The risk of producing energy

1981 ◽  
Vol 376 (1764) ◽  
pp. 121-131 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Energy Output ◽  
Pollution Effects ◽  
Unit Energy ◽  
Air Pollution Effects ◽  
Incoming Energy ◽  
Unit Output ◽  
Conventional Systems

If risk is to be understood by the public, the sometimes abstruse numbers and calculation must be put into perspective. In terms of energy, the simplest way is to compare the risk per unit output for different forms of production. Previous studies have suggested that coal- and oil-fired electricity have higher overall risk than nuclear power, due primarily to the former’s air pollution effects. While newer, non-conventional energy forms such as solar and wind power may appear at first glance to be risk-free, this is not so. Because of the diluteness of the incoming energy, these non-conventional systems require large numbers of collectors per unit energy output. In turn, considerable quantities of steel, glass, copper, aluminium etc., are required, the production of which incurs occupational risk. In consequence, non-conventional systems can have substantial risk to health. The implications of this and Siddall's recent calculations on cost-benefit analysis are explored in terms of public policy.

We Never Built Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), but What Do We Know About Modularization in Construction?

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benito Mignacca ◽  
Giorgio Locatelli ◽  
Mahmoud Alaassar ◽  
Diletta Colette Invernizzi
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Schedule Compression ◽  
Small Modular Reactors ◽  
Key Characteristics ◽  
Additional Costs ◽  
Structured Knowledge ◽  
The Cost

The key characteristics of small modular reactors (SMRs), as their name emphasized, are their size and modularity. Since SMRs are a family of novel reactor designs, there is a gap of empirical knowledge about the cost/benefit analysis of modularization. Conversely, in other sectors (e.g. Oil & Gas) the empirical experience on modularization is much greater. This paper provides a structured knowledge transfer from the general literature (i.e. other major infrastructure) and the Oil & Gas sector to the nuclear power plant construction world. Indeed, in the project management literature, a number of references discuss the costs and benefits determined by the transition from the stick-built construction to modularization, and the main benefits presented in the literature are the reduction of the construction cost and the schedule compression. Additional costs might arise from an increased management hurdle and higher transportation expenses. The paper firstly provides a structured literature review of the benefits and costs of modularization divided into qualitative and quantitative references. In the second part, the paper presents the results of series of interviews with Oil & Gas project managers about the value of modularization in this sector.

Lifetime Management of EDF PWR Pressure Vessels and Pipings

2004 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Hedin ◽  
J. C. Legendre
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Pressure Vessels ◽  
Destructive Testing ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Cast Stainless Steel ◽  
Non Destructive

Lifetime management of EDF PWR vessels and pipings are one of the main technical key points of safety and competitivness. This paper describes the EDF global approach in this field, which is applied to the nuclear fleet i.e 58 nuclear power plants, and particularly to the first 34 three loops, as far as lifetime is concerned: • operating procedures and routine maintenance, special maintenance and ten years safety reassessment, • engineering analysis, based on feed back experience, scientific knowledge, degradations mechanisms, causes and consequences management, • operating loadings decrease, • complementary deterministic and cost-benefit analysis, • fit for service justifications, • anticipation strategy to prepare future, based on Non Destructive Testing investigations, ability to repair and/or to replace components, in situ expertises, ... Some examples are given: lifetime management of reactor vessels heads and bottom penetrations of pressure vessels, fit for service of cast stainless steel primary pipings, primary nozzles and auxiliary pipings special maintenance.

Sun Tracker Performance Analysis for Different Solar Module Technologies in an Alpine Environment

2014 ◽  
Vol 136 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip Ingenhoven ◽  
Giorgio Belluardo ◽  
David Moser ◽  
Wolfram Sparber
Keyword(s):  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Performance Ratio ◽  
Energy Output ◽  
Energy Harvest ◽  
Test Field ◽  
Solar Module ◽  
Alpine Environment ◽  
Wind Speeds ◽  
The Cost

The objective of this study is to compare the performance of different solar module technologies mounted on a fixed-tilt rack (30 deg) as well as on a single and a dual axis tracker. The data of this study were taken from a 724 kWp multitechnology test field at the Airport of Bolzano in the Italian Alps (position ca.46.46N, 11.33 E), which the European Academy of Bolzano is monitoring. The technologies tested were polycrystalline silicon (p-Si) and heterojunction with an intrinsic thin-layer (HIT). We compared the performance of each system in terms of energy output, as well as the performance ratio of both technologies on the different mounting systems. A detailed shading analysis was performed and losses due to the mountainous environment were determined. Further we analyzed miss-tracking, namely, due to shading of the position sensor on the single axis tracker and further, due to high wind speeds, at which the dual axis tracker moves to a safety position. Identifying these problems helps to maximize the tracker performance and hence the energy harvest. A cost benefit analysis was then performed based on the cost of the trackers, energy price, and by comparing the results with fixed installations.

scholarly journals The Challenges of Implementing the Indonesian Experimental Power Reactor (RDE) Program

2021 ◽  
Vol 2048 (1) ◽  
pp. 012001
Author(s):  
D S Wisnubroto ◽  
G R Sunaryo ◽  
Y S B Susilo ◽  
S Bahri ◽  
T Setiadipura
Keyword(s):  
Cost Estimation ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Power Plants ◽  
Nuclear Power Plants ◽  
Fossil Fuels ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Small And Medium Enterprises ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Long Run ◽  
Medium Enterprises

Abstract This paper shows the effort to implement the RDE and its challenges from 2013 to 2018. RDE was a program to introduce nuclear power plants by building non-commercial power reactors. The RDE program was also used to prove that Indonesian engineers can design a reactor that will later supply electricity and steam for industry. The technology used is a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor. This RDE program is a very strategic intermediate target for energy security and national sovereignty. The development of RDE-based nuclear power plants, in the long run, is expected to have implications for reducing reliance on fossil fuels, more self-sufficiency in energy supply increases national industrial capacity and competitiveness in the global economic order, as well as enhance energy and political diplomacy. Also, RDE can be a reference installation for PeLUIt (Power and Steam Generators for Industry) power plants for small and medium enterprises to meet the demand for electricity and industrial heat in an area’s needs. However, many challenges occurred to implement this program; among them were cost estimation and cost-benefit analysis. Although the program has not been realized, mainly for financial reasons, many positive things have been obtained from these activities.

Value of Information and Hypothesis Testing Approaches for Sample Size Determination in Engineering Component Inspection: A Comparison

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eishiro Higo ◽  
Mahesh D. Pandey
Keyword(s):  
Sample Size ◽  
Value Of Information ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Sample Size Determination ◽  
Size Determination ◽  
Benefit Analysis ◽  
Current State ◽  
Optimal Sample

A sample size determination method is developed for a two-action problem that represents a component maintenance scenario requiring current state estimation. For safety and generation efficiency, each component of a nuclear power plant must be regularly inspected. In terms of safety, the larger the sample size inspected, the less the uncertainty about current and future states of the components; however, such inspections are expensive. Thus, sample size determination becomes an important problem. A key idea for solving this problem is the Value of Information (VoI) and its derivation: the Expected Net Gain of Sampling (ENGS). The ENGS is a function of sample size and represents by how much a decision maker benefits from the observed data. By maximizing the ENGS, the optimal sample size is determined in terms of cost-benefit analysis.

scholarly journals Review of QTRA and Risk-based Cost-benefit Assessment of Tree Management

2013 ◽  
Vol 39 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Stewart ◽  
Dealga O’Callaghan ◽  
Mark Hartley
Keyword(s):  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Risk Management ◽  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Offshore Platforms ◽  
Risk Management Process ◽  
Fig Trees ◽  
The 1960S

Quantified Risk Assessment (QRA) has been in wide use in risk management since the 1960s for systems ranging from aviation, nuclear power, and offshore platforms to medical treatment and pharmaceuticals. The Quantified Tree Risk Assessment (QTRA) system is examined considering the principles of QRA. A case study of 14 fig trees in Newcastle, Australia, illustrates some limitations of the QTRA process, and extrapolating risks for a single tree to a group of trees. There is a need for any risk management process involving trees, not only to assess the risk, but to weigh the benefits provided by trees by a risk-based cost-benefit analysis. Tree risk assessors should rely on benchmarks to ensure that their assessment is not outside of the realms of reality or scientific rigor.

scholarly journals Quantitative Cost-Benefit Analysis of Direct Disposal and Pyroprocessing in Korea’s Nuclear Fuel Cycle

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7789
Author(s):  
Sungki Kim ◽  
Jinseop Kim ◽  
Dongkeun Cho ◽  
Sungsig Bang
Keyword(s):  
Nuclear Power ◽  
Fuel Cycle ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Cost Benefit ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Maintenance Cost ◽  
Benefit Analysis ◽  
Spent Fuel ◽  
The Difference

The purpose of this study is to compare the economic viability of direct disposal and pyroprocessing. This is because the selection of an alternative cannot be justified without a guarantee of economic feasibility. This paper sets the KRS (Korea Reference System) spent fuel repository and KAPF+ (Korea Advanced Pyroprocess Facility plus) as the cost objects, administers a cost-benefit analysis, and presents the results on the net cost. The results of the calculation demonstrate that the net costs of direct disposal and pyroprocessing are USD 17,719,319,040 and USD 19,329,252,755, respectively. The difference in the net cost for the two alternatives is thus not insignificant. However, the economic viability of direct disposal was found to be superior compared to that of pyroprocessing. In the end, it was found that the operating and maintenance cost of a pyroprocessing facility is comparatively high. Accordingly, direct disposal costs less than pyroprocessing. The direct disposal option is advantageous in terms of economical nuclear power sustainability.

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