pertama diperoleh kadar etanol sebesar 60% dan pada distilasi yang kedua diperoleh kadar 96%. Dari kolom distilasi 2 larutan didinginkan menggunakan cooler untuk didapatkan suhu 32oC agar sesuai dengan suhu proses dehidrasi dengan menggunakan Molecular Sieve yang diinginkan. Proses dehidrasi dilakukan untuk mendapat kadar etanol 99,5%. Etanol 99,5% yang dihasilkan kemudian disimpan dalam tangki penampung. Kebutuhan bioetanol dalam negeri pada tahun 2018 diperkirakan 3.166.015,13 kL/tahun. Berdasarkan analisa ekonomi yang dilakukan, diperoleh hasil sebagai berikut internal rate of return 26,53 % per tahun, pay out time 4,73 tahun, dan BEP 34,62 % Ditinjau

Rocky Mountain Research Station 2008-2012 National Fire Plan Investments

Science.gov (United States)

Erika Gallegos

2013-01-01

This report highlights selected accomplishments by the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station's Wildland Fire and Fuels Research & Development projects in support of the National Fire Plan from 2008 through 2012. These projects are examples of the broad range of knowledge and tools developed by National Fire Plan funding beginning in 2008.

PRA Procedures Guide: a guide to the performance of probabilistic risk assessments for nuclear power plants. Final report, Volume 1 - Chapters 1-8

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1983-01-01

This document, the Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) Procedures Guide, is intended to provide an overview of the risk-assessment field as it exists today and to identify acceptable techniques for the systematic assessment of the risk from nuclear power plants. Topics discussed include: organization of PRA; accident-sequence definition and system modeling; human-reliability analysis; data-base development; accident-sequence quantification; physical processes of core-melt accidents; and radionuclide release and transport

Advanced numerical modelling of a fire. Final report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Heikkilae, L.; Keski-Rahkonen, O.

1996-03-01

Experience and probabilistic risk assessments show that fires present a major hazard in a nuclear power plant (NPP). The PALOME project (1988-92) improved the quality of numerical simulation of fires to make it a useful tool for fire safety analysis. Some of the most advanced zone model fire simulation codes were acquired. The performance of the codes was studied through literature and personal interviews in earlier studies and BRI2 code from the Japanese Building Research Institute was selected for further use. In PALOME 2 project this work was continued. Information obtained from large-scale fire tests at the German HDR facility allowed reliable prediction of the rate of heat release and was used for code validation. BRI2 code was validated particularly by participation in the CEC standard problem 'Prediction of effects caused by a cable fire experiment within the HDR-facility'. Participation in the development of a new field model code SOFIE specifically for fire applications as British-Swedish-Finnish cooperation was one of the goals of the project. SOFIE code was implemented at VTT and the first results of validation simulations were obtained. Well instrumented fire tests on electronic cabinets were carried out to determine source terms for simulation of room fires and to estimate fire spread to adjacent cabinets. The particular aim of this study was to measure the rate of heat release from a fire in an electronic cabinet. From the three tests, differing mainly in the amount of the fire load, data was obtained for source terms in numerical modelling of fires in rooms containing electronic cabinets. On the basis of these tests also a simple natural ventilation model was derived. (19 refs.)

Introduction of accidental procedures in the event trees of the 900MW PWR PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bars, G.; Champ, M.; Lanore, J.M.; Pochard, R.

1985-02-01

This paper presents the example of the small LOCA Event Trees and the studies related to the introduction of procedure actions is case of HPSI failure. The results illustrate the interest of the approach and its significant impact on the PRA. The present studies are related to the Y actions in case of small LOCAs without HPIS

Reliability Based Optimization of Fire Protection

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thoft-Christensen, Palle

fire protection (PFP) of firewalls and structural members. The paper is partly based on research performed within the EU supported research project B/E-4359 "Optimized Fire Safety of Offshore Structures" and partly on research supported by the Danish Technical Research Council (see Thoft-Christensen [1......]). Special emphasis is put on the optimization software developed within the project.......It is well known that fire is one of the major risks of serious damage or total loss of several types of structures such as nuclear installations, buildings, offshore platforms/topsides etc. This paper presents a methodology and software for reliability based optimization of the layout of passive...

Fire analysis. Relevant aspects from Spanish nuclear power plants experience

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fernandez, Pedro; Villar, Tomas [Empresarios Agrupados A.I.E., Madrid (Spain). Nuclear Safety Dept.

2015-12-15

Empresarios Agrupados A.I.E. leads the development and updating of fire analysis for the Spanish NPP's. Some of them decided to voluntarily adopt standard NFPA-805 as an alternative to the current fire protection rules. Fire Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) methodologies have been continuously evolving during recent years. This paper will briefly present experience gained in relationship with some relevant aspects of fire risk analysis. Associated circuits need to be evaluated to determine if cable faults can prevent or cause the maloperation of redundant safety related systems. If a circuit is not properly protected by an isolation device, fire damage to a cable could propagate to other safe shutdown cables. In order to check that the coordination is adequate, existing electrical protections coordination studies have been analyzed and, for some plants, additional analyses have been performed for DC and AC for instrumentation an control (I and C) systems. Spurious actuations are also a basic part of the analysis of the consequence of a fire, which should consider any possible actuation that can prevent or affect the performance of a system or safety function. In this context, it was furthermore necessary to take into account the possibility of a combination of several spurious actuations that can result in a specific consequence, according to Appendix G of NEI 00-01 Rev. 2. These are the so-called Multiple Spurious Operations (MSOs). One key element in fire analysis is the availability of validated fire models used to estimate the spread of fire and the failure time of cable raceways. NFPA 805 states that fire models shall only be applied within the limitations of the given model. The applicability of the validation results is determined using normalized parameters traditionally used in fire modeling applications. Normalized parameters assessed in NUREG-1934 may be used to compare NPP fire scenarios with validation experiments. If some of the parameters do

Hotel and Motel Fire Safety Project - USFA

Data.gov (United States)

Department of Homeland Security — Provides a listing of properties compliant with the requirements of the Hotel and Motel Fire Safety Act of 1990. Users may search for compliant properties and submit...

The Esmeralda project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sophy, Y.

1979-01-01

This paper discusses the Esmeralda Project for studying extensive fires involving up to 70 metric tons of sodium. The design objectives and major features of the project are presented. The need for sodium fire testing on such a scale, results from problems of similitude arising from the extrapolation of previous results to fires liable to occur in large fast neutron reactors such as Super-Phenix. (author)

Ecological consequences of alternative fuel reduction treatments in seasonally dry forests: the national fire and fire surrogate study

Science.gov (United States)

J.D. McIver; C.J. Fettig

2010-01-01

This special issue of Forest Science features the national Fire and Fire Surrogate study (FFS), a niultisite, multivariate research project that evaluates the ecological consequences of prescribed fire and its mechanical surrogates in seasonally dry forests of the United States. The need for a comprehensive national FFS study stemmed from concern that information on...

Project 93L-EWL-097, fire alarm system improvements, 300 Area

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scott, M.V.

1995-01-01

This document contains the Acceptance Test Procedure (ATP) which will demonstrate that the modifications to the Fire Protection systems in the 338 Building function as intended. The ATP will test the fire alarm control panel, flow alarm pressure switch, post indicator valve tamper switch, heat detectors, flow switches, and fire alarm signaling devices

Variáveis meteorológicas e cobertura vegetal de espécies arbóreas em praças urbanas em Cuiabá, Brasil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angela Santana de Oliveira

2013-12-01

Full Text Available A influência da vegetação nas variáveis meteorológicas foi avaliada por meio do índice de área foliar (IAF e índice de sombreamento arbóreo (ISA em duas praças públicas em Cuiabá-MT, Brasil. Medidas de temperatura do ar (T e umidade relativa (UR foram obtidas sob a copa das árvores em diferentes sítios da cidade para o período seco e chuvoso no ano de 2009. A análise dos valores médios destas variáveis mostraram maiores valores de T e menores UR ocorrendo durante o período seco e sendo semelhantes nas duas praças. Com relação à UR, entretanto, não houve diferenças significativas entre a medida sob as árvores e a atmosfera. O índice de área foliar foi calculado e variou em função das espécies arbóreas das praças, e mostrou valores entre 5,64 e 2,79 m². m-2, sendo a média do IAF e do ISA na Praça Popular superiores ao da Praça 8 de Abril. Conclui-se que as espécies arbóreas melhoraram o ambiente térmico em virtude da atenuação da radiação proporcionada pelo sombreamento das diferentes espécies, principalmente no horário com menor ângulo solar.

Development of margin assessment methodology of decay heat removal function against external hazards. (2) Tornado PRA methodology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nishino, Hiroyuki; Kurisaka, Kenichi; Yamano, Hidemasa

2014-01-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) for external events has been recognized as an important safety assessment method after the TEPCO's Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station accident. The PRA should be performed not only for earthquake and tsunami which are especially key events in Japan, but also the PRA methodology should be developed for the other external hazards (e.g. tornado). In this study, the methodology was developed for Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors paying attention to that the ambient air is their final heat sink for removing decay heat under accident conditions. First, tornado hazard curve was estimated by using data recorded in Japan. Second, important structures and components for decay heat removal were identified and an event tree resulting in core damage was developed in terms of wind load and missiles (i.e. steel pipes, boards and cars) caused by a tornado. Main damage cause for important structures and components is the missiles and the tornado missiles that can reach those components and structures placed on high elevations were identified, and the failure probabilities of the components and structures against the tornado missiles were calculated as a product of two probabilities: i.e., a probability for the missiles to enter the intake or outtake in the decay heat removal system, and a probability of failure caused by the missile impacts. Finally, the event tree was quantified. As a result, the core damage frequency was enough lower than 10 -10 /ry. (author)

Human factors assessment in PRA using task analysis linked evaluation technique (TALENT)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wells, J.E.; Banks, W.W.

1990-01-01

Human error is a primary contributor to risk in complex high-reliability systems. A 1985 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (USNRC) study of licensee event reports (LERs) suggests that upwards of 65% of commercial nuclear system failures involve human error. Since then, the USNRC has initiated research to fully and properly integrate human errors into the probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) process. The resulting implementation procedure is known as the Task Analysis Linked Evaluation Technique (TALENT). As indicated, TALENT is a broad-based method for integrating human factors expertise into the PRA process. This process achieves results which: (1) provide more realistic estimates of the impact of human performance on nuclear power safety, (2) can be fully audited, (3) provide a firm technical base for equipment-centered and personnel-centered retrofit/redesign of plants enabling them to meet internally and externally imposed safety standards, and (4) yield human and hardware data capable of supporting inquiries into human performance issues that transcend the individual plant. The TALENT procedure is being field-tested to verify its effectiveness and utility. The objectives of the field-test are to examine (1) the operability of the process, (2) its acceptability to the users, and (3) its usefulness for achieving measurable improvements in the credibility of the analysis. The field-test will provide the information needed to enhance the TALENT process

Project W-026, Waste Receiving and Processing (WRAP) Facility Module 1: Maximum possible fire loss (MPFL) decontamination and cleanup estimates. Revision 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hinkle, A.W.; Jacobsen, P.H.; Lucas, D.R.

1994-01-01

Project W-026, Waste Receiving and Processing (WRAP) Facility Module 1, a 1991 Line Item, is planned for completion and start of operations in the spring of 1997. WRAP Module 1 will have the capability to characterize and repackage newly generated, retrieved and stored transuranic (TRU), TRU mixed, and suspect TRU waste for shipment to the Waste isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP). In addition, the WRAP Facility Module 1 will have the capability to characterize low-level mixed waste for treatment in WRAP Module 2A. This report documents the assumptions and cost estimates for decontamination and clean-up of a maximum possible fire loss (MPFL) as defined by DOE Order 5480.7A, FIRE PROTECTION. The Order defines MPFL as the value of property, excluding land, within a fire area, unless a fire hazards analysis demonstrates a lesser (or greater) loss potential. This assumes failure of both automatic fire suppression systems and manual fire fighting efforts. Estimates were developed for demolition, disposal, decontamination, and rebuilding. Total costs were estimated to be approximately $98M

RETRO_FIRES_WCS

Data.gov (United States)

Washington University St Louis — Within the RETRO project, global gridded data sets for anthropogenic and vegetation fire emissions of several trace gases were generated, covering the period from...

RETRO Fires Aggr

Data.gov (United States)

Washington University St Louis — Within the RETRO project, global gridded data sets for anthropogenic and vegetation fire emissions of several trace gases were generated, covering the period from...

Risk management of the North Anna Power Station Service Water System Preservation Project using the IPE model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Afzali, A.; Donovan, M.D.; Sartain, M.D.; Bankley, A.V.

1993-01-01

This paper discusses the application of the North Anna Power Station Individual Plant Examination (IPE) models in PRA study of the Service Water System Preservation Project (SWSPP). The service water project involves repair and restoration of the Service Water System (SWS) piping and will require excavation of the buried SWS lines in addition to temporarily removing one of the two redundant SWS loops from operation. The SWSPP will be carried out with one or both units in normal operation. The objective of the PRA study was to quantify the risk impact (as measured by the change in Core Damage Frequency (ΔCDF)) of the SWSPP and to identify and evaluate countermeasures to reduce the risk impact of the project activities. The study concluded that the ΔCDF would be acceptable by undertaking preventative measures and by providing additional accident mitigating measures during performance of the SWSPP activities

CONCEPTUAL DESIGN ASSESSMENT FOR THE CO-FIRING OF BIO-REFINERY SUPPLIED LIGNIN PROJECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ted Berglund; Jeffrey T. Ranney; Carol L. Babb; Jacqueline G. Broder

2001-01-01

The major aspects of this project are proceeding toward completion. Prior to this quarter, design criteria, tentative site selection, facility layout, and preliminary facility cost estimates have been completed and issued for review. Processing of bio-solids was completed, providing material for the pilot operations. Pilot facility design, equipment selection, and modification were completed during the fourth quarter of 2000. Initial pilot facility shakedown was completed during the fourth quarter. After some unavoidable delays, a suitable representative supply of municipal solid waste (MSW) feed material was procured. During this quarter (first quarter of 2001), shredding of the feed material was completed and final feed conditioning was completed. Pilot facility hydrolysis production was completed to produce lignin for co-fire testing. Pilot facility modifications continued to improve facility operations and performance during the first quarter of 2001. Samples of the co-fire fuel material were sent to the co-fire facility for evaluation. The TVA-Colbert facility has neared completion of the task to evaluate the co-location of the Masada facility on the operation of the power generation facility. The TVA-Colbert fossil plant is fully capable of providing a reliable steam supply. The preferred steam supply connection points and steam pipeline routing have been identified. The environmental review of the pipeline routing has been completed and no major impacts have been identified. Detailed assessment of steam export impacts on the Colbert boiler system have been completed and a cost estimate for steam supply system is being developed

A fire hazard analysis at the Ignalina nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joerud, F.; Magnusson, T.

1998-01-01

The fire hazard analysis (FHA) of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant (INPP) Unit no.1 was initiated during 1997 and is estimated to finalise in summer 1998. The reason for starting a FHA was a recommendation in the Safety Analysis Report and its review to prioritise a systematic FHA. Fire protection improvements had earlier been based on engineering assessments, but further improvements required a systematic FHA. It is also required by the regulator for licensing of unit no.1. In preparation of the analysis it was decided to perform a deterministic FHA to fulfil the requirements in the IAEA draft of a Safety Practice ''Preparation of Fire Hazard Analyses for Nuclear Power Plants''. As a supporting document the United States Department of Energy Reactor Core Protection Evaluation Methodology for Fires at RBMK and WWER Nuclear Power Plants (RCPEM) was agreed to be used. The assistance of the project is performed as a bilateral activity between Sweden and UK. The project management is the responsibility of the INPP. In order to transfer knowledge to the INPP project group, training activities are arranged by the western team. The project will be documented as a safety case. The project consists of parties from INPP, Sweden, UK and Russia which makes the project very dependent of good communication procedures. The most difficult problems is except from the problems with translation, the problems with different standards and lack of testing protocols of the fire protection installations and problems to set the right level of screening criteria. There is also the new dimension of making it possible to take credit for the fire brigade in the safety case, which can bring the project into difficulties. The most interesting challenges for the project are to set the most sensible safety levels in the screening phase, to handle the huge volume of rooms for survey and screening, to maintain the good exchange of fire- and nuclear safety information between all the parties involved

Vegetation fire proneness in Europe

Science.gov (United States)

Pereira, Mário; Aranha, José; Amraoui, Malik

2015-04-01

Fire selectivity has been studied for vegetation classes in terms of fire frequency and fire size in a few European regions. This analysis is often performed along with other landscape variables such as topography, distance to roads and towns. These studies aims to assess the landscape sensitivity to forest fires in peri-urban areas and land cover changes, to define landscape management guidelines and policies based on the relationships between landscape and fires in the Mediterranean region. Therefore, the objectives of this study includes the: (i) analysis of the spatial and temporal variability statistics within Europe; and, (ii) the identification and characterization of the vegetated land cover classes affected by fires; and, (iii) to propose a fire proneness index. The datasets used in the present study comprises: Corine Land Cover (CLC) maps for 2000 and 2006 (CLC2000, CLC2006) and burned area (BA) perimeters, from 2000 to 2013 in Europe, provided by the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS). The CLC is a part of the European Commission programme to COoRdinate INformation on the Environment (Corine) and it provides consistent, reliable and comparable information on land cover across Europe. Both the CLC and EFFIS datasets were combined using geostatistics and Geographical Information System (GIS) techniques to access the spatial and temporal evolution of the types of shrubs and forest affected by fires. Obtained results confirms the usefulness and efficiency of the land cover classification scheme and fire proneness index which allows to quantify and to compare the propensity of vegetation classes and countries to fire. As expected, differences between northern and southern Europe are notorious in what concern to land cover distribution, fire incidence and fire proneness of vegetation cover classes. This work was supported by national funds by FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, under the project PEst-OE/AGR/UI4033/2014 and by

Development of fire protection standards for the EPR project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Frank, H.J.; Kaercher, M.; Wittmann, R.

2000-01-01

In 1989 Framatome and Siemens decided by setting up their joint subsidiary NPI (Nuclear Power International) to co-operate in designing a new European Pressurised Water Reactor, the EPR. French and German utilities decided to participate in this project. In parallel to the co-operation on supplier's and utility's side, the French and German safety authorities and safety experts wanted to work closely together in order to harmonise and further develop the outstanding safety standards in France and Germany. An organisation has been set up to elaborate common codes related to the EPR design, at the level of the French design and construction rules (RCC) of the German KTA safety standards and DIN standards for nuclear technology, the so-called EPR technical codes (ETC). In this context the decision was made to develop a new fire protection code, the ETC-F, which should be harmonised between France and Germany. The article gives an insight in the developing process of the ETC-F and an outlook on existing and perhaps further national activities. (orig.) [de

Understorey fire frequency and the fate of burned forests in southern Amazonia.

Science.gov (United States)

Morton, D C; Le Page, Y; DeFries, R; Collatz, G J; Hurtt, G C

2013-06-05

Recent drought events underscore the vulnerability of Amazon forests to understorey fires. The long-term impact of fires on biodiversity and forest carbon stocks depends on the frequency of fire damages and deforestation rates of burned forests. Here, we characterized the spatial and temporal dynamics of understorey fires (1999-2010) and deforestation (2001-2010) in southern Amazonia using new satellite-based estimates of annual fire activity (greater than 50 ha) and deforestation (greater than 10 ha). Understorey forest fires burned more than 85 500 km(2) between 1999 and 2010 (2.8% of all forests). Forests that burned more than once accounted for 16 per cent of all understorey fires. Repeated fire activity was concentrated in Mato Grosso and eastern Pará, whereas single fires were widespread across the arc of deforestation. Routine fire activity in Mato Grosso coincided with annual periods of low night-time relative humidity, suggesting a strong climate control on both single and repeated fires. Understorey fires occurred in regions with active deforestation, yet the interannual variability of fire and deforestation were uncorrelated, and only 2.6 per cent of forests that burned between 1999 and 2008 were deforested for agricultural use by 2010. Evidence from the past decade suggests that future projections of frontier landscapes in Amazonia should separately consider economic drivers to project future deforestation and climate to project fire risk.

Análise quali-quantitativa da arborização na praça XV de novembro em Ribeirão Preto - SP, Brasil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gustavo de Nobrega Romani

2012-06-01

Full Text Available A Praça XV de Novembro, implantada em meados do século XIX, tem grande valor histórico-cultural, além de se constituir em uma das principais áreas verdes do centro da cidade de Ribeirão Preto. Visando ao conhecimento detalhado da vegetação para fins de orientação do manejo e conservação dessa área, foi feito um levantamento quali-quantitativo e fitossociológico das árvores e palmeiras da praça. Foram medidas altura e Diâmetro à Altura do Peito (DAP e identificados todos os indivíduos de porte arbóreo (árvores e palmeiras presentes na Praça, em nível de espécie. A praça ocupa uma área de 15.456,00 m², onde foram amostradas 42 espécies distribuídas por 19 famílias, num total de 161 indivíduos. Apesar de o local apresentar arborização com alto índice de diversidade de espécies (Shannon-Weaver de 3,14, os exemplares necessitam de maior atenção quanto a problemas ligados à fitossanidade e podas adequadas, fazendo que resulte em espaço seguro para os frequentadores e em boa qualidade paisagística.

Coal fires in Indonesia

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Whitehouse, Alfred E.; Mulyana, Asep A.S. [Office of Surface Mining/Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources Coal Fire Project, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Agency for Training and Education, Jl. Gatot Subroto, Kav. 49, Jakarta 12950 (Indonesia)

2004-07-12

Indonesia's fire and haze problem is increasingly being ascribed to large-scale forest conversion and land clearing activities making way for pulpwood, rubber and oil palm plantations. Fire is the cheapest tool available to small holders and plantation owners to reduce vegetation cover and prepare and fertilize extremely poor soils. Fires that escaped from agricultural burns have ravaged East Kalimantan forests on the island of Borneo during extreme drought periods in 1982-1983, 1987, 1991, 1994 and 1997-1998. Estimates based on satellite data and ground observations are that more than five million hectares were burned in East Kalimantan during the 1997/1998 dry season. Not only were the economic losses and ecological damage from these surface fires enormous, they ignited coal seams exposed at the ground surface along their outcrops.Coal fires now threaten Indonesia's shrinking ecological resources in Kutai National Park and Sungai Wain Nature Reserve. Sungai Wain has one of the last areas of unburned primary rainforest in the Balikpapan-Samarinda area with an extremely rich biodiversity. Although fires in 1997/1998 damaged nearly 50% of this Reserve and ignited 76 coal fires, it remains the most valuable water catchment area in the region and it has been used as a reintroduction site for the endangered orangutan. The Office of Surface Mining provided Indonesia with the capability to take quick action on coal fires that presented threats to public health and safety, infrastructure or the environment. The US Department of State's Southeast Asia Environmental Protection Initiative through the US Agency for International Development funded the project. Technical assistance and training transferred skills in coal fire management through the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resource's Training Agency to the regional offices; giving the regions the long-term capability to manage coal fires. Funding was also included to extinguish coal fires as

Characterization and quantification of deposits build up and removal in straw suspension fired boilers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Peter Arendt; Shafique Bashir, Muhammad; Wedel, Stig

This project deals with ash deposit formation in suspension fired biomass power plant boilers. The project has been conducted in a tight collaboration between Vattenfall and the CHEC Research Centre at DTU Department of Chemical Engineering. A large part of the project has been performed by condu......This project deals with ash deposit formation in suspension fired biomass power plant boilers. The project has been conducted in a tight collaboration between Vattenfall and the CHEC Research Centre at DTU Department of Chemical Engineering. A large part of the project has been performed...... by conducting advanced probe measurements at the Amagerværkets Vattenfall owed boilers. It was the objective of the project to provide an improved understanding of ash deposit formation and removal in biomass suspension fired boilers. The project have provided a large amount of knowledge on the following issues......: 1) The influence of local boiler conditions on deposit formation in suspension fired boilers using wood or co-firing straw and wood, 2) quantification of deposit removal in biomass suspension firing boilers with regards both to natural shedding and soot blower induced shedding, 3) established...

Fires in rooms containing electrical components - incident planning, fire fighting tactics, risks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Magnusson, Tommy; Ottosson, Jan; Lindskog, BertiI; Soederquist Bende, Evy; Eriksson, Fredrik; Haffling, Stefan

2006-12-01

that was carried out in order to give general recommendations with respect to the development of pre-incident plans at the Swedish nuclear power plants for fire fighting in electrical switch rooms. The general recommendations are attached to the main report. Pre-incident plans gives the control room personnel and the fire fighting staff a powerful tool in order to fight fires and respond to other types of accidents. Pre-incident plans are the foundation on which decisions should be made by the control room chief and the chief fire officer, although it is not possible to predict all types of accidents. Pre-incident planning is also important in order to provide staff education and training. The overall aim of the project has been to give general pre-incident planning recommendations with respect to electrical switch room fires, to determine and establish an appropriate delegation order and clarify the overall responsibility of the fire fighting operation as well as the operation of the plant before, during and after an incident. To clarify the appropriate fire fighting tactics and to give recommendations on the type of extinguishing media based on the risk and consequence of a fire with respect to smoke, radiation, chlorides etc. with respect to the extinguishing media. The results presented in this report should also be used as a base for yearly staff training, both control room personnel and fire fighters. The main project results are summarized below: - The current pre-incident plans at the plants differ in various ways. - A lack of education with respect to the topic of this project has been identified. - The chief fire officer is, by law, highest in rank at the fire scene and is responsible for the operations during the incident. The control room chief is responsible for the safe operation of the plant. Two important questions have been answered in this research project in collaboration between the parties concerned and the Nuclear Power Plants: 1 . The Chief Fire

News from the Fire Brigade

CERN Multimedia

Gunther Schoenwerth

2010-01-01

During the two weeks before the Christmas shutdown, the members of the Fire Brigade’s Social Club managed to sell nearly 900 Fire Brigade calendars for 2010. We would like to thank all of you who bought one. Thanks to your generosity, we will be able to donate about 5000 Swiss francs to the children of Kanji, one of the Staff Association’s long-term fund-raising projects. Thank you again for your support, and best wishes for 2010. President of the CERN Fire Brigade Social Club

Exploring the future change space for fire weather in southeast Australia

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, Hamish; Evans, Jason P.

2018-05-01

High-resolution projections of climate change impacts on fire weather conditions in southeast Australia out to 2080 are presented. Fire weather is represented by the McArthur Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI), calculated from an objectively designed regional climate model ensemble. Changes in annual cumulative FFDI vary widely, from - 337 (- 21%) to + 657 (+ 24%) in coastal areas and - 237 (- 12%) to + 1143 (+ 26%) in inland areas. A similar spread is projected in extreme FFDI values. In coastal regions, the number of prescribed burning days is projected to change from - 11 to + 10 in autumn and - 10 to + 3 in spring. Across the ensemble, the most significant increases in fire weather and decreases in prescribed burn windows are projected to take place in spring. Partial bias correction of FFDI leads to similar projections but with a greater spread, particularly in extreme values. The partially bias-corrected FFDI performs similarly to uncorrected FFDI compared to the observed annual cumulative FFDI (ensemble root mean square error spans 540 to 1583 for uncorrected output and 695 to 1398 for corrected) but is generally worse for FFDI values above 50. This emphasizes the need to consider inter-variable relationships when bias-correcting for complex phenomena such as fire weather. There is considerable uncertainty in the future trajectory of fire weather in southeast Australia, including the potential for less prescribed burning days and substantially greater fire danger in spring. Selecting climate models on the basis of multiple criteria can lead to more informative projections and allow an explicit exploration of uncertainty.

FIRE PROTECTION SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGIES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aristov Denis Ivanovich

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The All-Russian Congress “Fire Stop Moscow” was de-voted to the analysis of the four segments of the industry of fire protection systems and technologies: the design of fire protec-tion systems, the latest developments and technologies of active and passive fire protection of buildings, the state and the devel-opment of the legal framework, the practice of fire protection of buildings and structures. The forum brought together the repre-sentatives of the industry of fire protection systems, scientists, leading experts, specialists in fire protection and representatives of construction companies from different regions of Russia. In parallel with the Congress Industrial Exhibition of fire protection systems, materials and technology was held, where manufacturers presented their products. The urgency of the “Fire Stop Moscow” Congress in 2015 organized by the Congress Bureau ODF Events lies primarily in the fact that it considered the full range of issues related to the fire protection of building and construction projects; studied the state of the regulatory framework for fire safety and efficiency of public services, research centers, private companies and busi-nesses in the area of fire safety. The main practical significance of the event which was widely covered in the media space, was the opportunity to share the views and information between management, science, and practice of business on implementing fire protection systems in the conditions of modern economic relations and market realities. : congress, fire protection, systems, technologies, fire protection systems, exhibition

Mapping severe fire potential across the contiguous United States

Science.gov (United States)

Brett H. Davis

2016-01-01

The Fire Severity Mapping System (FIRESEV) project is an effort to provide critical information and tools to fire managers that enhance their ability to assess potential ecological effects of wildland fire. A major component of FIRESEV is the development of a Severe Fire Potential Map (SFPM), a geographic dataset covering the contiguous United States (CONUS) that...

Preliminary fire hazards analysis for W-211, Initial Tank Retrieval Systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huckfeldt, R.A.

1995-01-01

A fire hazards analysis (FHA) was performed for Project W-211, Initial Tank Retrieval System (ITRS), at the Department of Energy (DOE) Hanford site. The objectives of this FHA was to determine (1) the fire hazards that expose the Initial Tank Retrieval System or are inherent in the process, (2) the adequacy of the fire-safety features planned, and (3) the degree of compliance of the project with specific fire safety provisions in DOE orders and related engineering codes and standards. The scope included the construction, the process hazards, building fire protection, and site wide fire protection. The results are presented in terms of the fire hazards present, the potential extent of fire damage, and the impact on employees and public safety. This study evaluated the ITRS with respect to its use at Tank 241-SY-101 only

Healy Clean Coal Project: Healy coal firing at TRW Cleveland Test Facility. Final report

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koyama, T.; Petrill, E.; Sheppard, D.

1991-08-01

A test burn of two Alaskan coals was conducted at TRW`s Cleveland test facility in support of the Healy Clean Coal Project, as part of Clean Coal Technology III Program in which a new power plant will be constructed using a TRW Coal Combustion System. This system features ash slagging technology combined with NO{sub x} and SO{sub x} control. The tests, funded by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) and TRW, were conducted to verify that the candidate Healy station coals could be successfully fired in the TRW coal combustor, to provide data required for scale-up to the utility project size requirements, and to produce sufficient flash-calcined material (FCM) for spray dryer tests to be conducted by Joy/NIRO. The tests demonstrated that both coals are viable candidates for the project, provided the data required for scale-up, and produced the FCM material. This report describes the modifications to the test facility which were required for the test burn, the tests run, and the results of the tests.

Avaliação qualitativa e quantitativa da arborização das praças de Vinhedo, SP.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberval de Cássia Salvador Ribeiro

2006-06-01

Full Text Available O inventário das espécies arbóreas e dos respectivos números de indivíduos das praças da cidade de Vinhedo foi realizado no perímetro urbano, excetuando-se os condomínios, as áreas de parques e as de preservação de mananciais. Para a localização das áreas, consultou-se a planta do município de 1997. Realizou-se o inventário da vegetação arbórea, considerando-se apenas os indivíduos com CAP (circunferência à altura do peito acima de 10 cm listando-se as seguintes informações: nomes comum e científico das espécies; CAP; altura; aspecto geral; diâmetro de copa; presença de pragas, doenças ou parasitas; ocorrência de podas (drástica e/ou de condução; fitossanidade da raiz, tronco e copa. Foram registradas 22 praças por nome, localização e número total de árvores, totalizando 764 indivíduos pertencentes a 23 famílias botânicas e 53 espécies, além de 32 indivíduos não identificados. A espécie de maior abundância relativa foi Syagrus romanzoffiana (jerivá, com 31,94% do número total de indivíduos. Em 63,64% das praças 33,13% das espécies eram exóticas. A maior parte dos indivíduos tinha aspecto geral normal, demonstrando prática de tratos culturais adequados. Na maioria dos casos, as podas foram feitas corretamente, ou não houve a necessidade de nenhuma intervenção. Do total de 22 praças, apenas cinco tinham bom estado geral de conservação dos elementos naturais (arbustos, canteiros e gramados. Em 68,18% das praças as árvores tinham altura superior a 6 metros, indicando que essas áreas necessitavam apenas de procedimentos de manutenção de rotina. E 22,72% necessitavam de práticas de manutenção mais direcionadas ao desenvolvimento das árvores, tais como adubações periódicas, capinas, podas de condução e, finalmente, em 13,64% deveriam ocorrer intervenções tanto de manutenção, como de recuperação por meio de novos plantios, ou mesmo, de planejamento para remodelação da área.

Primer uticaja filtriranja slike u sistemima za praćenje ciljeva primenom termovizije / An example of image filtering in target tracking systems with thermal imagery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zvonko M. Radosavljević

2003-07-01

Full Text Available U radu je dat primer primene jedne vrste niskofrekventnog filtriranja sa usrednjavanjem, koje se primenjuje u sistemima za detekciju i praćenje ciljeva u vazdušnom prostoru primenom termovizije. Date su dve metode filtriranja slike. Prva metoda koristi niskofrekventno konvoluciono filtriranje a druga usrednjavajući filtar na osnovu srednje vrednosti nivoa sivog. Ovi filtri su primenjeni u sistemima za praćenje uz pomoć infracrvenih senzora. Određivanje nivoa praga filtriranja vrši se uz pomoć statističkih osobina slike. Veoma važan korak u procesu praćenja je određivanje prozora praćenja, koji maze biti, po dimenzijama, fiksan ili adaptibilan. Pogrešna procena o postojanju cilja u prozoru može se doneti u slučaju prisustva šuma pozadine, predpojačavača, detektora, itd. Filtriranje je neophodan korak u ovim sistemima, kao značajan činilac U povećanju brzine i tačnosti praćenja. / A case of image filtering in air target detecting and tracking systems is described in this paper. Two image filtering methods are given. The first method is performed using a low pass convolving filter and the second one uses the mean value of gray level filter. The main goal of the cited filtering is implementation in IR (infra red systems. Some statistical features of the images were used for selecting the threshold level. The next step in the algorithm is the determination of a 'tracking window' that can be fixed or adaptive in size. A false estimation of a target existing in the window may be influenced by the background noise, low noise amplifier detector, etc.

Implications of an HRA framework for quantifying human acts of commission and dependency: Development of a methodology for conducting an integrated HRA/PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barriere, M.T.; Luckas, W.J.; Brown, W.S.; Cooper, S.E.; Wreathall, J.; Bley, D.C.

1994-01-01

To support the development of a refined human reliability analysis (HRA) framework, to address identified HRA user needs and improve HRA modeling, unique aspects of human performance have been identified from an analysis of actual plant-specific events. Through the use of the refined framework, relationships between the following HRA, human factors and probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) elements were described: the PRA model, plant states, plant conditions, PRA basic events, unsafe human actions, error mechanisms, and performance shaping factors (PSFs). The event analyses performed in the context of the refined HRA framework, identified the need for new HRA methods that are capable of: evaluating a range of different error mechanisms (e.g., slips as well as mistakes); addressing errors of commission (EOCs) and dependencies between human actions; and incorporating the influence of plant conditions and multiple PSFs on human actions. This report discusses the results of the assessment of user needs, the refinement of the existing HRA framework, as well as, the current status on EOCs, and human dependencies

Implications of an HRA framework for quantifying human acts of commission and dependency: Development of a methodology for conducting an integrated HRA/PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barriere, M.T.; Luckas, W.J.; Brown, W.S.; Cooper, S.E.; Wreathall, J.; Bley, D.C.

1993-01-01

To support the development of a refined human reliability analysis (HRA) framework, to address identified HRA user needs and improve HRA modeling, unique aspects of human performance have been identified from an analysis of actual plant-specific events. Through the use of the refined framework, relationships between the following HRA, human factors and probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) elements were described: the PRA model, plant states, plant conditions, PRA basic events, unsafe human actions, error mechanisms, and performance shaping factors (PSFs). The event analyses performed in the context of the refined HRA framework, identified the need for new HRA methods that are capable of: evaluating a range of different error mechanisms (e.g., slips as well as mistakes); addressing errors of commission (EOCs) and dependencies between human actions; and incorporating the influence of plant conditions and multiple PSFs on human actions. This report discusses the results of the assessment of user needs, the refinement of the existing HRA framework, as well as, the current status on EOCs, and human dependencies

Fire fighting precautions at Bohunice Atomic Power Plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anon.

1984-01-01

Some shortcomings are discussed of the project design of fire protection at the V-1 and V-2 nuclear power plants. The basic shortcoming of the system is insufficient division of the units for fire protection. Fire fighting measures are described for cable areas, switch houses and outside transformers, primary and secondary circuits and auxiliary units. Measures are presented for increasing fire safety in Jaslovske Bohunice proceedi.ng from experience gained with a fire which had occurred at a nuclear power plant in Armenia. (E.S.)

Two decades of PRA: What next?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasmussen, N.C.

1992-01-01

Two decades ago, in the spring of 1972, the Reactor Safety Study was undertaken for the US Atomic Energy Commission (AEC). The goal of this study was to assess the risk to the public posed by the nuclear power plants operating in the US. Some three and one-half years later in October 1975, the study group issued its final report titled The Reactor Safety Study, also commonly known by its document number WASH 1400. Because it was issued at a time of heated public debate about nuclear safety, WASH 1400 received considerable critical review. By the late 1970s, as a result of the Lewis Report and the accident at Three Mile Island, the value of the WASH 1400 methodology was gradually recognized. A number of utilities undertook such studies of their own plants. The field of probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) developed from these efforts. Challenges remain. Among these are how to effectively communicate the results of the analysis. Just what does a probability of one in a million mean? Is there a de minimis probability - one so small that it can be ignored? How should society make decisions under substantial uncertainty? A number of these questions pose real challenges for the future

Coastal Change Processes Project data report for observations near Fire Island, New York, January to April 2012

Science.gov (United States)

Armstrong, Brandy N.; Warner, John C.; List, Jeffrey H.; Martini, Marinna A.; Montgomery, Ellyn T.; Voulgaris, George; Traykovski, Peter A.

2015-01-01

An oceanographic field study during January through April 2012 investigated processes that control the sediment-transport dynamics near Fire Island, New York. This report describes the project background, field program, instrumentation configuration, and locations of the sensors deploymed. The data collected and supporting meteorological observations are presented as time series plots for data visualization. Additionally, individual, links to the database containing digital data files are available as part of this report.

Modeling the eco-hydrologic response of a Mediterranean type ecosystem to the combined impacts of projected climate change and altered fire frequencies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tague, Christina; Seaby, Lauren Paige; Hope, Allen

2009-01-01

Global Climate Models (GCMs) project moderate warming along with increases in atmospheric CO2 for California Mediterranean type ecosystems (MTEs). In water-limited ecosystems, vegetation acts as an important control on streamflow and responds to soil moisture availability. Fires are also key...... disturbances in semiarid environments, and few studies have explored the potential interactions among changes in climate, vegetation dynamics, hydrology, elevated atmospheric CO2 concentrations and fire. We model ecosystem productivity, evapotranspiration, and summer streamflow under a range of temperature...... climate scenarios, biomass in chaparral-dominated systems is likely to increase, leading to reductions in summer streamflow. However, within the range of GCM predictions, there are some scenarios in which vegetation may decrease, leading to higher summer streamflows. Changes due to increases in fire...

Utilizing Multi-Sensor Fire Detections to Map Fires in the United States

Science.gov (United States)

Howard, S. M.; Picotte, J. J.; Coan, M. J.

2014-11-01

In 2006, the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity (MTBS) project began a cooperative effort between the US Forest Service (USFS) and the U.S.Geological Survey (USGS) to map and assess burn severity all large fires that have occurred in the United States since 1984. Using Landsat imagery, MTBS is mandated to map wildfire and prescribed fire that meet specific size criteria: greater than 1000 acres in the west and 500 acres in the east, regardless of ownership. Relying mostly on federal and state fire occurrence records, over 15,300 individual fires have been mapped. While mapping recorded fires, an additional 2,700 "unknown" or undocumented fires were discovered and assessed. It has become apparent that there are perhaps thousands of undocumented fires in the US that are yet to be mapped. Fire occurrence records alone are inadequate if MTBS is to provide a comprehensive accounting of fire across the US. Additionally, the sheer number of fires to assess has overwhelmed current manual procedures. To address these problems, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Applied Sciences Program is helping to fund the efforts of the USGS and its MTBS partners (USFS, National Park Service) to develop, and implement a system to automatically identify fires using satellite data. In near real time, USGS will combine active fire satellite detections from MODIS, AVHRR and GOES satellites with Landsat acquisitions. Newly acquired Landsat imagery will be routinely scanned to identify freshly burned area pixels, derive an initial perimeter and tag the burned area with the satellite date and time of detection. Landsat imagery from the early archive will be scanned to identify undocumented fires. Additional automated fire assessment processes will be developed. The USGS will develop these processes using open source software packages in order to provide freely available tools to local land managers providing them with the capability to assess fires at the local level.

The NASA/Baltimore Applications Project (BAP). Computer aided dispatch and communications system for the Baltimore Fire Department: A case study of urban technology application

Science.gov (United States)

Levine, A. L.

1981-01-01

An engineer and a computer expert from Goddard Space Flight Center were assigned to provide technical assistance in the design and installation of a computer assisted system for dispatching and communicating with fire department personnel and equipment in Baltimore City. Primary contributions were in decision making and management processes. The project is analyzed from four perspectives: (1) fire service; (2) technology transfer; (3) public administration; and (5) innovation. The city benefitted substantially from the approach and competence of the NASA personnel. Given the proper conditions, there are distinct advantages in having a nearby Federal laboratory provide assistance to a city on a continuing basis, as is done in the Baltimore Applications Project.

Climate change, fire management, and ecological services in the southwestern US

Science.gov (United States)

Hurteau, Matthew D.; Bradford, John B.; Fulé, Peter Z.; Taylor, Alan H.; Martin, Katherine L.

2014-01-01

The diverse forest types of the southwestern US are inseparable from fire. Across climate zones in California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico, fire suppression has left many forest types out of sync with their historic fire regimes. As a result, high fuel loads place them at risk of severe fire, particularly as fire activity increases due to climate change. A legacy of fire exclusion coupled with a warming climate has led to increasingly large and severe wildfires in many southwest forest types. Climate change projections include an extended fire season length due to earlier snowmelt and a general drying trend due to rising temperatures. This suggests the future will be warmer and drier regardless of changes in precipitation. Hotter, drier conditions are likely to increase forest flammability, at least initially. Changes in climate alone have the potential to alter the distribution of vegetation types within the region, and climate-driven shifts in vegetation distribution are likely to be accelerated when coupled with stand-replacing fire. Regardless of the rate of change, the interaction of climate and fire and their effects on Southwest ecosystems will alter the provisioning of ecosystem services, including carbon storage and biodiversity. Interactions between climate, fire, and vegetation growth provide a source of great uncertainty in projecting future fire activity in the region, as post-fire forest recovery is strongly influenced by climate and subsequent fire frequency. Severe fire can be mitigated with fuels management including prescribed fire, thinning, and wildfire management, but new strategies are needed to ensure the effectiveness of treatments across landscapes. We review the current understanding of the relationship between fire and climate in the Southwest, both historical and projected. We then discuss the potential implications of climate change for fire management and examine the potential effects of climate change and fire on ecosystem

46 CFR 28.820 - Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses... REQUIREMENTS FOR COMMERCIAL FISHING INDUSTRY VESSELS Aleutian Trade Act Vessels § 28.820 Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses. (a) Each vessel must be equipped with a self-priming, power driven fire...

Quality assurance project plan for the removal action at the former YS-860 Firing Ranges, Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant, Oak Ridge, Tennessee

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1998-03-01

This quality assurance project plan defines project organization and roles of responsibility, sampling and field procedures, sample documentation and chain-of-custody protocols, equipment calibration, analytical procedures, data reduction and validation, and internal quality control procedures for the former YS-860 Firing Ranges removal action at the Oak Ridge Y-12 Plant. The ENTECH Team will maintain the highest standards to ensure strict compliance with this plan. Implementation of this plan will include consideration of the technical, as well as administrative, aspects of activities affecting quality. Plan implementation is based on the premise that quality controls selected for each element of work are consistent with the risk, importance, and health and safety considerations of performing the work. The purpose of this removal action is to address lead-contaminated soil and reduce a potential risk to human health and the environment. This site is an operable unit within the Upper East Fork Poplar Creek watershed. The removal action will contribute to early source actions within the watershed. The project will accomplish this through the removal of lead-contaminated soil in the target areas of two small arms firing ranges. This plan covers the removal action at the former YS-86O Firing Ranges. These actions involve the excavation of lead-contaminated soils, the removal of the concrete trench and macadam (asphalt) paths, verification sampling, grading, and revegetation

Fire, carbon, and climate change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amiro, B.; Flannigan, M.

2005-01-01

One million hectares of forest are harvested in Canada annually, with 1 to 8 million hectares destroyed by fire and a further 10 to 25 million hectares consumed by insects. Enhanced disturbances have meant that Canadian forests are becoming carbon sources instead of carbon sinks. Canadian fire statistics from the year 1920 were provided along with a map of large fires between 1980 and 1999. A cycle of combustion losses, decomposition and regeneration of forests was presented, along with a stylized concept of forest carbon life cycles with fire. Direct emissions from forests fires were evaluated. An annual net ecosystem production in Canadian boreal forests and stand age was presented. Projections of areas burned were presented based on weather and fire danger relationships, with statistics suggesting that a 75 to 120 per cent increase is likely to occur by the end of this century. Trend observations show that areas burned are correlated with increasing temperature caused by anthropogenic effects. Prevention, detection, suppression and fuels management were presented as areas that needed improvement in fire management. However, management strategies may only postpone an increase in forest fires. Changes in disturbances such as fire and insects will be a significant early impact of climate change on forests. tabs., figs

Nighttime Fire/Smoke Detection System Based on a Support Vector Machine

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao-Ching Ho

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Currently, video surveillance-based early fire smoke detection is crucial to the prevention of large fires and the protection of life and goods. To overcome the nighttime limitations of video smoke detection methods, a laser light can be projected into the monitored field of view, and the returning projected light section image can be analyzed to detect fire and/or smoke. If smoke appears within the monitoring zone created from the diffusion or scattering of light in the projected path, the camera sensor receives a corresponding signal. The successive processing steps of the proposed real-time algorithm use the spectral, diffusing, and scattering characteristics of the smoke-filled regions in the image sequences to register the position of possible smoke in a video. Characterization of smoke is carried out by a nonlinear classification method using a support vector machine, and this is applied to identify the potential fire/smoke location. Experimental results in a variety of nighttime conditions demonstrate that the proposed fire/smoke detection method can successfully and reliably detect fires by identifying the location of smoke.

76 FR 24467 - Fire Mountain Lodge; Notice of Application Accepted for Filing, Soliciting Motions To Intervene...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-02

.... The existing Fire Mountain Lodge project consists of: (1) A 265- foot-long earth and concrete filled... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Project No. 1992-003] Fire Mountain.... Date filed: April 25, 2008. d. Applicant: Mr. Ken Willis. e. Name of Project: Fire Mountain Lodge. f...

Identification and screening of hazards for the external event PRA - External hazard identification, screening and studies for a new plant site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hellander, Juho

2014-01-01

Fennovoima is constructing a new nuclear power plant on a greenfield site in Northern Finland. Various evaluations for site-specific hazards are needed to ensure sufficient plant design basis values, proper design solutions and to provide input for the PRA model. This paper presents the general process used in identifying the relevant site-specific external hazards. The applicable legislative requirements, guides and standards regarding external hazards and external event PRA shall be identified. Based on these, an initial comprehensive list of events should be compiled. The initial list shall be filtered to exclude irrelevant events. Events can be screened out if the probability is very low or if the consequences are only mild. Events with similar consequences should be combined. Events can be grouped in several ways, and in this paper the risks are categorized into events related to air, water bodies, ground and human behaviour. In addition, the simultaneously occurring combinations of events should be identified. The paper also summarizes some hazard studies already performed and required in the future in Fennovoima's project. A comprehensive study is ongoing related to earthquake risks. The study aims at identifying all relevant seismic sources and taking into account various expert opinions in seismic modelling. Also frazil ice and anchor ice studies are being performed to eliminate the risk of cooling water intake blockage due to ice. In addition, some other study areas are mentioned. This paper presented a list of Finnish and international guides and standards useful in evaluating external hazards. Also a methodology was presented to identify and screen site-specific hazards in a new nuclear power plant project. The screened list of relevant events for the Hanhikivi site requiring further studies was presented. Also the studies needed in different phases of a new nuclear power plant project were discussed. Some specific studies regarding earthquakes and

Large Scale Experiments on Spacecraft Fire Safety

Science.gov (United States)

Urban, David; Ruff, Gary A.; Minster, Olivier; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; Tien, James S.; Torero, Jose L.; Legros, Guillaume; Eigenbrod, Christian; Smirnov, Nickolay; Fujita, Osamu;

Synergy between land use and climate change increases future fire risk in Amazon forests

Science.gov (United States)

Le Page, Yannick; Morton, Douglas; Hartin, Corinne; Bond-Lamberty, Ben; Cardoso Pereira, José Miguel; Hurtt, George; Asrar, Ghassem

2017-12-01

Tropical forests have been a permanent feature of the Amazon basin for at least 55 million years, yet climate change and land use threaten the forest's future over the next century. Understory forest fires, which are common under the current climate in frontier forests, may accelerate Amazon forest losses from climate-driven dieback and deforestation. Far from land use frontiers, scarce fire ignitions and high moisture levels preclude significant burning, yet projected climate and land use changes may increase fire activity in these remote regions. Here, we used a fire model specifically parameterized for Amazon understory fires to examine the interactions between anthropogenic activities and climate under current and projected conditions. In a scenario of low mitigation efforts with substantial land use expansion and climate change - Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 8.5 - projected understory fires increase in frequency and duration, burning 4-28 times more forest in 2080-2100 than during 1990-2010. In contrast, active climate mitigation and land use contraction in RCP4.5 constrain the projected increase in fire activity to 0.9-5.4 times contemporary burned area. Importantly, if climate mitigation is not successful, land use contraction alone is very effective under low to moderate climate change, but does little to reduce fire activity under the most severe climate projections. These results underscore the potential for a fire-driven transformation of Amazon forests if recent regional policies for forest conservation are not paired with global efforts to mitigate climate change.

PRATIQUE: a research project to enhance pest risk analysis techniques in the European Union

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baker, R.H.A.; Battisti, A.; Bremmer, J.; Kenis, M.; Mumford, J.; Petter, F.; Schrader, G.; Bacher, S.; DeBarro, P.; Hulme, P.E.; Karadjova, O.; Oude Lansink, A.; Pruvost, O.; Pysek, P.; Roques, A.; Baranchikov, Y.; Sun, J.H.

2009-01-01

PRATIQUE is an EC-funded 7th Framework research project designed to address the major challenges for pest risk analysis (PRA) in Europe. It has three principal objectives: (a) to assemble the datasets required to construct PRAs valid for the whole of the EU, (b) to conduct multi-disciplinary

46 CFR 28.315 - Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 46 Shipping 1 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses... After September 15, 1991, and That Operate With More Than 16 Individuals on Board § 28.315 Fire pumps, fire mains, fire hydrants, and fire hoses. (a) Each vessel 36 feet (11.8 meters) or more in length must...

Setting priorities for private land conservation in fire-prone landscapes: Are fire risk reduction and biodiversity conservation competing or compatible objectives?

Science.gov (United States)

Syphard, Alexandra D.; Butsic, Van; Bar-Massada, Avi; Keeley, Jon E.; Tracey, Jeff A.; Fisher, Robert N.

2016-01-01

Although wildfire plays an important role in maintaining biodiversity in many ecosystems, fire management to protect human assets is often carried out by different agencies than those tasked for conserving biodiversity. In fact, fire risk reduction and biodiversity conservation are often viewed as competing objectives. Here we explored the role of management through private land conservation and asked whether we could identify private land acquisition strategies that fulfill the mutual objectives of biodiversity conservation and fire risk reduction, or whether the maximization of one objective comes at a detriment to the other. Using a fixed budget and number of homes slated for development, we simulated 20 years of housing growth under alternative conservation selection strategies, and then projected the mean risk of fires destroying structures and the area and configuration of important habitat types in San Diego County, California, USA. We found clear differences in both fire risk projections and biodiversity impacts based on the way conservation lands are prioritized for selection, but these differences were split between two distinct groupings. If no conservation lands were purchased, or if purchases were prioritized based on cost or likelihood of development, both the projected fire risk and biodiversity impacts were much higher than if conservation lands were purchased in areas with high fire hazard or high species richness. Thus, conserving land focused on either of the two objectives resulted in nearly equivalent mutual benefits for both. These benefits not only resulted from preventing development in sensitive areas, but they were also due to the different housing patterns and arrangements that occurred as development was displaced from those areas. Although biodiversity conflicts may still arise using other fire management strategies, this study shows that mutual objectives can be attained through land-use planning in this region. These results likely

Applications of PRA in nuclear criticality safety

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McLaughlin, T.P.

1992-01-01

Traditionally, criticality accident prevention at Los Alamos has been based on a thorough review and understanding of proposed operations of changes to operations, involving both process supervision and criticality safety staff. The outcome of this communication was usually an agreement, based on professional judgement, that certain accident sequences were credible and had to be reduced in likelihood either by administrative controls or by equipment design and others were not credible, and thus did not warrant expenditures to further reduce their likelihood. The extent of analysis and documentation was generally in proportion to the complexity of the operation but did not include quantified risk assessments. During the last three years nuclear criticality safety related Probabilistic Risk Assessments (PRAs) have been preformed on operations in two Los Alamos facilities. Both of these were conducted in order to better understand the cost/benefit aspects of PRA's as they apply to largely ''hands-on'' operations with fissile material for which human errors or equipment failures significant to criticality safety are both rare and unique. Based on these two applications and an appreciation of the historical criticality accident record (frequency and consequences) it is apparent that quantified risk assessments should be performed very selectively

New technologies for fire suppression on board naval craft, FiST

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rahm, M.; Hiltz, J.; Wal, R. van der; Hertzberg, T.; Lindström, J.

2014-01-01

For three years Canada, Sweden and the Netherlands have been investigating new technologies for fire suppression on board naval crafts within the FiST project. The project has focused on a number of technologies. These included the evaluation of water based fire suppression systems and in particular

Temperature of Steel Columns under Natural Fire

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F. Wald

2004-01-01

Full Text Available Current fire design models for time-temperature development within structural elements as well as for structural behaviour are based on isolated member tests subjected to standard fire regimes, which serve as a reference heating, but do not model natural fire. Only tests on a real structure under a natural fire can evaluate future models of the temperature developments in a fire compartment, of the transfer of heat into the structure and of the overall structural behaviour under fire.To study overall structural behaviour, a research project was conducted on an eight storey steel frame building at the  Cardington Building Research Establishment laboratory on January 16, 2003. A fire compartment 11×7 m was prepared on the fourth floor. A fire load of 40 kg/m2 was applied with 100 % permanent mechanical load and 65 % of imposed load. The paper summarises the experimental programme and shows the temperature development of the gas in the fire compartment and of the fire protected columns bearing the unprotected floors.

Forecasting distribution of numbers of large fires

Science.gov (United States)

Eidenshink, Jeffery C.; Preisler, Haiganoush K.; Howard, Stephen; Burgan, Robert E.

2014-01-01

Systems to estimate forest fire potential commonly utilize one or more indexes that relate to expected fire behavior; however they indicate neither the chance that a large fire will occur, nor the expected number of large fires. That is, they do not quantify the probabilistic nature of fire danger. In this work we use large fire occurrence information from the Monitoring Trends in Burn Severity project, and satellite and surface observations of fuel conditions in the form of the Fire Potential Index, to estimate two aspects of fire danger: 1) the probability that a 1 acre ignition will result in a 100+ acre fire, and 2) the probabilities of having at least 1, 2, 3, or 4 large fires within a Predictive Services Area in the forthcoming week. These statistical processes are the main thrust of the paper and are used to produce two daily national forecasts that are available from the U.S. Geological Survey, Earth Resources Observation and Science Center and via the Wildland Fire Assessment System. A validation study of our forecasts for the 2013 fire season demonstrated good agreement between observed and forecasted values.

Metal fires and their implications for advanced reactors.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nowlen, Steven Patrick; Figueroa, Victor G.; Olivier, Tara Jean; Hewson, John C.; Blanchat, Thomas K.

2010-10-01

This report details the primary results of the Laboratory Directed Research and Development project (LDRD 08-0857) Metal Fires and Their Implications for Advance Reactors. Advanced reactors may employ liquid metal coolants, typically sodium, because of their many desirable qualities. This project addressed some of the significant challenges associated with the use of liquid metal coolants, primary among these being the extremely rapid oxidation (combustion) that occurs at the high operating temperatures in reactors. The project has identified a number of areas for which gaps existed in knowledge pertinent to reactor safety analyses. Experimental and analysis capabilities were developed in these areas to varying degrees. In conjunction with team participation in a DOE gap analysis panel, focus was on the oxidation of spilled sodium on thermally massive surfaces. These are spills onto surfaces that substantially cool the sodium during the oxidation process, and they are relevant because standard risk mitigation procedures seek to move spill environments into this regime through rapid draining of spilled sodium. While the spilled sodium is not quenched, the burning mode is different in that there is a transition to a smoldering mode that has not been comprehensively described previously. Prior work has described spilled sodium as a pool fire, but there is a crucial, experimentally-observed transition to a smoldering mode of oxidation. A series of experimental measurements have comprehensively described the thermal evolution of this type of sodium fire for the first time. A new physics-based model has been developed that also predicts the thermal evolution of this type of sodium fire for the first time. The model introduces smoldering oxidation through porous oxide layers to go beyond traditional pool fire analyses that have been carried out previously in order to predict experimentally observed trends. Combined, these developments add significantly to the safety

Treatment of complementary events in event trees in constructing linked fault trees for level 1 and level 2 PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jo, Y. G.

2008-01-01

Complementary events in the event trees for a PRA model should be treated properly in order to evaluate plant risk correctly. In this study, the characteristics of the following three different cut-set generation methods were investigated first in order to find the best practical way for treating complementary events: 1) exact method which treats complementary events logically, 2) no-delete term method which does not treat complementary events at all, and 3) delete term method which treats complementary events by deleting nonsense cut-sets which are generated as a result of ignoring complementary events. Then, practical methods for treating complementary events in constructing linked fault trees for level 1 and level 2 PRA in EPRI R and R workstation software environment, where CAFTA is the fault tree editor and FORTE is the cut-set engine, were suggested and demonstrated. The suggested methods deal with the following selected four typical cases: Case 1: an event tree event (E) is represented by a fault tree gate whose inputs consist of only fault tree gates, Case 2: E is represented by a single basic event, Case 3: E is represented by an OR fault tree gate which has a single basic event and a fault tree gate as inputs, and Case 4: E is represented by an AND fault tree gate which has a single basic event and a fault tree gate as inputs. In the suggested methods, first the high level logic structures of event tree events are examined and restructured, if needed. Then, the delete term method, the exact method, and the combination of the two methods are applied to Case 1, Case 2, and Cases 3 and 4, respectively. Also, it is recommended to treat complementary events, using the suggested methods, before level 1 and level 2 PRA fault trees are coupled. It should be noted that the selected four typical cases may not cover all different cases encountered in level 1 and level 2 PRA modeling. However, a process similar to the one suggested in this study may be used to find

Air quality impacts of projections of natural gas-fired distributed generation

Science.gov (United States)

Horne, Jeremy R.; Carreras-Sospedra, Marc; Dabdub, Donald; Lemar, Paul; Nopmongcol, Uarporn; Shah, Tejas; Yarwood, Greg; Young, David; Shaw, Stephanie L.; Knipping, Eladio M.

2017-11-01

This study assesses the potential impacts on emissions and air quality from the increased adoption of natural gas-fired distributed generation of electricity (DG), including displacement of power from central power generation, in the contiguous United States. The study includes four major tasks: (1) modeling of distributed generation market penetration; (2) modeling of central power generation systems; (3) modeling of spatially and temporally resolved emissions; and (4) photochemical grid modeling to evaluate the potential air quality impacts of increased DG penetration, which includes both power-only DG and combined heat and power (CHP) units, for 2030. Low and high DG penetration scenarios estimate the largest penetration of future DG units in three regions - New England, New York, and California. Projections of DG penetration in the contiguous United States estimate 6.3 GW and 24 GW of market adoption in 2030 for the low DG penetration and high DG penetration scenarios, respectively. High DG penetration (all of which is natural gas-fired) serves to offset 8 GW of new natural gas combined cycle (NGCC) units, and 19 GW of solar photovoltaic (PV) installations by 2030. In all scenarios, air quality in the central United States and the northwest remains unaffected as there is little to no DG penetration in those states. California and several states in the northeast are the most impacted by emissions from DG units. Peak increases in maximum daily 8-h average ozone concentrations exceed 5 ppb, which may impede attainment of ambient air quality standards. Overall, air quality impacts from DG vary greatly based on meteorological conditions, proximity to emissions sources, the number and type of DG installations, and the emissions factors used for DG units.

OCULUS fire: a command and control system for fire management with crowd sourcing and social media interconnectivity

Science.gov (United States)

Thomopoulos, Stelios C. A.; Kyriazanos, Dimitris M.; Astyakopoulos, Alkiviadis; Dimitros, Kostantinos; Margonis, Christos; Thanos, Giorgos Konstantinos; Skroumpelou, Katerina

2016-05-01

AF3 (Advanced Forest Fire Fighting2) is a European FP7 research project that intends to improve the efficiency of current fire-fighting operations and the protection of human lives, the environment and property by developing innovative technologies to ensure the integration between existing and new systems. To reach this objective, the AF3 project focuses on innovative active and passive countermeasures, early detection and monitoring, integrated crisis management and advanced public information channels. OCULUS Fire is the innovative control and command system developed within AF3 as a monitoring, GIS and Knowledge Extraction System and Visualization Tool. OCULUS Fire includes (a) an interface for real-time updating and reconstructing of maps to enable rerouting based on estimated hazards and risks, (b) processing of GIS dynamic re-construction and mission re-routing, based on the fusion of airborne, satellite, ground and ancillary geolocation data, (c) visualization components for the C2 monitoring system, displaying and managing information arriving from a variety of sources and (d) mission and situational awareness module for OCULUS Fire ground monitoring system being part of an Integrated Crisis Management Information System for ground and ancillary sensors. OCULUS Fire will also process and visualise information from public information channels, social media and also mobile applications by helpful citizens and volunteers. Social networking, community building and crowdsourcing features will enable a higher reliability and less false alarm rates when using such data in the context of safety and security applications.

Synergy between land use and climate change increases future fire risk in Amazon forests

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Y. Le Page

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Tropical forests have been a permanent feature of the Amazon basin for at least 55 million years, yet climate change and land use threaten the forest's future over the next century. Understory forest fires, which are common under the current climate in frontier forests, may accelerate Amazon forest losses from climate-driven dieback and deforestation. Far from land use frontiers, scarce fire ignitions and high moisture levels preclude significant burning, yet projected climate and land use changes may increase fire activity in these remote regions. Here, we used a fire model specifically parameterized for Amazon understory fires to examine the interactions between anthropogenic activities and climate under current and projected conditions. In a scenario of low mitigation efforts with substantial land use expansion and climate change – Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP 8.5 – projected understory fires increase in frequency and duration, burning 4–28 times more forest in 2080–2100 than during 1990–2010. In contrast, active climate mitigation and land use contraction in RCP4.5 constrain the projected increase in fire activity to 0.9–5.4 times contemporary burned area. Importantly, if climate mitigation is not successful, land use contraction alone is very effective under low to moderate climate change, but does little to reduce fire activity under the most severe climate projections. These results underscore the potential for a fire-driven transformation of Amazon forests if recent regional policies for forest conservation are not paired with global efforts to mitigate climate change.

PRA-1 offshore platform start-up within seven days; Operacionalizacao da plataforma offshore PRA-1 em sete dias

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barbosa, Fernando; Mitidieri, Jorge; Faria, Jose Luis Coutinho de; Ribeiro, Juan Carlos; Moura, Mario Arthur [Construtora Norberto Oderbrecht S.A., Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil)

2008-07-01

The technologic innovations are very hard features with regards to Offshore Engineering and Construction over the worldwide. The innovations only make sense since they are focus on the high productivity, safe job and cost reduction compared with the current technologies. Inside the scenario mentioned above is Construtora Norberto Odebrecht S.A. concept for the PRA-1 platform Engineering and Construction. Through a very advanced and innovation concept, it was defined as the Main Strategic Planning of the undertaking not use a temporary platform support (named in Brazil as 'Flotel') during the 'Hook-up', commissioning and star-up offshore phase. The success of the strategic made possible through the implementation of new engineering tools, and, besides this, through a very careful offshore planning focused on minimizing and make easier as much as possible the offshore activities. The planning can be basically spitted on the following parts: A- Onshore preparations (Assembly, Integration and Commissioning of the Utilities and Accommodation Modules) B- Offshore detailed planning of the critical activities concerning the start-up of the systems responsible for leaving the platform ready for 'live'. This operation was defined as 'seven days of platform live support' (main target of this paper). (author)

Advanced methods for a probabilistic safety analysis of fires. Development of advanced methods for performing as far as possible realistic plant specific fire risk analysis (fire PSA)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hofer, E.; Roewekamp, M.; Tuerschmann, M.

2003-07-01

In the frame of the research project RS 1112 'Development of Methods for a Recent Probabilistic Safety Analysis, Particularly Level 2' funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi), advanced methods, in particular for performing as far as possible realistic plant specific fire risk analyses (fire PSA), should be developed. The present Technical Report gives an overview on the methodologies developed in this context for assessing the fire hazard. In the context of developing advanced methodologies for fire PSA, a probabilistic dynamics analysis with a fire simulation code including an uncertainty and sensitivity study has been performed for an exemplary scenario of a cable fire induced by an electric cabinet inside the containment of a modern Konvoi type German nuclear power plant taking into consideration the effects of fire detection and fire extinguishing means. With the present study, it was possible for the first time to determine the probabilities of specified fire effects from a class of fire events by means of probabilistic dynamics supplemented by uncertainty and sensitivity analyses. The analysis applies a deterministic dynamics model, consisting of a dynamic fire simulation code and a model of countermeasures, considering effects of the stochastics (so-called aleatory uncertainties) as well as uncertainties in the state of knowledge (so-called epistemic uncertainties). By this means, probability assessments including uncertainties are provided to be used within the PSA. (orig.) [de

FDS5 Simulation for OECD PRISME Fire Test of DOOR PRSD5

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Kyu Bok; Park, Jong Seuk

2009-01-01

OECD/NEA PRISME Fire Project is an international co-operation project to investigate fire propagation by means of experiments and analyses for nuclear power plant applications. This project focuses on the generation of experimental data for fire and smoke propagation from the fire room to adjacent rooms under various conditions and room configurations. In addition, analyses using computer codes are performed to understand the phenomena of interest and to produce a consistent interpretation of the experimental results. The PRISME Project is composed of series of tests named as SOURCE, DOOR, LEAK and Global Tests. The SOURCE is composed of tests to characterize the fire source, and the DOOR is to study fire and smoke propagation through an open door, while the LEAK is to investigate hot gas leakages through other modes of openings such as holes, a slot, a duct, and a partially opened door. The Global test will be conducted as integral tests on the basis of the results of the previous separate effects tests. In this paper, simulations are performed with FDS5 computer code for the DOOR Test No.5 (PRS D 5) and the calculation results are compared with the corresponding experimental data to study the code capability to predict the phenomena of the hot gas propagation between two rooms

Giving Student Groups a Stronger Voice: Using Participatory Research and Action (PRA) to Initiate Change to a Curriculum

Science.gov (United States)

O'Neill, Geraldine; McMahon, Sinead

2012-01-01

Traditional student feedback mechanisms have been criticised for being teacher-centred in design and, in particular, for their absence of transparent follow-up actions. In contrast, this study describes the process and the evaluation of a participatory research and action (PRA) approach used in an undergraduate physiotherapy degree. This approach…

Wireless Sensor Network for Forest Fire Detection 2

OpenAIRE

João Gilberto Fernandes Gonçalves Teixeira

2017-01-01

The main purpose for this project is the development of a semi-autonomous wireless sensor network for fire detection in remote territory. Making use of the IEEE 802.15.4 standard, a wireless standard for low-power, low-rate wireless sensor networks, a real sensor network and web application will be developed and deployed with the ability to monitor sensor data, detect a fire occurrence and generate early fire alerts.

Toxic combustion products from pesticide fires. Executive summary

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Molag, M.; Bartelds, H.; Weger, D. de

1992-01-01

In order to obtain reliable data on the generation of toxic combustion products and to get more insight into the risks of fires in pesticide warehouses TNO performed the research project 'Toxic combustion products from pesticide fires'. The following research activities have been performed during

Szendro - type Integrated Vegetation Fire Management--Wildfire Management Program from Hungary

Science.gov (United States)

Ágoston Restás

2006-01-01

Szendrő Fire Department is located in the northeastern part of Hungary. The main task is to fight against wildfire and mitigate the impact of fire at the Aggtelek National Park -- which belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage list. Because of greater effectiveness, in 2004 the Fire Department started a project named Integrated Vegetation Fire Management (IVFM)....

Research field of fire technology in Finland

Science.gov (United States)

Loikkanen, P.; Holm, C.

1987-02-01

The goal of the study is to give an overview of the whole diversified research field of fire technology and its problems. For this reason the research subjects have been grouped so that the responsibilities of different authorities, the legislation and specifications, various fields of technology, areas of industry, and groups of products could all be found as clearly as possible. The field has been divided into nine sub-areas. They are: general grounds, fire physics and chemistry, structural fire prevention, textiles and furnishings, devices for heating and other use, detection, fire fighting and rescue, quality control, and special problems. The sub-areas have been divided into 34 main subjects and these, excluding those of special problems, further into as many as 117 subject groups. Characteristics and problems of the sub-areas and the main subjects have been described. The subject groups have been characterized by key words and concepts which outline the projects. No concrete research projects and programs have, however, been directly suggested because their extent and contents depend essentially on financing and other available resources.

Coastal Change Processes Project data report for oceanographic observations near Fire Island, New York, February through May 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Armstrong, Brandy N.; Warner, John C.; List, Jeffrey H.; Martini, Marinna A.; Montgomery, Ellyn T.; Traykovski, Peter A.; Voulgaris, George

2015-01-01

An oceanographic field study during February through May 2014 investigated processes that control the sediment-transport dynamics along the western part of Fire Island, New York. This report describes the project background, field program, instrumentation configuration, and locations of the sensors deployed. The data collected, including meteorological observations, are presented as time-series plots for data visualization. Additionally, individual links to the database containing digital data files are available as part of this report.

Top event prevention analysis: A deterministic use of PRA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Worrell, R.B.; Blanchard, D.P.

1996-01-01

This paper describes the application of Top Event Prevention Analysis. The analysis finds prevention sets which are combinations of basic events that can prevent the occurrence of a fault tree top event such as core damage. The problem analyzed in this application is that of choosing a subset of Motor-Operated Valves (MOVs) for testing under the Generic Letter 89-10 program such that the desired level of safety is achieved while providing economic relief from the burden of testing all safety-related valves. A brief summary of the method is given, and the process used to produce a core damage expression from Level 1 PRA models for a PWR is described. The analysis provides an alternative to the use of importance measures for finding the important combination of events in a core damage expression. This application of Top Event Prevention Analysis to the MOV problem was achieve with currently available software

Espaços livres em praças inglesas do século XVII: o caso de Convent Garden

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria Fernanda Derntl

2006-12-01

Full Text Available Covent Garden é considerada uma experiência modelar entre as primeiras transformações no espaço urbano ainda de aparência medieval de Londres no século XVII. A partir da iconografia da época e das indicações da bibliografia pertinente, procura-se apresentar uma análise abrangente da configuração formal dessa praça. Destaca-se a existência de diferentes tipos de espaços livres contribuindo para determinar seu desenho: além do espaço central, também fizeram parte da praça o pátio da igreja de St. Paul, a oeste e os jardins da mansão Bedford, ao sul. Conclui-se que o desenho apresentado por Covent Garden não era completamente regular ou simétrico e teria sido bem diferente das squares londrinas dos séculos XVII e XVIII.

The French fire protection concept. Vulnerability analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaercher, M.

1998-01-01

The French fire protection concept is based on a principle of three levels of defence in depth: fire prevention, fire containing and fire controlling. Fire prevention is based on arrangements which prevent the fire from starting or which make difficult for the fire to start. Fire containing is based on design measures so that the fire will have no impact on the safety of the installation. For fire controlling, equipment nad personnel are on duty in order to detect, to fight and to gain control over the fire as early as possible. The French fire protection concept gives priority to fire containing based on passive structural measures. All buildings containing safety equipment are divided into fire compartments (or fire areas) and fire cells (or fire zones). Basically, a compartment houses safety equipment belonging to one division (or train) so that the other division is always available to reach the plant safe shut down or to mitigate an accident. Because there is a large number of fire compartments and fire cells, deviations from the general principle can be observed. To this reason the RCC-I (Design and Construction Rules applicable for fire protection) requires to implement an assessment of the principle of division. This assessment is called vulnerability analysis. The vulnerability analysis is usually performed at the end of the project, before erection. It is also possible to perform a vulnerability analysis in an operating nuclear power plant in the scope of a fire safety upgrading programme. In the vulnerability analysis, the functional failure of all the equipment (except for those protected by a qualified fire barrier, designed or able to withstand the fire consequences) within the fire compartment or cell, where the fire breaks out, is postulated. The potential consequences for the plant safety are analysed

Development of a methodology for conducting an integrated HRA/PRA --. Task 1, An assessment of human reliability influences during LP&S conditions PWRs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Luckas, W.J.; Barriere, M.T.; Brown, W.S. [Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States); Wreathall, J. [Wreathall (John) and Co., Dublin, OH (United States); Cooper, S.E. [Science Applications International Corp., McLean, VA (United States)

1993-06-01

During Low Power and Shutdown (LP&S) conditions in a nuclear power plant (i.e., when the reactor is subcritical or at less than 10--15% power), human interactions with the plant`s systems will be more frequent and more direct. Control is typically not mediated by automation, and there are fewer protective systems available. Therefore, an assessment of LP&S related risk should include a greater emphasis on human reliability than such an assessment made for power operation conditions. In order to properly account for the increase in human interaction and thus be able to perform a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) applicable to operations during LP&S, it is important that a comprehensive human reliability assessment (HRA) methodology be developed and integrated into the LP&S PRA. The tasks comprising the comprehensive HRA methodology development are as follows: (1) identification of the human reliability related influences and associated human actions during LP&S, (2) identification of potentially important LP&S related human actions and appropriate HRA framework and quantification methods, and (3) incorporation and coordination of methodology development with other integrated PRA/HRA efforts. This paper describes the first task, i.e., the assessment of human reliability influences and any associated human actions during LP&S conditions for a pressurized water reactor (PWR).

Fire hazard analysis for the K basin fuel transfer system anneses project A-15

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

BARILO, N.F.

2001-01-01

The purpose of the Fuel Transfer System (FTS) is to move the spent nuclear fuel currently stored in the K East (KE) Basin and transfer it by shielded cask to the K West (KW) Basin. The fuel will then be processed through the existing fuel cleaning and loading system prior to being loaded into Multi-Canister Overpacks (MCO). The FTS operation is considered an intra-facility transfer because the spent fuel will stay within the 100 K area and between the K Basins. This preliminary Fire Hazards Analysis (FHA) for the K Basin FTS Annexes addresses fire hazards or fire-related concerns in accordance with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 420.1 (DOE 2000), and RLID 420.1 (DOE 1999), resulting from or related to the processes and equipment. It is intended to assess the risk from fire associated within the FTS Annexes to ensure that there are no undue fire hazards to site personnel and the public; the potential for the occurrence of a fire is minimized; process control and safety systems are not damaged by fire or related perils; and property damage from fire and related perils does not exceed an acceptable level. Consistent with the preliminary nature of the design information, this FHA is performed on a graded approach

Elastin and Mechanics of Pig Pericardial Resistance Arteries (pPRA)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bloksgaard, Maria; Leurgans, Thomas; Rosenstand, Kristoffer

Resistance arteries are remodeled in hypertension and diabetes. Elastin was reported to play a role herein. The parietal pericardium is opened during cardio-thoracic surgeries and might be a valuable biopsy for research in cardio-vascular diseases. We tested the hypothesis that resistance arteries...... can be isolated from the pericardium to study the micro-architecture of elastin and vascular wall mechanics. The pericardium of pigs served to test the hypothesis. pPRAs were microdissected. Their structure was examined using multiphoton excitation fluorescence microscopy. Diameter......-tension and pressure-diameter-length relationships were recorded in myographs. Findings are compared to rodent mesenteric resistance arteries and –basilar arteries (rMRA, rBA) with comparable lumen diameter (±300µm at 100mmHg). pPRA have no clear external elastic lamina (present in rMRA, but not rBA), scant elastin...

Fire protection in Angra-2 nuclear power plant. The use of fire protection collars on plastic piping systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oliveira Segabinaze, R. de

1994-01-01

The object of this paper is to briefly the use of fire protection collars on plastic piping systems passing through wall and floor penetration. The fire protection collars consist of a stainless steel housing, in which the leading edges of two pivoting plates are in constant pressure contact with the pipe. In case of fire these plates react on the softened pipe with a guillotine action, thereby stopping the flow; within the housing a foam material expands to fill the space when subject to the heat of the fire. The piping project has to be modified to permit the fixing of the collars to walls and floor penetrations. (author). 2 refs, 9 figs

Regulatory point of view on defense in depth approach to fire protection in nuclear power plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rinta-Filppula, Samu; Lehto, Matti; Vaelikangas, Pekka [Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority STUK, Helsinki (Finland)

2015-12-15

The defense-in-depth (DiD) principle is a relatively new approach to fire protection design, even though DiD has been used in nuclear power plant (NPP) safety evaluation and design for decades (IAEA 75-INSAG-3, Rev. 1/INSAG-12). It is the main design criterion in fire protection in the latest edition of Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK) issued guide YVL B.8 for the fire protection in nuclear facilities. The DiD approach to fire protection consists of four levels of defense: preventing the ignition of fires, detecting and extinguishing of ignited fires, preventing fire growth and spreading, confining the fire so that safety functions can be performed irrespective of the effects of the fire. The design of fire protection should take all these levels into account so that fire protection is well balanced and not dependent on a single fire protection factor or level of DiD. Despite being central to the design of fire protection, corresponding evaluations of DiD are done according to more or less unambiguous methods. The main goal of this study is to start the development of such, as much as possible, unambiguous systematic and logical method. First issue then is to build a picture of how fire safety features are executed on different levels of DiD and what is the corresponding safety importance to NPP. The Loviisa NPP was studied as an example case due to a long history of fire safety improvements since commissioning in 1977. The improvements are sorted qualitatively by their means of fire safety impact and level of DiD approach to fire protection and general plant DiD. The correspondence between the two DiD principles is an interesting issue which is discussed in this paper. Finally, Fire PRA is used to determine the safety importance of the improvements. The method proposed for the evaluation of DiD approach to fire protection is a combined ignition root cause analysis - event tree of fire scenario - consequential failure modes and effects analysis

Setting priorities for private land conservation in fire-prone landscapes: Are fire risk reduction and biodiversity conservation competing or compatible objectives?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra D. Syphard

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Although wildfire plays an important role in maintaining biodiversity in many ecosystems, fire management to protect human assets is often carried out by different agencies than those tasked for conserving biodiversity. In fact, fire risk reduction and biodiversity conservation are often viewed as competing objectives. Here we explored the role of management through private land conservation and asked whether we could identify private land acquisition strategies that fulfill the mutual objectives of biodiversity conservation and fire risk reduction, or whether the maximization of one objective comes at a detriment to the other. Using a fixed budget and number of homes slated for development, we simulated 20 years of housing growth under alternative conservation selection strategies, and then projected the mean risk of fires destroying structures and the area and configuration of important habitat types in San Diego County, California, USA. We found clear differences in both fire risk projections and biodiversity impacts based on the way conservation lands are prioritized for selection, but these differences were split between two distinct groupings. If no conservation lands were purchased, or if purchases were prioritized based on cost or likelihood of development, both the projected fire risk and biodiversity impacts were much higher than if conservation lands were purchased in areas with high fire hazard or high species richness. Thus, conserving land focused on either of the two objectives resulted in nearly equivalent mutual benefits for both. These benefits not only resulted from preventing development in sensitive areas, but they were also due to the different housing patterns and arrangements that occurred as development was displaced from those areas. Although biodiversity conflicts may still arise using other fire management strategies, this study shows that mutual objectives can be attained through land-use planning in this region

Climate data system supports FIRE

Science.gov (United States)

Olsen, Lola M.; Iascone, Dominick; Reph, Mary G.

1990-01-01

The NASA Climate Data System (NCDS) at Goddard Space Flight Center is serving as the FIRE Central Archive, providing a centralized data holding and data cataloging service for the FIRE project. NCDS members are carrying out their responsibilities by holding all reduced observations and data analysis products submitted by individual principal investigators in the agreed upon format, by holding all satellite data sets required for FIRE, by providing copies of any of these data sets to FIRE investigators, and by producing and updating a catalog with information about the FIRE holdings. FIRE researchers were requested to provide their reduced data sets in the Standard Data Format (SDF) to the FIRE Central Archive. This standard format is proving to be of value. An improved SDF document is now available. The document provides an example from an actual FIRE SDF data set and clearly states the guidelines for formatting data in SDF. NCDS has received SDF tapes from a number of investigators. These tapes were analyzed and comments provided to the producers. One product which is now available is William J. Syrett's sodar data product from the Stratocumulus Intensive Field Observation. Sample plots from all SDF tapes submitted to the archive will be available to FSET members. Related cloud products are also available through NCDS. Entries describing the FIRE data sets are being provided for the NCDS on-line catalog. Detailed information for the Extended Time Observations is available in the general FIRE catalog entry. Separate catalog entries are being written for the Cirrus Intensive Field Observation (IFO) and for the Marine Stratocumulus IFO. Short descriptions of each FIRE data set will be installed into the NCDS Summary Catalog.

Performance assessment of fire-sat monitoring system based on satellite time series for fire danger estimation : the experience of the pre-operative application in the Basilicata Region (Italy)

Science.gov (United States)

Lanorte, Antonio; Desantis, Fortunato; Aromando, Angelo; Lasaponara, Rosa

2013-04-01

This paper presents the results we obtained in the context of the FIRE-SAT project during the 2012 operative application of the satellite based tools for fire monitoring. FIRE_SAT project has been funded by the Civil Protection of the Basilicata Region in order to set up a low cost methodology for fire danger monitoring and fire effect estimation based on satellite Earth Observation techniques. To this aim, NASA Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), ASTER, Landsat TM data were used. Novel data processing techniques have been developed by researchers of the ARGON Laboratory of the CNR-IMAA for the operative monitoring of fire. In this paper we only focus on the danger estimation model which has been fruitfully used since 2008 to 2012 as an reliable operative tool to support and optimize fire fighting strategies from the alert to the management of resources including fire attacks. The daily updating of fire danger is carried out using satellite MODIS images selected for their spectral capability and availability free of charge from NASA web site. This makes these data sets very suitable for an effective systematic (daily) and sustainable low-cost monitoring of large areas. The preoperative use of the integrated model, pointed out that the system properly monitor spatial and temporal variations of fire susceptibility and provide useful information of both fire severity and post fire regeneration capability.

Development of Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Experiments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David L.; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos

2013-01-01

exploration missions outside of low-earth orbit and accordingly, more complex in terms of operations, logistics, and safety. This will increase the challenge of ensuring a fire-safe environment for the crew throughout the mission. Based on our fundamental uncertainty of the behavior of fires in low...... of the spacecraft fire safety risk. The activity of this project is supported by an international topical team of fire experts from other space agencies who conduct research that is integrated into the overall experiment design. The large-scale space flight experiment will be conducted in an Orbital Sciences...

Pipeline oil fire detection with MODIS active fire products

Science.gov (United States)

Ogungbuyi, M. G.; Martinez, P.; Eckardt, F. D.

2017-12-01

We investigate 85 129 MODIS satellite active fire events from 2007 to 2015 in the Niger Delta of Nigeria. The region is the oil base for Nigerian economy and the hub of oil exploration where oil facilities (i.e. flowlines, flow stations, trunklines, oil wells and oil fields) are domiciled, and from where crude oil and refined products are transported to different Nigerian locations through a network of pipeline systems. Pipeline and other oil facilities are consistently susceptible to oil leaks due to operational or maintenance error, and by acts of deliberate sabotage of the pipeline equipment which often result in explosions and fire outbreaks. We used ground oil spill reports obtained from the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) database (see www.oilspillmonitor.ng) to validate MODIS satellite data. NOSDRA database shows an estimate of 10 000 spill events from 2007 - 2015. The spill events were filtered to include largest spills by volume and events occurring only in the Niger Delta (i.e. 386 spills). By projecting both MODIS fire and spill as `input vector' layers with `Points' geometry, and the Nigerian pipeline networks as `from vector' layers with `LineString' geometry in a geographical information system, we extracted the nearest MODIS events (i.e. 2192) closed to the pipelines by 1000m distance in spatial vector analysis. The extraction process that defined the nearest distance to the pipelines is based on the global practices of the Right of Way (ROW) in pipeline management that earmarked 30m strip of land to the pipeline. The KML files of the extracted fires in a Google map validated their source origin to be from oil facilities. Land cover mapping confirmed fire anomalies. The aim of the study is to propose a near-real-time monitoring of spill events along pipeline routes using 250 m spatial resolution of MODIS active fire detection sensor when such spills are accompanied by fire events in the study location.

A new North American fire scar network for reconstructing historical pyrogeography, 1600-1900 AD

Science.gov (United States)

Donald A. Falk; Thomas Swetnam; Thomas Kitzberger; Elaine Sutherland; Peter Brown; Erica Bigio; Matthew Hall

2013-01-01

The Fire and Climate Synthesis (FACS) project is a collaboration of about 50 fire ecologists to compile and synthesize fire and climate data for western North America. We have compiled nearly 900 multi-century fire-scar based fire histories from the western United States, Canada, and Mexico. The resulting tree-ring based fire history is the largest and most spatially...

Fire behaviour of cooling tower packing; Brandverhalten von Kuehlturmeinbauten

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mattausch, Tim [DMT GmbH und Co. KG, Dortmund (Germany). Fachstelle fuer Brandschutz

2013-10-01

The rapid burning down of the cooling tower of the shutdown power plant in Schwandorf revealed the potential of a total loss of a cooling tower in case of fire. VGB ordered a research project in order to obtain more knowledge about the fire risk of cooling tower packing currently applied. Depending on kind and age of the plastics used, the results of these tests manifest a big variation of the fire behaviour. For the applications of plastics, it is essential to determine and to adhere to organisational fire protection measures. (orig.)

Gas to Power in China. Gas-fired Power in China. Clearing the policy bottleneck

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Xavier

2005-12-01

Policy for gas-fired power is the single most serious and common issue that needs urgent resolution for all China's current and future gas projects, including LNG projects. This was the main conclusion of a national seminar on gas industry development policy that was held in July 2004. At the time of writing this paper, such a policy is still missing. In order to reduce pollution, improve energy security and meet the needs of the ever-growing economy for high-quality energies, the Chinese government has declared its firm intention to develop a natural gas market. The official target is to develop a gas market of 200 bcm/a by 2020, five times of the current size of around 40 bcm/a. Domestic supply is expected to provide 120 bcm/a, with the rest (80 bcm/a) by gas imports either in the form of piped gas or LNG. Gas-fired power generation plays a critical role in developing a sizeable gas market, especially for large-scale pipeline and LNG projects. Similar to the Guangdong and Fujian LNG projects where gas-fired power accounts for approximately 60% and 70% respectively of the first phase gas volume, each of the proposed LNG projects has allocated a large portion of the gas off-take volume to the power sector. In addition to the first two commercial CCGT plants that were commissioned in 2005, there are over 20 projects totalling 18 GW of capacity under construction. By 2020, China's planners foresee a total gas-fired power capacity of 60 GW, accounting for around 6% of the total installed capacity in the country. Despite these impressive projections, gas-fired power faces significant uncertainties in China: (1) there is an ongoing debate on whether China should develop gas-fired power, given the relative scarcity and higher cost of gas; (2) high gas prices and imported equipment limit the competitiveness of gas-fired power relative to a coal-fired one; (3) it lacks policy support. For the moment, gas-fired power plants are required to participate in a yet

Emergence of Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA Technique as a Strategy towards Sustainable Development: A Sri Lankan Experience

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. N. Koralagama

2007-10-01

Full Text Available In this millennium all the development activities are mostly focused on sustainable development, i.e. the development which fulfils the requirements of the present without disturbing the utilization of future generation. Basically, the sustainable development deals with environmental, social, and economical initiations. In relation to these three objectives, community participation plays a key role as an effective strategy for sustainable development. Among the numerous types of participation, Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA technique is the most relevant effective method to receive the participation. Because, it has been strengthen by bottom up approach, well defined objectives, practicable solutions, and remedies. Hence, the out come of such an event is most productive rather than a top bottom approach techniques. In fact, a PRA was practiced to develop a strategic plan for tsunami affected village – Bambaranda east, in southern province of Sri Lanka. PRA sessions were carried out during February, 2007 by the Department of Agric. Economics of Ruhuna University, Sri Lanka in collaboration with Japanese Green Resource Agency, Japan.Participatory mapping, venn diagram, matrix ranking, preference ranking, and pair - wise ranking were demonstrated to gather information from the community. The tsunami affected area, including the paddy fields, four irrigation canals were shown by the group with the help of the participatory map. Preference ranking was resulted the reconstruction of irrigation canals as the most important rehabilitation activity to recover the livelihood of villagers. Intrusion of sea water into the paddy fields was the main limitation revealed by the pair - wise ranking. The second limitation marked as unavailability of enough fertilizer and the dilapidated irrigation canals was the third that has to be solved. Matrix ranking was employed to identify the most facilitated sectors by the government and other institutes in order

The Ethiopian Flora Project

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Demissew, Sebsebe; Brochmann, Christian; Kelbessa, Ensermu

2011-01-01

The account reviews and analyses the scietific projects derived from activities in connection with the Ethiopian Flora Project, including the [Ethiopian] Monocot Project, the Afro-alpine "Sky-island" project, the Vegetation and Ecological Conditions of Plantations Project, the Fire Ecology Projec...

Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Tests

Science.gov (United States)

Urban, David; Ruff, Gary A.; Ferkul, Paul V.; Olson, Sandra; Fernandez-Pello, A. Carlos; T'ien, James S.; Torero, Jose L.; Cowlard, Adam J.; Rouvreau, Sebastien; Minster, Olivier;

Evaluation of fire models for nuclear power plant applications. Benchmark exercise no. 4: Fuel pool fire inside a compartment - International panel report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klein-Hessling, W.; Roewekamp, M.; Riese, O.

2006-11-01

Fire simulations as well as their analytical validation procedures have gained more and more significance, particularly in the context of the fire safety analysis for operating nuclear power plants. Meanwhile, fire simulation models have been adapted as analytical tools for a risk oriented fire safety assessment. Calculated predictions can be used, on the one hand, for the improvements and upgrades of fire protection in nuclear power plants by the licensees and, on the other hand, as a tool for reproducible and clearly understandable estimations in assessing the available and/or foreseen fire protection measures by the authorities and their experts. For consideration of such aspects in the context of implementing new nuclear fire protection standards or of updating existing ones, an 'International Collaborative Project to Evaluate Fire Models for Nuclear Power Plant Applications' also known as the 'International Collaborative Fire Model Project' (ICFMP) was started in 1999. It has made use of the experience and knowledge of a variety of worldwide expert institutions in this field to assess and improve, if necessary, the state-of-the-art with respect to modeling fires in nuclear power plants and other nuclear installations. This document contains the results of the ICFMP Benchmark Exercise No. 4, where two fuel pool fire experiments in an enclosure with two different natural vent sizes have been considered. Analyzing the results of different fire simulation codes and code types provides some indications with respect to the uncertainty of the results. This information is especially important in setting uncertainty parameters in probabilistic risk studies and to provide general insights concerning the applicability and limitations in the application of different types of fire simulation codes for this type of fire scenario and boundary conditions. During the benchmark procedure the participants performed different types of calculations. These included totally blind

Wood-fired electricity generation in Eastern Ontario

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1978-07-01

The feasibility of using large areas of currently unproductive rural land in Ontario for poplar plantations which would supply fuel for wood-fired power plants was examined. Information is included on the productive potential of such poplar plantations, the technology of wood-fired steam-electric plants, costs of wood and water supplies, location of plants, cost of power generation, and socio-economic effects. It was concluded that approximately 1.7 million acres of unused land are available which could produce 7 to 10 million tons of wood fuel per year which in turn could be converted to 1600 MW/yr over the next 10 yr. No adverse environmental effects are expected. The project would economically benefit an area of high unemployment. It is recommended that a more detailed feasibility study be undertaken to establish land availability and acquisition, cost of power generation in wood-fired plants, and the economic impact of such a project. (LCL)

The impacts of climate, land use, and demography on fires during the 21st century simulated by CLM-CN

Science.gov (United States)

Kloster, S.; Mahowald, N. M.; Randerson, J. T.; Lawrence, P. J.

2012-01-01

Landscape fires during the 21st century are expected to change in response to multiple agents of global change. Important controlling factors include climate controls on the length and intensity of the fire season, fuel availability, and fire management, which are already anthropogenically perturbed today and are predicted to change further in the future. An improved understanding of future fires will contribute to an improved ability to project future anthropogenic climate change, as changes in fire activity will in turn impact climate. In the present study we used a coupled-carbon-fire model to investigate how changes in climate, demography, and land use may alter fire emissions. We used climate projections following the SRES A1B scenario from two different climate models (ECHAM5/MPI-OM and CCSM) and changes in population. Land use and harvest rates were prescribed according to the RCP 45 scenario. In response to the combined effect of all these drivers, our model estimated, depending on our choice of climate projection, an increase in future (2075-2099) fire carbon emissions by 17 and 62% compared to present day (1985-2009). The largest increase in fire emissions was predicted for Southern Hemisphere South America for both climate projections. For Northern Hemisphere Africa, a region that contributed significantly to the global total fire carbon emissions, the response varied between a decrease and an increase depending on the climate projection. We disentangled the contribution of the single forcing factors to the overall response by conducting an additional set of simulations in which each factor was individually held constant at pre-industrial levels. The two different projections of future climate change evaluated in this study led to increases in global fire carbon emissions by 22% (CCSM) and 66% (ECHAM5/MPI-OM). The RCP 45 projection of harvest and land use led to a decrease in fire carbon emissions by -5%. The RCP 26 and RCP 60 harvest and landuse

Wildland fire limits subsequent fire occurrence

Science.gov (United States)

Sean A. Parks; Carol Miller; Lisa M. Holsinger; Scott Baggett; Benjamin J. Bird

2016-01-01

Several aspects of wildland fire are moderated by site- and landscape-level vegetation changes caused by previous fire, thereby creating a dynamic where one fire exerts a regulatory control on subsequent fire. For example, wildland fire has been shown to regulate the size and severity of subsequent fire. However, wildland fire has the potential to influence...

The “Forest Fire Project”, National cartographic portal of the Italian Environmental Department: an example of management of cartographic data to support forest fires fighting plans in national parks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Petrucci B

2010-02-01

Full Text Available The “Forest Fire Project” on the National cartographic portal (http://www.pcn.minambiente.it has been created by the Italian Ministry of Environment Territory and Sea (METS. The project is intended to support forest fire fighting plans in national protected areas as provided for by article 8 of the law November 21th 2000, no. 353 “Framework law on forest fires”. The project brings out the results of previous projects carried out in collaboration with several research institutes. Cartographic information is made available as free and reliable knowledge base in order to facilitate the draw up and implementation of the “Forest Fire Plans”, including the actual activity of forest fire extinction. Map information can be further implemented by various subjects such as researchers, land planning programmers or managers. The National cartographic portal gives the opportunity of overlaying various cartographic information and base maps supporting the “Forest Fire Project”; moreover it is possible to add other layers from other sources, through URL. Adequate “personalised” overlaps - which can be saved on one’s own GIS - allow in depth analysis and deductions aimed at specific objectives of territorial planning and management and in particular of Forest Fire Fighting Plans.

Use of PRA techniques to optimize the design of the IRIS nuclear power plant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muhlheim, M.D.; Cletcher, J.W. II

2003-01-01

True design optimization of a plants inherent safety and performance characteristics results when a probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is integrated with the plant-level design process. This is the approach being used throughout the design of the International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS) nuclear power plant to maximize safety. A risk-based design optimization tool employing a 'one-button' architecture is being developed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to evaluate design changes; new modeling approaches, methods, or theories modeling uncertainties and completeness; physical assumptions; and data changes on component, cabinet, train, and system bases. Unlike current PRAs, the one-button architecture allows components, modules, and data to be interchanged at will with the probabilistic effect immediately apparent. Because all of the current and previous design, and data sets are available via the one-button architecture, the safety ramifications of design options are evaluated, feedback on design alternatives is immediate, and true optimization and understanding can be achieved. Thus, for the first time, PRA analysts and designers can easily determine the probabilistic implications of different design configurations and operating conditions in various combinations for the entire range of initiating events. The power of the one-button architecture becomes evident by the number of design alternatives that can be evaluated C11 component choices yielded 160 design alternatives. Surprisingly, the lessons learned can be counter-intuitive and significant. For example, one of the alternative designs for IRIS evaluated via this architecture revealed that because of common-cause failure probabilities, using the most reliable components actually decreased systems' reliability. (author)

Current and future applications of PRA in regulatory activities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Speis, T.P.; Murphy, J.A.; Cunningham, M.A. [Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States)] [and others

1995-04-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessments (PRAs) have proven valuable in providing the regulators, the nuclear plant operators, and the reactor designers insights into plant safety, reliability, design and operation. Both the NRC Commissioners and the staff have grown to appreciate the valuable contributions PRAs can have in the regulatory arena, though I will admit the existence of some tendencies for strict adherence to the deterministic approach within the agency and the public at large. Any call for change, particularly one involving a major adjustment in approach to the regulation of nuclear power, will meet with a certain degree of resistance and retrenchment. Change can appear threatening and can cause some to question whether the safety mission is being fulfilled. This skepticism is completely appropriate and is, in fact, essential to a proper transition towards risk and performance-based approaches. Our task in the Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research is to increase the PRA knowledge base within the agency and develop appropriate guidance and methods needed to support the transitioning process.

Inertisation and mine fire simulation using computer software

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stewart Gillies; Hsin Wei Wu [Gillies Wu Mining Technology (Australia)

2007-05-15

Inertisation is a technique used to enhance the safety of underground coal mine areas either to avoid the potential for a combustion event or to stabilise a situation after an ignition, fire or heating. The primary objective of the study was to review coal mine inertisation in Australia, in particular, to focus on the use of the Polish mine fire simulation software 'VENTGRAPH' to gain better understanding of how inertisation (GAG, Mineshield, Nitrogen Pressure Swing Adsorption (Floxal) and Tomlinson Boiler) units interact with the complex ventilation behaviour underground during a substantial fire. Most emphasis has been given to understanding the behaviour of the GAG unit because of its high capacity output. Critical aspects targeted for examination include location of the unit for high priority fire positions, size of borehole or pipe range required, time required for inertisation output to interact with and extinguish a fire, effects of seam gases on fire behaviour with inertisation present and main fan management. The project aims to increase understanding of behaviour of mine fires in modern mine ventilation networks with the addition of inert gas streams. A second aim of the project has been to take findings from the simulation exercises and develop inertisation related modifications to the program in conjunction with the Polish program authors. Exercises based on Oaky North and Oaky No 1 mines have involved 'evaluation or auditing' of ability to deliver inert gases generated from GAG units to high priority underground fire locations. These exercises have been built around modelling of fire scenarios across the mine layouts. The fire simulation exercises at Oaky North and Oaky No 1 mines demonstrated that it is possible to efficiently evaluate possible inertisation strategies appropriate to a complex mine layout extracting a gassy seam and determine which approach strategy (if any) can be used to stabilise a mine in a timely fashion.

Climate change impacts on forest fires: the stakeholders' perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Giannakopoulos, C.; Roussos, A.; Karali, A.; Hatzaki, M.; Xanthopoulos, G.; Chatzinikos, E.; Fyllas, N.; Georgiades, N.; Karetsos, G.; Maheras, G.; Nikolaou, I.; Proutsos, N.; Sbarounis, T.; Tsaggari, K.; Tzamtzis, I.; Goodess, C.

2012-04-01

In this work, we present a synthesis of the presentations and discussions which arose during a workshop on 'Impacts of climate change on forest fires' held in September 2011 at the National Observatory of Athens, Greece in the framework of EU project CLIMRUN. At first, a general presentation about climate change and extremes in the Greek territory provided the necessary background to the audience and highlighted the need for data and information exchange between scientists and stakeholders through climate services within CLIMRUN. Discussions and presentations that followed linked climate with forest science through the use of a meteorological index for fire risk and future projections of fire danger using regional climate models. The current situation on Greek forests was also presented, as well as future steps that should be taken to ameliorate the situation under a climate change world. A time series analysis of changes in forest fires using available historical data on forest ecosystems in Greece was given in this session. This led to the topic of forest fire risk assessment and fire prevention, stating all actions towards sustainable management of forests and effective mechanisms to control fires under climate change. Options for a smooth adaptation of forests to climate change were discussed together with the lessons learned on practical level on prevention, repression and rehabilitation of forest fires. In between there were useful interventions on sustainable hunting and biodiversity protection and on climate change impacts on forest ecosystems dynamics. The importance of developing an educational program for primary/secondary school students on forest fire management was also highlighted. The perspective of forest stakeholders on climate change and how this change can affect their current or future activities was addressed through a questionnaire they were asked to complete. Results showed that the majority of the participants consider climate variability

Fire hazard analysis of the radioactive mixed waste trenchs

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McDonald, K.M.

1995-01-01

This Fire Hazards Analysis (FHA) is intended to assess comprehensively the risk from fire associated with the disposal of low level radioactive mixed waste in trenches within the lined landfills, provided by Project W-025, designated Trench 31 and 34 of the Burial Ground 218-W-5. Elements within the FHA make recommendations for minimizing risk to workers, the public, and the environment from fire during the course of the operation's activity. Transient flammables and combustibles present that support the operation's activity are considered and included in the analysis. The graded FHA contains the following elements: description of construction, protection of essential safety class equipment, fire protection features, description of fire hazards, life safety considerations, critical process equipment, high value property, damage potential--maximum credible fire loss (MCFL) and maximum possible fire loss (MPFL), fire department/brigade response, recovery potential, potential for a toxic, biological and/or radiation incident due to a fire, emergency planning, security considerations related to fire protection, natural hazards (earthquake, flood, wind) impact on fire safety, and exposure fire potential, including the potential for fire spread between fire areas. Recommendations for limiting risk are made in the text of this report and printed in bold type. All recommendations are repeated in a list in Section 18.0

Fire propagation through arrays of solid-waste storage drums

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, S.T.; Hinkle, A.W.

1995-01-01

The extent of propagation of a fire through drums of solid waste has been an unresolved issue that affects all solid-waste projects and existing solid-waste storage and handling facilities at the Hanford site. The issue involves the question of how many drums of solid waste within a given fire area will be consumed in a design-basis fire for given parameters such as drum loading, storage arrays, initiating events, and facility design. If the assumption that all drums of waste within a given fire area are consumed proves valid, then the construction costs of solid waste facilities may be significantly increased

Joint Fire Support in 2020: Development of a Future Joint Fires Systems Architecture for Immediate, Unplanned Targets

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Gabriel, J. T; Bartel, Matthew; Dorrough, Grashawn J; Paiz, B. L; Peters, Brian; Savage, Matthew; Nordgran, Spencer

2006-01-01

... in support of the commander. In this context, the Joint Fire Support in 2020 project applied systems engineering procedures and principles to develop functional, physical, and operational architectures that maximize rapid...

A Fire Severity Mapping System (FSMS) for real-time management applications and long term planning: Developing a map of the landscape potential for severe fire in the western United States

Science.gov (United States)

Gregory K. Dillon; Zachary A. Holden; Penny Morgan; Bob Keane

2009-01-01

The Fire Severity Mapping System project is geared toward providing fire managers across the western United States with critical information for dealing with and planning for the ecological effects of wildfire at multiple levels of thematic, spatial, and temporal detail. For this project, we are developing a comprehensive, west-wide map of the landscape potential for...

Fires in rooms containing electrical components - incident planning, fire fighting tactics, risks; Braender i driftrum - Insatsplaner, slaeckteknik, risker

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Magnusson, Tommy; Ottosson, Jan; Lindskog, BertiI; Soederquist Bende, Evy; Eriksson, Fredrik; Haffling, Stefan

2006-12-15

that was carried out in order to give general recommendations with respect to the development of pre-incident plans at the Swedish nuclear power plants for fire fighting in electrical switch rooms. The general recommendations are attached to the main report. Pre-incident plans gives the control room personnel and the fire fighting staff a powerful tool in order to fight fires and respond to other types of accidents. Pre-incident plans are the foundation on which decisions should be made by the control room chief and the chief fire officer, although it is not possible to predict all types of accidents. Pre-incident planning is also important in order to provide staff education and training. The overall aim of the project has been to give general pre-incident planning recommendations with respect to electrical switch room fires, to determine and establish an appropriate delegation order and clarify the overall responsibility of the fire fighting operation as well as the operation of the plant before, during and after an incident. To clarify the appropriate fire fighting tactics and to give recommendations on the type of extinguishing media based on the risk and consequence of a fire with respect to smoke, radiation, chlorides etc. with respect to the extinguishing media. The results presented in this report should also be used as a base for yearly staff training, both control room personnel and fire fighters. The main project results are summarized below: - The current pre-incident plans at the plants differ in various ways. - A lack of education with respect to the topic of this project has been identified. - The chief fire officer is, by law, highest in rank at the fire scene and is responsible for the operations during the incident. The control room chief is responsible for the safe operation of the plant. Two important questions have been answered in this research project in collaboration between the parties concerned and the Nuclear Power Plants: 1 . The Chief Fire

The influence of air flow speed on fire propagation in object

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jevtić Radoje

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Fire presents the process of the uncontrolled combustion that makes material damage and endangers human lives. It is important to know the factors that fire depends on for success projecting and realization of fire protection systems. One of such factors is different air flow that could be presented as wind, draft and the like. The simulation of different air flow speeds and its influences on fire propagation in object were analyzed in this paper.

An overview of insights gained and lessons learned from U.S. plant-specific PRA studies

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joksimovich, V.

1985-01-01

Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) has been under development for over twenty years, but it has reached the level of widespread use only in the aftermath of the TMI accident. Over thirty PRAs have now been completed in the U.S. PRAs have been in the mainstream of many licensing decisions because the NRC recognizes that they provide independent and comprehensive plant safety audit. Some difficulties have been experienced leading to interpretive and intercomparison studies. Numerous global and plant-specific insights have been derived. A new application termed risk management is clearly emerging. (orig./HP)

Large-Scale Spacecraft Fire Safety Experiments in ISS Resupply Vehicles

Science.gov (United States)

Ruff, Gary A.; Urban, David

2013-01-01

Our understanding of the fire safety risk in manned spacecraft has been limited by the small scale of the testing we have been able to conduct in low-gravity. Fire growth and spread cannot be expected to scale linearly with sample size so we cannot make accurate predictions of the behavior of realistic scale fires in spacecraft based on the limited low-g testing to date. As a result, spacecraft fire safety protocols are necessarily very conservative and costly. Future crewed missions are expected to be longer in duration than previous exploration missions outside of low-earth orbit and accordingly, more complex in terms of operations, logistics, and safety. This will increase the challenge of ensuring a fire-safe environment for the crew throughout the mission. Based on our fundamental uncertainty of the behavior of fires in low-gravity, the need for realistic scale testing at reduced gravity has been demonstrated. To address this concern, a spacecraft fire safety research project is underway to reduce the uncertainty and risk in the design of spacecraft fire safety systems by testing at nearly full scale in low-gravity. This project is supported by the NASA Advanced Exploration Systems Program Office in the Human Exploration and Operations Mission Directorate. The activity of this project is supported by an international topical team of fire experts from other space agencies to maximize the utility of the data and to ensure the widest possible scrutiny of the concept. The large-scale space flight experiment will be conducted on three missions; each in an Orbital Sciences Corporation Cygnus vehicle after it has deberthed from the ISS. Although the experiment will need to meet rigorous safety requirements to ensure the carrier vehicle does not sustain damage, the absence of a crew allows the fire products to be released into the cabin. The tests will be fully automated with the data downlinked at the conclusion of the test before the Cygnus vehicle reenters the

Overview of IAEA guidelines for fire safety inspection and operation in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mowrer, D.S.

1998-01-01

In 1992, the International Atomic Energy Agency began an ambitious project on fire safety in nuclear power plants. The purpose of this ongoing project is to provide specific guidance on compliance with the requirements set forth through the IAEA Nuclear Safety Standards program established in 1974. The scope of the Fire Safety project encompasses several tasks, including the development of new standards and guidelines to assist Member States in assessing the level of fire safety in existing plants. Five new Safety Practices, one new Safety Guide and a Technical Document have been developed for use by the fire safety community. The primary intent of these new documents is to provide detailed guidance and a consistent format for the assessment of the overall level of fire safety being provided in existing nuclear power plants around the world and especially in developing countries. Sufficient detail is provided in the Safety Guide and Safety Practices to allow technically knowledgeable plant personnel, outside consultants or other technical experts to assess the adequacy of fire safety within the plant facilities. This paper describes topics addressed by each of the IAEA Fire Safety documents and discussed the relationship of each document to others in the series. (author)

Quantitative analysis of forest fire extinction efficiency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miguel E. Castillo-Soto

2015-08-01

Full Text Available Aim of study: Evaluate the economic extinction efficiency of forest fires, based on the study of fire combat undertaken by aerial and terrestrial means. Area of study, materials and methods: Approximately 112,000 hectares in Chile. Records of 5,876 forest fires that occurred between 1998 and 2009 were analyzed. The area further provides a validation sector for results, by incorporating databases for the years 2010 and 2012. The criteria used for measuring extinction efficiency were economic value of forestry resources, Contraction Factor analysis and definition of the extinction costs function. Main results: It is possible to establish a relationship between burnt area, extinction costs and economic losses. The method proposed may be used and adapted to other fire situations, requiring unit costs for aerial and terrestrial operations, economic value of the property to be protected and speed attributes of fire spread in free advance. Research highlights: The determination of extinction efficiency in containment works of forest fires and potential projection of losses, different types of plant fuel and local conditions favoring the spread of fire broaden the admissible ranges of a, φ and Ce considerably.

Effects of accelerated wildfire on future fire regimes and implications for the United States federal fire policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan A. Ager

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Wildland fire suppression practices in the western United States are being widely scrutinized by policymakers and scientists as costs escalate and large fires increasingly affect social and ecological values. One potential solution is to change current fire suppression tactics to intentionally increase the area burned under conditions when risks are acceptable to managers and fires can be used to achieve long-term restoration goals in fire adapted forests. We conducted experiments with the Envision landscape model to simulate increased levels of wildfire over a 50-year period on a 1.2 million ha landscape in the eastern Cascades of Oregon, USA. We hypothesized that at some level of burned area fuels would limit the growth of new fires, and fire effects on the composition and structure of forests would eventually reduce future fire intensity and severity. We found that doubling current rates of wildfire resulted in detectable feedbacks in area burned and fire intensity. Area burned in a given simulation year was reduced about 18% per unit area burned in the prior five years averaged across all scenarios. The reduction in area burned was accompanied by substantially lower fire severity, and vegetation shifted to open forest and grass-shrub conditions at the expense of old growth habitat. Negative fire feedbacks were slightly moderated by longer-term positive feedbacks, in which the effect of prior area burned diminished during the simulation. We discuss trade-offs between managing fuels with wildfire versus prescribed fire and mechanical fuel treatments from a social and policy standpoint. The study provides a useful modeling framework to consider the potential value of fire feedbacks as part of overall land management strategies to build fire resilient landscapes and reduce wildfire risk to communities in the western U.S. The results are also relevant to prior climate-wildfire studies that did not consider fire feedbacks in projections of future

Spatio-temporal evolution of forest fires in Portugal

Science.gov (United States)

Tonini, Marj; Pereira, Mário G.; Parente, Joana

2017-04-01

southern areas spread hot-spot are spatially randomly distributed and temporally more concentrated in the frame 2000 - 2004. To conclude, this study let us to identify a multitude of clustering space-time features of forest fires in Portugal, which can be useful for a better planning of educational activities and prevention campaigns as well as for a better allocation of monitoring systems and firefighting. References: Tonini M., Pereira M. G., Parente J. (2016) - Evolution of forest fires in Portugal: from spatio-temporal point events to smoothed density maps. Natural Hazard, doi:10.1007/s11069-016-2637-x Lu B., Harris P., Charlton M., Brunsdon C. (2014) - The GWmodel R package: further topics for exploring spatial heterogeneity using geographically weighted models. Geo-spatial Information Science, Vol. 17: 85-101 Rowlingson B., Diggle P., Bivand M.R. (2012) - Splancs: spatial point pattern analysis code in S-Plus. Computers and Geosciences, Vol. 19: 627-655 Acknowledgements: This work was supported by: (i) the FIREXTR project, PTDC/ATP¬GEO/0462/2014; (ii) the project Interact - Integrative Research in Environment,Agro-Chain and Technology, NORTE-01-0145-FEDER-000017, research line BEST, cofinanced by FEDER/NORTE 2020; and, (iii) European Investment Funds by FEDER/COMPETE/POCI-Operacional Competitiveness and Internacionalization Programme, under Project POCI-01-0145-FEDER-006958 and National Funds by FCT - Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology, under the project UID/AGR/04033. We are especially grateful to ICNF for providing the fire.

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 12

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 5

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 07

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 09

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 14

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 26

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 3

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 33

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 35

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 24

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 8

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 03

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 22

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 08

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 18

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 16

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 11

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 17

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 02

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 15

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 37

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 17

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 28

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 32

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 29

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 30

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 04

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 13

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 26

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 06

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 34

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 10

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 12

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 14

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 05

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 6

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Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 24

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 18

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Jaroso Post Fire Imagery, 01

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 4

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 7

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 1

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, JAROSO FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project Coordinate...

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Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 9

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 35

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 31

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

2013 Tres Lagunas Post Fire, 34

Data.gov (United States)

Earth Data Analysis Center, University of New Mexico — USDA USFS Southwestern Region Contract # AG-8371-C-10-0011 Delivery # AG-8371-D-13-0056 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY ACQUISITION, TRES LAGUNAS FIRE, NEW MEXICO Project...

Holocene fire dynamics in Fennoscandia

Science.gov (United States)

Clear, Jennifer; Seppa, Heikki; Kuosmanen, Niina; Molinari, Chiara; Lehsten, Veiko; Allen, Katherine; Bradshaw, Richard

2015-04-01

burning and here we show the now widespread dominance of Picea is responsible for the low fire frequency observed throughout Fennoscandia. Mid-Holocene declines in the abundance of deciduous species and concomitant loss of floristic diversity were driven by an increased use of fire during localised anthropogenic disturbance recorded 1500 years apart at two local-scale sites (located <20km apart). The charcoal data presented show an underlying natural fire frequency of approximately 400 years in southern Finland that without intensive anthropogenic disturbance during the mid- to late-Holocene may have persisted to the present day. Modelled fire frequency appears to control vegetation dynamics with spruce dominance favoured by longer fire intervals and a projected 2˚C temperature rise would encourage an increase in deciduous species and floristic diversity, but only if the fire frequency remains low.

Cold Vacuum Drying (CVD) Facility, Diesel Generator Fire Protection

CERN Document Server

Singh, G

2000-01-01

This Acceptance Test Procedure (ATP) has been prepared to demonstrate that the Fire Protection and Detection System installed by Project W-441 (Cold Vacuum Drying Facility and Diesel Generator Building) functions as required by project specifications.

Cold Vacuum Drying (CVD) Facility, Diesel Generator Fire Protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

SINGH, G.

2000-01-01

This Acceptance Test Procedure (ATP) has been prepared to demonstrate that the Fire Protection and Detection System installed by Project W-441 (Cold Vacuum Drying Facility and Diesel Generator Building) functions as required by project specifications

Colour based fire detection method with temporal intensity variation filtration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trambitckii, K; Musalimov, V; Anding, K; Linß, G

2015-01-01

Development of video, computing technologies and computer vision gives a possibility of automatic fire detection on video information. Under that project different algorithms was implemented to find more efficient way of fire detection. In that article colour based fire detection algorithm is described. But it is not enough to use only colour information to detect fire properly. The main reason of this is that in the shooting conditions may be a lot of things having colour similar to fire. A temporary intensity variation of pixels is used to separate them from the fire. These variations are averaged over the series of several frames. This algorithm shows robust work and was realised as a computer program by using of the OpenCV library

Colour based fire detection method with temporal intensity variation filtration

Science.gov (United States)

Trambitckii, K.; Anding, K.; Musalimov, V.; Linß, G.

2015-02-01

Development of video, computing technologies and computer vision gives a possibility of automatic fire detection on video information. Under that project different algorithms was implemented to find more efficient way of fire detection. In that article colour based fire detection algorithm is described. But it is not enough to use only colour information to detect fire properly. The main reason of this is that in the shooting conditions may be a lot of things having colour similar to fire. A temporary intensity variation of pixels is used to separate them from the fire. These variations are averaged over the series of several frames. This algorithm shows robust work and was realised as a computer program by using of the OpenCV library.

A project in two parts: Developing fire histories for the eastern U.S. and creating a climate-based continental fire frequency model to fill data gaps

Science.gov (United States)

Richard Guyette; Michael Stambaugh; Daniel. Dey

2011-01-01

Tree-ring dated fire scars provide long-term records of fire frequency, giving land managers valuable baseline information about the fire regimes that existed prior to Euro-American settlement. However, for the East, fire history data prove difficult to acquire because the generally moister climate of the region causes rapid decay of wood. In an endeavor to fill data...

Feasibility and acceptability of workers' health surveillance for fire fighters

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Plat, Marie-Christine J.; Frings-Dresen, Monique H. W.; Sluiter, Judith K.

2011-01-01

The objective of this study was to test the feasibility and acceptability of a new workers' health surveillance (WHS) for fire fighters in a Dutch pilot-implementation project. In three fire departments, between November 2007 and February 2009, feasibility was tested with respect to i) worker intent

Pedestrian evacuation at the subway station under fire

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao-Xia, Yang; Hai-Rong, Dong; Xiu-Ming, Yao; Xu-Bin, Sun

2016-04-01

With the development of urban rail transit, ensuring the safe evacuation of pedestrians at subway stations has become an important issue in the case of an emergency such as a fire. This paper chooses the platform of line 4 at the Beijing Xuanwumen subway station to study the emergency evacuation process under fire. Based on the established platform, effects of the fire dynamics, different initial pedestrian densities, and positions of fire on evacuation are investigated. According to simulation results, it is found that the fire increases the air temperature and the smoke density, and decreases pedestrians’ visibility and walking velocity. Also, there is a critical initial density at the platform if achieving a safe evacuation within the required 6 minutes. Furthermore, different positions of fire set in this paper have little difference on crowd evacuation if the fire is not large enough. The suggestions provided in this paper are helpful for the subway operators to prevent major casualties. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 61322307 and 61233001).

Mid-21st-century climate changes increase predicted fire occurrence and fire season length, Northern Rocky Mountains, United States

Science.gov (United States)

Riley, Karin L.; Loehman, Rachel A.

2016-01-01

Climate changes are expected to increase fire frequency, fire season length, and cumulative area burned in the western United States. We focus on the potential impact of mid-21st-century climate changes on annual burn probability, fire season length, and large fire characteristics including number and size for a study area in the Northern Rocky Mountains. Although large fires are rare they account for most of the area burned in western North America, burn under extreme weather conditions, and exhibit behaviors that preclude methods of direct control. Allocation of resources, development of management plans, and assessment of fire effects on ecosystems all require an understanding of when and where fires are likely to burn, particularly under altered climate regimes that may increase large fire occurrence. We used the large fire simulation model FSim to model ignition, growth, and containment of wildfires under two climate scenarios: contemporary (based on instrumental weather) and mid-century (based on an ensemble average of global climate models driven by the A1B SRES emissions scenario). Modeled changes in fire patterns include increased annual burn probability, particularly in areas of the study region with relatively short contemporary fire return intervals; increased individual fire size and annual area burned; and fewer years without large fires. High fire danger days, represented by threshold values of Energy Release Component (ERC), are projected to increase in number, especially in spring and fall, lengthening the climatic fire season. For fire managers, ERC is an indicator of fire intensity potential and fire economics, with higher ERC thresholds often associated with larger, more expensive fires. Longer periods of elevated ERC may significantly increase the cost and complexity of fire management activities, requiring new strategies to maintain desired ecological conditions and limit fire risk. Increased fire activity (within the historical range of

Prediction and validation of pool fire development in enclosures by means of CFD (Poolfire) Report - Year 1

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

van Hees, P.; Wahlqvist, J. (Lund Univ., Lund (Sweden)); Hostikka, S.; Sikanen, T. (VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland (Finland)); Husted, B. (Haugesund College, Stord (Norway)); Magnusson, T. (Ringhals AB, Vaeroebacka (Sweden)); Joerud, F. (Oskarshamn Kraftgrupp AB, Oskarshamn (Sweden))

2012-02-15

Fires in nuclear power plants can be an important hazard for the overall safety of the facility. One of the typical fire sources is a pool fire. It is therefore important to have good knowledge on the fire behaviour of pool fire and be able to predict the heat release rate by prediction of the mass loss rate. This project envisages developing a pyrolysis model to be used in CFD models. In the this first year report the literature review conducted within the project is reported as well as the first tasks in the evaluation and modelling of the new model. (Author)

Prediction and validation of pool fire development in enclosures by means of CFD (Poolfire) Report - Year 1

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

van Hees, P.; Wahlqvist, J.; Hostikka, S.; Sikanen, T.; Husted, B.; Magnusson, T.; Joerud, F.

2012-01-01

Fires in nuclear power plants can be an important hazard for the overall safety of the facility. One of the typical fire sources is a pool fire. It is therefore important to have good knowledge on the fire behaviour of pool fire and be able to predict the heat release rate by prediction of the mass loss rate. This project envisages developing a pyrolysis model to be used in CFD models. In the this first year report the literature review conducted within the project is reported as well as the first tasks in the evaluation and modelling of the new model. (Author)

Landfire: Landscape Fire and Resource Management Planning Tools Project

Science.gov (United States)

Kevin C. Ryan; Kristine M. Lee; Matthew G. Rollins; Zhiliang Zhu; James Smith; Darren Johnson

2006-01-01

Managers are faced with reducing hazardous fuel, restoring fire regimes, and decreasing the threat of catastrophic wildfire. Often, the comprehensive, scientifically-credible data and applications needed to test alternative fuel treatments across multi-ownership landscapes are lacking. Teams from the USDA Forest Service, Department of the Interior, and The Nature...

Identification of two distinct fire regimes in Southern California: implications for economic impact and future change

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Yufang; Goulden, Michael L.; Faivre, Nicolas; Veraverbeke, Sander; Sun, Fengpeng; Hall, Alex; Hand, Michael S.; Hook, Simon; Randerson, James T.

2015-09-01

The area burned by Southern California wildfires has increased in recent decades, with implications for human health, infrastructure, and ecosystem management. Meteorology and fuel structure are universally recognized controllers of wildfire, but their relative importance, and hence the efficacy of abatement and suppression efforts, remains controversial. Southern California’s wildfires can be partitioned by meteorology: fires typically occur either during Santa Ana winds (SA fires) in October through April, or warm and dry periods in June through September (non-SA fires). Previous work has not quantitatively distinguished between these fire regimes when assessing economic impacts or climate change influence. Here we separate five decades of fire perimeters into those coinciding with and without SA winds. The two fire types contributed almost equally to burned area, yet SA fires were responsible for 80% of cumulative 1990-2009 economic losses (3.1 Billion). The damage disparity was driven by fire characteristics: SA fires spread three times faster, occurred closer to urban areas, and burned into areas with greater housing values. Non-SA fires were comparatively more sensitive to age-dependent fuels, often occurred in higher elevation forests, lasted for extended periods, and accounted for 70% of total suppression costs. An improved distinction of fire type has implications for future projections and management. The area burned in non-SA fires is projected to increase 77% (±43%) by the mid-21st century with warmer and drier summers, and the SA area burned is projected to increase 64% (±76%), underscoring the need to evaluate the allocation and effectiveness of suppression investments.

Overview of the Fire Lab at Missoula Experiments (FLAME)

Science.gov (United States)

S. M. Kreidenweis; J. L. Collett; H. Moosmuller; W. P. Arnott; WeiMin Hao; W. C. Malm

2010-01-01

The Fire Lab at Missoula Experiments (FLAME) used a series of open biomass burns, conducted in 2006 and 2007 at the Forest Service Fire Science Laboratory in Missoula, MT, to characterize the physical, chemical and optical properties of biomass combustion emissions. Fuels were selected primarily based on their projected importance for emissions from prescribed and wild...

Exploring the Future of Fuel Loads in Tasmania, Australia: Shifts in Vegetation in Response to Changing Fire Weather, Productivity, and Fire Frequency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca Mary Bernadette Harris

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Changes to the frequency of fire due to management decisions and climate change have the potential to affect the flammability of vegetation, with long-term effects on the vegetation structure and composition. Frequent fire in some vegetation types can lead to transformational change beyond which the vegetation type is radically altered. Such feedbacks limit our ability to project fuel loads under future climatic conditions or to consider the ecological tradeoffs associated with management burns. We present a “pathway modelling” approach to consider multiple transitional pathways that may occur under different fire frequencies. The model combines spatial layers representing current and future fire danger, biomass, flammability, and sensitivity to fire to assess potential future fire activity. The layers are derived from a dynamically downscaled regional climate model, attributes from a regional vegetation map, and information about fuel characteristics. Fire frequency is demonstrated to be an important factor influencing flammability and availability to burn and therefore an important determinant of future fire activity. Regional shifts in vegetation type occur in response to frequent fire, as the rate of change differs across vegetation type. Fire-sensitive vegetation types move towards drier, more fire-adapted vegetation quickly, as they may be irreversibly impacted by even a single fire, and require very long recovery times. Understanding the interaction between climate change and fire is important to identify appropriate management regimes to sustain fire-sensitive communities and maintain the distribution of broad vegetation types across the landscape.

A social impact assessment of the floodwater spreading project on the Gareh-Bygone plain in Iran: A causal comparative approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmadvand, Mostafa; Karami, Ezatollah

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study was to explore the social impacts of the floodwater spreading project (FWSP) on the Gareh-Bygone plain, Iran. The study was in the form of a causal comparative design, and a triangulation technique was used to collect data including the use of survey data, archival data, and a participatory rural appraisal (PRA). The causal comparative method requires a comparison of villages with and without the FWSP. Therefore, a survey was conducted using stratified random sampling to select 202 households in villages with and without FWSP in the plain. Significant differences were found between the respondents in villages with and without FWSP with regard to social impact criteria. In spite of the project had negative impact on perceived wellbeing, social capital, social structure development; it had positive impact on quality of life, rural and agricultural economic conditions, and conservation of community resources. However, no significant difference was found between women and men regarding the SIA of FWSP in Gareh-Bygone plain. Analysis of the archival data and PRA techniques supported the survey results and demonstrated that the project improved environmental criteria and deteriorated social dimensions

Managing for Old Growth in Frequent-fire Landscapes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carl E. Fiedler

2007-12-01

Full Text Available There is no one-size-fits-all approach to managing frequent-fire, old-growth forests. However, there are general guidelines to follow: 1 set objectives for both structure (tree density, diameter distribution, tree species composition, spatial arrangement, amount of coarse woody debris and function (nutrient cycling, desired tree species regeneration; 2 prioritize treatments according to ecological, economic, and social needs and risks; 3 identify the potential treatments (natural fire, prescribed fire, silvicultural cutting that best meet the objectives and scale of the project; and 4 implement the treatment(s. We discuss each of these guidelines in this article.

"VEM PRA RUA": THE POLITICAL AND THE POLITICS ON THE WEB

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benedito Fernando Pereira

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Considering the political and the social division of senses, this paper seeks to check how is the process of signification in a society increasingly challenged by electronic discourse and the ways in which political and policy find themselves affected by it. In order do that, we make the analysis of discursive statements “vem pra rua” and “somos a rede social” that were present in banners and posters in street protests in Brazil in 2013, which were organized and delivered, in large part, by virtual means. We observed that such utterances go through a process of appropriation and re-signification, with shifting meanings that run of market logic, go to the social politics and go back to the market logic. We had also observed how the urban environment is affected by the electronic discourse that now constitutes the ways it makes sense.

FIRE

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brtis, J.S.; Hausheer, T.G.

1990-01-01

FIRE, a microcomputer based program to assist engineers in reviewing and documenting the fire protection impact of design changes has been developed. Acting as an electronic consultant, FIRE is designed to work with an experienced nuclear system engineer, who may not have any detailed fire protection expertise. FIRE helps the engineer to decide if a modification might adversely affect the fire protection design of the station. Since its first development, FIRE has been customized to reflect the fire protection philosophy of the Commonwealth Edison Company. That program is in early production use. This paper discusses the FIRE program in light of its being a useful application of expert system technologies in the power industry

500 MW demonstration of advanced wall-fired combustion techniques for the reduction of nitrogen oxide emissions from coal-fired boilers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sorge, J.N.; Larrimore, C.L.; Slatsky, M.D.; Menzies, W.R.; Smouse, S.M.; Stallings, J.W.

1997-12-31

This paper discusses the technical progress of a US Department of Energy Innovative Clean Coal Technology project demonstrating advanced wall-fired combustion techniques for the reduction of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from coal-fired boilers. The primary objectives of the demonstration is to determine the long-term NOx reduction performance of advanced overfire air (AOFA), low NOx burners (LNB), and advanced digital control optimization methodologies applied in a stepwise fashion to a 500 MW boiler. The focus of this paper is to report (1) on the installation of three on-line carbon-in-ash monitors and (2) the design and results to date from the advanced digital control/optimization phase of the project.

A Review of Fire Interactions and Mass Fires

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark A. Finney

2011-01-01

Full Text Available The character of a wildland fire can change dramatically in the presence of another nearby fire. Understanding and predicting the changes in behavior due to fire-fire interactions cannot only be life-saving to those on the ground, but also be used to better control a prescribed fire to meet objectives. In discontinuous fuel types, such interactions may elicit fire spread where none otherwise existed. Fire-fire interactions occur naturally when spot fires start ahead of the main fire and when separate fire events converge in one location. Interactions can be created intentionally during prescribed fires by using spatial ignition patterns. Mass fires are among the most extreme examples of interactive behavior. This paper presents a review of the detailed effects of fire-fire interaction in terms of merging or coalescence criteria, burning rates, flame dimensions, flame temperature, indraft velocity, pulsation, and convection column dynamics. Though relevant in many situations, these changes in fire behavior have yet to be included in any operational-fire models or decision support systems.

Are High-Severity Fires Burning at Much Higher Rates Recently than Historically in Dry-Forest Landscapes of the Western USA?

Science.gov (United States)

Baker, William L

2015-01-01

Dry forests at low elevations in temperate-zone mountains are commonly hypothesized to be at risk of exceptional rates of severe fire from climatic change and land-use effects. Their setting is fire-prone, they have been altered by land-uses, and fire severity may be increasing. However, where fires were excluded, increased fire could also be hypothesized as restorative of historical fire. These competing hypotheses are not well tested, as reference data prior to widespread land-use expansion were insufficient. Moreover, fire-climate projections were lacking for these forests. Here, I used new reference data and records of high-severity fire from 1984-2012 across all dry forests (25.5 million ha) of the western USA to test these hypotheses. I also approximated projected effects of climatic change on high-severity fire in dry forests by applying existing projections. This analysis showed the rate of recent high-severity fire in dry forests is within the range of historical rates, or is too low, overall across dry forests and individually in 42 of 43 analysis regions. Significant upward trends were lacking overall from 1984-2012 for area burned and fraction burned at high severity. Upward trends in area burned at high severity were found in only 4 of 43 analysis regions. Projections for A.D. 2046-2065 showed high-severity fire would generally be still operating at, or have been restored to historical rates, although high projections suggest high-severity fire rotations that are too short could ensue in 6 of 43 regions. Programs to generally reduce fire severity in dry forests are not supported and have significant adverse ecological impacts, including reducing habitat for native species dependent on early-successional burned patches and decreasing landscape heterogeneity that confers resilience to climatic change. Some adverse ecological effects of high-severity fires are concerns. Managers and communities can improve our ability to live with high-severity fire in

Japanese studies on sodium fires, design and testing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitsutsuka, N.; Yoshida, N.

1983-01-01

Considerations of sodium fires are very important for the design and licensing of LMFBRs. Continuing effort has been made in the study of sodium fires and their consequences since the beginning of the Japanese fast breeder reactor development program. Recent effort is mainly focussed on studies related to Monju, especially on the design and testing of primary cell liners against large sodium spills. Experimental and analytical studies on sodium fires, water release from concrete and sodium concrete reactions are conducted as a part of this study. Some extinguishing agents are also tested against sodium fires. In addition, considerable effort is being made in the development of detection systems for the small sodium leaks before a pipe rupture. This paper briefly summarizes the Japanese status of these sodium fire related activities conducted by Fast Breeder Reactor Development Project of the Power Reactor and Nuclear Fuel Development Corporation (PNC)

Evidence of fire resistance of hollow-core slabs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hertz, Kristian Dahl; Sørensen, Lars Schiøtt; Giuliani, Luisa

is therefore going on in the Netherlands about the fire resistance of hollow-core slabs. In 2014 the producers of hollow-core slabs have published a report of a project called Holcofire containing a collection of 162 fire tests on hollow-core slabs giving for the first time an overview of the fire tests made....... The present paper analyses the evidence now available for assessment of the fire resistance of extruded hollow-core slabs. The 162 fire tests from the Holcofire report are compared against the requirements for testing from the product standard for hollow-core slabs EN1168 and knowledge about the possible......Hollow-core slabs have during the past 50 years comprised a variety of different structures with different cross-sections and reinforcement. At present the extruded hollow-core slabs without cross-reinforcement in the bottom flange and usually round or oval longitudinal channels (holes...

Application of RIA of PRA, AT II and NPY in typing and therapy of EH patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Yongqing; Wang Xiaozhou; Jiang Qinian

2001-01-01

Objective: To study the typing and AT II receptor inhibitor therapy for essential hypertension (EH) patients. Methods: Plasma RA, AT II and NPY levels were measured by radioimmunoassay (RIA) in 208 Patients with EH and 100 controls; plasma NPY levels were measured in 40 EH patients before and after AT II receptor inhibitor therapy. The mean coefficient of variation for intra and inter batch-assay were less than 10% and 15% respectively. Results: In 208 EH patients plasma PRA levels were increased, normal and decreased in 17.8%, 71.6% and 10.6% respectively, while in 128 EH patients Plasma AT II levels were increased, normal and decreased in 20.3%, 64.1% and 15.6% respectively. In 69 EH Plasma NPY levels were significantly higher than those in 40 control subjects. (17 grade I EH, 137.3 +- 32.6 pg/mL; 28 grade II EH, 148.5 +- 41.1 pg/mL; 24 grade III EH, 162.4 +- 42.7 pg/mL; 40 controls, 118.5 +- 30.5 pg/mL). In 40 EH patients plasma NPY levels were decreased after AT II receptor inhibitor therapy as the blood pressure decreased. Conclusion: Typing of EH patients according to levels of plasma PRA and AT II is useful in guiding treatment. AT II receptor inhibitors are indicated in those patients with increased plasma levels and NPY levels can be used for appraisal of the treatment efficacy

Fire response of composite columns subject to sway

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Virdi, Kuldeep

Composite columns, using profiled steel sections encased in concrete or steel tubes filled with concrete, are increasingly used in practice taking advantage of speed of erection as well as offering cost-effective solutions. While the design of braced and unbraced composite columns under ambient...... conditions is adequately covered in the relevant standard, Eurocode 4, simplified design of unbraced composite columns for the fire limit state has not been included. Recognising this, a collaborative research project was undertaken with funding from the Research Fund for Coal and Steel. The paper describes...... the scope of the project which covered control tests under ambient conditions, carried out by the author while at City University London. Other aspects covered in the project included fire tests carried out by CTICM in France, on isolated columns and on two frames designed by Leibniz Universität Hannover...

Regional air quality impacts of future fire emissions in Sumatra and Kalimantan

Science.gov (United States)

Marlier, Miriam E.; DeFries, Ruth S.; Kim, Patrick S.; Gaveau, David L. A.; Koplitz, Shannon N.; Jacob, Daniel J.; Mickley, Loretta J.; Margono, Belinda A.; Myers, Samuel S.

2015-05-01

Fire emissions associated with land cover change and land management contribute to the concentrations of atmospheric pollutants, which can affect regional air quality and climate. Mitigating these impacts requires a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between fires and different land cover change trajectories and land management strategies. We develop future fire emissions inventories from 2010-2030 for Sumatra and Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) to assess the impact of varying levels of forest and peatland conservation on air quality in Equatorial Asia. To compile these inventories, we combine detailed land cover information from published maps of forest extent, satellite fire radiative power observations, fire emissions from the Global Fire Emissions Database, and spatially explicit future land cover projections using a land cover change model. We apply the sensitivities of mean smoke concentrations to Indonesian fire emissions, calculated by the GEOS-Chem adjoint model, to our scenario-based future fire emissions inventories to quantify the different impacts of fires on surface air quality across Equatorial Asia. We find that public health impacts are highly sensitive to the location of fires, with emissions from Sumatra contributing more to smoke concentrations at population centers across the region than Kalimantan, which had higher emissions by more than a factor of two. Compared to business-as-usual projections, protecting peatlands from fires reduces smoke concentrations in the cities of Singapore and Palembang by 70% and 40%, and by 60% for the Equatorial Asian region, weighted by the population in each grid cell. Our results indicate the importance of focusing conservation priorities on protecting both forested (intact or logged) peatlands and non-forested peatlands from fire, even after considering potential leakage of deforestation pressure to other areas, in order to limit the impact of fire emissions on atmospheric smoke concentrations and

Regional air quality impacts of future fire emissions in Sumatra and Kalimantan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marlier, Miriam E; DeFries, Ruth S; Kim, Patrick S; Koplitz, Shannon N; Jacob, Daniel J; Gaveau, David L A; Mickley, Loretta J; Margono, Belinda A; Myers, Samuel S

2015-01-01

Fire emissions associated with land cover change and land management contribute to the concentrations of atmospheric pollutants, which can affect regional air quality and climate. Mitigating these impacts requires a comprehensive understanding of the relationship between fires and different land cover change trajectories and land management strategies. We develop future fire emissions inventories from 2010–2030 for Sumatra and Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo) to assess the impact of varying levels of forest and peatland conservation on air quality in Equatorial Asia. To compile these inventories, we combine detailed land cover information from published maps of forest extent, satellite fire radiative power observations, fire emissions from the Global Fire Emissions Database, and spatially explicit future land cover projections using a land cover change model. We apply the sensitivities of mean smoke concentrations to Indonesian fire emissions, calculated by the GEOS-Chem adjoint model, to our scenario-based future fire emissions inventories to quantify the different impacts of fires on surface air quality across Equatorial Asia. We find that public health impacts are highly sensitive to the location of fires, with emissions from Sumatra contributing more to smoke concentrations at population centers across the region than Kalimantan, which had higher emissions by more than a factor of two. Compared to business-as-usual projections, protecting peatlands from fires reduces smoke concentrations in the cities of Singapore and Palembang by 70% and 40%, and by 60% for the Equatorial Asian region, weighted by the population in each grid cell. Our results indicate the importance of focusing conservation priorities on protecting both forested (intact or logged) peatlands and non-forested peatlands from fire, even after considering potential leakage of deforestation pressure to other areas, in order to limit the impact of fire emissions on atmospheric smoke concentrations

Advanced Test Reactor probabilistic risk assessment methodology and results summary

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eide, S.A.; Atkinson, S.A.; Thatcher, T.A.

1992-01-01

The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) Level 1 report documents a comprehensive and state-of-the-art study to establish and reduce the risk associated with operation of the ATR, expressed as a mean frequency of fuel damage. The ATR Level 1 PRA effort is unique and outstanding because of its consistent and state-of-the-art treatment of all facets of the risk study, its comprehensive and cost-effective risk reduction effort while the risk baseline was being established, and its thorough and comprehensive documentation. The PRA includes many improvements to the state-of-the-art, including the following: establishment of a comprehensive generic data base for component failures, treatment of initiating event frequencies given significant plant improvements in recent years, performance of efficient identification and screening of fire and flood events using code-assisted vital area analysis, identification and treatment of significant seismic-fire-flood-wind interactions, and modeling of large loss-of-coolant accidents (LOCAs) and experiment loop ruptures leading to direct damage of the ATR core. 18 refs

FIRES: Fire Information Retrieval and Evaluation System - A program for fire danger rating analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Patricia L. Andrews; Larry S. Bradshaw

1997-01-01

A computer program, FIRES: Fire Information Retrieval and Evaluation System, provides methods for evaluating the performance of fire danger rating indexes. The relationship between fire danger indexes and historical fire occurrence and size is examined through logistic regression and percentiles. Historical seasonal trends of fire danger and fire occurrence can be...

Fire propagation equation for the explicit identification of fire scenarios in a fire PSA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lim, Ho Gon; Han, Sang Hoon; Moon, Joo Hyun

2011-01-01

When performing fire PSA in a nuclear power plant, an event mapping method, using an internal event PSA model, is widely used to reduce the resources used by fire PSA model development. Feasible initiating events and component failure events due to fire are identified to transform the fault tree (FT) for an internal event PSA into one for a fire PSA using the event mapping method. A surrogate event or damage term method is used to condition the FT of the internal PSA. The surrogate event or the damage term plays the role of flagging whether the system/component in a fire compartment is damaged or not, depending on the fire being initiated from a specified compartment. These methods usually require explicit states of all compartments to be modeled in a fire area. Fire event scenarios, when using explicit identification, such as surrogate or damage terms, have two problems: there is no consideration of multiple fire propagation beyond a single propagation to an adjacent compartment, and there is no consideration of simultaneous fire propagations in which an initiating fire event is propagated to multiple paths simultaneously. The present paper suggests a fire propagation equation to identify all possible fire event scenarios for an explicitly treated fire event scenario in the fire PSA. Also, a method for separating fire events was developed to make all fire events a set of mutually exclusive events, which can facilitate arithmetic summation in fire risk quantification. A simple example is given to confirm the applicability of the present method for a 2x3 rectangular fire area. Also, a feasible asymptotic approach is discussed to reduce the computational burden for fire risk quantification