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Division Spotlight
Nuclear Installations Safety
Devoted specifically to the safety of nuclear installations and the health and safety of the public, this division seeks a better understanding of the role of safety in the design, construction and operation of nuclear installation facilities. The division also promotes engineering and scientific technology advancement associated with the safety of such facilities.
Meeting Spotlight
Conference on Nuclear Training and Education: A Biennial International Forum (CONTE 2025)
February 3–6, 2025
Amelia Island, FL|Omni Amelia Island Resort
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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Christmas Night
Twas the night before Christmas when all through the houseNo electrons were flowing through even my mouse.
All devices were plugged in by the chimney with careWith the hope that St. Nikola Tesla would share.
José N. Reyes, Jr.
Nuclear Technology | Volume 178 | Number 2 | May 2012 | Pages 153-163
Technical Paper | Small Modular Reactors / Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT12-A13556
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
The extreme events that led to the prolonged electrical power outage and finally to sever damage of four units of the Fukushima nuclear plant have highlighted the importance of ensuring a technical means for stable, long-term cooling of the nuclear fuel and the containment following a complete station blackout. This paper presents an overview of the advanced passive safety systems designed for the NuScale nuclear power plant and their role in addressing extreme events. The NuScale plant may include up to 12 power modules, and each module incorporates a reactor pressure vessel (core, steam generator, and pressurizer) and a containment vessel that surrounds the reactor vessel. During normal operation, each containment vessel is fully immersed in a water-filled, stainless steel-lined concrete pool that resides underground. The pool, housed in a Seismic Category I building, is large enough to provide 30 days of core and containment cooling without adding water. After 30 days, the core decay heat generation is so small that the natural convection heat transfer to air at the outside surface of the containment, coupled with thermal radiation heat transfer, are completely sufficient to remove the core decay heat for an unlimited period. These passive safety systems can perform their function without requiring an external supply of water or electric power. Computational and experimental assessments of the NuScale passive safety systems are being performed at several institutions, including the one-third scale NuScale integral system test facility at Oregon State University.