Abstract
The Reactor Safety (RETU, 1995-1998) research programme
concentrated on search of safe limits for nuclear fuel
and the reactor core, accident management methods and
risk management of nuclear power plants. The total volume
of the programme was 100 person years and funding FIM 58
million. This symposium report summarises the research
fields, the objectives and the main results obtained.
In the field of operational margins of a nuclear reactor,
the behaviour of high burnup nuclear fuel was studied
both in normal operation and during power transients. The
static and dynamic reactor analysis codes were developed
and validated to cope with new fuel designs and
complicated three-dimensional reactivity transients.
Advanced flow models and numerical solution methods for
the dynamics codes were developed and tested.
Research on accident management developed and validated
calculation methods needed to plan preventive measures
and to train the personnel to severe accident mitigation.
Efforts were made to reduce uncertainties in phenomena
important in severe accidents and to study actions
planned for accident management. The programme included
experimental work, but also participation in large
international tests. The Finnish thermal-hydraulic test
facility PACTEL was used extensively for the evaluation
of the VVER-440 plant accident behaviour, for the
validation of the accident analysis computer codes and
for the testing of passive safety system concepts for
future plant designs.
In risk management probabilistic methods were developed
for safety related decision making and for complex event
sequences. Effects of maintenance on safety were studied
and effective methods for assessment of human reliability
and safety critical organisations were searched. To
enhance human competencies in control of complex
environments, practical tools for training and continuous
learning were worked out, and methods to evaluate
appropriateness of control room design were developed.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Place of Publication | Espoo |
| Publisher | VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland |
| Number of pages | 260 |
| ISBN (Print) | 951-38-5262-8 |
| Publication status | Published - 1998 |
| MoE publication type | C2 Edited books |
| Event | RETU: The Finnish Research Programme on Reactor Safety 1995-1998: Final Symposium - Espoo, Finland Duration: 24 Nov 1998 → 24 Nov 1998 |
Publication series
| Series | VTT Symposium |
|---|---|
| Number | 189 |
| ISSN | 0357-9387 |
Keywords
- reactor safety
- nuclear fuel
- reactor physics
- thermal-hydraulics
- severe accidents
- risk analysis