• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.446-452
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• 2018

To improve the accuracy and safety of irradiation tests in High flux Advanced Neutron Application ReactOr (HANARO), the nuclear energy deposition rate, which is called nuclear heating, was estimated for an irradiation capsule with an iridium sample in the irradiation hole in order. The gamma rays emitted from the radioisotopes (RIs) of the structural materials such as flow tubes of fuel assemblies and heavy water reflector tank were considered as radiation source. Using the ORIGEN2.1 code, emission rates of delayed gamma rays were calculated in consideration of the activation procedure for 8 years and 2 months of HANARO operation. Calculated emission rates were used as a source term of delayed gamma rays in the MCNP6 code. By using the MCNP code, the nuclear heating rates of the irradiation capsules in the inner core, outer core, and heavy water reflector tank were estimated. Calculated nuclear heating in the inner core, outer core, and heavy water reflector tank were 200-260 mW, 80-100 mW, and 10 mW, respectively.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.280-291
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• 2018

In the framework of OECD/NEA Working Group on Fuel Safety, a RIA fuel-rod-code Benchmark Phase I was organized in 2010-2013. It consisted of four experiments on highly irradiated fuel rodlets tested under different experimental conditions. This benchmark revealed the need to better understand the basic models incorporated in each code for realistic simulation of the complicated integral RIA tests with high burnup fuel rods. A second phase of the benchmark (Phase II) was thus launched early in 2014, which has been organized in two complementary activities: (1) comparison of the results of different simulations on simplified cases in order to provide additional bases for understanding the differences in modelling of the concerned phenomena; (2) assessment of the uncertainty of the results. The present paper provides a summary and conclusions of the second activity of the Benchmark Phase II, which is based on the input uncertainty propagation methodology. The main conclusion is that uncertainties cannot fully explain the difference between the code predictions. Finally, based on the RIA benchmark Phase-I and Phase-II conclusions, some recommendations are made.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.2
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• pp.292-296
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• 2018

Recent events in the nuclear industry have resulted in a movement towards increased seismic and LOCA excitations and requirements that challenge current fuel designs. AREVA NP's GAIA fuel design introduces unique and robust characteristics to resist the effects of seismic and LOCA excitations. For demanding seismic and LOCA scenarios, fuel assembly spacer grids can undergo plastic deformations. These plastic deformations must not prohibit the complete insertion of the control rod assemblies and the cooling of the fuel rods after the accident. The specific structure of the GAIA spacer grid produces a unique and stable compressive deformation mode which maintains the regular array of the fuel rods and guide tubes. The stability of the spacer grid allows it to absorb a significant amount of energy without a loss of load-carrying capacity. The GAIA-specific grid behavior is in contrast to the typical spacer grid, which is characterized by a buckling instability. The increased mechanical robustness of the GAIA spacer grid is advantageous in meeting the increased seismic and LOCA loadings and the associated safety requirements. The unique GAIA spacer grid behavior will be incorporated into AREVA NP's licensed methodologies to take full benefit of the increased mechanical robustness.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.488-493
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• 2018

The Firebrick Resistance-Heated Energy Storage (FIRES) concept developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology aims to enhance profitability of the nuclear power industry in the next decades. Studies carried out at Massachusetts Institute of Technology already provide estimates of the potential revenue from FIRES system when it is applied to industrial heat supply, the likely first application. Here, we investigate the possibility of operating a power plant (PP) with a fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor and a closed Brayton cycle. This variant offers features such as enhanced nuclear safety as well as flexibility in design of the PP but also radically changes the way of operating the PP. This exploratory study provides estimates of the revenue generated by FIRES in addition to the nominal revenue of the stand-alone fluoride-salt-cooled high-temperature reactor, which are useful for defining an initial design. The electricity price data is based on the day-ahead markets of Germany/Austria and the United States (Iowa). The proposed method derives from the equation of revenue introduced in this study and involves simple computations using MatLab to compute the estimates. Results show variable economic potential depending on the host grid but stress a high profitability in both regions.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.87-100
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• 2020

Performance shaping factors (PSFs) in a human reliability analysis (HRA) are one that may influence human performance in a task. Most currently applicable HRA methods for nuclear power plants (NPPs) use PSFs to highlight human error contributors and to adjust basic human error probabilities (HEPs) that assume nominal conditions of NPPs. Thus far, the effects of PSFs have been treated independently. However, many studies in the fields of psychology and human factors revealed that there may be relationships between PSFs. Therefore, the inter-relationships between PSFs need to be studied to better reflect their effects on operator errors. This study investigates these inter-relationships using two data sources and also suggests a context-based approach to treat the inter-relationships between PSFs. Correlation and factor analyses are performed to investigate the relationship between PSFs. The data sources are event reports of unexpected reactor trips in Korea and an experiment conducted in a simulator featuring a digital control room. Thereafter, context-based approaches based on the result of factor analysis are suggested and the feasibility of the grouped PSFs being treated as a new factor to estimate HEPs is examined using the experimental data.

• Journal of Korean Society of Water and Wastewater
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.867-874
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• 2006

The goal of this study is to assess cast iron pipes (CIPs) and present a residual tensile strength prediction model using pit characteristics and fracture toughness. The results is the followings. First, average pit depths of collected CIPs were in the range from 0.63 to 6.49 mm, loss of tensile strength compared with net metallic tensile strength were from -7.06 to 67.91 percent. Second, fracture toughness for NS-CR-1, NS-CR-2, and NS(2)-CR-1 were in the range from 62.85 to $89.39kgf/mm^2{\sqrt{mm}}$, and average of those samples was $73.69kgf/mm^2{\sqrt{mm}}$ on CIPs. Third, the models developed in this study by using pit characteristics and fracture toughness showed a little good correlation for measured residual tensile strength, and the results will be expected to help for water utilities to manage CIPs in the aspect of rehabilitation and assessment of structural safety on CIPs.

• The Korean Journal of Health Service Management
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.143-152
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• 2012

This study analyzes Korea health panel data (2008) (beta version 1.2) of Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, and National Health Insurance Corporation to figure out determinants of healthcare expenditure. In result of Multiple Logistic Analysis, in-patents felt burden on the medical expenditure were 70.0%. As to the patients' payment of medical expenditure, patients over 65 years old had 4.765 times higher than those under 14 years, disabled patients 2.778 than non-disabled patients, chronic patients 1.632 times than non-chronic patients, patients belonging to 12 million won ~ 46 million won and under 12 million won in family income had 1.680 times and 2.168 times respectively than patients with over 46 million won, patients in professional recuperation facility 1.546 times than patients in hospital, patients in private medical institutions 1.700 times than patients in national and public medical institutions, patients using upper grade rooms 1.701 times than patients in non-upper grade rooms. As a health care safety net mechanism to protect people from medical expenditure burden, there is the patients' payment ceiling in the National Health Insurance System. Thus, in order to facilitate the patient's payment ceiling, it is required that the level of ceiling is to be specified according to the income level, and self-payment items is to be included.

• Fire Science and Engineering
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.24-31
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• 2009

The Environment of disaster has more complicated, diversified and unpredicted sides, which causes extensive damage to humankind. Above all, presently the climatic change causes worldwide disaster of nature like cataclysm, intense heat, drought, earthquake and hard winter. After 9.11, most of countries continuously try to protect their own compatriots' life and property which forms the social safety net as well. This research investigates the current system used by the firerenation which is the national disaster response agency.ict also suggests the unation whiih is the nasystem unationdisaster mthe nasys accundihg to tionld el of disaster like the constructe naof DB, disaster cycld repunt, analysis of danger, facilities ih is ation system, disaster media system, location search system, disaster damage collection system.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.719-724
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• 2010

Thousands of passengers and crews are onboard a cruise ship and there are many cabins and large public spaces such as atria and theaters. Therefore it is easy to cause a huge loss of life and damage to property when accidents happen at sea. To improve the safety of passenger ships, in October 2007, IMO proposed MSC.1/Circ.1238 on guidelines for evacuation analysis and recommended its use. However, this guideline is difficult to apply because ship designers need to get many pieces of information from CAD drawings such as width and length of stairs and corridors and manually calculate the evacuation time. In this paper, for practical application of the guidelines, an evacuation time calculation program is developed using AutoCAD .NET API library and C Sharp language.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.43 no.2
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• pp.141-148
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• 2011

This paper presents the quantitative analysis results of research on the burnup effect on the nuclear fuel cycle cost of BeO-$UO_2$ fuel. As a result of this analysis, if the burnup is 60 MWD/kg, which is the limit under South Korean regulations, the nuclear fuel cycle cost is 4.47 mills/kWh at 4.8wt% of Be content for the BeO-$UO_2$ fuel. It is, however, reduced to 3.70 mills/kWh at 5.4wt% of Be content if the burnup is 75MWD/kg. Therefore, it seems very advantageous, in terms of the economic aspect, to develop BeO-$UO_2$ fuel, which does not have any technical problem with its safety and is a high burnup & long life cycle nuclear fuel.