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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 253 records · Page 14
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2019

Advanced Concepts for Dry Storage Cask Thermal-Hydraulic Testing

The purpose of this report is to review technical issues relevant to the performance evaluation of dry storage systems during vacuum drying and long-term storage operations. It also provides updates on experimental components under development that are vital for pursuing advanced studies. Validation of the extent of water removal in a multi-assembly dry storage system using an industrial vacuum drying procedure is needed, as operational conditions leading to incomplete drying may have potential impacts on the fuel, cladding, and other components in the system. Water remaining in canisters/casks upon completion of vacuum drying can lead to cladding corrosion, embrittlement, and breaching, as well as fuel degradation. Therefore, additional information is needed to evaluate the potential impacts of water retention on extended long-term dry storage. A general lack of data and experience modeling the drying process necessitates the testing of advanced concepts focused on the simulation of industrial vacuum drying. Smaller-scale tests that incorporate relevant physics and well-controlled boundary conditions are necessary to provide insight and guidance to the modeling of prototypic systems undergoing drying processes. This report describes the development and testing of waterproof, electrically-heated spent fuel rod simulators as a proof of concept to enable experimental simulation of the entire dewatering and drying process. This report also describes the preliminary development of specially-designed, unheated mock fuel rods for monitoring internal rod pressures and studying water removal from simulated failed fuel rods. A variety of moisture monitoring instrumentation is also being considered and will be downselected for the tracking of dewpoints of gas samples. The effects of cladding oxidation and crud on water retention in dry storage systems can be explored via separate effects tests (SETs) that would measure chemisorbed and physisorbed water content on cladding samples. The concepts listed above will be incorporated into an advanced dry cask simulator with multiple fuel assemblies in order to account for important inter-assembly heat-transfer physics. Plans are described for harvesting up to five full-length 5x5 laterally truncated assemblies from commercial 17x17 PWR skeleton components with the goal of constructing this simulator.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2019

New Mexico Small Business Assistance Program: Management Sciences Inc. (Final Report)

Sandia National Laboratories will, as time and budget allow, perform the following tasks as part of a New Mexico Small Business Assistance (NMSBA) Program project for Management Sciences, Inc. (MSI): 1. Set up a thermal radar in Sandia's Technical Area (TA) III test bed. 2. Collect alarm data from the thermal radar and a radio frequency (RF) radar during simulated intrusion tests to estimate detection performance, based on the Department of Energy (DOE) threat definition. 3. Collect nuisance alarm data caused by weather and non-intruder-related stimuli, to estimate nuisance alarm rate performance. 4. Provide data to the requester, allowing them to process the data. 5. Provide the requester, as a stretch goal, with live radar and thermal radar sensor feeds, allowing real-time processing of the RF radar and the thermal radar. A key technical issue that will influence the success of this activity is the range accuracy of the thermal radar. If issues are encountered, Sandia will work with the requester to correct the range issues.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2020

Metal Alloy and RHEA Additive Manufacturing for Nuclear Energy and Aerospace Applications

An open-literature search was conducted to consider the current status of the additive manufacturing (AM) industry with respect to metal alloys and refractory high entropy alloys (RHEAs). Key areas of interest include methodologies and applications that are suitable for the nuclear and aerospace industries, as well as other industrial applications. We investigated various promising 3D metal technologies, with emphasis on cost, operation, throughput, maintenance, and output volume size. In addition, technical issues and the current status of the metal printing market are summarized. The project scope also included the manufacturing of open-literature RHEA test coupons at Sandia's laser engineered net shape (LENS) machine.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Interim Status of HEPA Filter 10-Year Lifetime Evaluation

High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters are widely employed by nuclear facilities to remove radiological particulate matter from their effluent exhaust streams. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationships between the 10-year HEPA filter lifespan and its other performance indicators. The 10-year-long endeavor to collect and analyze data regarding the lifetime of HEPA filters at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory began in 2019. Forty-nine HEPA filters were selected and have been surveyed and analyzed at least annually to verify compliance with permit conditions. The study suggests the frequency of filter replacement should be based on the actual operational requirements, such as fume hood face velocity and/or efficiency test results, instead of on the prescribed filter “age limit” of 10 years from the date of manufacture (e.g., birth date) when operating under dry conditions. Over the past nine years, only four HEPA filters have been replaced for technical issues.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Final Status of HEPA Filter 10-Year Lifetime Evaluation

High-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filters are widely employed by nuclear facilities to remove radiological particulate matter from their effluent exhaust streams. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationships between the 10-year HEPA filter lifespan and its other performance indicators. The 10-year-long endeavor to collect and analyze data regarding the lifetime of HEPA filters at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory began in 2010. Forty-nine HEPA filters were selected and have been surveyed and analyzed at least annually to verify compliance with permit conditions. The study suggests the frequency of filter replacement should be based on the actual operational requirements, such as fume hood face velocity and/or efficiency test results, instead of on the prescribed filter “age limit” of 10 years from the date of manufacture (e.g., birth date) when operating under dry conditions. Over the past decade, the study has now been completed, and all forty-nine HEPA filters have been replaced, due to either technical issues listed in this report, or the previously recommended filter “age limit” of 10 years.

61 RADIATION PROTECTION AND DOSIMETRY↗
DOE OSTI2020

Modeling efficient and equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines

Producing and distributing COVID-19 vaccine during the pandemic is a major logistical challenge requiring careful planning and efficient execution. This report presents information on logistical, policy and technical issues relevant to rapidly fielding a COVID-19 vaccination program. For this study we (a) conducted literature review and subject matter expert elicitation to understand current vaccine manufacturing and distribution capabilities and vaccine allocation strategies, (b) designed a baseline vaccine distribution strategy and modeling strategy to provide insight into the potential for targeted distribution of limited initial vaccine supplies, and (c) developed parametric interfaces to enable vaccine distribution scenarios to be analyzed in depth with Sandias Adaptive Recovery Model that will allow us evaluate the additional sub- populations and alternative distribution scenarios from a public health benefit and associated economic disruption Principal issues, challenges, and complexities that complicate COVID-19 vaccine delivery identified in our literature and subject matter expert investigation include these items: The United States has not mounted an urgent nationwide vaccination campaign in recent history. The existing global manufacturing and distribution infrastructure are not able to produce enough vaccine for the population immediately. Vaccines, once available will be scarce resources. Prioritization for vaccine allocation will be built on existing distribution networks. Vaccine distribution may not have a universal impact on disease transmission and morbidity because of scarcity, priority population demographics, and underlying disease transmission rates. Considerations for designing a vaccine distribution strategy are discussed. A baseline distribution strategy is designed and tested using the Adaptive Recovery Model, which couples a deterministic compartmental epidemiological model and a stochastic network model. We show the impact of this vaccine distribution strategy on hospitalizations, mortality, and contact tracing requirements. This model can be used to quantitatively evaluate alternative distribution scenarios, guiding policy decisions as vaccine candidates are narrowed down.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2020

Advanced Accelerator Technology (Final Report)

Superconducting radio-frequency (SRF) acceleration, together with high precision RF field control and high precision beam instrumentation and control, is a key technology for future next generation accelerators. In the past 10 years, significant progress on these technologies has been made jointly at KEK and US laboratories. The research progress summarized here is Cornell University’s contribution to a continued US-Japan collaborative accelerator research effort. The combined objectives of this collaboration were to solve critical technical issues related to SRF acceleration technology, related to low emittance beam generation, and related to reducing the vertical beam size of the ATF2 final focus beam line. These joint efforts significantly advance current accelerator technologies. The specific objective of the Cornell University part of this collaboration was to develop, in close connection with KEK and FNAL, new SRF cavity Nb3Sn thin-film coating technologies for transformational cavity performance. Cornell is a world leader in the synthesis of Nb3Sn for SRF application, and has produced the first-ever next-generation non-niobium (i.e., Nb 3 Sn) prototype SRF accelerator cavities with cryogenic efficiency exceeding that of traditional niobium cavities. These next-generation Nb 3 Sn SRF cavities strongly reduce AC power consumption of SRF based accelerators, and also enable using greatly simplified cryogenic cooling infrastructure, thereby making SRF technology available to a much wider range of accelerator applications. During this project, Cornell has designed and started fabrication of a new Nb 3 Sn coating setup, which will be large enough to coat full-scale (i.e., multi-cell) SRF accelerator cavities. In addition, Cornell University has participated in other collaborative activities at KEK and partner US laboratories.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗
DOE OSTI2020

Proliferation of Interstellar Plutonium into the Solar System

The astrophysical site of production of actinides in the galaxy has long been debated. Recently, neutron star mergers have been shown to produce actinides, though their contribution to the total amount is unknown. A second site, Type II supernovae, likely also contributes. The relative frequencies and production totals of these two sources lead to two very different and distinguishable predictions for the contemporary concentration of actinides in the local interstellar medium. This project was aimed at measuring live cosmological 244 Pu in lunar soil in order to infer the current interstellar concentration of Pu for comparison with the concentration inferred in the early solar system 4.5 billion years ago. This requires detecting Pu in lunar soil at a concentration of 10 4 – 10 5 atoms/g. We developed Pu separation and detection methodologies that exceed the current state of the art by ~100× and are now capable of making this extremely challenging measurement in principle. Based on that success we obtained a sample of lunar soil from the Apollo 17 mission. We have not yet analyzed it owing to difficulties in quantitatively and reproducibly transferring such minute quantities of Pu from the separation step to the analysis step. Once this technical issue is resolved we will be able to analyze the lunar soil.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2019

Component Concepts for Advanced Dry Storage Investigations

The purpose of this report is to review technical issues and previous studies relevant to the performance evaluation of dry storage systems during vacuum drying and long-term storage operations and to describe vital experimental components under development that are required for conducting advanced studies. There is a need to validate the extent of water removal in a multi-assembly system using an industrial vacuum-drying procedure, as operational conditions leading to incomplete drying may have potential impacts on the fuel, cladding, and other components in the system. Waterproof, electrically-heated spent fuel rod simulators are under development to enable experimental simulation of the entire de-watering and drying process. Specially-designed, unheated mock fuel rods are used to monitor internal rod pressures and study water removal from simulated failed fuel rods. Furthermore, single assembly studies conducted previously cannot incorporate important inter-assembly heat-transfer physics, so plans for harvesting up to five full-length 5 x 5 truncated assemblies from a single 17 x 17 PWR skeleton are described.

12 MANAGEMENT OF RADIOACTIVE AND NON-RADIOACTIVE W↗
DOE OSTI2021

Development and Implementation of Digital Image Correlation for Out-of-Cell Burst Testing

This report details the progress made towards utilizing in-situ methods to observe and quantify unirradiated Zircaloy-4 (Zr4) fuel cladding deformation during out-of-cell design basis accident conditions, specifically during loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) burst testing in the Severe Accident Test Station at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Digital image correlation (DIC) was implemented to calculate cladding strain during burst and infrared (IR) thermography was used to attempt a correlation of strain with temperature and to investigate thermal gradients. For both techniques, early experimentation revealed experimental modifications were necessary for implementation. For DIC, this manifested as shortened cladding lengths which could be centered in front of the viewing chamber bored through the IR furnace side, and for IR thermography this meant conducting burst tests in air without a reaction tube and the incorporation of a SiC shell to eliminate direct IR reflections from the tungsten lamps. In the following, the technical issues and subsequent origin of these modifications are discussed, laying the framework for a proof-of-concept DIC/IR characterization of a burst test in the final section.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Recommended Practices for Managing Induced Seismicity Risk Associated with Geologic Carbon Storage

The geologic storage of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is one method to help reduce or eliminate atmospheric CO 2 emissions. The sequestered CO 2 is originally captured from the atmosphere or from a stationary industrial source and subsequently injected into a deep subsurface porous rock formation. To facilitate the successful deployment of field scale carbon storage projects, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is developing tools and protocols for defensible, science-based frameworks to quantify and mitigate risks associated with the long-term storage of CO 2 . This protocol specifically addresses the risk of induced seismicity due to injection in a geologic carbon storage (GCS) site. This integrated and risk-based protocol is a product of the U.S. DOE Fossil Energy’s National Risk Assessment Partnership (NRAP), a multi-year collaborative research effort of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). These recommended practices describe a set of 7 steps to evaluate, manage, communicate, and mitigate the risk of induced seismicity at GCS sites. The base methodology of the recommended practices follows a framework similar to the Protocol for Addressing Induced Seismicity Associated with Enhanced Geothermal Systems (Majer et al., 2012), developed for the Geothermal Technology Office of the U.S. DOE. These recommended practices present a framework to systematically assess the induced seismicity risk and quantify the associated uncertainties. These recommendations are based on current research and are sufficiently general to allow for modification and application to a variety of different types of sites. The substance of the recommended practices contained herein includes both technical and non-technical issues, and covers all operational stages of the GCS project lifecycle. They start at the preliminary risk assessment phase, continue through site assessment and characterization, include best practice communication and seismic monitoring plan methodologies, discuss the evaluation and mitigation of seismic hazard and risk, and closes with an exploration of operational management plans, which conclude when the induced seismicity risk abates back to background level. The focus of these recommendations is on actively managing the risks associated with induced seismicity by developing an actionable risk management plan that starts at the project proposal stage and continues through site closure through an iterative assessment and improvement process. The audience of this document is expected to include all interested stakeholders (e.g., operators, project developers, regulators, and the general public) and is expressly written to be accessible to this broad range of partners. This document is intended to disseminate knowledge gained through recent advances in the science of induced seismicity hazard and risk assessments, to provide updates based on recent experience gained by similar corollary injection-induced seismicity cases, and most importantly to establish a uniform framework to carry out a successful induced seismicity risk management plan for carbon storage projects in the future. These recommendations do not directly address any domestic or international regulations or standards. A complementary NRAP report makes recommendations for the assessment and management of environmental subsurface risks associated with unwanted fluid migration at GCS sites (Thomas et al., 2021) and should be referred to in order to address those additional GCS site risks.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2021

Los Alamos LDRD Appraisal Final Report for 20190124ER [Hot Electron Beam Generation and Transport for Fast Ignition]

This project was successful in addressing key technical issues of the cone-guided electron fast ignition concept for ICF. The development of an e-beam to deliver energy of 10’s of kilojoules to HED targets would be useful for myriad experimental applications relevant to the Laboratory’s mission. For example, ICF ignition and the development of a burning plasma is a high priority for the national high energy density physics effort and this work is aligned with that mission. Moreover, other technologies (e.g., MeV laser radiography) would be advanced by the R&D advancements from this project, so this work has broader implications for other LANL missions.

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2021

Recommended Practices for Managing Induced Seismicity Risk Associated with Geologic Carbon Storage

The geologic storage of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) is one method to help reduce or eliminate atmospheric CO 2 emissions. The sequestered CO 2 is originally captured from the atmosphere or from a stationary industrial source and subsequently injected into a deep subsurface porous rock formation. To facilitate the successful deployment of field scale carbon storage projects, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is developing tools and protocols for defensible, science-based frameworks to quantify and mitigate risks associated with the long-term storage of CO 2 . This protocol specifically addresses the risk of induced seismicity due to injection in a geologic carbon storage (GCS) site. This integrated and risk-based protocol is a product of the U.S. DOE Fossil Energy’s National Risk Assessment Partnership (NRAP), a multi-year collaborative research effort of Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL), and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL). These recommended practices describe a set of 7 steps to evaluate, manage, communicate, and mitigate the risk of induced seismicity at GCS sites. The base methodology of the recommended practices follows a framework similar to the $\textit{Protocol for Addressing Induced Seismicity Associated with Enhanced Geothermal Systems}$ (Majer et al., 2012), developed for the Geothermal Technology Office of the U.S. DOE. These recommended practices present a framework to systematically assess the induced seismicity risk and quantify the associated uncertainties. These recommendations are based on current research and are sufficiently general to allow for modification and application to a variety of different types of sites. The substance of the recommended practices contained herein includes both technical and non-technical issues, and covers all operational stages of the GCS project lifecycle. They start at the preliminary risk assessment phase, continue through site assessment and characterization, include best practice communication and seismic monitoring plan methodologies, discuss the evaluation and mitigation of seismic hazard and risk, and closes with an exploration of operational management plans, which conclude when the induced seismicity risk abates back to background level. The focus of these recommendations is on actively managing the risks associated with induced seismicity by developing an actionable risk management plan that starts at the project proposal stage and continues through site closure through an iterative assessment and improvement process. The audience of this document is expected to include all interested stakeholders (e.g., operators, project developers, regulators, and the general public) and is expressly written to be accessible to this broad range of partners. This document is intended to disseminate knowledge gained through recent advances in the science of induced seismicity hazard and risk assessments, to provide updates based on recent experience gained by similar corollary injection-induced seismicity cases, and most importantly to establish a uniform framework to carry out a successful induced seismicity risk management plan for carbon storage projects in the future. These recommendations do not directly address any domestic or international regulations or standards. A complementary NRAP report makes recommendations for the assessment and management of environmental subsurface risks associated with unwanted fluid migration at GCS sites (Thomas et al., 2021) and should be referred to in order to address those additional GCS site risks

58 GEOSCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2022

DARHT : Enduring Lessons from a Technical Project in a National Laboratory Context [Slides]

The Dual-Axis Radiographic Hydrodynamic Test (DARHT) facility at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) is the world’s first flash x-ray facility able to take multiple high-resolution radiographs of the interior features of fast-moving dense objects during a single experiment. DARHT’s radiography and complimentary diagnostics makes it an important diagnostic tool in support of the US Department of Energy’s (DOE)/National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA)’s stewardship of the US nuclear deterrent. The project to construct DARHT ran from 1988 through 2003. Initial Operating Capability along a single axis began in 1999. A technical issue delayed Critical Decision 4 for the full dual-axis capability until 2008. DARHT was characterized by several directed changes resulting from an environmental impact study, changes to the global security context resulting from the end of underground nuclear testing, and rapid evolution of applicable technology. Conventional building and lab-space construction were part of the project, but the project was dominated by Special Facility Equipment that, together with the mission to support the nuclear weapons program, required the project to be completed by national laboratories. Although the project pre-dated implementation of DOE Order 413.3, several important lessons for national laboratory projects remain applicable today and will be discussed here, including projects appropriate for the national laboratory environment, scope stability, risk acceptance and mitigation, communication, and collaboration. Finally, considerations for DOE contractor project managers are offered based upon the DARHT experience.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗
DOE OSTI2015

Development of Creep-Fatigue Design Methodology for Base Metal and Weldments of G91

This report provides an update on research activity at the Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) in the area of high temperature materials design methodology for advanced ferritic-martensitic steels for advanced Small Module Reactor (aSMR) Concepts. This is a Level 2 report delivered in FY15 (M2AT-15AN1602013) under the work package AT-15AN160201 “Materials Design Technology for Advanced SMR Concepts” performed by ANL for the Department of Energy, Office of Nuclear Energy. The overall objective of the Materials for Advanced SMR Concepts is to address key long-term design needs for applications of advanced materials. Advanced materials are a critical element in the development of advanced SMR concepts. High temperature materials design technology must be developed to realize the benefits of advanced materials in advanced reactor designs. Among a number of technical issues relevant to materials performance criteria and high temperature design methodology, creep, creep-fatigue, weldment design methodologies, and long-term thermal aging effects are of the highest priority. The effort in this project has focused on improvement of current ASME creep-fatigue design rules and development of a mechanism-based creep-fatigue design method for ferritic-martensitic steels, G91 and G92. This report presents the development of a fundamentally new creep-fatigue life model for G91 base metal and improvements of understanding of creep-fatigue interactions and creep-fatigue design rules for G91 weldments.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2022

SMART: Simplified Melting And Rotation-joint Technology

Oil based parabolic trough solar power plants are the most commercially mature CSP technology. However, the upper limit of about 400°C of the current organic heat transfer fluid(HTF)significantly limits the future potential of the technology. Advances in parabolic trough receiver and collector technology have enabled higher operating temperatures of potentially 500°C or above. The search for an improved higher temperature HTF has identified inorganic molten salts, specifically the mix referred to as Solar Salt, a 60:40 mix of sodium nitrate and potassium nitrate salt. However, Solar Salt starts to freeze at about 240°C. This poses a significant challenge for large parabolic trough plants that could have many kilometers of header piping and hundreds of kilometers of receiver piping all filled with molten salt. Plants using molten salt need to be designed to minimize the risk of freezing and to be able to recover from freeze events. Studies and field experiments have shown that this appears to be feasible and the approach appears to have strong economic advantages over conventional trough plants. However, some technical challenges remain related to the use of molten salt in trough solar fields, the cost of the freeze recovery system is significant, and many still question whether the risk of using molten salt is worth the economic upside. In our view, the potential economic upside justifies the continued look at molten salt HTF in parabolic trough plants. The objective of this project was to address the key technical issue remaining, look for opportunities to reduce the cost of the freeze recovery system, and improve the general information and tools available for assessing the design, performance and economics of trough plants using molten salt HTF.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2022

BISON Validation to In-Situ Cladding Burst Test and High Burnup LOCA Experiments

The process to develop and qualify nuclear fuels for commercial nuclear application requires fundamental material development, characterization, and design; out-of-pile testing on unirradiated materials; integral fuel rod irradiations, testing, and post irradiation examinations (PIEs); and transient analyses. The historical approach depends on the generation of large empirical datasets and series of integral fuel rod irradiations, and this approach ultimately takes approximately 20 years—or sometimes longer—to acquire data through extensive sequential testing. Thus, the qualification and eventual deployment of new fuel systems constitute a long and drawn-out process. However, recent technological advancements have provided researchers the opportunity to perform out-of-cell, in-situ measurements to assess material performance for the duration of the experiment. One such example of this capability is the use of digital image coordination and thermal imaging to assess Zircaloy cladding performance under a simulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA) transient condition. In general, the in-situ measurements provide high-fidelity strain, strain rates, and temperature surface maps. This is critical for the United States nuclear industry, which is actively developing a technical basis to support extending the peak rod average burnup from 62 to ~75 GWd/tU and the deployment of accident-tolerant fuel. However, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, through their research information letter, outlined a number of technical issues for the industry to address before extending burnup. One topic of specific interest is understanding the cladding balloon and rupture geometry during the LOCA heatup phase. Leveraging these advanced in-situ capabilities, this work intends to use insitu data generated from a simulated LOCA in the Severe Accident Test Station at Oak Ridge National Laboratory to better understand high-temperature creep and its impact on Zircaloy balloon and rupture performance. This work used the BISON fuel performance code to compare BISON’s high-temperature creep model predictions to in-situ data and identify limitations and gaps within the model. Additionally, BISON will subsequently be used to simulate relevant high-burnup LOCA tests. The results will be analyzed and compared to the available post-test data in a manner consistent with the approach outlined in the Nuclear Regulatory Commission research information letter.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2022

An Integrated Framework for Risk Assessment of High Safety Significant Safety-related Digital Instrumentation and Control Systems in Nuclear Power Plants: Methodology and Demonstration

This report documents the activities performed by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) during Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Light Water Reactor Sustainability (LWRS) Program, Risk Informed Systems Analysis (RISA) Pathway, digital instrumentation and control (DI&C) risk assessment project. In FY 2019, the RISA Pathway initiated a project to develop a risk assessment strategy for delivering a technical basis to support effective and secure DI&C technologies for digital upgrades/designs. A framework was proposed for this strategy, which aims to (1) provide a best-estimate, risk-informed capability to quantitatively and accurately estimate the risk impact of plant modernization, considering the introduction of high safety-significant safety-related (HSSSR) DI&C systems, (2) support and supplement existing risk-informed DI&C design guides by providing quantitative risk information and evidence, (3) offer a capability of design architecture evaluation of various DI&C systems, (4) assure the long-term safety and reliability of HSSSR DI&C systems, and (5) reduce uncertainty in costs and support integration of DI&C systems in the plant. To achieve these technical goals, the framework provides a means to address relevant technical issues by: (1) defining a risk-informed analysis process for DI&C upgrade, that integrates hazard analysis, reliability analysis, and consequence analysis, (2) applying risk-informed tools to address common cause failures (CCFs) and quantify corresponding failure probabilities for DI&C technologies, particularly software CCFs, (3) evaluating the impact of digital failures at the component level, system level, and plant level, and (4) providing insights and suggestions on designs to manage the risks, thus to support the development and deployment of advanced DI&C technologies on nuclear power plant (NPPs).

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗