Impact of structural aging on seismic risk assessment of reinforced concrete structures in nuclear power plants
- Johns Hopkins Univ., Baltimore, MD (United States). Dept. of Civil Engineering
The Structural Aging Program is addressing the potential for degradation of concrete structural components and systems in nuclear power plants over time due to aging and aggressive environmental stressors. Structures are passive under normal operating conditions but play a key role in mitigating design-basis events, particularly those arising from external challenges such as earthquakes, extreme winds, fires and floods. Structures are plant-specific and unique, often are difficult to inspect, and are virtually impossible to replace. The importance of structural failures in accident mitigation is amplified because such failures may lead to common-cause failures of other components. Structural condition assessment and service life prediction must focus on a few critical components and systems within the plant. Components and systems that are dominant contributors to risk and that require particular attention can be identified through the mathematical formalism of a probabilistic risk assessment, or PRA. To illustrate, the role of structural degradation due to aging on plant risk is examined through the framework of a Level 1 seismic PRA of a nuclear power plant. Plausible mechanisms of structural degradation are found to increase the core damage probability by approximately a factor of two.
- Research Organization:
- US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Washington, DC (United States). Div. of Engineering Technology; Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Johns Hopkins Univ., Baltimore, MD (United States). Dept. of Civil Engineering
- Sponsoring Organization:
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-96OR22464
- OSTI ID:
- 219359
- Report Number(s):
- NUREG/CR-6425; ORNL/TM-13149; ON: TI96009921; TRN: 96:010674
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: PBD: Mar 1996
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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21 NUCLEAR POWER REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
MECHANICAL STRUCTURES
SEISMIC EFFECTS
AGING
ZION-1 REACTOR
RISK ASSESSMENT
REINFORCED CONCRETE
CONCRETES
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS
DESIGN BASIS ACCIDENTS
CORROSION
EARTHQUAKES
RELIABILITY
CONTAINMENT BUILDINGS
DATA