International Conference on

Opportunities and Challenges for Water

Cooled Reactors in the 21st Century
International Atomic Energy Agency Vienna, Austria, 27–30 October 2009
IAEA-CN-164
P.O. Box 100
Vienna International Centre
1400 Vienna, Austria
BOOK OF EXTENDED SYNOPSES
Telephone No.: +43 1 2600 (0) plus extension
Telefax No.: +43 1 26007
Email: official.mail@iaea.org

Painting by Jerrika C. Shi, Aged 10

09-43421

CN-164
Organized by the

In cooperation with the

EC Joint Research Centre (EC/JRC)

International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)

OECD Nuclear Energy Agency (OECD/NEA)

World Nuclear Association (WNA)

The material in this book has been supplied by the authors and has not
been edited. The views expressed remain the responsibility of the named
authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the government of the
designating Member State(s). The IAEA cannot be held responsible for any
material reproduced in this book.
 PROGRAMME OVERVIEW
Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
Time
26 Oct. 2009 27 Oct. 2009 28 Oct. 2009 29 Oct. 2009 30 Oct. 2009

Registration (08:00 – 09:30)

Plenary Session Plenary Session Panel Discussion
09:00 -
“Design and Construction of Advanced “Safety and Performance Excellence in ”Role of Water Cooled Reactors in the
10:30 Opening Session Water Cooled Reactors” (Part II) Current NPPs” 21st Century”
“Current Nuclear Power Outlook:
Opportunities & Challenges"
(09:30 – 11:10)
10:30 – Coffee Break

Coffee Break (11:10 – 11:30)

Plenary Session
11:00 - Topic 1 Topic 2 Topic 3 Topic 2 Topic 4 Topic 5
Plenary Session "Advanced Applications of Water
12:30 Sess. 1-2 Sess. 2-2 Sess. 3-2 Sess. 2-3 Sess. 4-3 Sess. 5-3
“Challenges in Near Term Nuclear Cooled Reactors"
Power Deployment”
(11:30 – 13:00)
12:30 –
Lunch Closing Session
14:00 Lunch (13:00 – 14:00)

Plenary Session Panel Discussion Topic 1. Current Nuclear Power Outlook–

14:00 - Poster Session &
“Design and Construction of Advanced “Advanced Monitoring and Diagnostic Opportunities to Launch New NPP
15:30 Technical Exhibitions
Water Cooled Reactors” (Part I) Technologies in NPPs” Programme
Topic 2. Nuclear Deployment Challenges
and Solutions–Institutional and
15:30 – Coffee Break Cross Cutting
Topic 3. Design and Construction of
Advanced Water Cooled Reactors
Topic 4. Safety and Performance
16:00 – Regi- Topic 1 Topic 2 Topic 3 Topic 4 Topic 5 Topic 6 Topic 4 Topic 5 Topic 7 Achievement in Current NPPs
18:00 stration Sess. 1-1 Sess. 2-1 Sess. 3-1 Sess. 4-1 Sess. 5-1 Sess. 6 Sess. 4-2 Sess. 5-2 Sess. 7 Topic 5. Advanced Technology Application
(16:00 – Topic 6. Safety Assessment in NPPs
19:00) Topic 7. Instrumentation & Control
Welcome Reception Official Dinner
18:30 –
(Place : M building) (Place : Melker Stiftskeller Vienna)
 LIST OF EXTENDED SYNOPSES

Number Title of Paper Name of

IAEA- Main Author
CN-164-

Part 1 Synopses for Keynote Presentations

01KS IAEA’s Support of Water Cooled Reactors in the 21st K.S. Kang 3
Century and Beyond S. Bilbao y León
O. Glockler
02KS State of Union for Operating Plants: Future Outlook, T. Dujardin
Safety Harmonization (Multi-national Design Evaluation
Programme)
03KS European Nuclear Safety Research for the Nuclear Giovanni de Santi 5
Renaissance
04KS The Challenge and Countermeasures for Human Mingguang Zheng 7
Resources Development on Nuclear Power in 21st
Century
05KS Nuclear Power: an Irreplaceable Option for Sustainable Philippe Pradel 8
Development
06KS Challenges Faced by Developing Countries in Nuclear Hamad Alkaabi 10
Power Deployment
07KS Advanced Nuclear Power Plants in Korea Jong Shin Kim 12

08KS ABWR Technology & Construction Experiences / Masaharu Hanyu 14

Experience of ABWR Operation and Global Deployment Takeo Shimizu 16
09KS Design and Construction of Advanced PHWR Ala Alizadeh

10KS VVER Reactors : Clean and Reliable Source of Energy in Nikolay Trunov 18
the Past and in the Future
11KS Advanced Design of Mitsubishi PWR Plant for Nuclear Etsuro Saji 20
Renaissance
12KS AP1000 Simplicity and Certainty Anders Jackson

13KS Application of Advanced Technology to Improve Plant Hash M. 22

Performance Hashemian
14KS Nulife - its Role in Implementing Strategic Research of Rauno Rintamaa 24
LTO Related to PLiM Issues in Europe
15KS Utility Perspective on Future of Water Cooled Reactors Michael Baron

16KS Hydrogen Production using Water Cooler Reactors Pascal Yvon 26

17KS Innovative Water Cooled Reactor Concepts – Small and Jose Reyes 28
Medium Reactors
18KS Research and Development of Supercritical Water Cooled Yoshiaki Oka 30
Reactors
Part 2 Synopses for Oral Presentations

TOPIC 1: CURRENT NUCLEAR POWER OUTLOOK: OPPORTUNITIES TO LAUNCH

NEW NPP PROGRAMME
1S01 Approaches to Assess Competitiveness of Small and V. Kuznetsov 36
Medium Sized Reactors
1S02 Outlook of Nuclear Energy in Algeria B. Meftah 38

1S03 Implementation of the Visaginas Nuclear Power Plant G. Klevinskas 39

Project in Lithuania
1S04 On the Sustainability of LWR Development in China W. Shen 41

1S05 Regional Approach to the Introduction of Nuclear Power S. Elegba 43

Plants in Africa: Challenges and Opportunities
1S06 Future of the Nuclear Power Generation in Hungary T.J. Katona 44

1S07 Infrastructure Development and Challenges to Launch S. Keinmeesuke 46

Nuclear Power Programme in Thailand
1S08 Evaluation on the Status of Indonesia Nuclear B.Suprawoto 48
Infrastructure Development

TOPIC 2: NUCLEAR DEPLOYMENT CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS -

INSTITUTIONAL AND CROSS CUTTING
2S01 Challenges and Opportunities to Introduce a First Nuclear M.M. Haque 52
Power Plant in Bangladesh
2S02 Nuclear Power Development, Financing and Delivery A. Alizadeh 55

2S03 Nuclear Power for Future Electricity Generation in Ghana: B.J.B. Nyarko 57
Issues and Challenges
2S04 Challenges and Opportunities in Launching New Nuclear H.-G. Kim 58
Power Programs in Developing Countries
2S05 Sustainability of Water Cooled Reactors - Energy Balance A.Strupczewski 61
for Low Grade Uranium Resources
2S06 Challenges and Opportunities to Launch Nuclear Power A. Mikhalevich 63
Programme in Belarus
2S07 Alternatives of Financing for New Nuclear Reactors in L.C. Longoria 65
Mexico
2S08 Expert Performance Transfer: Making Knowledge C.L. Turner 68
Transfer Count
2S09 ACR-1000® PROJECT - Licensing Opportunities and N. Popov 71
Challenges
2S10 The Role of Regulatory Authority in Licensing of the First A.T. Mikulski 73
Nuclear Power Plant
2S11 The Establishment of Regulation for Supporting the A. Mardha 74
Development of the First Nuclear Power Plant in
 Indonesia

2S12 Human Resources and Training - A Mandatory Gate for O. Salhi 76

Water Cooled Reactors in the 21st Century

TOPIC 3: DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF ADVANCED WATER COOLED

REACTORS
3S01 Status and Near-Term Works on the EUR Document, P. Berbey 80
Possible Use by Third Parties
3S02 The Enhanced CANDU 6 Reactor - Generation III CANDU S. Azeez 82
Medium Size Global Reactor
3S03 On the Physics Design of Advanced Heavy Water Reactor A. Kumar 84
(AHWR)
3S04 Advanced Construction Technologies and Further J. Kawahata 86
Evolution Towards New Build NPP Projects
3S05 AP1000: The PWR Revisited P. Gaio 88

3S06 Evolution of VVER Technology towards NPP-2006 Project V. Kosogorov 89

3S07 Development of Next-Generation Light Water Reactor in S. Kasai 92

Japan
3S08 Open Issues Associated with Passive Safety Systems L. Burgazzi 94
Reliability Assessment
3S09 Design Characteristics of the Advanced Power Reactor H.G. Kim 96
1400

TOPIC 4: SAFETY AND PERFORMANCE ACHIEVEMENT IN CURRENT NPPS

4S01 Plant Life Management Activities for Long Term Operation M. Marchena 100
of the Argentinean Water Cooled Reactors
4S02 Powering the Future - Life Extension of the Point Lepreau K. P. Stratton 102
Generating Station
4S03 R&D Activities for NPP Life Management in Korea T.R. Kim 104

4S04 Nuclear Power Plant Life Management - Challenges and C. Bruynooghe 106
Proposals for a Unified Model Integrating Safety and
Economics
4S05 Long-Term Aging Management Strategies for Nuclear S. G. Toney 109
Power Plants
4S06 Innovative Maintenance Technology for RPV and RIN of N. Suezono 112
Operating Nuclear Plant
4S07 IAEA surveillance data administration within Mat-DB H.H. Over 113

4S08 The Best-Estimate Plus Uncertainty (BEPU) Challenge in F. D'Auria 115

the Licensing of Current Generation of Reactors
4S09 Risk Concept in Nuclear Industry R. Fótos 117
 4S10 Application of the Performance Validation Tool for the S.-W. Sohn 119
Evaluation of NSSS Control System Performance
4S11 NULIFE ASSOCIATION: an Opportunity to Face Gen II / V. Prunier 121
Gen III Challenges through Cooperative Research
4S12 Model Reference Control & Protection Theory and A. Cilliers 123
Implementation for Nuclear Power Plants using Real-time
Simulations
4S13 Technical Support to An Operating PWR vis- à -vis Safety S. Gul 125
Analysis

TOPIC 5: ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION

5S01 CAREM Prototype Construction and Licensing Status D. F. Delmastro 128

5S02 Concept of a High Pressure Boiling Water Reactor, HP- F. Reisch 131
BWR
5S03 Super Critical Water-cooled Nuclear Reactors (SCWRs): I. Pioro 134
Thermodynamic Cycle Options and Thermal Aspects of
Pressure-Channel Design
5S04 Conceptual Design of Nuclear CHP Using Absorption G. Heo 136
Cycle
5S05 Water Cooled FBNR Nuclear Reactor F. Sefidvash 138

5S06 Supercritical Water-Cooled Reactor (SCWR) H. Khartabil 140

Development through GIF Collaboration
5S07 Nuclear Co-Generation Desalination Complex with Y. Kuznetsov 142
Simplified Boiling Water Reactor VK-300
5S08 Plutonium Management in Small Nuclear Country P. Dařílek 143

5S09 Roadmap Design for Thorium-Uranium Breeding Recycle S. Si 146

in PWR
5S10 Rod-Type Quench Performance of Nanofluids Towards I. C. Bang 149
Developments of Advanced PWR Nanofluids-Engineered
Safety Features
5S11 Applications of Nuclear Energy to Oil Sands and R. B. Duffey 151
Hydrogen Production
5S12 Water Chemistry and Corrosion Prevention at Nuclear V. Yurmanov 152
Plants with Supercritical Water Reactors
5S13 Optimization of CARA Fuel Element with Negative H. A. Lestani 153
Coolant Void Coefficient

TOPIC 6: SAFETY ASSESSMENT IN NPPS

6S01 Development of Universal Methodology of Specimen Free M. Bakirov 156
Nondestructive Inspection (Control) of Mechanical
Properties of NPP Equipment Metal in All Stages of
Lifetime
6S02 Comparison Between International and Slovak Design J. Misak 158
Safety Requirements on Severe Accidents and Feasibility
Analysis of the Safety Enhancement of VVER 440/V213
Plants to Comply with New Safety Requirements
 6S03 Safety Assessment and Improvements in Indian NPPs P.Krishnakumar 160

6S04 Experience Feedback of Current LWR on the Design and J. Riverola 163
Operation of Advanced LWR, under the Safety Analysis
Point of View
6S05 Operating Nuclear Reactors in Ukraine: Enhancement of S. Bozhko 165
Safety and Performance
6S06 Conclusions and Recommendations of the IAEA 2008 M. El-Shanawany
International Conference on Topical Issues in Nuclear
Safety

TOPIC 7 : INSTRUMENTATION & CONTROL

7S01 Upgrading the Reactor Power Control Concept with a M. Langle 168
Modern Digital Control System
7S02 Qualification of FPGA-Based Safety-Related PRM System T. Hayashi 170

7S03 Design Feature and Prototype Testing Methodology of K.H. Kim 171
DHIC's Nuclear I&C system
7S04 FPGA-Based Technology (Systems) for I&C of Existing V. Bezsalyi 173
and Advanced Reactors
7S05 On-line Monitoring and Calibration Techniques in Nuclear H. M. Hashemian 174
Power Plants

Part 3 Synopses for Poster Presentations

TOPIC 1: CURRENT NUCLEAR POWER OUTLOOK: OPPORTUNITIES TO LAUNCH

NEW NPP PROGRAMME
1P01 Nuclear Power and Ghana's Future Electricity Generation I. Ennison 176

1P02 The Role of Nuclear Energy in the European Energy E. Herczog 177
Policy
1P03 Challenges and Opportunities to Launch of New Nuclear J. Arora 180
Power Programmes
1P04 Nuclear Power Project in Thailand R. Namwong 182

1P05 Economy Aspect for Nuclear Desalination Selection in A. Sudi 184

Muria Peninsula Using 1000 MWe PWR
1P06 Infrastructure and Other Considerations to Launch A. Zeleke 186
Nuclear Power Programme: The Case of Sub-Sahara Meshesha
African Developing Countries Like Ethiopia
1P07 The Future of Nuclear Power in Portugal O. Gonzalez- 189
Hernandez

TOPIC 2: NUCLEAR DEPLOYMENT CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS -

INSTITUTIONAL AND CROSS CUTTING
2P01 Challenges and Opportunities to Launch New Nuclear Y. Zhao 191
Power Programmes
 2P02 Expansion of Nuclear Power in Mexico L. C. Longoria 194

2P03 Promote CPI Nuclear Power Development to Boost The X. Song 196
Self-Reliance in China
2P04 An Overview of Egypt's Human Resources Strategy for A. Awaise 197
the Nuclear Power Program
2P05 Regulation and License for NPP in Indonesia Z. Ilyas 199

2P06 A Nuclear Power Plant for a Developing Country: The E.M. Ngotho 201
Best Option
2P07 Infrastructure or HRD for Thai Regulator V. 203
Watcharasuragul

TOPIC 3: DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF ADVANCED WATER COOLED

REACTORS
3P01 Localisation of Manufacturing Capabilities in Setting Up S. K. Chadda 205
Nuclear Power Plants
3P02 ACR-1000 - Designed for Constructability J. Byrne 206

3P03 The Protection of Containers for Fresh and Spent Fuel at A.S. Grishin 208
External Transportation Operating Modes In and Around a
Nuclear Reactor's Portal
3P04 Development of Combined Modularization Technology for Y. Lee 209
APR+ (Advanced Power Reactor) in Korea
3P05 Development of Coupled Dynamics Model for VVER Obaidurrahman K. 211
Reactors
3P06 CANDU; Shortest Path to Advanced Fuel Cycles S. Kuran 213

3P07 Reactor Plant WWER-1200 for the Units of AES-2006 D. Ermakov 215

3P08 Method and Result of Experiment for Support of Technical V.R. Ostrovskiy 217
Solutions in the Field of Perfection of a Nuclear Fuel Cycle
for Future PWR Reactors
3P09 Improving Safety Provisions of Structural Design of J. Iqbal 219
Containment Against External Explosion
3P10 The Westinghouse AP1000 – An Advanced Passive Plant D. Freis 221
for A Safe Nuclear Future

TOPIC 4: SAFETY AND PERFORMANCE ACHIEVEMENT IN CURRENT NPPS

4P01 Integrity Evaluation for Elbows Based on TES Collapse S.H. Lee 223
Load
4P02 Extension and Verification of the Cross-Section Library for D. Kirilova 226
the VVER-1000 Surveillance Specimen Region
4P03 Containment Integrity - Key Role of Tendons J. Žďárek 229

4P04 Need of Reactor Dosimetry Preservation K. Ilieva 230

 4P05 Mobile Nuclear Laboratory for In-situ Measurements in P. Raics 232
NPPs
4P06 Risk Assessment for Nuclear Power Plants R. Islamov 234

4P07 OPG/COG Equipment Reliability Initiative: Development A. Bhaloo 235

of a consistent process to rate System and Plant Health at
CANDU Plants
4P08 On-line Gamma Spectrometric Monitoring at the Water A. Nazarenko 238
Cooled NPPs
4P09 Point Lepreau Level 2 PSA Results, Insights & Risk L. Comanescu 240
Monitoring Program

TOPIC 5: ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION

5P01 Station Blackout Core Damage Frequency Reduction at J. M. Oliveira Neto 242
LABGENE Reactor - The Contribution of a Natural
Convection Residual Heat Removal System
5P02 R&D of a Chinese SCWR X. Li 244

5P03 Vertification of Advanced Design Features Adopted in an S.H. Kim 246

Integral PWR
5P04 Several Aspects on Materials Problems for SCWR D. Ning 248

5P05 Generation IV reactor, IRIS K. Khattab 249

5P06 Model-based Advanced Water Cooled Reactor A. Blanovsky 254

5P07 CANDU: Setting the Standard for Proliferation Resistance J.J. Whitlock 256
of Generation III and III+ Reactors
5P08 IRIS: Advanced Water Cooled Reactor Technology M. D. Carelli 258

5P09 Typical Technology of Mechanics on Gen-III Passive W. Yao 260

NPPs and Gen-IV Advanced Supercritical Light Water
Reactors
5P10 Study on Thermal-Hydraulic Characteristics of D. Zhao 261
Supercritical Water Reactor
5P11 Optimization of Thorium Fuel Application Through a Ismail 264
Symbolistic System Consists of Large FBR and Small
Water Cooled Satellite-Reactors
5P12 Pressure Tube Reactor Contribution to Sustainable and R. B. Duffey 267
Secure Energy

TOPIC 6: SAFETY ASSESSMENT IN NPPS

6P01 The Modernization Program, Power Uprate at NPP V2 V. Řezník 268
Jaslovske Bohunice
6P02 Safety and Performance Achievement in Czech NPPs Z. Kriz 270
with VVER Reactors
6P03 Safety and Performance Achievement of Indian Nuclear R. Kumar 272
Power Plant
 Part 1

Synopses for Keynote Presentations

1
2
 IAEA-CN-164-01KS

IAEA’s Support of Water Cooled Reactors in the 21st Century and

Beyond
K.S. Kang, S. Bilbao y León, O. Glockler

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Austria

E-mail address of main author: K-S.Kang@iaea.org and S.Bilbao@iaea.org

In recent times, there has been a two prong approach on the expansion of nuclear power. On
the one hand, countries with existing nuclear power programmes have made a large effort
towards making the most of their current nuclear assets by capitalizing in many years of
operational excellence, as well as by extending and optimizing their operational life. On the
other hand, and despite these Plant Life Management efforts, there is a clear need to
eventually replace current nuclear capacity and also to meet increased energy demand in an
environmentally sound manner. These interests have motivated both countries with existing
nuclear programmes and newcomer countries to consider the construction of new nuclear
power plants (NPP) to fulfil those needs. In the near term, these new NPPs will most likely be
advanced Water Cooled Reactors (WCR) that are the result of combining current operational
experience with additional innovations resulting from worldwide research and development.

When it comes to Plant Life Management (PLiM), the safety considerations of a NPP are
paramount and those requirements have to be met to obtain and to extend/renew the operating
license. To achieve the goal of the long term safe, economic and reliable operation of the
plant, a plant life management programme is essential. Some countries already have advanced
PLiM programmes while others still have none. The PLiM objective is to identify all that
factors and requirements for the overall plant life cycle. The optimization of these
requirements would allow for the minimum period of the investment return and maximum of
the revenue from the sell of the produced electricity.

Recognizing the importance of this issue and in response to the requests of the Member
States, the IAEA Division of Nuclear Power implements the Sub-programme on ”Engineering
and Management Support for Competitive Nuclear Power”. Three projects within this sub-
programme deal with different aspects of the NPP life cycle management with the aim to
increase the capabilities of interested Member States in implementing and maintenance of the
competitive and sustainable nuclear power.

Although all three projects contain certain issues of PLiM, there is one specific project on
guidance on engineering and management practices for optimization of NPP service life. This
particular project deals with different specific issues of PLiM including aspects of ageing
phenomena and their monitoring, issues of control and instrumentation, maintenance and
operation issues, economic evaluation of PLiM including guidance on its earlier shut down
and decommissioning.

As the nuclear community worldwide looks into the future with the development of advanced
and innovative reactor designs and fuel cycles, it becomes important to explore the role Water
Cooled Reactors will play in this future. To support the future role of WCRs, substantial
design and development programmes are underway in a number of Member States to

3
 IAEA-CN-164-01KS

incorporate additional technology improvements into advanced NPP designs. In synergy with
countries efforts in technology development in support for near-term deployment of new
NPPs, the IAEA Division of Nuclear Power implements the Sub-programme “Technology
Development for Advanced Reactor Lines”. Two projects within this sub-programme focus
on fostering the collaboration and the exchange of information among Member States towards
the technology advance of WCRs for improvements in performance, economics and safety

One of the key features of advanced nuclear reactor designs is their very high level of safety
due to a reduction in the probability and consequences of accidents and to an increase in the
operator time allowed to better assess and properly react to abnormal events. A systematic
approach and the experience of many years of successful operation have allowed designers to
focus their design efforts and develop safer, more efficient and more reliable designs which
meet very stringent safety standards, and to optimize plant availability and cost through
improved maintenance programs and simpler operation and inspection practices.

The paper describes some of its achievements in IAEA activities on different issues of PLiM
and advanced WCR during the nearest past as well as plans for the future.

4
 IAEA-CN-164-03KS

European Nuclear Safety Research for the

Nuclear Renaissance
Giovanni De Santi

Director
Institute for Energy
Joint Research Centre, European Commission

E-mail address of main author: giovanni.de-santi@ec.europa.eu

The paper explores the potential for advanced research programmes as support to the
development of energy related scenarios in the near term. In particular, being the energy
sector identified as a major contributor to climate change, research is called to play a major
role in combining safe technologies with sustainable solutions. Nuclear technology will
represent a viable solution to meet energy demand, security and sustainability targets. Still for
a long time, research will be called to ensure safe and reliable operation of nuclear
installations, both current and future, for an extensive period of time and regardless of
geographical distribution.

The European Commission has a long history in nuclear research, since the Euratom Treaty.
Key developments in European nuclear fission research in recent years include:

• The Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform (SNETP), comprising strategic

research, deployment, training and funding strategies.

• Euratom participation in the Generation IV International Forum and as an observer to

the US Global Nuclear Energy Partnership (GNEP).

European research currently focuses on:

• Improving safety and reliability aspects of current nuclear installations.

• Developing safe and efficient design for future generation power plants.

• Providing solutions for nuclear waste minimization and disposal.

• Easing operation, in particular enhancing maintenance.

• Predicting plant lifetime and extending the available safe operating life.

• Maintaining critical nuclear competences.

The paper will explore current and future trends in research supporting nuclear energy safety
and security, providing preliminary evidence on the validity of the proposed approach and
case studies on selected topics.

5
 IAEA-CN-164-03KS

Dr Giovanni De Santi graduated at the University of Pisa (Italy) and obtained his PhD at the
Fluidodynamics Technical University of Munich (TUM). Since 1985 he has been employed at
the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, where he developed his
professional expertise in the fields of energy, mechanical/chemical engineering and
environmental science. In 2007 he was nominated Director of the Institute for Energy of the
JRC based in Petten (The Netherlands) and Ispra (Italy). Dr De Santi is member of the
Steering Committee and/or Governing Board of numerous European Commission
Programmes, such as the European Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan), the
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Joint Technology Initiatives, European Technology Platforms (Solar
Energy, Biofuels, etc.) as well as Chairman of international Task Forces such as the UNECE-
OECD Task Force for heavy duty transport emissions, etc.
He is the author of many peer reviewed publications in high level scientific journals and in
international conferences.

6
 IAEA-CN-164-04KS

The Challenge and Countermeasures for

Human Resources Development on Nuclear
Power in 21st Century
Mingguang Zheng

President,
Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute,
SNPTC，China

E-mail address of main author: zhengmg@snerdi.com.cn

Most IAEA member states have set up nuclear power development program as national policy
and energy strategy with the technical progress and successful demonstration of nuclear
power to be a safe clean, ecological and economic energy. The development and supply of
Human Resources (HR) is becoming the big challenge in the effective and sustainable
development of nuclear power as all countries in the world are in short of professional nuclear
engineers and skilled technician at present. The problem is resulting from firstly many
universities have closed or reduced nuclear power related faculty after two main severe
nuclear power accidents, secondly the existing nuclear power engineers and technicians are
going to retire and we have difficulties in finding replacement timely, thirdly the training
period for nuclear power professionals is much longer than those of the other industries.

The HR bottleneck situation should be seriously considered for the safe and economic
development of nuclear power. How to confront and find a practical solution to the challenge?
I suggest member states firstly to formulate an appropriate HR training program before
drawing up any nuclear power development plan; secondly to make nuclear power technology
education network or set up nuclear power university in different stages and regions thus to
provide distance learning and further study for the existing professional and skilled
technician; thirdly to promote international cooperation for nuclear power peaceful utilization
in a win-win strategy; fourthly to organize international nuclear expert forum and
communication platform to maximize their talent and speed up the development in nuclear
power manpower supply as well as establish a world-wide nuclear power HR foundation.

SNERDI/SNPTC of China has adopted various countermeasures to face the challenge of

nuclear power manpower by establishing and implementing the nuclear power human
resource program. The main points are as follows: to introduce advanced talents, to upgrade
scientific training system and to enhance nuclear power manpower training and
administration control, to establish efficient human performance evaluation system, to provide
related courses in Master and PhD degree, to provide guidance for staff development and
future advancement through nuclear power educational network and university, and etc .

7
 IAEA-CN-164-05KS

Nuclear Power: an Irreplaceable Option for

Sustainable Development
Philippe Pradel

Director
French Atomic Energy Commission

E-mail address of main author: philippe.pradel@cea.fr

Many signs of a global renewed interest in nuclear energy can currently be observed
worldwide. A vision for the place of nuclear energy in the future is one of a prominent role
throughout the 21st century, as this energy perfectly matches the requirements for the
sustainable development of mankind. Nuclear energy has the ability to contribute significantly
to world energy needs without producing greenhouse gas emissions.

Light Water Reactors (LWR) will play a leading role in the Nuclear Renaissance and the
industry is preparing actively to face the great need for the supply of reactors. However,
commitments and international obligations in terms of safety, security and non-proliferation
standards will have to be strictly observed: the highest level of safety and the present
international harmonization initiative shall be fostered, and the organization of back-end fuel
cycles along with spent fuel and radioactive waste will have to correspond to a responsible,
secure and non-proliferant form of management. Fuel services in particular, using the best
available proven technologies, should be set up under the IAEA umbrella.

In order to increase the sustainability of nuclear energy, fourth generation systems will need
to be developed. The french R&D strategy is based on the development of fast reactors with
closed fuel cycles along two tracks: the Sodium Fast Reactor (SFR) and the Gas fast Reactor
(GFR), with advanced processes for spent fuel treatment and recycling.

This challenge will be achieved thanks, in particular, to international collaboration and

dialogue. As it has been expressed at several occasions by President Sarkozy himself, France
finally intends to play a part in the coming nuclear renaissance, by assisting any country
willing to develop its own nuclear capacities with its unanimously recognized experience,
provided of course that it respects international non-proliferation and safety commitments.

Philippe PRADEL, 53 years old, a graduate of France’s leading engineering school Ecole
Polytechnique began his career with the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) as a
research scientist on the SUPERPHENIX liquid metal fast breeder reactor and was part of
the team that started up that reactor.
Mr. PRADEL joined Cogema in 1987 and became in 2003, Senior Executive Vice President
of COGEMA, in charge of Treatment, Recycling and Logistics. From 2005 up to 2009, Mr.
PRADEL was the Director of the Nuclear Energy Division at the French Atomic Energy
Commission (CEA), in charge of the whole nuclear energy sector.

8
 IAEA-CN-164-05KS

Since 2006, Mr Pradel is member of the board of AREVA, and chairman of the European
Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform since 2007.

9
 IAEA-CN-164-06KS

Challenges Faced by Developing Countries in

Nuclear Power Deployment
Hamad AlKaabi

Ambassador
Permanent Representative of the United Arab Emirates to the
International Atomic Energy Agency

E-mail address of main author: alkaabi@eaa.gov.ae

Analysis of future domestic electricity demand and supply conducted by official UAE entities
has concluded that increasing demand for electricity is fast outstripping the growth in supply.
Total electricity demand in the UAE is expected to rise from approximately 15,000 megawatts
to 42,000 megawatts by 2020. Significant new generation capacity must be constructed and
brought on-line. It was concluded that peaceful nuclear power-generation represents an
environmentally promising and commercially competitive option which could make a
significant contribution to the UAE’s economy and future energy security. To make clear its
intentions with regard to nuclear power, the Government of the UAE has prepared and
formally endorsed its “Policy on the Evaluation and Potential Implementation o Peaceful
Nuclear Energy” as a reflection of its views on the potential establishment of a peaceful
civilian nuclear energy program. The policy defines the framework under which the
program will be developed and is based on principles of transparency, highest standards of
safety, security and non-proliferation , and working directly with the IAEA and responsible
nations of expertise.

Many challenges face developing countries embarking on the development of a civil nuclear
energy program. Challenges include initial questions such as where and when a nation should
start planning. Other challenges are related to the development of required infrastructure in
legislation, regulatory, human resources, and institutional structure. Further challenges are
faced at the time of transforming guidance and recommendations into an implementation plan
and the execution of such plan in an effective manner. The UAE has addressed many of these
challenges by conventional and sometimes innovative ways in developing the required
infrastructure and moving into the implementation phase of the program. Starting from
almost no nuclear energy infrastructure, these plans are being conducted today in the UAE
with an expanding number of domestic and international stakeholders.

AlKaabi has helped lead the energy assessment, and has served as a primary interlocutor on
matters relating to nuclear energy and nonproliferation between the UAE Government and
international organizations and other governments. He is the UAE’s permanent representative
to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and was named in April 2008 by the UAE
Foreign Minister as the Special Representative for International Nuclear Cooperation. He has
been personally involved in all key milestones of the nuclear energy assessment, including a
national scope energy assessment evaluating future UAE requirements and potential sources
of electricity ,and drafting and release of the “Policy of the UAE on the Evaluation and
Potential Development of Peaceful Nuclear Energy”. Ambassador AlKaabi was trained as a

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 IAEA-CN-164-06KS

nuclear engineer, getting his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nuclear engineering from
Purdue University in Indiana (USA). His graduate work focused on nuclear safety.

11
 IAEA-CN-164-07KS

Advanced Nuclear Power Plants in Korea

Jong Shin Kim

President and CEO,

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd, South Korea

E-mail address of main author: st@khnp.co.kr

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd (KHNP) is the largest power company among the six
subsidiaries that separated from Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in 2001,
accounting for approximately 25% of electricity producing facilities, hydro and nuclear
combined.

KHNP operates 20 nuclear power plants in Kori, Yonggwang, Ulchin and Wolsong site and
several hydroelectric power generation facilities, providing approximately 36% of the
national power supply. As a major source of electricity generation in Korea, nuclear energy
contributes greatly to the stability of national electricity supply and energy security.

KHNP’s commercial nuclear power plant operation, which started with Kori Unit 1 in 1978,
has achieved an average capacity factor more than 90% since 2000 and a high record of
93.4% in 2008.

Following the introduction of nuclear power plants in the 1970’s, Korea accumulated its
nuclear technology in the 1980’s, developed OPR 1000(Optimized Power Reactor) and
demonstrated advanced level of its nuclear technology capabilities in the 2000’s by
developing an advanced type reactor, APR 1400(Advanced Power Reactor) which is being
constructed at Shin-Kori Unit 3&4 for the first time.

By 2022, KHNP will construct additional 12 nuclear power plants in order to ensure a stable
power supply according to the Government Plan of Long-Term Electricity supply & Demand.
4 units of OPR 1000 reactor model will be commissioned by 2013 and 8 units of APR 1400
are under construction and planned. At the end of 2022, the nuclear capacity will reach 33%
share of total generation capacity in Korea and account for 48% of national power generation.

Mr. Kim received a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Seoul National University in
1972 and a master’s degree in Business Administration from Ajou University in 2008. He began his
career at Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) in 1972 and has held many management
positions in the Korean nuclear industry e.g. Chief manager of KEPCO Paris Office in 1987, Vice
President of Overseas Project Department and Power Generation Department in 1997 and 1998
respectively, Site Vice President of Kori Nuclear Power site in 1999 and Executive Vice President of
Power Generation Division in 2001.

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 IAEA-CN-164-07KS

Mr. Kim was appointed President and CEO of KHNP in 2007. His work at KHNP focuses on
strengthening safety of nuclear power plants, improving operation performance and promoting self-
reliance of nuclear technology such as OPR1000 & APR1400.

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 IAEA-CN-164-08KS

ABWR Technology & Construction Experiences

Masaharu Hanyu

President & Representative Director

Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy, Ltd.

E-mail address of main author: masaharu.hanyu.tg@hitachi.com

Advanced Boiling Water Reactor, called ABWR, was developed as a plant of Improvement
and Standardization Program, Phase III, by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry,
Japanese Government. The basic design has been completed in cooperation with Hitachi, Ltd.
Toshiba, corp. and General Electric, Co. in 1985. The construction of Kashiwazaki Kariwa
nuclear power plant unit No.6 of Tokyo Electric Power Co. in Niigata JAPAN started in 1991.
Our ABWR NPPs are only the third generation NPPs that have operation experience in the
world.

The ABWR has been developed to achieve the following goals:

(1) Enhanced safety and reliability

(2) Enhanced operability and maneuverability

(3) Less occupational radiation exposure

(4) Improved economy

In order to attain these objectives, various technologies have been introduced and applied to
ABWR. Among these technologies, most prominent devices are Reactor Internal Pump, Fine
Motion Control Rod, RCCV and Control System installed of Advanced Human-Machine
System. Now, four ABWR Nuclear Power Plant(NPP)s are under operation and two ABWR
NPPs are under construction.

Applying advanced technologies to ABWR continuously, it was realized to make the

construction period shorter than current one by introducing Module process with big crawler
crane.

Based on our construction and operation experience of the third generation ABWR, we
continue to improve reliability and safety of ABWR and apply them to the future ABWR of
high efficient energy generation, in much shorter construction period but for longer operation
life.

Such enough experience to build and manage ABWR NPP makes us confident to contribute
any supplying technology and know-how of ABWR to the world.

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 IAEA-CN-164-08KS

Mr. HANYU Masaharu joined Hitachi, Ltd. Hitachi Works in 1975. He has been promoted his job in
the field of Nuclear Plant Service Engineering including ABWRs until 2004. He has contributed to
Nuclear Systems as a General Manager for two years and he was appointed Corporate Officer of
Hitachi, Ltd. In 2007, he was appointed President & Representative Director of Hitachi-GE Nuclear
Energy, Ltd.

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 IAEA-CN-164-08KS

Experience of ABWR Operation and Global

Deployment
Takeo Shimizu

Senior Fellow
Nuclear Energy Systems & Services Division
Power Systems Company
Toshiba Corporation

E-mail address of main author: takeo2.shimizu@toshiba.co.jp

The ABWR (Advanced Boiling Water Reactor), which has received Design Certification
from the U.S. NRC, is the latest BWR. It is the only third generation nuclear power plant now
in operation, and has proved its safety, reliability and consistent operation. Kashiwazaki-
Kariwa Nuclear Power Station units 6 and 7, operated by Tokyo Electric Power Co. in
Niigata, Japan, were the first ABWRs that we constructed. They returned to full-scale
operation in August 2009, following the Niigata-Chuetsu-Oki Earthquake. This quake
provided unasked for verification of the design and construction reliability of the ABWR.

ABWR development began in 1978, with a basic design drawn up by an international

consortium of BWR suppliers. A final, detailed design was completed by Toshiba, Hitachi
and General Electric, based on evaluations of the initial design. The development project
began as the Plant Improvement and Standardization Program Phase III and was supported by
the Japanese government. Reliability tests of newly developed equipment were performed
with support from the Japanese government and utilities, and the results indicated the
reliability of the new equipment and its suitability for use. The ABWR adopts automated
operation to assure better operability, inspection, and replacement of equipment, for the
purpose of reducing radiation exposure.

Four ABWRs are in operation in Japan, two are under construction and eight are planned. The
ABWR has evolved with the introduction of more advanced technologies in Digital
Instrumentation and Control (I&C), the Turbine System and Safety Systems.

Outside Japan, two ABWRs are under construction in Taiwan. We are also implementing
plans to deploy ABWR for Units 3 and 4 of the South Texas Project (STP) nuclear power
plant in the U.S., based on the results of a TVA study supported by the U.S. DOE. We are
also deploying the ABWR in conformity with European nuclear regulatory requirements, in
particular Finnish safety regulation. We are confident that applying advanced technologies
and meeting regulatory requirements in countries planning to introduce the ABWR will allow
deployment on the global scale.

In March 1977, Mr. Shimizu received his master’s degree in Mechanical Sciences and Engineering at
Tokyo Institute of Technology Graduate School of Science and Engineering.

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 IAEA-CN-164-08KS

In April 1977, he joined Nuclear Energy System & Services Division at Toshiba. Since that time he
has served in design and development on BWR and ABWR plant nuclear systems.

From April 1990 to 1991 he had engaged in SBWR project at GE.

In 1999, he was appointed as a senior manager of LWR Plant Project Engineering Department of
Toshiba and he supervised nuclear plant construction projects.

Since April 2003, he has been a Senior Fellow and supervises Toshiba’s LWR technology.

Since 1977 he has experienced many plant's design and construction totally.

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 IAEA-CN-164-10KS

VVER Reactors : Clean and Reliable Source of

Energy in the Past and in the Future
N.B. Trunov

Chief designer
JSC "Experimental and Design Organization
"GIDROPRESS", Russian Federation

E-mail address of main author: trunov@grpress.podolsk.ru

The paper covers the position of VVER technology and the role it plays in the development of
the world nuclear power industry, touching upon the technology-related key features. The
main technical and economic indices achieved are considered resulting from the analysis of a
45-year operating experience and the ways to improve them. The principal tendency traced is
the higher requirements for NPP economic efficiency with safety assurance level preserved up
to the standards of the current regulatory documents. However, the enhancement of the
economic efficiency is connected with both the NPP and reactor performance, namely, the
power Unit installed power, efficiency factor, capacity factor, breeding factor etc.

Another tendency in nuclear power industry development is meeting the needs of the
Customers in constructing NPPs within the power line from 100 to 1600 MW considering the
expansion of the export of nuclear power technologies. The paper also covers the design
features of small-size (300 MW.el). and medium-size (400 – 600 MW.el) power reactors.
Large-size reactor designs cover the reactors for NPPs with electric power from 700 to 1600
MW. The paper briefly describes design concepts and the stages of design elaboration and
implementation. The modernization of the basic designs of V-392 reactor and NPP-92 Project
that hold EUR certificates, is shown to have an evolutionary nature. Besides, prospects for the
future and the avenues of further development are considered for large power reactors.
VVER-600 design, that is a two-loop reactor based on AES-2006 reactor design with electric
power 600 MW and a two-loop VVER-1200A reactor plant are presented in the paper.

The proven technology and the infrastructure of VVER allow offering the concept of a
supercritical pressure water coolant reactor (VVER-SCP). In comparison with the traditional
VVER reactors the design is expected to offer major advantages in technical and economic
indices due to a high thermodynamic efficiency factor (up to 45 %) and increased breeding
factor with an orientation towards a closed fuel cycle.

The conclusions made describe the significant potential for VVER technology development to
solve the problems of power industry in the long term.

Nikolay Trunov graduated from Moscow Power Engineering Institute in 1982. Doctor of Sc.
(Eng). Author of more than 100 publications, including book "Hydro-dynamic and thermal-
chemical processes in steam generator of NPP with WWER". Since 2001 holds position of
Chief designer- Head of division of OKB "Gidropress", Podolsk, Russia. Main activities:

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 IAEA-CN-164-10KS

design, theoretical and experimental research of steam generators, heat exchangers and other
components of NPP of different types.

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 IAEA-CN-164-11KS

Advanced Design of Mitsubishi PWR Plant for

Nuclear Renaissance
Etsuro Saji

General Manager
Reactor Core Engineering Department
Nuclear Energy Systems Engineering Center
Nuclear Energy Systems Headquarters
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd.(MHI), Kobe, Japan

E-mail address of main author: etsuro_saji@mhi.co.jp

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd (MHI), has been playing the leading role in PWR
technology in Japan for about 50 years. We have constantly contributed to the design,
manufacturing and construction of all of the 26 PWRs in operation, under construction or
under licensing in Japan, in spite of the recent stagnation of the new nuclear construction over
the world. We have enhanced our PWRs safety, reliability, operability and maintainability
throughout our history, collaborating with our customers and the government, such as in the
“Improvement and Standardization Project of Light Water Reactors”. We polished up the
outcome of this joint effort of the public and private sectors, and materialized as the APWR
plant. The Japanese first APWRs are under licensing as the Japan Atomic Power Company’s
Tsuruga units 3 and 4.

In parallel with domestic activities, we began our globalization history as a supplier of

nuclear components, such as Steam Generators (SGs), Reactor Vessels (RVs), Reactor Vessel
Heads (VHs), Pressurizer (PRs), Reactor Coolant Pumps (RCPs) or Steam Turbines. Those
experiences gave us the confidence in our technologies as well as competence as a global
supplier.

The design of the Japanese APWR is based on the conventional 4-loop plant technologies,
with which MHI has accumulated significant operating experience, scaled up to achieve
higher electrical outputs in Japan. In addition to adopting these proven technologies,
modifications are also made on the Japanese APWR to improve economy, safety, reliability,
operability, and maintainability. For the advancement of the nuclear power technology in
Japan, the Japanese APWR has been developed. Newly developed Japanese APWR
technologies are fully tested, well-verified, and well-established. The Japanese APWR output
of 1538 MWe is produced from the large capacities of the reactor core and other major
components such as the steam generator, reactor coolant pump, and turbines.

The US-APWR and EU-APWR are fundamentally based on the established Japanese APWR
plant with its latest technologies to improve plant efficiency such as the employment of large
steam generators and turbines, and other minor modifications to meet U.S. utility
requirements or European Utility Requirements (EUR). With an increased plant safety,
reliability, and performance, construction costs are being reduced due to the benefit of
economy of scale resulting from an increase in capacity.

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 IAEA-CN-164-11KS

For its counterpart for the US market, the US-APWR, the standard design certification (DC)
application was submitted to the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) in December
2007 and docketed in February 2008. It had the Nuclear Energy Institute categorize
Mitsubishi as the 4th “Nuclear Plant Designer” in the US. The technical review process is in
progress and the Final Safety Evaluation Report is expected to be issued in 2011. Last
September, Luminant filed their combined construction and operating license (COL)
application for Comanche Peak units 3 and 4, referencing US-APWR standard design.

We held the “EU-APWR Technical Seminar” for European utilities in Brussels. We are
preparing the compliance assessment with European Utility Requirements (EUR) to deploy
the APWR technologies in Europe. The EU-APWR is an evolutionary Generation-III+ design
based on proven technologies of Japanese APWR. It realizes the world largest class output of
1,700MWe. The 14ft fuels create additional thermal margin to realize 24-month refueling
cycle without deterioration of the fuel economy.

Mainly in order to serve the region where mid-sized plants are wished because of the
condition about power demand and/or grid capacity, we are offering 1,100MWe class
Generation-III+ PWR, i.e. ATMEA1 as well. The ATMEA1 is at the stage of its basic design
performed by ATMEA, the joint venture of AREVA NP and MHI.

Our latest new build, Hokkaido Electric Power Co., Inc.’s Tomari unit 3 is now at the final
stage of commissioning and its commercial operation is expected to begin this December.
Tomari unit 3 preoccupied the evolutionaly technology of APWR such as full digital I & C,
advanced control room, steam genarator with high corrosion resistrance and three dimensions
design turbine blade. Tomari unit 3 realizes high reliability with full digital I&C system and
advanced control room, large electric output by employing optimized turbine design with
54”long end blades and other advanced features. For total management over design to
construction of Tomari 3, we employed the unified 3D CAD database. For containment vessel
(CV) construction, we employed parallel technique of on-site upper head assembling and
body construction then hoisted the whole upper head assembly onto the body using super
heavy duty crane, which realized the CV construction period of as short as eight months.

Based on our long years experiences as the total PWR plant supplier in Japan and of
supplying key components to the global market, we commit ourselves to contribute to
“nuclear renaissance” by offering EU/US-APWR and ATMEA1 Gen-III+ PWRs, and Tomari
3 type PWR as a “total plant supplier to the global market”.

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 IAEA-CN-164-13KS

Application of Advanced Technology to

Improve Plant Performance
H.M. hashemian

President
AMS Corporation, USA

E-mail address of main author: hash@ams-corp.com

Abstract

Advances in computer technologies, signal processing, analytical modeling, and the advent of
wireless sensors have provided the nuclear industry with ample means to automate and
optimize maintenance activities and improve safety, efficiency, and availability, while
reducing costs and radiation exposure to maintenance personnel. A review of these
developments and examples of their broad use in the nuclear power industry will be presented
together with the financial and safety benefits that they have produced.

As the current generation of nuclear power plants have passed their mid-life, increased
monitoring of their health is critical to their safe operation. This is especially true now that
license renewal of nuclear power plants has accelerated, allowing some plants to operate up to
60 years or more. Furthermore, many utilities are maximizing their power output through
uprating projects and retrofits. This puts additional demand and more stress on the plant
equipment such as the instrumentation and control (I&C) systems and the reactor internal
components making them more vulnerable to the effects of aging, degradation, and failure. In
the meantime, the nuclear power industry is working to reduce generation costs by adopting
condition-based maintenance strategies and automation of testing activities.

These developments have stimulated the development of on-line monitoring (OLM)

technologies and new diagnostic and prognostic methods to anticipate, identify, and resolve
equipment and process problems and ensure plant safety, efficiency, and immunity to
accidents. This speech provides examples of these technologies and demonstrates how they
can provide the nuclear industry with the means to meet regulatory requirements, comply with
technical specification provisions, or resolve operational and maintenance issues.

H.M. Hashemian has a Doctor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering, and a Ph.D. in

Nuclear Engineering. He has worked for AMS since 1977 when the company was
founded. AMS specializes in process instrumentation, equipment condition monitoring, on-
line diagnostics of anomalies in industrial equipment and processes, automated testing, and
technical training. The company’s headquarters are in the USA with representative in
Austria, Spain, South Korea, and Switzerland.

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 IAEA-CN-164-13KS

Dr. Hashemian has written two books, six book chapters and over 200 technical papers. His
books have been translated to Chinese, Japanese, and Russian.

Through AMS, Dr. Hashemian has worked for almost all the 104 nuclear power plants that
are currently operating in the United States and many in Europe and Asia. Furthermore, he
has presented seminars, training course, and lectures to nuclear industry professionals in 15
countries. He was elected a Fellow of the International Society of Automation in 1992 and is
a member of the American Nuclear Society, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers,
and European Nuclear Society.

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 IAEA-CN-164-14KS

NULIFE – its Role in Implementing Strategic

Research of LTO related to PLIM Issues in
Europe
Rauno Rintamaa

Vice President
VTT Business Solutions, Energy
Espoo Finland

E-mail address of main author: rauno.rintamaa@vtt.fi

The European network of excellence NULIFE (Nuclear plant life prediction) has been
launched with a clear focus on integrating safety-oriented research on materials, structures
and systems and exploiting the results of this integration through the production of
harmonised lifetime assessment methods. NULIFE will help provide a better common
understanding of the factors affecting the lifetime of nuclear power plants which, together
with associated management methods, will help facilitate safe and economic long term
operation of existing nuclear power plants. In addition, NULIFE will help in the development
of design criteria for future generations of nuclear power plant.

NULIFE was kicked-off in October 2006 and will work over a 5-year period with over 40
partners drawn from leading research institutions, technical support organisations, power
companies and manufacturers throughout Europe. NULIFE also involves many industrial
organizations and, in addition to their R&D contributions, these take part in a dedicated End
User Group. Four expert groups, with identified members and links to national programmes,
have now produced state-of-the-art type reports related to their expertises. Stress corrosion
cracking and thermal fatigue pilot projects have finished concluding reports. Several project
proposals have been introduced and optimised for new NULIFE pilot projects or other R&D
projects.

The importance of the long term operation of the plants has been recognized at European
level, in the strategic research agenda (SRA) of Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology
Platform (SNETP). The SRA defines the strategic targets in long term operation (LTO),
performance improvement and external factors. In the long term operation area, safety
justification, ageing mechanisms of systems-structures-components, ageing monitoring and
prevention and mitigation of ageing are important subjects. In addition, some generic cross-
cutting focus areas like structural materials, prenormative research, codes and standards,
modelling, simulation and methods are considered. In NULIFE, the near future action will be
the preparation of road maps and specific short, medium and long term research topics for
each strategic focus areas identified in the SRA.

Based on NULIFE business plan, the discussion of long-term business plan, operational
model and statutes of the future NULIFE Association has been started. In this context
NULIFE maintains the sustainability of nuclear power by focusing on the continued, 60+
years of safe operation of nuclear power plants. The recognition of NULIFE's position as a
key instrument in EU wide strategy implementation will assist the establishment of the

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 IAEA-CN-164-14KS

NULIFE Association and providing the sustainable LTO and PLIM related research and
harmonised procedures. This presentation will outline the operating model and structure as
well as key highlights of the current and future activities of the NULIFE.

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 IAEA-CN-164-16KS

Hydrogen Production using Water Cooled

Reactors
Pascal Yvona, Philippe Carlesa, François Le Naourb
a
CEA, DEN, F-91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
b
CEA, DPNTE, F-38054 Grenoble, France

E-mail address of main author: pascal.yvon@cea.fr

Today the world is facing tremendous energy challenges. There is a demographic explosion,
which even in the most conservative scenarii will drive the energy demand to high levels
whilst at the same time fossil resources are becoming scarcer, and more particularly oil which
bears most of the weight in the transportation area. Global warming is also becoming a major
concern as the last Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change concluded that anthropogenic
greenhouse gases (GHG) are responsible for most of the observed temperature increase since
the middle of the twentieth century. To address these difficulties, the first step is to look for
ways to save energy whenever possible. Then, the part of GHG free sources - renewable
energies (wind, solar, hydraulic, biomass,..) as well as nuclear energy - has to be increased in
electricity production. Lastly, since the part of electricity in the final consumption of energy is
less than 20% worldwide, GHG free sources of energy have to look for other markets such as
transportation, whether directly (electric cars) or indirectly via hydrogen (fuel cells,…) and/or
process heat.
Hydrogen is produced currently from fossil fuels (less than 5% is produced by splitting
water), and production is increasing steadily, mostly because of its use for refining crude oil
and the more demanding standards of purity required. This alone is already stimulating
interest in producing hydrogen by sustainable means. Moreover, the hydrogen market is
bound to expand soon: hydrogen has been identified as a leading candidate for transport
applications. A near term solution is to use the hydrogen produced together with a carbon
source (biomass, coal, waste, CO2, …) to make synthetic fuel. A longer term and more
hypothetical development could be the direct use of hydrogen to power cars. Hydrogen could
also be used in the iron and cement industries as a reducing agent and also help these CO2
intensive industries to significantly decrease their GHG emissions.
The French context has also to be taken into account. More than 80% of electricity is
produced by nuclear power plants and the hour to hour variations of the electricity demand
have to be absorbed by having some plants operating at intermediate power over significant
periods of time. This situation presents the double drawback of not taking full benefit of an
expensive investment as well as having to take careful steps when going back to full power in
order to preserve the fuel cladding. Hydrogen production during off peak periods could help
regulate the electricity demand and operate the nuclear plants in base load. This then requires
hydrogen production means that are flexible and not investment intensive, as they would be
used only on a part time basis.

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 IAEA-CN-164-16KS

CEA’s strategy is hence to focus on processes which could be coupled to nuclear plants or
renewable energy sources and thus be able to produce hydrogen in a sustainable way, by
splitting the water molecule using GHG free electricity and/or heat. Low temperature
electrolysis, even if it is used currently for limited amounts, is a mature technology which
uses only electricity and can be generalized in the near future. However, this technology,
which requires about 4 kWh of electricity per Nm3 of hydrogen produced, is energy intensive
and therefore three advanced processes have also been investigated: High temperature steam
electrolysis (HTSE), the Sulfur-Iodine (S-I) and Hybrid sulfur (HyS) thermochemical cycles.
These processes look promising but the last two require the development of high temperature
reactors, still necessitate extensive R&D work and will not be mature for industrial
development within the next 20 years. Therefore, beside the optimization of LTE, our focus
will be on HTSE, which will be available sooner and can also operate in autothermal mode,
offering the capacity to be coupled to a LWR. In this paper, we will present the French
roadmap for hydrogen production.

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 IAEA-CN-164-17KS

Innovative Water Cooled Reactor Concepts –

Small and Medium Reactors
J.N. Reyes

Chief Technical Officer

NuScale Power Incorporated, USA

Schuette Endowed Chair Professor of Nuclear Engineering,

Oregon State University, USA

E-mail address of main author: jnr@nuscalepower.com

Innovative water-cooled Small and Medium Reactors (SMRs) will play an essential role in
meeting global energy needs. Based on well-known and well-tested water cooled reactor
technology, this type of SMR can be licensed within the existing regulatory framework and
have a ready supply of fuel and component manufacturers. As a result, water-cooled SMRs
represent a near-term nuclear power solution. Excellent overviews of numerous SMRs,
including water cooled concepts such as the KLT-40S, CAREM, SMART, IRIS, SCOR,
AHWR, MARS, and MASLWR have been provided by the IAEA1,2. The advantages of
SMRs are well known. Their smaller sizes make them suitable for a greater number of power
grids and applications. This fact, coupled to their lower capital costs, yield a state-of-the-art
nuclear energy solution with the potential of achieving a much greater market penetration than
larger plants. SMR designs that utilize factory built components that can be shipped to a site
by rail, truck or barge offer shorter construction times and greater cost certainty hence
reducing financial risk. Many SMRs eliminate the choke points for the supply of large
components such as reactor vessel forgings and large turbines. Their reduced core inventories
present a smaller fission product source term which permits a greatly reduced emergency
planning zone. This would allow SMRs to be sited in the proximity of large population
centers while reducing power line losses. Some SMRs propose longer core lives which
significantly reduce plant down time.

Among the water cooled SMRs, there exists a special class of reactors that are both modular
and scalable. The fundamental concept is that of constructing a central power station
comprised of multiple small power reactors. As regional power demand increases, additional
modules can be added in the most economic manner to meet any size power need. Of
particular interest is the NuScale Multi-Module Power Plant; a design that has evolved from
the MASLWR concept developed at Oregon State University. This design employs both the
economy of scale through the use of multiple modules and the economy of small through
reduced size and simplification to offer significant operational advantages while being
financially competitive with the large reactors. The NuScale plant design has been guided by
a comprehensive set of customer utility requirements and informed by U.S. expert panels on
reactor safety and data and analyses using state-of-the-art computer codes benchmarked
against a 1/3-scale full-pressure, full temperature integral system test facility at Oregon State
University. The unique characteristics of a NuScale multi-module plant are the topic of
discussion for this paper.

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 IAEA-CN-164-17KS

The NuScale Nuclear Steam Supply System (NSSS) is very compact. It is enclosed in a
containment that is only 18.3 m (60 ft) long by approximately 4.6 m (15 feet) in diameter. It
includes the reactor pressure vessel which is 13.7m (45 ft) long by 2.7 m (9 ft) in diameter
which contains the nuclear core, a helical coil steam generator, and a pressurizer. The nuclear
core consists of an array of roughly half-height LWR fuel assemblies and control rod clusters
at standard enrichments. The helical coil steam generator consists of two independent sets of
tube bundles with separate feedwater inlet and steam outlet lines. Feedwater is pumped into
the tubes where it boils to generate superheated steam. A set of pressurizer heaters is located
in the upper head of the vessel to provide pressure control. Primary flow through the nuclear
core is driven by natural circulation. Each module is independently connected to a small
steam turbine generator set capable of producing a net power of 45 MW(e). The base platform
for a NuScale plant consists of 12 modules capable of producing a total power of 540 MW(e).
That is, one to twelve modules can be added to the base plant platform without the need for
additional on-site construction. A multi-module central power station has many advantages. It
eliminates single-shaft risk such that the loss of a single turbine does not shutdown the entire
plant. Each module is identical and factory fabricated enabling major economic improvements
through mass production. Factory production also enables the use of high performance
replaceable NSSS components.

Each module resides completely underwater in a three-sided bay that is open to a common,
stainless-steel lined pool located in the reactor building. The use of a single reactor building
that houses a common underground cooling pool for all of the modules yields a unique set of
economic, operational, safety and security advantages not previously recognized for this class
of SMR. It allows for rapid and sequential refueling of each module. This keeps the overall
plant availability very high such that only 45MW(e) are taken off the grid at any given time.
Its unique refueling and maintenance bay minimizes refueling time and the size of the
refueling and maintenance crews. Of major significance to safety and cost is the fact that the
small diameter containment vessel significantly increases passive decay heat and containment
heat removal while minimizing metal mass. This results in one of the safest and the most
compact design for any multi-module plant concept. The simplicity and compactness offered
by the design significantly reduces construction and material costs making the NuScale multi-
module plant very competitive with large plants on a $/kW(e) of installed capacity. The
NuScale multi-module plant design has successfully completed its first year of pre-application
meetings with the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission and is in active discussions
with US utilities.

REFERENCES

[1] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Status of Innovative Small and

Medium Sized Reactor Designs 2005: Reactors with Conventional Refueling
Schemes, IAEA-TECDOC-1485, Vienna (2006)

[2] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Status of Small Reactor Designs

without on-site Refueling, IAEA-TECDOC-1536, Vienna (2007)

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 IAEA-CN-164-18KS

Research and Development of Supercritical-

Pressure Water Cooled Reactors
Yoshiaki Oka

Professor
Department of Nuclear Engineering and Management,
School of Engineering, University of Tokyo, Japan

E-mail address of main author: oka@nuclear.jp

Supercritical water does not exhibit a change of phase. The water density decreases
continuously with temperature. The heat is efficiently removed at the pseudo-critical
temperature, which is approximately 385°C at 25MPa. The low density fluid above this
temperature is often called “steam” and high density fluid below it is called “water.”
Supercritical-pressure water cooled reactor (SCWR) adopts the once-through coolant cycle
with the “water” as the reactor inlet and the “steam” as the outlet. The “steam” is directly fed
to the turbines.

The advantages are the compactness of the plant system due to the high specific enthalpy of
supercritical fluid, the simplicity of the plant system without the recirculation system and
dryers of BWRs and steam generators of PWRs and high thermal efficiency without the limit
of the boiling temperature.

Pressure vessel type SCWRs have been developed at the University of Tokyo since 1989 and
is studied Japan, Europe and other countries. The University of Tokyo’s version is called
Super LWR and Super FR. The European version is called HPLWR (high performance light
water reactor). Pressure tube type SCWR is studied in Canada and other countries.

Roughly speaking, the reactor pressure vessel and the control rods of Super LWR and Super
FR are similar to those of PWRs, the containment and safety system are to BWRs and balance
of plant is to supercritical fossil-fired power plants (FPPs).

LWRs were developed 50 years ago. Their successful implementation was based in part on
experiences with subcritical fossil-fuel fired power (FPP) technologies at that time. The
number of supercritical FPPs worldwide is larger than that of nuclear power plants.
Considering the evolutionary history of boilers and the abundant experiences with
supercritical FPP technologies, the supercritical pressure light water cooled reactor is the
natural evolution of LWRs.

Water cooled fast reactors require a tight fuel lattice. The once-through coolant cycle is
compatible with the tight lattice core of water cooled fast reactors. The increase in the core
pressure drop due to the tight lattice does not cause problems with pumping power and
stability because of the low coolant flow rate of the once-through cycle and small difference
of water densities between the “steam” and the “water” at the supercritical pressure.

30
 IAEA-CN-164-18KS

The plant system of the Super FR is the same as that of the Super LWR, a thermal reactor.
Fast reactors do not need a moderator. Their power density is inevitably higher than that of
thermal reactors. High power density is an advantage in economy. The Super FR has higher
power density than the Super LWR. The Super LWR is expected to show better economy than
LWRs due to the compactness, simplicity of the plant systems and high thermal efficiency.

The guidelines of the Super LWR and Super FR concept development are the following.

1. Utilize supercritical FPP and LWR technologies as much as possible.

2. Minimize large scale developments of major components.

3. Pursue simplicity in design.

The maximum temperature of the major components such as turbines, the reactor pressure
vessel, main steam piping, reactor coolant pumps and control rod drives has been kept within
the experiences of supercritical FPPs and LWRs. The concept of Super LWR and Super FR
are developed based on numerical simulation at the University of Tokyo. The studies cover
fuel and core design, plant control, start-up, stability, plant heat balance, and safety analysis.
An advantage in safety is that depressurization cools the core in the once-through coolant
cycle reactor such as Super LWR and Super FR.

Thermal hydraulic experiments using 7 fuel rod bundles are carried out at Kyusyu University
and JAEA. The measurement of critical flow at depressurization, condensation of
supercritical steam and the critical heat flux near the critical pressure have been made at
Kyusyu University. Austenitic stainless steels based on the experience of PNC1520 are tested
as the cladding materials at JAEA. Thermal insulation material, a type of zirconia was
developed at the University of Tokyo. Water chemistry and dissolution of corrosion products
in supercritical water are studied at the University of Tokyo.

The second phase of HPLWR project started September 2006 with FZK as the coordinator
with EU funding. Design and integration, core design, safety, materials and heat transfer are
studied with 10 European partners. Funding for research and development of the SCWR was
begun in 2007 in China. Shanghai Jiao Tong University is the lead organization of eight
partners. R&D of the pressure-tube type SCWR is conducted in Canada.
NSERC/NRCan/AECL-University program started in 2008. The Coordinated Research
Program (CRP) on heat transfer of supercritical fluid is organized by the International Atomic
Energy Agency (IAEA).

Present paper includes the results of “Research and Development of the Super Fast Reactor” entrusted
to the University of Tokyo by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science at Technology of
Japan (MEXT).

31
32
 Part 2

Synopses for Oral Presentations

33
34
 Synopses for Topic 1

CURRENT NUCLEAR POWER

OUTLOOK: OPPORTUNITIES TO
LAUNCH NEW NPP PROGRAMME

35
 IAEA-CN-164-1S01

Approaches to Assess Competitiveness of Small and Medium Sized

Reactors
Vladimir Kuznetsov, Nadira Barkatullah

International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria

E-mail address of main author: v.v.kuznetsov@iaea.org

There is continuing interest in Member States concerning the development and application of
small and medium sized reactors (SMRs), i.e., reactors with the equivalent electric power of
less than 700 MW [1]. Currently, developed SMRs are in most cases intended for markets
different than those in which large nuclear power plants operate. Such markets have
essentially different investment requirements, siting flexibility, grid connections and
infrastructure restrictions. Therefore, economic factors affecting the competitiveness or
competition of SMRs in such markets would also be different from those observed in
established markets for electricity production. For example, investment capability may be
limited, which would favour capacity addition in smaller increments; grids may be small or
weak, which would favour capacities exactly matching the demand; infrastructure and human
resource may be insufficient, which would favour less complex operation and maintenance
requirements; and non-electrical energy products, such as potable water, may be in demand,
which would favour reasonably close plant location to the customer.

In practice it is futile to compare a single SMR needs to a single larger capacity plant on an
economy of scale basis because SMRs are suitable for those locations that might not be
appropriate for larger plants. However, a series of SMRs could be considered comparable to
fewer larger plants to achieve the same overall power station capacity. In this case, SMRs
have a potential to be competitive by employing alternative design strategies, taking
advantage of smaller reactor size, offering a less complex design and operation and
maintenance, relying on deployment-in-series approaches, taking an advantage of the
accelerated learning, multiple unit factors and shorter construction duration. Reflecting on
developments in member states, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is finalizing
the preparation of a report highlighting the economics and investment related factors affecting
SMR competitiveness, as well as the tools available to assess these factors [2].

Adequate comparative assessment of SMR competitiveness is a complex task that may

require considering time dependent expenditure and generation profiles and interest rates to
determine adequate values of levelized unit energy cost (LUEC) for deployment scenarios
with several consequently built plants of different types and capacities. As private capital may
play an important role in financing of the new plants, investment and revenue models need to
be employed to determine time-dependent characteristics, such as investments and revenues.
Uncertainty analysis needs to be incorporated to add a degree of fidelity to the overall
assessment. A variety of methods and tools required to conduct comparative economic
assessments would been described in this paper. Many of these tools already exist in member
states or are available from international organizations.

In addition to this, the IAEA coordinated the development of an open model for the analysis
of SMR economic and investment opportunities, which targets bringing together all currently

36
 IAEA-CN-164-1S01

available state-of-the-art models for generation costs, revenues, financial costs, and external
factors and risks, while “keeping the door open” for any new approach or development once it
becomes available. The open model is being developed for a specific task of comparing the
deployments of SMRs versus larger reactors in liberalized energy markets. LUEC will be an
important figure of merit in this model; however, provisions would be made to ensure that
LEUC is calculated taking into account time-dependent expenditure and production profiles
and changing interest rates. In addition models to calculate investment profiles and revenues
will be included. Finally, an approach to take into account other factors potentially affecting
the competitiveness of SMRs, such as energy supply security, proliferation-resistance,
political posture, etc. will be developed.

In parallel with the development of such model, IAEA is conducting a series of case studies to
indentify options for SMR competitive deployment and relative benefits and disadvantages of
smaller and larger reactors in different deployment strategies and application conditions, see
Fig. 1. It can be seen that, when compared to a deployment of a single large reactor of the
same capacity, staggered build of SMRs may minimize negative cash flow (capital-at-risk)
but also may delay full site power availability to the grid and lower the net present value of
the project by shifting cash inflows onward.

Years

FIG. 1. Cumulative cash flow for a case study: staggered build of 4 SMRs versus one large
reactor of the same overall capacity.

REFERENCES

[1] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Status of Innovative Small and

Medium Sized Reactor Designs 2005: Reactors with Conventional Refuelling
Schemes, IAEA-TECDOC-1485 (2006).
[2] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Approaches to Assess
Competiveness of SMRs, IAEA Nuclear Energy Series Report (in preparation).

37
 IAEA-CN-164-1S02

Outlook of Nuclear Energy in Algeria

Brahim Meftah

Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique, Comena, Alger-Gare, Algiers, Algeria

E-mail address of main author: b_meftah@yahoo.com

The recent technological advances in the field of nuclear power plant design together with the
continuous increase in the price of oil and gas and the search for lowering the global
warming are making the option of using nuclear energy for the production of electricity and
water desalination a very attractive alternative to be included in the energy mix of many
developing countries.

The interests of Algeria in nuclear energy and its peaceful applications go back to the early
seventies when a consistent program for training engineers and scientists in nuclear
engineering was set up. Opportunity and feasibility studies for the construction of a nuclear
power plant were conducted between 1975 and 1984 with the collaboration of IAEA. In
parallel extensive efforts were made in the field of Uranium exploration and prospection.

In 1982 the ‘Commission of New Energies’ was created and undertook major actions that led
to the implementation of basic nuclear infrastructures (nuclear research centers, research
reactors, etc….).

The Chernobyl accident of 1986, the drastic drop in the price of petroleum and the economic
recession that affected the country during the nineties strongly slowed down the progress of
the Algerian nuclear power program.

The recovery of the economy and the strong increase in energy demand for the production of
electricity and sea water desalination gave renew of interest in the nuclear option and
prompted the creation of the ‘Commission of Atomic Energy’ in 1996 and its subsequent
merging into the Ministry of Energy and Mines in the year 2006.

The past two years witnessed very noticeable progress in major fields aimed at energy
planning, site selection and evaluation and the preparation of basic tools for the introduction
by the year 2022 of a first nuclear power plant in the national energy grid.

Pertinent aspects of the Algerian nuclear power program are reviewed in this presentation.

38
 IAEA-CN-164-1S03

Implementation of the Visaginas Nuclear Power Plant Project in

Lithuania
M. Grinevičius, Dr. G. Klevinskas, L. Koraliovas

Visagino atominé elektriné UAB, Vilnius, Lithuania

E-mail address of main author: gintautas.klevinskas@vae.lt

On June 28, 2007, the Parliament (Seimas) of the Republic of Lithuania passed the Law on
the Nuclear Power Plant (No. X-1231) (hereinafter - the Law). This Law plays the role of the
"decision in principle" for the construction of new nuclear power plant in Lithuania and the
objective of this Law shall be to lay down provisions and to create legal, financial and
organisational preconditions for the implementation of a new nuclear power plant project
(hereinafter- Project). It is planned that the new nuclear power plant should start its operation
in 2018. Implementing the provisions of the Law, the national investor, LEO LT, AB on 28
August 2009 has established the project development company "Visagino atominé elektriné"
UAB.

However, the preparatory phase of the implementation of the Project has commenced much
earlier. Some of the preparatory activities are still ongoing but the finalization of the
preparatory works is planned with the preparation of the procurement documents for the new
NPP at the end of 2010.

The Pre-feasibility (Technology Assessment) study has been conducted in 2006 with the aim
at identifying whether the construction of a new nuclear power plant in Lithuania is feasible
from the legal, financial, technological and environmental and transmission grid point of
view. The results of the Pre-feasibility study have shown that the implementation of the new
nuclear power plant in Lithuania is feasible viewpoint of the aforementioned criteria.

Environmental impact assessment study has been performed and the corresponding report
issued in the end of 2008. It successfully went through the public and international hearings
and consultations. Environmental impact assessment procedure is going to be finalized in
April 2009.

Transportation study activities are ongoing; the first part related to the investigation of the
possible transportation routes for transportation of the heavy and oversized components to the
construction site is already accomplished. The second part of the study, related to the
economical and technical evaluation of the selected possible transportation routes has started.

The evaluation of the construction sites against the IAEA requirements has started in the
beginning of 2009, during implementation of this project the evaluation of the two preselected
sites against the IAEA requirements for seismic activity, geotechnical conditions, external
human induced events and etc. is going to be performed.

The new power plant is going to be constructed near the Ignalina NPP which is currently
running into its decommissioning phase, some of the infrastructure of the old plant can be
used for construction of the new one. In order to correlate the decommissioning plans of the

39
 IAEA-CN-164-1S03

Ignalina NPP with the construction of the new NPP a project for Ignalina NPP infrastructure
overtake has been initiated.

In the frame of the Territory planning project the necessary arrangements in order to plan the
land plots for new NPP construction are performed.

Drūkščiai lake hydrological and thermal balance measurements are performed in order to
specify the data necessary for preparation of the project of the NPP cooling facilities and the
evaluation of the lake thermal load.

Environmental audit of the construction sites is going to be performed in order to investigate

the existing conditions of the sites and possible contamination stipulated by previous
activities. The measures for site cleanup and resources necessary for this activity will be
evaluated.

The project for the preparation of the infrastructure for connection of new NPP is aimed to
prepare the technical conditions for the new power plant to be connected to the necessary
engineering infrastructure (power lines, gas tubes, water lines and etc.).

With regard to development of legal environment, necessary changes in national legislation

are being introduced with the aim to address the legal issues connected with development of
Visaginas nuclear power plant project.

In order to meet the personnel requirements for a new NPP, the national specialist's education
programmes in nuclear energy and nuclear energy physics were introduced in major
universities of Lithuania.

The project is successfully proceeding forward with the major activities still lying ahead.

REFERENCES

[1] National Energy Strategy of Lithuania, Parliament (Seimas) of the Republic of

Lithuania (2007).
[2] Law on Nuclear Power Plant of the Republic of Lithuania No. X-1231, Vilnius (2008).
[3] Environmental Impact Assessment Report. New Nuclear Power Plant in Lithuania
(2009).

40
 IAEA-CN-164-1S04

On the Sustainability of LWR Development in China

Wenquan Shen

State Nuclear Power Technology Corporation, Beijing, China

E-mail address of main author: shenwenquan@yahoo.com

China’s energy sustainability is facing three major challenges: (1) The defference between
supply and demand; (2) The per capita energy resource deficiency; (3) The irrationality of
energy mix.

Considered of the challenges, such as national security, energy safety and environment safety
etc, taking into account the national oil and gas will be more dependent on international
market; the coal-fired generation will put more and more pressure on the environment. The
reasonable usable hydro power will be less and less. As a large-scale alternative energy
source, nuclear energy has an excellent perspective in the Chinese energy development
program because of its technology maturity, and its close to zero greenhouse gas emission.
That’s why nuclear power is the must in China.

There is an old Chinese proverb-“opening the stream source, while cutting down the flow”.
China must take positive measures to open up new growth point in the energy supply, and
gradually change current irrational energy mix. The reasonable pathway is to seek new
increasing point of energy resource. Thus, nuclear power must be the most practicable option,
and doubtless posses the irreplaceable strategic position. At the same time, it requires a
comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable development of China’s nuclear industry.

The 1st countermeasure to cope with nuclear power sustainability for meeting the urgent
demand increase of nuclear energy is to import 3rd generation nuclear technology AP1000,
speed up its self-reliance & innovation, improve its economical competitiveness, and
commercially deployed as soon as possible.

At the beginning of this century, the government organizations initiated to make out the 2005-
2020 National Sci. & Tech. Development Program, which was reviewed by Chinese
Academies of Science, Engineering, and Society in 2002, and approved by State Council in
2003. Within the scope of this Program, a batch of National Key Projects was made up the
mind to start over. Among them the project of “Large Advanced PWR and HTR Nuclear
Power” is a superiority one. In terms of investment proportion its domain division is LAPWR,
which has clarified to be carried out following the leading policy of “based on importation
and digestion of world advanced nuclear power technology, to develop self-relied innovative
PWR”. It has pointed out that the China’s larger scale development of nuclear power will start
with a new great leap forward.

Authorized by the Government organization, SNPTC is the entity of the third generation
nuclear power technology receiver, while acting as the chief bearer and the R&D platform to
realize the G3 nuclear power technology self-reliance.

The 3 stage roadmap of LAPWR R&D is shown in this figure.

41
 IAEA-CN-164-1S04

The world first AP1000 plant had its first concrete diffusion in April this year. It has declared
a new ear of 3rd generation nuclear power development in China. The successive AP1000
nuclear power projects have been approved by government authorities. Further more, the
inland NPP will start soon with the only option of AP1000, because of its higher safety goals
and compact plant layout.

The self-relied larger passive plant finished its conceptual design last year end with the same
safety goal as AP1000 but improved economical competitiveness. The relevant R&D
activities have started recently.

The 2nd countermeasure to cope with nuclear power sustainability is to participate Generation
4 International Forum (GIF) for the future much larger scale development with focusing on
main targets of sufficient use of nuclear resource, and nuclear waste minimization.

China has become the new signatory of GIF since 2007, and is now the member of VHTR
System Steering Committee and the observers of both SFR and SCWR. Also, the Chinese
experts are taking an active role in some IAEA’s coordinate research projects related to
SCWR. The Chinese government authority has approved the SCWR R&D Project within the
frame of National 973 Program. 3 subjects, including material, thermal-hydraulics, and
reactor physics, with 7 work packages are in progress.

China has already the available technology foundations of PWR, SFR and HTR, but
compared with the advanced GIF technical goals there still exist large gaps. The purpose for
China to join GIF activities is to follow up the world advanced technical level and make joint
effort in some common interested R&D projects, so as not only to catch up with the world
advanced level in proper time, but also to have the great stamina for future sustainable
development of nuclear power in China.

42
 IAEA-CN-164-1S05

Regional Approach to the Introduction of Nuclear Power Plants in

Africa: Challenges and Opportunities
Shams. Elegba

Nigerian Nuclear Regulatory

E-mail address of main author: s.elegba@nnra.gov.ng

In the Africa Region only South Africa operates Nuclear Power Plants for electricity
generation. But since 2005 about sixteen other African countries have made political
commitment to develop Nuclear Power Programme for electricity generation or for
desalination of sea water. Similar interests have been shown by Member States in other
Regions. In this regard, it is significant to consider the development and the status of radiation
safety infrastructure in the region over the past one-and a- half decades, vis-à-vis the IAEA
Model Project on “Strengthening Radiation Protection Infrastructure”, which was introduced
in 1994. The main objective of the Model Project was not only to recommend but to work
together, “shoulder to shoulder” with Member States, to eliminate the shortcomings in their
safety infrastructure and control of radiation sources. The Model Project has been adjudged
very successful. In addition to the improved level of radiation and waste safety infrastructure
in the region, Member States in the Region have even taken steps to consolidate the gains of
the Model Project by appreciating the networking and the peer review mechanism provided
under the Model Project and have gone ahead in 2008 to establish a regional association of
regulatory bodies, which is similar to those in the other regions. This is the Forum of Nuclear
Regulatory Bodies in Africa (FNRBA), the Charter of which was launched in Pretoria, South
Africa in March 2009.

This paper seeks to leverage on the lessons and the experiences garnered from the Model
Project on the “Strengthening Radiation Protection Infrastructure “ to develop a paradigm or
template for developing a Regional Model Project on the Development of Nuclear Safety
Infrastructure in Member States of the Agency seeking nuclear power for the first time.
Already, this is one of the seven thematic working areas the Forum wants to address in the
next three years. The requirements for nuclear safety in terms of political and financial
commitments are very different from those of radiation safety infrastructure. It is however
noted that issues of nuclear safety and security have both national and international
responsibilities which must be addressed without jeopardizing sovereignty of States. But then
issues of poverty alleviation and therefore financing of Nuclear Power Plants will better
addressed and facilitated on a well articulated and coordinated regional platform. This in turn
will ensure transparency and compliance with international standards for radiation safety,
nuclear safety and safeguards.

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 IAEA-CN-164-1S06

Future of the Nuclear Power Generation in Hungary

Tamás János Katona

Paks Nuclear Power Plant Ltd. 7031 Paks Hungary

E-mail address of main author: katonat@npp.hu

Development perspective of the Hungarian economy and the same time its vulnerability is
defined by import dependence of the energy supply. This had been recognised in the energy
policy approved by the Hungarian Parliament in 2008. Security, stable, predictable price and
environmental targets are set by the energy policy. Security of supply and the economical
targets might be achieved by diversification of energy sources and power generation
technologies, also diversification of import markets.

The electric power generation industry of Hungary is diversified considering the technologies.
The gas, nuclear and coal are the main sources at growing share of renewable technologies.
However the system needs further development since big part of existing capacities is
obsolete. The development options are defined by the EU obligations, national interests and
the trends in the industry. The industry is oriented to low risk incentives, preparing new
project on gas and neglecting the adverse effects of increasing gas-dependence. Development
of renewable capacities is clearly motivated by the state subsidies.

An intensive development of renewable capacities is limited by the economical constrains.

After recent temporary drop of power consumption a moderate economical growth can be
expected and predicted for long-term with annual increase of electric energy consumption
between 0.5 to 1.5 percent. Assuming that the projects for increasing of energy saving and
efficiency of end-use and the new renewable capacities will cover the net increase of demand,
3000-4000MW new power generation capacity will be needed for the replacement of shut-
down old plants. 2000MW replacement capacity would be needed additionally, if the existing
nuclear capacity would be shut-down when the originally licensed term will expire.

The role of nuclear power generation in Hungary can be assessed considering the mentioned
above conditions and expectations. The Nuclear Power Plant Paks has an enormous role in the
domestic power generation system, since it is the largest, cheapest and cleanest production
capacity in the country. The nuclear power plant is the most important capacity for ensuring
the security of supply. The plant strategy is to operate safe and as long as economically
reasonable. Reactor power up-rate implemented recently provides 8% increase of plant output
due to utilisation of modernised fuel assemblies and some minor modifications. The payback
of power up-rate is less than four years. The licensed term of operation is 30years which
expire between 2012 and 2017.

An extension of operational lifetime is feasible due to robustness of design and good

condition of the plant. Justification of safety of additionally twenty years of operation is in
progress. Solid regulatory system exists for the control and approval of licence renewal.
Business assessment shows that the extension of operational lifetime is a reasonable decision.
Other conditions as intermediate storage of spent fuel and final repository of radioactive
waste are manageable. Extension of operational lifetime is widely supported by public.

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 IAEA-CN-164-1S06

Considering the forecast of energy demand and development perspectives of power

generation industry in Hungarian, and also the targets of the energy policy, building of new
nuclear capacity seem to be reasonable and feasible. The new nuclear capacity will really
contribute to the sustainable development, decrease the vulnerability of economy due to
import dependence, and motivate the overall development of engineering and constructing
industry.

The preliminary analysis show that two units of 1000-1600MWe can be integrated into the
system between 2020 and 2025. Paks site is available with necessary infrastructure. The
experience of nuclear operators, knowledge of engineering and scientific support
organisations, and the legal system exist for the preparation, construction and licensing of
plant. In a 30 March 2009 vote, the Hungarian parliament has given overwhelming
preliminary support to a government proposal to begin the detailed preparation for the
construction of new nuclear generating capacity at the Paks plant. In the paper the long-term
operation of Paks Nuclear Power Plant as well as the conditions and perspectives of a new
built plant will be discussed.

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 IAEA-CN-164-1S07

Infrastructure Development and Challenges to Launch Nuclear Power

Programme in Thailand:
Sirichai Keinmeesuke

Office of Atoms for Peace (OAP), Ministry of Science and Technology, Thailand

E-mail address of main author: sirichai@oaep.go.th

In June 2007, the cabinet passed a resolution for Thailand’s Power Development Plan (PDP
2007). It was mentioned in the plan that Thailand will have 2 x 1,000 MWe nuclear power
plants in 2020 and another 2 x 1,000 MWe in 2021. The PDP 2007 was revised in March
2009 and it was agreed to change the nuclear power generation to only 1 x 1,000 MWe in
2020 and 2021 respectively due to the large excess capacity at present. Many activities related
to development of infrastructures in order to support electricity generation using nuclear
power are being executed.

Milestones for nuclear power program implementation has been developed using the IAEA
document “Milestones in the Development of a National Infrastructure for Nuclear Power”
with some amendments to suit country situation. According to the schedule, a lot of activities
related to infrastructure establishment, feasibility study, utility preparation and public
education & participation are being performed. Within the year 2011, various issues such as
legal and regulatory systems and international commitment, industrial and commercial
infrastructure, technology transfer and human resource development, safety and
environmental protection, public information and public acceptance, preparation of the
nuclear power utility establishment, etc. must be solved out and undertaken to assure the
cabinet to make final decision to go nuclear.

The action plan for the first three years (2008-2010) is shown in Table 1.

There are many challenges for Thailand embarking of the nuclear power programme. For
example, it is essential to plan for the establishment of a regulatory body at the national level
to support and regulate the nuclear power plant industry. Currently, the application for a
license and the monitoring of a power plant are administered by the authorities of various
agencies under different ministries; hence the process is very time-consuming and overlaps
with one another. The approach that the regulatory body and the authorities to issue licenses
relevant to the nuclear power plant operation are merged into one independent body is under
consideration.

The human resources development (HRD) is also a key process and is time consuming.
Future action to develop human resources for the Pre-project is shown in Figure 1.

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 IAEA-CN-164-1S07

Activities 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
1. Study and appraise
treaties, international
agreements,
international laws, and
international standards
relating to a nuclear
power plant in order to
elicit their essential
elements which are
necessary to the
drafting of the Thai
Legislation on a
nuclear power plant
2. Draft comprehensive
nuclear laws
3. Expand existing
NRB
4. Start to develop
human resources for
NRB
5. Sign the required
treaties and
conventional laws)
6. License for
construction permit
7. License for
commission permit

Table 1: Draft Action Plan for the first three years (2008-2010)

Figure 1: Proportion of HR Deployment for the Pre-project Activities

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 IAEA-CN-164-1S08

Evaluation on the Status of Indonesia Nuclear Infrastructure

Development
Bambang Suprawoto, Suparman

National Nuclear Energy Agency (BATAN), Jakarta, Indonesia

E-mail address of main author: bsuprawo@batan.qo.id; bsuprawoto@yahoo.com

The demand for electricity increases every year. The increase is commensurate with the rate
of increase in economic development and in population growth, and with the rapid
developments in the industrial sector. To meet this demand for electricity, it is becoming more
and more difficult to rely on existing resources which are limited. It is therefore very
important that steps should be taken to seek other sources of energy supply as alternatives.
Based on the premise that a Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is technically safe, reliable, clean and
environmentally-friendly, relatively economical, and supported by our modest achievements
in preparations in respect of human resources and infrastructure, including the results of the
feasibility studies for NPP development and the comprehensive assessment of different
energy sources for electricity generation in Indonesia, the option of nuclear power could well
be the right solution.

A nuclear power programme is major undertaking requiring careful planning, preparation and
investment in term of time and human resources. As with any major programme, the
commitment of resources to a nuclear power programme needs to be phased and decision to
move to subsequent phases, where the commitment of resources will increase significantly,
need to be made with a full understanding of the requirements, risk and benefits [1]. The
milestone to identified three distinct phases in the introduction of a nuclear power programme
and identified separate conditions for each : phase 1 covers the preparatory work in order to
make an informed decision about a potential nuclear programme; phase 2 covers the
development of the infrastructure issues required to be ready to begin and supervise
construction of a nuclear plant; phase 3 covers the construction of the plant up to the approval
to commission and operate [2].

In relation to the IAEA doc No. NG-G-3.1 year 2007, Indonesia has included nuclear power
option within its energy policy as indicated by Presidential Decree No. 5 year 2006. Indonesia
is ready to make commitment to a nuclear power programme by the issue of Act No. 17 year
2007, which states that the first nuclear power plant should be started in the year of 2015-
2019 with high consideration of safety factor. In order to find out the readiness of Indonesia
in the deployment of the first NPP, the status of its nuclear infrastructure development should
be identified, and the result of the evaluation on the status of Indonesia nuclear power
infrastructure development explain in the Table 1.

The aim of the evaluation approach is to : evaluate all relevant infrastructure issues in a
consistent manner; bring the results together in order to identify a comprehensive action plan
for moving into a subsequent phase of the establishment of a nuclear power infrastructure;
provide a consistent international approach and enhance national competence through
participation in a detailed and comprehensive evaluation. The 19 (ninetenth) of nuclear
infrastructure are national position, nuclear safety, management, funding & financing,

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legislative framework, safeguards, regulatory framework, radiation protection, electrical grid,

human resources, stakeholder involment, site & supporting facilities, environmental
protection, emergency planning, security, nuclear fuel cycle, radioactive waste, industrial
involment and procurement [3].

Table 1. The Status of the Indonesia Nuclear Power Infrastructure Development

No. INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES STATUS

1. National position Minor Actions Needed

2. Nuclear safety Minor Actions Needed
3. Management Minor Actions Needed
4. Funding and Financing Minor Actions Needed
5. Legislative Framework Minor Actions Needed
6. Safeguards Minor Actions Needed
7. Regulatory Framework Minor Actions Needed
8. Radiation protection Minor Actions Needed
9. Electrical Grid No Actions Needed
10. Human resources Minor Actions Needed
11. Stakeholder involvement Minor Actions Needed
12. Site and supporting facilities Minor Actions Needed
13. Environmental protection Minor Actions Needed
14. Emergency planning Minor Actions Needed
15. Security Minor Actions Needed
16. Nuclear fuel cycle Minor Actions Needed
17. Radioactive waste Minor Actions Needed
18. Industrial Involvement Minor Actions Needed
19. Procurement Significant Actions Needed

REFERENCES

[1] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Evaluation of the Status of

National Nuclear Infrastructure Development, IAEA Nuclear Energy Series No.
NG-T-3.2, Vienna (2008).
[2] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Milestones in the
Development of a National Infrastructure for Nuclear Power, IAEA Nuclear Energy
Series No. NG-G-3.1, IAEA, Vienna (2007).
[3] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Basic Infrastructure for a
Nuclear Power Project, IAEATECDOC-1513, IAEA, Vienna (2006).

49
50
 Synopses for Topic 2

NUCLEAR DEPLOYMENT
CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS
– INSTITUTIONAL AND CROSS
CUTTING

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S01

Challenges and Opportunities to Introduce a First Nuclear Power

Plant in Bangladesh
M.M. Haque, M.A. Zulquarnain, M.S. Islam

Atomic Energy Research Establishment, Savar, Dhaka, Bangladesh

E-mail address of main author:romu@dhaka.net

Bangladesh is a country of 140 million people where 40% of people are access to electricity.
Per capita energy consumption indicates the development growth of a country. Present energy
consumption rate (165 kWh) of Bangladesh is the lowest among the developing countries.
Over the years, due to the lack of indigenous energy resources, Bangladesh has become a gas
dependent mono-energy based country. The indigenous gas reserve would be exhausted
within 2017-2018 if it is used at the present rate for only power generation. There is no
proven gas reserve due to lack of authentic survey. Eighty five percent of the total power
plants are based on indigenous gas supply. It is therefore vital for the country to look for
alternative fuel or power production and nuclear power technology is identified as a viable
option in overall energy mix.

Due to limitation of natural resources and high demand for power for industrialization,
poverty alleviation, millennium development goals (MDGs), Bangladesh Atomic Energy
Commission (ВAEC) has adopted a site on 292 acres of land way back in early 1960's at
Rooppur in the Pabna district about 180 kilometers from Dhaka for implementation of the
first nuclear power plant in the country. Generally, building a first nuclear plant takes longer
time 8-15 years from inception in developing countries. To materialize the dream, a number
of feasibility studies conducted so far has identified technical and economic merit of nuclear
power in Bangladesh and that the site in general met the conditions for building a nuclear
power plant. For introduction of a nuclear power plant, the stability of the national electricity
grid is an important prerequisite. Necessary measures to minimize any fluctuation of
frequency and voltage during normal operation have to be identified and implemented.

The Government approved the Bangladesh nuclear power action plan on 18th January 2000.
As requested by the Government, the IAEA had sent several missions in several times, which
had identified certain actions that are needed in the pre-implementation phase of building a
600-1000 MW nuclear power plant at Rooppur. The option is left open for building additional
units in the future. The status of the actions is:

a. Updating Site Report /Feasibility study

The site report has been updated and is being converted into a site safety analysis
report following the review by the IAEA in 2003.
b. Nuclear Power Action Plan
The Government has adapted a nuclear power action plan, which describes the
principles and actions needed to facilitate implementation of the project. The plan
was examined by the IAEA before the Government formally accepted it.
c. Request for Proposal

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S01

A draft request for proposal has been prepared, which will be used for inviting bids
from intending suppliers and financiers.

It was not possible to make progress the project as expected due to various impediments,
including financing as the most serious obstacle although the ECNEC had approved the
project in 1980. Construction cost of a nuclear power plant (NPP) is 1.5-2.0 million USD per
MW(e) whereas for a 600 MW(e) and 1000 MW(e) nuclear power plant, it costs about 1.5-3
billion and 3-4.5 billion USD, respectively. It is confirmed that generation cost of nuclear
compared to fossil fuels is the lowest. It can be mentioned here that for a 1000 MW(e) power
plant, 27 ton, 2.7 million ton and 2 million ton of nuclear, coal and oil fuels, respectively are
needed in each year. The priority of the project is evident from the fact that there exists a
Cabinet Committee, headed by the Head of the Government on the implementation of the
project.

On the other hand, BAEC has been operating the 3MW TRIGA Mark-II nuclear research
reactor for RI production, various R&D activities and man power training program since
1986. Regulatory body is the solely responsible for ensuring the safe use of radiation sources /
equipment and the management of radioactive waste both in the public and private sectors
under NSRC Act, 1993 and NSRC Rules-1997. The nuclear safety and radiation control act
1993 was passed in the National Assembly in 1993. The nuclear safety and radiation control
division (NSRCD) is working with the IAEA for reforming, updating nuclear safety and
radiation control rules for implementation of the Rooppur nuclear power plant in the country.

Moreover, Bangladesh has signed all treaties, convention, bilateral agreements, safeguards
agreements, protocol additional to the safeguards agreements for peaceful applications of
nuclear energy in the country. BAEC has constructed a central waste processing facility in the
largest establishment of Atomic Energy Research Establishment (AERE), Savar, Dhaka for
waste management arises from the research reactor and other nuclear medical centers located
at different parts of the country.

A policy is also adopted to get a continuous supply of fuels and their front-end and back-end
cycles in order to implement the first Rooppur nuclear power program in the country. The size
and type of the reactor and grid capacity is in the process of negotiation with the vendors.
Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR) or VVER type would be the potential candidate for
selection due to its inherent safety features. Size should be justified after load flow and
stability study. There is a plan to develop human resources in the field of design, construction
and safety for successful implementation оf the Rooppur nuclear power project. Several
workshops, seminars, symposium and physical measures are being conducted by the ВAEС
for nuclear knowledge transfer, preservation and management against workforce ageing.
Recently BAEC has introduced the safeguards, Safety and Security Division to oversee the
country's nuclear materials accounting, control, safety and security systems.

Public acceptance is one of the important aspects for implementing the nuclear power
program in the country. Due to the public acceptance and demand, the successful applications
of nuclear technology for mankind in different sectors are substantially increasing day by day.
Public acceptance of nuclear power program in the country is in general very good. Seminar,
exhibition, press meeting/release, publication, public visit have been made on public
information in order to achieve the public understanding and public acceptance on peaceful
applications of nuclear energy.

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Fuel availability, initial high investment, waste disposal, safety, long construction time and
high decommissioning cost are the major concern but if overall per unit cost is competitive
with coal and safety is ensured nuclear will be a prospective candidate for future power
generation. Still there are many challenges; these include lack of adequate trained manpower
for licensing of sites for nuclear power plants, licensing of design and construction of the
plant and associated civil works and infrastructure and finally licensing the commissioning,
operation and decommissioning of such nuclear plant facilities, it is equally important that our
regulators must possess enough technological expertise to demonstrate competence in the
strict adherence to the international safeguards regime. If Bangladesh is to get rid of chronic
power shortage problem and look for long-term energy security and sustainable development,
entry into a long-term nuclear power program should not be delayed anymore.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S02

Nuclear Power Development, Financing and Delivery

Ala Alizadeh

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited

E-mail address of main author: alizadea@aecl.ca

This presentation outlines the challenges facing the development of new nuclear power
projects in particular in the emerging electricity markets.

The decision to employ nuclear power has always been a strategic government decision tied
to national energy and infrastructure policy. The first generations of nuclear power plants
were financed through government debt or sovereign guarantees. The government guarantees
attracted favorable financing and repayment terms. In addition, the associated risks of
construction and delivery were primarily secured by government backstops. These guarantee
programs were necessary to support the size and risk of these projects that were integrated
into government regulated energy markets. In some markets such as the US, the public utility
boards were authorized to recover their full investment costs through adjustment of the
electricity selling rate.

There are new nuclear projects under consideration in mature, regulated and deregulated
markets that have not built a new nuclear plant for many years. In addition, emerging
countries are also planning to build nuclear plants and are in the process of assessing the
necessary steps to create the foundation for a nuclear energy program. In all countries the
regulatory process, legislation, legal framework, and industrial and commercial infrastructure
are required as the basis to go forward.

In many countries, the project models have changed from government sponsored projects, to
private and in some cases public-private structures. This open market approach is driven by
the reluctance of governments to incur further national debt and through promotion of
deregulated energy markets. The viability of such projects hinges on the generation costs
versus the acceptable market rate for selling price as well as the strength and maturity of the
electricity market.

This new ownership and delivery model also has to deal with the risk associated with
regulatory approval process, financing, escalation, potential cost overrun, commercial terms,
national legislative support for liability, and long term power purchase agreements.

The example of these ownership and delivery structures have come forward in Finland, UK,
Cernavoda 3 and 4 project in Romania and the recent request for tenders issued by the
government of Turkey. These projects are focused on the involvement of private companies to
finance and deliver projects that will deliver energy at market prices.

However, even in mature markets there is still expectation of government support and
backstops. This has been the case in the U.S.A. with federal loan and state guarantees deemed
necessary to advance the nuclear new build. In Canada Bruce Power Refurbishment project
received provincial support, through guaranteed long-term power purchase agreements.

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In conclusion, there is a worldwide movement shifting from 100% government or sovereign

guaranteed projects towards private and public/private structures. However, these new
programs are not moving forward with the speed needed to address the requirements of
reducing GHGs and increased electricity demands. The high capital costs of nuclear new
build requires increased equity share from the investors in particular during construction. The
lenders are demanding strong power purchase guarantees and recourse to the balance sheet of
the owner utilities. This coupled, with the high perception of nuclear project risks, has slowed
down the new build process. At this point the role of government support in particular in the
emerging markets has to be strengthened to move these programs along.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S03

Nuclear Power for Future Electricity Generation in Ghana: Issues and

Challenges
Benjamin J.B. Nyarko, E.H.K. Akaho, I. Ennison

National Nuclear Research Institute, Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Legon-Accra,

Ghana

E-mail address of main author: b.nyarko@gaecgh.org

Ghana‘s electricity demand has been estimated to be growing at a high rate of about 7% per
annum over the last ten years. This is due to the relatively high population growth, economic
aspiration of the country and the extension of electricity to rural areas.

Electricity supply, on the contrary, has been unable to meet the demand due to high
dependency on rain-fed hydropower plants, which started operating in 1965 and currently
account for about 68% of the total installed capacity. Within the last 28 years, climatic
changes and draughts have caused the nation to experience three major power crises.

These climate changes resulted in low inflows and thus reduced power generation from
hydropower systems. To complement the hydropower systems, the Government in 1997
installed thermal plants based on light Crude Oil. However, due to the high Crude Oil prices
on the International Market in recent times have made the operation of these plants very
expensive. Ghana’s Crude Oil find can boost its energy supply when the oil exploration
begins somewhere in 2010. For rural cooking, domestic biomass is employed. In addition,
Ghana has no domestic coal resources. The Government of Ghana is concerned with: limited
further growth potential of domestic hydro; high cost of imported oil and gas and
environmental issues associated with use of imported coal.

Small Solar and wind generation exist in some sectors, but potential large-scale development
is not envisioned for the near future. With the aforementioned issues in mind, the President of
Ghana set up a Committee involving Stakeholder Institutions to formulate the Nuclear Power
Policy and develop the basic elements of Nuclear Infrastructure and to assess the viability of
introducing the nuclear power option in Ghana’s energy mix. Cabinet took a decision to
introduce the nuclear power option after the Committee submitted his report to the President.
On 7th January 2009, there was a change of government.

There is also an IAEA TC project GHA/0/011: “Evaluating the Role of Nuclear Power in
Future Options for Electricity Generation” which commenced in 2009. The question is, what
are the challenges facing Ghana’s Nuclear Power Programme?

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S04

Challenges and Opportunities in Launching New Nuclear Power

Programs in Developing Countries
H.-G. Kim

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., LTD, Republic of Korea

E-mail address of main author: hgkim@khnp.co.kr

1. Developing countries have a need to launch new nuclear power programs

As a consequence of the 1st and 2nd oil shock during 1970’s, the nuclear power generation
was considered the most economical energy source for more than 10 years. After that, new
nuclear power programs have been showing a downward trend, due to public opinions against
nuclear power programs caused by the TMI and Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Incidents.

However, nuclear power is coming into the spotlight these days partly because of fossil fuel
shortage and the global trend of using energy resources as a diplomatic weapon. According to
a recent IAEA report, 300 more nuclear power plants will be constructed in all the nations
over the world by 2030. In the case of the U.S.A., the construction permits for 26 new nuclear
power plants have been filed from 2007. It is considered the green light for “The Golden
Years of Nuclear Energy”.

Energy is one of the most important necessities to improve quality of life as well as to
develop national economies. Thus, most of the developing countries put securing stable and
economical energy source on their top priority to realize sustainable economic development.

I believe that launching new nuclear power programs can be a solution for securing stable and
economical energy, thus I will suggest solutions to the problems of introducing new nuclear
power programs in the developing countries.

2. How to solve the problems of launching new nuclear programs in developing countries?

IAEA and developed countries with nuclear energy need to help solve common challenges
faced by developing countries, who intend to launch new nuclear programs.

It is required that all the international communities have to work together to conserve the
environment and to control pollutions. In addition, it is a duty of IAEA and developed
countries in nuclear energy to increase peaceful use of nuclear energy.

First, IAEA and developed countries in nuclear energy should provide technologies and
human power training programs needed for introducing new nuclear programs in developing
countries.

Though most developing countries have aspiration to get nuclear energy related technologies,
it is very hard to realize their desire simply because they do not have enough resources. So,
IAEA and developed countries with nuclear energy need to provide training programs to
human resources; and need to give free access to a nuclear reactor for research. Also, IAEA

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needs to diversify attendants on its training programs; from European and American
countries, to Asian countries which have strong demands for those programs. By doing so, the
developing countries can reduce the time and mistakes in launching new nuclear power
programs.

Second, IAEA and developed countries with nuclear energy should support financial
resources to the developing countries.

The most challenging problem faced by the developing countries is raising financial resources
to launch new nuclear power programs. Financial embarrassment makes the countries difficult
to secure investment capital, to accumulate nuclear related technologies, and to educate
human resources.

The role of IAEA supporting financial resources to the developing countries should be
intensified to promote peaceful use of nuclear energy. The financial resources can be supplied
by countries or companies which provide nuclear power facility to the developing countries.
Additionally, IAEA needs to consider making provisions of compulsory clauses to provide
financial support during the certification processes of nuclear facility design and
manufacturing.

Third, IAEA should develop and deliver nuclear reactors corresponding to the needs of
developing countries with adequate reactor type and capacity.

Considering the electric power grids and the capacity of each developing country, IAEA
needs to develop small and medium capacity nuclear reactors. Also, IAEA should develop
standardized multi-purpose (power generation, steam supply, and water conversion, etc)
nuclear reactors. The SMART (System-Integrated Modular Advanced Reactor) model, a
small and medium capacity nuclear reactor developed by Republic of Korea and certified by
IAEA, can be a solution for the development of the multi-purpose nuclear reactor having
small and medium capacity.

Finally, technological gaps among countries should be reduced in a way to motivate

participation of developing countries in the international joint projects on nuclear energy. To
induce developing countries to invest on the long-term research and development projects,
including the 4th generation nuclear reactor development program, radioactive waste and spent
fuel disposal. The participation of developing countries on these projects is encouraged.

Through these measures, IAEA can achieve not only its organizational goal, the peaceful use
of nuclear energy, but also establish a base for “Low Carbon Green Growth” and support
sustainable development of the developing countries.

3. ROK’s exemplary model can be applied to other developing countries

For the past 50 years, Republic of Korea (ROK) has been expanding the peaceful use of
nuclear energy base. Contrary to the EU and other developed countries in nuclear energy,
ROK continuously accumulated skills on design, manufacturing, maintenance and operation
of nuclear energy. ROK also has the know-how how to improve people’s receptiveness on
nuclear energy.

ROK can be a good model for use in developing countries which intend to launch new nuclear
power programs. ROK’s experience in launching and developing nuclear power programs can
be effectively applied to other developing countries.

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I would like to share ROK’s success story and my experiences in establishing infrastructure of
nuclear energy with the other member states.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S05

Sustainability of Water Cooled Reactors – Energy Balance for Low

Grade Uranium Resources
A. Strupczewski

Institute of Atomic Energy, Swierk, Poland

E-mail address of main author: A.Strupczewski@cyf.gov.pl

In October 2007 the European Parliament declared, that nuclear power is indispensable for the
European Union for limiting CO2 emissions. Many countries revive their nuclear power
programs or start building new nuclear power plants. However, the opponents of nuclear
power claim that as uranium resources get exhausted the energy needed to mine low grade
uranium ore will be larger than the energy that can be obtained from fission in a nuclear
power plant.

They conduct continuously their studies, publish their results in internet and present them at
numerous meetings organized by antinuclear organizations. In particular they claim that the
nuclear industry does not consider full energy costs of the nuclear fuel cycle, leaving aside the
energy incorporated in materials and products bought from other industries and neglecting the
energy needed for plant dismantling, mine area reclamation and waste management. This
would result in loss of sustainability of nuclear power, with the negative energy balance
expected within the next 40-60 years.

In answer to that the Institute of Atomic Energy (IAE) in Poland has performed a study of
available uranium resources, energy needed for mining and milling and the CO2 emissions in
the whole uranium fuel cycle with special attention to back-end energy needs [1].

The total energy needs for uranium mining were considered, including not only electricity
needed for mining and milling, for water treatment and delivery to the mine and to the
neighboring settlements, but also fuel for transportation and ore crushing, explosives for rock
blasting, chemicals for uranium leaching and the energy needed for mine reclamation after
completed ore exploitation. In contrast to the estimates of nuclear opponents based on mining
experience with rich ores mined some 30 years ago, the study of IAE has used the most up to
date data, reflecting the actual state-of-art mining practices. Since the opponents state clearly
that the ore containing less than 0,013% U3O8 cannot yield positive energy balance, the IAE
study referenced three mines of decreasing ore grade: Ranger 0.234% U, Rossing 0.028% U
and Trekkopje 0.00126% U, that is with ore grade below the postulated cut off value.

An exact energy balance has been made for Ranger mine, including all energy inputs, even
those provided in the purchased materials. The work needed for mine reclamation has been
also evaluated. It has been shown that the energy estimates of nuclear opponents are wrong
for Ranger mine and go off much further for the mines with lower uranium ore grades. The
study showed that the energy needed for very low grade uranium ore mining and milling
increases but the overall energy balance of the nuclear fuel cycle remains strongly positive.

The reasons for erroneous reasoning of nuclear opponents have been found. Their errors arise
from treating the uranium ore deposits as if their layout and properties were the same as those

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of uranium ore mined in the US in 70-ies. This results in an oversimplified formula, which
yields large errors when the thickness of the overlayer is less than it was in the US (Fig. 1).
The practice of modern mining confirms that very low grade uranium ore can be successfully
mined and in fact is mined proving that the claims of nuclear opponents are in error.

160 A.Strupczewski 0.0126%

154
140 TJt/tU

Sum of thermal and electric

120 energy according to SLS

Total Curves acc. to SLS

100 Reclamation
Acc. to SLS
Uranium mining
Energy TJ/tU

and milling 98.7

80 TJt/tU

60
55.4
TJ/tu
40
Data for Trekkopje mine
Together with reclamation 2,4 TJt/tU
20 Mining and milling
1.76 TJ/tU at G = 0,0126% Real
Xdata
X
0
10.00 5.00 2.00 1.00 0.50 0.10 0.05 0.01
Ore grade, U3O8 content G%

FIG. 1 Comparison of energy needs for uranium mining claimed by Storm van Leeuven and
Smith with real data for low grade uranium ore mining in presently operating mines.

Further claims of high energy consumption in the nuclear fuel cycle are based on wrong
estimates of the energy needed for uranium enrichment and on arbitrary assumptions
concerning the energy needed for NPP dismantling and radwaste management. The paper
provides the correct values based on industry experience and independent expert estimates
and shows that the comparison of energy needs for various fuel cycles, with diffusion or
centrifugal enrichment plants, with or without reprocessing etc.

Even for the mine using the poorest uranium ore the energy obtained at the NPP is about 70
times larger than that needed for the whole nuclear fuel cycle, including the energy needed for
radioactive waste storage, the NPP construction and decommissioning to the green field
status. Thus the claims of nuclear opponents are shown to be wrong [1].

REFERENCES

[1] Strupczewski A.: Fuel resources for nuclear power development based on Water
Cooled Reactors, in: Proc. of National Conf. on Nuclear Power, Kielce, ENEX
3.3.2009.

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Challenges and Opportunities to Launch Nuclear Power Programme

in Belarus
Alexander Mikhalevich

Institute of Power Engineering / National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk,

Belarus

E-mail address of main author: amikhal@bas-net.by

Republic of Belarus, as a part of the former Soviet Union, having highly energy-intensive
economy and few indigenous fuel and energy resources has been initially oriented towards
nuclear power. Four nuclear power plants with total capacity of about 12 GW have been
constructed near the borders of the Republic. In Belarus the constructing of nuclear CHP not
far from Minsk and the planning of NPP construction in Vitebsk region have been begun. The
Chernobyl NPP accident has stopped this Program.

On the other side the Republic of Belarus has been suffered from the Chernobyl accident most
of all other countries including Russia and the Ukraine. About a quarter of its territory and
population had turned out in the radioactively contaminated zone. The attitude of a
considerable part of the Belarus population towards the nuclear energy is aggravated with the
consequences of this accident.

Nevertheless recently the political decision about nuclear power development has been
accepted again. It is desided to construct two units with total capacity about 2000 MW. The
commissioning of the first unit is planning in 2016, the second- in 2018.

The necessity of nuclear power development has been grounded in Concept of Energy
Security of the Republic of Belarus which was approved by the President of the Republic of
Belarus in 2005 and in new version in 2007.

The Programme of Preparatory Works for the construction of NPP has been accepted by the
Government and is under implementation.

Among another works in frameworks of the this Program it should be mentioned the
following:

 site selections for nuclear facilities;

 assessment of human resource needs and availability;
 preparation for bid specification development;
 studying of nuclear technologies available and suitable for domestic application;
 developing of the Program of education and training of personal for future NPP,
regulatory body and other govermental authorities, research and design institutes.

The Law "On Nuclear Energy Use" has been adopted by the Parliament of the Republic of
Belarus in 2008.

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The sociological monitoring of public opinion about nuclear safety of the existing NPPs and
further nuclear power development was provided in Belarus in 2007-2008.

The groups of belorussian experts visited to Russia, France, China, Finland, Sweeden and
Bulgaria. They studied the level of nuclear and radiation safety, national nuclear regulatory
systems, technical and scientific expertise in the nuclear industry in these countries.

The Joint Institute of Nuclear and Power Research - "Sosny" was appointed as a Technical
and Scientific Support Organization of Nuclear Power in Belarus.

The national regulatory body GOSATOMNADZOR has been established by decree of the
President of the Republic of Belarus.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S07

Alternatives of Financing for New Nuclear Reactors in Mexico

Gustavo Alonso, Javier C. Palacios, Jose R. Ramirez, Luis C. Longoria, E. del
Valle

Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ), Estado de Mexico, Mexico

E-mail address of main author: gustavo.alonso@inin.gob.mx

Financing plays a very important role for the deployment of new nuclear reactors units in any
country. Two financing alternatives can be used to support such project: the first one is that
the utility provide from its own resources the capital for the investment; and the second one
through international and national credits to support the nuclear project.

To be a loan candidate the viability of the nuclear project must be demonstrated, it implies
among other things to have a qualified national infrastructure. Also, the utility must have an
international credit record in good status by the international qualifying companies.

Both things are met by the Mexican Utility “Comision Federal de Electricidad”, therefore
exist the possibility to build new nuclear reactors in Mexico. Here we assess both alternatives
financing and own resources projects. The conditions used in this assessment are as follows.

In the first case, there are two sources of financing, one from international credit institutions
that will contribute with an 85% of the lump sum and national credit institutions that will
afford the other 15%. Discount rates for the international credit according to the global market
are 8%, for the national credit a 12% discount rate is used.

In this case the national scheme used is one called Financing Public Infrastructure (in Spanish
Obra Pública Financiada), where the national credit institutions will support the civil works
and the international credit institutions will support the Nuclear and generator islands.

Under this scheme the credit institutions or the reactor vendors through the credit support will
finance the nuclear power plant construction up to be in commercial operation. In that
moment the utility will start to pay the credit according to the payment schedule.

The main international credit assumptions are:

a) Payment credit period: 15 years.

b) 30 payments, each one every 6 months (does not include any payment during
construction).
c) Grace period: 6 months after commercial operation.
d) Annual discount rate in dollars: 8%.

The main national credit assumptions are:

a) Payment credit period: 5 years.

e) 10 payments, each one every 6 months (does not include any payment during
construction).
b) First payment: at start up of comercial operation.

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c) Discount rate in dollars: 12%.

The second alternative using the utility own resources considers an opportunity resource cost
with an 8% discount rate. The projects to be financed are given in Table I and Figures 1 and 2
shown the cash flow curves under each alternative.

Table I. NPP considered for financing

ABWR ACR AP1000 EPR

Investment without interest

2,031.9 1,942.6 1,411.4 2,358.7
(Millions of dollars)

Investment with interest

2,399.3 2,577.2 1,790.7 2,876.6
(Millions of dollars)

Annual Expenditures
183.1 191.5 152.5 239.5
(Millones de dólares)

Annual Income
676.8 764.4 557.5 807.4
(Millions of dollars)

Generation (MWh/year) 10,359,292 11,700,745 8,533,429 12,359,169

CTNG (dollars/MWh) 35.66 33.01 34.16 37.45

Financing cash flow curve shows that the project is viable since it already considers the debt
payment and in all the times for all the reactors the cash flow is positive. In the case of the use
of the utility own resources it can be seen that in less than seven years the investment capital
is recovered.

Both alternatives are feasible, however financing is more attractive because it allows the
utility to have cash flow in any moment which does not occur when it commit its own
resources.

REFERENCES

[1] Bradford, Cornell. The Future of Floating Rate Bond. The Revolution in Corporate
Finance. Basil Blackwell. 1998
[2] Harrington, Diana. Corporate Financial Analysis. Decision in a Global Environment.
Irwin Inc. 1993
[3] IAEA – Financing Arrangements for Nuclear Power Projects in developing Countries.
Technical Report 353, 1993.
[4] IAEA - Economic Evaluation of Bids for Nuclear Power Plants. Technical Report
Series No. 396, 2000.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S07

[5] Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ) – Análisis de los Reactores

ABWR, AP1000, ACR y EPR como opciones para nuevas centrales nucleoeléctricas
en México. 2004
[6] OCDE – Indicadores Económicos, varios números.

6000 ABWR

ACR
5000
AP1000
millones de dólares

EPR
4000

3000

2000

1000

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

años

FIG. 1. Cash flow with financing.

6000 ABWR

ACR
5000
AP1000
millones de dólares

EPR
4000

3000

2000

1000

0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

años

FIG. 2. Cash flow without financing.

67
 IAEA-CN-164-2S08

Expert Performance Transfer: Making Knowledge Transfer Count

C. L. Turnera, T. E. Braudtb
a
Professional Services CATADR, Inc., USA
b
Braudt Solutions, USA

E-mail address of main author: clturner@mac.com

INTRODUCTION

“Knowledge Transfer” is a high-priority imperative as the nuclear industry faces the

combined effects of an aging workforce and economic pressures to do more with less.
Knowledge Transfer is only a part of the solution to these challenges, however. The more
compelling and immediate need faced by industry is Accomplishment Transfer, or the
transference of the applied knowledge necessary to assure optimal performance from exper-
ienced, high-performing staff to inexperienced staff. A great deal of industry knowledge and
required performance information has been documented in the form of procedures. Often
under-appreciated either as knowledge stores or as drivers of human performance, procedures,
coupled with tightly-focused and effective training, are arguably the most effective influences
on human and plant performance.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTUAL WORK

Expert Performance Transfer, or EPT, was designed to produce human performance

improvement by way of procedure improvement where it counts – on-the-job. This meth-
odology revolutionizes the way complex processes and procedures are analyzed and docu-
mented. Many complex procedures include processes that involve non-linear decision-
making, an attribute of processes and procedures throughout the industry, whether in
operations, maintenance, I&C, engineering, or even administration. EPT techniques are
meticulously documented and are certain to improve procedure analytics; that is, the up-front
analysis and decision-making that determine procedure content. Procedure content is a
powerful driver of human and plant performance, and ultimately of efficiency and cost
savings. Procedure content, presented in a coherent, logical fashion at just the right depth and
breadth, can accomplish these things:

 transfer expert knowledge and technique from expert to novice performers

 reduce procedural errors, both in content and execution
 improve procedures use & adherence, since the procedure now matches the
required performance

The approach to procedure content in most organizations has historically relied on assem-
bling smart, experienced folks on a procedures team, asking them to convey their expertise in
writing, and giving them a few formatting tips, along with document templates and other
technology tools. Unfortunately, this approach often yields a wide variety of output; some too
detailed, some not enough…with too little focus on describing the required performance that
would really help the folks doing the work regardless of their level of experience. EPT

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S08

Methodology is revolutionary and unique in its capacity to convey expert knowledge to

performers on-the-job. EPT-derived procedures contain on-the-job INFORMATION:
information that is accurate, complete, and useful to workers, technicians and their managers.
A procedure developed by EPT represents a superior way to achieve performance improve-
ment because it directly affects performance WHERE it counts — on-the-job — and WHEN
it counts — at the time and place performance occurs. Accordingly, guidance on the proper
use of EPT has been developed using the EPT technique itself.

EPT-derived procedures are distinctive in that they:

 contain expert-level information that is accessed in REAL-TIME ON-THE-JOB

 are written at a level of detail to minimize trial and error
 reduce the amount of information recall required from memory, and
 provide directions on WHEN and HOW to perform.

EPT produces superior guidance information

The application of EPT is especially valuable when producing expert-level guidance

describing howhigh complexity tasks are being performed, low frequency or unpredictable
frequency tasks are performed, or during emergencies.

EPT produces procedures and guidance FORMATS based on behavior characteristics.

Fig. 1 is EPT guidance for format selection with

human performance as the basis of design.

EPT Promotes Knowledge Transfer to Expert Level Considering Significant Criteria

EPT-derived procedures and guidance are a critical tool for Knowledge Transfer, enabling
inexperienced workers to perform to standard, and at near-expert levels. EPT offers a
documented, analytical toolkit which transcends traditional "tribal knowledge" methods of
knowledge transfer, and outperforms complex but unproven knowledge management
solutions based on unstructured information capture and retrieval.

Fig. 2 is for deciding whether to develop EPT-

based procedures.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S08

EPT is a SYSTEM that itself is SYSTEMATIC:

 Outputs of one phase are always inputs to subsequent phases.

 Is based on a description and front-end analysis of expected on-the-job
accomplishments.
 Is Derived from proven behavioral theory producing logically consistent,
accountable and reproducible results.
 Decisions are rule-based with detailed algorithms and decision tables.
 Provides unambiguous guidance on amount and type of detail required to produce
optimum performance.
 Designed to achieve maximum effectiveness AND efficiency.

RESULTS

EPT makes a significant difference. Contrary to a performance system relying on unaided

human performance, EPT procedures do not forget information, call off sick, take vacation, or
get hangovers. EPT procedures maintain proper work stimulus control during task
performance, avoiding costly distractions, and they do NOT require costly retraining.
Procedures are essential to effective knowledge transfer, and more importantly,
accomplishment transfer. Applying EPT to develop and improve procedures results in
consistently superior procedures which promote superior performance.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S09

ACR-1000® Project – Licensing Opportunities and Challenges

S. Doerffer, N. Popov, R. Ion, J. Hopwood

Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., Mississauga, Ontario, Canada

E-mail address of main author: popovn@aecl.ca

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) has developed the Advanced CANDU Reactor®-
1000 (ACR-1000®) as an evolutionary advancement of the current CANDU 6® reactor. The
ACR-1000 design has evolved from AECL’s in-depth knowledge of CANDU systems,
components, and materials, as well as the experience and feedback received from owners and
operators of CANDU plants. The ACR design retains the proven strengths and features of
CANDU reactors, while incorporating innovations and state-of-the-art technology. It also
features major improvements in economics, inherent safety characteristics, and performance,
while retaining the proven benefits of the CANDU family of nuclear power plants.

The Canadian nuclear reactor design evolution that has reached today’s stage represented by
the ACR-1000 as described above, has a long history dating back to the early 1950s. In this
regard, Canada is in a unique situation, shared only by a very few other countries, where
original nuclear power technology has been invented and further developed.

With the Canadian nuclear technology development, in parallel, the development of Canadian
regulations and licensing processes took place. This latter development was carried out by the
Atomic Energy Control Board (AECB), established in 1946. The AECB mandate, originally
focused on security, and later extended to include nuclear safety, was focused on regulating
the nuclear sector, establishing health and safety regulations, and also played an instrumental
role in forming the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The AECB, which preceded
the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), established in 2000, licensed all CANDU
power reactors in Canada and provided assistance to the overseas regulatory authorities in
licensing of CANDU reactors in Korea, Argentina, China and Romania.

The regulatory framework in Canada is currently in a period of change. The CNSC is further
developing its requirements for new reactor designs in Canada whilst at the same time AECL
development of the ACR design. This situation has created challenges that have been
successfully overcome by both CNSC and AECL. By providing valuable feedback, AECL has
worked actively in review of the existing applicable reactor regulations in Canada, and in
development of new regulatory requirements and guides. In this regard, AECL provided
constructive comments on several draft regulatory guides, and performed compliance self-
assessment against all applicable regulations to be used with the new build in Canada
including the IAEA safety requirements.

As there is no legal process in Canada for design certification of nuclear power plant (NPP),
AECL initiated a pre-project regulatory review of the ACR-1000 reactor design by the CNSC
to confirm compliance with regulatory requirements and also incorporate regulatory feedback
in the design process to minimize project risks in obtaining future construction and operating
licences for NPPs in Canada.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S09

This pre-project review consists of two phases starting from April 1, 2008 and ending on
August 30, 2009. Phase 1 ended in December 2008 and has concluded that at an overall level
the ACR-1000 design intent is compliant with the CNSC regulatory requirements and meets
the expectations for new nuclear power plants in Canada. This conclusion is expected to be
further confirmed during the Phase 2 review that currently is ongoing. Phase 2 will go into
further detail with a focus on identifying whether or not any potential fundamental barriers to
licensing the design in Canada. This phase involves review of 16 topical areas:

1. Defence in Depth, Classification of Structures, Systems and Components and

Regulatory Dose Limits;
2. Reactor Physics Aspects of Nuclear Design;
3. Fuel Mechanical and Thermalhydraulics Design;
4. Reactor Control System;
5. Shutdown Means;
6. Emergency and Long Term Core Cooling, Emergency Feedwater System;
7. Containment and Reactor Auxiliary Building;
8. Safety Analysis;
9. Heat Transport System Pressure Boundary;
10. Fire Protection;
11. Radiation Protection;
12. Out-of-Core Criticality;
13. Robustness, Security and Safeguards;
14. Severe Accident Prevention and Mitigation;
15. Quality Assurance in Design and Safety Analysis; and
16. Human Factors.

To ensure that the ACR design is compliant with international requirements, regulatory pre-
project reviews of the ACR-700 were also conducted earlier with the CNSC and US NRC
(2002-2005). The ACR-700 preceded the ACR-1000 design, and it was designed primarily for
the US market. The UK regulators reviewed the ACR-1000 during the Phase 2 review
conducted in the 6-month period in 2007-2008.

The regulatory feedback from these early reviews of the ACR-700 and then ACR-1000
helped AECL to better understand regulatory expectations in Canada, US and the UK to make
further advancements and improvements in the ACR design to meet the Canadian and
international regulatory requirements.

This paper provides an overview of the pre-project reviews by those above-mentioned

regulatory bodies demonstrating opportunities and challenges in licensing process of the
ACR-1000 and pointing to the importance of efficient vendor-regulator interaction.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S10

The Role of Regulatory Authority in Licensing of the First Nuclear

Power Plant
Andrzej T. Mikulski

National Atomic Energy Agency, Warsaw, Poland

E-mail address of main author: mikulski@paa.gov.pl

The paper presents activity to be performed by regulatory authority in case the second
approach to construction of nuclear power plant (NPP) in Poland will be started. In Poland
there is some experience gathered in late 70-ties and beginning of 80-ties when the
construction of the first NPP was started. Since that time the regulatory authority is active but
presently limited to licensing of research reactors, national repository of radioactive waste and
usage of radioactive sources in medicine and industry. Many years ago the Atomic law was
established and was limited to above mentioned activities. Now the law should be appended
according to requirements concerning construction of NPP. The most important field of
present activity of regulatory authority should be concentrated on training of nuclear safety
inspectors. It may be based on experience of still working old personnel in our office but
number of inspectors is not sufficient for the new tasks. It is clear that regulatory authority
should be independent of any other industry organizations and fully financed by a
government. An international cooperation for regulators between countries is very important
and our intentions is to establish some institutional links and follow experience from other
countries.

The difference in granting licences is quite evident in many areas comparing the past time.
The analysis of safety is much more sophisticated. Giving combined licence is now
recommended instead of separate licenses for localization, construction, start-up and
operation. The exchange of information between regulatory authorities is more general and
should be intensified, especially when licensing concerns one type of water cooled reactors.

The proposed steps to be performed by Polish regulatory authority will be presented.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S11

The Establishment of Regulation for Supporting the Development of

the First Nuclear Power Plant in Indonesia
Amil Mardha, Dahlia C.Sinaga, Khoirul Huda

Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency (NERA), Badan Pengawas Tenaga Nuklir

(BAPETEN), J1. Gajah Mada No.8, Jakarta Pusat 10120, Indonesia

E-mail address of main author: a.mardha@bapeten.go.id

Nowadays, the government seriously establishes the management of national energy that’s
way on the year 2006, the government has issued the Presidential Regulation Number 5 Year
2006 on The National Energy Policy (KEN) on the period of 2025 This President Regulation
stipulated that the national energy planning for nuclear energy up to the year 2025 is 2% [1]
from the total national energy. To meet the need in the KEN, Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is
preparing through the nuclear energy program to be constructed four units NPP with each
capacity 1000 MWe. The first NPP would hopefully be started in commercial operation by
year 2017.

The national infrastructure development is needed to support the commitment of Indonesia

nuclear energy program. Those includes the various aspects such as human resources
development (HRD), industrial and technological aspect, management aspects, and regulatory
aspects. In addition it is important in considering in the development and implementation of
the nuclear program is development regulation program consistent with the International legal
instruments. One of the implementation of the nuclear energy program is the establishment of
independent nuclear energy regulatory authority, namely Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency
(BAPETEN). BAPETEN has function and task to control any activity using nuclear energy.
There are three pillars in controlling the use of nuclear energy in Indonesia are establishing
regulation, processing license and performing inspection [2]. In the establishment of the
regulations of nuclear energy, BAPETEN has issued some Government Regulations and
BAPETEN Chairman Regulations.

The process of the establishment of national legislation is based on the Act, namely Act
Number 10 Year 2004 on the Establishment of Legislation (UU-P3). Basically, the process
divided into several phases, including planning, preparation, technical preparation,
formulation, discussion, approval, enactment and dissemination [3]. As the implementation of
the Act No. 10 Year 2004, the Presidential Regulation No. 68 Year 2005 on the general
mechanism of establishing national legal framework has been issued. This Presidential
Regulation describe how mechanism of establishing and drafting of the Act. the Government
Regulation as substitutes Act, Government Regulation, Presidential Regulation, and
Minister/Head of Non-Department Government Agency Regulation.

The process of legal drafting to establish or to revise a regulation for controlling of the use of
nuclear energy shall comply with the constitutional and institutional requirements of national
political and legal system. In drafting the regulation of nuclear energy, BAPETEN is not
working alone but involving other agencies or other related government agencies, and also
stakeholders such as utility, academic institutions, and publics. In general, in the process of
legal drafting, international publications or other country regulations can be a reference.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S11

According to the national legislation system, BAPETEN establishes the nuclear safety
regulations levels in the hierarchy of some regulations to implement the ideal nuclear program
in Indonesia, namely:
1. Acts,
2. Government Regulations (GR),
3. Presidential Regulation (Pres Reg),
4. BAPETEN Chairman Regulation (BCR),
5. Guidelines / operational guidelines / technical guidelines / work instruction.
Hierarchy of nuclear safety regulations referred to above can be illustrated as following this
figure:
Act is a basic legal regulation in the
development and utilization of nuclear energy
Act
GR is the implementation regulations of Act
GR
Pres Reg is the implementation regulation of Act
Pres Reg or GR

It is the technical regulations that

BAPETEN Chairman Reg implementation the Act, Government Regulation
(BCR) and Presidential Regulation
Guidelines/ operational
guidelines/ technical guidelines/ etc) It is detail technical guide and non-mandatory

To provide these Act and Government Regulation operationally, BAPETEN establishes

several implemented regulations in the form of BAPETEN Chairman Regulations The
BAPETEN Chairman Regulation contains of more technical provisions stipulating the safety
criteria on siting, design/construction, commissioning, operation and decommissioning of
NPP. Some regulations are still in drafting or in planning to be formulated, At the end of the
year 2010 all the regulations required for the construction & operation of the NPP will be
completed issued Beside of the preparation of several NPP of regulations, BAPETEN also
prepares the other regulation infrastructures, such as licensing procedures, inspection
procedures, human resources development (HRD), etc. Therefore, the availability of NPP
regulations and the other regulation infrastructures for NPP are expected supporting national
program on construction and operation of NPP in Indonesia.

Present paper deals with the legal basis of nuclear power plant, the process of legal drafting to
establish the regulations of NPP, and the current status of NPP regulations.

REFERENCES

[1] Presidential Regulation Number 5 Year 2006 on The National Energy Policy.
[2] State Gazette of The Republic of Indonesia of The Year 1997 Number 23, Act Number
10 of 1997 on nuclear energy.
[3] State Gazette of The Republic of indonesia of The Year 2004 Number 53, Act Number
10 of 2004 on The Establishment of Legislation

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S12

The Human Resources and Training -

A Mandatory Gate for Water Cooled Reactors in the 21st Century
Othman Salhi

AREVA, France

E-mail address of main author: Othman.Salhi@areva.com.

Despite the current situation of the global economy, the world’s electricity needs will keep
growing in the medium term and are about to double in 2030 from the today’s figure.

As per 2007 the total worldwide nuclear electricity production was totaling more than 2700
TWHR. The renaissance of nuclear power is still ahead of us and new NPPs will from today
up to 2030 amount at a total of 350 MWe installed capacity.

After the four EPR units already in construction, the projects decided or under preparation in
the U.K., in the U.S. and in France for instance, confirm this steady trend.

The nuclear industry, and in particular AREVA, needs of course to adapt to this demand for
new builds, and at the same time not forget to supply and serve the unabated needs of the
fleets in operation.

More than 80% of our AREVA nuclear business consists in these recurring activities for the
existing NPPs. Moreover our customers continue to seek for more integration of our front
end, reactors and back end services. In parallel, the demand for water cooled reactors along
the 21st century is foreseen to raise new challenges, industrially speaking but moreover in
term of knowledge, training, and people.

In order to address this increasing demand, we are investing in all our segments of activity.

This is the case in the equipment sector where we are increasing both our primary
components manufacturing capacity and our forging production capacity.

This is the case in the nuclear fuel front end with an acceleration of exploration, the opening
of new mines and the construction of new conversion and enrichment factories.

This is the case in our nuclear engineering and nuclear services divisions and this is even the
case in our T&D branch with continuous expansion of the industrial tool.

What does all that mean in terms of human resources? It means of course more jobs in all our
business units.

From 2005 to 2008 the annual number of hiring has increased from 6000 to 12000.

Such volumes of recruitment require adapted means of integration and training of the new
employees.

AREVA is managing its own specific facilities for integration and specialized training.

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 IAEA-CN-164-2S12

AREVA also contribute in Europe, the Americas and Asia, to a network of partnerships with
schools and universities.

77
78
 Synopses for Topic 3

DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF

ADVANCED WATER COOLED
REACTORS

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S01

Status and Near-Term Works on the EUR Document, Possible Use by

Third Parties
Pierre Berbey

EDF/SEPTEN

E-mail address of main author: pierre.berbey@edf.fr

For reasons (diversity of supply, evolution of the costs of alternative energies, new uses of
electricity, …) that are valid in practically all the countries where they operate nuclear power
plants, the major European electricity producers have expressed the will to keep the nuclear
option open, that is to be able to build new Gen 3 LWR nuclear power plants when their
economic interest or necessity requests it. Producing a common specification, the European
Utility Requirement (EUR) document, that sets out harmonized design targets, has been one
of the basic tasks towards this objective. On this base the main vendors have developed
standard Gen 3 LWR designs that may be built without major design changes.

In 2007-2009, the European Utility Requirements (EUR) works have been focused on the
EUR volume 3 (evaluation of the available Gen 3 designs) and volume 4 (conventional island
generic requirements).

On the EUR volume 3, the assessment works on the AP1000 and AES92 projects have been
concluded and the corresponding subsets of the EUR volume 3 have been published. On the
EPR, since the previous assessment released in 1999 was felt a bit obsolete (both the project
and the requirements had been modified since that time) the works on the EPR assessment
have resumed in 2007. Representatives from ten EUR utilities and Areva have been involved
in an in-depth revision of the analysis of compliance. Meetings of the specific EUR
coordination group in charge of this task have been organized every 4-5 weeks throughout
2008. The revision B of the EPR subset of the EUR volume 3 has been released in July 2009.
The revision C of the EUR volume 4 has been made available after a thorough review has
been performed within the EUR organization to make it consistent with the revision C of the
EUR volume 2 published in 2001. Meanwhile a lot of preparatory material for a possible
revision D of the EUR volumes 1 and 2 has been produced since 2002. Since important
contributions are not yet available the decision to integrate this revision D is still to come.

The EUR organization has kept enlarging: Energoatom from Ukraine, ENEL and Endesa have
been welcomed as full members; CEZ (the Czech nuclear utility) and MVM (the operator of
the Paks NPP in Hungary) are now EUR associated members. New LWR projects of potential
interest for the EUR utilities are being contemplated. For instance a preliminary assessment of
compliance of MHI's APWR project has been worked out in the first months of 2008.

In 2008, the EUR and ENISS organizations have decided to join their efforts in a
collaboration scheme in which they coordinate their positions and actions in nuclear safety
with respect to the LWR Gen 3 designs. The two organizations cooperate in their relations
with the other stakeholders, in particular with the IAEA and WENRA organizations.
Moreover, EUR and CORDEL (Cooperation in Reactor Design Evaluation and Licensing),
which is a WNA (World Nuclear Association) working group decided also to coordinate their

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S01

efforts for the industry benefit, in relation with the MDEP (Multinational Design Evaluation
Program) initiative of safety nuclear regulators.

This continuous activity over more than 15 years has made the EUR organisation one of the
central actors in the development of the Gen 3 LWRs in Europe and worldwide. The
organisation has developed two sets of documents that are of key interest for the utilities that
are considering bid processes for new NPPs. The first one is the set of generic design
requirements of the volumes 1,2 and 4 that have been used several times as technical
specifications in recent call for bids by utilities that did not necessarily participated to the
making of the EUR document. The second set is the EUR volume 3 that gathers assessments
of Gen 3 designs that have been found at an acceptable level of compliance vs. the EUR
generic requirements, thus making a kind of pre-certification of a list of Gen 3 designs.
Together these two sets offer an easy way to build the technical part of a call for bids: a
technical specification and a short list of acceptable projects. The EUR organisation has so far
given access to this documentation with limited constraints but also limited support. This
policy should be continued in the coming years.

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S02

The Enhanced CANDU 6 Reactor - Generation III CANDU Medium

Size Global Reactor
S. Azeez, J. Hopwood

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Canada

E-mail address of main author: azeezs@aecl.ca

The Enhanced CANDU 6TM (EC6TM) is a Generation III 700 class, heavy water moderated
pressure tube reactor, designed to provide safe, reliable, nuclear power. The EC6TM has
evolved from the proven CANDU 6 plants licensed and operating in five countries (four
continents) with over 150 reactor years of safe operation around the world. In recent years.
this global CANDU 6 fleet, with over 92% average gross capacity factor has ranked in the
world’s top performing reactors. The EC6 reactor builds on this success of the CANDU 6
fleet by using the operation, experience and project feedback to upgrade the design and
construction techniques. A key objective of the EC6 has been to review and incorporate
design improvements in the CANDU 6 to meet current safety standards.

The key characteristics of the highly successful CANDU 6 reactor design include:
 Powered by natural Uranium;
 Ease of installation with modular, horizontal fuel channel core;
 Separate low-temperature, low-pressure moderator providing inherently passive heat
sinks; Reactor vault filled with light water surrounding the core;
 Two independent safety shutdown systems;
 On-power fuelling;
 The CANDU 6 plant has a highly automated control system, with plant control
computers that adjust and maintain the reactor power for plant stability (which is
particularly beneficial in less developed power grids-where fluctuations occur regularly
and capacities are limited).

The major improvements incorporated in the EC6 design include,

 More robust containment and increased passive features e.g., thicker walls, steel liner;
 Enhanced severe accident management with additional emergency heat removal
systems;
 Improved shutdown performance for improved Large LOCA margins;
 Upgraded fire protection systems to meet current Canadian and International standards;
 Additional design features to improve environmental protection for workers and public-
ALARA principle;
 Automated and unitized back-up standby power and water systems;

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S02

 Other improvements to meet higher safety goals consistent with Canadian and
International standards based on PSA studies;
 Additional reactor trip coverage, based on refurbishment projects experience, to meet
current Canadian Regulations.
 Both CANDU 6 and EC6 offer flexible fuel cycle options including use of slightly
enriched uranium from reprocessed LWR spent fuel, high burnup MOX fuel, thorium
etc in a more efficient 43 element fuel bundle carrier called CANFLEX.
 A target life up to 60 years with one mid-life refurbishment of critical equipment such
as fuel channels and feeders.
 Project elements have been optimized through feedback from past construction projects.
to arrive at an EC6 “in-service” schedule of 57 months from first concrete. Open-top
construction method using a very-heavy-lift crane, concurrent construction,
modularization and prefabrication and use of advanced computer technologies to
minimize interferences are the key contributing elements for achieving this schedule.
 State-of-the-art electronic tools for engineering, safety, licensing, procurement, drahing
and project management are integrated to provide complete document control during all
phases of the project, including construction and commissioning. This information, in
electronic format, will be turned over to the Owner for operational and configuration
management needs during plant life.
 Advanced MACSTOR design for efficient dry spent fuel storage with optimized space
usage.

Summary

Capitalizing on the provcn features of CANDU technology, AECL has designed the EC6 to
be competitive with all forms of energy, including nuclear, while achieving high safety and
performance standards.

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S03

On the Physics Design of Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR)

Arvind Kumar, R. Srivenkatesan, R. K. Sinha

Reactor Design Development Group, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC),

Mumbai, India

E-mail address of main author: arvind@barc.gov.in

The AHWR is a 920 MWth, vertical pressure tube type thorium-based reactor cooled by
boiling light water and moderated by heavy water. The prime objective is to produce power
utilizing thorium available abundently in India from a relatively simple system with enhanced
safety level [1-4]. It is endowed with several innovative safety features such as negative
coolant void reactivity, heat removal through natural circulation and passive containment
cooling. The development of reactor design has drawn heavily on the experience generatred
through design and operation of Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWR) and Boiling
Water Reactor (BWR) in India. It was an opportunity to develop a reactor system using
thorium-based fuel and gain some valuable experience. A non-proliferative thorium/U-233
based closed fuel cycle is chosen for AHWR. Plutonium discharged from PHWRs is used as
the fissile seed fuel with thorium for the generation of U-233 and then as a top-up fuel in the
equilibrium core along with self-sustaining U-233 in the thorium matrix. The physics design
has several challenges in achieving negative void reactivity, spatial core control, on-line
fuelling and minimization of inventory of plutonium fuel.

It is difficult to achieve negative coolant void coefficient in a heavy water moderated pressure
tube type reactor. For this a multi-pronged approach involving pitch reduction, heterogeneous
cluster design and use of mild absorbers is chosen. Plutonium bearing fuel is located
separately in the outer region of the cluster with self-sustaining U-233 bearing fuel in the
inner region of the cluster. A small amount of mild absorber is located in the centre of the
cluster [5]. The void coefficient varies with burnup and it is a challenge to have it negative
throughout the core. The state of nuclear data for the elements of interest and type of neutron
spectrum in the reactor puts heavy demand on the calculation models and validation of
reactivity coefficients to ensure safety [6]. A critical facility has especially been designed to
carry out various lattice experiments to validate calculation models and nuclear data.

AHWR is a reactor with largely thermal spectrum and employs on-line fueling. Fuel cycle
flexibility is its inherent characteristics. Equilibrium core is designed to run on self-sustaining
closed fuel cycle of U-233 with plutonium discharged from PHWRs added as top-up fuel to
gain in fuel burnup. Two variants of the fuel cluster with different fraction of plutonium are
used to achieve self-sustaining U-233 fuel cycle. Uranium fuel does not rapidly get degraded
in the closed fuel cycle in AHWR and ensuring same inventory of U-233 in the reprocessed
uranium suffices to a large extent to run the next cycle. However, to arrive at equilibrium core
configuration U-233 must be generated in situ. For this purpose, initial and pre-equilibrium
core is loaded largely with thorium-plutonium fuel. To overcome the scarcity of fissile
plutonium, uranium-plutonium fuel is also used in the initial core of AHWR.

AHWR is neutronically a large reactor in comparison to the currently operating PHWRs that
makes it susceptible to xenon induced oscillations and other spatial instabilities. It is seen that

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the first azimuthal mode is unstable and requires spatial control and monitoring. It is difficult
to provide a large number of control elements and in-core detectors at a relatively tight lattice
pitch. A quadrant control scheme is chosen that matches with the thermalhydraulic design of
the reactor. There are three control elements in each quarter to control the power distribution.
About 150 SPNDs are installed in the core for on-line flux mapping and core monitoring.
Further analysis is being carried out to ascertain the need of in-core detectors for the safety
purpose.

REFERENCES

[1] A. Kakodkar, "Salient features of design of thorium fuelled Advanced Heavy Water
Reactor", Indo-Russian seminar on thorium utilisation, Nov 1998, Obninsk, Russia.
[2] Kamala Balakrishnan and Anil Kakodkar, “Preliminary physics design of Advanced
Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR)”, proceedings of the Technical Committee Meeting
on the Technical aspects of high convertor reactors, Nuremberg, March 1990,
IAEA-TECDOC- 638.
[3] R.K. Sinha and A. Kakodkar, “ Design and development of AHWR – The Indian
Thorium fueled innovative reactor”, Nucl. Engg. And Design, Vol 236, 2006, 683-
700.
[4] Arvind Kumar et al, “Physics Design of Advanced Heavy Water Reactor utilising
Thorium”, Paper presented in the Technical Committee Meeting on Utilization of
Thorium Fuel Options, IAEA, Vienna, 1999, IAEA-TECDOC-1319, 165-175 .
[5] Arvind Kumar, “ A new cluster design for the reduction of void reactivity in
AHWR”, poster paper presented in the Indian Nuclear Society Annual Conference,
INSAC- 2000, 2000.
[6] Arvind Kumar, Umasankari Kannan, R. Srivenktesan, “Sensitivity analysis of
AHWR fuel cluster parameters using different WIMS libraries”, Ann. Nucl. Energy,
Vol 29, 2002, 1967 – 1975.

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S04

Advanced Construction Technologies and Further Evolution Towards

New Build NPP Projects
J. Kawahata, K. Murayama, K. Akagi

Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy, Ltd., Hitachi, Japan

E-mail address of main author: junichi.kawahata.hh@hitachi.com

Hitachi, Ltd. (now Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy, Ltd. (hereinafter, HGNE)) has constructed
twenty-two nuclear power plants (NPPs) in Japan to date since 1970’s, and one more ABWR
plant is currently under construction. HGNE has been playing an active role in the field of
nuclear power plant construction, developing and applying its advanced technologies.
Included in such technologies are unique 3D-CAD-based integrated plant engineering systems
and streamlined design-to-manufacturing/construction planning and management systems.

Over the last few decades, nuclear plant construction environment has dramatically changed
in Japan. For instance, the number of construction workers has decreasing, while the average
age of workers has become older. On the other hand, customer demands for cost reduction
and for shorter construction schedule has continued to become stronger. Therefore, achieving
greater rationalization in construction is one of the key issues in power plant business.

To meet these demands, HGNE has developed construction strategies based on the abundant
feedbacks gained from its NPP construction experience and has made great strides in the
rationalization and application of these feedbacks into its strategies. The strategies, are
“1.Reduce on site work volume”, “2.Leveling on-site manpower”, “3.Improve on-site work
efficiency”, and “4.Improve on-site management work efficiency”. These concpets are very
simple in principle, however, their effectiveness has been absolutely proven to be huge
through the successes of the past projects. In addition, HGNE believes their strategies are
equally applicable to any and all power plant projects.

Utilizing all of HGNE's accumulated technologies, one of the worlds latest nuclear plants,
Shika Unit 2 (Shika-2) of Hokuriku Electric Power Company (1,358MW) has been
constructed “On-Budget and On-Schedule”. Shika-2 was the first ABWR plant in which all
the major pieces of equipment, including reactor, turbine and generator, were supplied and
constructed by one prime contractor, HGNE. Also, HGNE took responsibility for the entire
plant engineering from the basic design to commissioning. Shika-2 construction started with
the foundation excavation of the main building in September 1999, and 58 months from rock
inspection, the plant started its commercial operation in March 2006.

Now in Japan, another ABWR plant, Shimane-3, is steadily being constrcuted by HGNE in
“On-Budget” and “On-schedule” manner, where HGNE is taking main role as same as in
Shika-2 and more advanced design and constrcution methodolgies are being applied.

The world nuclear market are currently facing the “Nuclear Renaissance”. Many NPPs are
planned to be constructed in the world. We all know that the good planning and management
of their “Construction” is crucial to project costs, namely, nuclear economy. HGNE believes

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that the application of advanced design and costruction technologies described in this paper
will surely bring good results in future NPP projects all over the world.

REFERENCES

[1] S. Yamanari, et al, “The development of a comprehensive integrated nuclear power

plant construction management system”, Hitachi Review, Vol.88, Iss.2, 2006.2,
pp.173-178
[2] K. Morita, and K. Akagi, et al, “Advanced Construction Technology for Shika
Nuclear Power Station Unit No.2 of the Hokuriku Electric Power Company”,
Proceedings of the 15th Pacific Basing Nuclear Conference (PBNC) Sydney,
Australia, 2006
[3] K. Akagi and S.Akahori, et al, “The Latest Application of Hitachi’s State-of-the-art
Construction Technology and Further Evolution Towards New Build NPP Projects”,
Proceedings of the 29th Annual Conference of the Canadian Nuclear Society (CNS)
2008

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S05

AP1000: The PWR Revisited

Paolo Gaio

Westinghouse Electric Company

E-mail address of main author: gaiop@westinghouse.com

The distinguishing features of Westinghouse’s AP1000 advanced passive pressurized water

reactor are highlighted. In particular, the AP1000’s passive safety features are described as
well as their implications for simplifying the design, construction, and operation of this design
compared to currently operating plants, and significantly increasing safety margins over
current plants as well. The AP1000 design specifically incorporates the knowledge acquired
from the substantial accumulation of power reactor operating experience and benefits from
the application of the Probabilistic Risk Assessment in the design process itself. The AP1000
design has been certified by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission under its new rules for
licensing new nuclear plants, 10 CFR Part 52, and Westinghouse has received orders for EPC
in China and USA. AP 1000. The AP1000 design has also been asessed against the EUR Rev
C requirements for new nuclear power plants in Europe and received certification in May
2007.

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Evolution of VVER Technology towards NPP-2006 Project

V. Kosogorov

JSC Concern Energoatom, Moscow, Russian Federation

E-mail address of main author: kosogorov@rosenergoatom.ru

Current status of nuclear power in Russian Federation including NPP locations and reactor
types is described briefly. There are 10 NPPs with 31 Units in operation, total power – 23,242
MW. In total as of 01.01.2008 the operating experience of NPPs of Russian design is equal
1030 reactor-years with the following contributions by reactor types: VVER – 350, RBMK –
490, EGP – 130, BN – 60. The chronology of commissioning the front units of each VVER-
type design is given starting from the very first model as follows: 1964 – VVER-210, 1966 –
VVER-70, 1969 – VVER-365, 1971 – VVER-440, 1980 – VVER-1000, 1984 – VVER-
unified, 2006 – VVER-1000 modified design for China.

Every VVER reactor design version has several stages of development: 1 – technology
mastering, 2 - active development of the technology, 3 – approaching the technology limits.
The availability factor increasingly changes during these 3 stages, starting from about 61% to
86% and then up to 92% (the example for VVER-1000 in the period 1993 - 2008).

The technology mastering stage provides a reserve due to insufficient knowledge and
imperfection . These factors are the most significant at this stage while their influence
decreases further on the second and third stages.

The main requirements to the development of modern Russian nuclear energetic are as
follows:

– Economic efficiency
– Guaranteed safety
– Absence of real limitations induced by the fuel base in historically significant time
period
– Operating with burnt-up fuel and radioactive wastes. The fuel cycle must secure the
safety of final radioactive wastes disposal
– The share of nuclear power at the country energy market shall be not less than 25 – 30%
– Structure of energy production shall provide an opportunity for nuclear energy market
expansion
– The export potential: the export share in nuclear electricity generation shall be
comparable to the share of its internal consumption.

The target-oriented indicators presented in the basic documents for long-term development of
nuclear power industry are as follows:

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№ Basic documents Inst. Electricity Load NPP

Capacity, generation factor share
GW TW-h
1 Strategy of nuclear power development in 52 340 80% 25%
Russia in the first half of XXI century (NS-
2000)
2 Energetic strategy in Russia for the period up 32/42 230/300 82% 20%
to 2020 (ES-2003)
3 Federal target-oriented program 41 300 85% 20%
“Development of nuclear power industry
complex of Russia in 2007 – 2010 and
outlook up to 2015 (FTP-2006)
4 General scheme of power plants placement 53/59 372/412 80% 23%
up to 2020 (Genscheme -2007)
5 Program of Rosatom State Nuclear Energy
Corporation activity for long-term period
(PLA-2008)
6 Regional federal target-oriented programs
and schemes for spatial planning

Priorities of NPPs territorial placement in Russia depend strongly on the regions involved: the
European part – maximum number of sites, Siberia and Far East – isolated facilities. It should
be noted that the Genscheme-2007 was adopted by Russian Government before the world
economic crisis onset.

The basic project “NPP-2006” for near-term development was elaborated with the following
measures taken:

– Removal of unwarranted conservatism

– Thermal scheme improvement
– Rising of steam parameters at SG outlet and reduction of pressure losses in steam lines
– Optimum use of active and passive safety systems taken from projects “NPP-91” and
“NPP-92”
– Unification of major equipment
– Reduction of materials consumption

The main targets to be achieved with the new reactor designs:

– Reactor power rising

– Increasing of reactor main equipment life time
– Load factor increase
– Safety systems improvement as a means to limit occupational exposure and radioactive
material release to the environment during normal operation as well as in DBA and
BDBA (SA) conditions.
– Decrease of radioactive waste volume

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– Exclusion the possibility of sudden large break of primary circuit by using of LBB-
conception
– Maximum meeting of customer requirements

The following matters are reviewed further in the paper:

– The ways to achieve these goals.

– The main characteristics of the project “NPP-2006” in comparison with previous
VVER-1000 NPP designs.
– Comparison of the modifications implemented in “Novovoronezh-2” and “Leningrad-2”
NPPs projects focused on safety systems
– Characteristics of the main equipment, in particular in comparison with the previous
design versions
– Status of “Novovoronezh-2” NPP construction as of August 1, 2009

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S07

Development of Next-Generation Light Water Reactor in Japan

T. Yamamotoa, K. Kurosakia, Y. Ohgaa, K. Tuzukia, T.Tanakaa, M. Matsuurab, A.
Murasec, S. Shimizud
a
The Institute of Applied Energy, Tokyo, Japan
b
Hitachi-GE Nuclear Energy, Ltd. Ibaraki, Japan
c
Toshiba Corporation, Tokyo, Japan
d
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. Tokyo, Japan

E-mail address of main author: tyamamoto@iae.or.jp

In Japan, the development of next-generation Light Water Reactor has been launched since
April 2008. The development program will be completed in 2015. The purpose of
development is to cope with the replacement for existing nuclear power plants after 2030 in
Japan and the expanding demand for nuclear power in the world; “Nuclear Renaissance.”

The reactor also aims to be global standard at around 2030. The requirements for global
standard and domestic users have been investigated through the feasibility study of past 2
years, 2006-2007, and six innovative features or “Core-Concepts” were established as
follows.

A) Reactor core system with uranium enrichment above 5% for significant decrease of
spent fuel discharge and prominent higher availability

B) Long-life materials and innovative water chemistry technologies for 80 years plant
lifetime and significant reduction of occupational dose

C) Seismic isolation technologies to standardize plant design independent from site

conditions

D) Innovative construction techniques for significant shortening of construction period

E) The best mix of passive and active safety systems to realize economy and safety

F) Innovative digital technologies to improve availability and safety

In the first 3 years, the plant design concept and further technology development including
regulatory development will be established. The applicability of the technologies to the
nextgeneration LWR will be also investigated. Screening tests for innovative materials for
fuel cladding, reactor core internals and steam generator tube have been conducted. The plant
performance, such as safety, reliability, capacity factor, will be evaluated quantitatively.

In the first quarter of 2010, the whole development program will be revalued based on the
above tests and engineering activities and then the developments with large-scale and long-
term tests will be started.

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FIG. 1. Six-concepts of the next-generation LWR

REFERENCES

[1] K.Tsuzuki, et al., Development of next-generation light water reactor in Japan(1),

(2)and(3), ICAPP, 2009

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S08

Open Issues Associated with Passive Safety Systems Reliability

Assessment
Luciano Burgazzi

Italian Commission for New Technologies, Energy and the Environment (ENEA),
Bologna, Italy

E-mail address of main author: luciano.burgazzi@enea.it

The efforts conducted so far to deal with and evaluate the passive safety systems reliability to
be implemented in advanced water cooled reactor designs [1], has aroused an amount of open
issues to be addressed in a consistent way, in order to endorse the proposed approaches and to
add credit to the underlying models and the eventual reliability figures, resulting from their
application.

In particular, with reference to the so-called t-h (thermal-hydraulic, i.e. resting on natural
circulation) passive systems, this concerns, for instance, the choice of the distributions to be
assigned to the relevant parameters (i.e. the parameter probabilistic characterization) [2], as
input to the related analysis.

From the analysis of the various methodologies, which have been developed over these most
recent years within the community of the safety research, and are currently available in the
open literature, the following open questions are highlighted and consequently needs for
research in all related areas are pointed out:

 The aspects relative to the assessment of the uncertainties related to passive system
performance: they regard both the best estimate t-h codes used for their evaluation and
system reliability assessment itself;

 The dependencies among the parameters, mostly t-h parameters, playing a key role in the
whole process assessment;

 The integration of the passive systems within an accident sequence in combination with
active systems and human actions;

 The consideration for the physical process and involved physical quantities dependence
upon time, implying, for instance, the development of dynamic event tree to incorporate
the interactions between the physical parameter evolution and the state of the system
and/or the transition of the system from one state to another

 The comparison between active and passive systems, mainly on a functional viewpoint.

Focus on these issues is very important since it is the major goal of the international research
activities (e.g. IAEA) to strive to reach a common consensus about the different approaches.

All these points are presented and discussed and a viable path towards the implementation of
the research efforts is delineated as well.

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REFERENCES

[1] BURGAZZI, L,. State of the Art in the Reliability of Thermal-Hydraulic Passive
Systems, Reliability Engineering and System Safety, Vol. 92, pp. 671-675, May
2007
[2] BURGAZZI, L., Addressing the Uncertainties Related to Passive System Reliability,
Progress in Nuclear Energy, Vol. 49, pp. 93-102, January 2007

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 IAEA-CN-164-3S09

Design Characteristics of the Advanced Power Reactor 1400

Han-Gon Kim a, Kyung-Soon Choib
a
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., Ltd., Korea
b
Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Korea

E-mail address of main author: kimhangon@khnp.co.kr

I. INTRODUCTION

The APR1400 is an evolutionary ALWR for which the design is based on the current KSNP
design with capacity evolution. It also incorporates a number of design modifications and
improvements to meet the utility’s needs for enhanced safety and economic goals and to
address the new licensing issues such as mitigation of severe accidents. To establish the safety
and economic goals for the APR1400 the requirement for ALWRs was compared thoroughly
through the safety and economic evaluation. The design requirements have been established
based on this comparative study, and the major requirements for the APR1400 design are:

 General Requirements

− Capacity: 4000 MWt (rated thermal power);

− Plant lifetime: 60 years;

− Seismic design: SSE 0.3g;

− Safety goals: core damage frequency lower than 10E-5/RY; and frequency of large
radiation release due to containment failure lower than 10E-6/RY.

 Performance Requirements and Economic Goals

− Plant availability: 90%;

− Occupational radiation exposure: less than 1 manSv per reactor-year;

− Construction period: 48 months for Nth Plants; and

− Economic goal: 20% cost advantages over competitive energy sources.

As noticed above, the APR1400 aims at both enhanced safety and economic competitiveness.
The economic goal of APR1400 is considered achievable by high performance in operation
and cost savings in construction.

II. DESCRIPTION OF THE NUCLEAR SYSTEMS

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The nuclear steam supply system is designed to operate at rated thermal output of 4000 MW
to produce an electric power output of around 1450 MWe. The major components of the
primary circuit are a reactor vessel, two coolant loops, each containing one hot leg, two cold
legs, one steam generator (SG), and two reactor coolant pumps (RCPs), and one pressurizer
(PZR) connected to one of the hot legs. Two SGs and four RCPs are arranged symmetrically.
The design temperature in the hot leg is reduced from 621℉ of OPR1000 to 615℉ in order to
increase the operating margin and to reduce the SG tube corrosion problem. The capacities of
the PZR and the SGs (especially secondary side) are increased from that of current designs.
The increased capacity of the pressurizer accomodates the plant transients without reactor trip
up to Condition III transients.

Conventional spring loaded safety valves mounted to the top of the PZR are replaced by the
pilot operated safety relief valves (POSRVs), and functions of the RCS overpressure
protection and safety depressurization could be performed by the POSRVs.

The power control system is capable of daily load follow operation at a typical load variation
profile in Korea; 16 hours at 100 % and 4 hours at 50% with 2 hours ramps for power
decreases and increases. The load rejection capability at the rated power should also be
incorporated. This capability can reduce the outage time caused by the secondary system
troubles since the reactor power can be brought up to 100% as soon as the troubles have been
fixed.

III. SAFETY CONCEPT

One of the APR1400 development policies is to increase the level of safety dramatically. To
implement this policy, the plant has been designed in accordance with the established
licensing design basis to meet the licensing criteria and also be designed with an additional
safety margin in order to improve the protection of the investment, as well as the protection of
the public health.

The safety goals of the APR1400 can be summarized as follows;

 The total core damage frequency should not exceed 10E-5 per year, considering both
internal and external initiating events.

 The whole body dose for a person at the site boundary should not exceed 0.01 Sv (1
rem) during 24 hours after initiation of core damage with containment failure. The
probability exceeding such a limit should be less than 10E-6 per year.

 The frequency of an accident in which the release of long-lived radioisotopes such as

Cs-137 would exceed the amount to limit the land use shall be less than 10E-6 per year.

In addition to the public safety, a concept of investment protection has been implemented. In
APR1400, there are many investment protection goals such as loss-of-coolant-accident
(LOCA) protection, steam generator inventory, and so on. For example, the reactor with its
fuel should be used continuously following the event of small break LOCA up to 15 cm pipe
break.

Another important design philosophy for safety is the increased design margins. A few
examples of the design requirements following this philosophy are the requested core thermal

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margin of 10~15%, sufficient system capacity for operator recovery action time of more than
30 minutes, and station blackout coping time of 8 hours.

IV. CONCLUSIONS

The APR1400 design development started in 1992. The basic design was completed in 1999.
Since then, we performed design optimization to enhance economics. Through design
optimization process, current APR1400 design has been finalized.

From 2000, Korean regulation authority conducted the safety review for design certification
and awarded design certification at May, 2002. Currently, the project for constructing first
commercial APR1400 nuclear power plants, namely Shin-Kori 3&4 is in progress. Currently,
the commercial operation of the first APR1400 is planned in 2013.

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 Synopses for Topic 4

SAFETY AND PERFORMANCE

ACHIEVEMENT IN CURRENT NPPS

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 IAEA-CN-164-4S01

Plant Life Management Activities for Long Term Operation of the

Argentinean Water Cooled Reactors
M. Marchena, J.Ranalli, J.Zorrilla, E.Antonaccio, R.Versaci

Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica

Buenos Aires, Argentina

E-mail address of main author: marchena@cnea.gov.ar

The Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CNEA) –National Atomic Energy Agency of
Argentina– is a Sate-owned Research and Development (R&D) institution that has among its
functions the responsibility of keeping up to date, and available to the Utilities, all nuclear
related technologies in order to ensure the highest performance of the plants in terms of
safety and production. In 2005 CNEA and Nucleoléctrica Argentina Sociedad Anónima (Na-
Sa) –Argentinean National Utility– have formed a joint working group to develop Plant Life
Extension (PLEX) methodologies to be applied in the Argentinean CANDU-6 plant “Central
Nuclear Embalse” Refurbishment Project. Training and supervision have been provided by
Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL). As a result, a solid group of engineers is currently
working in the PLEX division of the plant, and has finished the first stage of the project that
consists in evaluating the current condition of the major equipment of the plant, in order to
make the business case for the refurbishment. In the other hand, CNEA has continued to
develop its own group to cope with all Long Term Operation (LTO) management issues.
Several experimental activities are being carried out in the corrosion and cable degradation
areas; the emphasis is put on the prediction of the future behaviour of the materials, based on
their current condition and on accelerated ageing tests. It is planned for the near future to set
up a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) test facility to study the behaviour of the materials in
LOCA and post-LOCA conditions. It is worth mentioning that one of the Team objectives is
being achieved throughout these activities; where the experimental facilities and expertise of
the Research & Development Institution are combined with the operational and In-service
experience from the plant personnel. From the methodological point of view, the PLIM-
PLEX division of the Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica is currently developing an
unified PLIM program for the Long Term Operation of all current and future Argentinean
reactors. The experience gained during the Embalse Refurbishment Project is to be applied
and expanded to design a single and comprehensive program. Proper procedures are being
developed for each part of the unified program that can be divided into the following stages:

Design Review and Screening of major System, Structures and Components (SSCs): In the
first part of the program; it is necessary to fully understand the design bases and operational
conditions of the plant, in order to determine the major components/group of components that
are going to be covered by the LTO program. Once the scope of the program is established,
selected SCCs should be grouped to set up specific Ageing Management Programs (AMPs)
for each SSC.

Development of a Generic Ageing Database: The objective of this stage is to have a single
and periodically updated database of the recommended Maintenance, Surveillance and
Inspections (MSI) practices within the different AMPs. This will allow for a continuous

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revalidation of the Plant Programs. As this regard, CNEA is participating in the IAEA
activities related to the International Generic Ageing Lessons Learned Database.

Analysis and /or design of specific AMPs: In this part of the program, detailed procedures for
the MSI activities included in each AMP have to be established. It is important to point out
the different strategies to be followed when AMPs for a new reactor are designed or existing
plant programs for a working reactor are re-assessed. However, in any case, the adequacy and
fulfillment of the programs has to be compared against international standards and good
practices (summarized in the previous stage - Generic Ageing Database)

Determination of measurable Program Performance Indicators: For each AMP it is essential

to establish proper indicators allowing for a periodic evaluation of the effectiveness of the
program. Temperature values, pressure drops, bearing replacement rates, heat exchangers tube
plugging rates and corrosion rates, among others, are parameters that could be followed to
evaluate the AMP effectiveness. The selection of proper indicators requires a case by case
analysis and strongly depends on the particularities of each AMP

AMP evaluation and feedback: Not only the selected indicators are to be evaluated, but also
field experience and any other relevant data have to be collected and analyzed in order to
improve the effectiveness of the AMPs. The permanent re-evaluation of the program allows
for an optimization of the resources assigned to the MSI activities of each AMP

The following chart summarizes the interactions between the different areas of the plant,
needed for the proper establishment of a Plant Life Management for the Long Term Operation
of Argentinean water cooled reactors.

Plant Life Management for Long Term Operation

ARDM-NDT Management
System Component
Engineering Engineering Materials degradation, Fracture
Technological aspects of Mechanics-Fatigue, NDT
Functions and operational prioritized SCCs ARDM management programs
conditions. SSCs Screening

SSC: Systems, Structures and Components Pressure Vessel and Internals

ARDM: Ageing Related Degradation Mechanism Reactor building concrete structures
Ageing Management Programs of prioritized
SSCs Steam Generators

Pumps and Heat Exchangers

Design codes and Maintenance Environmental Quality R&D and Obsolescence

regulatory Surveillance Qualification Assurance Operational Technological
aspects and Inspections Experience Update
(EQ)

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 IAEA-CN-164-4S02

Powering the Future - Life Extension of the Point Lepreau Generating

Station
K. P. Stratton

New Brunswick Power Nuclear Corporattion (NBPN)

E-mail address of main author: kstratton@nbpower.com

The Point Lepreau Generation Station is a CANDU 6 PHWR design that went into service in
1982 in the province of New Brunswick, Canada. It operated with a lifetime capacity factor of
82% until it was shut down in March 2008 to commence a Refurbishment Outage to extend
the life of the station another 25 – 30 years. This paper describes the challenges facing the
station late in its life, the assessment of feasibility for life extension, and execution of the
Refurbishment Outage.

Early its life, the station routinely achieved > 90% annual capacity factor. Operational issues
with fuel channels and feeders beginning in the mid 1990s were the prime reasons for the
reduction in capacity factor.

To mitigate the impact of Pressure Tube diametral creep on reduced safety margins to
fuel dryout, reactor power was reduced over time. By 2008, reactor power had been
reduced by 12%.

Two long outages (3 to 6 months) were required to relocate the fuel channel spacers to
their design locations to prevent contact between the pressure tubes and the calandria
tubes. Contact is undesirable because it promotes the concentration of zirconium
deuteride in the contact area making the tubes susceptible to brittle failure.

Feeders experienced FAC thinning and SCC cracking at the tight radius bends. This
resulted in two forced outages because of through wall cracks and longer planned
outages to inspect the “at risk” feeder bends and to replace those bends where cracks
were detected or those that had insufficient wall thickness margin for the next operating
cycle.

Replacement of the fuel channels and feeders would resolve the above issues. A
comprehensive Condition Assessment process of the stations structures, systems and
components was conducted to determine the other issues that would have to be addressed to
life extend the station. An Integrated Safety Review was done based on IAEA NS-R-1, IAEA
NS-G-2.10 and CNSC RD-360 (draft) to determine gaps with international Safety Goals,
modern codes and standards and regulatory requirements. The outputs from these analyses
determined the scope of a Refurbishment Outage. In July 2005, approval was given to
Refurbish the station commencing in 2008. Expected capacity factor during the extended life
is 89%.

The Refurbishment Outage has three phases:

 Station shutdown, defuelling and dewatering

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 Execute the modifications, replacements and repairs

 Commission and return to service

The first phase was completed on schedule in May 2008. The reactor core was defuelled using
the Fuelling Machines (12 bundles in each of 380 channels). Following defuelling, heavy
water was drained from the heat transport and moderator systems and a vacuum drying
system installed to reduce the tritium hazard. In addition, the secondary side of the steam
generators were cleaned and other water systems were laid-up. The local air coolers in the
vicinity of the reactor faces were removed to provide space for the reactor fuel channel
replacements.

The second phase is well underway. The critical path is through the replacement of the fuel
channels and the feeders. Other important work includes:

 Replacement of shut down system computers

 Improvemets in shutdown trip coverage

 Improvements in Severe Core Damage and Large Release Frequencies

 Address regulatory issues

 Primary side cleaning of the steam generators

 Generator overhaul and turbine uprate

Replacing the fuel channels and feeders consists of the following steps: remove feeders,
remove end fittings, remove pressure tubes, remove calandria tubes, inspect the internals of
the reactor, install calandria tubes, install pressure tubes, install end fittings and install
feeders.

Tooling designed to shear the feeders did not perform as expected; consequently, the feeders
were removed manually. This presented contamination problems that were difficult to
resolve.

Custom-designed, automated electro-mechanical tooling was required for the removal of the
fuel channel components. Local trades were trained to operate the tooling. At the time of the
writing of this synopsis, pressure tube removal is 90% complete. The processes to remove
fuel channel assemblies are complex to limit manual activities to keep the radiation exposure
low. The production rates of the tools have been less than predicted largely because of the
precision required to engage the components and the impact on the mechanisms from dust and
debris from the cutting and shearing operations. More detail on the fuel channel replacement
program will be presented in the final paper.

Despite the equipment problems, actual radiation exposure is tracking below predicted.

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R&D Activities for NPP Life Management in Korea

Tae-Ryong Kim

Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Korea Electric Power Corporation

E-mail address of main author: trkim@kepri.re.kr

Long term operation (LTO) of a nuclear power plant (NPP) becomes the recent worldwide
trend because of unstable oil price and the green house effect. To make LTO possible, first of
all the plant safety should be maintained in its extended operation period and then the
economical benefits should be also expected. For the plant safety, it can be confirmed through
periodic safety review (PSR) system recommended by International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA). The economical benefits may be achieved by the plant life management (PLiM) as
well as structural integrity of the critical components of NPP.

Systems, structures and components (SSC) of NPP are designed to have safety margins in
design stage, and being operated with operational margins. As the plant gets older and older,
however, aging of SSC occurs and some of SSC may be sometimes failed due to the
unexpected aging mechanisms in design stage. Most countries which have operated NPP have
their own R&D programs to establish proper countermeasures against the aging and
degradation of SSC. The well known programs are materials reliability program (MRP) and
steam generator management program (SGMP) of EPRI.

Many R&D activities related to PLiM have been carried out and implemented to Korean NPP
for the long term operation beyond their original design lives. Those activities include PLiM
study, PSR, SGMP, MRP, thinned pipe management program, study on dissimilar metal
welds, aging monitor etc.

PLiM studies for PWR and PHWR have been completed. Detailed lives for critical NPP
components were evaluated and aging management programs (AMP) were established for
LTO of Kori Unit 1 and Wolsong Unit 1 in particular.

Korean SGMP has been also developed for operation and maintenance of steam generator
based on its performance criteria and implemented to all PWR in Korea. In the work,
particularly, the retired steam generator from Kori Unit 1 in 1998 was very usefully utilized to
develop robot for withdrawal of tubes, to improve the detecting technology by using its
natural defects. A program for integrity assessment of steam generator tube, PIAT®, was
developed by KEPRI, which is a comprehensive wear assessment program including thermal-
hydaulic data base, mode analysis, flow-induced vibration and wear assessment.

MRP has been developing at present. In the project, AMP for nickel-alloy nozzles and
penetrations was prepared to ensure their integrity against PWSCC in PWR. The AMP
includes the survey of all Alloy 600 components in Korean NPPs and the assessment of
integrity of components highly susceptible to PWSCC. Pressure tubes and feeder pipes are the
most critical components in CANDU reactor. AMP for those critical components will be
established.

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Thinned pipe management program has been also developed and implemented to all NPP in
Korea. An integrity assessment criterion and a computer program (PiTEP®, Pipe Thinning
Evaluation Program) for wall thinned piping items were developed by KEPRI for the first
time in the world, which is directly applicable to the secondary piping system of nuclear
power plant.

Study on dissimilar metal weld has been also developing at present. Research to develop the
technologies for analysis and measurement of the residual stresses induced by butt welding is
on going. A guideline for residual stresses analysis in dissimilar metal welds was developed
by using finite element methods. To obtain the reliable analysis result for actual dissimilar
metal weld of pressurizer nozzle, round robin analyses with 5 participants were performed.
R&D project on comprehensive assessment and maintenance technologies for the dissimilar
metal welds will be started sooner or later.

A government-supported project, “ Development of Aging Monitor for Operating NPP

Components(2007.4~2010.2)”, has started to develop aging monitor which can display on-
line aging mechanisms and states of various NPP components. At present, aging monitors
were developed for OPR-1000, CANDU type reactor and Westinghouse 3-loop type reactor.
Aging monitors for Framatome type and Westinghouse 2-loop type reactor will be developed.

With the results of R&D activities, continued operation of Kori Unit 1 was successfully
started from January 17, 2008 for next 10 years beyond its design life. It must be a landmark
of 30 years history of nuclear power generation in Korea. Subsequently Wolsong Unit 1 is
also expected to start its continued operation when the replacement of pressure tubes and
feeders are completed in 2009.

In this paper, all the activities and their results of the R&D programs will be introduced.

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Nuclear Power Plant Life Management - Challenges and Proposals for

A Unified Model Integrating Safety and Economics
P.Contri†, B.Elsing, M.Bieth

Joint Research Centre's Institute for Energy, Petten, The Netherlands

E-mail address of main author:paolo.contri@ec.europa.eu

The current social and economic framework for the energy production is characterised by the
following trends:

the open electricity market, which demands for significant reduction of the generation costs,
very strict investment planning, outsourcing, controlled reliability of the equipment and
components (incl. obsolescensce) and therefore for reliable indicators of the effectiveness of
the maintenance programmes

The generic trend towards the extension of the operating life of the existing plants, which
requires a detailed review of the original design assumptions, also reflected into current
maintenance practice, and the continuous monitoring of the component reliability
(performance goals) in order to support a suitable trend of the safety evaluation beyond the
design life.

As a consequence, in last years many electric utilities and nuclear power plants adopted
policies for improved coordination of both safety and non-safety programs, called plant life
management (PLIM).

In Countries with some experience, the PLIM program proved very convenient, especially
when coupled with Maintenance, Surveillance an Inspection (MS&I) optimization: average
savings are reported in the range of 20-30% of total (maintenance) costs.

Moreover, in terms of safety, the control of equipment reliability, significantly improved with
PLIM models for example through Ageing Management Program (AMP) and Reliability
Centred Maintenance (RCM), made a long term asset management of the overall plant
possible and the overall safety indicators significantly improved in many cases.

This is why R&D tasks are needed in this phase, not only in the long term extrapolation of the
component integrity and behaviour, but a also in new management strategies at the plant
(PLIM), able to address organisational issues, spare part management, staff ageing,
component obsolescence, etc, which are typical components of the PLIM.

The Framework Programme 7 of the EU in the area dedicated to the reactor systems calls for
a research effort “to underpin the continued safe operation of all relevant types of existing
reactor systems (including fuel cycle facilities), taking into account new challenges such as
life-time extension and development of new advanced safety assessment methodologies (both
the technical and human element)”.

†
Corresponding author

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The need for harmonised PLIM models at least at the European level (where the energy
market is rather unified and regulated by general rules) has been recently raised, supported by
two main reasons:

A reliable PLIM model needs to be supported by a consistent analysis of feedback from plant
operation, which could be available only at over-national scale (only exceptions are the large
nuclear energy suppliers);

Effective PLIM models need sharing of resources, suppliers, spare parts, O&M techniques
among different plants, which therefore must have the same or very similar characteristics to
foster such exchanges.

The program structure described in the paper is shown in Figure 1, where the integration of
the existing programs at the plant is highlighted.

Figure 1 – Proposed structure for a unified PLIM program

This paper provides a short summary of selected results obtained at the JRC/IE in the
development of a UE model for PLIM, explicitly addressing program management issues
(organisation, contractor management, and program indicators), maintenance optimisation
issues, ageing management of selected components and structures, and human reliability
issues, as suggested by the review of some examples of PLIM programs in the EU.

REFERENCES

[1] EUR 22603 EN, P.Contri, Summary report on the workshop “Maintenance rules:
improving maintenance effectiveness”, Petten, 2006

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[2] EUR 21903 EN: “Optimization of Maintenance Programmes at NPPs - Benchmarking

study on implemented organizational Schemes, Advanced Methods and Strategies for
Maintenance Optimization - Summary Report”, January 2006.
[3] EUR 23232, P.Contri et al., "A plant life management model including optimized
MS&I program –Safety and economic issues", JRC-IE 2007
[4] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Technical Report Series 448,
Plant Life Management for Long Term Operation of Light Water Reactors, IAEA,
Vienna (2006).

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Long-Term Aging Management Strategies for Nuclear Power Plants

S. Toneya, C. Meyera, M. Semmlera, X. Pitoisetb
a
Westinghouse Electric Company, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
b
Westinghouse Electric Company, Nivelles, Belgium

E-mail address of main author: toneysg@westinghouse.com

All nuclear power plants have implemented some form of long-term aging management at
their facility. However, methodologies have been developed recently that can provide
enhancements to the existing aging management plans. This paper presents these
comprehensive aging management strategies.

Comprehensive long-term aging management strategies consider the role of every system,
structure, and component (SSC) in the nuclear power plant and assesses how aging can
prevent those SSCs from performing those roles. Nuclear power plants that have not
implemented comprehensive long-term aging management strategies/programs utilize
existing maintenance and inspection programs to manage plant aging. While maintenance
and inspection have not been traditionally called aging management programs, they perform
activities that are credited with managing aging. These activities have been performed for
many years, and many of these programs exist as a result of commitments to specific
regulations (e.g. In-Service Inspection). Other programs exist because they have been
identified by standards or industry best practices. Operating experience provides feedback
when failures occur so that enhancements to programs can be developed through the
corrective actions process.

While the above process has served the industry well and will continue, many gaps have been
identified in the processes of plants that have implemented long-term aging management
strategies. These gaps include, for example, missing programs, key components that are
experiencing aging but aren’t covered by any program, deficient or out-dated techniques
being used in existing programs, and enhancements in the acceptance criteria for the program.

Several methodologies have been developed to identify gaps in aging management and/or to
confirm that the existing aging management is sufficient. These methodologies combine to
provide a comprehensive long-term aging management strategy. While the ultimate goal of
these methodologies is the same (that is, managing the aging of plant SSCs to assure safety
and cost efficiency) their focus and stakeholders are different, and therefore, there are
differences in the specific methodologies. These categories of methodologies can be defined
as regulatory-based, economic-based, and experience-based methodologies. This paper will
provide an overview of the three different categories of aging management methodologies.

Regulatory-Based Aging Management

While all aging management is based on experience, there have been many regulations
specifically developed to manage component aging. Aging management that is based on
regulatory requirements is generally focused on ensuring the public health and safety, and

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therefore, is focused on safety-related and important to safety system, structure and

component functions. Examples are requirements related to ensuring electrical components
are qualified to operate in the post-accident environment (Environmental Qualification) and
rules which ensure that the reasctor vessel will not experience unacceptable loads due to
thermal shock events (Pressurized Thermal Shock). These regulatory requirements
implemented procedural requirements into plant programs for performing specific actions
related to plant surveillance, operation, or maintenance.

In the more recent past, additional regulatory requirements have been established in some
countries that broadly cover aging management. These requirements are for ‘oversight’
programs which implement criteria for identifying the scope of aging management programs,
while providing specific evaluation methodologies and/or criteria for assessment of plant
SSCs. In the United States, these regulations include the Maintenance Rule and the License
Renewal Rule. While the short-term goal of the License Renewal Rule is for plants in the US
to obtain a renewed operating license, the purpose of the methodologies supporting the
regulatory requirements is to implement long-term aging management programs.

With respect to aging management, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Periodic
Safety Review (PSR) focus is the same as the aging management focus for US plants that
have received renewed operating licenses. The PSR rationale and objective is that the
member utilities evaluate the cumulative effects of aging on plant SSCs, and that each SSC
should be assessed against its design basis to confirm that aging has not significantly
undermined the design basis assumptions.

Economic-Based Aging Management

While regulatory requirements focus on the aging management that is necessary to ensure
public health and safety, the focus of economic-based aging management methodologies is
the efficient operation of the power plant. While aging assessments for SSCs in this category
of the plant are similar or the same as for the first category above, the consequences of the
SSC aging may not be the same. For example, while proactive aging management of turbine
components may not have any consequence to the health and safety of the public because
their failure cannot impact safety or important to safety functions, failure of these components
may have significant impact on plant availability and economic viability. Therefore, the
economic-based aging management methodologies evaluate SSC aging against their
importance to power production or other related economic criteria.

The primary difference between the methodologies for economic-based aging management
and regulatory-based aging management is consideration of the economic impact of the
consequences of the aging management, or lack of aging management being performed. For
major components that impact power production (turbine, major heat exchangers, etc.)
evaluations are performed using operating experience to predict component performance.
These evaluations are then assessed and integrated with overall utility strategic investment
objectives to optimize long-term planning.

Experience-Based Aging Management

The final methodology used for managing aging is the experience-based methodology. This
method is currently being used throughout the industry and has been employed since the birth
of the nuclear industry. This method relies on operating experience, owners groups, industry
message boards, and similar methods to disseminate information related to experience on

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issues related to component aging. While this category of aging management is not a single
specific aging management methodology, the various methods of communication throughout
the industry have been very effective at communicating and managing issues over the years.

The methods employed in experience-based aging management ranges from informal

information sharing to formal industry groups. Examples of these methods range from the
informal sharing of information between system engineers that have the same system in
different plants to the formal organization of the Boiling Water Reactor Vessel Inspection
Program (VIP) or Pressurized Water Reactor Materials Reliability Program (MRP).

This paper will present a general overview of each of the categories, including examples of
results of implementing and the consequences of not implementing the categories of
methodologies.

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Innovative Maintenance Technology for RPV and RIN of Operating

Nuclear Plant
N. Suezono, Y. Motora, T. Saito, K. Naruse

Toshiba Corporation Power Systems Company

E-mail address of main author: nobuichi.suezono@toshiba.co.jp

Considering present nuclear operating power plants, the number of long term operated plants
that are being operated more than 30 years has increased in recent years. There are many
maintenance technologies developped and applied for the purpose of mitigating, improving or
repairing these operated plants.

In this paper, at first, ordinary maintenance sequences being applied to reactor pressure vessel
and reactor internals of Japanese operating nuclear plants will be introduced with related
maintenance technologies classification. And out of many maintenance technologies, some
characteristic ones will be explained.

Maintenance technologies using laser power have been developped to mitigate or repair SCC
of reactor pressure vessels and reactor internals.

Laser peening is the technology to improve surface residual stresses to mitigate SCC. This
paper will show recent development of this technology, and in addition to this, some
consideration or information related to this technology will be explained. That is to say,
considering certain external load, knowledge of relaxation of improved stress formed by laser
peening will be explained. And also, consideration to be studied before laser peening
application on the weld line that already includes some existing SCC area will be
recommended.

Underwater laser beam welding technology is another laser application technology, that has
been developped for the purpose of mitigation and repair SCC. The recent development of
this technology will be shown in this paper.

And one more technogy, integrated reactor internal component replacement work for BWR,
will be presented in this paper. In Japan, it has already been performed for several times.
Through this replacement work, very large area of welded type reactor internals, such as core
shroud or jet pump can be replaced at one time to prevent or repair SCC.

Detail information will be mentioned in the paper.

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IAEA Surveillance Data Administration within Mat-DB

H. H. Overa, S. Pirfo Barrosob, F. Gillemotb
a
Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, Institute for Energy, Petten, The
Netherlands
b
Hungarian Academy of Sciences KFKI Atomic Energy Research Institute, Budapest,
Hungary

E-mail address of main author: hans-helmut.over@jrc.nl

JRC-IE has developed a web-enabled materials database (Mat-DB) for storing materials test
data resulting from international research projects together with other documentation in a
related document management database (DoMa) providing fast access to confidential and
public data sets. The databases are implemented in the secure ODIN portal:
https://odin.jrc.ec.europa.eu of JRC-IE.

Mat-DB covers thermo-mechanical and thermo-physical properties data of engineering alloys

at low, elevated and high temperatures for base materials and joints, including irradiated
materials for nu-clear fission and fusion applications, thermal barrier coated materials for gas
turbines and properties of corroded materials. The corrosion part refers to weight gain/loss
data of high temperature exposed engineering alloys and ceramic materials. For each test type
the database structure reflects international test standards and recommendations.

Mat-DB features an extensive library of evaluation programs for web-enabled assessment of

uni-axial creep, fatigue, crack growth and high temperature corrosion properties. Evaluations
can be performed after data retrieval or independently of Mat-DB by transferring other
materials data in a given format to the programs. The fast evaluation processes help the user
to get a detailed data analysis or data extrapolation for component design and life-time
prediction.

Within an bi-lateral agreement Mat-DB hosts also thousands IAEA surveillance data of
reactor pressure vessel materials from different nuclear power plants of their member states.
These tensile and impact materials data tested before and after irradiation are uploaded in a
confidential area of Mat-DB only accessible for the entitled IAEA administrators. The paper
provides an overview over:

 reflection on the complexity of IAEA data transfer into Mat-DB;

 implementation of standardized XML technology to ease complex data exchange in the

future,

 security, access rights and data confidentiality,

 advantage of on-line data access by nuclear power plant members world-wide,

 data evaluation,

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 maintenance and upgrades of Mat-DB,

 IAEA surveillance data content within Mat-DB,

 continuous uploading of new IAEA surveillance data, advantages in using the web-
enabled Mat-DB for IAEA members.

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The Best-Estimate Plus Uncertainty (BEPU) Challenge in the

Licensing of Current Generation of Reactors
F.D’Auriaa
O.Mazzantinib
a. University of Pisa – Via Diotisalvi 2, 56100 Pisa - Italy

b NASA – Buenos Aires, Aregentina

E-mail address of main author: dauria@ing.unipi.it

Among the general attributes of a methodology to perform accident analysis of a nuclear

power plant for licensing purposes, the very first one should be the compliance with the
established regulatory requirements.

A second attribute deals with the adequacy and the completeness of the selected spectrum of
events which should consider the combined contributions of deterministic and probabilistic
methods.

The third attribute is connected with the availability of qualified tools and analytical
procedures suitable for the analysis of accident conditions envisaged in the concerned Nuclear
Power Plant (NPP). Thus, a modern and technically consistent approach has been built upon
best estimate methods including an evaluation of the uncertainty in the calculated results
(Best Estimate Plus Uncertainties or BEPU approach).

The complexity of a NPP and of the accident scenarios may put a challenge for a conservative
analysis and may justify the choice for a BEPU approach in the licensing process. This
implies two main needs: the need to adopt and to prove (to the regulatory authority) an
adequate quality for the computational tools and the need for the uncertainty.

The purpose of the present paper is to outline key aspects of the BEPU process aimed at the
licensing of the Atucha II NPP in Argentina. The Atucha II is a heavy-water cooled heavy-
water moderated, vessel type, pressurized reactor. The moderator fluid has the same pressure
as the coolant fluid, but temperature is lower. Fuel channels, which do not withstand pressure
difference during nominal operation, separate the coolant from the moderator. The thermal
power produced in the moderator is used to pre-heat the feed-water.

A direct link with the bases of nuclear reactor safety shall be ensured by the ‘BEPU-
description document’. In the present case this is formed by the following main elements or
steps:

1) Evaluation of the possibility to use a BE estimate within the context of the current
national (i.e. of the Country where the NPP is installed) Regulatory Authority (RA)
requirements. A pre-application document was submitted to the national RA. This
included the consideration of past interactions between the RA and the applicant as

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well as the analysis of the licensing practice in the Country where the NPP was
designed.

2) Outline of international practices relevant for the proposed approach. The experiences
acquired in the use of Best Estimate analyses for licensing purposes are reviewed: this
is true for probabilistic and deterministic analyses and specifically for the
determination of radiological consequences.

3) Structure of the BEPU: a) categorization of Postulated Initiating Events (PIE), b)

grouping of events, c) identification of analysis purposes, d) identification of
applicable acceptance criteria, e) setting up of the ‘general scope’ Evaluation Model
(EM) and of related requirements starting from the identification of scenario related
phenomena, f) selection of qualified computational tools including assumed initial and
boundary conditions, g) characterization of assumptions for the Design Basis
Spectrum, h) performing the analyses, i) adopting a suitable uncertainty method.

4) Under the item 3g): the roadmap pursued for the analysis foresaw the use of nominal
conditions for the NPP parameters and the failure of the most influential system. The
implementation of such roadmap implied the execution of preparatory code run per
each scenario where all NPP systems were simulated. This also required the
simulation the control and the limitations systems other than the protection systems.
Once the ‘nominal system performance in accident conditions (following each PIE)’
was determined, it was possible to select the worst failures and calculate a new (i.e.
the ‘binding one’) accident scenario.

5) Under the general scope of item 3e): several computer codes and about two dozen
nodalizations have been used, developed and, in a number of cases, interconnected
among each other.

6) Qualification was necessary for the computational tools mentioned under item 5),
within the framework depicted under item 3). The issue constituted by qualification of
code-nodalization user was dealt with in the same context. Specific methods or
procedures including acceptability thresholds have been developed and adopted.

7) Under the scope of item 3i): the uncertainty method based on the extrapolation of
accuracy, developed at University of Pisa since the end of 80’s, was used to create the
CIAU (Code with capability of Internal Assessment of Uncertainty) and directly used
for quantifying the errors in the calculations, as needed.

The execution of the overall analysis and the evaluation of results in relation to about one-
hundred PIE revealed the wide safety margins available for the concerned NPP that was
designed in the 80’s.

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Risk Concept in Nuclear Industry

Réka Fótos, László Tóth

Bay Zoltán Institute for Applied Research, Miskolc, Hungary

E-mail address of main author: fotos.reka@bay-logi.hu

The concept of risk evaluation is existing for centuries. It is present everywhere, in the
economy, in the industry and in our everyday life. In the decades past, the role of risk concept
is increasing continuously, which is due to a lot of reasonable causes. The paper shows, that
why the risk-based applications are extended in more and more branches of industry. This
likes to be a “communication interface” between the “economists” and “engineers”. This new
improvement in inpection planning involves numerous benefits, but raises some questions,
e.g. from the regulatory point of view. What are needed to implement the risk-based strategy
and for what can we expected as the result of it? The paper shows a solution of the
implementation of the risk-based methodologies, which main principles can be applied in the
most fields of industry.

FIG. 1. Main steps of a risk-informed concept

The main aim is to focus the maintenance and inspection efforts on the highest risk elements,
but how can we establish an adequate order between them, on the basis of risk? Are there any

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standards or guidelines for risk-based strategies in the different industries? The paper tries to
summarize the current state of risk-based approaches, considering the benefits and difficulties
of it. The paper concentrates on the nuclear industry, which is one of the most controversial
industry, since the whole society is divided on this issue. The concept of risk is unthinkable in
this field for a lot of people, including some regulatory bodies. As opposed to it, in some
countries there are an acceptable process is the risk-based managing of nuclear power plants.
What is the cause of this sharp difference? The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the
state of the art in this field and to show the trends in the development of risk-based
approaches

REFERENCES

[1] Report on the regulatory Experience of Risk-informed Inservice Inspection of Nuclear

Power Plant Components Final Report 2004, European Commission
[2] API 581 Base Resource Document Risk-based Inspection, First edition May 2000
[3] NRC Regulatory Guide 1.174-An Approach for Using Probabilistic Risk Assessment in
Risk-Informed Decisions on Plant-Specific Changes to Licensing Basis
[4] www.euronuclear.org/info/encyclopedia/n/nuclear-powerplant-europe.htm
[5] ENIQ TGR Discussion document on the role of in-service inspection within the
philosophy of defence in depth

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Application of the Performance Validation Tool for the Evaluation of

NSSS Control System Performance
Sohn Suk-whun, Song In-ho, Jeong See-chae, Sohn Jong-joo

Korea Power Engineering Company (KOPEC), Daejeon, South Korea

E-mail address of main author: swson@kopec.co.kr

Nuclear steam supply system (NSSS) control systems play a vital role in operating the nuclear
power plants (NPPs) within their designed condition. Therefore, lots of efforts have been
made to screen out errors existing in these systems and check the performances when the
control systems were either retrofitted in operating NPPs or installed in newly constructed
NPPs because the remaining error would cause unexpected transient during normal operation
and trip the reactor. However, it is difficult to filter out all errors in design process because
some errors occur as a result of the combination of a dormant error and the onset of the
specific set of conditions that triggers the error [1]. Therefore, many dynamic tests have been
performed during power ascension test (PAT) for newly constructed NPPs to find out errors
remained. However, performing actual dynamic tests increases risk and economical losses in
case of control system retrofit in the NPPS in operations. Therefore, it is necessary to simulate
these dynamic tests in this case.

A performance validation tool was developed to simulate the dynamic test. This tool was
successfully applied to the hardware replacement project for Yonggwang (YGN) 3&4
feedwater control system (FWCS) in 2008. The FWCS hardware was directly connected with
the windows based nuclear plant performance analyzer (Win-NPA) which is an interactive,
high fidelity, and real-time engineering simulator. After preparing test equipment by replacing
the FWCS model in the Win-NPA with a real FWCS hardware, dozens of performance
related transients were simulated for the existing and new FWCS hardware. The results were
compared to prove that the new FWCS hardware was properly manufactured in accordance
with design specifications. Also, the performance of the new hardware was evaluated by
comparing with that of the existing hardware [2].

On the basis of successful experience in YGN 3&4, this performance validation method using
the Win-NPA extends its scope to newly constructed NPPs. If dynamic tests are simulated
before the PAT with the Win-NPA connected to NSSS control systems hardware, errors in the
control systems can be found and corrected before the PAT. Furthermore, the performance of
control valves also can be tested and evaluated with the configuration shown in figure 1. It is
widely known that about 30% of control problems are caused by valve problems such as
stiction of positioner, low or large air flow, and improper size. As the performance of control
systems and control valves is in advance confirmed before the PAT, unwanted transients or
reactor trip due to control problems will be avoided during the PAT.

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Fig. 1 Interfacal configuration between performance validation tool and control systems and
control valves

REFERENCES
[1] K. Korsah at el, “Industrial Survey of Digital I&C Failure”, ORNL/TM-2006/626,
December, 2006.
[2] U. S. Kim at el, “Development of Performance Verification Tool for Nuclear Steam
Supply System Control Systems”, 16th PBNC, 2008.

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NULIFE ASSOCIATION: an Opportunity to Face Gen II / Gen III

Challenges through Cooperative Research
Valery Prunier

EDF, France

E-mail address of main author:valery.prunier@edf.fr

The European Network of Excellence NULIFE (Nuclear Plant Life Management) has a clear
focus on integrating research for Long-Term Operation (LTO) to support Generation II plants
safe and competitive operation, as well as to develop common basis and tools for current and
evolutive Generation III nuclear power plants. NULIFE shall for instance help in the
development of design criteria for future generations of nuclear power plant. NULIFE was
kicked-off in October 2006 and will work over a 5-year period to create a single organization
structure, named NULIFE ASSOCIATION, sustainable and capable of providing cooperative
R&D at European and international level to the nuclear power industry. Joint research and
development activity priorisation procedure and first R&D projects are defined to be started
late 2009 or early 2010. Led by VTT (Technical Research Centre of Finland), the project has
a total budget of around EUR 10 millions, with today 44 partners drawn from leading research
institutions, technical support organisations, power companies and manufacturers throughout
Europe. While over half are from the research sector, NULIFE also involves many industrial
organizations and, in addition to their R&D contributions, these take part in a dedicated End
User Group. The End User Group, led by EDF, consists today of almost all european nuclear
utilities.

NULIFE has just completed :

 A coherent working structure

 Links to National programmes and achieving good progress in the Expert Groups and
Pilot Projects
 An active participation of End User Group in drafting the research strategy
 The basis for the business plan and an operational model to create soon NULIFE
Association
 Joint participation with Euratom and Rosatom (CEG PLIM) and other international
activities.

The current business plan of NULIFE includes the establishment of an international

association (NULIFE Association). NULIFE Association will be sustainable and shall take
over the Network of Excellence in roughly two years. It shall act as a facilitator to cooperative
research. It shall :

 Trigger innovation and promote new ideas

 Implement support to all Plant Life Management (PLIM) related issues.
 Support the launching of new R&D projects
 Find and link funding partners and find R&D capabilities from the NULIFE competence
pool

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 Support project consortium agreement and management

 Support integration and harmonisation.

Strategic research planning was started together with business plan and has been strongly
related to the preparation of the First Chapter of the Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) of the
Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform (SNE-TP). Many NULIFE organisations
and members participate actively in the SNE-TP

 Governing Board: Chair, CEA, VTT, E.ON, EDF, Vattenfall, AREVA, SCK-CEN,
TECNATOM, PSI, NRG,…
 Executive Committee: Chair VTT
 Strategic Research Agenda Group: Chair of subgroup Gen2/Gen3, EDF
 Deployment Strategy Group: EDF.

The First Chapter of the SNE-TP SRA defines the strategic targets in Long Term Operation
(LTO), Performance improvement and External factors. In the Long Term Operation area,
Safety justification, Ageing mechanisms of Systems-Structures-Components, Ageing
monitoring and Prevention and mitigation of ageing are important subjects. In addition the
SRA considers some cross-cutting areas like structural materials, prenormative research,
codes and standards, modelling, simulation and methods.

NULIFE is seen as a key instrument in implementing PLIM related topics of the SNE-TP
strategy. The on-going and near future actions are on one side the preparation of road maps
and specific short, medium and long term research topics to deploy the SRA, and on the other
side to facilitate the launching of R&D projects on needs already shared by several
stakeholders. Three projects are under construction on civil work, thermo-hydraulic code
benchmark and warm pre-stress effect. Each project is supported case by case by some
members of the NULIFE End User Group, which is now very representative with around
fifteen participating utilities, among which the 8 leading European nuclear utilities.

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Model Reference Control & Protection Theory and Implementation

for Nuclear Power Plants using Real-time Simulations
A.C. Cilliers, A.S.J. Helberg

Post-Graduate School of Nuclear Science & Engineering,

North West Univeristy, Potchefstroom, South Africa

E-mail address of main author: cilliean@eskom.co.za

This paper shows that when combining the real time data from nuclear power plant
measurement equipment with a real time simulator of the plant it is possible to perform tighter
control over the plant and unwanted plant operation can be recognised earlier. As soon as the
unwanted operation is identified as a fault, the fault cause, severity and location in the plant
can be deduced.

The traditional protection and control of nuclear plants by measuring variables inside the
plant and initialising processes based on predefined rules set up from the design knowledge
base - is effective but not without shortcomings. As plants become more complex the
predefined protection and control rules are becoming more complex and a very large safety
margin has to be designed into these rules [1]. Information from measurement equipment
provides a picture of the plant at any time, but without predefined operational limits, it can not
provide any indication of the expected behaviour of the plant.

The advancements in processor speeds and the development of sophisticated numerical

algorithms allows the simulation of plant processes in real time [2]. The simulator, however,
can only predict expected plant behaviour because it is blind to faults occuring in the plant.

Combining the information from the measurement equipment with the ability of the simulator
to predict what should be happening inside the plant in real time provides a very effective
method to address the shortcoming of the existing protection and control philosophies.

The model control & protection theory consists of two parts:

 A dynamic operating window around the operating point that moves along with the
operating point, this allows tighter control as well as early reconition of unexpected
behaviour.
 Fault isolation & identification, once unexpected behaviour has been recognised the
fault data is isolated from expected transient information and analysed to classify the
fault into a category, location, size and cause.

THE DYNAMIC OPERATING WINDOW

In theory the measured operating point of the nuclear plant should always be predicted exactly
by the plant simulator and any variation from the predicted dynamic operating point
constitues faulty behaviour. Taking into acount equipment and calculation inacuracies, the
predicted operating point is enlarged to a predicted dynamic operating window around the
measured operating point. Without the use of a simulator providing a small dynamic
operating window the protection system utilises a large static operating window only based

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upon the safe operating constraints of the plant equipment. The position of the operating
point inside this large operating window can not give any indication as to the correct
operation of the plant, and the plant is deemed to operate correctly as long as the operating
point remains inside the static operating window. The use of a dynamic operating window
has two distinct advantages:

During expected transients no fault would be flagged since the operating point will
remain inside the operating window.


During unexpected transients, the operating point will move outside the small operating
window quickly and a fault condition would be flagged earlier.


FAULT ISOLATION AND IDENTIFICATION

We isolate the fault data by recording real measured data from the plant, and comparing it
with expected real time data from the plant simulator. The difference between the two data
sets constitute unexpected plant operation information. This is possible because the real-time
simulator only provides information on the expected transient and no information on the fault.
Noted that this calculation is not always a linear subtraction.

Combining the normalised fault information from various measurements inside the plant and
correlating this information with various pre-simulated faults identifies the fault with an
increasing level of certainty as the fault effects unfold over time and this information becomes
available to the real time system. The following sequence is followed:

 The system identifies that the plant is behaving unexpectedly.

The unexpected behaviour is isolated. The fault is categorised by matching the
behaviour with known behaviour of certain fault categories.


 The fault is identified by following behaviour trend of a number of measured variables.

The position of the fault is identified by triangulating the measurement equipment that
indicated the fault first.


 The magnitude of the fault is calculated from rate of change in the time domain.

SUMMARY

Our research show that it is possible to generate a reference fingerprint for various faults
based on its cause and position in the reactor. In these studies the normalised fault remains
within 0.5% of the reference fault at all times. This enables plant diagnostics to identify a
fault, the cause and the severity even if the plant is still be operating inside the traditional
acceptable operating parameters during any transient. The system also improves
dependability of the control & protection system of the plant by identifying faulty
measurement equipment that would normally result in a plant trip.

REFERENCES

[1] WESTINGHOUSE, PWR Course Manual, Vol 6B.

[2] FINC, P, et al. 2006. Workshop on Simulation and Modelling for Advanced Nuclear Energy
Systems. Office of Nuclear Energy, Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research, U.S.
Department of Energy. Washington. D.C. USA.

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Technical Support to An Operating PWR vis-à-vis Safety Analysis

Subhan Gul, M. Khan, M. Kamran Chughtai

Directorate of Nuclear Power Engineering Reactor (DNPER)

P.O.Box 3140 Islamabad, Pakistan

E-mail address of main author: subhan100@hotmail.com

Currently a PWR of 300 MWe capacity CHASNUPP-I is in operation since the year 2000.
Technical support being provided includes In-core fuel management and corresponding safety
analysis for the reshuffled core for the next cycle. Prior to start of cycle six an extension in
cycle five based on coast down technique was achieved of almost 30 effective full power
days.

Cycle 6 was designed to achieve the safe and economical loading pattern. The technique used
is designated as out-in mode (modified). In this technique, most of the fresh fuel assemblies
are not directly located at the periphery of the core, but near the boundary. This technique has
the advantage that no burnable absorbers are used in each cycle and we get less radial neutron
leakage and increased discharge burnup and cycle length. Operating experience/feedback
shows that this type of loading pattern gives better economy without resorting to the
conventional in-out technique. The lifetime of the cycle is predicted as 10371 MWD/MTU or
373 Effective Full Power Days (EFPD at 998.6 MWth). In design calculations, the end of
cycle is reached at 10 ppm critical boron concentration in the unrodded core.

Measured critical boron concentration at HZP, BOL is 1453 ppm compared with the
calculated value i.e 1457 ppm, is within the acceptable limits. It is also observed that the
calculated reactivity worth of T1 is -1771 pcm as compared to measured value i.e -1802 pcm
with difference of only 1.6 % showing the reliability of the design value. The measured
Moderator temperature coefficient (MTC) is 2.52 pcm/0C at all rods out (ARO) and critical
boron concentration (CBC) condition whereas the calculated value is 3.36 pcm/0C (at
predicted CBC of 1457) having a good agreement with design value.

Safety evaluation of cycle 6 was carried out for the reshuffled core. All the probable accident
scenarios based on initiating events as given in the FSAR were evaluated with respect to input
parameters. For a specific event, the comparison of critical safety related core physics
parameters between the reference case and current cycle was undertaken. For instance the
scenario related to reduction in feedwater temperature or addition of excessive feedwater flow
which can cause an increase in the heat transfer from the primary side to the secondary side in
the steam generator and a decrease in RCS temperature was examined with respect to the
input parameters. In this event, the most negative moderator temperature coefficient (MTC)
and the least negative Doppler coefficient (DC) are the critical parameters. Maximum MTC
and Minimum DC were calculated as -52.4 pcm/0C & -2.32 pcm/0C compared to reference
value (FSAR) -59.0 pcm/0C & -2.0 pcm/0C respectively. The critical parameters of Cycle 6
are thus bounded by the reference analysis. Similarly, another event was considered of partial
or complete loss of forced reactor coolant flow which could result in a rapid increase in the
coolant temperature reduction in power because of the negative reactivity insertion. For a
conservative analysis, the least negative moderator temperature coefficient and the most

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negative Doppler coefficient are the critical parameters. Minimum MTC and Maximum DC
are calculated as -1.9 pcm/0C & -3.04 pcm/0C compared to reference value 0.0 pcm/0C & -3.6
pcm/0C respectively. The critical parameters of Cycle 6 are bounded by the reference
analysis. Since all initiating events evaluated have relevant parameters within the limits, it is
concluded that reactor will operate safely during cycle 6.

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 Synopses for Topic 5

ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY
APPLICATION

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CAREM Prototype Construction and Licensing Status

H. Boado Magan, D. Delmastro, E Lopasso, et al.

Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica, ARGENTINA

E-mail address of main author: boado@cnea.gov.ar

After several years of development the CAREM Project reached such a maturity level that the
argentinean government decided the construction of CAREM prototype.

CAREM is a CNEA (Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica) project. This project consists
on the development, design and construction of a small nuclear power plant. First, a prototype
of an electrical output of about 27 MW, CAREM 25, will be constructed in order to validate
the innovation of CAREM concept and then up-rated to commercial version.

CAREM 25 is an indirect cycle reactor with some distinctive and characteristic features that
greatly simplify the reactor and also contribute to a higher level of safety:

 Integrated primary cooling system.

 Primary cooling by natural circulation,

 Self-pressurised.

 Safety systems relying on passive features.

The primary system is integrated, that means the whole high energy primary system -core,
steam generators and pressurising system- and the absorbers rods drive mechanisms are
contained inside a single pressure vessel. The core has 61 fuel elements with hexagonal cross
section and different U 235 low enrichment. Each fuel element contains 108 fuel rods, 18
guide thimbles, and an instrumentation thimble. Reactivity control during normal operation is
achieved by means of movable control rods and burnable poison. Strongly negative
temperature and density feedback coefficients are the consequence of no boron use for
reactivity control during normal operation, allowing the control system to keep control of the
reactor power through transients and load variations with minimum control rod motion. The
12 steam generators are of a ‘Mini Helical' vertical, 'once through' design. Coolant in the
primary and secondary sides flow in counter-current with secondary flow coolant flowing
upwards inside the tubes. The secondary system exits the steam generator with ample
superheating.

Reactor coolant circulates by natural circulation. The driving force is the density difference
between the hot and cold legs of the loop. The coolant flow is defined by the location of the
steam generators -cold source- above the core -hot source-. The coolant acts also as
moderator.

Self-pressurisation of the primaiy system is the result of natural trend towards the liquid-
steam equilibrium. Due to self-pressurisation, bulk temperature at the core output corresponds

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to saturation temperature at the primary pressure. Conventional PWR's heaters and sprinkles
are thus eliminated. The large dome volume contributes to the damping of pressure
perturbations. To shutdown the nuclear chain reaction and to keep the reactor in a sub-critical
state. CAREM NPP has two different and independent safety systems activated by the reactor
protection system or by the operator. They are the first shutdown system -neutron absorbing
elements- and the second shutdown system –borated water injection system-. Hydraulically
Drive Control Rods avoid the use of mechanical shafts passing through the primary pressure
boundary since the whole device is located inside the RPV. Their design is an important
development in the CAREM concept in case of blackout, the reactor decay heat is transferred
through the Residual Heat Removal System, to a pool located in the upper level of the
containment. The pool water is vaporized and then conducted to the pressure suppression
pool, where is condensed.

Technical and economical advantages are obtained with the CAREM design compared to the
traditional design:

 Large Loss of Coolant Accideat (LOCA) has not to be handled by the safety systems
due to the absence of large diameter piping associated to the primaiy system. The size
of possible break in the primary is 38 mm.

 Innovative hydraulic Drive Control Rods avoid Rod Ejection Accident.

 Large coolant inventory in the primary results in large thermal inertia and long response
time in case of transients or severe accidents.

 Shielding requirements are reduced by the elimination of gamma sources of dispersed

primary piping and parts.

 The large water volume between the core and the wall leads to a very low fast neutron
dose over the RPV wall.

 Eliminating primary pumps and pressurizer results in lower costs, added safety, and
advantages for maintenance and availability.

Several activities are ongoing with the purpose of obtaining the Construction License for
CAREM Prototype. The Preliminary Safety Analysis Report is under development in order to
be presented by the end of this year. Siting activities such as soil studies and environmental
analysis are being performed.

The construction of a high pressure and high temperature rig for testing the innovative
Hydraulic Control Rod Drive Mechanism will be finished this year.

In the fuel element area, both the fuel pellets and the fuel elements itself are under
development. Uranium dioxide, burnable poison oxide and the appropriate equipment for
pellet manufacturing will soon be available. Fuel element dummies that will be used to
analyze mechanical integrity and test the behaviour under different flow conditions are under
construction.

The use of robotics and the development of a plant simulator are considered.

Contracts and agreements are being taking with different argentinean stakeholders to perfonn
detail engineering.

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The procurement process of main components such as the RPV is being started with local
suppliers.

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Concept of a High Pressure Boiling Water Reactor, HP-BWR

Frigyes Reisch

KTH, Royal Institute of Technology, Nuclear Power Safety, Stokcholm, Sweden

E-mail address of main author: frigyes@kth.se

INTRODUCTION

Some four hundred Boiling Water Reactors (BWR) and Pressurized Water Reactors (PWR)
have been in operation for several decades. The presented concept, the High Pressure Boiling
Water Reactor (HP-BWR) makes use of the operating experiences. HP-BWR combines the
advantages and leaves out the disadvantages of the traditional BWRs and PWRs by taking in
consideration the experiences gained during their operation. The best parts of the two
traditional reactor types are used and the troublesome components are left out. HP-BWR
major benefits;

1 SAFETY IS IMPROVED

The control rods are gravity operated instead of be operated by an intricate hydraulic system.
The gravity operated control rod system has served well in PWRs. The stems are introduced
into the reactor vessel via the vessel head. The control rods themselves are in the form of a
cross, as it is in the BWRs. This assures large space for the cross formed rods between the
BWR type fuel boxes. Also the neutron measurement sounds are introduced via the reactor
pressure vessel head the way it is used in BWRs. All the pipe connections to the reactor vessel
are well above the top of the reactor core. This means that a major pipe break will not empty
the reactor vessel. Therefore core spray is not needed. Internal circulation pumps are used to
assure hydrodynamic stability. In this way the orifices at the fuel channel inlets are chosen so
that the one phase pressure drop will dominate over the two phase pressure drop to avoid
hydrodynamic oscillations. By utilizing natural circulation one could omit the circulation
pumps. However the margin to avoid hydrodynamic oscillations may be reduced. Compared
to the traditional BWR the HP-BWR has further advantages, namely improved thermal
efficiency due to the higher temperature and further improved inherent stability due to the
increased negative power reactivity coefficien,.calculated with the RELAP and PARCS
codes. Transient calculations made with the MATLAB code proves the HP-BWR long term
stability without the use of any control system. Using presently available PWR pressure
vessel and presently available BWR fuel boxes the HP-BWR approximate power output
would be some 1200 MWe.

2 ENVIRONMENT FRIENDLY

Improved thermal efficiency is attained by feeding the turbine with ~3400C (15.5MPa) steam
instead of ~286 0C (7MPa). The Carnot cycle theoretical efficiency (THot - TCold )/ THot is for
BWR ~46% and for HP-BWR ~51% at TCold = 300 0K, i.e. an increase by a factor of 1.109.
Assuming the same improvement ratio, today’s efficiency of ~33% would increase to ~37%.
This demonstrates the advantage of the HP-BWR which utilizes the fuel more efficiently and
releases less warm cooling water to the environment per produced kWh and consequently

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produces less waste. There are several conventional thermal power plants with 15.5 MPa
turbines. Though to use dry saturated water might need some development work.

3 COST EFECTIVE SIMPLE

The HP-BWR operates in direct cycle mode, with no need for complicated and expensive
PWR steam generators and also instead the perforated and rather complicated BWR reactor
pressure vessel bottom a simplified smooth one is used. The main steam separators are inside
the pressure vessel and secondary separators and dryers can be installed outside the reactor
vessel, inside or outside the containment. The containment is a simple dry containment which
allows easy entrance and inspections and also minor repairs during operation.

CONCLUDING REMARKS

As a reactor inspector on leave from Sweden I participated in IAEA’s OSART and ASSET
missions. Also due to my engagement at the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
I visited nuclear installations in Europe, Asia and America. This way I gained insight of the
operational experiences of most reactor types. As a result, now I can contribute to the
advancement of nuclear energy independently. As I have no obligation to any vendor or
reactor type I can suggest an optimal reactor construction which hopefully will lead to further
detailed studies at some vendors, power companies, research institutes and universities,
especially after this conference. In Sweden already some universities expressed interest to
make further studies of this concept.

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Neutron
measuremen Control rod
nt

Steam exit

Steam Feed water

separator

Recirculation
Flow
Fuel boxes

Circulation
pummp

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SuperCritical Water-cooled Nuclear Reactors (SCWRs):

Thermodynamic Cycle Options and Thermal Aspects of Pressure-
Channel Design
M. Naidina, I. Pioroa, R. Duffeyb, S. Mokrya, L. Grandea, B. Villamerea, L. Allisona,
A. Rodriguez-Pradoa, S. Mikhaela
a
University of Ontario Institute of Technology
Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science
2000 Simcoe Street North, Oshawa, Ontario, L1H 7K4, Canada
b
Chalk River Laboratories, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
Chalk River, Ontario, K0J 1J0 Canada

E-mail address of main author: maria.naidin@mycampus.uoit.ca

Research activities are currently conducted worldwide to develop Generation IV nuclear

reactor concepts with the objective of improving thermal efficiency and increasing economic
competitiveness of Generation IV Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs) compared to modern thermal
power plants. The Super-Critical Water-cooled Reactor (SCWR) concept is one of the six
Generation IV options chosen for further investigation and development in several countries,
including Canada and Russia.

Water-cooled reactors operating at subcritical pressures (10 – 16 MPa) have provided a

significant amount of electricity production for the past 50 years. However, the thermal
efficiency of the current NPPs is not very high (30 - 35%). As such, more competitive
designs, with higher thermal efficiencies, which will be close to that of modern thermal power
plants (45 – 50%), need to be developed and implemented.

Previous studies have shown that direct cycles, with no-reheat and single-reheat
configurations are the best choice for the SCWR concept. This paper presents two SCW NPP
cycles based on direct, no-reheat and single-reheat regenerative concepts. The main
parameters and performance in terms of thermal efficiency associated with these
configurations is investigated in the first part of this paper. The cycles are generally
comprised of: an SCWR, a SC turbine, one deaerator, ten feedwater heaters, and pumps. The
SC turbine of the no-reheat cycle consists of one High-Pressure (HP) cylinder and two Low-
Pressure (LP) cylinders. Alternatively, the SC turbine for the single-reheat cycle is comprised
of one High-Pressure (HP) cylinder, one Intermediate-Pressure (IP) cylinder and two Low-
Pressure (LP) cylinders.

There are a few technical challenges associated with the no-reheat and single-reheat SCW
NPP configurations. The single-reheat cycle requires nuclear steam-reheat, thus increasing
the complexity of the reactor core design. Conversely, the major technical challenge
associated with a SC no-reheat turbine is the high moisture content in the LP turbine exhaust.
A thermal-performance simulation reveals that the steam quality at the exhaust from the LP
turbine is approximately 81%. However, the moisture can be reduced by implementation of
contoured channels in the inner casing for draining water and moisture removal stages. The

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overall thermal efficiency of the two cycles was determined to be about 50% (assumptions are
made to account for turbine and pump efficiency losses).

The SCWR core concept investigated in this paper is based on a generic pressure-tube reactor
cooled with supercritical water. The considered reactor concept is based on a horizontal
pressure-tube configuration with the following operating parameters: electrical power of 1200
MW, pressure of 25 MPa, reactor inlet temperature of 350°C, and reactor outlet temperature
of 625°C.

In general, fuels currently investigated for the SCWR concept are high-temperature ceramics,
similar to uranium dioxide (UO2). Previous studies have shown that if UO2 is used the
centerline temperature of a fuel pellet might exceed the conservatively established industry
accepted limit of 1850°C. As such, alternative fuel options, with higher thermal
conductivities are being considered. The second part of this paper investigates a possibility of
using uranium carbide (UC), uranium dicarbide (UC2) and utanium nitride (UN) as SCWR
fuels since they have higher thermal conductivities when compared to conventional nuclear
fuels such as UO2, MOX and thorium dioxide (ThO2).

Also, important safety parameters such as a bulk-fluid temperature, heat transfer coefficient,
inner sheath temperature and fuel centerline temperature have been calculated along the
heated bundle-string length for non-uniform cosine-based Axial Heat Flux Profiles (AHFPs).
To model a generic SCWR fuel channel, a 43-element bundle was assumed.

In addition, a new heat-transfer correlation for supercritical water flowing in vertical circular
bare tubes was proposed. This correlation can be used for preliminary conservative
estimation of heat transfer coefficients in supercritical water-cooled bundles as bundle
correlations have not been developed yet.

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Conceptual Design of Nuclear CHP Using Absorption Cycle

G. Heo, H. Kim

Kyung Hee University, Yongin, South Korea

E-mail address of main author: gheo@khu.ac.kr

This paper aims at providing a conceptual idea on the combined heat and power (CHP) using
the absorption cycle to simultaneously generate both electricity and useful heat, which is
applicable to the conventional nuclear power plants (NPPs).

The originality of the scheme is 1) it does not change the operation strategy of the NSSS, 2)
the thermal energy of waste heat can be transferred to a long distance, and 3) the thermal
energy can be used for cooling as well.

As it is expected that the number and the share of NPPs increases soon, the necessity of a
partial load operation was raised in argument in case of South Korea. This means the surplus
of nuclear energy. In order to make the best of nuclear fuels loaded once, we proposed a
combined cycle instead of cutting back reactor power to meet a partial load demand. Figure 1
shows the schematic drawing of the proposal. Since a steam demand in the turbine cycle is
equivalent even though an electricity demand is different, the operation strategy of the NSSS
does not need to be changed. When a partial load demand is triggered off, turbine power is cut
back and a bypass path is open. The bypass path is used for transferring waste heat to an
absorption cycle.
The CHP using absorption principles was initially developed over 100 years ago. The
absorption cycle is a process by which heating and/or cooling effect is produced through the
use of two fluids and some quantity of heat input. The absorption cycles accomplish heat
transferring through the evaporation of a refrigerant at a low pressure and the rejection of heat
through the condensation of the refrigerant at a higher pressure. In the absorption cycles, a
secondary fluid or absorbent is used to circulate the refrigerant. Absorption cycles are
commercially available today in two basic configurations; lithium bromide/water and
water/ammonia (respectively absorbent/ refrigerant) [1].

We can have several advantages in this idea. This principle can design a heat transfer
mechamisn to convey thermal energy to a long range, which means the waste heat from
nuclear stations can be used for practical purposes even in a populated district. District
heating/cooling, industrial process heat supply, or seawater desalination are expected to be
possible applications. In case of the absorption cycle, running cost is very low as long as
waste heat is available. The nuclear CHP should be, therefore, one of the methods to
maximize the efficiency of the entire cycle. There must be several disadvantages such as high
capital cost, more space required, complex configuration, and so on [2].

The paper will provide simulation results for deciding thermo-dynamic viability and
economic feasibility with comparing a few design alternatives [2].

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Generator

Control
V/V

District
Turbine Heat & Cooling
Governing
V/V Industrial
Process

Desalination
Steam
Generation
Expansion
Condenser V/V

Expansion
V/V

Solution
Evaporator
Pump
Pump

Steam Absorber
Refrigerant
Absorbent &
Absorbent
Refrigerant

FIG. 1. Schematic drawing of the nuclear CHP cycle

REFERENCES

[1] D. W. Hudson, Ammonia Absorption Refrigeration Plant, The Official Journal of

ARIAH, pp. 26-30, August 2002.
[2] P. Lienau, Geothermal Direct Use Engineering and Design Guidebook, 2nd edition,
Oregon Inst of Technology, pp. 299-306, June 1991.

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Water Cooled FBNR Nuclear Reactor

Farhang Sefidvash

Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

E-mail address of main author: farhang@sefidvash.net

The world with its increasing population and the desire for a more equitable and higher
standard of living, is in the search for energy that is abundant and does not contribute to the
problem of global warming. The answer to this is a new pardigm in nuclear energy; i.e.,
through the innovative nuclear reactors that meet the IAEA’s INPRO philosophies and criteria
that will guarantee the generation of safe and clean energy. The emerging countries to
nuclear energy that are not in hurry for energy and look into the future are looking into the
participation in the development of such innovative nuclear reactors. They can start
developing the non-nuclear components of such reactors in parallel with creating the nuclear
infra-structures according to the guidelines of the IAEA suggested in its milestones document.
In this way, they can benefit from numerous advantages that the development of a high
technology can bring to their countries be it scientific, technological, economic or political. A
solution to the present world economic crisis is investing in such projects that contribute to
the real econmy rather than speculative economy. This will help both local and world
economy.

One such innovative nuclear reactor is the FBNR that is being developed with the support of
the IAEA in its program of Small Reactors Without On-site Refuelling. It is a small (70
MWe) reactor with simple design based on the proven PWR technology
(www.sefidvash.net/fbnr ). The simplicity in design and the world wide existence of water
reactor technology, makes it a near term project compared to other future reactors.

Small reactors are most adequate for both the developing and developed countries. They
require low capital investment, and can be deployed gradually as energy demand calls for.
The generation of energy at the local of consumption avoids high cost of energy transmission.
The pardigm of economy of scale does not apply to the FBNR as it is a small reactor by its
nature. The FBNR enjoys the economy of mass production. FBNR can serve a dual purpose
plant generating electricity and producing desalinated water at the same time at lower cost.

The FBNR has been evaluated by the IAEA’s INPRO Methodology from the safety and non-
proliferation points of view and is shown to be a fool proof reactor against nuclear
proliferation and have inherent safety against any concievable accident.

The reactor has in its upper part the reactor core and a steam generator and in its lower part
the fuel chamber. The core consists of two concentric perforated zircaloy tubes of 31 cm and
171 cm in diameters, inside which, during the reactor operation, the spherical fuel elements
are held together by the coolant flow in a fixed bed configuration, forming a suspended fixed
core. The coolant flows vertically up into the inner perforated tube and then, passing
horizontally through the fuel elements and the outer perforated tube, enters the outer shell
where it flows up vertically to the steam generator. The reserve fuel chamber is a 60 cm
diameter tube made of high neutron absorbing alloy, which is directly connected underneath

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the core tube. The fuel chamber consists of a helical 40 cm diameter tube flanged to the
reserve fuel chamber that is sealed by the national and international authorities. A grid is
provided at the lower part of the tube to hold the fuel elements within it. A steam generator of
the shell-and-tube type is integrated in the upper part of the module. A control rod can slide
inside the centre of the core for fine reactivity adjustments. The reactor is provided with a
pressurizer system to keep the coolant at a constant pressure. The pump circulates the coolant
inside the reactor moving it up through the fuel chamber, the core, and the steam generator.
Thereafter, the coolant flows back down to the pump through the concentric annular passage.
At a flow velocity called terminal velocity, the water coolant carries the 15 mm diameter
spherical fuel elements from the fuel chamber up into the core. A fixed suspended core is
formed in the reactor. In the shut down condition, the suspended core breaks down and the
fuel elements leave the core and fall back into the fuel chamber by the force of gravity. The
fuel elements are made of UO2 micro spheres embedded in zirconium and cladded by
zircaloy.

Any signal from any of the detectors, due to any initiating event, will cut-off power to the
pump, causing the fuel elements to leave the core and fall back into the fuel chamber, where
they remain in a highly subcritical and passively cooled conditions. The fuel chamber is
cooled by natural convection transferring heat to the water in the tank housing the fuel
chamber.

The nest step in the development of FBNR is the construction of its prototype. Efforts are
being made to secure participants in such an endeavor.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5S06

Supercritical Water-Cooled Reactor (SCWR) Development through

GIF Collaboration
SCWR System Steering Committee Members

GIF SCWR Steering Committee1

E-mail address of main author: khartabilh@aecl.ca

The Generation IV International Forum (GIF) was established to conduct collaborative R&D
that will lead to the development of the fourth generation of advanced reactor systems. Six
reactor concepts were selected for further development through GIF collaboration: 1) Very-
High-Temperature Reactor (VHTR), 2) Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR), 3) Super-Critical
Water-cooled Reactor (SCWR), 4) Gas-cooled Fast Reactor (GFR), 5) Lead-cooled Fast
Reactor (LFR), and 6) Molten Salt Reactor (MSR).

The Supercritical Water-Cooled Reactor2 (SCWR) is the only GIF concept that uses water as
coolant and is, therefore, a natural evolution of current advanced water-cooled reactor
technologies. Furthermore, the SCWR incorporates advances from supercritical fossil power
plant technologies that have been operating successfully for a number of years. The main
fossil power plant technology that will be used in the SCWR is supercritical turbines that can
be incorporated in a direct thermodynamic cycle to increase thermal efficiency. In addition,
using a direct cycle at supercritical conditions simplifies the plant and eliminates certain
components, which results in significant reduction in capital cost. Other experiences from
fossil plant operation related to materials performance and water chemistry will be useful for
the SCWR. This combination of advanced water-cooled reactor technology and advanced
supercritical fossil technology is expected to result in a reactor concept that can be used to
generate base-load electricity very economically and efficiently. This feature makes the
SCWR a very attractive concept for utilities, especially those that have experience with both
water-cooled reactors and supercritical fossil plants.

While the SCWR is highly rated in economics, it can also have significant improvements in
other metrics such as safety, sustainability, and proliferation resistance and physical
protection (PRPP). In the safety area, the starting point is to use safety features that are
employed in current GenIII and GenIII+ technologies with the objective of providing further
enhancements, wherever possible. In the sustainability area, the increase in thermal efficiency
caused by the high outlet temperature (up to 625oC at 25MPa) provides initial improvement in
resource utilization. However, the SCWR can also be designed as a fast reactor (due to the
significant decrease in the density of water above the pseudo-critical point), which provides
opportunities to introduce advanced fuel cycles that aim at improving the sustainability and
proliferation resistance metrics. In the area of physical protection, enhancements will be
incorporated in the early design stages by incorporating lessons learnt from operating water-
cooled reactors.

1
Membership from Canada (H. Khartabil; D. Brady), Euratom (T. Schulenberg), France (M. Delpech), Japan (Y.
Oka; K. Yamada), and Rep. of Korea (Y. Bae)
2
Operates above the thermodynamic point of water (> 374°C and 22.1 MPa)

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Current SCWR R&D efforts clearly demonstrate the flexibility of this concept and the options
that are available to design a practical and viable system. For example, the SCWR can be
designed with a thermal, fast, or a mixed energy spectrum due to the significant change in
water density as the temperature changes across the pseudo-critical point. In addition, the
SCWR can be designed using the successfully deployed pressure-vessel (PV) or pressure-tube
(PT) reactor technologies. These options have resulted in a number of conceptual designs
within the GIF SCWR system that aim at providing options to provide significant
improvements in all four GIF metrics: 1) Economics, 2) Safety, Sustainability, and 4) PRPP.
The current SCWR conceptual designs under consideration by the GIF SCWR members
include:

1. University of Tokyo thermal and fast spectrum designs: these are pressure-vessel
designs known as the Super LWR (thermal version), and the Super Fast Reactor
(fast version). Another thermal version design is being developed through
collaboration between academic, research, and private organizations.

2. High Performance Light Water Reactor (HPLWR) under development in Europe.

3. CANDU® 3 -SCWR: this is a pressure-tube reactor that is being developed by

AECL.

4. SCWR-SM: this is a pressure vessel design under development in the Republic of

Korea.

5. Mixed core design (SCWR-M): this is a pressure vessel concept that is being
developed at Shanghai Jiao Tong University.

The above designs have very similar challenges in combining existing advanced water-cooled
reactor technologies with supercritical fossil technologies. This provides opportunities for
collaboration in common R&D areas that are needed for any of the SCWR conceptual
designs. For example, challenges in the selection of materials for the core components and the
specification of suitable water chemistry require significant R&D that is common to all
designs. In addition, R&D will be needed in other areas such as thermal-hydraulics and safety
to extend the range of existing data to supercritical conditions. New or upgraded facilities that
operate at supercritical conditions will be needed to perform in-core and out-core tests to
produce data and information needed for design and licensing. A System Research Plan (SRP)
for the SCWR has been developed by the GIF SCWR System Steering Committee (SSC) that
outlines the R&D requirements for the SCWR development. The GIF SCWR members that
are currently active in the SCWR R&D include: Canada, Euratom, France, Japan, Republic of
Korea, and China (observer).

This paper presents the major features of the SCWR conceptual designs under consideration
by the GIF SCWR members as well as relevant ongoing and planned R&D efforts.

3
CANDU – Canada Deuterium Uranium, a registered trademark of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL).

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 IAEA-CN-164-5S07

Nuclear Co-generation Desalination Complex with Simplified Boiling

Water Reactor VK-300
B.A.Gabaraev, Yu.N. Kuznetsov

N.A.Dollezhal Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering

101000, Moscow, POB 788

E-mail address of main author: kuz@nikiet.ru

With regard for the global-scale development of desalination technologies and the stable
growth demand for them, Russia also takes an active part in the development of these
technologies. Two major aspects play a special role here: they are providing the desalination
process with power and introducing new materials capable to make the production of fresh
water cheaper and raise the technical reliability of desalination units.

. In achieving these tasks, the focus is on the most knowledge-intensive issues, to which
Russia is capable to make its contribution based both on the experience of developing national
nuclear power and the experience of developing, manufacturing and operating desalination
units, including the use of nuclear power (the experience of BN-350 in Aktau (formerly
Shevchenko), Kazakhstan.

In terms of design, Nuclear Desalination Complex ( NDC) with VK-300 reactor facility is a
modification of a nuclear power unit with VK-300 reactor developed for application at
Russian nuclear cogeneration plants. A power unit with VK-300 reactor has a design power of
250 MW(e) with the turbine unit operation in the condensation mode. In modes with the heat
supply for desalination needs, up to 400 Gcal/h of thermal energy can be used as a steam from
turbine extractions with the simultaneous electricity generation by the turbine generator of
about 150 MW.

The report considers a VK-300 reactor based NDC with MED based distillation desalination
units with horizontal-tube film evaporators. Russia has an extensive experience of
commissioning and long-term commercial operation of domestically built desalination units
with horizontal-tube evaporators of different power (from 0.1 to 700m3/h). Seawater
desalination units built on their basis are more economic than evaporators of other types - by
the factor of 1.5-2.0 in terms of the energy consumption and by the factor of 1.5-1.8 in terms
of the specific quantity of metal and the development area. With regard for the power unit
capabilities of supplying heat for desalination (200-400 Gcal/h) as part of an NDC with a VK-
300, it is expedient to use distillation units with a higher unit capacity.

The most attractive option is coupling of the VK-300 energy source with distillation
desalination units operating based on the multi-stage evaporation principle (MED). This is the
effective NDC structure allowing the use of turbine steam extractions for heat supply (via the
intermediate circuit) to the desalination system producing high-quality distillate. As it
provides with thermal energy a desalination complex with the capacity of 300.000 m3/day, a
nuclear plant consisting of two VK-300 power units allows production of distillate with the
cost of 0.58 dollars/m3. In this case, the electricity supply to the power system is 357 MW(e).
The electricity cost is 0.029 dollars/kWh.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5S08

Plutonium Management in Small Nuclear Country

P. Daříleka, J. Brezaa, R. Zajaca, V. Nečasb
a
VUJE, Inc., Okružná 5, SK-91864 Trnava, Slovakia
b
Slovak University of Technology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Information
Technology,
Department of Nuclear Physics and Technology, Ilkovicova 3, SK-812 19 Bratislava,
Slovakia

E-mail address of main author:darilek@vuje.sk

Quallified guess of SNF Pu content in Slovakia can be performed as recapitulation of Pu

amount in spent fuel of already stopped NPP V1 Bohunice in Slovakia was performed [1].
Spent fuel of 2 units VVER-440, operated in altogether 55 core cycles (1-year) encompasses
5143 FAs. Spent FAs from first cycles, moved to Soviet Union, are not included. Masses of
important nuclides - see Tab.1. It can be seen, that about 5.6 t of Pu is contained in the NPP
V1 spent fuel.

Nuclide Mass [kg]

Sum of uranium 5.90547E+05

Sum of neptunium 3.33015E+02

Sum of plutonium 5.62261E+03

Sum of americium 8.51769E+02

Sum of curium 2.78415E+00

Sum of californium 1.02119E-13

Sum of actinides 5.97357E+05

Sum of fission products 1.54463E+03

Total 5.98902E+05

Tab.1 Element masses in the spent fuel of NPP V1 Bohunice

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Taking into account, that other VVER-440 units in Slovakia (V2 - 2 units in Bohunice, 2 units
in Mochovce) have finished up to now at least 65 1-year core cycles, we can count more than
6 t of Pu in it’s SF and we can suppose, that at least 11 t of Pu in SF is available in Slovakia.

Fast reactor SUPER PHENIX can serve as an example of FR. Mass of its core part with Pu
enrichment 23.2 % is about 37.1 t of HM. It means, that for the start-up FR needs about 8.6 t
of Pu [2].

It means, that even if FR (SUPER PHENIX type) is started in Slovakia, surplus of Pu is

nowadays at least 2 t Pu and this value is growing instantly, as 4 VVER-440 units are in
operation and hopefully fleet of LWR reactors in Slovakia will be extended in the future.

It seems to be reasonable not to increase or at least to limit Pu mass growth. In the Slovakia
situation it can be performed with existing type of reactors - VVER-440. Without radical unit
reconstructions it is possible to evolve fuel cycle in the directions: classical MOX, inert
matrix fuel or thorium fuel cycle.

Classical MOX do not limit significantly Pu production in comparison with OFC. Three
partially closed fuel cycles were compared numerically [3]. Reprocessing of UOX spent fuel
is taken into account in all of them. In the cycle with zirconium inert matrix (IMF) Pu and
MA from UOX reprocessing are reused in the self-cleaning manner. In the case of thorium
cycles Pu only (PuThOX) or Pu from UOX and U233 from ThOX reprocessing (UPuThOX)
are reused. Open fuel cycle with classical UOX fuel (UOX) is used as reference.

Results of analysis by spectral code HELIOS can be seen in Tab.2. It can be seen, that all
three partially closed fuel cycles have smaller Pu and MA generation rate in comparison with
open UOX cycle and perform partial Pu transmutation. The smallest Pu and MA generation
and the highest Pu transmutation rate - more than 70% - offers partially closed fuel cycle with
IMF.

UOX PuThOX UPuThOX IMF

Pu initial (kg/tHM) 0 97.38 41.42 14.05

Pu in spent fuel after 5y cooling

12.37 51.39 15.25 3.21
(kg/tHM)

MA in spent fuel after 5y cooling

1.48 6.15 3.39 1.22
(kg/tHM)

Pu transmutation rate (%) 0 47.22 63.18 77.08

Pu transmutation rate (kg/TWhe) 0 13.22 17.64 7.32

Pu generation rate (kg/TWhe) 32.2 15.5 10.5 6.2

MA genetration rate (kg/TWhe) 3.8 3.3 2.9 2.7

Tab.2 Potencial of Pu transmutation

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Mass of Pu in VVER-440 SNF produced up to now in Slovakia is sufficient for introduction

of FR. Significant reduction of continuing Pu production can be reached without expensive
and time-consuming unit reconstructions by introduction of closed fuel cycle with IMF or Th.
This reduction can simplify construction of deep repository and solution of nonproliferation
problems. Remaining Pu and MA can be transmuted later in future FRs or MSRs.

REFERENCES

[1] V. CHRAPČIAK, P. MALATIN, Inventory from NPP V-1 Jaslovské Bohunice, 19th
meeting of the AER Working group F, VUJE, Inc., Trnava, Slovakia (April 2009)
[2] H. BAILLY, et al, The Nuclear Fuel of Pressurized Water Reactorsand Fast Reactors,
29-154, Lavoisier Publishing, Paris (1999)
[3] J. BREZA, P. DAŘÍLEK, V. NEČAS, Advanced Fuel Cycles Options for LWRs and
IMF Benchmark Definition, Proceedings of 18-thAtomic Energy Research
Symposium, October 6-10, 2008, Eger, Hungary, KFKI Budapest (2008), pp. 723-728

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Roadmap Design for Thorium-Uranium Breeding Recycle in PWR

SI Shengyi

Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute, China

E-mail address of main author: ssy@snerdi.com.cn

Thorium is about three times more abundant in nature compared to uranium and exists mainly
as fertile isotope 232Th. It is well-known that 232Th can be converted to man-made fissile
isotope 233U with higher conversion ratio or even breeding in thermal reactor while the fuel
lattice or the core is well designed.

Nevertherless, if the conversion of 232Th to 233U is only driven by other fissile isotopes (so-
called “seeds” , such as 235U or 239Pu), it will be difficult to maintain a sustainable fuel
recycle; and if there is any redesign on the fuel lattice or the core structure, the scheme shall
become quite difficult for implementation. Therefore, the most attractive case is to achieve
sustainable Throuim-Uranium (232Th-233U) Breeding Cycle in exsisting thermal reactor
without any change to the design of fuel lattice or core internals.

The paper is focusing on designing a roadmap to finally approach sustainable Throuim-

Uranium (232Th-233U) Breeding Cycle in current PWR, without any change to the fuel lattice
and the core internals, but substituting the UOX pellete with thorium-based pellete.

At first, the paper will reveal that the ratio of conversion or breeding of 232Th to 233U is
mainly dominated by eipthermal neutron and fast neutron, even though the bigger η factor
(effective fission neutrons) of 233U in thermal spectrum is benificial to maintain more neutron
population so that more thorium can be converted to 233U. As conclusions, the hardened
spectrum in PWR will be benificial to improve the conversion efficiency from 232Th to 233U,
and the thorium-based MOX fuel can have a better ratio of convertion or breeding than
discrete thorium rod or assembly in moderator region of PWR.

Secondly, the paper will reveal that there is a threshold value for the ratio of initial 233U
inventory to 232Th inventory. If and only if the ratio is less than this threshold value, the 232Th-
233
U MOX fuel could achieve breeding. For typical PWR fuel lattice, the thredhold value is
around 0.02.

Series of calculations have been summarized in the paper for thorium-based MOX fuels
blended with various fissile seeds, such as MEU, reactor-grade plutonium and reactor-grade
233
U. The calculation results have verified the conclusions deduced from the neutronics
theorey, and demonstrated that it is possible to achieve sustainable Throuim-Uranium (232Th-
233
U) Breeding Cycle without any redesign for current PWR (see FIG. 1).

Based on the analysis to above calculation, the paper presents a roadmap to approach
sustainable Throuim-Uranium (232Th-233U) Breeding Cycle in current PWR (see FIG. 2),
which is composed of 2 stages. In the first stage, the recycled reactor-grade plutonium from
current PWR spent fuel is used as seeds to mix with thorium; then, the thorium-plutonium
fuels are loaded into PWR core and will produce higher purity reactor-grade 233U; In the

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second stage, after the thorium-plutonium fuels are discharged from PWR core and stay in
spent fuel pool for proper time, the fuels will be reprocessed, the reactor-grade 233U will be
extracted and used as seeds to mix with thorium; then thorium-uranium fuels shall be loaded
into the periphery of PWR core to compose so-called “blanket” for Low-Leakage and long-
cycle reload core design, in which Throuim-Uranium (232Th-233U) Breeding Cycle will be
achieved. After the thorium-uranium fuels are discharged from PWR core and cooled for
enough time, the fuel will be reprocessed and the breeded reactor-grade 233U will be extracted,
and then, the next round recycle could be started with extra reactor-grade 233U accumulated.

The detailed PWR core design and evaluation with Throuim-Uranium (232Th-233U) blanket are
not involved in this paper and will be presented in future report.

FIG.1. Conversion-Breeding Ratio and K-infinity vs. Burnup

for Multi-Recycled Thorium-Uranium Fuel

Uranium
Mining&Milling

Uranium
Coversion&Enrichment
Thorium Thorium
Mining&Milling Mining&Milling
Uranium Fuel
Fabrication

Thorium-Plutonium PWR In-core Thorium-Uranium

Fuel Fabrication Cycle Fuel Fabrication
Single Multi-
1

Recycle Recycle

Spent Spent
Uranium Fuel Spent Fuel Thorium Fuel
Recycled 239
Pu Recycled 233U
Reprocessing Cooling&Storage Reprocessing

FIG. 2.Roadmap for Thorium-Uranium Recycle in PWR

REFERENCES

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[1] Dekoussar, V. etc.” Thorium fuel cycle — Potential benefits and challenges”, IAEA-
TECDOC-1450, 2005.5
[2] A. PUILL,“Thorium Utilization in PWRs. Neutronics Studies”, Thorium fuel
utilization:Options and trends, IAEA-TECDOC-1319,2002.11

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 IAEA-CN-164-5S10

Rod-Type Quench Performance of Nanofluids Towards Developments

of Advanced PWR Nanofluids-Engineered Safety Features
I.C. Bang, J.H. Kim

Ulsan National Insitute of Science and Technology (UNIST), Ulsan, Republic of Korea

E-mail address of main author: icbang@unist.ac.kr

Nanofluids, colloidal dispersions of nanoparticles in a base fluid such as water can afford very
significant Critical Heat Flux (CHF) enhancement. Such engineered fluids potentially could
be employed as advanced coolants in nuclear-engineered safety systems such as Emergency
Core Cooling System (ECCS) and External Reactor Vessel Cooling System (ERVCS) with
significant safety and economic advantages. When the potential application of nanofluids
comes to ECCS, the situation of interest is quench phenomena of fuel rods during reflooding
of emergency coolants. Therefore, we experimentally investigate the effect of nanoparticles
on the cooling performance of the Inconel 600 cylindrical rod during quenching.

We have selected nanofluids with SiC nanoparticles for their high thermal conductivity and
growing interests for nuclear applications. The nanoparticles are dispersed into de-ionized
water to prepare a solution of 0.001 % by volume. In terms of colloidal stability, isoelectric
point (IEP) is an important factor to decide whether colloidal particles can be stably dispersed
in a base fluid. SiC nanoparticles have the known value of pH 2.5. The current nanofluid has a
pH value far from the IEP which means the colloidal dispersion is stable without significant
precipitation.

Nanoparticles have a type of spherical shape and 142 nm diameter in average with a normal
distribution. It was checked that there were no significant changes of the physical properties
through thermal-fluid characterization by using pH/conductivity meter, a transient heated
needle method for thermal conductivity, viscometer, and a ring-type surface tension analyzer.

Quench phenomena have been investigated by using the nanofluid quench facility which
consists of a data-acquisition system, a furnace, a cylinder tank for fluids and thermocouple-
connecting rod-coupling cylindrical specimens. Cylindrical specimens were machined from
Inconel 600; they were 12.5 mm in diameter and 60 mm long. The surface of all the
specimens was polished to ensure or help repeatability of the quenching results. The
specimens were equipped with type K sheathed thermocouple of 1.5 mm diameter buried at
mid-length at a depth of 30 mm. The test procedure is first to preheat the quench specimen in
the furnace until a predefined temperature is reached in the range of 800 oC-900 oC. Each
specimen was quickly removed from the furnace to be quenched in 30 oC water. The
temperature history was recorded on a personal computer at a frequency of 10 Hz. In addition,
quenching phenomena are carefully investigated with initiation of quenching by using high-
speed camera with 1024x1024 resolution image sensor and 3000 fps frame rate at full
resolution. FIG. 1 illustrates centerline temperature histories recorded during quenching for
water and SiC nanofluids, as well as atmospheric environment with the details in TABLE I.

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TABLE I. Measured quenching time to drop to a temperature and cooling rates (CR)
water SiC-water air

Max. CR 218.05 230.01 4.04

Temp. at Max. CR 585.05 613.58 833.34

Time to 600 oC 2.91 1.79 -

Time to 400 oC 3.98 2.84 -

Time to 200 oC 6.7 5.52 -

900

800

700

600
Temperature ( o C)

500 Water
SiC Nanofluid
400 Air

300

200

100

0
0 5 10 15 20
Quenching time (s)

FIG. 1. Temperature history for the quench tests.

The present work experimentally investigated the effect of nanoparticles on the cooling
performance of the Inconel 600 cylindrical rod during quenching. This paper provides the first
insight to a rod-type quenching performance and phenomena of nanofluids with FIG. 2.
Mechanistic changes expected from using nanofluid as a new coolant of an ECCS can be
suggested as follows; (a) improved heat transfer coefficient of nanofluids in QF, (b) improved
thermal dissipation accelerating QF, (c) locally nonuniform cooling in nanofluids, (d) rupture
of vapor blanket/film due to turbulence enhancement, (e) improved radiation heat transfer of
nanofluids, (f) improved surface wettability by nanoparticles. It is noted that the more
detailed investigation should be done because of general trend of a nanotechnology lacking
consistency. Therefore, a more systematic study of the effect of fluid temperature,
nanomaterials and concentration on the quenching efficiency is underway in the lab.

FIG. 2. Propagation of Quench Front (QF)

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 IAEA-CN-164-5S11

Application of Nuclear Energy to Oil Sands and Hydrogen

Production
Romney B. Duffey, Sermet Kuran, Alistair Miller

AECL, Canada

E-mail address of main author: duffeyr@aecl.ca

Many novel and needed applications of nuclear energy arise in today’s energy hungry,
economically challenged world, and in solving tomorrow’s search for a globally carbon
constrained and sustainable energy supply. Not only can nuclear power produce low cost
electricity, it can provide co-generation of process heat, desalinated water, and hydrogen with
negligible greenhouse gas emissions. In each of these new applications, nuclear energy is
competing against, or displacing conventional and established use of natural gas or coal in
thermal power plants and boilers. Therefore, there must be a compelling case, in terms of
supply certainty, stability, safety. security, and acceptability. In additon, a synergistic relation
must exist or be created with the existing power and energy markets, the use of windpower,
and the needs for low cost supply with negligible greenhouse gas emissions and carbon
“footprint”.

The development of Canada’s oil sands resource depends on a substantial energy input for
extraction and upgrading. So far, this input has been supplied by natural gas, a resource that
(a) is a premium fuel; (b) has limited availability; and (c) produces significant CO2 emissions.
For the oil sands extraction process, natural gas is the current energy source used to generate
the steam for in-situ heating, the power to drive the separation equipment, and the hydrogen
for nominal upgrading before piping. However, there is a high demand and limited supply of
natural gas, which results in projected higher prices and supply, and in future price and
availability uncertainty.

We examine the applications of nuclear energy to oil sands production, and the concomitant
hygrogen production, utilizing realistic reactor designs, modern power and energy market
considerations, and environmental constraints on waste and emissions. We cover all aspects
of feasibility, specifically technical issues, comparative economics, schedule, regulatory
requirements, and other implementation factors. We compare and contrast the claims versus
the realities, and also provide the synergistive utilization of co-generation of hydrogen using
coupled nuclear and windpower.

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Water Chemistry and Corrosion Prevention at Nuclear Plants with

Supercritical Water Reactors
V.N. Belous, V.N. Vasina, E.V. Yurmanov, V.A. Yurmanov

NIKIET, Moscow, Russia

E-mail address of main author: yurmanov@list.ru

The paper describes the main approaches and philosophy of water chemistry management at
the new-generation plants with supercritical water reactors. The recommendations concerning
the water chemistry management are based on the operating experience of both supercritical
fossil plants and pressure-tube boiling water reactors AMB-1 and AMB-2 of the Beloyarsk
NPP which used the nuclear steam reheated to 510 °C.

The paper discusses corrosion behaviour of structural rnaterials in supercritical water

environment and suggests the ways of preventing pipeline and component corrosion in the
various periods of plant operation.

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Optimization of CARA Fuel Element with Negative Coolant Void

Coefficient
H. A. Lestania, P. Floridob, A. Marinoc
a
Instituto Balseiro - CONICET - Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica
b
Instituto Balseiro
c
Centro Atómico Bariloche, Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica - Instituto Balseiro

E-mail address of main author: lestanih@ib.cnea.gov.ar

Analysis is made on CARA[1] nuclear reactor fuel element design to achieve a negative
coolant void coefficient preserving its advantages on cost and operational performance.

The CARA fuel element is designed to replace the original fuel elements of both heavy water
cooled NPPs in Argentina. The original advantages of the CARA fuel are its lower cycle cost
compared with Embalse and Atucha I fuels and its lower linear power, which leads to greater
DNBR and less pellet-cladding interaction (due to lower centre temperature in the fuel
pellets). The key differences between CARA fuel and the original fuels are its larger number
of rods (52 instead of 37) with collapsible cladding, its optimized enrichment in the sake of
lower cost, its lower pressure drop design of spacer grid and its overall dimensions that allow
it to be used in both NPPs.

In this analysis burnable poisons in the central zone of the fuel element are used to achieve
negative coolant void coefficient, as suggested by A. R. Dastur et al.[2]. Different 235U
enrichments are also used in the rings of rods to compensate the effect of the neutron
absorbers and preserve the neutronic economy. The CARA design is analyzed with
multidisciplinary criteria: neutronics, economics and safety margins are taken into account.

Neutronic calculations are carried out with WIMSD-5 cell code. With the help of a code
developed for this purpose several runs are made varying fuel parameters: amount, location
and isotope of burnable poisons and enrichments in the four rings of fuel rods. The coolant
void coefficient is calculated for a 100% void fraction and its dependence with burnup is
observed to satisfy the requirements on the void coefficient over the entire in-core life of the
fuel.

Economic evaluations are made with each fuel parameter variation to conserve the cost
advantage of CARA over the original fuel elements. The costs compared include enriched
uranium, burnable poisons, cladding and assembling for every new fuel element following the
refuelling strategy of the original cores. First core cost is not taken into account as CARA is
meant to replace an operating core and not to start a new NPP. Fuel cost is nivelated with a
15% discount rate. Enrichment cost is calculated in the base of Separative Work Units (SWU)
price.

Power peaking factors in the fuel bundle are also studied for each fuel configuration as an
operational restriction. Margins such as DNBR and linear power limit are tighter in few fuel

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rods on certain core locations. These locations have higher power due to core and fuel power
peaking factors (PPF). Applying limits to PPF, DNBR and linear power remain on safe
operating conditions as the core power does not change (CARA is a replacement fuel). Due to
the higher number of rods in the fuel element a greater PPF is admitted and the use of higher
enrichment rods in the outer rings that the greater PPF allows lowers the cost.

In the optimization process three different burnable poisons are tested, Dysprosium, Bore and
Gadolinium, within the UO2 rod or in separate rods of pure absorber.

Several runs are made evaluating the quantities mentioned above and optimization leads to an
opposition among the merit figures. Establishing a required coolant void coefficient allows to
select the best combination of cost – PPF, and hence obtain an optimum design of fuel
element that complies with the design criteria.

REFERENCES

[1] D. Brasnarof et al., Desarrollo de Elementos Combustibles Avanzados para Centrales

HWR, LAS/ANS 2007
[2] A. R. Dastur & D. B. Buss, The influence of lattice structure and composition on the
coolant void reactivity in CANDU, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL).

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 Synopses for Topic 6

SAFETY ASSESSMENT IN NPPS

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Development of Universal Methodology of Specimen Free

Nondestructive Inspection (Control) of Mechanical Properties of NPP
Equipment Metal in All Stages of Lifetime
M. Bakirova, S. Chubarova, I. Frolova, J. Gastrockb, M. Dripkeb
a
Center of Material Science and Lifetime Management, Moscow, Russia
b
MESS + TEST GMBH, Weißenhorn, Germany

E-mail address of main author: testm@orc.ru

Ever-increasing requirements for reliability and safety of equipment in nuclear power plants
(NPP) dictate a necessity to obtain reliable and validated information about the condition of
materials in the most safety-relevant and economically vital systems structures and
components (SCC). Thus it is a state of science and technology approach to use one method,
one methodic and one methodology to facilitate these goals with the purpose of keeping NPPs
operating safely by virtue of knowing the state of ageing they are in (with respect to design
limits and margins).

Method of the control/measurement/testing - how to conduct measurements; methodic - how

to interpret the results of measurement; methodology - the program of the control/inspection
and testing programmes: localities to conduct the tests, how often, and to follow evolution of
test results with the aim of acting before a failure occurs.

Such methodology should be based on the use of specimen-free nondestructive method of the
inspection (control), which could be used successfully at all stages of life cycle of the
equipment: manufacturing, construction, installation of NPP, operation and during the NPP
operation through integration into the Plant Life Management (PLiM) programme.

It will facilitate a real picture of change (degradation) of a SSC material’s condition in the
zones subjected to the harschest stressors (neutron irradiation, erosion-corrosion/flow, thermal
fatigue, vibration etc).

Currently, there are various approaches used in the world to follow NPP ageing degradation,
but until now, no specific methodology is used that could supply all the necessary
information. Therefore, there is no way to use various results. Thanks to considerable
advances over the last 20 years or so, the science of hardness testing offers an elegant, non-
destructive way to obtain vital materials properties – even in-situ on operating SSC. In
particular, the material’s elastic-plastic condition may be measured, giving indications on
tensile yield stress elevation due to hardening and also loss in ductility. The work-hardening
index may be easily obtained, giving information on the ability of the material (e.g. pressure
vessel steel and weld) to deform plastically without brittle fracture. However, the main lack of
traditional methods of hardness measurement is absence of unification in carrying out of tests.

Taking into account the experience of the Center of Material Science and Lifetime
Management Ltd. (CMSLM Ltd.) in the use of methods of hardness testing for the inspection
of the equipment of NPP of Russian manufacture in Russia, Germany, Czech, Slovakia,

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Bulgaria, and also similar successful works in this direction in USA (Oakridge), to Czech
(NRI Rez) and other countries, it can be seen that the most promising direction in the field of
specimen-free inspection of mechanical properties by use of hardness and hardness-related
characteristics is use of the kinetic indentation method (KIM, ABIT). This method is based on
recording the process of elastoplastic deformation caused by the indentation of a ball indenter.
This method allows one to obtain, besides hardness values, tensile properties, elongation,
work hardening coefficient, true-stress/true strain diagrammes which normally required the
destructive testing of small specimens. However, till now there is no universal method of
interpreting the information obtained, although it is generally known that irradiation causes a
loss in ductility and increase in hardness and lowering of the work-hardening coefficient. As
base for development of such technique it is possible to use the new international standard
(International Standard ISO/DIS 14577-1:2000-04 «Metallic materials – Instrumented
indentation test for hardness and materials parameter», а также документ ISO/DTR 2938
«Metallic materials – Measurement of mechanical properties by instrumented indentation test
– Indentation tensile properties»).

Thus, it is necessary to develop a uniform methodology of using KIM, ABIT with reference
to the inspection of materials which will allow to unify the inspection of materials of various
classes of the equipment over all stages of NPP life cycle. With the purpose of introduction of
such a methodology it is necessary to develop and realize the program in the frames of IAEA
with the above name. In the report are presented stages of this work.

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Comparison Between International and Slovak Design Safety

Requirements on Severe Accidents and Feasibility Analysis of the
Safety Enhancement of VVER 440/V213 Plants to Comply with New
Safety Requirements
J. Misaka, F. Peinettib, F. Pierrob
a
Nuclear Research Institute Rez plc, Czech Republic
b
ENEL Divisione Ingegneria e Innovazione and SE a.s., Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant
Units 3&4, Slovak Republic

E-mail address of main author: mis@ujv.cz

In accordance with the Defence- In-Depth philosophy, severe accidents have to be considered
in the nuclear power plant (NPP) design independently of any measures implemented for their
prevention. Consideration of severe accidents currently represents one of the development
trends for new NPPs as well as for the safety upgrade of existing plants. This trend is in
accordance with the revised set of the IAEA Safety Standards, in particular safety
requirements for NPP design [1], and safety guides for design of reactor containment systems
[2] and severe accident management programmes [3]. Special attention is also paid to
Western European Nuclear Regulators’ Association (WENRA) Reference Levels [4],
developed on a consensual basis of the involved regulatory bodies and meant to be the
minimum safety requirements for the existing NPPs.
Currently, new nuclear plants are also being designed and constructed with increased
performance and a higher safety level, in accordance with utilities’ expectations, such as
expressed in European Utility Requirements (EUR) [5]. Due to the general practice in the
nuclear industry to implement, as far as reasonable, new safety requirements into the design
of operating plants, it is advisable to consult the currently-valid documentation of existing
plants as well. This is in particular important due to another general trend, i.e., to ensure long-
term operation of existing plant significantly beyond the originally-envisaged lifetime of the
plants.
Slovakia has committed itself to continuous safety improvements of NPPs, as demonstrated
by its ratification of the Convention on Nuclear Safety. In fact, the new Slovak legislation
adopted in years 2004 - 2006, in particular the Atomic Act No. 541/2004 Coll. and the Decree
No. 50/2006 Coll., requires taking into account the state of the art in the area of nuclear
safety, including implementation of design modifications and relevant procedures addressing
severe accidents. These new requirements are being addressed in the construction of new
plants and safety upgrading of existing plants in Slovakia.
On the basis of this overview, the current paper consists of two parts. In the first part, the
paper analyses and presents comparison of current international requirements (IAEA Safety
Standards, WENRA Reference Levels, EUR) and Slovak national legislation. From the
comparison it is shown that there is good consistency between WENRA Reference Levels,
IAEA Safety Requirements, and Slovak legislative documents. It is found that the WENRA
Reference Levels are reasonably-balanced requirements, applicable for both existing and new
designs, as compliance with WENRA also ensures full compliance with the IAEA Safety

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Requirements for design as well as with Slovak legislative documents. Such compliance is
also true for relevant IAEA Safety Guides [3, 4] in the parts relevant for existing reactors.
Similar recommendations are found in IAEA Safety Guide [2] and EUR. No contradictions
were found although there are some differences in terminology and significant differences in
the level of details (more details are included in the EUR). It can be stated that, as far as
safety-related requirements are concerned, no major deviations of IAEA Safety Standards and
Slovak legislation from EUR were identified and that, for all deviations, certain alternative
measures can be considered to address the relevant safety issues.
In its second part, the paper evaluates the possibility of safety upgrade of VVER 440/V213
units, in order to comply with WENRA Reference Levels related to severe accidents. Severe
accident mitigation features were not included in the original design of VVER 440/V213
NPPs, but the current trend is to eliminate this design weakness. Relevant measures for
corium stabilization, hydrogen management, source-term reduction, containment overpressure
protection, and long-term heat removal are discussed in the paper by using Mochovce NPP
Units 3&4 (currently under construction in Slovakia) as the reference plant.
It is concluded that the implementation of such measures is feasible with present-day
engineering practices, allowing to reduce the radiological risk from severe accidents to the
level required for current reactor designs. In addition, all the hardware measures implemented
in the Mochovce Units 3&4 appear feasible also for existing VVER 440/V213 units. In view
of the expected long-term operation of existing Bohunice V-2 and Mochovce 1&2 units, the
upgrade of their safety level also in the area of severe accident management is being
considered. In the definition of the priorities for the implementation of selected measures
several factors need to be taken into account, such as the contribution of these measures to the
risk reduction, the complexity of their implementation, the realistic timing for preparation of
investments, the existing system and rules for procurement and investments, and the
investment cost.
REFERENCES

[1] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Safety of Nuclear Power Plants:

Design, Safety Standards Series No. NS-R-1, IAEA, Vienna (2000).
[2] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Design of Reactor Containment
Systems for Nuclear Power Plants, Safety Standards Series No. NS-G-1.10, IAEA,
Vienna (2004).
[3] INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY, Severe Accident Management
Programmes for NPPs, Draft 2 of Safety Guide for comments by Member States,
DS385, (2007)
[4] WESTERN EUROPEAN NUCLEAR REGULATORS ASSOCIATION, Reactor
Harmonization Group, WENRA Reactor Safety Reference Levels, Draft January 2007.
[5] European Utility Requirements for LWR Nuclear Power Plants. Revision C, April
2001.

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Safety Assessment and Improvements in Indian NPPs

P. Krishnakumar, S. Hajela, P.K. Malhotra, S.G. Ghadge

Directorate of Reactor Safety and Analysis,

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited

E-mail address of main author: pkrishnakumar@npcil.co.in

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is the organization responsible for site
selection, design, construction, commissioning, operation, maintenance, plant life extension
and decommissioning activities of nuclear power plants in India. Presently, NPCIL has 17
Nuclear Power Plapts (NPPs) in operation with a total installed capacity of 4020 MWe and is
constructing 5 NPPs, which will add 2660 MWe. With rich experience in all relevant fields of
nuclear power generation and to meet the emerging regulatory requirements, safety of Indian
NPPs is continuously being reviewed and upgraded. The paper will detail some of the safety
improvements and activities for the existing NPPs In India.

Life extension and Safety Up gradation of BWR TAPS-1&2

Tarapur Aiomic Power Station (Units 1&2) is a twin-unit BWR plant with an installed
capacity of 2 x 210 MW(e). Commissioned in 1969, this was the first nuclear power station in
the Indian sub-continent and is one of the longest serving Boillng Water Reactor (BWR) plant
in the world. A comprehensive review of the plant including station operating performance,
ageing assessment & management, design basis & safety analysis and structural integrity
studies, after 30 years of operation using relevant current safety standards and practices
concluded that the physical condition of the station permits continued operation for several
more years.

The salient system modifications, which were identified as part of this review process and
have been implemented inciudes:

 Upgradation of existing 3x50% capacity Emergency Diesel Generators by 3x100% capacity

Emergency Diesel Generators.

 Segregation of electrical distribution system for Class-III (415 V AC), Class-II (120 V AC) &
Class-I (250 V DC & 48 V DC) supplies into two zones with physical barrier.

 Redistribution of supplies to redundant loads from separate buses.

 Cable re-routing through diverse routes for redundant loads.

 Provision of supplementary control room.

 Augmentation and unit wise segregation of Emergency Feed to reactors by addition of one pair
of Control Rod Drive Hydraulic pumps.

 Unit wise segregation of Reactor Shutdown Cooling System and de-linking from

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 Spent Fuel Pool Cooling system.

 Upgradation of Compressed Air System by providing additional dryer and

 powering of compressor by Class-III power supply

 Installation of strong motion seismic instruments.

 Fire Protection system upgradation.

Retrofitting of Components and Upgredatlon for old PHWR units:

Rajasthan Atomic Power station (RAPS) and Madras Atomic Power Station (MAPS) are the
earlier generation Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) In India. The design philosophy
of later PHWRs has undergone continuous improvements. While it is not possible to
implement all the new concepts but certain modifications and retrofitting are incorporated in
these old units to bring their safety standards close to that of new plants.

These include;

Retrofitting of high pressure ECCS, installation of supplementary control room, segregation

of power/control cables, provision of dedicated instrument air supply to safety related valves,
Upgradaition of thermal shield cooling, incorporation of PC based DNM system,
Modification in CTM system for replacement of transmitters, recorders, replacement of. main
generator excitation with static type and replacement of 230 KV ABCBs with SF6 breakers,
replacement of Cl-III/II switchgear and replacement of generator stator winding.

Improvements for facilitating system maintenance

Active Process Water (APW) system to cool plant systems and auxiliaries is provided as a
unitized system in Tarapur Atomic Power Station (PHWR Units 3&4). Maintenance on APW
system requires shutdown of this system. As shut down heat exchangers are fed by APW
system; during APW system shutdown cold shutdown state cannot be maintained. On the
basis of safety analysis a design provision is made at ТАРР-3М to interconnect APW system
of both units in such a way that one unit in addition to its own APW requirement can provide
limited supply to shutdown heat exchangers and spent fuel storage bay of the other unit. This
configuration permitted taking up APW shutdown after 7 days of reactor shutdown without
compromising safety.

Accident Management

Indian PHWRs have event based Emergency Operating Procedures (EOPs) to handle
accidents within the design basis, These procedures are being complemented with the
symptom based guidelines, which are developed to maintain identified 'safety functions' -
monitored continuously through the identified set of plant parameters (symptoms) and
maintained in the acceptable state.

Accidents beyond the design basis resulting in core damage are managed through the severe
accident management guidelines. These are under development for Indian PHWRs, wherein
inventories of heavy water moderator in calandria and light water in calandria vault have an
important role in delaying/restricting progression of core damage. The full set of severe

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accident management guidelines include entry and exit criteria with severe accident
guidelines. These guidelines address the core damage states that are likely to result from the
progression of severe accident including the threat to containment, the final barrier to the
radioactivity release.

One of the important aspects of accident management is human response during the accident
progression, which depends on control room ergonomics, procedures, training and stress level
of the operating crew. In order to assess and ascertain optimum human responses during the
events, systematic studies of human response on plant simulator are being carried out and the
outcome of these studies is positive.

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Experience Feedback of Current LWR on the Design and Operation

of Advanced LWR, under the Safety Analysis Point of View
J. Riverolaa, M. Coriscoa, XXXXb
a
ENUSA Industrias Avanzadas, S.A., Madrid, Spain
b
To be decided

E-mail address of main author: jrg@enusa.es

Current LWR are operating with an excellent safety record, and it is anticipated that they will
be gradually replaced by more advanced reactors (Generation III, III+ and IV). So far, the
industry has accumulated a large experience in safety evaluation and operation, and the actual
limits of the current reactors and fuel designs, in terms of strengths and weakness, are well
known today. Newly proposed designs for Generation III and III+ are the strategic answer to
this state point. In all cases, very improved safety features have been incorporated resulting in
an impressive reduction of three orders of magnitude in the probability of sever core damage
and release of radioactivity respect to current designs. However the approach given by the
vendors is different. While EPR relies in the extensive utilization of robust proven
equipments, with extended redundancy of structures and active systems, AP1000 moves to the
simplification in the number of valves, pumps, loops and auxiliary systems. ESBWR design is
conceptually a step forward since gravity is credited for and plays a fundamental role both in
steady state and during accidents. In all cases, advanced instrumentation and large and robust
vessels are provided. Generation IV reactors are still in the conceptual stage and they still
have large room for modifications and improvements. There reactors take benefit of old and
new ideas and try to reach greater thermal efficiency, better utilization of the fissile content of
the fuel, under the concerns of non-proliferation policies.

Although advanced LWR are focused in providing an adequate response to severe accidents,
consideration has to be taken to less unrealistic events, that is abnormal operational occurrences and
bounding accidents. In this sense, the main purpose of safety analysis is to guarantee defense to
society and the environment against any harm due to nuclear plant operation. Based in this analysis for
normal and abnormal operation, the necessary equipments to minimize radiological risks are
established and maintained. Therefore, before any modification in the reactor coolant system is
performed, it is necessary to review the supporting safety analysis of record to ensure that there is not
increased radiological risk in the case of an accident.

Great modifications to the RCS have been carried out so far, such as steam generator
replacement in PWR, equipment modification or substitution, or minor modifications, such as
partial steam generator tube plugging, surge line redefinition, or other. In other cases, it was
necessary to understand unexpected events, not only to verify that the plant was operating
within the safety margins, but also to show how to proceed in order to continue the safe
operation, after an event. In these cases, a review of the accident analysis was needed.

In the other hand, the nuclear fuel has been substantially evolving, incorporating materials
and geometrical changes to improve neutron economy, thermal efficiency and mechanical
behavior. All these design modifications required the extensive utilization of thermal

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hydraulic design methods, in combination or coupled with fuel rod and nuclear design
methods.

The accumulated experience in Generation II reactors, actually in operation, leads us to

consider the following ideas for the future reactors:
- Safety analysis is the result of the needs of nuclear reactors. We faced changes due to
the operating needs (control systems), as well as due to failure of equipments (SG
replacement).
- We faced operating deficiencies and they were corrected,
- Safety analysis has served to these main functions. However, could be even more
useful in the near term, for instance with a kind of real time assessment?

This review allows us to glimpse some proposals for the future reactors and how the safety
analysis should be reshaping for.

Regarding the analytical tools and methods of evaluation, current thermal hydraulic analysis
methods were actually developed during the 70´s and 80´s decades, are generally based in the
solution of two phase flow version of the Euler and Navier-Stokes equations of conservation
of mass, energy and momentum, in transient state, in finite differences schemes with volume
averaged properties. The system is actually discretised in multiple connected control volumes
with experimentally founded closure relationships for transport of heat, mass and pressure
drop. System actuations and environmental influences are specified as boundary conditions.
Besides, simulated scenarios and initial conditions are selected to ensuring the conservatism
of the result. Depending on the degree of realism of the different basis of the simulation,
several approaches, such as superbounding, BEPU and fully best estimate methods, have been
utilized. Recently, thanks to the availability of great computing facilities, this macroscopic
viewpoint is somehow complemented with the use of advanced analytical tools such as CFD.
However, the gap between the macroscopic and microscopic approaches is somehow not
entirely established as standardized methods of analysis. FEM, and FVM could play an
important role in this intermediate range of detail.

It can be concluded that, Safety Analysis as a knowledge framework will keep being
important in supporting operation, not only of life extended current reactors, but also of
advanced LWR. In order to face the more demanding analytical needs of next generation
reactors, more detailed codes, models and methods will be necessary, although still based on,
or not very different from the current state nuclear engineering state of the art. It is foresee
that current fuel designs will remain valid for the advanced LWR that will be deployed from
next decade, with minor modifications in geometry and materials, well within the current
accumulated experience. However, enough room will be left for extensive research of new
concepts and developments of more robust features to be incorporated in advanced fuel
designs. At all stages, more involvement between utilities, vendors, research facilities,
universities, and technological institutes, will be needed in order to guarantee a successful
generational replacement and maintenance of the high standards of safety and efficiency
characteristics of the nuclear industry.

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Operating Nuclear Reactors in Ukraine: Enhancement of Safety and

Performance
S. Bozhkoa, G. Gromovb, S. Sholomitskyb, G. Balakanc
a
State Nuclear Regulatory Committee of Ukaraine, Kyiv, Ukraine
b
State Scientific and Technical Centre on Nuclear and Radiation Safety, Kyiv, Ukraine
c
Consultant, Ukraine

E-mail address of main author: bozhko@inspect.snrc.gov.ua

Currently fifteen water-cooled water-moderated reactors operate at four Ukrainian Nuclear

Power Plants (NPP). producing over 50% of total electricity in the country. Role of the
nuclear power in the fuel and energy branch of Ukraine continually increases. The National
Strategy of the nuclear industry development envisages extensive construction of new nuclear
power facilities during the next 20 years.

In line with the strategical plans for further growth and development of the nuclear power
sector, safety enhancement of the nuclear power units in operation in one of the major tasks of
the state policy in the sphere of nuclear energy utilization. Being of high priority for the
Ukrainian Authorities during the entire period of the country independence, this task has
received the utmost and permanent attention within the recent 4-5 years. During this latest
period the Ukrainian nuclear industry has implemented wide range of safety enhancement
measures at all operating nuclear plants. The effors have been predicated on results of the
comprehensive analysis of existing safety issues, identified and categorized in accordance
with the IAEA recommendations, with due regard to the operating experience of Ukrainian
and similar foreign plants, and in accordance with the established priorities.

Major current industrial activities on enhancement of safety and performance of nuclear

plants are being ruled by the “Concept of Safety Enhancement of NPPs in Operation”
approved by the Ukarainian Government in December 2005. The Concept, with its scheduled
completion in 2010, includes broad specturm of safety upgrade measures that are intended to
bring NPP safety to internationally accepted level. It covers several most vital safety
enhancement areas and associated safety measures developed using information on risk
obtained from the comprehensive safety analyses conducted for the Ukrainian NPPs within
the laste ten years (Safety Analysis Reports and international co-operation programs on NPP
safety assessment). The distinct safety enhancement measure, which have been included in
the Concept, take credit of the qualtative and quantitative outcomes from the recent
probabilistic safety assessment studies. The main goal is to further enhance safety of the
Ukrainian NPPs to account for enforcements in regulations and best current practices in
rational and the most efficient way.

The paper will discuss the priorites, progress and current results of the operating NPPs safety
enhancement activites both from the regulatory and industrial perspectives. It will outline the
challenges and plans for further operation of the existing Ukrainian nuclear reactors, and

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discuss the expectations of the national regulatory authorites in view of the planned
construction of the new nuclear power plants.

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 Synopses for Topic 7

INSTRUMENTATION & CONTROL

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Upgrading the Reactor Power Control Concept with a Modern Digital

Control System
M. Längle, R. Schildheuer

TÜV SÜD Energietechnik GmbH Baden-Württemberg, Mannheim, Germany

E-mail address of main author: Michael.Laengle@tuev-sued.de

Within the framework of a retrofit project, a reactor power instrumentation and control system
(REALL) — consisting of a limiting system and the respective reactor control systems — was
retrofitted and modernized in a 1450-MW-nuclear-power-plant in Baden-Württemberg. The
REALL process control functions were implemented within a modern and completely
digitized control system that has been designed for use in safety I&C applications. Along with
the installation of the digital control system, the associated hardware was adapted to today's
state of the art. At the same time, the given potential for improvement, as revealed during the
plant's operation so far, was taken into account in the programming.

In order to provide for transparent and quality-assured project management, the

implementation was based on a stage plan consisting of several steps, along with specific
milestones.

Final commissioning of the modern digital control system took place during the 2008 plant
overhaul. Despite the complex commissioning procedure, it was possible to avoid a major
prolongation of the plant's downtime and to keep within a rough 4-week timeframe that had
originally been defined for the plant overhaul — thanks to adequate structuring of the project,
goal-oriented implementation of preparatory infrastructural measures and adequate scheduling
of the coordinated activities of the installation and commissioning teams entrusted with the
commissioning of the digital control system during the overhaul activities. In addition,
consistent application of quality-assuring measures during the entire course of the project
considerably contributed to a smooth commissioning process.

Within the digital control system, the REALL functions were engineered and implemented by
using a system-specific tool system which included a graphic editor. A series of analyses were
carried out with the help of tools designed for redundancy comparison and for simulation and
validation of the implemented process control functions after code generation. These served
as a means for discrete checking and documentation, and helped to detect project engineering
errors at an early stage.

Based on the results delivered by the validation test and on the requirements resulting from
process concepts, the plant simulator in Essen was adapted to suit the specifics of the system
and the respective peripherals in order to be able to integrate and test the REALL functions
implemented in the digital control system at the simulator. In addition, process-related
modifications intended to optimize the plant that were made in the course of the project were
subjected to a complex transient analysis.

All switchgear cabinets were manufactured in the manufacturer's factory. The factory
acceptance test was performed on the test floor on the basis of the works test instructions

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approved by the official expert. After successful completion of the acceptance test, the
pretested switchgear cabinets were installed in the plant in October 2007 during regular load
operation, without causing any interferences, and were connected to the power supply system
upgraded earlier in the course of a preceding project. In addition, a distribution cabinet was
installed in each section of the switchgear building, containing a system connection side and a
plant connection side, with intermediary transverse connections. After the installation of the
digital control system cabinet had been completed, the system supply cables, which were
adapted to match the cabinet’s I/O boards, were connected on the system connection side of
the distribution cabinet. This way, it was possible to pretest signals, to avoid wiring errors and
to considerably reduce the time needed for the rest of the overhaul-dependent cable
installation and the associated commissioning tests. In order to furnish proof of the system
stability, the digital control system was operated in island mode for several months before the
overhaul activities were started.

The new control system was integrated into the overall plant concept during the 2008
overhaul after the old REALL system was shut down. After all the control system
commissioning tests were completed, various process-specific commissioning tests followed
in order to assure an integral verification of the equipment's proper functioning. These tests
included the startup operation of the plant. After the process-specific commissioning tests in
August 2008, the plant resumed its power operation. So far, the operating results with the new
REALL implemented in this modern digital control system have been very positive.

With the consistent documentation of both the course of the project and the stage-specific
tests, which were accompanied by an official expert, it was possible to meet the high quality
assurance demands of such a complex system. Despite the large scope of the replacement
activities, this project is a very good example of how a complex system retrofit can be
accomplished successfully through efficient project structuring, in combination with selective
preparatory measures and the respective quality assurance measures, without causing a
significant prolongation of a scheduled plant downtime.

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Qualification of FPGA-Based Safety-Related PRM System

Miyazaki Tadashi, Naotaka Oda, Yasushi Goto, Toshifumi Hayashi

Toshiba Corporation

E-mail address of main author: toshifumi.hayashi@toshiba.co.jp

Toshiba has developed Non-rewritable (NRW) Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA)-
based safety-related Instrumentation and Control (I&C) system. Considering application to
safety-related systems, nonvolatile and non-rewritable FPGA which is impossible to be
changed after once manufactured has been adopted in Toshiba FPGA-based system. FPGA is
a device which consists only of basic logic circuits, and FPGA performs defined processing
which is configured by connecting the basic logic circuit inside the FPGA. FPGA-based
system solves issues existing both in the conventional systems operated by analog circuits
(analog-based system) and the systems operated by central processing unit (CPU-based
system). The advantages of applying FPGA are to keep the long-life supply of products,
improving testability (verification), and to reduce the drift which may occur in analog-based
system. The system which Toshiba developed this time is Power Range Neutron Monitor
(PRM). Toshiba is planning to expand application of FPGA-based technology by adopting
this development process to the other safety-related systems such as RPS from now on.

Selected application of FPGA-based I&C systems is PRM of Boiling Water Reactor (BWR).
The PRM system monitors reactor power by measuring neutron flux level and issues trip
signals when the conditions monitored reached to the setpoints. PRM can be used in safety-
related (class-1E) systems. The developed system is compatible with the conventional
analog-based systems to minimize the requested cost for upgrading.

FPGA circuit is designed by using Very High Speed Integrated Circuit Hardware Definition
Language (VHDL). The process of implementing VHDL to an FPGA circuit is almost similar
to the process of implementing application software to read only memory (ROM) in a CPU-
based system. For this reason, Toshiba has developed a design and manufacturing method of
FPGA application which can apply the technique of Verification and Validation (V&V:
specified in IEEE 7-4.3.2) as a qualification procedure for the process of manufacturing
FPGA circuits.

After the establishment of the FPGA products design process, Toshiba designs, and
manufactures the NRW-FPGA based PRM units according to the design process to confirm
their performance, including the Qualification tests including the environmental, seismic and
Electro Magnetic Compatibility (EMC) tests.

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Design Feature and Prototype Testing Methodology of DHIC’s

Nuclear I&C System
Kookhun Kim, Seungyeob Baeg, Sooam Kim, Chanyoung Park, Sangpil Yoon,
Sungjin Lee

Doosan haevy Industries & Construction

E-mail address of main author:kookhun.kim@doosan.com

DHIC has developed an I&C(instrumentation and control) system for nuclear power plant
through Korean Government R&D project since 2001. This I&C system is designed and
implemented to apply for new 1400MW Nuclear Power Plants of KHNP in 2009.

This system design is based on class-1E PLC platform and non-class1E DCS platform. Class
1E PLC’s features are high speed processing capability, CPU redundancy, safety data link for
communication between safety channels, safety data network for intra channel information
communication and redundant power module. Also, the communication speed of data link and
network is up to 16M bps. PLC qualification tests such as environmental, electromagnetic
interference and seismic testing were conducted. Safety evaluation report for PLC topical
report issued from Korean Reulatory Body. Non-Class-1E DCS provides redundant
CPU/rack configuration, separated control and information networks and other necessary
functions such as function blocks. DCS’s network for control and information is redundant
and its communication speed is 100M bps. Communication link between redundant CPU’s
communication speed is up to 10M bps.

RPS(Reactor Protection System), ESF-CCS(Engineered Safety Feature-Component Control

System), CPCS(RCOPS, Reactor Core Protection System) and safety grade monitoring
system are designed, implemented and tested. All of software life cycle activity was
documented and verified in conformance with IEEE Std.1074 and IEEE Std.1012. Safety
evaluation report for RPS, ESF-CCS and RCOPS topical report issued from Korean nuclear
reulatory institute. These systems meets Defense in depth and diversity and have simpler
structure, superior ability in maintenance and self-diagnostics and more advanced safety
algorihthm than previous systems used in Korea. Various system tests were conducted on
these systems. These include response time test , abnormal input conditions test and
equipment failure modes test which cover all redundancies, loss of power, CPU failures, data
communication failures, power supply failures, card removal, etc. For example, the response
time requirement of RPS is within 150 msec.

PCS(Power Control System), P-CCS(Process-Component Control System), NPCS(NSSS

Process Control System), NIMS(NSSS Integrity Monitoring System) and non-safety grade
monitoring system are designed, implemented and tested. DHIC has built the prototype test
facilities to meet proven technology requirement according to the requirement of
KURD(Korea Utility Requirement documentation). These systems are composed of MCR
facilities, APR 1400(Advanced Power Reactor 1400) code simulator and the developed I&C
systems. MCR facilities consist of Large Display Panel to display the operational status of the
NPP, operator consoles and a safety console (Fig1). These are fully digitalized facilities,
which have the touch-screen control method.

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The integration level test such as interface test, functional test, response time test, network
load test and operation test was performed using the prototype test facilities.Various response
times between developed systems were calculated and measured. The response time from
input of tested system to MMI display was calculated and measured for protection signal,
control signal, information signal. The test result meets the design requirement. For example,
the response time requirement of information signal is within 2500 msec. Network load test
was performed to identify network performance would endure simulated full load condition as
simular to plant real operation status and the performance test result was satisfied. Also
operation tests were performed in order to acquire operational historic data. Operation test
include load rejection, load transient, load cycle, reactor power cutback, FWCS (Feedwater
Control System) valve transfer test of reactor power increase process.

Through thorough development procedure, evaluation, testing and V&V which meet code and
standard(ex: IEEE and KEPIC) and KURD, DHIC’s new I&C system is going to be applied
for new 1400MW NPP in 2009.

Fig.1 Main control room overview of performance test facility

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FPGA-based Technology (Systems) for I&C of Existing and Advanced

Reactors
E. Bakhmach, O. Siora, V. Tokarev, S. Reshetytsky, V. Kharchenko, V. Bezsalyi

E-mail address of main author: kyiv-radiy@ukr.net

Control systems of modern nuclear installations (including water-cooled, WCR) are based on
programmable technologies. Most of control systems modernizations which are implemented
at operating nuclear installations are also based on application of programmable technologies.

Besides, a range of features and properties is defined for programmable technologies. These
features and properties make licensing process more complicated, facilitate appearance of
common cause failures, make safety evaluation procedures more complicated, etc.Also it is
known that programmable technologies significantly extend the time periods for project
realization of new power units construction and modernization of the existing power units,
and also it involves rise of its value.

Company RADIY has developed the Platform of digital equipment RADIY on FPGA-based
technology.In the article there is a description of the features of FPGA-technology developed
and applied by Company RADIY, features of the Platform RADIY and systems realized on
its base, which allow to minimize significantly above-mentioned negative features and
properties of programmable technologies.

Technology which realized in Platform RADIY allows to solve the whole set of tasks of
control (including regulation) and protection of nuclear installations.Platform RADIY is a
combination of the best features of traditional programmable technologies and FPGA-
technology.

Peculiarity of Platform RADIY is the fact that all safety-critical functions of control system
are realized as a “hard logic” on FPGA chip. Software is used only for auxiliary tasks.

Platform RADIY is approved since 2004 through operation of more than 40 up-to-date digital
control and protection systems at 15 power units of nuclear power plants of Ukraine and
Bulgaria.

According to the opinion of the authors of this article the technology which is realized in
Platform RADIY is the key factor for solving of control and protection tasks of nuclear
installations in the nearest future.

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On-Line Monitoring and Calibration Techniques in Nuclear Power

Plants
H.M. Hashemian

AMS Corporation, USA

E-mail address of main author: hash@ams-corp.com

As the current generation of nuclear power plants have passed their mid-life, increased
monitoring of their health is critical to their safe operation. This is especially true now that
license renewal of nuclear power plants has accelerated, allowing some plants to operate up to
60 years or more. Furthermore, many utilities are maximizing their power output through
uprating projects and retrofits. This puts additional demand and more stress on the plant
equipment such as the instrumentation and control (I&C) systems and the reactor internal
components making them more vulnerable to the effects of aging, degradation, and failure. In
the meantime, the nuclear power industry is working to reduce generation costs by adopting
condition-based maintenance strategies and automation of testing activities.

These developments have stimulated great interest in on-line monitoring (OLM) technologies
and new diagnostic and prognostic methods to anticipate, identify, and resolve equipment and
process problems and ensure plant safety, efficiency, and immunity to accidents. The
foundation for much of the required technologies has already been established through 40
years of research and development (R&D) efforts performed by numerous organizations,
scientists, and engineers around the world including the author. This presentation provides
examples of these technologies and demonstrates how the gap between some of the more
important R&D efforts and end users has been filled.

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Synopses for Poster Presentations

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Nuclear Power and Ghana’s Future Electricity Generation

I. Ennisona, M.Dzobob
a
National Nuclear Research Institute, Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, Accra, Ghana
b
Energy Commission, Accra, Ghana

E-mail address of main author: iennison@yahoo.com

One of the major challenges facing Ghana in her developmental efforts is how to meet the
increasing electricity demand. Ghana’s electricity generation system depends heavily on
hydro power which accounts for 68% of total installed capacity. The remaining is taken by
thermal power systems. The heavy dependency on hydro systems has led to shortfall in power
supply in case of drought. To deal with this situation the necessary steps are being taken to
build more thermal plants to complement the hydro systems. The thermal plants currently run
on imported light crude oil but steps are being taken to run them on less expensive gas
imported from Nigeria through the West African gas pipeline. The conflicts in the Niger
Delta, the source of the gas has threatened the security of gas supply and this coupled with the
fact that gas price is indexed to that of crude oil have raised concerns about the supply of gas
from Nigeria.

This paper presents the results of the assessment made in the Ghana electricity generation
system and the role of nuclear power in Ghana’s energy mix using MAED projections and the
MESSAGE model. This assessment forms part of the IAEA-TC project “Planning for
Sustainable Energy Development in Ghana” which is meant among other things to develop a
sustainable energy mix for the country.

Energy projections made by using the MAED model have shown that Ghana’s electricity
demand expected to increase to about 4000MWyr in 2030. This expected electricity demand
far exceeds the total electricity supply capability of the existing hydropower system, untapped
hydro resources and the maximum amount of gas that can be imported from Nigeria through
the West Africa pipeline.

Technological assessment on the suitability of the various nuclear power technologies has
been done based on the grid size, technological maturity, passivity and standardization of
reactor designs and it has been found that a water cooled SMR with capacity not exceeding
400MW(e) is the most favorable choice. The economic competitiveness of nuclear power in
comparison with other candidate plants under consideration which are coal and liquefied
natural gas are highlighted.

The paper also discusses the major issues of concern in connection with utilization which are
plant safety and waste management. In addition the main challenge facing the introduction of
nuclear power, which is funding is also discussed.

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The Role of Nuclear Energy in the European Energy Policy

E. Herczog

European Parliament, Brussels, Belgium

E-mail address of main author: edit.herczog@europarl.europa.eu

One of the strongest messages to emerge from his presentation is the need to extend the
lifetime of existing nuclear power plants and build the next generation of reactors that will
continue to underscore nuclear energy’s important contribution to the goal of achieving a low-
carbon economy. Thus nuclear energy and the developing Europe’s low-carbon economy
reflect one of the EU’s main policy priorities, namely to encourage sustainable economic
growth while at the same time reducing the Community’s carbon footprint. Without nuclear
energy the EU would never reduce its carbon footprint as renewable energies alone could
never achieve this goal.

The aim is to give emphasis to the process how the debate in favour of nuclear energy as a
main pillar of the fight against climate change has gained considerably in impetus in the
European Parliament and to note the great recent strides that have taken place within the
Parliament with regards to the nuclear debate.

The key-points of the presentation:

 increasing problems of supply

Giving a bleak overview of spiralling global energy demands and stressing the urgent need for
new technology, nuclear power and changes in lifestyle to lead the drive to reduce CO2
emissions by underlining how nuclear energy is an attractive option when it comes to
reducing CO2 emissions and how the cost of carbon abatement is low in comparison with
carbon capture and storage and most renewables.

 global warming

Underlining what all industrial sectors must do in order to reduce global temperatures by 2°C
by 2030, and also speaking about the cost and opportunities of various CO2 abatement
measures, including carbon capture and sequestration.

o the major pillars of the European energy policy-making: Kyoto-Coppenhagen;

Lisbon; Moscow-Riyadh

Giving an overview of the EU energy policy in general and the importance of the nuclear
component in that policy.

Nuclear civil energy is currently being developed everywhere in Europe and in the world,
projects of new nuclear power plants are launched, however their construction and operation
in nuclear “emerging” countries cannot occur in any conditions. With the nuclear revival well
under way in several European countries and ambitious new build programmes in the

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pipeline, another main subject is the question of supporting the current drive for new build
that is gathering momentum across Europe and beyond.

Presentation of the latest policy developments in the nuclear field, including the European
Nuclear Energy Forum and the Sustainable Nuclear Energy Technology Platform by stressing
the important role that nuclear energy has to play in the EU’s future energy mix and the need
to guarantee safety and security safeguards when it comes to operating plants and handling
radioactive waste.

o the role of nuclear energy in the 20-20-20 perspective

Emphasising how the building of a new power plant should be viewed as part of a long-term
commitment: A nuclear project covers a period of almost a century – it takes10 years to build
a plant, the plants operates for 60 years and the decommissioning phase takes 20 years, also
underlining how the technology need to safely store radioactive waste of all levels exists in
Europe and that the problems and dangers generally associated with waste can be easily
overcome; the public can be convinced of the safety and efficiency of waste storage if the
success of operations is communicated effectively.

o European knowledge and R&D in the nuclear field

Stressing the urgent need for governments and academia to do more to identify, recruit and
retain the most talented young scientists and researchers -because it is they who will sustain
the nuclear revival. Summarizing the debate focusing on a number of initiatives launched by
the nuclear industry to redress the “nuclear talent deficit” and of the gradual improvement of
the situation in a number of countries.

The industry should do to attract more young people to pursue a career in nuclear engineering
and research, also should stress the importance of skills building and innovation as ways of
attracting young people and of the need for knowledge transfer from the “older” generation to
the younger generation.

Summing up the needs of the research sector by saying that R & D is like building a
cathedral, it requires faith.

o the perception of nuclear energy in the European Parliament

In technical matters relating to nuclear energy, the EURATOM Treaty gives the European
Parliament a merely consultative role, thereby limiting its political influence on the Council.
However, with the strengthening of the codecision procedure, this has no longer been the case
for economic matters since 2004. Currently the EU is in the process of defining its economic
strategy for the decades to come, and fundamental decisions for our future are to be taken on
the legal basis of the EC Treaty, under which the Parliament is co-legislator. After presenting
these processes and unveiling that one of the strategic decisions to come in the near future in
the European Parliament is the definition of Europe's energy policy, the author will endeavour
to show that nuclear energy shall necessarily be a substantial part of that policy.

We cannot exclude the use of any energy resources just for political or ideological reasons.
The key factor which must be regarded when composing the energy mix is environmental
protection and the mitigation of the effects of climate change… Nuclear energy is a major
contributor to the security of electricity supply.

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Speaking out in support of nuclear, highlighting broader issues of employment and citizens'
access to inexpensive electricity as her main concerns.

o Social perception and public acceptance. economic and social impacts of nuclear
energy

Nuclear energy is attracting renewed interest due to its potential but plays a disputed role in
mitigating global warming and, more generally, in supporting sustainable development.
Although its public acceptance could be largely improved if the positive role of nuclear
energy was clearly demonstrated and better communicated.

o Civil society expectations regarding the transparency of nuclear energy

Nuclear energy is among those industrial activities that face high expectations for
transparency and accountability in decision making. Despite important cultural differences
across countries, a number of common features characterise media and public expectations
regarding risky activities. The major aim is to identify a common understanding of the main
stakeholders' expectations on the conditions and practices which could improve the
transparency of nuclear regulatory activities.

o Civil society involvement in the nuclear decision-making process

The public needs access to all relevant information that is available and that is not considered
too sensitive for reasons of national security or commercial confidentiality. A high degree of
trust and transparency needs to be established and maintained with the public who have the
right to be part of the decision-making process in the nuclear energy domain.

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Challenges and Opportunities to Launch of New Nuclear Power

Programmes in India
Jitesh Arora

TAPS 3&4, NPCIL, India

E-mail address of main author:jarora@npcil.co.in

The biggest challenge for production of Nuclear power has itself become the biggest
opportunity for its advancement.

Nuclear power's biggest challenger had been the соst aspect of cheaper fossil fuels. This itself
is biggest opportunity because of climate change & global warming that is being driven
primarily by emission of man-made green house gases due to fossil fuel burning.

With the world understanding the pressing need to conrol green house gas emission &
resultant global warming, the search for alternative means of energy has opened flood gates
for various competitive technologies, nuclear among them being fore-runner in near future.

Undoubtedly drive for development at Nuclear Power had come from an unquestionable
belief for technological innovation in past but now we are standing at crucial juncture of
world history wherein our next few steps would decide the future course of humanity.

Energy perspective саnnot be seen only in the national interest and it has to be seen in the
international perspective with regards to its environmental impact without obstructing the
right of developing countries to meet their basic needs.

In view of above facts

Opportunities:

1. Despite the world (with about six and half billion people) advancing at the break neck
speed, only about a billion and half enjoy the modem energy. Thus there is lot of potential
demand.
2. With the world population increasing every minute, demand for energy can do nothing but
grow. So even maintaining the present nuclear power share of 16% in itself is huge
demand for nuclear power.
3. Climatic changes related to global warming due to fossil fuel burning has made the world
think whether continuing with present trend would be beneficial in long run and what we
would leave for our future generations.
4. Impact of Climate Change policy and growing acceptance of Carbon credit & Carbon Cap
concepts. Understanding that even Bio-fuel is not a green fuel as thought initially.
5. Phenomenal demand visibility is there if share of nuclear power is to be increased beyond
16%.
6. With depleting reserves and increasing costs of fossil fuels would shift the economics in
favour of Nuclear Energy.

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7. Recent oil price spike has forced the nations to seek for diversification of energy resources
for the sake of energy security.
8. The countries going nuclear first time would get access to latest technology. This would
help up gradation of other industries also.
9. With respect to fossil fuels, the relative nuclear fuel availability can be essumed unending.
10. Advancement of technology of Space research & defence research can be fine tuned for
nuclear power plants.
11. Technological exchange between the countries & operating experience sharing through
IAEA, WANO, INPO, COG etc has resulted in significant improvements in nuclear plant
reliability & a progressively improved safety record in Past two decades (since Chernobyl
disaster in 1986).
12. Willingness of nuclear power capable countries to share technology.
13. Quantitatively the waste generation of nuclear power is around 100,000 times less than
fossil fuel plant so correspondingly the energy & space requirement for disposal is also
much less but...

Threats:

1. Nuclear waste despite quantitatively being much less than fossil fuel plant is highly
radioactive. Handling & safe disposal of the same.
2. Radiation has many harmful effects, many of them affect genetically, so the built in safety
systems / mechanisms are to be strengthened with defence in depth approach.
3. Connection between nuclear power & nuclear weapons exists because both require Fissile
material. So fool proof audit system is to be evolved to ensure that none of fissile material
is diverted out.
4. Significant improvements are needed to ensure Physical security of Nuclear material
world wide because great risk pops up if terrorists acquire nuclear, or radioactive material.
5. Long gestation periods and high start up costs in present era of Economic recession & non
availability of credit.
6. Regulations related to nuclear industry need more uniformity, teeth & acceptance by all.
7. Innovation, both in terms of technology & policy.
8. A fast emerging prime concern is the security of Nuclear Power Plants against the terrorist
attacks.
9. Building adequately trained Human infrastructure for projected growth of nuclear energy
is monumental task.
10. To foster adequate support by the national industry so that targeted level of participation
in execution of project is attained.

Indian Perspective:

a. Presently Nuclear power is the exclusive responsibly of Government, Formation of policy

frame work to have private sector participation is in progress.
b. Presently 17 operational plants, 6 under construction & many being planned, Recruitment,
training & retaining the adequately trained manpower.
c. Ensuring the continuity of fuel supply for above.
d. Achieved success with fast breeder test reactor technology & proceeding with Prototype
Fast breeder reactor.
e. The increased production of radioactive waste will have to be managed, taking into
account safety requirements & the fact that India has relatively higher population density.

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Nuclear Power Project in Thailand

Ratanachai Namwong

Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, Nonthaburi, Thailand

E-mail address of main author: Rattanachai.N@EGAT.co.th

Thailand has been highly relied on fossil fuels for electricity generation. In fact 66% of
today's electric power is supplied from natural gas. With current unprecedented increase of oil
and gas prices, the country is in need of alternative energy sources more than ever. The
Government recognizes the problem and seeks sustainable solution not only to improve
energy security but also to reduce greenhouse gases emission, the root of threatening global
warming problem. For base load power generation, however, nuclear power is perhaps the
only practical option currently available. As a result, in Thailand Power Development Plan
2007-2021 (PDP 2007), there will be a 1,000 MWe nuclear power plant commercialized in
2020 and another in 2021. By the end of 2021, nuclear share of electricity generation of
Thailand will be about 5%.

Due to the fact that this is Thailand's first nuclear power plant, necessary infrastructures are
not currently in place. To cope with this requirement, on April 11, 2007, the National Energy
Policy Council (NEPC) appointed the Nuclear Power Infrastructure Preparation Committee
(NPIPC) to develop the Nuclear Power Infrastructure Establishment Plan (NPIEP). NPIEP
comprises two major plans: nuclear power infrastructure and nuclear power utility preparation
plans. Required infrastructures include: legal and regulatory systems and international
commitments; industrial infrastructure and commerce; technology development and transfer
and human resources development; nuclear safety and environmental protection; and public
relations and public acceptance. Utility planning comprises preparations for setting up
organizational structure to accommodate a nuclear power project, technology selection,
assessment of nuclear safety and technical aspects of nuclear power generation, and
implementation of project feasibility study and site selection. NPIEP had been effectively
developed under guidelines and technical support from the Intemationai Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA), On December 18, 2007, NPIEP was approved by the Cabinet, including
implementation plan and budget for 2008-2010. Furthermore, Nuclear Power Program
Development Office (NPPDO) and Nuclear Power Infrastructure Establishment Cooperation
Committee (NPIECC) will be established as parts of NPIEP.

During 2008-2010, pre-project activities will be carried out. These activities include
infrastructure establishment, utility preparation, and public education and participation.
Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT), a government owned utility under the
Ministry of Energy, will be mainly responsible for utility preparation works, i.e. survey and
evaluation of potential sites, project feasibility study, initial environmental examination (IEE)
and human resource development for utility. NPIECC will submit the readiness report,
including status of infrastructure preparation, utility preparation, and public education and
participation, to the Cabinet for approval by the end of 2010. According to the nuclear power
project schedule, nuclear power project will be implemented during 2011-2013, construction
will start in 2014, and Thailand's first nuclear power plant will be complete for commercial
operation in 2020.

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Today's main concerns in energy policy and planning are how to decrease dependency on
high priced oil and gas, and how to reduce greenhouse gases emission. Like many countries,
Thailand is considering a nuclear power option especially for a large scale base load plant.
Nuclear power plant does not emit greenhouse gases due to the fact that no combustion taking
place in power generating process. Nuclear technology is a proven technology and the
industry has continuously improved efficiency and safety of the plant. Nonetheless the public
education on major issues such as nuclear safety and radioactive waste management must be
carried out continuously.

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Economy Aspect for Nuclear Desalination Selection in Muria

Peninsula using 1000 MWe PWR
Ariyanto Sudi, Alimah Siti

Center for Nuclear Energy Development, BATAN, Indonesia

E-mail address of main author: asudi@batan.go.id

An assessment of economy aspect for nuclear desalination selection has been carried out. This
study is done to explore any possibility to utilize co-generation concept of desalination,
because there is a plan to introduce nuclear power plants (NPP) into Indonesia's electricity
grid.

A comprehensive study on different energy sources shows that NPP is economically and
technically viable to be introduced into the grid in 2016/2017. The candidate site is Muria
Peninsula in Central Java. Currently, the total of install electricity capacity is about 29.083
GWe, and it is estimated that electricity energy growth is about 7.1% per year. The install
capacity in Java is about 23 GWe (65% of national capacity). With economic growth
projection is about 6%, therefore in the 2025, it is needed electricity energy about 70 GWe, so
electricity demand increase 2000 MWe per year. Therefore, a PWR of 1000 MWe will
coupled with a desalination plant of MSF (Multi-stage Flash Distillation), MED (Multi-Effect
Distillation) and RO (Reverse Osmosis). The costs of water production for the Multi Stage
Flash Distillation (MSF), Multi Effect Distillation (MED) and Reverse Osmosis (RO)
desalination process coupled to PWR 1000 MWe would be compared.

The objectives of the economic evaluation is to help the decision-maker to eventually

implement an integrated nuclear desalination plant, generating both electricity and fresh
water. Economic analysis of water cost are performed using a computer program issued by
the IAEA, DEEP-3.1. In this study, option for turbine scheme is set as extraction and
backpressure. Options for specific carbon tax, thermal steam compression and backup heat are
not used. Construction cost for NPP is assumed to be 2600 $/kW, production capacity 2.750
m3/d, interest rate 5%, construction cost for MSF 1200 $/m3/d, MED 900 $/m3/d and RO 700
$/m3/d, ratio of recovery RO 45%, top brine temperature for MED 65°C and MSF 110°C.

The results of the performed case study of this Muria Peninsula showed that the water cost to
desalination process coupled with PWR nuclear power plant (at 5% interest rate, 2750 m3/day
capacity, 28°C temperature, 28.700 ppm TDS) with MSF plant is the highest (1.353 $/m3),
compared to 0.885 $/m3 and 0.791 $/m3 with the MED and RO plants. As for MSF process,
water cost by RO are also sensitive to variables, such as the interest rate, temperature and total
salinity. However, MED process are sensitive only to interest rate and temperature. An
increase in the interest rate of a certain value will increase the water cost produced by
PWR+MSF installation more than others. An increase of seawater temperature increases
water cost of MED and MSF, but it decreases the cost of RO. An increase of total salinity
causes water cost increase in MSF and RO. Water cost of MED is not affected by total
salinity at all. Back-pressure turbine scheme produce cheaper water than that of extraction. It
can be concluded that MED desalination process can be a good alternative for PWR nuclear
power plant in Muria Peninsula based on economy aspects.

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REFERENCES

[1] ANONIM, Comprehensive Assessment of Different Energy Sources, BATAN,

2001-2005
[2] ANONIM, Peraturan Presiden No. 5 Tahun 2006 tentang Kebijakan Energi Nasional
[3] ANONIM, "Studi Teknologi PLTN PWR, PHWR dan Bahan Bakar DUPIC, Sub
Penelitian Studi Teknologi PWR", Teknik Fisika, UGM dan PPEN, BATAN, 2005
[4] ANONIM (Federation of Scientific and Technical Association), "Handbook Water
and Power Co-Generation Implementation in the Mediterranean Islands and Coastal
Areas", Piazzale R. Morandi 2, 20121 Milano (Italy), 2002
[5] IAEA-TEC-DOC-1561, "Economics of Nuclear Desalination: New Development
and Site Specific Studies", lAEA, July 2007
[6] Yuan Zhoua.b, Richard S.J. Toi, "Evaluating the costs of desalination and water
transport", Working paper FNU-41 revised, December 9, 2004
[7] ANONIM, Reevaluasi Comprehensive Assessment of Different Energy Sources, BATAN,
2008
[8] RAPHAEL SEMIAT, "Desalination: Present and Future" International Water
Resources Association, Water International, Volume 25, Number 1, March 2000

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Infrastructure and Other Considerations to Launch Nuclear Power

Programme: the Case of Sub-Sahara African Developing Countries
Like Ethiopia
Atnatiwos Zeleke Meshesha

Ethiopian Radiation Protection Authority, ERPA

E-mail address of main author: atnateosz@yahoo.com

Trends in the world's population and energy use during the past century show dramatic and
relatively parallel increases in both [1]. The demand for electricity is expected to increase
more rapidly than the demand for other forms of energy and nearly double by 2020 [1]. I.
Kimura [2] also remarked that: “For welfare and prosperity of mankind and even for world
peace in and after the next century, vast amount of energy is required.” This worldwide
growing energy demand and the rising concern of climate change led to the need for
production of significant amount of ‘safe and clean’ energy which in turn favours to nuclear
option. Other alternative renewable sources like solar and wind can assist but currently they
are short of supplying the required high energy demand either economically or/and in
substantial amount [3]; other than their high dependency on weather. Nuclear option therefore
remains a possible (developed) technology to fill this energy gap in better conditions of safety
and sustainability without large greenhouse gas emissions. [4].

Vast amount of potential energy resources including hydro, coal and uranium reserves exist in
the Sub-Sahara African region; yet it is very deprived of energy provision and is one of the
least developed part of the world. One reason to the region’s under development can therefore
be attributed to lack of adequate energy. As Dr. ElBaradei also once remarked: lack of energy
in developing countries is one of the highest impediments for development and the fight
against poverty [5].

The socio-economic situations of most Sub-Saharan countries are similar; and mainly based
on subsistence farming. The electric power generated in the region is mostly from
hydropower stations; with few oil generators and coal plants. Currently, in most of these
countries there is very high shortage of electricity and continuous power outage due to
repeated draught and shortage of water reserves in dams resulting in shift supply system;
which in return lead to drop of GDPs and reduction in income of small businesses and
families that worsen the existing poverty.

For instance, Ethiopia is one of the Sub-Saharan country in the Horn of Africa; with a
population of about 77 million. The country’s most important, developed and high potential
source of energy is hydroelectric power. The Ethiopian Electric and Power Corporation
(EEPCO), a government corporation, operated most of the country's power systems. EEPCO
incorporated all electric power stations and currently generate about 875 MW per day, which
is short of 150 MW at peak times [6]. Ongoing efforts to increase its production by 3270 MW
are expected from operational hydropower projects. The energy demand of the country in
recent years also increased annually up to 17% [7]. There is also interconnection of electricity

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grid projects, East African Power Pool (EAPP) among four East-African countries in the sub-
region; Ethiopia, Djibouti, Sudan and Kenya [7].

According to news from IAEA and the World Nuclear Association nearly twenty countries
are actively considering embarking upon nuclear power programs [8]. These ranges from
sophisticated economies to developing ‘new’ nations. Almost all North African countries;
Nigeria and Ghana from West to Namibia in the South are included. Some reasons for this
shift to nuclear options are: to overcome with natural disasters (for instance effect of cyclic
draughts); decline of national fossil fuel reserves; and strategic utilization of national
resources. Though numerous the reasons may be, it seems that there is growing interest of
nations (mainly developing countries) to nuclear power, which may raise concerns of the
proliferation of nuclear weapons and safety issues. It is not only electricity and heat nuclear
technology provides to the world, but many diverse social and economic rewards; and various
spin-off benefits. Therefore, it is sensible and reasonable that nations show great interest
towards this technology. Yet, it should be related with all responsibilities that the technology
entails and with full commitment of states for its peaceful applications as well as developing
all other prudence capabilities that the technology requires.

The Sub-Saharan countries are new to launch a nuclear power (NP) programme. If they are
interested to consider this technology, they should be highly committed to develop the
required basic infrastructure in stages [9]; and should conduct important activities that need to
be completed in phases [10]. This include longer than 100 years of maintaining a sustainable
national infrastructure throughout its operation, decommissioning and waste disposal [10].

The major challenges to launch a NP programme in these countries are; lack of funding,
inadequate technical know-how, lack of information on the available resources, low grid
capacity of nations, lack of required organizations and physical component of the
infrastructure. However, there are also encouraging aspects such as commitment to expand
electric supply to rural areas, strategic shift to diversify energy sources, availability of
uranium (thorium) reserves, availability of basic regulatory infrastructure in radiation
protection and nuclear safety, and enhanced regional and international economic cooperation.

In conclusion, the high level of poverty in Sub-Saharan countries mainly is due to lack of
adequate energy and its poor coverage. It is vital to assert here that provision of sustainable
and sufficient amount of energy in the region can greatly advance development, alleviate
poverty and ensure stability. Besides, to come out of this cyclic challenge; countries based on
regional economic cooperation and ideals of African Union, should interconnect their
electricity grid like EAPP and commonly invest to launch NP programmes in relatively stable
countries. Candid support of the international community is crucial, and IAEA should support
and encourage such arrangements.

Developmental partners also should play their role of fighting poverty, by availing the
required funds, technical assistances, and encouraging their companies in providing insurance
and lending funds to this end. This can be a commitment of the developed world to fight
global climate change and which is the objectives of sustainable development issues. Added
to this, consideration of the region’s contribution of the long term supply of uranium to their
developments should also be taken into account. The idea of the International Fuel Bank can
also be an important initiative that can complement such proposals. However, these countries
should use the technology in responsible manner, maintained by effective implementation of
international safeguards regime to ensure the concerns of the international community.

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Moreover, if the Sub-Saharan countries go for nuclear then the best candidate would be the
worldwide dominant water cooled reactor. This reactor types developed through evolution
with numerous global experiences in operation and design; which are inherently safe, self-
regulated and efficient designs, like AP1000 and EPR. However, for countries with low grid
capacity and to assist remote communities or to carry out rural projects which are far-away
from national grid systems, considerations for smaller reactor designs with affordable capital
cost is required. In this regard designers should be encouraged to invest in R& D.

REFERENCES

[1] Herring, J. S., MacDonald, P. E., Weaver, K. D., Kullberg, C., Low cost,
proliferation resistant, uranium-thorium dioxide fuels for light water reactors,
Nuclear Engineering and Design, 203 (2001) 65-68, pp1- 20, 2001
[2] Kimura, I., Review of cooperative research on thorium fuel cycle as a promising
energy source in the next century, Progress in Nuclear Energy, Vol. 29 (supplement),
pp 445-452, 1995, pp 1-2, 1995
[3] Ubeyli, M., Acir, A., Utilization of thorium in a high power density hybrid reactor
with innovative coolants, Energy Conversion and Management 48 (2007) 576-582,
pp1-7, 2007
[4] International Atomic Energy Agency, Thorium fuel cycle – Potential benefits and
challenges, IAEA-TECDOC-1450 (2005), pp iv – 15, 2005
[5] Statement to the Forty-Ninth Regular Session of the IAEA General Conference,
2005 by IAEA Director General, Dr. Mohamed ElBaradei
[6] Fortune, Vol. 9 No. 449, p10, Dec. 07, 2008
[7] Fortune, Vol. 8 No. 406, p23, Feb. 10, 2008
[8] World Nuclear Association, Emerging Nuclear Energy Countries, [online].
Available from: http://www.world-nuclear.org/info/inf102.html [Accessed 15 Jun
2007]
[9] International Atomic Energy Agency, Basic Infrastructure for a Nuclear Power
Project, IAEA-TECDOC-1513 (June, 2006), p1.
[10] International Atomic Energy Agency, Milestones in the Development of a National
Infrastructure for Nuclear Power, IAEA-Nuclear Energy Series No. NG-G-3.1
(2007), pp.1-11.

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The Future of Nuclear Power in Portugal

Oscar Gonzalez-Hernandez

E-mail address of main author: ogonzalez11@hotmail.com

1. Introduction. The paper will be an update of the paper entitled “Nuclear technology
and energy in Portugal” prepared for the IAEA Workshop: "Steps for Conducting
Nuclear Power Plant Technology Assessments" which took place in Vienna on 17 - 20
November 2008.

2. Update on the ITN. The ITN continues to be the main institution in the country
dealing with nuclear applications. A probable visit of the author to this institution
before the conference will enable to supply more information, particularly on its
readiness to develop capabilities to enacting the legal regulatory framework for
nuclear power generation and the capacity to implement it.

3. Energy Policy, Supply and Demand in Portugal. An Update on the Energy Policy,
Supply and Demand in Portugal will be supplied with the most recent figures
extracted from the International Energy Agency in Paris and national sources. The
present Administration continues to place emphasis on renewable forms of energy,
without considering the nuclear option in the energy mix. The prospects for nuclear
energy in Portugal have been affected by the ongoing economic crisis. This crisis has
particularly affected the economy with has a low per capita GDP by European
standards and is still too dependent on export oriented industries with a weak
technology base. Entrepreneurs and government have became more concerned with
short term measures , consequently the interest in nuclear energy , a long term
endeavor, has taken a long step back. While the plans to pursue renewable energies
continued unabated, the import of electric energy and oil and gas has increased in the
recent two years. New licenses have been recently awarded for eight gas power plants.
Prospects on whether the increase of energy demand will continue in the face of the
ongoing economic downturn will be analyzed in the paper. Elections planned during
2009 for the European parliament, local bodies and the national parliament are not
expect to change the government plans for energy. The ruling party may loose its
absolute majority , which will oblige it to make alliances with the left that also not
inclined to promote nuclear energy.

4. Plans and implementation of renewable energies in Portugal. An update will be

provided on how these plans have been implemented a as well as an indication of
prospects.

5. The Portuguese Society of Physics. The Portuguese society of Physics took an active
role in this year session of the European Physics Society. The session prepared a
position paper on the future of the nuclear option, which was adopted by all European
members of the Society. The paper concluded that:” No one source will be able to fill
the need of future generations for energy. The nuclear option, incorporating recent

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major advances in technology and safety, should serve as one of the main components
of future energy supply. There is a clear need for long-term research, development and
demonstration programmes as well as basic research into both nuclear fission and
fusion and methods of waste incineration, transmutation and storage. Ways must be
found to inform the general public on how to assess relative risks rationally.
Everybody participating in the decision making process needs to be well informed
about energy issues. It is an important task of European science and research to ensure
this.”

6. The way forward. Based on the position above, the Portuguese Society of Physics
plans to establish a National Association for the promotion of nuclear energy in
Portugal and prepared detailed bylaws. This association will be open to the business
and academic communities, media and other interested parties to initiate a public
debate on nuclear energy. This proposal is in line with the recommendations made in
our 2008 paper. The constitution of this association has not yet met much success in
attracting members either from the business community be them users and providers
of energy. However efforts continue.

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Challenges and Opportunities to Launch New Nuclear Power

Programmes
Yao Zhao

China National Nuclear Corporation, Beijing, China

E-mail address of main author: zhaoyao@cnnc.com.cn

The large majority of the current fleet of nuclear power plants are water-cooled reactors.
Their efficient and safe operation is a key factor in assuring that nuclear power will meet both
the current and the future energy needs. Refurbishment and life extension, as well as power
up-rating of existing plants will be a major activity.

In order to promote the peaceful utilization of nuclear energy, in 1970s, China made a
decision to develop nuclear power and further determined the technical direction of water
cooled nuclear power plants. After more than 30 years’ effort, in December 1991, the self-
designed water cooled nuclear power plant-Qinshan Nuclear Power Plant was established and
started power generation, which ended the history of no nuclear power plant on China
mainland and achieved a new breakthrough. Since then on, the nuclear power plant in our
country gradually developed and achieved certain accomplishment. However, if comparing it
with the advanced nuclear power technology in the world, the development nuclear power in
China still lagged to some extent.

1. Actuality of water cooled nuclear power plants

Up till now, there are totally 11 sets of nuclear power generators under operation, all of which
are water cooled nuclear power plant. The Installed Capacity is 9124 Megawatt. In 2008, the
nuclear power generation reached 69.22 billion KW/H, occupying 1.3% of the total power
generation in China.

2. Opportunities for Water Cooled Nuclear Power Plants

2.1. During the occurrence of present financial crisis, the government has increased the input
in infrastructure facilities and adjusted the structure of energy. It also proposed to develop
nuclear power energetically. In accordance with the Plan on Sustainable and Long-term
Development of Nuclear Power, by 2020 in our country, the installed capacity of nuclear
power under operation will reach 40 million KW and the nuclear power capacity under
construction will be up to 18 million KW. At present, the plan is still being revised and the
final numbers may even exceed the current ones.

2.2. Presently the operation performance of water cooled nuclear power plant in China is fair
good. In 2008, 4 of the 7 power units in our company were listed as advanced level in the
world nuclear power industry, which lays a foundation for better development of water cooled
nuclear power plan in China.

2.3. The projects under construction are carrying on smoothly. Currently, totally there are
18.92 million KW of water cooled nuclear power plan units are under construction along with

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many units with permit of implementation and potential plant addresses. The first AP1000 in
the world is also in process now.

2.4. The core competitive strength of self-innovation was improved. In our country, the
engineers are capable to design 2nd -generation improved water cooled nuclear power plant
with million KW nuclear power unit. The design is characterized in “allocation of single
reactor” and “117 reactor core”, which has been recognized by all the domestic experts. At the
same time, based on the constant improvement of 3rd –generation nuclear power technology.

2.5. The degree of self-determination was reinforced, the equipments are gradually
manufactured domestically, which helps to decrease the cost efficiently. To build a nuclear
power plant, the investment in equipment may take about 45% of the total investment. As the
equipments are gradually manufactured domestically, the cost for building a nuclear power
plant is deducted greatly. The rate of domestically made equipment among all equipments in
the project of Qinshan Ⅱ is 55%, increased to 77% in the expansion project of Qinshan Ⅱ. In
other projects like Fuqing, Fangjiashan, the rate of whole domestically made equipments will
reach 75%. In Sanmen project, the rate of conventional island and BOP will also reach 50%.

2.6. EPC(Engineering Procurement and Construction) mode was adopted in the sub-contract
of nuclear power plant to finish the construction of plant. Such mode was initially used in
Fuqing and Fangjiashan Project. CNPE is the only subcontract company of nuclear power
plant led by design with the most powerful strength, and the most complete equipments.

2.7. China also attaches importance to the export of nuclear power and actively promotes the
export work of K1000 project to Pakistan by organizing corresponding groups of people.

3. Challenges for Water Cooled Nuclear Power Plants

3.1. Although the 3rd generation nuclear power technology(AP1000) is developed and
advanced, there is no whole-process check and inspection from construction to operation in
the world. Neither the equipments owners nor the suppliers are capable to provide any
valuable experience for reference. Therefore, the model project of the 3rd generation nuclear
power technology is inevitably at certain risk.

3.2. Nuclear power entered the construction period of large scale. Therefore, how to
optimize the project management, integrate group resources and improve construction
efficiency become the main problems of nuclear power plant construction.

3.3. As the construction of nuclear power entered the period of large scale construction,
nuclear power market gradually raises higher and higher demand on the capability of nuclear
power equipment and its technology.

3.4. The construction of nuclear power entered the period of large scale construction. With
the increase of newly established nuclear power plants, more professional staff is required to
be trained. At the same time, the flow of work staff may weaken and reduce the experience
and skills of nuclear power plant operation, which brings large negative influence on the
operation of nuclear power station. Therefore, the human resource in nuclear power industry
needs to be managed reasonably and thoroughly.

3.5. How to deduce the cost is also one of the challenges for the future development of water
cooled nuclear power plant. The project of Qinshan Ⅱ, which is self-designed by Chinese,

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costs 1330 USD/KW, while the other construction of nuclear power plant at the same time
costs 2000 USD/KW as the equipments and technology are introduced from foreign countries.

3.6. Challenges raised by constant increase of nuclear power performance. WANO has put
forward the Six Major Lessons for the operation of nuclear power in 1990s in combination
with the assessment experience.

3.7. Risks of nuclear power under financial crisis. Under the background that the world
economy is fluctuated greatly, risks of investment control and cost control caused by changes
of exchange rate in the introduction and export of nuclear power project and import & export
of equipment also exist.

3.8. The loss of experience on nuclear power and the urgent demand of knowledge
management.

To conclude, the water cooled nuclear power plant in the 21st century faces both
opportunities and challenges. But we are confident that water cooled nuclear power plan will
illuminate the future of China soon.

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Expansion of Nuclear Power in Mexico

L.C. Longoria, J. Palacios, G. Alonso

E-mail address of main author: luis.longoria@inin.gob.mx

Mexico has a Nuclear Power Plant located at Laguna Verde Veracruz. It has two General
Electric BWR reactors of 680 MWe each, The first reactor started operating in 1990 and the
second one in 1995. Nuclear power contributes about 4.4 % of the total electricity produced in
México. The Mexican regulatory body has given the two reactors an operation license of 30
years.

The Laguna Verde Nuclear Plant was uprated to 5% of its nominal capacity in 1999 and at the
moment there is an ongoing project to uprate it to 20%, this however, implies changing major
components such as the turbines.

At the present time there are not government official plans to built new NPPs in Mexico;
however studies about de technical and economical feasibility new nuclear capacity are being
carried out by the CFE and the Mexican Nuclear Research Institute.

In México the production of nuclear power is reserved to the state trough Federal Electricity
Commission (CFE). The Program of Works and Investment of the Electrical Sector (POISE)
is an annual national electricity program prepared by CFE taking into account the electricity
needs for the following 10 years.

The Mexican government has stated in the POISE 2009-2018 plans to install close to 18,000
MWe by the year 2018 of new electricity capacity, of this amount 15,500 MWe will be
produced using conventional sources and 2,500 MWe will be defined in the future
considering technologies that can include nuclear power.

The most viable option to increase nuclear capacity in Mexico besides the current reactors
uprate program is to build new reactors in the same site of Laguna Verde. This site was
originally planed to house up to 4 reactors.

Another very important issue is the operational license extension to at least 60 years, this can
only be archived through a life extension program which is currently underway. The Mexican
Nuclear Research Institute has been carrying out a materials surveillance program to
determine the current state of the reactor vessel as well as the internals and cables, the results
of this program will be the basis for a license extension from the regulatory commission.

It is necessary to carry out a more thorough investigation on the cost of nuclear power,
specially in the current world economic crisis where there are huge variations in costs an great
uncertainties in the estimation of future energy costs.

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Mexico´s oil production is on the decline and is necessary to find alternative energy sources
to secure a bigger energy independence through economical and environmentaly friendly
options.

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Promote the CPI Nuclear Power Development to Boost the Self-

reliance in China
X. Song

China Power Investment Corporation (CPl), Beijing, China

E-mail address of main author: songxudan@cpicorp.com.cn

Nuclear power renewal promises to energize electricity generation worldwide and help
address concerns about greenhouse gas emissions. The strong safety performance of nuclear
power in China, the growing demand for energy, and the increasing awareness of the
environmental benefits of clean nuclear energy, form the foundation for accelerating the
nuclear power development that can support China energy security, economic prosperity, and
environmental quality goals in the 21st century. On October 2007, the National Development
and Reform Commission of China issued the medium- and long-term national plan (2005-
2020) on nuclear power development. China is aiming to have a nuclear power operating
capacity of 40 GW by 2020, accounting for 4 percent of the nation's total power capacity.
Recently, the Chinese government is pondering to increase further the development of nuclear
power in the country.

China Power Investment Corporation (CPI) is one of the three authorized corporate utilities to
develop, construct and operate the nuclear power plants as the controlling shareholder.
Following the national energy policy, CPI has established the corporate strategy and the
program on the nuclear power development. CPI is planning to take the 20 percentage of the
total domestic nuclear power capacity by 2020.

With the orientation of the CPI nuclear power development strategy and the program, the
internal and external business environment and resourses were analyzed in detail for the CPI
nuclear power development. Furthermore, the challenges and the opportunities to launch the
nuclear power development program of CPI were sorted out and described. Encountered the
challenges and the opportunities, CPI has studied and stipulated the executing tactics
including the management organization, the engineering construction management
infrastructure, the prior adopting nuclear power technology, the human resourse and financing
issues.

With these considerations, CPI decided to adopt the advanced PWR AP1000 technology as
priority. CPI is building the Shandong Haiyang nuclear power project as the one of the two
FOAK AP1000 projects. So far, Haiyang project is moving forward smoothly as scheduled. In
addition, CPI is preparing additional new nuclear power projects in some other provinces
besides of Shandong Haiyang NPP.

As one of the top 54 largest state-owned corporations, CPI is endeavoring and responsible to
boost the self-reliance on the nuclear power developmemt in China through CPI's efforts as
well as the comprehensive and sound cooperation with the nuclear power entities worldwide.

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An Overview of Egypt’s Human Resources Strategy for the Nuclear

Power Program
Ahmed Awaise

Nuclear Power Plants Authority, Minister of Electricity and Energy, Cairo, Egypt

E-mail address of main author: awaise1@excite.com

Because of the limited fossil fuel energy resources and the almost fully utilized hydro energy,
Egypt has been considering for sometime the introduction of nuclear energy for electric
power generation. Egypt initiated a nuclear energy program in the 1970s but it came to a halt
following the Chernobyl accident in 1986. Since that time the government has commissioned
several feasibility studies, which supported the case for embarking on the nuclear plan.
Egypt's electricity demand has been increasing by almost 10% per year over the past decade,
and power consumption is likely to continue to increase rapidly. In September 2006 the
Egyptian government announced that it is considering the nuclear energy as an option for
electricity generation because of the improvement in nuclear safety and the pressures on the
energy sector due to the sharp increase in oil prices. In Oct 2007 President Mubarak
announced that Egypt is to build several nuclear power stations, which represents strong
national commitment to the nuclear power programme. Following that the government will
develop the program in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)
"within a framework of transparency and respect of commitments to the nuclear non-
proliferation system.”The current activities includes establishing the master plan of the
nuclear program based on Milestones in the Development of a National Infrastructure for
Nuclear Power, the concern now is directed to Phase 2: Preparatory work for the construction
of a nuclear power plant after a policy decision has been taken, which is linked to Milestone 2
- Ready to invite bids for the first nuclear power plant, for which the Human Resources
Management plays a key role. The objective of this paper is to highlight human resources
management policy, workforce planning as well as training requirements and related
considerations for the nuclear power plant project in Egypt.

REFERENCES

[1] Egyptian Holding Company for Electricity, Annual Report 2007-2008, Cairo, 2009.
[2] IAEA-TECDOC–1513, “Basic Infrastructure for a Nuclear Power Project”, Vienna,
2006.
[3] Nuclear Energy Series No. NG-G-3.1," Milestones in the Development of a National
Infrastructure for Nuclear Power", Vienna, 2007.
[4] IAEA-TECDOC-1501, “Human Resource Issues Related to Expanding a Nuclear
Power Programme”, Vienna, 2006.
[5] Long, R. L. and Briant, V.S. “Vigilance Required, Lessons for Creating a Strong
Nuclear Culture”, Proceedings New Generation Nuclear Power Plants, Warsaw,
Poland, September 25-27, 1996.
[6] IAEA-TECDOC-685, "Simulators for Training Nuclear Power Plant Personnel",
Vienna, 1993

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[7] Nina Koivula, "Lessons learned in construction activities", IAEA Technical Meeting
on Further Needs On Management Systems 1-4April 2008, Vienna ,Austria.
[8] IAEA Nuclear Energy Series No. NG-T-3.2, "Evaluation of the Status of National
Nuclear Infrastructure Development", Vienna, 2008.
[9] IAEA-TECDOC-1254,"Training the Staff of The Regulatory Body for Nuclear
Facilities:A Competency Framework",Vienna, 2001.
[10] IAEA Nuclear Energy Series No. NG-T-3.3 Draft Document" Workforce Planning for
New Nuclear Power Programmes", February 2009.
[11] J. Bastos, “NSNI Support to Countries Embarking in Nuclear Power Programs ” IAEA
Technical Meeting on Workforce Planning for New Nuclear Power Programmes,
Vienna, March 31 – April 2, 2009.
[12] IAEA Technical Reports Series No.279, “Nuclear Power Project Management”,
Vienna, 1988.
[13] Technical Reports Series No.204, "Technical Evaluation of Bids for Nuclear Power
Plants", Vienna, 1981.
[14] IAEA-TECDOC-635,"IAEA Operational Safety Review Teams OSART Guidelines:
1992 Edition", VIENNA, 1992
[15] IAEA-TECDOC -1052, "Nuclear Power Plant Organization and Staffing for Improved
Performance: Lessons Learned", Vienna,1998.
[16] Chuck Goodnight," Workforce Requirements for Nuclear Power Plants", NPPA –
IAEA Workshop on Human Resources Planning, Cairo, Egypt 15th – 19th March
2009.
[17] R. Long, Education and Training for the NPP Workforce, International conference
jointly organized by the Association of Polish Electrical Engineers and IAEA, Warsaw
1-2 June 2006.
[18] IAEA-TECDOC-525(Rev.1), "Guidebook on Training to Establish and Maintain the
Qualification and Competence of Nuclear Power Plant Operations Personnel, IAEA,
VIENNA, 1994
[19] National Science Education Standards (1996), National Academy Press, Washington,
DC, 1996.
[20] IAEA Technical Reports Series No. 380," Nuclear Power Plant Personnel Training
and its Evaluation, A Guidebook", Vienna, 1996.
[21] IAEA-TECDOC-1358, "Means of Evaluating and Improving the Effectiveness of
Training of Nuclear Power Plant Personnel", Vienna, 2003.
[22] IAEA -TECDOC-1063,"IAEA World Survey on Nuclear Power Plant Personnel
Training", Vienna, 1999.

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Regulation and License for NPP in Indonesia

Zurias Ilyas, Djibun Sembiring

Directorate of License for Nuclear Installation and Nuclear Material,

Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, BAPATEN, Jakarta, Indonesia

E-mail address of main author: z.ilyas@bapeten.go.id

Any activity relating to nuclear energy shall maintain safety, security, safeguards, health
worker & public as well as environmental protection, according to article 16(1) act No.10
year 1997 on Nuclear Energy.

The act No.10 year 1997 on Nuclear Energy stipulated independent government agency as
nuclear energy regulatory called BAPETEN (Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency).
BAPETEN has task to make regulation, licensing process and inspection. Bapeten shall have
a licensing and inspection system in fulfilling his function to issued licensing according to
Nuclear Energy Act.

In Article 17 stipulated that any nuclear energy utilization or construction and operation of
nuclear reactor and other nuclear installation as well as decommissioning of nuclear reactor
shall have license.

Requirements and process to issue license for nuclear reactor stipulated further in
Government Regulation no. 43 year 2006.

The purpose of the Government Regulation No. 43 is to stipulate licensing of nuclear reactor
in order to assure the health of worker and public, environment protection and security of
nuclear material and nuclear facility.

Requirement and guidance in licensing NPP mandated by Government Regulation or

Presidential Decree stipulated in Bapeten Chairman Regulation

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National Nuclear Legislation Hierarchy

ACT
• Nuclear Energy Act No.10/1998

Government • Nuclear Reactor Licensing • Nuclear Safety • Nuclear

Safety• Nuclear Security
Nuclear Emergency
Regulation Response & Preparedness

Presidential
Decree • Nuclear Liability

Bapeten Chairman • Technical Requirements & Acceptance Criteria

Decree

NOTE: red letter represent documents to be developed and established by the end of 2009
& green letter established by end of 2010

COMBINED LICENSE

SITING CONSTRUCTION COMMISSIONING OPERATION DECOMMISSIONING

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3 Step 4 Step 5

5 STEPS LICENSING

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A Nuclear Power Plant for a Developing Country: The Best Option

Eric M. Ngotho

Radiation Protection Board, Nairobi, Kenya

E-mail address of main author: mutandaa@gmail.com

In an International Conference on Topical Issues in Nuclear Installation Safety held last year
in Mumbai, India I presented a paper entitled “Launching a Nuclear Power Programme – a
third world country’s perspective” - IAEA-CN-158/9. [1]. In it I identified some real
constraints encountered by a developing country while trying to introduce a nuclear power
programme. This were inadequate base infrastructure, financial incapability and lack of
skilled manpower.

However a topic of similar importance if not more is the question of the best type of reactor a
low GDP developing country should go for were it to make a definite decision to generate
nuclear power.

Granted each developing country has different needs depending on its economy, national
requirements, grid infrastructure, interregional planning and alternative resources. For
example Kenya has an electricity per capital consumption of 145.803 kWh per capita which is
increasing dramatically.[2] But were a real decision made to deploy, considerations on the
best and appropiate type of reactor should be evaluated. Considerations would be on the
reactor scalability; that is moving from a small reactor design to scalable medium reactor as
power needs and grid capacity are matched.

To developing countries a myraid of opportunities for which reactors to go for is available

with current, future and developing technologies presenting innovative designs such as
pressurized water reactors, boiling water reactors, pebble bed reactors and advanced heavy
water reactors.

Water cooled reactors are increasingly being viewed as maybe the best options for developing
countries considering the many potential avenues for innovative designs they have.Chief
among this may be their superior safety from primary system component failure that is
provided by a series of safeguard mechanisms. This is particularly appealing to a developing
country considering the enormous loss that would be occassioned if a component failure in
the primary system spread into other secondary systems.

However there is the possibility of potentially high maintenance costs associated with the
seemingly inaccessibility of primary components were primary failure to occur.

Despite this water cooled nuclear reactors remain as the best way into the future for
developing countries that intend to deploy a reactor.

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REFERENCES

[1] NGOTHO, E.M., Proceedings of International Conference on Topical Issues in

Nuclear Installation Safety, Mumbai, India - IAEA-CN-158/9 (2008)
[2] Kenya Electricity Generating Company Ltd.(2008)
[3] ATDF JOURNAL Volume 2, Issue 2., Y.A. Sokolov and A. McDonald

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Human Resources Development for Thai Regulators

L. Siripirom, V. Watcharasuragul, P. Nakkaew, P. Phruksarojanakun, S.
Soongsawang

Bureau of Nuclear Safety Regulation, Office of Atoms for Peace

E-mail address of main author: varaporn@oaep.go.th

Thailand has a plan to operate two 1000MW Nuclear Power-Plants (NPPs) in 2020 and 2021
respectively. As for the preparation, tasks are divided into 2 major categories: revision of
nuclear legislations in Thailand, and HRD.

Revision of National Nuclear Legislations

It is necessary to revise Atomic Energy for Peace Act and related legislations that had become
outdated. The aim is to empower the Act to have authority and responsibility called for in
many International Standards. For this purpose, we have been studying treaties and contracts
between countries involving with NPPs; in order to assess agreements or legislations that they
are fully covered important aspect from every treaty.

Human Resource Development

Office of Atoms for Peace (OAP), as the nuclear safety regulator of Thailand, foresees the
necessity of Human Resources Development (HRD), as a key for successful preparation of
NPPs safety regulations. Since Thailand does not have any clear and continuous policy for
application use of nuclear energy, we are currently facing the personnel shortage, both in term
of number and quality. Moreover, BNSR used to be responsible for both R&D and regulation,
which resulting in an inadequate focus on regulation. This also results in very limited affords
on recruitment of specialists in regulation field.

Management

At the national level, the situation of global energy resource and the rising concern about
climate change have given The Ministry of Energy, which is responsible in searching energy
resources for our country, reasons to consider using NPPs. As of now, Thailand Electricity
Generation Authority (EGAT) is currently searching for suitable sites for NPPs. This project’s
reports are scheduled to be submitted to Thai government in the early of 2010 to decide if the
NPP project should continue. These reports contain preliminary feasibility study of NPP
project, including suitable sites’ location, which will be evaluated by BNSR later. Meanwhile,
BNSR will be working on HRD, via 2 main projects

1. Personnel performance assessment projects, specialized in nuclear safety regulation. The

first phase is a process of acquiring knowledge qualification and characteristic of nuclear
safety regulation human resources. This phase focuses on analyzing differences in
performances among human resources, for the purpose of designing an effective curriculum
that will narrow down differences in performances among human resources. The next phase

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will focus on defining courses for operating human resources in nuclear safety regulation
department.

2. Enhancing human resources in nuclear safety regulation project. This project is an intensive
program to accelerate personnel’s capability in performing specialized tasks. In the fiscal year
for 2009, the project will be focused on increasing potentiality for analyzing and evaluating
safety issues of NPPs’ sites.

Conclusion

Despite the efforts, there are many difficulties presented in the following aspects.

1. Public policy is unclear, resulting in limited budget.

2. Development processes take time, since both training and accumulating experience cannot
be done within a short period of time.

3. There is inadequate in human resources.

Future needs

Hence, BNSR is in need of the following assistances from IAEA as soon as possible, in order
to be ready in time for NPPs’ project, as mentioned above.

1. Strategic planning for development in human resources

2 .Intensive training programs, Mentoring Program or “on the job” instruction.

3. Technical Knowledge on standards and criterions of site evaluation

4. Peer evaluation in order to reassure that development is on the right track.

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Localization of Manufacturing Capabilities in Setting Up Nuclear

Power Plants
Sushil Kumar Chadda

Bharat Forge Ltd, Pune ,India

E-mail address of main author: sushilkumarchadda@bharatforge.com

Nuclear renaissance is now imminent and is inevitable in view of the global warming
concerns .Indian government in its integrated energy policy document has planed for raising
nuclear power capacity to generate 63 GWe by 2030. This envisages estimated investments of
US $22 billion in next 15 to 20 years.

In the light of this, for setting up Nuclear Power Plants, it becomes very important to ensure
supply-chain for materials and components and putting in place cost effective project
management to complete the projects on time and within the budgets.

In this context, the participation of industries and their preparedness to meet the challenges
are necessary. This would also require investments towards up gradation of manufacturing
technology, training of manpower and mobilization of resources at the construction site .The
industry would also need to enhance detailing and design engineering capabilities for the
plants.

In this paper, various issues with regard to project cost, regulatory and licensing, technology
and gestation period etc for new build plants relevant to manufacturing industry are discussed.
The plans for enhancing manufacturing capabilities for the critical path items of the project
schedule with viable business, ensuring returns to stakeholders and financing and investment
cycle are brought out.

The various steps and initiatives being taken by Bharat Forge Ltd a flagship company of
Kalyani group for supply of forgings for nuclear reactor, vessels, steam generators , turbine
generators and other safety critical components including pumps, valves, pipes and tubes , and
other integration work for the balance of plant are summarized.

The company has planned significant investments for setting up an integrated manufacturing
facility to clear the global bottleneck in the supply of ultra-heavy forgings for light water
reactors.

Civil structuring involves execution by prior qualification with proven skills for specialized
civil works needed in the construction of nuclear plants. Another group company “Kalyani
Technical Management Services [KTMS] is also gearing up to enhance its capabilities to
undertake construction projects and execute EPC contracts.

In the context of Indian Nuclear Power Program, the various initiatives taken for overall
human resource development to meet the demands requiring skills in high end technology
manufacturing and project management are included.

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ACR-1000 - Designed for Constructability

Frank Yee, Jim Byrne, M. Soulard, R. Moleschi, K. Akagi

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Mississauga, ON, Canada

E-mail address of main author: yeef@aecl.ca

One of the key aspects to be considered in the delivery of a Nuclear Power Plant is the
security of the construction schedule and the need for lower construction costs. Many
industries are using skids, modules and prefabrications to enhance construction productivity,
reduce schedules and thus reduce costs. The leaders in this regard have traditionally been in
the off-shore oil and gas, chemical, refinery and ship building industries.

The concept of using modules has been utilized in Nuclear Power Plant design and
construction. Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) has had considerable success at the
Qinshan Nuclear Power project in China with the use of modularization, which proved
extremely effective in the ability to organize parallel construction activities and shortening the
schedule. Extensive use has been made of skids and modules in Japan and this also has
proven effective in shortening schedules in the construction of nuclear power plants.
Secondary benefits of modularization and prefabrication include decreased site congestion
and logistical issues, increased worker safety and better quality control of fabrication.
Modules and prefabrication allow work to be shifted to areas where skilled trades are more
readily available from a site where skilled trades are very limited.

One of the objectives of the ACR-l000 project is to produce a design that allows for a very
secure construction schedule. The construction method and strategy, consisting of extensive
use of prefabrication and modularization was defined very early in the ACR- 1000 conceptual
phase of the layout and design process. This has been achieved through a constructability
programme that integrates the civil design with site erection and module installation. This
approach takes the concept of modularization to an entirely new level, in which the use of
modules is built into the design from the start, rather than backfitting modular construction
into a conventionally designed plant.

This paper presents the ACR-l000 construction strategy and methods and shows examples of
how the integrated civil design approach with modularizalion and prefabrication is utilized to
shorten the construction schedule and reduce the project risk.

The following aspects are described in the paper:

 The use of very heavy lift (VHL) cranes has made it possible to leave the top of the
containment structure and install heavy items through the ‘open top” of the reactor
building.

 Scheduling of parallel construction activities is achieved through the use of modules

and prefabrication in the construction schedule.

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 Shortening the schedule is possible through the use of modern construction

technologies, such as prefabricated rebar, large volume concrete pours, prefabricated
permanent formwork, skid mounted modules and pre-fabricated pipe assemblies.

 The ACR-l000 plant layout has been designed for constructability, incorporating
vertical installation compartments, which in turn are divided into construction
volumes. The construction volumes represent volumes of the plant that will be issued
as complete work packages during construction. Major room modules, where
implemented, may consist of a floor, the material suspended below the floor and the
equipment and material mounted on the floor.

The use of prefabricated permanent formwork (PPF) for the floors. A typical PPF would
consist of the steel liner plate serving as the formwork, the truss elements, bottom layers of
reinforcement, the penetrations and embedded parts in their final position. Floor slab
construction work proceeds with connection of the bottom rebar layer to the exposed wall
rebar using mechanical couplets, followed by the top layer of reinforcement installation
and connection of the top rebar to the exposed wall rebar, also with mechanical couplers.
Concrete is then poured and cured, and the PPF becomes part of the structure left in place.
The main advarnage of this structural concept is that the PPF is a pre-engineered job and
the PPF can be lifted into place by the VHL.

 The utilization of Laser Measurement and Spatial Analysis/Modelling for the

manufacturing of modules to a precise dimensions so that installation and
interconnections can be accomplished in the field with the minimum amount of
labour and time to further accelerate the completion of the Nuclear Power Plant.

 The design considerations that are used in sub-dividing the equipment, piping,
supports and civil structural members into suitable modular volumes. The ACR
approach to modularization is a departure from convention in that it designs the
systems and structures to be modularized as opposed to dividing pre-designed
systems into modules or conventional stick-built.

 The benefits of using this construction approach in the overall construction schedule
for the ACR-l000 is finally discussed.

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The Protection of Containers for Fresh and Spent Fuel at Extremal

Transportation Operating Modes in and Around a Nuclear Reactor’s
Portal
A.E. Sargsian, A.S. Grishin

Public Company “Atomenergoproekt”, Moscow, Russia

E-mail address of main author: gandrey24@gmail.com

The certified containers for fresh and spend fuel (further the containers) are able to survive
dropping from a distance of 9 meters on a concrete table top [1, 2].

In present-day nuclear power plants the hoisting height of the containers at cargo handling is
up to 40 meters. Possible fall of the containers on a concrete table top will probably result in
its destruction.

The goal of the paper is the substantiation of a new shock-absorbing gravel-sand cushion that
is designed to be installed under a Nuclear Reactor’s Portal. Furthermore, there are
determined the physical and mechanical specifications and the dimensions of the new shock-
absorbing gravelsand cushion. A new construction of shock-absorbing gravel-sand cushion
must absorb the kinetic energy of a container so that the unabsorbed kinetic energy would not
exceed the value corresponding to its fall from a distance of 9 meters on a concrete table top.

The shock-absorbing cushion mounting (composed of asphalt, gravel and sand) under portal
crane of a Reactor Building will insure structural strength and impermeability of the
containers in case of its fall from the maximum possible height at all transportation operating
modes.

At the beginning of the paper the possible trajectories, positions and kinematical parameters
of the containers are determined from a fall from the distance of up to 40 meters. These
calculations are made for the cases of cranage failures.

In a 3-D space, by means of FEM contact problems of the container and the shock-absorbing
cushion interaction are solved. The kinematical parameters determined earlier are used as an
initial condition.

It was shown that the overload coefficients for the containers do not exceed the admissible
values at possible impacts of the containers with the shock-absorbing cushion.

REFERENCES

[1] IAEA Safety Regulations. Rules of safe transportation of radioactive materials.

Vienna, 1991.
[2] Safety rules of transportation of radioactive materials. NP-053-04. Moscow, 2004.

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Development of Combined Modularization Technology for APR+

(Advanced Power Reactor) in Korea
Young-Il Lee, Dong-geon Kim

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., LTD(KHNP), Seoul, Korea

E-mail address of main author: yilee@khnp.co.kr

KHNP is currently operating 20 nuclear power plants and constructing 8 units in Korea. With
the accumulated experience of operation and construction of NPPs over the past 50 years,
KHNP tries to develop the original nuclear power reactor (APR+). The R&D project for
'combined modularization', which is a part of APR+ common core technology development,
is being carried out and will be implemented by July 2010.

This R&D project was initiated from the feasibility study on the modularization of structure
and system facility for NPPs (2002). On the basis of the feasibility study result, The SC (Steel
plate Concrete) structure technology development had been performed from 2005 to 2008,
and the SC structure technology is under audit by the regulatory institution prior to the
application for nuclear construction project.

The research of combined modularization is an extension from the SC structure technology

development. The research is divided into three phases. During first phase, by July 2010, the
applicability of SC structure enlargement will be reviewed and conceptual design of
combined/equipment modularization will be performed. In second phase, the basic design and
construction feasibility evaluation of the screened combined/equipment modularization will
be completed within July 2013. Afterward, in the final phase, optimized modularization
technique will be realized through technical supplementation by Dec. 2015.

Two main objectives will be achieved in the first phase study. The first one is to obtain design
reliabilities for the SC structure by evaluating its applicability in auxiliary/compound
building. The other one is to establish modularization requirements for design, procurement,
manufacture and installation. To ensure these objectives, the flow sheet of technology
development is greatly divided into 5 steps as follows.

First step is to establish the screen criteria for adopting modularization. It's possible to catch
the attitude of impact factor of modularization and evaluate the adoption of module's screen
criteria using systematic analysis method.

Second step is to select the modular object using the former research result and reference
plant (APR1400). The modularization object is chosen and then these potential modules will
be evaluated in views of design, procurement, manufacture and construction.

Third step is to perform the example design for each module types practically. Using module
list, representative module is selected each module types and example design is performed by
design data of reference plant. Through such process, system and manufacture design
requirements for modularization are established and standardized procurement specifications
are prepared.

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Fourth step is to evaluate constructability and analysis economical efficiency. The

constructability by the design and mockup test result is evaluated and the guideline is
prepared. Also economical efficiency by cost analysis is evaluated and construction cost
according to combined modularization is quantitatively analyzed.

Fifth step is to establish the modularization strategy. The development technology is

incorporated to nuclear construction project step by step and feedback between consecutive
research development and project adoption is harmonized.

The main activities during first phase of combined modularization are as follows.

First activities are the evaluation of applicability of SC structure and establishment of design
technology. These activities include the development of guideline for SC structure joint,
selection of structure member where SC structure could be applied.

Second activities contain design and construction technology for combined module. The
adoption targets for combined module based on SC structure are selected according to
schedule and design requirement. On process of design, manufacture and construction for
mockup of combined module, the abilities for manufacture and construct are evaluated and
the construction guidelines are prepared.

Third activities include technology development of design and manufacture for equipment
module. The concept and basic design about the selected equipment module is performed and
the design and manufacture methodology for equipment module is established.

Fourth activities contain establishment of shorting construction schedule for adopting SC

structure, combined module, equipment module in nuclear projects and economical efficiency
evaluation by cost analysis about the variously developed module.

Fifth activities consist of establishment of screen criteria and evaluation of the selected
module. After founding the screen criteria, the facilitating and impediment factors for
modularization are identified and the enlargement plans for the modularization are prepared.

Modularization method for nuclear construction is innovative and powerful tool to shorten the
construction schedule and improve the construction productivity and over-jump the current
design, procurement and construction system. Therefore KHNP will establish the design,
manufacture, procurement and construction technology about modularization method
throughout the first period of APR+ combined modularization technology development. Also
the modularization technologies will be incorporated in nuclear construction projects and will
be continuously improved during the second period.

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Development of Coupled Dynamics Model for VVER Reactors

Obaidurrahman K.a, J.B. Doshib
a
Atomic Energy Regulatory Board, Niyamak Bhavan-A, Anushakti Nagar, Mumbai-
400094, INDIA
b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, IIT Bombay, Mumbai-400076, INDIA

E-mail address of main author: obaid@aerb.gov.in/ obaid.iitb@gmail.com

As a key of core knowledge for the design of various types of nuclear reactors and operating
experience of more than thousand reactor-years, the discipline of reactor physics has been
advanced continually in the past six decades and had led to development of many core
dynamic analysis methods and computer codes. The present age computer resources have
permitted the reactor safety analysis of large reactors to be carried out with detailed thermal
hydraulic coupled 3D neutronics models to get the so called ‘best estimate’ results. Such
detailed multiphysics modeling procedures minimize computational uncertainties. The
operational flexibility of nuclear plants can also be improved by utilizing accurate 3D coupled
neutronics/thermal—hydraulics calculations for safety margins evaluations.

The present paper describes a brief review of evolution of reactor kinetics analysis methods
from simple point kinetics tools to complex multiphysics coupled code system being used
today for best estimate analysis to avoid unnecessary over design scenarios in competent
power industry market. It also describes the methodologies and practices involved in coupling
core thermal hydraulics and neutronics calculation being followed in AERB, India.

An indigenous effort is going on in Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), Mumbai,

India to develop in-house computer code systems to analyze wide spectrum of transients in
large water cooled reactors. A computer code, TRIKIN has been developed in this regard to
carry out detailed 3D kinetics and coupled core thermal hydraulics calculations for VVER
reactors which are being constructed in Kudankulam, India. Neutronics model uses a
computationally efficient algorithm based on the flux factorization technique employed by the
Improved Quasistatic (IQS) method. The space and time dependent group fluxes are factored
into space and time dependent shape functions which change slowly in time and a rapidly
changing amplitude function which is only a function of time. The solution is obtained for
these functions on two level time axis, with amplitude function solved on very finer time
steps, whereas shape functions solved at larger time steps. Core thermal hydraulics is modeled
by equivalent multichannel representation and mass, momentum and energy conservation
equations are solved for each channel neglecting the cross flow among the various channels.
The coupled code has been validated against a series of AER benchmark problems
(AERDYN-l, 2, 3) for VVER-44O core. The benchmark problems are asymmetric rod
ejection accident analysis with different level of complicacy in reactivity feedbacks. Presently
the model capability is specific to the analysis of VVER reactor system which has triangular
lattices fuel pin arrangement but the methodology can be extended to any type of nuclear
reactor.

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To demonstrate the capability of the TRIKIN model, few selected results of benchmark
problems shown in figures. The figures show that TRIKIN results are in good agreement with
benchmark results.

REFERENCES

[1] J.B. Doshi and Obaidurrahman K. Control of Spatial Xenon Oscillations in Large
Power reactors. PHYSOR 2006, ANS Topical meeting on Reacior Physics,
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Sep. 10-14, 2006.
[2] V. Jagannathan. Tej Singh, Usha Pal, R. Karthikeyan and Ganapathi Sundaram -
Validation of Finite Difference Core Diffusion Calculation Methods with FEM and
NEM for VVER-1000MWe Reactor. PHYSOR-2006. ANS Topical Meeting on
Reactor Physics, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, Sep. 10-14, 2006
[3] A. Keieszturi and M. Telbisz, A three-dimensional hexagonal kinetic benchmark
problem, 2nd AER Symposium, Paks, Hungary, 1992.

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CANDU®; Shortest Path to Advanced Fuel Cycles

Catherine Cottrella, Peter Chana, Gary Dyckb, Zhenhua Zhangc, Peter Allsopa,
Sermet Kurana, Jerry Hopwooda
a
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
b
Atomic Energy of Canada Limted
Chalk River, Ontario, Canada
c
Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Co. Ltd.
Haiyan, Zheiiang, Chinathiopian Radiation Protection Authority, ERPA

E-mail address of main author: cotfrelc@aecl.ca

The global nuclear renaissance exhibiting itself in the form of new reactor build programs is
rapidly gaining momentum. Many countries are seeking to expand the use of economical and
carbon-free nuclear energy to meet growing electricity demand and manage global climate
change challenges.

Nuclear power construction programs that are being proposed in many countries will
dramatically increase the demand on uranium resources. The projected life-long uranium
consumption rates for these reactors will surpass confirmed uranium reserves. Therefore,
securing sufficient uranium resources and taking corresponding measures to ensure the
availability of long-term and stable fuel resources for these nuclear power plants is a
fundamental requirement for business success. Increasing the utilization of existing uranium
fuel resources and implementing the use of alternate fuels in CANDU® reactors is an
important element to meet this challenge.

The CANDU® heavy water reactor has unequalled flexibility for using a variety of fuels, such
as Natural Uranium (NU), Low Enriched Uranium (LEU), Recycled Uranium (RU), Mixed
Oxide (MOX), and thorium. This CANDU® feature has not been used to date simply due to
lack of commercial drivers. The capability is anchored around a versatile pressure tube
design, simple fuel bundle, on-power refuelling, and high neutron economy of the CANDU®
concept. Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) has carried out theoretical and
experimental investigations on various advanced fuel cycles, including thorium, over many
years. Two fuels are selected as the subject of this paper: Natural Uranium Equivalent (NUE)
and thorium.

NUE fuel is developed by combining RU and depleted uranium (DU) in such a manner that
the resulting NUE fuel is neutronically equivalent to NU fuel. RU is recovered from
reprocessed light water reactor (LWR) fuel and has a nominal 235U concentration of
approximately 0.9 wt%. This concentration is higher than NU used in CANDU® reactors,
which is 0.71 wt%. Therefore, the RU is blended with the DU in such a manner that the NUE
has a 235U concentration similar to NU. NUE fuel in a CANDU® reactor has been shown to be
technically feasible. This fuel offers the simplest, quickest and lowest cost path to efficient

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utilization of alternative fuel sources in the currently operational CANDU® reactors without
modifications to their existing licensing basis.

The use of NUE in CANDU® reactors addresses the challenge of dealing with spent LWR
fuel that would otherwise require monitored storage or costly re-enrichment and handling of
highly radioactive fuels for reuse in LWRs. Using RU in existing nuclear power reactors will
improve the utilization rate of NU resources and ultimately improve the sustainability of fuel
resources. In addition, NUE reintroduces the fissile content in DU back into the fuel cycle; an
effective application of an otherwise limited-use by-product from the uranium enrichment
process.

There is a wealth of global experience with RU, however, due to previously low economic
incentives in LWRs, its utilization in nuclear reactors has been limited. With increased global
requirements for uranium resources and fluctuating uranium prices. RU use in CANDU® will
play a vital role in the nuclear renaissance. Currently AECL and its partners in China, led by
Third Qinshan Nuclear Power Company (TQNPC), has undertaken the commercial
demonstration of NUE in Qinshan 3 CANDU® units. The objective is eventual full core
implementation of NUE fuel at a time desired by China.

Thorium is available in large quantities in countries such as China and India, both of which
have rapidly expanding economies requiring additional power sources driven by sustainable
and easily accessible fuel sources. CANDU®’s excellent neutron economy, resulting from the
use of heavy water as both moderator and coolant, provides for the efficient use of an LEU or
plutonium driver in thorium fuel cycles. The proven CANDU® reactor is able to operate with
a full core of thorium fuel without requiring major changes to the existing safety and control
systems. AECL has conducted work on thorium fuel cycles, which demonstrated that both
plutonium and LEU could be used as driver fuels for thorium.

The once-through fuel cycle is the simplest thorium fuel cycle that can be rapidly
implemented in existing CANDU® reactors. Currently, detailed studies and accompanying
design work are in progress to ensure initiation of the thorium cycle with the use of an LEU
driver in order to rapidly implement its commercial application. however, maximum thorium
utilization is achieved through recycling 233U in a closed-fuel cycle. Over time and through
evolutionary modifications, the reactor will be optimized to operate with thorium in a
recycling mode.

In AECL’s fuel-cycle vision, CANDU® reactors will operate in conjunction with other reactor
types and use advanced fuels to produce more energy and ensure the most efficient and least
costly method of utilizing LWR spent fuel recycled products. With this goal, CANDU®s will
be a strong partner in ensuring the availability of long-term stable resources for nuclear power
plants.

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Reactor Plant WWER-1200 for the Units of AES-2006

S. Ryzhov, V. Mokhov, D. Ermakov

OKB "GIDROPRESS", Podolsk, Russia

E-mail address of main author: ermakov@grpress.podolsk.ru

Federal Purpose-Orietned Program "Development of Nuclear Industrial Complex of Russia,

for 2007- 2010 and prospects to 2015" provides for construction and commissioning of new
standard commercial NPP Units with the advanced RP of WWER-1200 type being under
development in OKB "GIDROPRESS".

Development of WWER-1200 RP is based on the standard reactor plant WWER-1000 (V-320

type) operated at 21 NPP Units in Russia and abroad.

Design bases of RP WWER-1200 are based on WWER technology (designs V-320, V-392,
V-412, V-428) with its further improvement.

Among the design bases three main groups can be picked out:

 Inherent safety;
 Passive safety;
 Integrity of safety barriers.

Basic targets

 Nominal electric power, 1200 MW;

 Design service life of NPP main equipment, 60 years;
 Availability factor averaged over the whole NPP service life, 92%;
 Efficient number of nominal power hours, 8400 h/year;
 Duration of overhaul life, 8 years;
 Maximum fuel burnup over FAs 70 MW-day/kg U;
 Fuel cycle length up to 24 months;
 Requirements for Unit load follow characteristics on the whole according to EUR;
 Reaching the safe shutdown state for any anticipated
operational occurrences, for design basis accidents and beyond
design basis accidents (except for severe accidents) within 24 hours;
 This time period is allowed to be increased up to 72 hours for
design basis accident and beyond design basis accident;
 Feed water inventory at Unit shall be sufficient for decay heat
removal within 24 hours;
 Total frequency of the core degradation less then 10-6 / reactor-year;
 Reliability targets:
− frequency of trips - not more than 1 per a year of operation
− average unavailability within the design service life of a Unit - less than 1,4 %
(less than 5 days per a year)

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Reactor plant description, basic design solutions for RP main equipment (Advanced reactor,
Fuel assembly, Steam generator, Reactor coolant pump set) and safety systems configuration
(including the inherent safety principle) are presented.

The short description of further WWER reactor plant variants are presented, including:

 two loop WWER-600 reactor plant based on WWER-1200 equipment and smaller
reactor with 109 FAs core
 two loop WWER-1200 reactor plant based on WWER-1200 reactor and steam
generators and reactor coolant pumps of new design.

A short description of the concept of Generation IV RP with vessel-type light water WWER
SCP reactor with supercritical coolant pressure is presented. WWER -SCP may become the
basis for SUPER-WWER reactor.

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 IAEA-CN-164-3P08

Method and Result of Experiment for Support of Technical Solutions

in the Field of Perfection of a Nuclear Fuel Cycle for Future PWR
Reactors
V. Ostrovskiy, E. Kudryavtsev, I. Tutnov

MEPhI, Moscow, Russia

E-mail address of main author: vladik-os@mail.ru

This paper represents conceptual approaches of statement and carrying out of experiments to
validate functional safety of PWR reactors of the future, at acceptance of technical solutions
on use of fuel rods with the increased length of a fuel column in fuel assemblies.

The paper represents main principles and criteria, which we use for quality check of technical
solutions and developments in the field of perfection of a nuclear fuel cycle of PWR reactors
of the future, first of all, from the point of view of a substantiation of safety of the future
operation at change of fuel rod design. We explore the safety issues of operation of PWR
reactors with fuel assemblies, including fuel rods with various length of a fuel column.

The paper discusses the ways of solving of the important problems of carrying out of critical
facility experiments for verification of new technical solutions in the field of PWR nuclear
fuel cycle improvement on the base of international standards ISO 2000:9000 and functional
safety recommendations on functional safety of IEC (International Electromechanical
Commission).

The package of new Federal Laws of the Russian Federation in the field of safety and
licensing of activity of dangerous manufactures defines a major principle for requirements to
the supplier of nuclear techniques and NPP as a whole. This principle is - for any moment of
operation of NPP quantity indicators of risk should not exceed comprehensible social size of
the established indicators of safety. On the other hand the second principle should be applied
from operation of the equipment, systems or NPP as a whole to extraction of the greatest
benefit: As much as possible long operation and full commercial use of resource and service
properties of the equipment, systems and NPP as a whole. Realization of this principle
assumes development and introduction of new technical solutions for a validation of
guarantees of safety of the future operation of NPP or it separate components.

Solving the practical problems of a validation of safety use of fuel rods with the increased
length of a fuel column in fuel assembly in nuclear reactors of the future, we should choose
new strategies and programs of verification experiments on the base of the analysis of
guarantees quality representation of safety, reliability, efficiency and benefit of operation of
the NPP. From here there is a new problem of construction of the system of statement and
carrying out of experiments in substantiations of functional safety of PWR reactors of the
future. In view of world tendencies of development of production and services the decision of
the problem is being carried out in the environment of constantly improved quality control
system (QCS) of the processes of the whole life cycle of nuclear installations constructed
under the Russian projects. The QSC bases on the principles of a quality management of
international standards ISO of a series 9000:2000, namely orientation to a consumer lay;

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system approach to management; the process approach for carrying out verification
researches; the decision-making based on saved up experience, knowledge base and database;
leadership of the head; constant improvement of QSC, etc.

Nowadays the validation of safety is based on calculation forecasts. According to calculation

forecasts the distribution of power field in WWER-1000 fuel assemblies close to fuel
assemblies with lengthened fuel column fuel rods is defined basically by the influence of
compensatory volumes of not advanced fuel rods. Such situation arises in the beginning of a
stage of introduction of new type fuel assemblies, when their amount in core is insignificant
and regular fuel assemblies surround them. An experimental research of a core of PWR
reactors of the future in the situation, when fuel loading will include fuel assemblies with
various length of a fuel column, is a necessary condition of verification of calculation
forecasts. The primary goal of such researches is a modeling of the situations arising at the
beginning and the end of a cycle of introduction of advanced fuel assemblies and definition of
mutual influence of different type fuel assemblies on a power field distribution.

To explore different type fuel assembly’s core, the internal part (331 cells, WWER-1000 fuel
assembly model) was lifted on some height in comparison with associate’s fuel rods. The core
view is presented on fig.1. Relative axial distribution of power field has been measured in fuel
rods, located in the middle of the first sequence, surrounding WWER-1000 fuel assembly
model, and on edge of some. The results of the experiment are presented on fig.2.

The lead experiments have shown, that the increase of axial distribution of a power field in
fuel rods, surrounding WWER-1000 fuel assembly model, is observed. But this increase
cannot affect the fuel rods operation safety of since it is insignificant and is in the field of
where the power is approximately in 10 times less, than in the fuel rod center.

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 IAEA-CN-164-3P09

Improving Safety Provisions of Structural Design of Containment

Against External Explosion
J. Iqbala, S. Ahmadb
a
Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission, Pakistan
b
University of Engineering & Technology, Taxila, Pakistan

E-mail address of main author: jismsc@yahoo.com

Explosions may occur due to a variety of reasons that need to be identified and for which the
probability of occurrence may need to be quantified. ACI Standard 359-07 [1] “Code for
Concrete Reactor Vessels and Containments” deals with the impulse loads as time dependent
loads e.g. the dynamic effects of accidental pressure Pa, the effects of pipe rupture reactions
Rrr and Jet impingement loading Rrj etc. These impulse loads lie within the purview of internal
explosions. However, the provisions to deal with the effects of external explosion against
reactor containment are still in developmental stage. The present paper has, therefore, been
directed to study the effect of external explosion on WCR containment.

A 1: 25 scale model of a typical nuclear power plant containment structure was constructed to
determine the experimental relationships of airblast pressure time history as a function of
surface explosion charge weight, distance to structure, structure height, as well as the
simultaneous ground shock wave history. The experimental setup with explosion scenario is
shown in Figure 1. The similarity of soil parameters at the experimental site with the actual
site conditions was ensured in order to determine the ground shock relationship. The success
of the experimental programme was dependent on the ability to accurately measure reflected
pressure and to collect acceleration data from wall-mounted accelerometers.

The general practice is to utilize the air blast pressure values in the structural analysis and
design against external explosion. The ground shock parameters are usually neglected during
blast resistant analysis and design. In this paper, not only the airblast parameters have been
studied but also the ground shock parameters have been dealt with. Therefore, the paper deals
with the experimental determination of relationships of following airblast and ground shock
parameters against scaled distance on containment scaled model.

Airblast Time History Parameters

(a) Peak pressure (Pso)

(b) Shock wave front arrival time (Ta)

(c) Rising time (Tr)

(d) Decreasing time (Td )

(e) Duration of the positive pressure phase (T )

Ground Shock Time History Parameters

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 IAEA-CN-164-3P09

(f) Peak Particle Acceleration (PPA)

(g) Arrival Time ( ta)

(h) Shock Wave Duration (td )

(i) Time lag between ground shock and air blast pressure arrival at structures (Tlag)

FIG. 1: Experiment setup and explosion scenario

The ground shock wave results have been compared with that of CONWEP [2]. The variation
of results is due to curved surface of containment model. It is concluded that an accurate
analysis of structural response and damage of structures to a nearby external explosion
requires simultaneous application of ground shock and air blast pressure time history
parameters. The research work and the equations drawn may be utilized for the design of
AWCR against external explosion.

REFERENCES

[1] ACI 359-07. Code for Concrete Reactor Vessels and Containment, CC 342 (2007).
[2] CONWEP. Conventional weapons calculations software based on TM 5-855-1, U.S.
Army Engineers Waterways Station, 3909 Halls Ferry Road, Vicksburg, MS 39180
(1991).

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 IAEA-CN-164-3P10

The Westinghouse AP1000 – An Advanced Passive Plant for A Safe

Nuclear Future
Daniel Freis

Westinghouse Electric Germany

E-mail address of main author: freisd@westinghouse.com

In the last decades the world demand for energy was growing rapidly and despite the
economic crisis no basic change in this development can be expected for the future.
Especially the developing countries with fast growing populations and economies will have
an increasing need for energy in all forms while available resources are decreasing. The
extreme volatility of energy prices in the last years has shown how dependent on cheap and
reliable energy we are and how dangerous it is to focus only on few sources. On the other
hand the excessive use of fossil fuel in the last century has led to a man made climate change
by emission of greenhouse gases. The renaissance of nuclear power is one of the answers to
these issues. Global warming cannot be avoided on a short but carbon free nuclear technology
can help limiting the effects of climate change and provide billions of people with cheap and
reliable energy at the same time.

However, a worldwide “nuclear renaissance” has some prerequisites. Beside economic

competitiveness advanced nuclear safety based on proven, evolutionary technologies is the
most important condition for the acceptance of new nuclear power plants. Half of the world’s
nuclear reactors are based on proven Westinghouse design and these plants have more than
10,000 years of operating experience. The AP1000 is the result of an evolutionary
development process where advanced, passive safety features have been combined with
proven components from operating plants. Significant design simplifications together with the
reduction of piping, cabling, pumps, valves and seismic grade building size have led to
reduced investment costs. A consequent modularization enables the plant to be constructed
within three years. Passive safety functions relying only on natural forces make the plant safer
than any existing reactor. Because active decay heat removal systems do not have to be safety
grade classified any more, construction, inspection and maintenance are less expensive as for
competing designs. Extensive testing programs were performed for the new passive safety
functions ensuring their reliability.

The AP1000 is the only design which received the NRC design certification for the new “one-
step” licensing process according to 10 CFR 52. Up to now four orders have been placed in
China and the AP1000 will be the standard design for the ambitious Chinese nuclear energy
program. Construction of the first plant was started in March 2009 at the Sanmen site for
which two AP1000 plants were ordered and four more are planned in the future. At the
Haiyang site construction will start in autumn 2009. Two AP1000 were ordered for this site
and six more are in planning. Additionally ten contracts have been signed in the US and

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several vendors are applying for Combined Construction and Operating License. The AP1000
also will be the workhouse for future new builds in Europe and other countries.

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P01

Integrity Evaluation for Elbows Based on TES Collapse Load

Sung-Ho Leea, Chi-Yong Parka, Tae-Ryong Kima and Jai-Hak Parkb
a
Korea Electric Power Research Institute (KEPRI), Daejeon, Korea
b
Chungbuk National Univercity (CBNU), Cheongju, Korea

E-mail address of main author: sungho@kepri.re.kr

Local wall-thinning due to flow accelerated corrosion (FAC) is a primary degradation

mechanism of carbon steel piping system in nuclear power plants (NPPs). Because severe
wall-thinning results in reducing load carrying capacity of the pipe components, adequate
maintenance program should be applied to prevent the failures of piping systems. This
program should be composed of several technical items such as the corrective selection of
highly susceptible locations, the thickness measurement using appropriate non-destructive
technology, the integrity evaluation on continuing serviceability, and so on [1, 2].

ASME Section III and ASME Section XI Code Case N-597 provide the design rules for pipe
components and the requirements for analytical evaluation of pipe wall-thinning, respectively
[3, 4]. Several studies had been conducted to develop an alternative criteria and to establish a
structural integrity evaluation procedure for locally wall-thinned pipe components. However,
most of these studies focused on straight pipe containing local wall-thinning despite the fact
that wall-thinning mostly occur at elbow or pipe bend. Several numerical and experimental
studies under bending load had evaluated the effect of local wall-thinning on the reduction in
the collapse moment and fatigue resistance of elbows. However, there is only one
experimental study performed under combined loads of internal pressure and bending to
investigate the failure behavior of locally wall-thinned elbows [5]. In our previous study, it
was noted that the wall-thinned elbows show different failure modes of buckling, ovalization,
and crack in a broad point of view and these failure modes can be changed according to the
direction of bending loads, the locations of wall-thinning, and the size of defects.

FIG. 1 shows the load definitions for bending to elbow, elastic to plastic load, plastic collapse
load, and instability load. In this study, mechanical integrity evaluation model for wall-
thinned elbows based on twice elastic slope (TES) plastic collapse load is shown in equation
(1) and (2).

(1)

(2)

To develop this model, a lot of finite element analyses were performed as shown in FIG. 2
and the results were compared with the previous experiment results illustrated in FIG. 3.
Finite element analyses results were used to obtain the failure behavior of the wall-thinned
elbows with extended wall-thinning shapes and sizes of the experimented specimens. The
analysis results were reviewed to examine the behavior of wall-thinned elbow under various
loading conditions. All TES plastic loads obtained from experiments as well as finite element

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analysis were used to develop this mechanical integrity evaluation model. Correction factors
were also applied to maintain the conservatism of the calculated TES plastic collapse loads.

This model can be used to calculate the TES plastic collapse load of wall-thinned elbows for
various internal pressure, wall-thinning location, and bending direction. The calculated TES
plastic collapse load can be used to confirm the actual safe margin between the endurable
moment of wall-thinned elbow and the maximum moment allowed by construction code
which can be calculated back from stress analysis requirements of piping systems.

1.0
Once Twice
Elastic Elastic
Slope Slope
Failure
0.8

Open Bending
Moment (M/Mos)

0.6

Close Bending

0.4

0.2 ¡áElasic to Plastic Load

¡ÜPlastic Collapse Load
¡ÛInstablity Load

0.0
0.00 0.05 0.10 0.15 0.20 0.25 0.30

Rotation, α [rad]

FIG. 1. Load definitions for bending moment to elbow

FIG. 2. Load distribution under bending moment in FEA

2θ=180, Extrados 2θ=90, Intrados 2θ=180, Extrados 2θ=90, Intrados

Opening moment Opening moment Closing moment Closing moment
FIG. 3. Elbows deformed in mock-up tests

REFERENCES

[1] CHEXAL, B., HOROWITZ, J., DOOLY, B., MILLETT, P., WOOD, C., and JONE,
R., 1998, “Flow accelerated Corrosion in Power Plant” EPRI/TR-106611-R2ASTM.
[2] Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., 2008, “Optimization of Thinned Pipe Management
Program and Application”
[3] ASME B&PV Code Section III Div.1 Subsection NB, NC, ND, 1998, “Rules for
construction of nuclear power plant component”
[4] ASME B&PV Code Section XI Div.1, 2003, Code Case N-597, “Requirement for
Analytical Evaluation of Pipe Wall Thinning”

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[5] SUNG-HO Lee, JEONG-KEUN LEE and JAI-HAK PARK, “Failure Behavior of
Elbows With Local Wall Thinning,” Modern Physics B, Vol. 22, No. 11 (2008) 845-
850P.

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P02

Extension and Verification of the Cross-Section Library for the

VVER-1000 Surveillance Specimen Region
D. Kirilova, S. Belousov, K. Ilieva

Institute for Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

E-mail address of main author: dkirilova@inrne.bas.bg

The objective of this work is a generation of new version of the BGL multigroup cross-
section library (47 neutron, 20 gamma groups) to extend the region of its applicability. The
existing library version is problem oriented for VVER-1000 type of reactors and was
generated by collapsing of thc VITAMIN-B6 problem independent cross-section fine-group
(199 neutron, 42 gamma groups) library applying the VVER-1000 reactor middle plane
spectrum in cylindrical geometry. The new version BGLex additionally contains cross-
sections averaged on the corresponding spectra of the surveillance specimen's (SS) region for
VVER-1000 type of reactors.

The extension of BGL library evolves from to the fact that the surveillance specimen of
VVER-1000/320 are located on the baffle above the reactor core upper edge in a region where
geometry and materials differ from these ones of the middle plane and the neutron field
gradient is very high which would determine a different neutron spectrum. That is why the
application of the BGL library for the neutron fluence calculation in the SS region could lead
to an additional inaccuracy. In addition the discrepancy between measured and calculated foil
monitors' activities exceeded 30% [1,2]. This discrepancy could be due to the uncertainty of
SS geometry position as well as to the application of inappropriate cross-section library for
calculation at the SS region. Comparison of the neutron spectra on the pressure vessel and at
the SS position shows that the difference reaches 80%.

To assess the BGL applicability in the SS region comparative analysis of the neutron spectra
were done for this region with the BGL and VITAMIN-B6 libraries and two-dimensional
discrete ordinates code DORT. The difference between the spectra with energy E>0.5 MeV
calculated with the libraries for the SS region is in limits of 10% except for the energy region
E>10 MeV where the difference reaches 20% but its contribution to the neutron fluence with
energy E>0.5 MeV is insignificant (less than 1%). The integral neutron fluence E>0.5 MeV
calculated with the libraries coincides in limits of 2.3%. That means that the BGL appliance
for the SS region does not lead to a significant uncertainty of the neutron fluence calculation.

Comparative analysis of the neutron spectra for diffcrent one-dimensional geometry models
that could be applied for the cross-section generation using the software package SCALE,
showed a high sensitivity of the results to the geometry model. That is why a neutron
importance assessment was done for the SS region using the adjoint solution [3] calculated by
the two-dimensional code DORT and problem-independent library VITAMIN-B6 (FIG. 1).
The one-dimensional geometry model applied to the cross-section collapsing were determined
by the material limits above the reactor core in axial direction z (FIG. 1) as for every material
a homogenization in radial direction was done. The material homogenization in radial

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direction was done by material weighing Ψ taking into account the adjoint solution Ф* as well
was the neutron source Q;

Ψ ( r ) = Q ( r )Φ * ( r )

The weighting function Ψ is normalized by the volume:

2π ∫ ∫ Ψ (r )rdrdz = 1

Then every homogenized material is determined by:

mhom = 2π ∫ Ψ (r )m(r )rdr

R

The one-dimensional geometry model comprising the homogenized weighed materials was
applied for the cross-section generation of the fine-group library VITAMIN-B6 to the broad-
group structure of BGL library. The new version BGLex was extended with cross-sections for
the SS region.

FIG. 1. Two dimensional R,Z - geometry model of the VVER-1000 reactor system

Verification and validation of the new version BGLex is forthcoming. It includes comparison
between the calculated results with the new version BGLex and the libraries BGL and
VITAMIN-B6 and comparison with experimental results.

REFERENCES

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P02

[1] Belousov, S., Ilieva, K., Popova, I., "Calculation of Neutron Flux/ Responses at the
Surveillances and Pressure Vessel of VVER-1000/320 Type of Reactor", Proc. of
RP&S Topical Meeting, Nashville, 1998, USA, ANS, 1440-447
[2] Ilieva, K., Antonov, S., Belousov, S., "Calculation Modeling of Detector Activity in the
VVER/ PWR Reactor Pressure Vessel Surveillance", Nuclear Science and
Engineering 122 1 (1996), 131-135
[3] Haghighat, H. Hanshaw, J. Wagner, "Radiation Protection And Shielding" Proc. of the
1996 topical meeting, No. Falmouth, Massachusetts, USA ( 1996) Vol, 1, 173

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P03

Containment Integrity – Key Role of Tendons

Jiří Žďárek, Ján Bulák, Petr Vomáčka

Nuclear Research Institute, Rez, Czech Republic

E-mail address of main author: zda@ujv.cz

In October 2009 in Praque, Czech Republic the CSNI Workshop on Ageing Management of
Thick Walled Concrete Structures was held, the Nuclear Research Institute Rez was hosting
the Workshop.

The safety significance of containment combined with current trend towards life extension
and the regulatory authorities demands for even higher levels of safety assurance, means that
ageing degradation must be effectivelly controlled, was observed as key conclusion of the
Workshop. An important element of this control is an inspection and monitoring to assess and
determine the condition of the concrete structures and associated components.

In our presentation we would like to concentrate on key element in the whole process,
manufacturing and prestressing of tendons to be able to make meaningfull and validated force
measurement and estimate time dependent prestressing force losses.

1. Improved manufacturing process of tendons

2. New improved prestressing machines and their calibration
3. Test tendons with new improved streching and fixation elements
4. Test bench for tendon tests
5. Options for prestress measurement to be tested
6. Test bench results
7. Future actions including research and development

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P04

Need of Reactor Dosimetry Preservation

K. ILIEVA

Institute for Nuclear Research and Nuclear Energy of Bulgarian Academy of Scienses,
Sofia, BG

E-mail address of main author: krilieva@inrne.bas.bg

Today’s nuclear renaissance in national and European aspect, expressed in building of new
NPPs, as well as the development of Gen. IV nuclear reactors, meets new challenges of
accuracy of the reactor analysis methods used for reliable operation and nuclear safety
assessment. The nuclear safety requirements and philosophy have changed by the
development of new nuclear systems and this imposes special research and development
activity. Reactor Dosimetry (RD) which is applied for determination of neutron field
parameters and neutron flux responses in different regions of the reactor system plays an
important role in determining of consecutive effects from the irradiation. That is, for
determination of radiation exposure on reactor system elements as reactor vessel, internals,
shielding; dose determination for material damage study; determination of radiation field
parameters for conditioning of irradiation; dose determination for medicine and industry
application; induced activity determination for decommissioning purposes [1]. The
management of nuclear knowledge has emerged as a growing challenge in recent years. The
need to preserve and transfer nuclear knowledge is compounded by recent trends such as
ageing of the nuclear workforce, declining student numbers in nuclear related fields, and the
threat of losing accumulated nuclear knowledge.

Reinforcement of science and technology potential of many EU institutes is needed so to be

able to support the nuclear operators and nuclear regulator in safety assessment as well as to
strengthen the utilization of the research reactor for medicine and industry purposes.

The ways to preserve and develop the RD knowledge could be asked in the good practice of
the near past within the European Working Group for Reactor Dosimetry (EWGRD),
members of which are research organizations of the countries in Europe operating VVER,
PWR and BWR type reactors. Joint workshops and training, commom intercomparisons will
maintain the RD community experience and competency. Common research projects of the
IAEA and EC will be a good base for development of common methodology as well as for
involving more young researchers.

Young scientists and engineers urgently has to be attracted to the field of reactor dosimetry in
order to transfer and further develop the available know-how. The interest of young
researchers could be find between: receiving additional financial support, doing new
professional contacts, involving in team work, involving in research/work community,
creating feeling for usefulness and necessity, create feeling for proper pride.

The mentioned efforts for knowledge preservation will allow the RD to meet the demand of
Gen IV reactors that is the RD to be used for determination of fast and epithermal neutron
spectra, which will challenge materials performance with increased radiation damage. It will
be applied as an important tool for growing number of reactors that will be decommissioned.

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REFERENCES

[1] Krassimira Ilieva, Sergey Belousov, Antonio Ballesteros, Bohumil Osmera, Sergey
Zaritsky. “Reactor Dosimetry For VVERs RPV Lifetime Assessment”, Progress in
Nuclear Energy, PNUCENE-D-07-00043, Elsevier Editorial, Volume 51, Number 1,
pp.1-13, 2009

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Mobile Nuclear Laboratory for In-situ Measurements in NPPs

P.Raicsa, J.Szabóa, S.Scheinerb, J.C.Szélesb, P.Tilkyc, J.Schunkc, T.Pintérc
a
Laboratory for Nuclear Safety and Techniques, Institute of Experimental Physics,
University of Debrecen, Hungary,
b
Laboratory for Nuclear Safety and Techniques, Quantechnologies Research and
Development Co, Debrecen, Hungary
c
Nuclear Power Plant, Paks, Hungary

E-mail address of main author: raics@tigris.unideb.hu

In-situ gamma- and alpha-spectrometry, neutron counting and gamma-dosimetry are utilized
in Paks NPP to assist maintenance operations as well as elimination of malfunctions with their
consequences. Devices, methods applied and results, experiences achieved during the last 25
years will be described in the presentation. They are well applicable for the new generations
of the future reactors as important additional safety measures. The Laboratory for Nuclear
Safety and Techniques was established by the University of Debrecen and Quantechnologies
Co in 2005 to utilize the results of the basic research achieved earlier in the investigations of
fission, gamma-spectrometry and related fields.

Gamma-spectrometry of the primary loop pipes, ion exchange columns and steam generators
is utilized regularly to all the 4 units of VVER-440/213 reactors at Paks NPP since 1985.
(Three similar measurements were also carried out in Biblis-A, Germany.) The isotope
selective, non-destructive analysis is applied to determine the activity of corrosion and
erosion products as well as fission products. The measurements are carried out after the yearly
shut-down with a cooling time ranging from several days to three weeks. Detected nuclides
are: Cr-51, Mn-54, Co-58, Fe-59, Co-60, Zn-65, Zr-95, Nb-95, Ag-110m, Sb-122,124,125,
Ru-103, Ru/Rh-106, I-131, Cs-134,136,137, Ba/La-140, Ce/Pr-144, Pm-148, Eu-154.
Investigated locations include: 2-2 points at the hot-legs and cold-legs of each of the 6 loops,
8-10 heights on the ion exchange columns, 16-17 spots along the steam generator axis.
Gamma-dose profiles are also determined. Shielded and collimated HpGe-detectors of
different sensitive volumes (1, 3, 10, 100 cm3 and even a clover type of 4x100 cm3) are used
for high-resolution, high-sensitivity gamma-spectro¬metry. Absolute full-energy peak
efficiency for the diverse geometry (extended) sources are determined by experiments and
calculations to produce final results as surface (or volume) activities. Electronics, data
acquisition and evaluation are characterized by remote operation (cable length of 100 m), high
counting rate (up to 200 kcps), PC-controlled digital signal processing. Results of the primary
side measurements regard mainly the water chemistry and associated effects of the reactor
operation by the corrosion/erosion nuclide activities and their long term behavior. (Fission
product activities characterized the fuel-element hermeticity.)

An invaluable, detailed dataset was established during the 95 reactor-years the analyis of
which is in progress. Some short-term and long-term observations were attained: differences
and their time variations among the surface activities of the cold-legs and hot-legs reflecting
some ageing behavior of the inner layers; effects of the auxiliary device operation like boron

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control circuit, deaeration of tap water supply, saturation of the ion exchangers; lost material;
corrosion transport. Inspection of the decontamination process, its time evolution and isotope
selective efficiency were also investigated. These results are essential in the normal operation
and maintenance, forecast of the future contamination and dose levels, as well as for power
upgrade and life-time prolongation programs.

A malfunction, caused during fuel casette cleaning, initiated the above techniques to be
further developed and moved towards the in-situ uranium/transuranium isotope analysis.
Radio¬active contamination of fuel assembly surfaces and pools (technical, cooling, fuel
trans¬portation, etc) were analyzed by gamma- and alpha-spectrometry. The gamma-
spectro¬metry was performed for the usual targets and for under water surfaces. In the last
cases special containers („submarines”) were constructed with remote controlled variable size
collimator-shutter. Spectrometers include some of the aforementioned HpGe detectors as well
as CdZnTe-crystals of 2.25 cm3 sensitive volume. Although the energy resolution of the latter
is worse than the formers (but better than that of scintillators), the high temperature operation
and the appropriate geometry, small overall size make them extremely valuable for special
measurements in hard environmental conditions.

Dry surfaces of the above mentioned pools and assemblies were analyzed by in-situ alpha-
spectrometry, too. A cleanable Passivated Im¬planted Planar Silicon (PIPS) detector housed
in a miniature chamber was fixed onto the surfaces by vacuum and some mechanical pressure.
It measured alpha-spectra for the determination of surface activities from isotopes of Pu-
238,239,240, Am-241, Cm-242,244. Experi¬mental correlations among rare-earth fission
products (gamma-spectra) and transuranium nuclides (alpha-spectra) were established to
make the latters’ activity to be estimated for non-attainable locations (eg. inner wall of steam
generator heat transfer tubes). Similar cor¬relations with spontaneous fission neutron activity
were also applied to observe transuranium (mainly Cm) isotopes from ”burried” sources.

These techniques and the appropriate mobile equipment (with the addition of PC-driven GM-
tubes for beta-counting) can be applied to the inspection of high activity waste wells, waste
deployment sites, nuclear industry, medical nuclear centers, environmental radioactivity
(NORM, TENORM).

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P06

Risk Assessment for Nuclear Power Plants

R. Islamova, M. Berberovaa, M. Lebedevab, N. Safovovab, S. Dyadyurab
a
International Nuclear Safety Center (INSC), Moscow, Russia
b
Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Moscow, Russia

E-mail address of main author: islamov@insc.ru

This paper is focused on the risk assessment for Kurskaya NPP.

The risk is deemed as a probability measure of hazardous natural or technogenic events.

These events are accompanied by the occurrence and impact of adverse factors and resulting
damage. The following types of damage are considered: physical, socioeconomic and
environmental.

Incidents resulting from failures of technical equipment or its misuse are deemed to be the
technogenic events (explosion, fire, etc.).

Climatic and geological hazards (earthquake, hurricane, tornado, etc.) are considered to be
natural events.

The probabilistic risk assessment is based on the methodology of the probabilistic safety
analysis (PSA) for nuclear power plants and other hazardous sites. We recommend the
methodological approach of fault tree and event tree models. The fault tree / event tree models
pertain to the large class of algebraic methods. This approach has a well-developed procedural
framework, extensive databases and various verified codes.

According to Russian legislation, each hazardous site (a nuclear power plant, etc.) shall obtain
a safety certificate.

We have made calculations for the safety certificate of Kurskaya NPP and assessed the risk
factor system for the personnel of Kurskaya NPP, population and environment.

The output is the assessment of the risk factor system of Kurskaya NPP in physical and
economic terms.

The physical values include the quantity of victims among the personnel and population, loss
in agricultural products, etc. calculated taking into account the frequency (probability) of an
incident. The economic values refer to the pecuniary losses corresponding to the physical
values.

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P07

OPG/COG Equipment Reliability Initiative: Development of a

consistent process to rate System and Plant Health at CANDU Plants
Alnoor Bhaloo

Ontario Power Generation, Pickering B

E-mail address of main author: alnoor.bhaloo@opg.com

System Health Monitoring has been in place at OPG Plants since early 1990’s based on
benchmarking from industry. A programmatic approach was taken. For each system
(Important to Safety and Production), a comprehensive system performance monitoring plan
was developed that defined the scope of the system surveillance that was performed. This
included functional failure evaluation, trending of critical parameters and equipment/system
margins. A system health report is issued semi-annually that reports on a number of indirect
performance parameters e.g functional failures, backlog of work, status of PM program. The
system is rated as follows:

GREEN: Excellent Performance

WHITE: Acceptable Performance
YELLOW: Needs improvement – Risk to Plant
RED: Unacceptable performance.

The rating was applied based on the judgment of the System Engineer and was used to drive
System Health Improvement Action Plans especially for the RED and YELLOW rated
systems. The rating of the systems however was based .

In 2005, Pickering B started the 85/5 Plan (improve capacity factor to 85% and FLR to 5%)
and to get there a Material Condition Improvement Plan was developed. This plan was
generated from the System Health reports and execution of this plan improved FLR from over
15% to about 5%. This was a good test of the integrity of the program.

In 2008 an initiative was proposed to standardize the monitoring of System Health across the
COG Plants. This task was assigned to the author, the Program SPOC for System Health
Monitoring at OPG.

In response to this, a team was setup that consisted of the System (Performance) Engineering
Managers of each COG Plant including the three OPG sites. The team decided that to be
consistent, a defined process was required that had less reliance on the judgment of the system
Engineer. This process had to provide specific criteria for rating system health and had to be
based on indicators that are standard to the COG industry.

This process would consist of the following:

1. Define Mandatory Leading and Lagging Indicators that will be monitored at all COG
sites.
2. Define criteria for rating each indicator

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P07

3. Develop a method to perform an aggregate assessment of these indicators to

determine system health
4. Define grouping of station systems that will be monitored and rated.
5. Develop a method to perform an aggregate assessment of all systems to provide a
station score.

Algorithm for Rating System Health:

An algorithm based on an aggregate assessment of performance indicators was developed.

The algorithm has leading and lagging mandatory indicators.

Leading Indicators include Outstanding Functional Failure Corrective Actions, Elective

Maintenance Backlog –Online and Outage, PM Status, Operator Workarounds and Burdens,
Modification backlog including TMODs and Temporary Configuration Changes. The
weighting for leading indicators is 46% of the overall system rating.

Lagging indicators include Functional Failures, Corrective Maintenance Backlog –Online and
Outage, Reportable Events, Open Technical Operability Evaluations and constitute 54% of
the system score weighting.

Each indicator is assigned a weighting to reflect the importance of that indicator to system
health and is rated at GREEN (3points), White (2 points), Yellow (1 point), RED (0 points).
Score for each indicator is rating multiplied by weighting.

The system score is the sum of the scores for the leading and lagging indicators.

System Health Rating thresholds are as follows:

Green >80%, White (55-80%), Yellow (30-55%), Red (0-30%).

Overrides:

It was recognized that in some circumstances, under some circumstances a System Engineer
should be able to over ride the computed system rating. However, to make this consistent,
specific criteria were developed and the System Engineer was only allowed to override the
system health downwards by one color rating e.g. White to Yellow.

The criteria included:

System being downgraded to RED for one reporting period if the system caused FLR >
equivalent of one full day of production.

Aggregate assessment of site specified non-mandatory indicators. Eg On Line Fuelling

Availability

Aggregate Assessment of Station Systems - Plant Condition Index:

Plant Condition Index (PCI) is an index used to provide an aggregate assessment of all
monitored systems. The better the condition of the system, the higher the score. This index
score is based on the color rating of all individual systems. Each system is weighted (based on
importance) and a score assigned.

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P07

There are four groupings of systems – Special Safety Systems (Shutdown Systems) – 20%
weighting, Emergency Core Cooling and Containment); S-98 systems – 30% weighting
(systems important to safety), Fuel Handling Systems – 10% weighting, Systems important to
safe/reliable production – 40% weighting.

It was recognized that PCI being a high level metric, it had to be consistent with Business
Plan Objectives. It was determined that business plan objectives across COG utilities are to
drive Special Safety Systems to GREEN (Excellent) and all other systems to WHITE
(acceptable performance). Consequently, for Special Safety Systems, maximum points are
awarded when system is GREEN. For all other systems, maximum points are awarded system
is WHITE. Therefore a 100% score is equal to all Safety Systems GREEN and all other
systems WHITE.

Implementation plans for each COG station are being developed that will result in a consistent
approach to System Health Monitoring and a Station System Health score card. This
methodology of rating system health can also be easily automated since most of the
mandatory parameters are already monitored as part of station metrics. This would provide
Station Management with an on-going assessment of system health so that attention can be
focused on degrading systems.

237
 IAEA-CN-164-4P08

On-line Gamma Spectrometric Monitoring in Water Cooled NPPs

V.Gostilo, A.Sokolov, V.Kuzmenko, A.Nazarenko

Bruker Baltic, Ganibu dambis 26, P.O.Box 33, LV-1005, Riga, Latvia

E-mail address of main author: office@bruker-baltic.lv

Development results and applications of automated HPGe spectrometers for precise on-line
gamma spectrometric monitoring at the water cooled NPPs are presented.

Automated System for Radionuclide Monitoring of Coolant in Primary Circuit of NPPs based
on convenient coaxial HPGe detector of 10% efficiency is intended for technological
monitoring of the radionuclide specific activity in liquid and gaseous flows in the on-line
mode.

The measuring unit is a U-shaped glass tube embracing the cryostate cover on the level of the
detector center which is placed in a lead shield for protection against the background of
external radiation. To ensure that there be constant flowing of the monitored medium, a
bypass line is provided which connects the inlet pipeline with a system of organized through-
flowing. A special algorithm is developed to carry out the measuring procedure consisting in
cyclic washing of the measuring unit by water, taking measurements, and subtraction of the
current value of background (residual) activity from the measured value of the controlled
medium activity.

The results of measurements prove that the spectrometer is able to registrate efficiently the
radionuclide specific activity in the total activity range in monitored liquid or gas flow up to
7.3×106 Bq/l (2×10-5 Ci/l). The detection limit for the specific activity of the radionuclide 131I
is 1.8 ×103 Bq/l (5×10-8 Ci/l) at the measurement time of 600 s.

The automated spectrometer based on flowing HPGe detector with the through channel is
intended for control of the uniformity of distribution of uranium and/or plutonium in fresh
fuel elements, transferred through the detector, as well as for on-line control of the fluids and
gases flows with low activity during the production cycle. The p-type HPGe crystal, which
generally applied for the manufacture of the standard coaxial detectors with registration
efficiency 10%, was used for the flowing detector manufacturing. The central through hole
was made by the axis of the coaxial crystal with two open ends. The cryostat of the detector
has the cover of a special design with the through channel of diameter 10 mm which comes
via the through channel in the crystal. Thus, coming through the channel in the cover, made as
the aluminum tube, radioactive sample (fuel element, fluids or gases flow) is found inside the
germanium crystal and the registration geometry comes close to 4π-geometry.

The experimental curves of the registration efficiency of the developed flowing and standard
coaxial detector of the similar volume are presented. The flowing detector has efficiency
registration of gamma quanta with energy 200 keV 10 times higher, with energy 80 keV 20
times higher but with energy 40 keV – 70 times higher. At the same time the lower limit of
the energy range for the developed flowing detector was 20 keV compare to 40 keV for the
standard coaxial detectors based on HPGe p-type crystals.

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P08

Automated System for Water Activity Measurement in Outlet Channels of NPPs comprises
two or more floating monitoring stations, placed in outlet channels and information reception
station, situated in administration building of the NPP. The system is self-diagnosable and
provides on-line quantitative analysis of gamma-spectra for more than 30 nuclides of low
activity level and subtraction of radionuclide background containing in monitoring medium.
Detection limit for volumetric activity for radionuclide Cs-137 at measurement time 1 hour
does not exceed 115 Bq/m3. The limit of permissible relative error for Cs-137, measurement
time 1 hour and value of volumetric activity not less than 2000 Bq/m3, does not exceed ±
16%. The instability of volumetric activity measurement from calibration source does not
exceed ± 10%. The upper limit of the measuring activity is not less than 4×108 Bq/m3.

239
 IAEA-CN-164-4P09

Point Lepreau Level 2 PSA Results, Insights & Risk Monitoring

Program
L. Comanescua, S. Sawha, M. Weia, D.S. Mullinb, A.F. Jeanb, D.F. Basqueb, B. Leea,
A. Petrescua, A. Nainera, R.K. Jaitlya
a
Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), Mississauga, Canada
b
New Brunswick Power, Point Lepreau, Canada

E-mail address of main author: comanesl@aecl.ca

A Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) for Point Lepreau Generating Station has been
completed as part of the plant Refurbishment Project. The main objective of this PSA is to
provide insights into plant safety design and performance, including the identification of
dominant risk contributors and assessing options for reducing risk. The scope of this
assessment covers Level 1 and 2 PSA and includes internal events for full power and
shutdown, internal fires and internal floods as well as PSA-based seismic events margin for
full power operation,

The Point Lepreau Refurbishment (PLR) Probabilistic Safety Assessment (PSA) is the first
Level 2 PSA for both internal and external (fire, flood, and seismic) events performed in
Canada. Similar recent CANDU® 6 PSAs include a Level 2 PSA for internal and external
events for Wolsong 2, 3, and 4 and a Level 1 PSA for internal events for Qinshari CANDU®
1 and 2. Following the lead of Point Lepreau. Gentilly-2 has also begun the work for a Level
2 PSA for internal and external events.

Both Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) and New Brunswick (NB) Power PSA
analysts participated in the PSA. For most systems, NB Power provided reliability models and
AECL incorporated common cause failures (CCFs) using the Unified Partial Method (URM)
[1] and human reliability analyses (HRA) using Accident Sequence Evaluation Program
(ASEP) [2]. All PSA methodologies and analysis reports were reviewed by NB Power.
Component failure and operation data was provided by NB Power for input to the analysis
models.

The Level 2 PSA was performed in order to evaluate the summed severe core damage
frequency (SCDF) and the summed large release frequency (LRF) for the refurbished Point
Lepreau plant. For Level 1 Accident Sequence Quantification (ASQ), mitigating system fault
trees were merged into a single master fault tree in order to quantify the event trees. Mutually
exclusive events were removed and recovery factors were applied to provide a realistic
estimate of the SCDF. The dominant Level 1 severe core damage sequences were grouped
based on similar core damage progression. For each grouping, severe accident progression
analysis was performed. Using these results, the containment event trees (CETs) were
developed. Containment FTs were merged into the Level 1 master fault tree to quantify the
CETs and estimate the LRF. The Level 1 and Level 2 sequences are fully linked for all events
(internal events, internal fire, flood and seismic).

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 IAEA-CN-164-4P09

Following ASQ for internal events, fire and flood, the results were integrated to provide an
overall estimation of the SCDF and LRF for the refurbished Point Lepreau plant. In the
process, a number of potential changes (design, maintenance, testing) hase been identified.
Some of them are essential in order to meet the risk limits for the severe core damage and
external release frequencies. The combined result meets the risk limit of 1E-04/yr and 1 E-
05/yr for SCDF and LRF respectively (Reference [3]). which is in line with the international
results for the refurbished plants. Also the results for the PSA-based Seismic Margin
Assessment meet the target of 0.3g.

Using the integrated results, importance analysis was performed to identify risk-significant
failures, with Fussell-Vesely and Risk Achievement Worth indices, and risk-contributors with
Risk Reduction Worth indices. Based on the importance measures, analysis was performed to
evaluate the sensitivity of the SCDF and LRF results to the dominant contributors.
Uncertainty analysis was also performed to provide qualitative discussions and quantitative
measures of the uncertainties in the results of the PSA, namely the frequency of severe core
damage or external releases. Based on the results, recommendations were made to improve
maintenance, testing, training procedures as well as housekeeping. Currently, many of these
recommendations are being implemented, while others are being evaluated with additional
benefit-cost analysis.

With the completion of the Level 2 PSA, an Operational Risk-Informed Management

Program (ORIMP) has commenced to develop an online risk monitoring tool which will
provide risk-insights and enable risk-informed decision making at the plant. As a part of
ORIMP, knowledge gathering and benchmarking of industry practices are underway. Also,
modifications are necessary to tailor the PSA models for an operational application. Initially,
the online risk monitor tool will encompass Level 1 internal events only and as such, measure
the severe core damage frequency. Subsequently, the scope will be expanded to include Level
2 and measure the external release frequency.

This paper discusses the results and insights gained from the Level 2 PSA and the transition to
the risk monitoring program.

REFERENCES

[1] BRAND, V.P., AEA Technology PLC, “UPM 3.1: A Pragmatic Approach to
Dependent Failures Assessment for Standard Systems”, SRDA-R13, SRD
Association, Cheshire, UK, 1996.
[2] SWAIN, A.D., “Accident Sequence Evaluation Program: Human Reliability Analysis
Procedure”, NUREG/CR-4772. February 1987.
[3] International Atomic Energy Agency, “Basic Safety Principles for Nuclear Power
Plants”, Safety Series Document No. 75-INSAG 3, Rev. 1, 1988.

241
 IAEA-CN-164-5P01

Station Blackout Core Damage Frequency Reduction at LABGENE

Reactor -The Contribution of a Natural Convection Residual Heat
Removal System
L.S. de Carvalho, J. M de Oliveira Neto

Centro Tecnológico da Marinha em São Paulo

Av. Prof. Lineu Prestes, 2468 – Cidade Universitária – 05508-000
São Paulo – SP – BRASIL

E-mail address of main author: luiz.sergio@ctmsp.mar.mil.br

This paper presents an evaluation of the Station Blackout-Core Damage Frequency (SBO-
CDF) for the LABGENE reactor. The contribution of a passive residual heat removal system
in reducing the SBO-CDF is investigated. Systems and devices involved in SBO are described
and their influence on accident sequences are discussed.

LABGENE is a 48MWth PWR prototype reactor being designed in Brazil. This reactor is
intended to serve as a test bed for developing the capability to design small and medium size
power reactors for electricity production and for nuclear propulsion. The total cost of
LABGENE is estimated to be around US$ 488 million. So far US$ 318 million have been
spent in this project. Some of the main components of the reactor have been delivered to the
site, namely the pressure vessel and internals, the pressurizer, the two steam generators,
primary pumps, and components of the secondary circuit [1]. The reactor site is located in a
rural area 120 km from the city of São Paulo, Brazil.

The reactor has two primary coolant loops. The pressure vessel, steam generators, the primary
pumps, and the pressurizer are enclosed in a steel containment, which is surrounded by a
water pool used as shielding and heat sink. A confinement building houses the steel
containment and a secondary system with two turbo-generators.

LABGENE has two independent systems to remove decay heat from the core: A forced
circulation (FCR), and a natural circulation system (NCR) that exchange decay heat with the
shielding pool. The NCR system has four bistable valves driven by a DC Electric System. The
DC power is supplied by emergency batteries .

Station blackout at LABGENE is defined by the following sequence of events: loss of electric
power provided by the turbo generators, concurrent with the unavailability of emergency on-
site power(EDGs) , and the loss of the off-site power sources.

It was found that the initiating event SBO has an estimated frequency of 7.1E-05/year. A
major contributor to this frequency is the loss of turbo generators. The loss of the electric
supply from the external grid is the second major contributor.

The SBO-CDF uncertainty associated with the basic data was quantified. The results are
shown in FIG. 1 for the two design configurations analized. As shown the natural circulation
system system has a significant impact on the SBO-CDF.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P01

A sensitivity analysis was performed to identify those systems, actions or components that
most influence the SBO-CDF. It was shown that decreasing the failure probability of
Electric Diesel Generators(EDG) by a factor of ten, the corresponding SBO-CDF decreases
from 6,0E-09 to 6.6E-10. If the performance of the EDG is degraded by a factor of ten, then
the SBO-CDF increases from 6,0E-09 to 1.8E-06. This behavior can be explained by
analysing cut sets of the SBO fault tree. In fact, an SBO requires different combinations of
commom cause failures of the four EDGs. Depending upon the number of combinations, the
SBO-CDF increases by powers of two, tree or four. Reducing the EDG reliability does not
reduce the SBO-CDF in the same way, in this case other failures mode become significant
contributors.

An analysis was also performed to quantify changes in the SBO-CDF due to changes in EDG
outages for test and maintenaince. The results show that increasing the number of outages, so
that the reliability associated is reduced by a factor of ten, the SBO-CDF increases
proportionally. On the other hand, decreasing the number of outages in a way that the
reliability associated is increased by a factor of ten, the SBO-CDF decreases only four times.

Situations in which the operator fails to align the AAC system can increase the SBO-CDF
by a factor of five. Improving the ability of the operator by a factor of ten the SBO-CDF can
be reduced by a factor of four.

The reliability of the NCR system is heavily dependent on the bistable valves.The
contribution of these valves to the failure of the system is about 93 % .

The SBO-CDF was compared with data presented in NUREG/CR-6890 [2]. The design
configuration with the NCR is well placed having an SBO-CDF mean equal to 6.1E-9/year.
Without the NCR the mean is 2.9E-6/year( FIG. 2).

1,0E-04

1,0E-05

1,0E-06

1,0E-07

1,0E-08

1,0E-09

1,0E-10

1,0E-11
U.S. PWR SBO CDF (point estimate)
LabGENE SBO CDF with NCR (mean, percentiles 5 and 95)
LabGENE SBO CDF without NCR (mean, percentiles 5 and 95)

FIG. 1. SBO-CDF Uncertainties FIG. 2. SBO-CDF LABGENE vs NUREG/CR-6890

REFERENCES

[1] Guimarães, L.S., Completion of Fabrication and Assembly of the Internals and
Pressure Vessel of the LABGENE Reactor, Economy & Energy, Year IX - nr. 53,
December 2005, January 2006, ISSN 1518-2932.
[2] NUREG/CR-6890, Reevaluation of the Station Blackout Rule, USA Nuclear Regulatory
Commission, December 2005.

243
 IAEA-CN-164-5P02

R&D of a Chinese SCWR

LI Xiang

Nuclear power institute of China

E-mail address of main author: lixiangsjs@163.com

This paper briefly describes the long-term R&D program for a Chinese SCWR issued by
NPIC and introduces the related R&D work performed by NPIC. A technical description is
also provided on the Chinese SCWR conceptual design and demonstration.

The Chinese SCWRR&D can be divided into three phases and consists seven interrelated
work tasks.

Phase 1：Technical demonstration and basic technology R&D, including：

Task 1：Top-tier requirements and general planning

Task 2：Initial feasibility study

Task 3：Basic technology R&D

Phase 2：Conceptual design and engineering technology R&D, including：

Task 4：Conceptual design and feasibility study

Task 5：engineering technology R&D

Task 6：Basic design

Phase 3：Detailed design of the prototype reactor, including：

Task 7：Detailed design

The main technical parameters of the Chinese are shown in the following table.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P02

Items Values

CDF Lower than Gen-3 NPP

LIRF Lower than Gen-3 NPP

Core thermal margin ≥15%

Output electrical power 1000MWe～1700MWe

Plant thermal efficiency ～44%

Fuel cycke 18-24 months

Design life 60 years

Fuel enrichment ＜8%

Capital cost Lower than Gen-3 NPP

Now the demonstration work is being performed for the core/fuel assembly and engineered
safety systems.

245
 IAEA-CN-164-5P03

Verification of Advanced Design Features Adopted in an Integral

PWR
Si-Hwan Kima, Moon-Ki Chungb
a
University of Ulsan, P.O. Box 18, Ulsan, Korea
b
Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, P.O. Box 105, Taejon, Korea, 305-600

E-mail address of main author: shkim8656@hotmail.com

Small and Medium sized Reactors are currently under development worldwide not only for
electricity generation, but also for sea water desalination. SMART [1-2] is an integral PWR
with a sensible mixture of new innovative design features and proven technologies aimed at
achieving highly enhanced safety and improved economics. In the beginning stage of the
SMART development, top-level requirements for safety and economics were imposed for the
SMART design features. To meet the requirements, highly advanced design features
enhancing the safety, reliability, performance, and operability are introduced in the SMART
design. The enhancement of safety is realized by incorporating inherent safety features and
reliable passive safety systems. The improvement in the economics is achieved through
system simplification, component modularization, construction time reduction, and increased
plant availability.

SMART design combines firmly established commercial reactor design technologies with the
new advanced technologies. The advanced design features require tests to confirm the
performance of design/engineering and major components. Although most of the technologies
and design features implemented into the SMART have already been proven in the relevant
industries, the new advanced design features should be proven or qualified for use in the
SMART design. The SMART design verification program includes development of the
analysis models, basic thermal-hydraulic experiments, comprehensive experiments, and tests
of the major components.

In coupling a desalination plant to a nuclear energy supply system, the economic

consideration is emphasized for the selection of the desalination process requiring the least
energy for the target water production and thus the generation of more electricity under given
conditions. For the economic choice of the desalination process with the target water
production, MED-TVC and a steam extraction from the turbine were selected for the coupling
with SMART. The most important safety concern in using nuclear thermal energy for
desalination is the radioactivity carry-over into the product water from the nuclear reactor. In
the integrated nuclear desalination plant, several events were identified as the potential
disturbances of SMART imposed by the desalination plant such as a main steam flow increase
and a decrease in the feed water temperature. The impact of these disturbances on the Design
Basis Accidents and Performance Related Basis Events of SMART were evaluated. The
safety of the SMART design is assessed for more than 1500 design based events of 21
different types. The computer code used for the analysis is MARS/SMR, which is a best-
estimate thermal-hydraulic system analysis code based on a two-fluid model for two-phase
flows. The safety analyses were carried out for the SMART basic design by using
conservative initial, boundary conditions and assumptions. The results also show that the key

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P03

safety parameters of any potential disturbance of the integrated nuclear desalination plant do
not violate the specified limits of SMART.

Various thermal hydraulic tests were conducted to support key technology and design
verification of the SMART systems. Fundamental thermal-hydraulic experiments were carried
out during the concept development to assure the key technology of the advanced safety
systems. During the SMART design/engineering verification phase, various separate effect
tests and comprehensive integral tests were conducted. The separate effect tests examine the
behavior of particular components. The data from the separate effects tests are being used to
develop and verify the safety analysis models. While the data obtained from the integrated
system effect tests [3] are being used to verify the capability of the analysis method and
predict the system characteristics of the integrated innovative safety systems. Thermal
hydraulic behavior for operational transients and design basis accidents has been
experimentally investigated using the thermal-hydraulic integral test facility, VISTA
(Experimental Verification by Integral Simulation of Transients and Accidents). The thermal-
hydraulic responses following the design basis accidents are experimentally examined and
they are used to verify the system design of the SMART.

This paper describes verification program of advanced design features adopted for the
SMART systems including computer analyses, thermal hydraulic tests and performance tests
of major components.
P re s s u riz e r C o o lin g
W a te r A ir C o o le r
Tank S ile n c e r
G as
C y lin d e r is o la tio n
M C P v a lv e
B re a k
S im u la to r S te a m b yp a ss
G e n e ra to r C o o lin g v a lv e
W a te r
P um p
A c c u m u la to r C o m p e n s a tio n
Tank
E m e rg e n c y
P re s s u re
V e ss e l C o o ld o w n b yp a s s
Tank v a lv e
F e e d w a te r
S a fe g u a rd S u p p ly
V e sse l
Tank G as
S p ra y F illin g
P um p is o la tio n Tank
v a lv e

M ake u p
Pum p M a ke u p N itro g e n
W a te r S to ra g e S to ra g e T a n k
Tank

FIG. 1. Schematic diagram of the VISTA

REFERENCES

[1] M. H. Chang et al., “ SMART - an Advanced Small Integral PWR for Nuclear
Desalination and Power Generation,” Proc. of Global 99, Jackson Hole, USA (1999).
[2] Si-Hwan Kim et al., “Nuclear Desalination Program in Korea Development Status and
Prospects,” Third Korea-Japan Symposium on Nuclear Thermal Hydraulics and Safety
(NTHAS), Kyeongju, Korea, October 13-16 (2002).
[3] K. Y. Choi et al., “Parametric Studies on Thermal Hydraulic Characteristics for
Transient Operations of an Integral Type Reactor” Nuclear Engineering and
Technology, Vol.38, No.2 (2006).

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P04

Several Aspects on Material Problems for SCWR

Ning Dong, Yao Weida

Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Design and Research Institute

Hongcao Road, Shanghai 200233, China

E-mail address of main author: ningd@snerdi.com.cn

The supercritical-water-cooled reactor（SCWR）system is being evaluated as a Generation

IV concept because it builds on currently proven light water technology to provide for high
thermal efficiency and plant simplification. Materials selection is a critical gap that
development and a long term safety operation of the supercritical-water-cooled reactor（
SCWR ） need to be faced with. Design concept of increased temperature and pressure,
radiation and supercritical water coolant brings into a more aggressive environment to
candidate materials. ASME rules provide fundamental needs with various aspects as a
guideline on nuclear power plant (NPP) design. This paper covers materials design
requirements in ASME code section III subsection NH for elevated temperature components
in NPP from the point of view at engineering design angle. Establishment of new codes and
standards is needed for the deployment of materials in SCWR in use. Multidisciplinary cross
research and application of advanced computerical material science in screening suitable
materials and building in predicable performance in plant operating experience are recounted
and proposed. In addition, the present situation and existing problems on industry production
of candidate materials in China are introduced.

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Generation IV reactor, IRIS

K. Khattab

Atomic Energy Commission, Damascus, Syria

E-mail address of main author: kkhattab@aec.org.sy

Nuclear Power Reactors can be Classified to four generations: generation I reactors,

generation II reactors, generation III reactors and generation IV reactors.

Generation II reactor is a nuclear reactor of one of several types developed from the first
generation I reactors. The change was great but not entirely revolutionary, with some
completely new types and technologies being used. Prototypical generation II reactors include
the PWR, CANDU, BWR and GCR [1, 2].

A generation III reactor is a development of any of the generation II nuclear reactor designs
incorporating evolutionary improvements in design which have been developed during the
lifetime of the generation II reactor designs, such as improved fuel technology, passive safety
systems and standardized design.

Generation III reactors such as: The Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR), a GE design
which first went online in Japan in 1996, the AP600, a Westinghouse Electric Company
design which received final design approval from the NRC in 1998 and the European
Pressurized Reactor (EPR).

Generation III+ designs are generally extensions of the Generation III concept which include
advanced passive safety features. These designs can maintain the safe state without the use of
any active control components. These includes: The Advanced CANDU Reactor (ACR), the
AP1000, based on the AP600, the Economic Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR),
based on the ABWR, and the APR-1400, an advanced PWR design evolved from the U.S.
System 80+ which is the basis for the Korean Next Generation Reactor or KNGR [3, 4].

Generation IV reactors (Gen IV) are a set of theoretical nuclear reactor designs currently
being researched. Most of these designs are generally not expected to be available for
commercial construction before 2030, with the exception of a version of the Very High
Temperature Reactor (VHTR) called the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP). The NGNP
is to be completed by 2021.

Current reactors in operation around the world are generally considered second or third
generation systems. The first generation systems retired some time ago. Research into these
reactor types was officially started by the Generation IV International Forum (GIF) based on
eight technology goals. The primary goals are: improve nuclear safety, improve proliferation
resistance, minimize waste and natural resource utilization, and to decrease the cost to build
and run such plants. The Evolution of Nuclear Power Plants with time can be seen in FIG. 1.

Today there are 441 nuclear power reactors in operation in 31 countries around the world.
Generating electricity for nearly 1 billion people, they account for approximately 17 percent

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of worldwide electricity generation and provide half or more of the electricity in a number of
industrialized countries. Another 32 are presently under construction overseas. Nuclear power
has an excellent operating record and generates electricity in a reliable, environmentally safe,
and affordable manner without emitting noxious gases into the atmosphere.

There are many innovative (Generation IV) reactor designs in the words. One of these
reactors is the International Reactor Innovative and Secure (IRIS). The IRIS is a Generation
IV reactor design made by an international team of companies, laboratories, and universities
and coordinated by Westinghouse. IRIS is hoped to open up new markets for nuclear power
and make a bridge from Generation III reactor to Generation IV reactor technology. The
design is not yet specific to reactor power output. Notably, a 335 MW output has been
proposed, but it could be tweaked to be as low as a 100 MW unit. IRIS is a smaller-scale
design for a Pressurized water reactor (PWR) with an integral reactor coolant system layout,
meaning the steam generators, pressurizer, control rod drive mechanisms, and reactor coolant
pumps are all located within the reactor pressure vessel. This causes it to have a larger
pressure vessel than an ordinary PWR despite a lower power rating, the size is more
comparable to that of an ABWR as can be seen in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 [1,2].

Advantages

Most of the advantages of the new IRIS design are safety related, although Westinghouse
claims that IRIS will be able to deliver power at competitive rates as well. Due to Economies
of scale, modern nuclear plants tend to be built with larger electrical outputs, such as the
European Pressurized Reactor, which has scaled up power to 1600 MW in new plants. IRIS,
on the other hand, is built to be used in countries where there are not extremely large electric
power grids, mainly developing nations. Due to limitations on power of individual power
stations versus total grid size, plants who's power is over a certain percentage of grid size are
infeasible in such situations.

Due to simplifications and greater safety, it is believed by Westinghouse that in spite of its
size, analysis estimated a target total cost of electricity at about 4 ¢/kWh. Given its small
power and physical size, it is expected that multi-unit sites could be operated efficiently,
Westinghouse estimates that a 3-unit site could be built in 9 years with a maximum cash
outflow of 300 M$. One cost saver, for instance, is the need for only one control room, from
which all units at a multi-unit site can be controlled [1,2].

Aside from economics, these are a few other advantages that the IRIS has:

 Fewer penetrations to the pressure vessel - by having the control rods and all drive
mechanisms contained within the vessel, the need for dozens of small penetrations is
eliminated, which are extremely costly. The only penetrations used are for the incoming
and outgoing secondary coolant and for emergency safety systems.

 Large operating margins - the operating margins are typically the measure of a value
compared to what that value would have to be to fail the fuel. IRIS effectively gets
much lower operating margins by having a core with a much lower power density,
while the core is mostly the same size as a current PWR, the thermal output is much
smaller, making it much less likely to reach film boiling and fail in an accident.

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 Lower radiation doses to workers - due to the confinement of all the RCS components
and more shielding (by a larger water mass) result in low estimated doses for plant
workers than current designs.

 Collaboration and research - incorporating so many universities and labs into the
project is expected to have a number of benefits, one is contributing to the academic
knowledge available for new plants, another is that researchers in many diverse
countries with experience regarding the IRIS will be useful when they are deployed,
because a goal of the project is to eventually build plants in countries that do not
currently have nuclear plants.

 Lowered core damage frequency (CDF) - as a result of all the individual innovations
that improve safety and an in depth Probabilistic risk assessment study that refirefine
the net safety risk, IRIS has the lowest CDF (which is a quantitative measure of the
probability of a major core accident taking place) associated with any proposed plant of
10-8.

 Marketing and licensing - With the vastly improved safety, there should be a quick
and easy licensing associated with the design, and it could occupy a large part of a
growing market for small size nuclear power plants.

REFERENCES

[1] DOE-Office of Nuclear Energy, www.nuclear.energy.gov.

[2] Generation IV Nuclear Reactors, www.world-nuclear.org.
[3] IAEA-TECDOC-1487, Advanced Nuclear plant design options to scope with external
events, February 2006.
[4] Design and development status of small and medium reactors systems 1995, May 1996.

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FIG. 1. The Evolution of Nuclear Power Plants with time

FIG. 2. Components of the 335 MWe (IRIS) reactor

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FIG. 3. IRIS Integral Primary System

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P06

Model-based Advanced Water Cooled Reactor

Anatoly Blanovsky

Westside Environmental Technology, Los Angeles, USA

E-mail address of main author: ablanovsky@yahoo.com

At present, no easy-to-maintain, high-temperature capable monitoring and control systems

exist for Generation-IV reactors. Since these reactors are planned to operate with temperature
above 10000C and high neutron flux, accurate measurements are needed to identify hot spots,
control in-core power distribution and other parameters that are critical to the safe operation
of the reactors. Also, an on-line gamma-spectroscopy approach is the most accurate method to
perform the fuel monitoring, especially for reactors with on-line refueling. It is important to
operate a reactor in the minimum fuel loading state so that any physical changes in
configuration are self-correcting.

A process to safely convert the most hazardous waste products of industrial society (carbon
dioxide, plutonium and depleted uranium) into emission-free fuel, pioneered by the WETC,
will significantly reduce global warming and the threat of nuclear terrorism. The process,
involving a high flux sub-critical reactor (HFSR) and a proliferation-resistant fuel cycle, will
avoid keeping the gaseous fission products restrained in the fuel rods, which is an innovative
strategy used to monitor and control the reactor. They could then be stored as solid products
in well-protected containers outside the reactor core.

This design will develop an in-core power monitoring system, which will rely on two forms
of the same application: hardware means and a physical model that calculates the reactor
parameters by dividing the core into a plurality of cells. Since the neutron flux in any cell is
independent of whether it is produced by a large number of neutron sources simultaneously
(as in the reactor) or by a single source placed in each cell, an inexpensive test facility could
be used to examine hardware and software.

In this approach, the fuel element simulators have the same configuration and dimensions as
the reactor’s fuel assemblies. The fuel channels are filled with a neutron absorber and
depleted fuel, which can be in the form of particles, annular pellets or liquid. A miniaturized
fission chamber and a loop filled by gas or steam simulate delayed-neutron and gamma ray
emitter diffusion and feedback system performance.

Several detector packs, each includes 232Th, 235U and uncoated devices are distributed through
a plane in the core. A small source of neutrons moves along the various channels to simulate
the core nuclear characteristics, including the reactor’s critical mass and neutron flux
distribution. Prototypes of the control system that included some aspects of this design were
tested in the mid 1960s and 1980s.

The HFSR is comprised of coaxial neutron and energy-amplifying regions separated by

moderating and thermal neutron absorbing layers. Emphasis is placed on thermal region
employing depleted or natural uranium as the fuel material. The sub-critical fast and thermal
regions are coupled together to form a neutron amplifier. According to Avery, the coupled

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two-zone reactor kinetics is determined by four integral parameters that are denoted by k11,
k22, k21 and k12. Here k11, k22 are the multiplication factors of the zones 1 and 2 on their own,
k21 and k12 are coupling coefficients.

The amount of fuel is such that each region is always sub-critical. A blanket multiplication
factor of k22 is not greater than about 0.95 and a booster multiplication factor of k11 is not
greater than about 0.98. The main effect of the delayed-neutron emitter circulation on
reactivity is in the increasing role of delayed neutrons. In the traditional approach, whereas
their coupling appears through the interface boundary conditions, we need only one
corresponding parameter, keff. If we consider k21 as a parameter, it can be shown for the
stationary state that the overall gain of the blanket is approximately equal to A/(1-Ak21),
where A= k12/(1-k11)(1-k22).

Also, a new concept of high efficient neutron generation to control the reactor axial power
distribution is examined. A class of dielectric structures has been proposed that would provide
a high efficiency when excited by a charged particle beam. The analysis takes into
consideration a wide range of the neutron generator design aspects including one of the early
assumptions of the theory of charged particle acceleration that, in electrodynamics, the vector
potential is proportional to the scalar potential and high density charge clusters confined by
self-consistent electric field.

The preliminary analysis shows that modification of current water-cooled reactors is cheaper
and safer than storing spent fuel. In addition, our test facilities will either use the General
Atomics’ inherently safe fuel technology or will not employ any fissionable material.
Relationships will be developed between the key design parameters including system size,
power level, and neutron flux. The advanced annular fuel design could be initiated in
collaboration with Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as was previously discussed among
several MIT researchers.

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CANDU: Setting the Standard for Proliferation Resistance of

Generation III and III+ Reactors
J.J. Whitlock., A.G. Lee

Atomic Energy of Canada Limited

Chalk River Laboratories
Chalk River. Ontario, Canada K0J 1J0

E-mail address of main author: whitlockj@aecl.ca

The nuclear renaissance will bring new safeguards challenges before the IAEA in the form of
non-traditional fuel cycles and system designs, in states that may or may not have an existing
nuclear program. Thc considerable near-term build campaign of Generation III and III+
reactors will necessitate a reliance on proven technologies and processes wherever possible.

The CANDU reactor is currently the most comprehensively safeguarded power reactor in
operation, due in part to its status as an on-load refuelled power reactor. Of equal importance
are the inherent features of CANDU reactors that contribute to its overall proliferation
resistance, including those that enable an efficient and effective safeguards approach - a
characteristic referred to as “safeguardability”. The safeguardability of the CANDU reactor
(represented in the Gen III and Gen III+ classification as Enhanced CANDU 6 and ACR-
1000, respectively) can be traced to a number of inherent proliferation barriers and
safeguards-enabling features that derive from the fundamental physics of heavy-water power
reactors.

In its irradiated fuel, a CANDU reactor (whether Enhanced CANDU 6 or ACR-l000)

produces roughly half the plutonium per unit weight than that of an I.WR, and with a
comparably low (reactor-grade) purity of fissile plutonium. Moreover, to acquire a weapons-
usable quantity of fissile material one would need to divert between 100 and 200 highly
radioactive CANDU fuel bundles, weighing 2-4 tonnes without shielding and requiring 100-
200 successful defeats of safeguards, followed by remote reprocessing of a highly radioactive
material that is relatively dilute in plutonium.

The on-load refuelling of a CANDU reactor is necessarily a highly controlled and automated
process (one cannot use human operators directly in this process due to the high radiation
fields at the face of the reactor). The inherent transparency of this operation makes it
relatively easy to track and verify fuel movement through the refuelling process, and also
detect off-normal movements of the fuelling machine such as unusually frequent visits to
selected fuel channels. Combined with the historically low defect rate of CANDU fuel
(<0.1%), this presents an inherent barrier to the attempted diversion of fuel by disguising it as
defective fuel.

On-load refuelling also leads to spent-fuel bumups that fall within a relatively well-defined
band, as each fuel bundle experiences irradiation at various axial positions during its
residence in the core. This leads to a high probability of detecting off-normal burnup values.

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In addition to being easily detected through monitoring of fuel movement, the potential
misuse of a CANDU reactor required for the type of rapid refuelling necessary to create
weapons-grade (or near-weapons-grade) plutonium is thwarted by both engineering and
physics constraints that are fundamental to heavy-water power reactors. The fuelling
machines are highly complex, automated machines designed to operate reliably at a designed
duty cycle, and are not capable of sustained operation at significantly increased rates. This
affects not only the capability for rapid refuelling of selected channels, but also the capability
to maintain regional overpower margins, and ultimately core reactivity. Thus the inherently
low excess reactivity of the CANDU core, and the highly complex and mission-oriented
nature of the fuelling machines designed to maintain steady core power under these
conditions, combine to discourage misuse of the core significantly beyond the design
envelope. This is a significant difference between a CANDU power reactor and on-load
refuelled reactors designed for military plutonium production.

Finally, CANDU fuel cycles, employing natural uranium for Enhanced CANDU 6 and 2.4%
enriched uranium for ACR-l000, do not require enriched uranium in quantities that
neccesitate the establishment of an indigenous enrichment capability. In the case of ACR-
1000 this remains largely a state-level decision however. At the same time the fuel cycles for
the Enhanced CANDU 6 and ACR-1000 reactors leave spent fuel that is, as mentioned,
relatively sparse in fissile material. Thus, there exists relatively less incentive for a State to
acquire a reprocessing capability solely related to its operation of CANDU power reactors,
although as with enrichment this remains a state-level prerogative. In a state with
predominantly CANDU technology, the significance of either of these signature activities is
heightened.

When the total fuel cycle is taken into account, the absence of a need for enrichmcnt
technology for Enhanced CANDU 6 lowers not only the proliferation risk of this system, but
also the cost of applying safeguards, particularly to the front end of the fuel cycle.

Historically, civilian nuclear power reactors under international safeguards have not proven to
be attractive targets for nuclear weapons proliferation, and CANDU technology has a
proliferation resistance that is second to none. Combined with its safety record and fuel-cycle
flexibility, CANDU technology provides an attractive platform for meeting the evolving
global need for safe, secure, and non-polluting energy supply.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P08

IRIS: Advanced Water Cooled Reactor Technology

Mario D. Carelli

Westinghouse Electric Co. LLC

E-mail address of main author: carellmd@westinghouse.com

IRIS has been in development since the turn of the century and the subject of hundreds of
presentations and publications. Thus, the purpose of this paper is not to detail IRIS
characteristics, but rather to point out its advanced approach to the themes of this conference:
design, safety, operation and maintenance, construction, and innovation applications. It will
also point out how IRIS is very attractive for countries approaching nuclear power for the first
time in terms of technology, economic, human resources and infrastructure.

IRIS is a 335 MWe PWR of the integral design, where the entire primary system is within the
reactor vessel. Gone are the external to the vessel steam generators, pumps, pressurizer,
together with the associated large piping and the large forged vessels. IRIS has only one
forged component (the primary reactor vessel) versus the dozen or so for other LWRs. Gone
together with the large piping is also the possibility of large LOCAs (Loss of Coolant
Accidents) and thus the need for safety systems designed to cope with an accident which
cannot occur anymore. These are just examples; in fact the philosophy of the IRIS design,
made possible by the adoption of the integral configuration, is to emphasize simplicity, which
begets increased safety and decreased cost.

The safety approach is centered on the safety-by-design which means that accidents are
eliminated by design, rather than coping with their consequences. For those accidents which
cannot be eliminated, then their consequences and probability are minimized, again by design.
The bottom line is that IRIS has: only five simple and relatively inexpensive passive and zero
active safety systems; only one accident (refueling) capable of producing a Class IV accident
(versus eight for “traditional” LWRs); and, a core damage frequency for internal events equal
to 2E-8. This allows IRIS to reduce the Emergency Planning Zone (EPZ) to 1 Km or less,
essentially the plant boundary, which in turns allows siting of IRIS near population centers.
This is very important for cogeneration applications like desalination, district heating or even
bio-fuel generation, which require the power plants to be near the user. The IRIS control
system has been specifically designed to allow variable cogeneration.

The simplicity approach of IRIS is reflected not only in design, but also in operation and
maintenance. Routine maintenance is needed only at 48 months’ interval and IRIS can
accommodate several core designs with refueling intervals from about 36 months (which give
the maximum burnup allowed) to 48 months (which gives the highest capacity factor). In
IRIS the vessel fluence is five decades less than in other LWRs, below the NRC threshold for
surveillance, yielding less operational cost, less personal radiation, no vessel lifetime
limitation as far as radiation is concerned and, simplified decommissioning.

Another IRIS innovative design feature is its compact design: there is only one single NSSS
building, which includes the auxiliary, containment and control buildings in one structure of a
little more than 50 m diameter, with positive effects on cost and security. This simple,

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compact building is very economically installed on seismic isolators, thus basically

eliminating seismic from the accidents spectrum.

The cost of IRIS is extremely competitive with the large LWRs. First of all, the different and
simplified IRIS design does not belong to the same economy of scale curve of traditional
LWRs, but to one roughly parallel and lower (in our current estimate about 20-25% lower).
Additionally, IRIS has the economy of multiples, realizing savings by multiple units on the
same or different sites, learning, mini-serial components production (for example a 1700
MWe 3-loop PWR has three massive steam generator and pumps, while series of IRIS
multiples with the same total power have forty small and simple steam generators and
pumps). As part of a IAEA sponsored study it was estimated that four IRIS units have
approximately the same (within 5%) capital cost as a single unit of the same total power.
Construction time for the first IRIS units is expected to be 36 months, reduced to 30 after a
few units experience. Construction is by pre-fabricated modules, delivered and assembled on
site. Financing is obviously reduced for the smaller size, quicker construction IRIS units.
Cash flow improves greatly as one unit generates power while the follower is under
construction.

Advanced design, simplicity, enhanced safety, cogeneration, ease of operation, affordable cost
are all characteristics which make IRIS very attractive for countries (especially smaller size
ones) approaching nuclear power for the first time. It must be emphasized that IRIS is not a
“paper” design. About 90% of its systems and components are the same or very similar to
AP1000 and operating Westinghouse PWRs. The remaining 10% will be exhaustively tested
as part of the NRC Design Certification process.

An unique IRIS feature is its organizational structure. Westinghouse leads a team of 24

organizations from 10 nations, which includes industry, laboratories, universities, government
organizations and power producers. While the team’s industrial members will contribute to
build up the technical infrastructure, the team’s laboratories, universities and government
organizations will help in building the institutional and human infrastructure so necessary for
newcomer countries to launch a nuclear program.

With sustained development and resources, IRIS expects to achieve NRC Final Design
Approval around 2015 and be operational about 5 years later.

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Typical Technology of Mechanics on Gen-III Passive NPPs and Gen-

IV Advanced Supercritical Light Water Reactors
Yao, W.D., Xie, Y.C., He, Y.B., Zhang, M, Zhang, K.F., Ning, D.

Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research & Design Institute (SNERDI)

29 Hongcao Road, Shanghai 200233, China

E-mail address of main author: wd-yao@snerdi.com.cn

Technical requirements for Gen-III advanced nuclear power plants, which take passive
reactors as the main body, were originally brought forward in American “Advanced Light
Water Reactor Utility Requirement Document” (ALWR-URD) in early 1990’s. The primary
characteristic of passive nuclear power plant is large amount of simplification to the original
active safety systems, replacing or supplementing them with passive safety systems, which
enhances safety and economy. However, the replacement of active safety systems by passive
safety systems also brings about some mechanics that compel attention, typically, such as
load-carrying capability evaluation for steel containment, in-vessel retention (IVR) of molten
core debris, seismic design without OBE, thermo-hydraulic issues concerning with coupling
between two-phase fluid and solid, etc.

At the beginning of this century, six typical Gen-IV advanced reactor types (Sodium Cooled
Fast Reactor, Supercritical Water-Cooled Reactor, etc.) were put forward. Among these types
of reactors, Supercritical Water-Cooled Reactor adopts supercritical water as coolant and
operates above the thermodynamic critical point of water by increasing temperature and
pressure of the coolant, which makes the plant economic and efficient. However, this type of
reactor also brings about some mechanical difficulties (e.g. pressure fluctuation caused by the
supercritical fluid in the core, creep of materials working at high temperature, etc.) for the
design of facility and components.

In this paper, the issues mentioned above are outlined for further consideration.

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Study on Thermal-Hydraulic Characteristics of Supercritical Water

Reactor
Zhao Dongjian, Lu Lu, Shi Guobao

Core Design Division, Shanghai Nuclear Engineermg Research & Design Institute,
Shanghai, China

E-mail address of main author: Zhaodj@snerdi.com.cn

As the only water-cooled reactor among the six under the Generation-IV program,
supercritical water-cooled reactor (SCWR) has its special characteristics, and takes up
attentions extensively all over the world. Many countries have proposed the concept design of
SCWR, such as SCLWR (Supercritical LWR) in Japan, HPLWR (High Performance LWR) in
Germany, Candu-SCWR in Canada. Due to a rapid variation of the thermal-physical
properties near the pseudo-critical line, the thermal-hydraulics characteristics of water at
supercritical conditions differ obviously from that at sub-critical conditions of PWR and
BWR. Simultaneously, because of high temperature, avoiding excessive hot spots of local
cladding temperature becomes a big challenge in SCWR [1]. Therefore, sub-channel analysis
is of crucial importance in designing fuel assemblies. The development of the SCWR [2] and
the study on the thermal-hydraulic characteristics of SCWR [3] have been reviewed by Shi
and Zhao.

Based on the PWR subchannel analysis code of SNERDI (Shanghai Nuclear Engineering
Research and Design Institute), a subchannel code for SCWR was developed in this paper.
Using the developed subchannel code, the thermal-hydraulic characteristics of the typical
SCWR fuel assembly with the moderator water rod, including the temperature, mass flux, fuel
rod cladding temperature, heat transfer coefficients and so on, is investigated.

The reference fuel assembly design is typical square configuration, with 36 moderator water
rods and 301 fuel pins. In order to achieve a sufficiently high moderation ratio, the feed water
entering the pressure vessel is divided into two parts. One part flows through the moderator
water rods downward, and the other goes through the dowcomer to the bottom of the reactor
core, where it merges with the moderator flow. Because of symmetry, 1/4 assembly is
analyzed in present. Two different radial power distributions were considered according to
neutronic evaluation. One was single fuel rod enrichment, and the other was an ideal
enrichment distribution that would make the power in all the fuel rods the same. A symmetric
chopped cosine axial power profile with a peaking factor of 1.55 was used for all the fuel rods
in the assembly.

Typical outlet temperature distribution for the single enrichment with 50% flow through the
moderator water rods is illustrated in FIG. 1. The temperature profile closely follows the
assembly power distribution. The highest outlet temperature appears in channels 2 and 14,
which are located near the center of the fuel assembly. As for the uniform power distribution,
the temperature distribution, which the highest outlet temperature is at the out corner of the
fuel assembly, is more uniform than the single enrichment case.

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FIG. 2 shows the averaged coolant temperature and density profiles along the flow direction
for different percents of flow through moderator water rods. The percents of flow through
moderator water rods were varied from 0% to 75%. The results show that along the axial of
the core, the coolant temperature firstly increases rapidly, forms a plateau because of very
high thermal capacity near the pseudo-critical line, and then increases again rapidly with low
thermal capacity of water. But the coolant density decrease sharply in the vicinity of the
pseudo-critical line. For different percents of flow through the moderator water rods, the heat
transfer from coolant channels to moderator water rods is different, which further induce the
different inlet temperatures of coolant channels. With an increase of the percent of flow
through moderator water rods, the coolant temperature rise and the density decrease
obviously. However, because of total energy equilibrium, the outlet temperatures are the
same.

All results above are obtained using Bishop’ supercritical water heat transfer correlation [4].
A sensitivity study of different supercritical water heat transfer correlations is also performed
on the thermal-hydraulic characteristics. The results show that obvious difference occurs
when using different supercritical water heat transfer correlations. Further experimental work
should be carried out to investigate which correlation is more compatible with SCWR core
flow conditions.

280.0
358.3
436.7
515.0
593.3
671.7
750.0

FIG. 1. Typical outlet temperature distribution of 1/4 fuel assembly for single enrichment
with 50% flow through moderator water rods.

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550 800

0% 0%
500
25% 25%
600
50% 50%
450
Temperature ( C)

75%

Density (kg/m )
75%

3
o

400 400

350
200
300

250 0
0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 0.0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0
z/Z 0 z/Z0

(a) (b)

FIG. 2. Typical thermal-hydraulic characteristic profiles for different percent of flow through
moderator water rods: (a) coolant temperature; (b) coolant density.

REFERENCES

[1] Cheng X., Schulenberg T., Bittermann D., Rau P., Design analysis of core assemblies
for supercritical pressure conditions, Nuclear Engineering and Design, 223 (2003)
279-294.
[2] Shi G. B., Zhao D. J., Liao C. K., Si S. Y., Introduction to the design, Nuclear Power
Engineering and Technology, 2(2008), 38-48.
[3] Zhao D. J., Liao C. K., Shi G. B., Review of Sub-Channel, Nuclear Power Engineering
and Technology, 3(2008), 34-41.
[4] Bishop A. A., Sandberg R. O., Tong L. S., Forced Convection Heat Transfer at High
Pressure After The Critical Heat Flux, ASME 65-HT-31, 1965.

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Optimization of Thorium Fuel Application Through A Symbiotic

System Consists of Large FBR and Small Water Cooled Satellite-
Reactors
Ismaila, Liem Peng Hongb, Hiroshi Sekimotob, Budi Rohmana
a
Nuclear Energy Regulatory Agency, Jakarta, Indonesia
b
Researeh Laboratory for Nuclear Reactors, Tokyo Tech., Tokyo, Japan

E-mail address of main author: h. ismail@bapeten.go.id

Global energy demand is continuously increasing over years due to the economic and social
human activities development. So far, fossil fuels are projected to continuously supply a
majority of the energy demand [1]. As a consequence, the supply has affected on decreasing
environmental quality in term of climate change and global warming due to CO2 emission.
Therefore, utilization of clean energy and of energy sources which provides high energy
released per unit mass should be introduced to give a high power production and provide an
affordable price for the public. For those purposes, nuclear energy source is one of reliable
options.

Another fact, developed and developing countries currently undergo different situation
concerning to demand and supply of energy. The former encounter a relatively small growth
of demand and have a good capability of supply due to their capital and advanced
technological capabilities, therefore, they are capable to develop and operate large scale
nuclear reactors, and other advanced nuclear fuel cycle facilities. The latter, in contrary,
encounter a great increase of demand due to the great population growth but they have limited
capabilities of supply due to the less capital and technological capabilities. Therefore, it
becomes a good reason to bring up a proposal of collaboration among countries to achieve a
sustainable nuclear energy utilization and development.

Considering the significant role of the small simple long life reactors for sustainable energy
utilization in developing countries [2] and of the capital and technological capabilities of
developed countries, there is a strong need for realization of a symbiotic system consisting of
large reactors operated in developed countries and small satellite-reactors, SSRs, deployed in
developing countries. The basic idea of symbiotic nuclear reactor system is how different
scales and types of nuclear reactors are possible to be operated and can provide mutual
benefits each other. In the present study, a symbiotic system, as shown in FIG. 1, between
large fast reactors and small thermal reactors is proposed with different main targets of the
small and large reactors.

In the proposed system, a symbiotic system of large power scale 3000 MWth fast breeder
reactors (FBRs) and small-satellite long life water cooled thorium reactors (Small-Satellite
WTRs) as SSRs is investigated. The FBR is designed for generating electricity and at the same
time producing 233U. To produce 233U, natural thorium fuel pins are introduced together with
natural uranium pins in the FBR mixture core. The SSR, WTRs (30 ~ 300 MWth) with
thorium fuel, are designed for supplying small scale of energy demand for less-developed
areas of developing countries.

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FIG. 1. Fuel cycle scenario of the proposed symbiotic system

The basic reasons for employing the two types of reactors (large FBR and small WTRs) are as
follows:

a) Water cooled reactors are chosen as basic technology of SSRs because they are based on
the current thermal reactor technology so that they are more feasible to be operated in areas
which have limited infrastructures and resources. Another point is that 233U is superior to
other fissile materials in thermal reactors, therefore a better burnup performances of the SSRs
can be expected. But no thermal reactors can be critical if fueled by natural thorium only and
it should be enriched by fissile material [3]. In thorium case, 233U is the best fissile but it does
not naturally exist. Therefore, 233U should be provided by other nuclear reactors which have
capability to produce it.

b) A metallic-fueled, sodium-cooled FBR is used for producing 233U fissile material because
fast reactors provide better neutron economy compared to thermal reactors and high
conversion ratio can be achieved. The high conversion ratio will provide high 233U fissile
discharge rate from the FBR core. Sodium-cooled FBR is the current advanced technology
and metallic-fuel type has been investigated that achieves higher fissile production than
oxide-fuel type for sodium-cooled FBR [4].

From the present study, it can be expected that a great number of small scale energy demands
in developing countries can be significantly supplied by applying the proposed symbiotic
systems.

REFERENCES

[1] International Energy Outlook 2008, Official Energy Statistics from the U.S.
Government (http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/ieo/pdf/0484(2008).pdf )
[2] Sekimoto, H., “Several Features and Application of Small Reactors”, Proc. Of Small
Nuclear Reactors for Future Clean and Safe Energy Source (SR/TIT), pp.23~32,
Tokyo, Japan (1991).
[3] Unak, T., “What is the Potential Use of Thorium in the Future Energy Production
Technology?”, Progress in Nuclear Energy, 37(1~4), pp.137~144 (2000).

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[4] Mizutani, A. and Sekimoto, H., 1998, “Core Performance of Equilibrium Fast Reactors
for Different Coolant Materials and Fuel Types”, Annals of Nuclear Energy, 25(13),
pp. 1011~1020.

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 IAEA-CN-164-5P12

Pressure Tube Reactor Contribution to Sustainable and Secure

Energy
Rommey B. Duffey et al.

AECL, Canada

E-mail address of main author: duffeyr@aecl.ca

It is well known that electricity use and economic health are coupled. Major economic
indicators (GDP/capita) are therefore highly correlated with kWh/capita in both developing
and developed industrial nations. It can be shown that at least 4000 new reactors. some ten
times the present number, would be needed to assist the contribution of non-carbon energy
sources to stabilizing greenhouse gas (GHG) concentrations at ~550 ppm by 2050-2100, and
also enable fuel switching from hydrocarbons in transportation. This is in addition to
requiring massive investment in wind power facilities, and extensive conservation and
efficiency measures.

Nuclear power program decisions in many nations will be increasingly based on political,
strategic and economic considerations involving the complete nuclear fuel cycle, including
resource utilization, radioactive waste disposal, proliferation resistance, and supply
assurances. The overall direction of development must and will provide an integrated and
complementary reactor and fuel cycle, including the deployment of alternative fuel
enrichment and reprocessing technology and services. The full fuel cycle still has negligible
GHG emissions.

We show how nuclear energy can meet the inexorably growing demand, without increasing
costs and avoiding the issue of security of energy supply and environmental emissions of
carbon dioxide and othcr GHGs. This paper examines and places in context all these aspects
via the viewpoint of developing a sustainable global nuclear fuel cycle, and proposes alternate
paths to peace, prosperity and non-proliferation that are somewhat outside the present rather
traditional thinking. They still represent existing and known technology opportunities that
may run counter to many current national positions, and today’s commercial and technical
interests, while presenting very large opportunities.

We discuss how the global nuclear fuel cycle must support and maintain international trade,
and address energy and environment needs; how optimizing nuclear power, and associated
fuel cycle and waste management technology ensures economic and environmental
sustainability; why developing alternate “closable” thorium fuel cycles (enrichment,
reprocessing, separation and advanced cycles) can meet the needs; and argue that nuclear
power technology remains competitive and contributes to national and international energy
supply and security, while addressing proliferation risks.

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 IAEA-CN-164-6P01

The Modernization Program, Power Uprate at NPP V2 Jaslovske

Bohunice
V. Řezník, I. Krajmer

Slovenské elektrárne a.s. – Enel, Bratislava, Slovakia

E-mail address of main author: reznik.vladivoj@seas.sk

SE a.s.-Enel own an optimal production portfolio comprised of nuclear, thermal and

hydroelectric power plants

As concerns V2, the upgrading is based on three main pillars:

 the modernization
 the power up-rate
 the ageing monitoring program

The main targets of the modernization project are:

 The increasing of the Nuclear Safety and of the Nuclear operational reliability
 And the seismic improvement
obviously in full compliance with IAEA requirements and with the decisions by the Nuclear
Regulatory Agency of the Slovak Republic (UJD) and achievement of the probabilistic safety
criteria in accordance with IAEA recommendations. And, last but not least, the possibility to
ensure a safe, reliable, economical and effective electricity and heat generation
Management of SLOVENSKÉ ELEKTRÁRNE approved in 1997 the following plan of
activities for V2 MODERNIZATION:
 Refurbishment of the Mechanical emergency and safety systems: Pressurizer, Main
Cooling pumps, Primary circuit, Steam generators, Emergency core cooling, Residual
heat removal, Hermetic zone, Super emergency feed water, Technical essential water,
Main steam and feed water piping, Ventilation,
 Refurbishment of the Electric emergency and safety systems: Sectional and secondary
switchboard cabinets, Electric own consumption supply, Automatics on the primary and
secondary circuit, Diesel generators, Accumulator batteries, Reserve electric supply.
 Refurbishment of the Instrumentation and Control emergency and safety systems:
Reactor trip, Reactor power control, Reactor power limitation, Neutron flux, Breakers,
Engineered Safeguards Features Actuation Systems, Sensors, Information Computer
systems, Post Accident Monitoring system, Radiological monitoring.
 Seismic improvement, Fire protection, Components qualification and classification
 Safety documentation

POWER UP-RATE:

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 Increase of secondary equipment efficiency

 Increase of Reactor thermal power up to 107 %

Actions planned on primary and secondary systems to create the technical conditions for
power uprate:
 Implementation of calibration systems for a more accurate reactor power control in
terms of temperature and neutron flux
 Upgrade of turbines: Modifications of High Pressure and Low Pressure part. We are
going to replace most of the inner components of the original equipment
 Main condensers : General arrangement was changed into a modular, complete retubing
was performed, water chambers were reinforced.
 Cooling towers : All 4 cooling towers are nowadays in operation after replacement of
the cooling system.
 Generators : The complete scope of work is the following:
− Modification of Stator
− Modification of Rotor
− Replacement of Accessories
 Unit transformer
− Replacement of winding
− Replacement of bushings
− Replacement of cooling system
− New diagnostics system
 Connections to the grid
− Modification of encapsulated wires
 Modification of power output connections to generator and to transformer
− Replacement of generator disconnectors
 Instrumentation and control system
− Replacement of turbine and generator protection systems
− Replacement of feed water flow meters in the SG to increase the precision of the
measurement of reactor power output
− Replacement of steam flow-rate sensors and installation of moisture separators in the
secondary circuit
− Replacement and functional enlargement of automatic regulation system of turbine (the
old system was hydraulic, the new one will be electronic)
− Upgrading of instrumentation and automatic controllers both in the primary and
secondary circuit

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Safety and Performance Achievement in Czech NPPs with VVER

Reactors
Z. Kriz, J. Zdarek, M. Hrehor

Nuclear Research Institute Rez plc (NRI Rez), Czech Republic

E-mail address of main author: krz@ujv.cz

The paper will provide an overview on the performance achievements of the Czech NPP with
VVER reactors, in particular the NPP Dukovany with 4 units of VVER 440 and the NPP
Temelin with 2 units of VVER 1000. A principal decision on the change of the nuclear
programme from HWGCR to PWR (VVER) was made in former Czechoslovakia in 1970.
NPP Dukovany was put in operation between the years 1985 and 1987, thus its first unit is
approaching the age of 25 years. NPP Temelin is rather younger; its two units were put in
operation in 2000 and 2002. All together these units have produced so far 370 TWh of
electricity (approx. 6x annual consumption) and accumulated more than 100 reactor-years of
operating experience. The paper will provide basic statistics on operational history of these
two NPPs, including major safety related events, operational feedback and lessons learned.

Since the real beginning of their operation all units have been subject of continuous
performance improvements and safety enhancements based in particular on the IAEA
recommendations resulting from the “Extrabudgetary programme” on safety upgrading of
VVER reactors (safety issues). As already documented in the National Report under Nuclear
Safety Convention all safety issues had been successfully addressed. As a part of safety
upgrading programmes (Back-fitting, Morava) there were implemented more than 130 safety
measures in NPP Dukovany and 90 in NPP Temelin. The paper will briefly characterise these
measures with a conclusion that the safety of all these units have been significantly enhanced
and that their level of safety is comparable with western PWR units of the similar age. These
results have been verified and confirmed in a number of safety review missions of the IAEA
(OSART), WANO, including a special review carried out in 2004 in the process of accession
of the Czech Republic into European Union.

At present the operation of NPP Dukovany is fully stabilized reaching annual load factors
around 90%. The units meet basic safety requirements of the IAEA and WANO and in certain
areas, such as annual doses of operating and service personal they reach unique values.
Recently a new advanced fuel have been implemented in all four units of NPP Dukovany with
the aim of prolonging the fuel cycle up to 5 years with significantly higher burnup (65
MWd/kg for fuel pin). This will significantly improve the utilization of fuel and contribute to
better economy of the NPP operation.

With the progressing age the NPP Dukovany undergoes since 2002 through a substantial
refurbishment and equipment retrofit aimed in power uprating by more than 11 %, including
replacement of the origin analogue I&C systems by the digital one. The paper will discuss
main conclusions of the recent study on the feasibility of extending the operation lifetime up
to 60 years.

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After certain “birth pain” the NPP Temelin has also reached a stabilized operation although its
load factors are rather lower compared to NPP Dukovany. Ongoing long term problems with
the integrity of fuel have lead to a principal decision to replace the supplier of fuel from
Westinghouse to TVEL. This “come back” to Russian fuel is a challenge to all involved
parties – fuel supplier (TVEL), the utility (CEZ plc) and the Czech safety authority (SUJB) as
the licensing of the new fuel will have to demonstrate its higher level of safety and reliability.

In the operation of all Czech units modern tools and methods based on best estimate computer
codes and living PSA studies with their practical applications such as risk monitor, risk
informed ISI, etc. are intensively used with the help of the Nuclear Research Institute Rez plc
which traditionally continues to play the role of the key technical support organization for the
safe operation of the Czech NPPs. The paper will briefly inform on NRI’s efforts to maintain
its competence and expertise by active participating in international programmes and projects
of the IAEA, OECD/NEA and EURATOM, including bilateral cooperation.

REFERENCES

[1] National Report of the Czech Republic under the Convention on Nuclear Safety
4th Review Meeting, April 2008
[2] Final report of the Programme on Safety of WWER and RBMK Nuclear Power Plants
IAEA-EBP-15,1999
[3] Technical-Economic Feasibility Study on Long Term Operation of NPP Dukovany
J. Zdarek at al., NRI 2008

Harmonization Program Actual program of increasing the safety of The Dukovany Nuclear
Power Station is included in the newly outlined Harmonization Program. This program is not
only focused on questions connected with the power station project change and replacement
of some equipment but also covers other fields that can effect safety of the power station. The
highest importance or contribution to increasing of safety need not to be, as generally
assumed, the improvements of the facilities. A higher level of safety can be achieved by
improving the safety culture, too. The Dukovany Nuclear Power Station's target is to achieve,
by implementation of the Harmonization Program, a reduction of the reactor core damage
probability coefficient from the present value of 1.7*10-5 to value of 7.7*10-6 in the year 2010
(this value means that an event causing fuel damage in the reactor core can occur probably
once in the period of 130,000 years). This value has been recommended for newly built power
stations by the Atomic Energy International Agency.

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Safety and Performance Achievement of Indian Nuclear Power Plant

Randhir Kumar

NPCIL, India

E-mail address of main author: randhirkumar@npcil.co.in

The Nuclear power programme in India at present is based mainly on series of pressurized
heavy water reactor(PHWR). Starting from Rajesthan atomic power station comprising two
unit of 200 MWe in 1973, the programme has come a long way with 17 units in operation
includes two unit of 540 MWe at Turapur 3&4. Narora atomic power station commissioned in
1991 marked major indigenization and standardization of PHWR design. Which includes,
double containment of reactor building, two diverse reactor protection system and emergency
core cooling system. Further in 540 MWe at Tarapur, the safety systems have been divided
into two groups to the extent possible. These groups are physically seperated so that any
common mode incident either inside or outside the reactor building would nor disabled more
than one of these groups. Each group of safety system should meet the requirements of
shutdown the reactor , remove decay heat from the fuel subsequent to shutdown, prevent any
subsequent escalation of failures, minimize the escape of radioactivity, supply necessary
information to the operators for assesment of the state of the plant. Group-1 is first line of
defense safety systems i.e. Shur Down System-1 (SDS-1), Emergency Core Cooling System
(ECCS) and all process water systems including shutdown cooling. Group-2 is the second
safety systems i.e. Shut Down System-2 (SDS-2), containment isolation, Moderator cooling,
Emergency water supply (fire fighting water with diesel driven pump) through Steam
Generator. Status of the plant is monitored and controlled from Main Control Room (MCR)
and it is done from supplementary control room in case of emergency. Each safety system is
designed to achieve unavailibility of 10-3 year/year or less.

Indian nuclear power plant progressively attained excellent operation performance

comparable to international benchmark with sustained effors in operation and maintenance,
development and nurturing of qualified human resources at various level, development of
various quality equipment and full scope simulator facility at new plant. In the year 2002,
Kakrapar Atomic Power Station (KAPS) was adjudged the worlds’ best operating nuclear plant
among the PHWRs world over. Kaiga-2 completed 529 days of continuous operation recently.
Prior to Kaiga-2, many Indian reactors KAPS-1, NAPS-2, RAPS-4 also registered continuous
operation of nearly a year. The biennial shutdown duration have also been reduced to about 20
days by effective planning and management of shutdown activities. NPCIL units are operating
consistently at high availability factor of about 90%.

The safety track record of 294 reactor years of operation evidences the strong commitment to
safety and demonstrates strong safety culture of Indian nuclear industry. In India nuclear
power plants, the radiation dose to occupational workers has been a small fraction of the
limits prescribed by Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB), the regulatory authority. The
dose to enviromnent bas been insignificant fraction of the prescribe limit. The limit prescribed
by the AERB are more conservative than the international limit set by the International
Commision on Radiation Protection (ICRP).

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In the earlier design of PHWRs used at RAPS-1&2, MAPS-1&2, NAPS-1&2 and KAPS-1 a
zirconium alloy ( zircalloy-2) was used for coolant channel. It was considered best available
material at that time. However, in pile of experience brought out, the requirement of
replacement of coolant tubes after 10 to 12 effective full power years in view of the
modification of material characteristics especially the reduction in mechanical strength due to
to hydriding under radiation during service. These coolant channels of RAPS-2, MAPS-1&2
and NAPS-1 were replaced in record time by zirconiuin-2.5% niobium and NAPS-2 &
KAPS-1 En masse coolant channel replacement is in progress. Although in Indian PHWR, no
significant thinning was observed in feeder pipe and elbow, but as a precautionary measure,
en masse feeder replacement were carried out at RAPS-2, MAPS 1&2 and NAPS-1. The long
shutdown of EMCCR/EMFR were used to carry out safety upgrades in parallel. These units
were brought to the state of the art in terms of safety. Several major equipment, like the steam
generators in MAPS l&2 were also replaced to enhance the life of the plant and performance
of equipment during these upgrades.

Tarapur unit 1&2, commisioned in the year 1969 were licenced to operate for 25 years.
NPCBL developed and carried out probabilistic safety analysis (PSA) of TAPS l&2, which
found that the reactor were operating in the safe regime and met the current standards.
However, based on the PSA studies and ageing management programme, system upgradation
and siesmic upgradation were carried out in 2005/2006. These includes replacement of
3x50% capacity emergency diesel generators (DGs) with 3x100% capacity DGs, introduction
of supplementary control rooms, upgradation of electrical, fire protection, ventillation and
instrumentation and control systems. Siesmic strengthening of civil structures safety systems,
pipping end equipment was carried out by providing additional anchorage and supports.

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