• The Transactions of The Korean Institute of Electrical Engineers
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• v.65 no.5
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• pp.836-842
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• 2016

When an accident occurs in the nuclear power plant, the faulted information might mislead to the high possibility of aggravating the accident. At the Fukushima accident, the operators misunderstood that there was no core exposure despite in the processing of core damage, because the instrument information of the reactor water level was provided to the operators optimistically other than the actual situation. Thus, this misunderstanding actually caused to much confusions on the rapid countermeasure on the accident, and then resulted in multiplying the accident propagation. It is necessary to be equipped with the function that informs operators the status of instrument integrity in real time. If plant operators verify that the instruments are working properly during accident conditions, they are able to make a decision more safely. In this study, we have performed various tests for the fault detection sensitivity of an data-driven empirical model to review the usability of the model in the accident conditions. The test was performed by using simulation data from the compact nuclear simulator that is numerically simulated to PWR type nuclear power plant. As a result of the test, the proposed model has shown good performance for detecting the specified instrument faults during normal plant conditions. Although the instrument fault detection sensitivity during plant accident conditions is lower than that during normal condition, the data-drive empirical model can be detected an instrument fault during early stage of plant accidents.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.8-14
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• 2019

Background: Management of an agricultural food product system following a nuclear accident is indispensable for reducing radiation exposure due to ingestion of contaminated food. The present study analyzes the effect of agricultural countermeasures on ingestion dose following a nuclear accident. Materials and Methods: Agricultural countermeasures suitable for domestic farming environments were selected by referring to the countermeasures applied after the Fukushima accident in Japan. The avertable ingestion doses that could be obtained by implementing the selected countermeasures were calculated using the Korean Agricultural Countermeasure Analysis Program (K-ACAP) to investigate the efficiency of each countermeasure. Results and Discussion: Of the selected countermeasures, the management of crops was effective when radionuclide deposition occurred during the growing season of plants. Treatment by soil additive and topsoil removal was effective when deposition occurred during the nongrowing season of plants. The disposal of milk was not effective owing to the small contribution of milk to the overall ingestion dose. Clean feeding of livestock was effective when deposition occurred during the growing season of fodder plants such as pasture and rice-straw. Finally, the effect of food restriction increased with the soil deposition density of radionuclide. The practical effect of countermeasures was very small when the avertable ingestion dose was absolutely low. Conclusion: The agricultural countermeasures selected to reduce the radionuclide ingestion dose after a nuclear accident must be made appropriate by considering the accident situation, such as the soil deposition density of the radionuclide and the deposition date in relation to farming cycles.

• Asian Journal of Atmospheric Environment
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.59-68
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• 2014

The Fukushima nuclear accident in 2011 had an extensive impact on the national electricity plans. This paper outlines alternative electricity scenarios that meet the goals of nuclear phase-out and greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction. This paper also analyzes the results of each scenario in respect to the electricity mix, GHG emissions, costs and employment effects. The Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning system (LEAP) model was used to simulate the annual electricity demand and supply system from 2011 to 2030. The reference year was 2009. Scenarios are reference (where existing plans are continued), A1, A2, B1, B2, and C2 (where the levels of demand management and nuclear phase-out are different). The share of renewable energy in the electricity mix in 2030 for each scenario will be increased from about 1% in 2009 to 8% in the reference scenario and from 11% to 31% in five alternative scenarios. Total cumulative cost increases up to 14% more than the reference scenario by replacing nuclear power plants with renewable energy in alternative scenarios could be affordable. Deploying enough renewable energy to meet such targets requires a roadmap for electricity price realization, expansion of research, development and deployment for renewable energy technologies, establishment of an organization dedicated to renewable energy, and ambitious targets for renewable energy.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.27-34
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• 2012

After Fukushima Nuclear Accident on Mar11, 2011, to grasp the thought of university students in Korea on radiation and medical radiation and seek for the right mass communication on the radiation safety of the people and the proper teaching method on radiation, 790 questionnaires from the universities which had a four-year department of radiological science in 5 provinces(Gyeonggi, Gangwon, Chungcheong, Jeolla, and Gyeongsang-do) all over the country were collected and analyzed. The questionnaire was composed of 36 items, and it was analyzed that one of the important causes that made them feel that radiation was dangerous was 'even if they were exposed to the small quantity of radiation, they could have trouble later.' ($3.28{\pm}1.05$). In the item of the control of radiation, there were the respondents who answered that the government should take action rather than an individual($3.87{\pm}0.89$). In the item of 'Fukushima Nuclear Accident made me think that 'We should not keep nuclear power generation', the result was $2.79{\pm}0.95$. In the item of 'My thought on the medical radiation has negatively changed since Fukushima Nuclear Accident', the students who hadn't taken the course related with radiation showed a negative thought on the medical radiation, such as, there was $2.64{\pm}1.02$ as a whole, $2.31{\pm}1.00$ in department of radiological science, $2.94{\pm}0.95$ in department of dental hygiene, and $3.13{\pm}0.82$ in other departments. And also, those who thought that the education of radiation was necessary were 82.28%, and T.V or Internet was thought as the most effective teaching method.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.49 no.2
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• pp.234-240
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• 2016

We examined the diffusion of contaminants released from the southern coast around Fukushima, Japan, during the passage of typhoons using a three-dimensional numerical model (POM) to track diffusing radioactivity (RA) released from the nuclear power plant at Fukushima following the accident caused by the giant tsunami event in March 2011. Radioactive contaminants released during the passage of typhoons may have significantly affected not only Japanese but also Korean coastal waters. The model domain covered most of the northwestern Pacific including marginal seas such as the East/Japan Sea and the Yellow Sea. Several numerical experiments were conducted case studies focusing on the westward diffusion from the southern coast of Japan of contaminants derived from the source site (Fukushima) according to various attributes of the typhoons, such as intensity, track, etc. The model produced the following results 1) significant amounts of contaminants were transported in a westward direction by easterly winds favorable for generating a coastal air stream along the southern Japanese coast, 2) the contaminants reached as far as Osaka Bay with the passage of typhoons, forced by a 5-day positive sinusoidal form with a (right-) northward track east of Fukushima, and 3) the range of contamination was significant, extending to the interior of the East/Japan Sea around the Tsugaru Strait. The model suggests that contaminants and/or radioactivity released from Fukushima with the passage of typhoons can affect Korean waters including the northeastern East/Japan Sea around the Tsugaru Strait, especially when the typhoon tracks are favorable for generating a westward coastal air stream along the southern Japanese coast.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
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• v.13 no.4
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• pp.271-282
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• 2015

External cost is cost imposed on a third party when producing or consuming a good or service. Since the 1990s, the external costs of nuclear powered electricity production have been studied. Costs are a very important factor in policy decision and the external cost is considered for cost comparison on electricity production. As for nuclear fuel cycle, a chosen technology will determine the external cost. However, there has been little research on this issue. For this study, methods for external cost on nuclear power production have been surveyed and analyzed to develop an approach for evaluating external cost on nuclear fuel cycles. Before the Fukushima accident, external cost research had focused on damage costs during normal operation of a fuel cycle. However, accident cost becomes a major concern after the accident. Various considerations for external cost including accident cost have been used to different studies, and different methods have been applied corresponding to the considerations. In this study, the results of the evaluation were compared and analyzed to identify methodological applicability to the external cost estimation with nuclear fuel cycles.

• Journal of Radiation Industry
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.185-189
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• 2011

As nuclear industry has been developed, a various types of radiological contamination has occurred. After 9.11 terror in U.S.A., it has been concerned that terrorists' active area has been enlarged to use nuclear or radioactive substance. Recently, the most powerful earth-quake stroke, which triggered a massive tsunami in Japan and then Fukushima nuclear power plant reactor has suffered from a serious accident in history. The Fukushima reactor accident has occurred an anxiety of radiation leaks and about 170,000 people have been evacuated from the accidental area near the nuclear power plant. For these reasons, a social chaos can be occurred if radiological contamination occurs to the supply system for the drinking water. As such, the establishment of the radiation monitoring system for the city main water system is compelling for the national security. In this study, a feasibility test of radiation monitoring system which consists of unified hybrid-type radiation detectors was experimented for multi detection system by using gamma-ray imaging. The hybrid-type radiation sensors were fabricated with CsI(Tl) scintillators and photodiodes. A preamplifier and amplifier was also fabricated and assembled with the sensor in the shielding case. For the preliminary test of detection of radiological contamination in the river, multi CsI(Tl)-PIN photodiode radiation detectors and $^{137}Cs$ gamma-ray source were used. The DAQ was done by Linux based ROOT program and NI DAQ system with Labview program. The simulated contamination was assumed to be occurred at Gapcheon river in Daejeon city. Multi CsI(Tl)-PIN photodiode radiation detectors were positioned at the Gapcheon river side. Assuming that the radiological contaminations flows in the river the $^{137}Cs$ gamma-ray source has been moved and then, the contamination region was reconstructed.

• The Journal of Engineering Geology
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.609-613
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• 2014

The Korean Peninsula, located at the southeastern tip of the Eurasian Plate, is known to be tectonically stable, and no critical evidence has yet been found that would override the safety design of nuclear facilities in South Korea. Because a nuclear power plant, like other major social overhead capital facilities, could cause great damage to both the environment and society through an unexpected tectonic event, even one of extremely low probability, like the Fukushima accident, a defense-in-depth safety approach is required in geological and geotechnical site safety evaluation for nuclear projects. This paper introduces the regulatory procedures that are in place to confirm nuclear site safety and site monitoring (e.g., earthquakes and groundwater) systems applied to nuclear facilities in order to reduce inherent uncertainties within the site safety review of geological and seismological issues related with a NPP project.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.49 no.7
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• pp.1431-1441
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• 2017

The Fukushima accident reveals the vulnerability of existing active nuclear power plant (NPP) design against prolonged loss of external electricity events. The passive safety system is considered an attractive alternative to cope with this kind of disaster. Also, the passive safety system enhances both the safety and the economics of NPPs. The adoption of a passive safety system reduces the number of active components and can minimize the construction cost of NPPs. In this paper, reflecting on the experience during the development of the APR+ design in Korea, we propose the concept of an innovative Power Reactor (iPower), which is a kind of passive NPP, to enhance safety in a revolutionary manner. The ultimate goal of iPower is to confirm the feasibility of practically eliminating radioactive material release to the environment in all accident conditions. The representative safety grade passive system includes a passive emergency core cooling system, a passive containment cooling system, and a passive auxiliary feedwater system. Preliminary analysis results show that these concepts are feasible with respect to preventing and/or mitigating the consequences of design base accidents and severe accidents.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.51 no.3
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• pp.738-745
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• 2019

Coprecipitation using hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) has been effectively used for the removal of radionuclides from radioactive wastewater. This work studied the dynamic behavior of HFO floc formation during the neutralization of acidic ferric iron in the presence of several radionuclides by using a photometric dispersion analyzer (PDA). Then the coagulation-flocculation system using HFO-anionic poly acrylamide (PAM) composite floc system was evaluated and compared in seawater and distilled water to find the effective condition to remove the target nuclides (Co-60, Mn-54, Sb-125, and Ru-106) present in wastewater generated in the severe accident of nuclear power plant like Fukushima Daiichi case. A ferric iron dosage of 10 ppm for the formation of HFO was suitable in terms of fast formation of HFO flocs without induction time, and maximum total removal yield of radioactivity from the wastewater. The settling time of HFO flocs was reduced by changing them to HFO-PAM composite floc. The optimal dosage of anionic PAM for HFO-anionic PAM floc system was approximately 1-10 ppm. The total removal yield of Mn-54, Co-60, Sb-125, Ru-106 radionuclides by the HFO-anionic PAM coagulation-flocculation system was higher in distilled water than in seawater and was more than 99%.