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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
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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August 2024
Nuclear Technology
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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.”
John O’Hara (BNL), Stephen Fleger (NRC)
Proceedings | Nuclear Plant Instrumentation, Control, and Human-Machine Interface Technolgies (NPIC&HMIT 2019) | Orlando, FL, February 9-14, 2019 | Pages 1778-1784
Design validation is an integral aspect of the systems engineering process and safety reviews. In the nuclear industry, integrated system validation (ISV) is the primary means of validating the human factors aspects of new and modified plant designs. However, challenges posed by ISV have led to interest in alternative approaches to validation. One alternative is multi-stage validation (MSV), which involves conducting validations at multiple points throughout the design process. The objective of this research was to define MSV and to identify its potential benefits, methodology, and technical issues and challenges. To address this objective, we reviewed standards and guidelines, case studies of design validation using MSV approaches, and technical literature discussing MSV methodology. From this technical basis we developed a characterization of MSV. The general goal of validation is to provide evidence that a design or design-related activity achieves its intended purpose. MSV approaches to validation achieve this goal by linking validation activities to design stages resulting in incremental, successive validation activities beginning in the early stages of the design process and continuing through the late stages of the design process. The main elements of an MSV program are: Determining the scope of MSV, identifying stages, developing MSV methodology, integrating MSV results across validation tests, and formulating validation conclusions. MSV has many challenges and benefits when compared with ISV alone. Further development of MSV methodology will help minimize MSV’s challenges and provide designers and regulators with guidance needed to implement and review MSV programs.