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Nuclear Criticality Safety
NCSD provides communication among nuclear criticality safety professionals through the development of standards, the evolution of training methods and materials, the presentation of technical data and procedures, and the creation of specialty publications. In these ways, the division furthers the exchange of technical information on nuclear criticality safety with the ultimate goal of promoting the safe handling of fissionable materials outside reactors.
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Utility Working Conference and Vendor Technology Expo (UWC 2024)
August 4–7, 2024
Marco Island, FL|JW Marriott Marco Island
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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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Vogtle-3 shuts down for valve issue
One of the new Vogtle units in Georgia was shut down unexpectedly on Monday last week for a valve issue that has since been investigated and repaired. According to multiple local news outlets, Georgia Power reported on July 17 that Unit 3 was back in service.
Southern Company spokesperson Jacob Hawkins confirmed that Vogtle-3 went off line at 9:25 p.m. local time on July 8 “due to lowering water levels in the steam generators caused by a valve issue on one of the three main feedwater pumps.”
Thomas D. Radcliff, Don W. Miller, Andrew C. Kauffman
Nuclear Technology | Volume 132 | Number 2 | November 2000 | Pages 240-255
Technical Paper | Thermal Hydraulics | doi.org/10.13182/NT00-A3142
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Reactor thermal limits are based on fuel energy deposition and cladding temperature. This paper presents a two-wire in-core instrument that directly measures fuel energy deposition. The instrument is based on the addition of heat through resistive dissipation of input electrical energy to a small mass of reactor fuel or fuel analogue. A feedback loop controls the input electrical energy needed to maintain the fuel mass at a nearly constant temperature regardless of the nuclear energy deposited in the mass. Energy addition to the fuel and fuel temperature feedback to the controller are provided by a resistive heating element embedded in the fuel mass. As long as the external heat transfer environment remains constant, the input electrical energy is inversely related to the actual nuclear energy deposition. To demonstrate this instrument, we first scaled the sensor and controller parameters and then used the results to guide fabrication of prototype instruments. In-reactor testing was performed to measure the instrument sensitivity, linearity, bandwidth, and long-term drift characteristics of the prototypes. The instrument is shown to be capable of high-sensitivity, linear measurement of fuel energy deposition with sufficient bandwidth for safety-related measurements. It is also clear that a means to compensate the sensor for changes in the external heat transfer environment is required. Means of actively measuring heat losses and performing this compensation are discussed.