• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.8
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• pp.1255-1265
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• 2018

The need for a PSA (Probabilistic Safety Assessment) for a multi-unit at a site is growing after the Fukushima accident. Many countries have been studying issues regarding a multi-unit PSA. One of these issues is the problem of many combinations of accident sequences in a multi-unit PSA. This paper deals with the methodology and software to quantify a PSA scenarios for a multi-unit site. Two approaches are developed to quantify a multi-unit PSA. One is to use a minimal cut set approach, and the other is to use a Monte Carlo approach.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.3
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• pp.842-850
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• 2021

Real Time Simulation (RTS) has long been used in the nuclear power industry for operator training and engineering purposes. And, Online Simulation (OLS) is based on RTS and with connection to the plant information system to acquire the measurement data in real time for calibrating the simulation models and following plant operation, for the purposes of analyzing plant events and providing indicative signs of malfunctioning. An OLS system has been developed to support PWR operations for CPR1000 plants. The OLS system provides graphical user interface (GUI) for operators to monitor critical plant operations for preventing faulty operation or analyzing plant events. Functionalities of the OLS system are depicted through the maneuvering of the GUI for various OLS functional modules in the system.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.2
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• pp.509-521
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• 2021

In this paper, from a review of the size distribution of the bubbles during pool scrubbing obtained from experiments by EPRI, we apply the bubble size distributions to analyses on the decontamination factors of pool scrubbing via I-COSTA (In-Containment Source Term Analysis). We perform sensitivity studies of the bubble size on the various mechanisms of deposition of aerosol particles in pool scrubbing. We also perform sensitivity studies on the size distributions of the bubbles depending on the diameters at the nozzle exit, the molecular weights of non-condensable gases in the carrier gases, and the steam fractions of the carrier gases. We then perform analyses of LACE-ESPANA experiments and compare the numerical ~ results to those from SPARC-90 and experimental results in order to show the effect of the bubble size distributions.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.53 no.1
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• pp.19-29
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• 2021

This paper presents the validation of the MCS code for critical safety analysis with burnup credit for the spent fuel casks. The validation process in this work considers five critical benchmark problem sets, which consist of total 80 critical experiments having MOX fuels from the International Criticality Safety Benchmark Evaluation Project (ICSBEP). The similarity analysis with the use of sensitivity and uncertainty tool TSUNAMI in SCALE was used to determine the applicable benchmark experiments corresponding to each spent fuel cask model and then the Upper Safety Limits (USLs) except for the isotopic validation were evaluated following the guidance from NUREG/CR-6698. The validation process in this work was also performed with the MCNP6 for comparison with the results using MCS calculations. The results of this work showed the consistence between MCS and MCNP6 for the MOX fueled criticality benchmarks, thus proving the reliability of the MCS calculations.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.11
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• pp.4215-4219
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• 2022

The Cd_0.95Mn_0.05Te_0.98Se_0.02 (CMTS) ingot was grown by the vertical Bridgman technique at low pressure. All wafers showed high resistivity, which suggests potential as a room-temperature semiconductor detector. The resistivity of the CMTS planar detector was 1.47 × 10¹⁰ Ω·cm and mobility lifetime product of electrons was 1.29 × 10^-3 cm²/V. The spectroscopic property with Am-241 and Co-57 was evaluated. The energy resolution about 59.5 keV gamma-ray of Am-241 was 11% and the photo-peak of 122 keV gamma-ray from Co-57 was clearly distinguished. The result shows the first detector-grade CMTS in the world and proves CMTS's potential as a radiation detector operating at room temperature.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.792-799
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• 2023

Non-reactor nuclear facilities are increasing remarkably in Korea combined with advanced technologies such as life and space engineering, and the diversification of the nuclear industry. However, the absence of a basic classification guideline related to the design of non-reactor nuclear facilities has created confusion whenever related projects are carried out. In this paper, related domestic and international technical guidelines are reviewed to present the classification criteria of non-reactor nuclear facilities in Korea. Based on these criteria, the classification of structures, systems and components (SSCs) for safety controls is presented. Using the presented classification criteria, classification of a hot cell facility, a representative non-reactor nuclear facility, was performed. As a result of the classification, the hot cell facility is classified as the hazard category 3, accordingly, the safety class was classified as non-nuclear safety, the seismic category as non-seismic (RW-IIb), and the quality class as manufacturers' standards (S).

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.3
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• pp.1191-1198
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• 2023

Bentonite buffer material is a critical component in an engineered barrier system (EBS) for disposing high-level radioactive waste (HLW). The bentonite buffer material protects the disposal canister from groundwater penetration and releases decay heat to the surrounding rock mass; thus, it should possess high thermal conductivity, low hydraulic conductivity, and moderate swelling pressure to safely dispose the HLWs. Bentonite clay is a suitable buffer material because it satisfies the safety criteria. Several additives have been suggested as mixtures with bentonite to increase the thermal-hydraulic-mechanical-chemical (THMC) properties of bentonite buffer materials. Therefore, this study investigated the geotechnical, mineralogical, and THMC properties of several candidate additives such as sand, graphite, granite, and SiC powders. Datasets obtained in this study can be used to select adequate additives to improve the THMC properties of the buffer material.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.1687-1707
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• 2023

This paper presents a molten salt reactor (MSR) design parameter sensitivity study using a nodal dynamic modelling methodology with explicitly modified point kinetics equation and Mann's model for heat transfer. Six parameters that can impact MSR safety are evaluated. A MATLAB-Simulink model inspired by Thorcon's 550MWth MSR is used for parameter evaluations. A safety envelope was formed to encapsulate power, maximum and minimum temperature, and temperature-induced reactivity feedback. The parameters are perturbed by ±30%. The parameters were then ranked by their subsequent impact on the considered safety envelope, which ranks acceptable parameter uncertainty. The model is openly available on GitHub.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.55 no.10
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• pp.3787-3800
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• 2023

Reactivity Initiated Accident (RIA) scenarios require special attention using advanced simulation techniques due to their complexity and importance for nuclear power plant (NPP) safety. While the conservative approach has traditionally been used for safety analysis, it may lead to unrealistic results which calls for the use of best estimate plus uncertainty (BEPU) approach, especially with the current advances in computational power which makes the BEPU analysis feasible. In this work an Uncontrolled Control Element Assembly (CEA) Withdrawal at Full Power accident scenario is analyzed using the BEPU approach by loosely coupling the thermal hydraulics best-estimate system code (RELAP5/SCDAPSIM/MOD3.4) to the statistical analysis software (DAKOTA) using a Python interface. Results from the BEPU analysis indicate that a realistic treatment of the accident scenario yields a larger safety margin and is therefore encouraged for accident analysis as it may enable more economic and flexible operation.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.886-892
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• 2024

The cladding temperatures and axial mass distribution computed by MAAP5 were compared with their measured values in the test bundle of the Phebus Test FPT0. The computed cladding temperatures were in good agreed with the measured values in the pre-transient phase. In the transient heat-up phase, the computed temperatures were overestimated by the Baker-Just correlation in MAAP5, but the computed temperatures could simulate the subsequently measured values. The computed mass distribution in the axial direction was in qualitative agreement with the measured one for post-test fuel damage observations. The calculated flow areas of inner and outer regions in the test bundle were compared with the photographic observations. MAAP5 computed them at the height of 0.2 m where the molten pool formed was in qualitative agreement with the photographic observations. It was found that the remaining steam flow paths might be caused by the gas-liquid two-phase flow counter-current flow limitation.