Nuclear Power Plant Project Research Articles

Progress of the IAHE Nuclear Hydrogen Division on international hydrogen production programs

This paper presents recent activities of the IAHE Nuclear Hydrogen Division and associated research advances in Canada, China, France, Germany, Poland, and Romania on programs and major initiatives on large-scale hydrogen production and utilization. Germany and France have made significant advances in high temperature steam electrolysis (HTSE). Germany is going to demonstrate a 3-kW steam electrolyzer and 100-kW Hybrid Sulfur Cycle powered by solar energy soon. France operated several HTSE 25-cell stacks at various operating points. Recently, a HTSE packaged system has been built, containing this 25-cell stack and other Balance of Plant components. At 700 °C, this system produces 1.2 Nm3/h of H2 with a total electrical consumption of 3.9 kWh/Nm3, achieving 92% of efficiency (electrical consumption of the system vs HHV of the produced hydrogen). It demonstrates that a 150 °C heat source temperature is sufficient for the steam generation, and that a slightly exothermic operating mode of the stack is sufficient to preheat the inlet gas up to 700 °C and compensate the heat losses of the system. China has also made significant progress in developing the HTSE process at a hydrogen production rate of 105 dm3/h and the thermochemical Sulfur–Iodine (SI) cycle at the rate of 60 dm3/h, which already achieved the goal of China's HTR-PM Demonstration Nuclear Power Plant Project. The components and facilities were developed and tested in Tsinghua University. Romania is collaborating with Canada on nuclear hydrogen production with the thermochemical Cu–Cl cycle. The individual unit operations of the Cu–Cl cycle have been verified experimentally. Research on integration of a laboratory scale system to produce 3 kg of hydrogen per day is underway at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology in Oshawa, Ontario. Poland has developed advanced simulation capabilities for Solid Oxide Fuel/Electrolysis Cells for hydrogen peak energy storage as well as laboratory scale experiments focused on solid oxide and molten carbonate fuel cells. This paper presents a review of activities of members of the IAHE Nuclear Hydrogen Division in these six countries.

Assessment of Environmental and Human Health Impacts of a New Nuclear Power Plant using Hybrid Single-Particle Langrangian Air Dispersion Model

The processes of nuclear construction, operation and decommission require a complete safety analysis which involves the quantification of environmental and human health impacts due to releases of radionuclides into the biosphere. Accurate simulation of the atmospheric dispersion of radioactive materials is important for assessing the ecological risks of a new Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) project. The Hybrid Single-Particle Langrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYsplit) model developed by the United States Air Resource Laboratory is a state-of-the-art model for computing complex air dispersion scenarios. In this study, the HYsplit model was used to generate the representative of the scaling factors of air concentrations (in Bq m–3) and surface depositions (in Bq m–2) of radionuclides released from the stack of hypothetical (NPP) in Nigeria. The computed radionuclides’ air concentration and surface deposition data were used to assess the environmental and human health impacts of the Nigeria’s pioneer NPP. No statistically significant environmental and health impacts were predicted under normal operation conditions of the NPP. The impacts of various accident scenarios under different meteorological and release conditions were investigated. The results of this study could serve as support for decision making concerning the new nuclear energy program in Nigeria.

Study on the Quality Control Method of Nuclear Power Plant Project

Nuclear power plant engineering quality is the security of nuclear safety. The main danger source of nuclear power plants is the nuclear island. Once the project quality uncontrollable, radioactive nuclear fuel could be harm to human and environmental in the nuclear power station trial operation or production cycle. So this paper analysis the effect factors of the nuclear power construction quality, and concludes it must to be control strictly the project construction quality of the nuclear power plant, and use the prevention and control method to set up quality defensive barrier to eliminate the problems of engineering quality.

Construction schedule delay risk assessment by using combined AHP-RII methodology for an international NPP project

In this study, Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) construction schedule delay risk assessment methodology is developed and the construction delay risk is assessed for turnkey international NPP projects. Three levels of delay factors were selected through literature review and discussions with nuclear industry experts. A questionnaire survey was conducted on the basis of an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and Relative Importance Index (RII) methods and the schedule delay risk is assessed qualitatively and quantitatively by severity and frequency of occurrence of delay factors. This study assigns four main delay factors to the first level: main contractor, utility, regulatory authority, and financial and country factor. The second and the third levels are designed with 12 sub-factors and 32 sub-sub-factors, respectively. This study finds the top five most important sub-sub-factors, which are as follows: policy changes, political instability and public intervention; uncompromising regulatory criteria and licensing documents conflicting with existing regulations; robust design document review procedures; redesign due to errors in design and design changes; and worldwide shortage of qualified and experienced nuclear specific equipment manufacturers. The proposed combined AHP-RII methodology is capable of assessing delay risk effectively and efficiently. Decision makers can apply risk informed decision making to avoid unexpected construction delays of NPPs.

The Rooppur nuclear power plant: is Bangladesh really ready for nuclear power?

Bangladesh has recently decided to build the country’s first nuclear power plant in the western region of Rooppur, despite strong public opinion against it. The Bangladeshi government argues that the project is necessary to diversify the country’s energy mix to improve electricity generation capacity. This commentary explores the Rooppur nuclear power plant project and argues that there are serious concerns about the project that should be taken into account by the Bangladeshi government and that there are other options available to diversify the energy mix. The author recommends that Bangladesh is not yet ready for nuclear power as sufficient technical and regulatory expertise and improvement of infrastructure is required before the country can go nuclear.

원자력발전소 건설현장의 철근콘크리트 공종 생산성 및 영향요인 분석

특수 플랜트 건설은 타 건설사업보다 체계적인 원가 및 공정관리가 요구되지만 이를 위하 반드시 필요한 현장 생산성을 구체적으로 분석한 연구는 이루어지지 않고 있다. 본 연구에서는 국내에서 건설중인 특수 플랜트 현장의 철근콘크리트공종을 형틀, 철근, 콘크리트로 나누어 생산성을 측정하고 생산성에 영향을 미치는 요인을 분석하였다. 생산성 측정결과 형틀공종 <TEX>$0.54(m^2/man{\cdot}time)$</TEX>, 철근공종 <TEX>$0.06(ton/man{\cdot}day)$</TEX>, 콘크리트공종 <TEX>$1.98(m^3/man{\cdot}time)$</TEX>로 나타났다. 영향요인으로는 형틀공종은 요일과 야간적업 유무, 철근공종은 야간잡업 유무, 콘크리트공종은 야간작업 유무와 콘크리트 물량이 통계적으로 유의게 영향을 미치는 것으로 분석되었다. Nuclear power plant projects are being increased all over the world. The construction of nuclear power plants needs huge money and time, which makes conducting a detailed analysis of productivity through the whole process. Reinforced-concrete works productivity field data was collected for more than one year and analyzed from a nuclear-power-plant project in Korea. The productivities of formwork, rebar-work, and concrete pouring were <TEX>$0.54m^2/man{\cdot}day$</TEX>, <TEX>$0.06ton/man{\cdot}day$</TEX>, <TEX>$1.98m^3/man{\cdot}day$</TEX>, respectively. Moreover, it is revealed that 'Day of the Week' is a driver of the formwork activity and 'Overtime' is for all of the three. The results will be a great interest of industry personnel estimating time and cost of a new nuclear power plant.

The Middle East at a Crossroads: How to Face the Perils of Nuclear Development in a Volatile Region

The global nuclear regime may have reached a crossroads: the states par ties to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty have called for the establish ment of a zone free of nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems in the Middle East. Now that Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany have reached a deal in Geneva over a phased verification of the peaceful character of Iran’s nuclear program, the international community needs to address broader regional issues. Failure to move forward could imperil the global nonproliferation architecture. At the same time, little thought has been given to how this regional arrangement would work both internally (with its member states) and externally (with other organizations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency). This article reviews the obstacles and windows of opportunity for a comprehensive regional nuclear settle ment by drawing lessons from recent history in Europe. In particular, the history of the European Atomic Energy Community suggests how a future regional organization with jurisdiction in all aspects of nuclear develop ment should articulate its functions with existing international organiza tions such as the IAEA. In Europe, regional institutions have played a crucial role in creating trust among former warring nations and in harmo nizing the regional and global nuclear orders. A EURATOM-like organiza tion would be a great step for the Middle East and a great model for other regions that must deal with issues of global legal complexity (e.g., how they can harmonize regional and global orders so that they can pursue the same goals with different but compatible means). KEYWORDS : Middle East, EURATOM, weapons of mass destruction, regime complexity. NUCLEAR ENERGY IS ON THE RISE AND WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF NEW nuclear power plant projects, especially in volatile regions like the Middle East, new security concerns are likely to dominate international affairs in the coming years. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates significant growth in the use of nuclear energy worldwide—between 23 per cent and 100 percent by 2030—although the agency’s projections for 2030 are 1‐9 percent lower than projections made in 2011. 1 The spread of nuclear

Kinetics and equilibrium modeling of uranium(VI) sorption by bituminous shale from aqueous solution

Sorption of U(VI) onto a bituminous shale (BS) from a nuclear power plant project site in Black Sea region was investigated for potential risk assessment when it releases into the environment with contaminated ground and surface water. The sorption characteristics of the BS for U(VI) recovery were evaluated as a function of contact time, adsorbent dosage, initial concentration, pH and temperature. Kinetic results fit better with pseudo-second-order model rather than pseudo-first-order. The possibility of diffusion process was analyzed based on Weber–Morris intra-particle diffusion model. The McKay equation assuming film- and intraparticle diffusion better predicted the data than the Vermeulen approximation presuming surface diffusion. Equilibrium sorption data were modeled according to the Langmuir, Dubinin–Radushkevich (D–R) and Freundlich isotherm equations. Sorption capacity increased from 0.10 to 0.15mmolg−1 in 298–318K temperature range. FT-IR analysis and pH dependent sorption studies conducted in hydroxide and carbonate media revealed that U(VI) species were sorbed in uranyl and its hydroxo forms on the BS. Desorption studies showed that U(VI) leaching with Black Sea water was negligible from the loaded BS. The activation parameters (Ea, ΔH∗ and ΔG∗) estimated from diffusion coefficients indicated the presence of an energy barrier in the sorption system. However, thermodynamic functions derived from sorption equilibrium constants showed that overall sorption process was spontaneous in nature and entropy controlled.

Automatic chemical monitoring in the composition of functions performed by the unit level control system in the new projects of nuclear power plant units

The article presents information on the state of regulatory framework and development of a subsystem for automated chemical monitoring of water chemistries in the primary and secondary coolant circuits used as part of the automatic process control system in new projects of VVER reactor-based nuclear power plant units. For the strategy of developing and putting in use the water chemistry-related part of the automated process control system within the standard AES-2006 nuclear power plant project to be implemented, it is necessary to develop regulatory documents dealing with certain requirements imposed on automatic water chemistry monitoring systems in accordance with the requirements of federal codes and regulations in the field of using atomic energy.

Indoor radon concentration measurements at the site of the first nuclear power plant in Egypt

Radon (222 Rn) is a radioactive gas that occurs naturally when uranium in soil and rock breaks down. Long-term exposure to 222 Rn increases the risk of lung cancer. The principal objective of this work was to determine the 222 Rn activity concentration in an indoor air environment at the El-Dabaa site proposed for a nuclear power plant project in Egypt using the track etch technique with LR115 detectors. The annual average indoor 222 Rn activity concentration in apartment buildings varies from 24 to 77 Bq.m-3 , with a mean value of 54 Bq.m-3 . The annual effective dose received by residents of the studied area was estimated to be 0.41 mSv. The annual estimated effective dose is less than the recommended action level by ICRP (3−10 mSv.y-1 ). The results from this work provide a radiological assessment program and update the background of the natural radioactivity map at the El-Dabaa site.

Risk averse decision making under catastrophic risk

A nonstandard probabilistic setting for modeling of the risk of catastrophic events is presented. It allows random variables to take on infinitely large negative values with non-zero probability, which correspond to catastrophic consequences unmeasurable in monetary terms, e.g. loss of human lives. Thanks to this extension, the safety-first principle is proved to be consistent with traditional axioms on a preference relation, such as monotonicity, continuity, and risk aversion. Also, a robust preference relation is introduced, and an example of a monotone robust preference relation, sensitive to catastrophic events in the sense of Chichilnisky (2002), is provided. The suggested setting is demonstrated in evaluating nuclear power plant projects when the probability of a catastrophe is itself a random variable.

Case Study of Reactor Containment Building Construction in Nuclear Power Plant

It is very important to reduce the construction duration of the Reactor Containment Building (RCB) when considering the more than 50 months on average from concrete placement to completion. Through a case study, this study performs a pre-study for the reduction of construction duration in nuclear power plant project based on construction process of the RCB. The actual data of the case study have been collected and analyze the process and the external wall drawings of the RCB with construction practitioners. As a result of that, it is necessary to modularize the external wall form for equipment hatch and to extend the height of one layer of the external wall form to reduce the construction duration of RCB. The results of this study will be utilized to reduce construction duration of the nuclear power plant.

Strength and Displacement Analysis of a Nuclear Power Giant Lifting Grid and Steel Liner

Construction of nuclear power plant steel liner is an important component. The design and lifting is a highly complex technical systems engineering. For a nuclear power plant project in China, the displacement and strength of the grid and the steel liner have been analyzed in the lifting process by computer methods. The results show that the use of lifting truss design has good strength and stiffness, which can achieve the requirements. The steel liner in the lifting process itself is not overstressed and deformed. The lifting process can meet the engineering requirements of the installation accuracy.

Strength and Displacement Analysis of a Nuclear Power Giant Lifting Grid and Steel Liner

Construction of nuclear power plant steel liner is an important component. The design and lifting is a highly complex technical systems engineering. For a nuclear power plant project in China, the displacement and strength of the grid and the steel liner have been analyzed in the lifting process by computer methods. The results show that the use of lifting truss design has good strength and stiffness, which can achieve the requirements. The steel liner in the lifting process itself is not overstressed and deformed. The lifting process can meet the engineering requirements of the installation accuracy.

Thermal power plant efficiency enhancement with Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

In addition to greenhouse gas emissions, coastal thermal power plants would gain further opposition due to their heat rejection distressing the local ecosystem. Therefore, these plants need to enhance their thermal efficiency while reducing their environmental offense. In this study, a hybrid plant based on the principle of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion was coupled to a 740 MW coal-fired power plant project located at latitude 28°S where the surface to deepwater temperature difference would not suffice for regular OTEC plants. This paper presents the thermodynamical model to assess the overall efficiency gained by adopting an ammonia Rankine cycle plus a desalinating unit, heated by the power plant condenser discharge and refrigerated by cold deep seawater. The simulation allowed us to optimize a system that would finally enhance the plant power output by 25–37 MW, depending on the season, without added emissions while reducing dramatically the water temperature at discharge and also desalinating up to 5.8 million tons per year. The supplemental equipment was sized and the specific emissions reduction was estimated. We believe that this approach would improve the acceptability of thermal and nuclear power plant projects regardless of the plant location.

A Critical Evaluation of Nuclear Power Plant Project in China

The nuclear power is the clear energy and the nuclear power plant is the good power plant project, but someone disagree the project for the environment impact from the nuclear radioactivity. This paper compares the different opinions about the nuclear power project and analyzes the existing problems. The advantages of the nuclear power plant are the abundant raw material uranium, the light environment pollution, the low operation cost and the environment radioactivity risk. The disadvantages of the project are the public fear from the nuclear risk, the difficult to dispose the nuclear waste, and the difficult to dismantle the nuclear power plant. My opinion is to develop the nuclear power plant in places with poor energy resource, and develop the hydroelectric power plant in places with rich water resource, and develop the wind power plant in places with rich wind resource, and develop the heat power plant in places with rich coal, oil, natural gas or other fossil fuel resources.

The Schedule Control of Nuclear Power Construction Phase of Project Approval and Administrative Licensing

As a clean and economic power, nuclear power has become an important part in China’s power structure. Nuclear power plant project has the characteristics of large investment and long period, thus requiring a strict schedule control. This paper deeply studied the work contents of China’s nuclear power project approval and administrative license, selectively analyzed the required supporting documents for this phase, and simplified the work into several phases. According to the feature of each phase, we created the “laddering” model; controlled the schedule in three respects, including: nuclear power connected to grid related supportive documents, nuclear power construction related supportive documents, and the nuclear power security and environmental protection related supportive documents. By realizing the schedule control of the phase in nuclear power project in this paper, we hope to further enhance the level of China’s nuclear power construction project managements, ensure the economic and security of nuclear power projects and better promoted nuclear power projects.

How governmental stakeholders influence large projects: the case of nuclear power plant projects

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding on stakeholder influence in large projects, using nuclear power plant projects and a governmental stakeholder that influences them as the empirical example. The authors focus on examining the means used by the stakeholder to influence the projects.

Nuclear Energy Projects Financing Option with Contracts for Difference: The Perspective from European Union State Aid Modernisation

This article deals with the question related to intercourse between the promotions of foreign investments in energy sector, and therefore, with several obstacles according to European Union State aid rules. There is a close relationship between the cost structure of nuclear power, the long-term safety and financial risks associated with some elements of the nuclear fuel cycle, and the high market risk that investors have placed on the technology since its inception. The construction phase of Nuclear Power Plant is considered the most risky for investors, especially for a new nuclear program. Large amounts of capital must be invested early on, while returns will not begin to flow until the plant enters operation some years later. The recent development of State Aid modernisation process at the EU provides more flexibility to implement various financing models, which are crucial for energy infrastructure projects. This paper analyses the recent development in the United Kingdom electricity legislation currently an option to adopt Contracts for Difference model to Hinkley Point C Nuclear Power Plant project and its relation with State aid rules in the light of modernisation process.

Feasibility Study of RNPP (Rooppur Nuclear Power Project) in Bangladesh

Bangladesh is densely populated country with a population of 16 core and small area about 1, 47,570 Square-Kilometer. Among these large population only a few section are taking the blessings of power. But now at a stage government can’t give the power even to that special section. Because day by day population is increasing and also power demands is also increasing. Governments are trying to meet up the power crisis in Bangladesh by taking various steps. Like small (10-20MW) power plants, IPP, Rental power plant etc. But these are not a permanent solution. More over these rental and IPP are mainly oil and gas based, which are very costly and not very efficient. Besides these government are going with coal based power station and small scale renewable energy. But coal based power station are required very large space, its initial cost is high and create serious environmental threat. Renewable energy is not yet developed and its efficiency is very poor. Though there are many problems and threats but Nuclear Power Plant can be a permanent solution for Bangladesh. Bangladesh government is now going for nuclear power plant and recently they have taken a project called Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant Project (RNPP) which is already approved in the cabinet meeting. The purpose of this paper is to study the feasibility of RNPP.