• 한국압력기기공학회 논문집
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.1-10
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• 2016

The number of nuclear power plants operating in Korea was 24 as of year 2015. Nine units out of 24 units have been operated for a period over 20 years. Kori unit 1 has been in operation for 40 years, and an extended operation for Wolsong unit 1 was decided in 2015. There has been reported some crackings in reactor internals in PWR have been reported in Europe, USA, Japan and Korea, and some of them were replaced with new one. Repair and replacement technologies for the reactor internals have been developing in order to meet the regulatory requirements for long term operation in Korea. The technologies will also be used for the exported nuclear units. It is required to review degradation history of the reactor internals worldwide as a part of the degradation management program development. Schematics of reactor internals designed and supplied by Westinghouse, Framatome and Combustion Engineering are described herein. Materials degradation history of reactor internals of PWR plants in USA, Japan and Europe is surveyed and summarized. Some events from Korean plants are also described. Aging management strategy for the internals is suggested.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제19권1호
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• pp.141-160
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• 2021

Unit 1 of the Kori Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) and Unit 1 of the Wolsong NPP are being prepared for decommissioning; their decommissioning is expected to generate large amounts of intermediate-level, low-level, and very low level Waste. Mixed waste containing both radioactive and hazardous substances is expected to be produced. Nevertheless, laws and regulations, such as the Korean Nuclear Safety Act and Waste Management Act, do not define clear regulatory guidelines for mixed waste. However, the United States has strictly enforced regulations on mixed waste, focusing on the human health and environmental effects of its hazardous components. The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the U.S. Department of Energy regulate the radioactive components of mixed waste under the Atomic Energy Act. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulates the hazardous waste component of mixed waste under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. In this study, the laws, regulations, and authorities pertaining to mixed waste in the United States are reviewed. Through comparison and analysis with waste management laws and regulations in Korea, a treatment direction for mixed waste is suggested. Such a treatment for mixed waste will increase the efficiency of managing mixed waste when decommissioning NPPs in the near future.

• 한국방사성폐기물학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국방사성폐기물학회 2005년도 Proceedings of The 6th korea-china joint workshop on nuclear waste management
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• pp.165-175
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• 2005

Measurement of spent resin activity was initiated in 2004 in order to develop the C-14 removal technology for safe disposal. As part of this program, spent resins were sampled and measured in the in-station resin storage tank 2 at Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 1. At the time of sampling, the resins had been in storage tank from 3 to 23 years. Total 72 resin samples were sampled, which were collected from both man-hole (68 samples) and test-hole (4 samples) in the in-station resin storage tank 2. They were separated into liquid, activated carbon, zeolite, and spent resin. The spent resins were oxidized with sample oxidizer and analyzed for C-14. Ten of collected mixed resin samples were separated by density into cation and anion resins using a sugar solution. The C-14 concentration in anion exchange resin was approximately 2 times higher than in the mixed resin. The average concentration of C-14 in the cation/anion mixed exchange resin was $460\;GBq/m^3$ from test-hole and $53.1\;GBq/m^3$ from man-hole. We have found that concentration of C-14 in the spent resin is about from 0.4 to $1,321\;GBq/m^3$. So it could be a problem, when dispose of at a repository, since there is a disposal limit of $222\;GBq/m^3$. This means we should develop the C-14 removal technology.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제31권1호
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• pp.58-67
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• 1999

The purpose is to produce a model of nuclear reactor trip logic caused by the steam generator water level of Wolsong 2/3/4 unit through an activity chart and a statechart and to produce C language automatically using Statechart-based Formalism and Stalemate MAGNUM toolset suggested by David Harel Formalism. It was worth attempting auto-generation of C language though we manually made Software Requirement Specification(SRS) for safety-critical software using statechart-based formalism. Most of the phases of the software life-cycle except the software requirement specification of an analysis phase were generated automatically by Computer Aided Software Engineering (CASE) tools. It was verified that automatically produced C language has high productivity, portability, and quality through the simulation.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제45권2호
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• pp.257-264
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• 2013

In Canada Deuterium Uranium (CANDU)-type nuclear power plants, the reactor is composed of 380 fuel channels and refueling is performed on one or two channels per day. At the time of refueling, the fluid force of the cooling water inside the channel is exploited. New fuel added upstream of the fuel channel is moved downstream by the fluid force of the cooling water, and the used fuel is pushed out. Through this process, refueling is completed. Among the 380 fuel channels, outer rows 1 and 2 (called the FARE channel) make the process of using only the internal fluid force impossible because of the low flow rate of the channel cooling water. Therefore, a Flow Assist Ram Extension (FARE) tool, a refueling aid, is used to refuel these channels in order to compensate for the insufficient fluid force. The FARE tool causes flow resistance, thus allowing the fuel to be moved down with the flow of cooling water. Although the existing FARE tool can perform refueling in Korean plants, the coolant flow rate is reduced to below 80% of the normal flow for some time during refueling. A Flow rate below 80% of the normal flow cause low flow rate alarm signal in the plant operation. A flow rate below 80% of the normal flow may cause difficulties in the plant operation because of the increase in the coolant temperature of the channel. A new and improved FARE tool is needed to address the limitations of the existing FARE tool. In this study, we identified the cause of the low flow phenomena of the existing FARE tool. A new and improved FARE tool has been designed and manufactured. The improved FARE tool has been tested many times using laboratory test apparatus and was redesigned until satisfactory results were obtained. In order to confirm the performance of the improved FARE tool in a real plant, the final design FARE tool was tested at Wolsong Nuclear Power Plant Unit 2. The test was carried out successfully and the low flow rate alarm signal was eliminated during refueling. Several additional improved FARE tools have been manufactured. These improved FARE tools are currently being used for Korean CANDU plant refueling.

• 한국안전학회지
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• 제39권1호
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• pp.82-95
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• 2024

Analyzing the aftermath of events at domestic nuclear power plants brings in the question: "Why do workers not comply with the prescribed procedures?" The current investigation of nuclear power plant events identifies their reasons considering the factors affecting the workers' behaviors. However, there are some complications to it: in addition to confirming the action such as an error or a violation, there is a limit to identifying the intention of the actor. To overcome this limitation, the study analyzed and examined the reasons for non-compliance identified in nuclear power plant events by Reason's rule-related behavior classification. For behavior analysis, I selected unit behaviors for events that are related to human and organizational factors and occurred at domestic nuclear power plants since 2017, and then I applied the rule-related behavior classification introduced by Reason (2008). This allowed me to identify the intentions by classifying unit behaviors according to quality and compliance with the rules. I also identified the factors that influenced unit behaviors. The analysis showed that most often, non-compliance only pursued personal goals and was based on inadequate risk appraisal. On the other hand, the analysis identified cases where it was caused by such factors as poorly written procedures or human system interfaces. Therefore, the probability of non-compliance can be reduced if these factors are properly addressed. Unlike event investigation techniques that struggle to identify the reasons for employee behavior, this study provides a new interpretation of non-compliance in nuclear power plant events by examining workers' intentions based on the concept of rule-related behavior classification.

• 대한기계학회논문집A
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• 제34권4호
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• pp.495-499
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• 2010

이 연구에서는 우리나라 CANDU형 원전의 계속운전 규제지침을 개발하였다. CANDU 600 로형인 월성 1호기는 2012년에 30년 설계수명에 도달한다. 설계수명이후에 계속운전을 원하는 원전 사업자는 11개 인자를 포함하는 주기적안전성 평가 보고서를 제출해야 하며, 추가로 다음 사항에 대한 보고서를 제출해야 한다. (1) 경년열화 관리에 대한 범위 및 사전 검토 결과 (2) 경년열화 관리 프로그램 (3) 계속 운전기간을 포함하는 시간제한 경년열화 수명평가, (4) 운전경험 및 주요 연구결과의 반영. 이 연구에서는 상기 항목에 대한 54개의 규제지침이 개발되었다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제46권2호
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• pp.183-194
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• 2014

Recently, a CANDU digital reactivity computer system (CDRCS) to measure the worth of the liquid zone controller in a CANDU-6 was developed and successfully applied to a physics test of refurbished Wolsong Unit 1. In advance of using the CDRCS, its measureable reactivity range should be investigated and confirmed. There are two reasons for this investigation. First, the CANDU-6 has a larger reactor and smaller excore detectors than a general PWR and consequently the measured reactivity is likely to reflect the peripheral power variation only, not the whole core. The second reason is photo neutrons generated from the interaction of the moderator and gamma-rays, which are never considered in a PWR. To evaluate the limitations of the CDRCS, several tens of three-dimensional steady and transient simulations were performed. The simulated detector signals were used to obtain the dynamic reactivity. The difference between the dynamic reactivity and the static worth increases in line with the water level changes. The maximum allowable reactivity was determined to be 1.4 mk in the case of CANDU-6 by confining the difference to less than 1%.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제11권3호
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• pp.213-227
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• 2013

원자로시설 해체계획서 작성은 원자로시설의 안전한 해체, 해체폐기물의 발생 최소화, 사람과 환경 보호 등을 위해 원자로시설 해체에 앞서 반드시 필요하다. 우리나라는 고리 1호기, 월성 1호기가 머지않은 시기에 해체를 맞이하게 되지만, 해체계획서를 작성하는데 필요한 관련 세부 지침이 미비한 상황이다. 이에 따라 본 논문에서는 IAEA의 원자력 국제 안전기준과 원자로시설 해체경험과 선진화된 규제체계를 보유하고 있는 미국, 영국, 프랑스의 해체계획서 작성 지침을 비교분석하고 국내 상황을 감안하여 원자로시설 해체계획서 세부 작성지침(안)을 개발하였다. 본 논문에서 개발한 작성지침(안)은 국내 원자로시설 해체 관련 법령을 정비하고 해체사업자가 원자로시설을 해체하고자 할 때 미리 준비사항을 알려주는 역할을 할 것으로 기대되고 있다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제46권1호
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• pp.39-46
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• 2014

A total loss of all heat sinks is considered a severe accident with a low probability of occurrence. Following a total loss of all heat sinks, the degasser/condenser relief valves (DCRV) become the sole means available for the depressurization of the primary heat transport system. If a nuclear power plant has a total loss of heat sinks accident, high-temperature steam and differential pressure between the primary heat transport system (PHTS) and the steam generator (SG) secondary side can cause a SG tube creep rupture. To protect the PHTS during a total loss of all heat sinks accident, a sufficient depressurization capability of the degasser/condenser relief valve and the SG tube integrity is very important. Therefore, an accurate estimation of the discharge through these valves is necessary to assess the impact of the PHTS overprotection and the SG tube integrity of the primary circuit. This paper describes the analysis of DCRV discharge capacity and the SG tube integrity under a total loss of all heat sink using the CATHENA code. It was found that the DCRV's discharge capacity is enough to protect the overpressure in the PHTS, and the SG tube integrity is maintained in a total loss of all heat accident.