scholarly journals Nuclear decommissioning in Brazil and China: regulatory development, incompleteness and future synergy

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 220-236 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria-Augusta Paim ◽  
Chung-Han Yang

Abstract The law and regulation of nuclear infrastructure decommissioning is developing worldwide. At the international level, safety standards for the decommissioning process were established under the auspices of the International Atomic Energy Agency, which also encourages international co-operation and gives expert advice for Member States’ projects. Advanced jurisdictions such as the UK, US and Japan have made substantial progress in the elaboration of national legislation covering issues related to the risks for safety and the environment. This article aims at assessing the Brazilian and Chinese efforts, achievements and challenges in the establishment of national decommissioning legal regimes using the analytical lenses developed by probing into the strengths exhibited by selected advanced jurisdictions’ decommissioning regulations and experiences, in namely the UK, USA and Japan. As a result, the structural perspective developed enables the assessment of the effectiveness of the decommissioning framework of jurisdictions at an earlier stage. Brazil and China have just started to build their national decommissioning nuclear power plant regimes. Besides sharing a common nuclear power plant decommissioning regulatory momentum, both countries’ asymmetric capacities in the technology sector can be reciprocally combined to create a mutually beneficial relationship.

Author(s):  
Tatiana Grebennikova ◽  
Abbie N Jones ◽  
Clint Alan Sharrad

Irradiated graphite waste management is one of the major challenges of nuclear power-plant decommissioning throughout the world and significantly in the UK, France and Russia where over 85 reactors employed...


2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iain J. Tromans ◽  
Guillermo Aldama-Bustos ◽  
John Douglas ◽  
Angeliki Lessi-Cheimariou ◽  
Simon Hunt ◽  
...  

Author(s):  
Claude Besson ◽  
Erico Mariotti ◽  
Alexandre Mouysset ◽  
Lorenz zur Nedden ◽  
Bernard Delannay

Diamond tools are well proven cutting, drilling and grinding technologies in many applications but need to be specifically optimized and adapted for the complex and varied structures of nuclear power plant in view of decontamination and decommissioning. The proper development and use of diamond tools in these extreme and complex conditions can only be achieved thanks to the combined talent of experienced nuclear plant contractors, engineers, technicians, operators of diamond tools, and the use of specialized equipment. This present paper is an overview of the possible applications of diamond tools in the different operations of Nuclear Decommissioning and Decontamination.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-168
Author(s):  
Aslan Khuseinovich Abashidze ◽  
Vladimir Mikhailovich Filippov ◽  
Alexander Mikhailovich Solntsev

Abstract States have sovereign rights that allow them to construct nuclear power plants. Moreover, engaging with nuclear power generation makes possible the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (2016–30) in combatting climate change, paramount to the Paris Agreement’s initiatives. In the same vein, however, constructing and operating power plants pose strict dangers to both general safety of the public and to national security. Thus, plant operations should strictly abide by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) standards and international law. As a result, it is important to consider the potential transboundary impacts of nuclear power plants and to conduct an appropriate transboundary environmental impact assessment (EIA). The article examines the construction of the Ostrovets Nuclear Power Plant by Belarus, close to the border of the Republic of Lithuania. The question in focus, however, is as follows: what international procedure can be used to coordinate issues of potentially negative transboundary impacts? Lithuania, in order to avoid the operation of the nuclear power plant, thus sought peaceful settlement of the dispute making use of the dispute resolution mechanisms based on international environmental agreements. The authors of this study show that the treaty bodies, established on the basis of international environmental agreements, provide important assistance in this matter in coordination with the IAEA. The use of these quasi-judicial means of resolving interstate disputes proves effective in pursuing a compromise between economic development and environmental protection. In the absence of such mechanisms at a universal level, one should consider utilizing such mechanisms in other regions of the world.


Author(s):  
Juan Luo ◽  
Jiacheng Luo ◽  
Lei Sun

Nuclear class equipment should be assessed for seismic safety before they are used in nuclear power plant. According to nuclear safety codes and regulations, all seismic category I equipments shall be designed enduring safety shutdown earthquake (SSE). That is, the stress evaluation needs to be accomplished for those structures. For some components, the deformation evaluation needs to be performed as well to assure the function integrity of the equipment. In this paper, the seismic analysis for an explosion-proof valve used in nuclear power plant, which exactly belongs to seismic category I equipment, has been conducted based on finite element method. The natural frequency, vibration mode and seismic response of the structure have been obtained through calculation, and the stress and deformation under the combined loadings of gravity, internal pressure, blast and seismic load have been evaluated according to ASME AG-1. The bolts of the structure have been qualified according to ASME III-NF as well. The results show that the design of the explosion-proof valve is in compliance with the requirement of corresponding nuclear safety standards.


Author(s):  
T. Jelfs ◽  
M. Hayashi ◽  
A. Toft

Gross failure of certain components in nuclear power plant has the potential to lead to intolerable radiological consequences. For these components, UK regulatory expectations require that the probability of gross failure must be shown to be so low that it can be discounted, i.e. that it is incredible. For prospective vendors of nuclear power plant in the UK, with established designs, the demonstration of “incredibility of failure” can be an onerous requirement carrying a high burden of proof. Requesting parties may need to commit to supplementary manufacturing inspection, augmented material testing requirements, enhanced defect tolerance assessment, enhanced material specifications or even changes to design and manufacturing processes. A key part of this demonstration is the presentation of the structural integrity safety case argument. UK practice is to develop a safety case that incorporates the notion of ‘conceptual defence-in-depth’ to demonstrate the highest structural reliability. In support of recent Generic Design Assessment (GDA) submissions, significant experience has been gained in the development of so called “incredibility of failure” arguments. This paper presents an overview of some of the lessons learned relating to the identification of the highest reliability components, the development of the structural integrity safety arguments in the context of current GDA projects, and considers how the UK Technical Advisory Group on Structural Integrity (TAGSI) recommendations continue to be applied almost 15 years after their work was first published. The paper also reports the approach adopted by Horizon Nuclear Power and their partners to develop the structural integrity safety case in support of the GDA process to build the UK’s first commercial Boiling Water Reactor design.


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 51
Author(s):  
Ari Nugroho ◽  
Eko Kusratmoko ◽  
Tito L. Indra

PREFERRED SITE SELECTION USING GIS AND AHP: CASE STUDY IN BANGKA ISLAND NPP SITE. Industrial growth affects the increasing demand for electricity in various places, this also occurs on the island of Bangka. So far, electricity supply has only been obtained from fossil fuel power plants with inadequate capacity, unstable flow and depending on fuel supplies from outside the island. For this reason, it is necessary to build a Nuclear Power Plant (PLTN) which is believed to be reliable and able to overcome these problems. In order to prepare a safe and economical nuclear power plant site, influential parameters such as population density, cooling system, land clearing, cut and fill, and granite for the foundation have been analyzed. The novelty of this analysis lies in 2 methods which gradually used before come up with a final decision, namely spatial analysis and pairwise comparison using Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), respectively. The scope of study area is based on the site vicinity (1:5.000) scale, located in the districts of West and South Bangka. The siting process refers to the rules set by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Based on the final results of the analysis using the expert choice program, the numerical weights for West Bangka and South Bangka were 0.709 and 0.291, respectively, with a consistency value of 0.03.


2019 ◽  
Vol 140 ◽  
pp. 03001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khashayar Sadeghi ◽  
Seyed Hadi Ghazaie ◽  
Ekaterina Sokolova ◽  
Evgeniy Fedorovich ◽  
Amirsaeed Shirani

Nowadays, the problem of supplying fresh water to scarcer regions of the world is still acute. The seawater desalination has been touted as the main solution of closing the water gap in the Middle East and North Africa. However, seawater desalination is expensive and energy-intensive and influences the environment, extremely. Using nuclear power is a viable alternative energy resource to decrease the set of problems of consuming fossil fuels in the desalination plants. Iran, which is located in the arid belt of the eastern hemisphere, as a member state of IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) has announced his interest in the implementation of dual-purpose nuclear desalination in the existing nuclear power plant of the country. The Bushehr nuclear power plant is the first commercial nuclear reactor in the Middle East and can be used as a multi-purpose atomic complex to meet the demand for energy and supply of water to arid regions in the south of the country. This paper performs a thermo-economic assessment study for different desalination strategies in the second block of Bushehr NPP.


2020 ◽  
pp. 62-73
Author(s):  
V. Bogorad ◽  
O. Slepchenko ◽  
T. Lytvynska ◽  
D. Bielykh ◽  
I. Kalyta ◽  
...  

In the modern world, nuclear energy is one of the most economically feasible sources of energy. Although related risks are of a great public interest, they are quite obvious and predictable. The steady risk reduction trend is based on two main areas: improvement of nuclear power plant design basis and enhancement of emergency preparedness at all levels. Such a trend is maintained by more strict requirements for licensees from states and international competent authorities. Recently, practical elimination of an early radioactive release at a nuclear power plant is one of the most significant requirements for NPP safety. The paper covers issues focusing on how this requirement will be implemented within national radiation safety standards, namely within the regulations of the third group on intervention in the case of a radiological emergency, and whether Ukraine is ready to implement this standard for operating NPPs. The paper addresses the following issues: determination of an early release, available interval, theoretical grounds applied to assess an early release and public exposure doses. All the results presented in the paper are of an evaluative nature. The attention is focused not on specific features of a particular power unit or settlement, but on general physical principles of modeling the source term and protective properties of the premises.


2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Egidijus Babilas ◽  
Eugenijus Ušpuras ◽  
Sigitas Rimkevičius ◽  
Gintautas Dundulis ◽  
Mindaugas Vaišnoras

The decommissioning of nuclear facilities requires adequate planning and demonstration that dismantling and decontamination activities can be conducted safely. Existing safety standards require that an appropriate safety assessment be performed to support the decommissioning plan for each facility (International Atomic Energy Agency, 2006). This paper presents safety assessment approach used in Lithuania during the development of the first dismantling and decontamination project for Ignalina NPP. The paper will mainly focus on the identification and assessment of the hazards raised due to dismantling and decontamination activities at Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant and on the assessment of the nonradiological and radiological consequences of the indicated most dangerous initiating event. The drop of heavy item was indicated as one of most dangerous initiating events for the discussed Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant dismantling and decontamination project. For the analysis of the nonradiological impact the finite element model for the load drop force calculation was developed. The radiological impact was evaluated in those accident cases which would lead to the worst radiological consequences. The assessments results show that structural integrity of the building and supporting columns of building structures will be maintained and radiological consequences are lower than the annual regulatory operator dose limit.


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