• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.47 no.2
• /
• pp.204-211
• /
• 2015

Probabilistic safety assessment (PSA) has had a significant role in quantitative decision-making by finding design and operational vulnerabilities and evaluating cost-benefit in improving such weak points. In particular, it has been widely used as the core methodology for risk-informed applications (RIAs). Even though the nature of PSA seeks realistic results, there are still "conservative" aspects. One of the sources for the conservatism is the assumptions of safety analysis and the estimation of failure frequency. Surveillance, diagnosis, and prognosis (SDP), utilizing massive databases and information technology, is worth highlighting in terms of its capability for alleviating the conservatism in conventional PSA. This article provides enabling techniques to solidify a method to provide time- and condition-dependent risks by integrating a conventional PSA model with condition monitoring and prognostics techniques. We will discuss how to integrate the results with frequency of initiating events (IEs) and probability of basic events (BEs). Two illustrative examples will be introduced: (1) how the failure probability of a passive system can be evaluated under different plant conditions and (2) how the IE frequency for a steam generator tube rupture (SGTR) can be updated in terms of operating time. We expect that the proposed model can take a role of annunciator to show the variation of core damage frequency (CDF) depending on operational conditions.

• Environmental and Resource Economics Review
• /
• v.31 no.4
• /
• pp.531-559
• /
• 2022

It is necessary to study the need for introduction of nuclear energy tax in Korea to internalize the externality cost of nuclear power and to make more balanced taxation system considering LNG and coal power. This study adopts choice experiment method to estimate the willingness to pay (WTP) for possible new tax on nuclear power. The finding is that the tax on nuclear fuel is more preferable to other tax base with KRW2.19/kWh of WTP, compared to KRW1.46/kWh for nuclear waste. The WTP for using the tax revenue to facilitate economic activity is KRW6.39/kWh compared to KRW6.12/kWh of WTP for funding climate change investment. The finding suggests that the design of nuclear power taxation needs to focus more on the use of tax revenue than on the choice of tax base.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
• /
• v.24 no.5
• /
• pp.63-68
• /
• 2009

The urgent VAI method development is required since "The Act of Physical Protection and Radiological Emergency that is established in 2003" requires an evaluation of physical threats in nuclear facilities and an establishment of physical protection in Korea. The VAI methodology is developed to (1) make a sabotage model by reusing existing fire/flooding/pipe break PSA models, (2) calculate MCSs and TEPSs, (3) select the most cost-effective TEPS among many TEPSs, (4) determine the compartments in a selected TEPS as vital areas, and (5) provide protection measures to the vital areas. The developed VAI methodology contains four steps, (1) collecting the internal level 1 PSA model and information, (2) developing the fire/flood/pipe rupture model based on level 1 PSA model, (3) integrating the fire/flood/pipe rupture model into the sabotage model by JSTAR, and (4) calculating MCSs and TEPS. The VAT process is performed through the VIPEX that was developed in KAERI. This methodology serves as a guide to develop a sabotage model by using existing internal and external PSA models. When this methodology is used to identify the vital areas, it provides the most cost-effective method to save the VAI and physical protection costs.

• The Journal of the Institute of Internet, Broadcasting and Communication
• /
• v.10 no.4
• /
• pp.121-126
• /
• 2010

Regarding HEMP has been studied as few thousand of paper by major nuclear bomb holding countries with USA for the self protection against nuclear bomb attract. Major HEMP protection facilities are consist of the shielding, filtering, grounding and high voltage protection circuits. Shielding room construction required a highest cost among the key protective facilities. Most of a theoretical formulas listed on the paper and related books has a little correlations in the certain frequency band between the theoretical formulas and field measuring results. For the reasons we proposed the advanced new theoretical formulas and developed the computer simulation S/W as enough as apply to the cost effective shielding room design for HEMP considering the various structural constants.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.49 no.2
• /
• pp.404-410
• /
• 2017

In order to help decision-makers in the early design phase to improve and make more cost-efficient system safety and reliability baselines of aircraft design concepts, a method (Multi-objective Optimization for Safety and Reliability Trade-off) that is able to handle trade-offs such as system safety, system reliability, and other characteristics, for instance weight and cost, is used. Multi-objective Optimization for Safety and Reliability Trade-off has been developed and implemented at SAAB Aeronautics. The aim of this paper is to demonstrate how the implemented method might work to aid the selection of optimal design alternatives. The method is a three-step method: step 1 involves the modelling of each considered target, step 2 is optimization, and step 3 is the visualization and selection of results (results processing). The analysis is performed within Architecture Design and Preliminary Design steps, according to the company's Product Development Process. The lessons learned regarding the use of the implemented trade-off method in the three cases are presented. The results are a handful of solutions, a basis to aid in the selection of a design alternative. While the implementation of the trade-off method is performed for companies, there is nothing to prevent adapting this method, with minimal modifications, for use in other industrial applications.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.16 no.4
• /
• pp.217-223
• /
• 1984

The feasibility of not employing recombiners rather using the postaccident Purge system alone to control hydrogen concentration in the containment following a LOCA, is analyzed in this paper. For this study, the hydrogen concentration in the containment, hydrogen removal through the purge system, and additional off-site dose due to hydrogen purge were calculated. The economic justification of a hydrogen recombiner system (2 recombiners) was also investigated by using the cost benefit concept. As a result, the purge system is sufficient to maintain the hydrogen concentration at a safe level without hydrogen recombiners, and it meets the dose limit requirements set forth in 10 CFR part 100. A hydrogen recombiner system would be justified based on cost-benefit concept for common use in a site with 4 units or more.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
• /
• v.17 no.1
• /
• pp.79-90
• /
• 2023

The study is to estimate the social costs of premature deaths due to nuclear power plant(NPP) accidents, by resorting to the contingent valuation method(CVM) which is used to estimate the value of a statistical life(VSL). The VSL estimate is about 3.55 billion won, which is multiplied by some 1.8 million premature deaths due to the accidents in world history of NPP, to get a maximum social cost of 1,952 trillion won. This estimate is equivalent to the 2022 real GDP of Korea. The annual average number of premature deaths and the resulting average social cost is 26,000 and 28 trillion won, respectively. The social cost of premature deaths due not only to accidents, but also the air pollutants from fired power plants(FPP) during 1987~2021 is estimated to be 26,919 trillion won. This is equivalent to 2021 US GDP, and is about 3,000 times higher than that for NPP of 9 trillion won. In 2021, the estimated social costs of FPP and NPP are 1,075 trillion won and 292 billion won, respectively. For South Korea, the study suggests to adapt an energy mix of increased share of electricity production for NPP relative to FPP, given that the 2050 carbon neutrality strategy of Korea is expected to lead to an increased share of renewable energy in electricity production. The study emphasizes accumulating the number of CVM-based VSL studies to ensure efficient energy policies.

• Journal of Nuclear Fuel Cycle and Waste Technology(JNFCWT)
• /
• v.13 no.2
• /
• pp.163-169
• /
• 2015

In many nuclear power plant sites in Korea, high density storage racks were installed in the spent fuel pool to expand the spent fuel storage capacity. Nevertheless, the capability of the Hanbit nuclear site will be saturated by 2024. Also, 10 NPPs will reach their design life expiration date by 2029. In the case of the US, SFPI (Spent Fuel Pool Island) operated temporarily as a spent fuel storage option before spent nuclear fuels were transported to an interim storage facility or a final disposal facility. As a spent fuel storage option after shutdown during decommissioning, the SFPI concept can be expected to have the following effects: reduced occupational exposure, lower cost of operation, strengthened safety, and so on. This paper presents a case study associated with the regulations, operating experiences, and systems of SFPI in the US. In conclusion, the following steps are recommended for applying SFPI during decommissioning in Korea: confirmation of design change scope of SFPI and expected final cost, the submission of a decommissioning plan which is reflected in SFPI improvement plans, safety assessment using PSR, application of an operating license change for design change, regulatory body review and approval, design change, inspection by the regulatory body, education and commissioning for SFPI, SFPI operation and periodic inspection, and dismantling of SFPI.

• Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.53-72
• /
• 1991

An integrated model is developed in this paper for the performance assessment of high level radioactive waste repository. This integrated model consists of two simple mathematical models. One is a multiple-barrier failure model of the repository system based on constant failure rates which provides source terms to biosphere. The other is a biosphere model which has multiple pathways for radionuclides to reach to human. For the parametric uncertainty and sensitivity analysis for the risk assessment of high level radioactive waste repository, Latin hypercube sampling and rank correlation techniques are applied to this model. The former is cost-effective for large computer programs because it gives smaller error in estimating output distribution even with smaller number of runs compared to crude Monte Carlo technique. The latter is good for generating dependence structure among samples of input parameters. It is also used to find out the most sensitive, or important, parameter groups among given input parameters. The methodology of the mathematical modelling with statistical analysis will provide useful insights to the decision-making of radioactive waste repository selection and future researches related to uncertain and sensitive input parameters.

• Proceedings of the Korean Nuclear Society Conference
• /
• 1997.05a
• /
• pp.199-206
• /
• 1997

For the Korean Next Generation Reactor(KNGR) development, LBB is considered for the Main Steam Line(MSL) piping inside its containment to achieve cost and safety Improvement. To apply LBB concept to MSL, leak sensors highly sensitive to humidity is required. In this paper, a ceramic material, MgCr$_2$O$_4$-TiO$_2$ has been developed as a humidity sensor for MSL applications. Experiments peformed to characterize the electrical conductivity shows that the conductivity of MgCr$_2$O$_4$-TiO$_2$ responds sensitively to both temperature and humidity changes. At a constant temperature below 10$0^{\circ}C$, the conductivity increases as the relative humidity increases, which makes the sensor favorable for application to the outside of MSL insulation layer But as temperature increases beyond 10$0^{\circ}C$, the sensor composition should be adjusted for the application to KNGR is to be made at temperature above 10$0^{\circ}C$.