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Accession Number
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NUREG/CR-7126
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Title
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Human-Performance Issues Related to the Design and Operation of Small Modular Reactors.
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Publication Date
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Jun 2012
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Media Count
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129p
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Personal Author
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J. Higgins J. O'Hara M. Pena
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Abstract
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Small modular reactors (SMRs) are a promising approach to meeting future energy needs. Although the electrical output of an individual SMR is relatively small compared to that of typical commercial nuclear plants, they can be grouped to produce as much energy as a utility demands. Furthermore, SMRs can be used for other purposes, such as producing hydrogen and generating process heat. The design characteristics of many SMRs differ from those of current conventional plants and may require a distinct concept of operations (ConOps). In this U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) research project, we examined the human factors engineering (HFE) and the operational aspects of SMRs. Our main objective was to identify potential issues in human performance related to the design and operations of SMRs. For our purposes, the term issue refers to (1) an aspect of SMR development or design for which information suggests a negative impact on human performance; (2) an aspect of SMR development or design that may degrade human performance, but additional research and/or analysis is needed to better understand and quantify the effect; and (3) a technology or technique that will be used in designing new plants or implementing them for which there is little or no review guidance. To accomplish this objective, we first developed a six-dimensional ConOps model that we then used to obtain information about SMRs. Since there is little detailed information about the operational and HFE aspects of SMRs, we also examined several surrogate facilities, such as petroleum refineries, wherein operators manage multiple units in a manner similar to what might be expected of SMR operators. We used this information to identify a set of potential human-performance issues that might be considered in the NRCs reviews of SMR designs and future research activities.
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Keywords
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Commercial nuclear plants
Energy needs
Human factors
Human Factors Engineering(HFE)
Human performance
Modular reactors
Small Modular Reactors(SMRs)
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Source Agency
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Nuclear Regulatory Commission
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NTIS Subject Category
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77H - Reactor Engineering & Nuclear Power Plants
95D - Human Factors Engineering
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Corporate Author
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Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY.
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Document Type
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Technical report
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Title Note
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N/A
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NTIS Issue Number
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1308
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Contract Number
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N/A
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