FPGA Technology and Platforms for NPP I&C systems

This chapter describes an element base of new generation for NPP I&C, namely field programmable gate array (FPGA), and peculiarities of the FPGA application for designing safety critical systems. FPGA chips are modern complex electronic components that have been applied in nuclear power plants (NPPs) instrumentation and control systems (I&CSs) during the last 15-17 years. The advantages and some risks caused by application of the FPGA technology are analyzed. Safety assessment techniques of FPGA-based I&CSs and experience of their creation are described. The FPGA-based platform RadICS and its application for development of NPP I&CS is described.

Cyber Security Assurance in the Design, Implementation, and Operation of NPP I&C Systems

The chapter is devoted to the consideration of the issues concerning the cyber security assurance of NPP instrumentation and control systems. A brief overview of the international regulatory framework in the field of cyber security for nuclear facilities is given. The different approaches to the categorization of NPP instrumentation and control systems by cyber security are expressed. The basic principles of cyber security assurance of NPP instrumentation and control systems are considered. The specific measures of cyber security assurance (i.e., graded according to the cyber security levels) on the stages of development, implementation, and operation of NPP instrumentation and control systems are presented.

Assurance Case for I&C Systems Safety and Security Assessment

Two existing notations for the assurance case (claim, argument and evidence [CAE] and goal structuring notation [GSN]) are considered. Supporting software tools for development of the assurance case are considered. Some ways for improvement and modification are proposed for both assurance case notations (CAE and GSN). For CAE, the authors obtained annex with acceptance and coverage criteria as well as an algorithm of the assurance case update through life cycle stages. For GSN, they improve structured argumentation with support of structured text using. Recommendations for using the assurance case notations and tools for I&C systems are formulated.

Diversity for NPP I&C Systems Safety and Cyber Security

This chapter presents a cost-effective approach to selection of the most diverse NPP Reactor Trip System (RTS) under uncertainty. The selection of a pair of primary and secondary RTS is named a diversity strategy. All possible strategies are evaluated on an ordinal scale with linguistic values provided by experts. These values express the expert's degree of confidence that evaluated variants of secondary RTS are different from primary RTS. All diversity strategies are evaluated on a set of linguistic diversity criteria, which are included in a corresponding diversity attribute. The generic fuzzy diversity score is an aggregation of the linguistic values provided by the experts to obtain a collective assessment of the secondary RTS's similarity (difference) with a primary one. This most rational diversity strategy is found during the exploitation stage, taking into consideration the fuzzy diversity score and cost of each strategy.

Cyber Security Assessment of NPP I&C Systems

The chapter is devoted to the issues of cyber security assessment of instrumentation and control systems (I&C systems) of nuclear power plants (NPP). The authors examined the main types of potential cyber threats at the stages of development and operation of NPP I&C systems. Examples of real incidents at various nuclear facilities caused by intentional cyber-attacks or unintentional computer errors during the maintenance of the software of NPP I&C systems are given. The approaches to vulnerabilities assessment of NPP I&C systems are described. The scope and content of the assessment and periodic reassessment of cyber security of NPP I&C systems are considered. An approach of assessment to cyber security risks is described.

Composition of Safety and Cyber Security Analysis Techniques and Tools for NPP I&C System Assessment

Safety assessment of nuclear power plant instrumentation and control systems (NPP I&Cs) is a complicated and resource-consuming process that is required to be done so as to ensure the required safety level and comply to normative regulations. A lot of work has been performed in the field of application of different assessment methods and techniques, modifying them, and using their combinations so as to provide a unified approach in comprehensive safety assessment. Performed research has shown that there are still challenges to overcome, including rationale and choice of the safety assessment method, verification of assessment results, choosing and applying techniques that support safety assessment process, especially in the nuclear field. This chapter presents a developed framework that aggregates the most appropriate safety assessment methods typically used for NPP I&Cs.

Safety and Security Management for NPP I&C Systems

The main contribution of this study comprises a set of detailed contents for safety and security management. The following aspects of safety and security management requirements for NPP I&C systems are considered: relation between safety and security management, safety and security management plan, human resource management, configuration management, computer tools selection and evaluation, documentation management, planning of safety and security assessment.

Requirements and Life Cycle Model-Based Assessment of NPP I&C Systems Cyber Security and Safety

The chapter discusses the importance of assessment of interference degree for various attributes of safety-critical instrumentation and control (I&C) systems and proposes applicable metrics. An approach to analysis of safety-critical I&C systems is presented. Such approach relies on performance of gap analysis and consideration of influence of human, technique, and tool. The approach is applicable to cyber security assessment for various safety-critical I&C systems, including complex instrumentation and control systems and field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA)-based systems.

NPP Monitoring Missions via a Multi-Fleet of Drones

A drone-based system of monitoring of severe NPP accidents is described. A structure of a multi-fleet of drones, consisting of main drone fleets and a reserve drone fleet, is considered. A matrix of drone fleet reliability assessment attributes is presented. Various structures for systems of control stations for the multi-fleet of drones are suggested. Reliability models for the multi-fleet of drones with centralized (irredundant), centralized (redundant), decentralized, and partially decentralized systems of control stations are developed and analyzed.

NPP-Smart Grid Mutual Safety and Cyber Security Assurance

The smart grid (SG) is a movement to bring the electrical power grid up to date so it can meet current and future requirements to fit customer needs. Disturbances in SG operation can originate from natural disasters, failures, human factors, terrorism, and so on. Outages and faults will cause serious problems and failures in the interconnected power systems, propagating into critical infrastructures such as nuclear industries, telecommunication systems, etc. Nuclear power plants (NPP) are an intrinsic part of the future smart grid. Therefore, it is of high priority to consider SG safety, mutual influence between NPP and SG, forecast possible accidents and failures of this interaction, and consider the strategies to avoid them.