Nuclear Power Technology Development Section

TECDOC-1264

Reliability Assurance Programme Guidebook for Advanced Light Water Reactors

This guidebook demonstrates how the designers and operators of future commercial nuclear plants can exploit the risk, reliability and availability engineering methods and techniques developed over the past two decades to augment existing design and operational nuclear plant decision-making capabilities.

TECDOC-1249

Critical experiments and reactor physics calculations for low-enriched HTGRs

Advanced gas cooled reactor designs currently under development are predicted to achieve a high degree of safety through reliance on innovative features and passive sys-tems. The IAEA's activities in this field during the 1990’s focused on three technical ar-eas that are essential to providing this high degree of safety, but which must be proven. These technical areas are: (1) the neutron physics behavior of the reactor core; (2) the ability of ceramic coated fuel particles to retain the fission products, even under extreme accident conditions; and (3) the ability of the designs to dissipate decay heat by natural transport mechanisms.

To enhance confidence in predictions of neutron physics behavior, the IAEA established a Coordinated Research Project (CRP) on Validation of Safety Related Physics Calcula-tions for Low Enriched HTGRs. Countries participating in this CRP include China, France, Japan, Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA and the Russian Federa-tion. Its objective was to fill gaps in validation data for physics methods used for core design of gas-cooled reactors fueled with low enriched uranium. Within this CRP, an in-ternational team of researchers was assembled at the PROTEUS critical experiment fa-cility of the Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen, Switzerland, to plan, conduct and analyze a new series of critical experiments focused on the needs of participating countries. In this CRP, experience from critical experiment programs in the Russian Federation and Japan was also utilized.

TECDOC-1239

Critical Experiments and Reactor Physics Calculations for Low-Enriched HTGRs

This report documents the results of an IAEA CRP on Validation of safety related reac-tor physics calculations for low-enriched HTGRs. A mock-up of a pebble bed reactor core using fuel produced in Germany was constructed in the PROTEUS critical facility in Switzerland and reactivity experiments were conducted. The results and detailed con-figuration data are provided along with summary results of calculations of the experi-ments performed by the CRP participants.

TCS 12

Workshop material presenting techniques and tools for reactor simulator develop-ment

Training Course Series 12, ‘Reactor Simulator Development’, IAEA, Vienna 2001.

TECDOC-1238

Gas turbine power conversion systems for modular HTGRs

The information presented in this report was developed from an IAEA TCM on “Gas Turbine Power Conversion Systems for Modular HTGRs”, held in November 2000 in Palo Alto, California. The TCM provided a forum for participants to discuss and share the status of their individual programmes associated with the design and analysis of sys-tems and components for gas turbine modular HTGR power conversion systems.

TECDOC-1236

Design and evaluation of heat utilization systems for the High Temperature Engi-neering Test Reactor

This report documents the results of an IAEA CRP of the same title. Options for applica-tion of HTRs for the supply of high temperature process heat for hydrogen generation and other industrial processes are identified and discussed in terms of technical issues and deployment prospects. Use of the HTTR to demonstrate some of the options is dis-cussed including a prioritisation of candidate processes.

TECDOC-1235

Safety aspects of nuclear plants coupled with seawater desalination units

The purpose of this publication is to address the specific safety and licensing aspects of nuclear plants for use in heat utilization applications and to establish the basis for safety assessment of such plants. This publication also proposes a general approach for the preparation of safety requirements for reactors with special safety features or of a smaller size compared with nuclear power plants. This approach (top-down approach) is aimed at generating the safety design requirements for any kind of nuclear reactor start-ing from those for nuclear power plants, which are covered by the IAEA’s well estab-lished corpus of safety standards.

TECDOC-1210

Safety related design and economic aspects of HTGR

This report presents the status of ten country’s individual programmes associated with research, development and commercialisation of the HTGR, and especially identified pathways which can provide the opportunities for international cooperation in realizing the potential of the HTGR.

TECDOC-1203

Thermohydraulic Relationships for Advanced Water Cooled Reactors

This report has been prepared within the IAEA’s CRP on “Thermohydraulic Relation-ships for Advanced Water Cooled Reactors” which was started in 1995 with the overall goal to promote information exchange and co-operation in establishing a consistent set of thermohydraulic relationships which are appropriate for use in analyzing the per-formance and safety of advanced water cooled reactors. The CRP participants collabo-rated to examine the requirements for thermohydraulic relationships and to conduct re-search and to review experimental data for critical heat flux (CHF), post CHF heat transfer and pressure drop. These relationships are presented in the TECDOC.

TECDOC-1198

Current Status and Future Development of Modular High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor Technology

Provides an overview of current modular HTGR technology development activities and power plant design projects among IAEA Member States.

TECDOC-1193

Staffing requirements for future Small & Medium Reactors (SMRs) based on oper-ating experience and projections

Reviews the lessons learned from SMR operation and insights gained from design of new SMRs with a view to optimizing staffing in order to improve overall economics without compromising safety.