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Division Spotlight
Isotopes & Radiation
Members are devoted to applying nuclear science and engineering technologies involving isotopes, radiation applications, and associated equipment in scientific research, development, and industrial processes. Their interests lie primarily in education, industrial uses, biology, medicine, and health physics. Division committees include Analytical Applications of Isotopes and Radiation, Biology and Medicine, Radiation Applications, Radiation Sources and Detection, and Thermal Power Sources.
Meeting Spotlight
2024 ANS Winter Conference and Expo
November 17–21, 2024
Orlando, FL|Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld
Standards Program
The Standards Committee is responsible for the development and maintenance of voluntary consensus standards that address the design, analysis, and operation of components, systems, and facilities related to the application of nuclear science and technology. Find out What’s New, check out the Standards Store, or Get Involved today!
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
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Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
General Atomics releases FUSE—an open-source fusion power design tool
Earlier this month, General Atomics made its Fusion Synthesis Engine (FUSE) software available to others who want to design and build magnetic confinement fusion power plants.
Gerardo Martinez-Guridi, Pranab Samanta, Tsong-Lun Chu, Ji-Wu Yang
Nuclear Technology | Volume 131 | Number 3 | September 2000 | Pages 297-318
Technical Paper | Reactor Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT00-A3118
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Following a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) in a nuclear power plant (NPP), the loss of electric-power generation, as might be precipitated by the unit tripping, may cause switchyard- and grid-instability with a subsequent loss-of-off-site power (LOOP). The LOOP usually is delayed by a few seconds or longer. This accident is called a LOCA with consequential LOOP, or a LOCA with delayed LOOP (abbreviated as LOCA/LOOP). NPPs are designed to cope with simultaneous LOCA and LOOP. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) identified this issue as generic safety issue (GSI) 171, "Engineered Safety Feature Failure from a Loss-Of-Off-Site Power Subsequent to a Loss-of-Coolant Accident." NRC subsequently dropped GSI-171 and considers it resolved. We present the probabilistic risk analysis of the LOCA/LOOP scenario that was conducted as part of NRC's resolution of GSI-171. We analyze and quantify the core damage frequency (CDF) associated with this accident. Event/fault trees are developed covering the progression of the accident to core damage. We used engineering evaluations and judgments to estimate probabilities for the conditions identified in a LOCA/LOOP scenario and to obtain a bounding evaluation of the CDF. We show that the contribution of such an accident to CDF depends on electrical-load sequencing and shedding capabilities; plants with adequate capabilities incur a minimal additional contribution to risk. No single plant design is known to be vulnerable to all the conditions; only some of the conditions may apply to some plants.