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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
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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Jul 2024
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Nuclear Science and Engineering
August 2024
Nuclear Technology
Fusion Science and Technology
Latest News
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.”
Ben Frisk, Christopher Hope (NuScale Power)
Proceedings | Nuclear Plant Instrumentation, Control, and Human-Machine Interface Technolgies (NPIC&HMIT 2019) | Orlando, FL, February 9-14, 2019 | Pages 290-295
The purpose of this paper is to describe gaps found in programmatic verification activities for safety-critical systems based on field programmable gate array (FPGA) technology; specifically, by comparing the more mature methods used by other regulated industries that commonly use FPGAs and those mandated in the traditional software-based framework of the legacy commercial nuclear power generating industry. This paper also describes the strategies used by NuScale Power, LLC (NuScale) to fill the identified gaps, while maintaining its conformance to IEEE 1012-2004. In addition, the purpose of this paper is to inform and encourage consideration of why the 2004 version of IEEE 1012 is outdated for its application to the commercial nuclear power industry, especially as adoption of non-microprocessor based digital technology becomes widespread. Currently, the regulatory process for ensuring quality and safety for digital plant protection systems specifies independent verification and validation (IV&V) as outlined in IEEE 1012-2004 and endorsed by Regulatory Guide 1.168, Revision 2. Simply put, the reason to move away from the 2004 version and adoption of the 2016 version is due to the holistic systems-based life cycle that is inclusive of hardware, software, and their interfaces, which is now specified in the new version of IEEE 1012 (version 2016). The systems-based strategy is a key factor needed to ensure functional safety and quality throughout the verification and validation process. This is especially true for FPGA-based systems, as there is a tendency to think this technology should be treated only as hardware. This paper will identify critical differences between the versions of IEEE 1012 and explain why the NuScale IV&V program is looking outside of the commercial nuclear industry for methods better suited to FPGA-based I&C systems. In closing, this paper is intended to describe portions of the NuScale IV&V program that meets the requirements specified in IEEE 1012-2004, but also combines innovation with lessons learned from nonnuclear industries used to develop FPGA-based safety I&C systems.