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The mission of the Decommissioning and Environmental Sciences (DES) Division is to promote the development and use of those skills and technologies associated with the use of nuclear energy and the optimal management and stewardship of the environment, sustainable development, decommissioning, remediation, reutilization, and long-term surveillance and maintenance of nuclear-related installations, and sites. The target audience for this effort is the membership of the Division, the Society, and the public at large.
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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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NRC engineers share their expertise at the University of Puerto Rico
Robert Roche-Rivera and Marcos Rolón-Acevedo are licensed professional engineers who work at the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. They are also alumni of the University of Puerto Rico–Mayagüez (UPRM) and have been sharing their knowledge and experience with students at their alma mater since last year, serving as adjunct professors in the university’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. During the 2023–2024 school year, they each taught two courses: Fundamentals of Nuclear Science and Engineering, and Nuclear Power Plant Engineering.
M. A. Talarico, P. F. F. Frutuoso e Melo, I. B. Gomes
Nuclear Technology | Volume 209 | Number 5 | May 2023 | Pages 745-764
Technical Paper | doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2022.2155021
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
This study presents a method for inferring the potential variabilities that need to be computed in a model developed using the Functional Resonance Analysis Method (FRAM) by means of adapting a questionnaire used in the Resilience Analysis Grid method. The proposed method, called in this study the indirect method, is compared to the technique prescribed in FRAM to acquire variabilities for each system’s functions in the specific case of a FRAM model for obtaining a nuclear-powered submarine and its land support facility, hereinafter called the Combined Nuclear Facility (CNF). It should be noted that this model encompasses the design, the nuclear licensing process, and the construction of the CNF and aims to help to point out weaknesses in nuclear safety. The results show that 55.17% of the variability data obtained from both methods was identical (by exploratory data analysis), and a chi-square test of independence, conducted between method type and variability category, displayed that there was not a statistically significant association between method type and variability category. Thus, the null hypothesis cannot be rejected, and variability category and method type are independent of each other. Additionally, a qualitative comparison of a FRAM instantiation is presented using variabilities from the two methods, which resulted in small differences that apparently do not affect the overall result of the FRAM analysis. Therefore, it is concluded that the indirect method used to obtain information on the variability of functions of the model for obtaining the CNF is adequate.