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Division Spotlight
Young Members Group
The Young Members Group works to encourage and enable all young professional members to be actively involved in the efforts and endeavors of the Society at all levels (Professional Divisions, ANS Governance, Local Sections, etc.) as they transition from the role of a student to the role of a professional. It sponsors non-technical workshops and meetings that provide professional development and networking opportunities for young professionals, collaborates with other Divisions and Groups in developing technical and non-technical content for topical and national meetings, encourages its members to participate in the activities of the Groups and Divisions that are closely related to their professional interests as well as in their local sections, introduces young members to the rules and governance structure of the Society, and nominates young professionals for awards and leadership opportunities available to members.
Meeting Spotlight
Utility Working Conference and Vendor Technology Expo (UWC 2024)
August 4–7, 2024
Marco Island, FL|JW Marriott Marco Island
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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Latest News
Virginia utility considers SMRs
Dominion Energy Virginia has issued a request for proposals from leading nuclear companies to study the feasibility of putting a small modular reactor at its North Anna nuclear power plant.
While the utility says it is not a commitment to build an SMR at the site, the RFP is “an important first step in evaluating the technology and the North Anna site to support Dominion Energy customers’ future energy needs consistent with the company’s most recent Integrated Resource Plan.”
Selim Sancaktar, T. van de Venne
Nuclear Technology | Volume 91 | Number 1 | July 1990 | Pages 112-117
Technical Paper | Safety of Next Generation Power Reactor / Nuclear Safety | doi.org/10.13182/NT90-A34447
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
Insights obtained from various probabilistic risk analysis (PRA) studies performed by the Westinghouse Electric Corporation and associates on new pressurized water reactor (PWR) designs are briefly discussed and compared. The discussion is limited to internal initiating events since external event analysis requires site-specific data. The plant core melt frequency resulting from these initiating events is used as the measure to identify dominant accident sequences. The initiating events, failures of frontline safety systems and their support systems, operator actions, and consequential failures are used to measure the response of each design to various safety issues discussed. A conventional PWR plant is used as the base to compare the features of the different designs and the insights obtained from the PRA studies. The cases discussed include (a) a conventional PWR plant design (Westinghouse), (b) a Progetto Unificato Nucleare design (Westinghouse and Ansaldo), (c) a Sizewell-B design (Westinghouse and National Nuclear Corporation), and (d) an advanced PWR design (Westinghouse and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries). In studies (b), (c), and (d), PRAs are performed in the early design stages to evaluate the effect of primary safety and support systems on the plant core melt frequency. The results of the PRA evaluations are used, together with other considerations, to make appropriate design modifications. The experience obtained from studies (b), (c), and (d) leads to the conclusion that PRAs are effective in supporting early plant design efforts for engineered safety systems. Probabilistic risk analysis models provide an additional decision-making tool to evaluate the importance and effect of various design alternatives.
