High-flux beam reactor PRA: Level 1, internal events

Conference · Tue Jan 01 04:00:00 EST 1991 · Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States)

OSTI ID:7168339

Azarm, M A; Bari, R A; Chu, T L; Oliveira, L ^[1]

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1. Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (United States)

The High-Flux Beam Reactor (HFBR) is used principally for experimental research on the fundamental properties of condensed matter. The reactor began operation in 1965 at 40 MW and was subsequently upgraded to 60-MW operation in 1982. The reactor was not restarted after a scheduled shutdown in March 1989, when it was concluded that the safety analysis report failed to asses the operator exposure consequences of a postulated beam tube rupture (BTR) accident. After safety analyses, reactor modifications, training, and other safety improvements were completed, HFBR resumed operation in May 1991, at a nominal power level of 30 MW. It is operated for the US Department of Energy (DOE) by the Reactor Division at Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). Several organizations and review committees recommended probabilistic risk assessments (PRAs) to be performed on major DOE nuclear facilities, including the HFBR. The Department of Nuclear Energy at BNL undertook the task of performing a level-I internal event PRA. A level-I PRA evaluates the frequency of core damage and identifies the dominant accident sequences, system failures, component failures, and human errors with regard to the core-damage frequency. The methodology used in this study is basically the same in structure and substance as that used in PRAs performed for nuclear power plants.

• OSTI ID: 7168339
• Report Number(s): CONF-911107--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Transactions of the American Nuclear Society; (United States) Journal Volume: 63
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
220600 -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Research
Test & Experimental Reactors
220900* -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Reactor Safety
ACCIDENTS
ACCURACY
AEROSOLS
ANIMALS
BNL
COLLOIDS
DEPRESSURIZATION
DISPERSIONS
ENRICHED URANIUM REACTORS
EXPERIMENTAL CHANNELS
FAILURE MODE ANALYSIS
FAILURES
FAULT TREE ANALYSIS
FUEL ELEMENT FAILURE
HEAVY WATER COOLED REACTORS
HEAVY WATER MODERATED REACTORS
HFBR REACTOR
LOSS OF COOLANT
LOSS OF FLOW
MAMMALS
MAN
MELTDOWN
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
OPERATION
PERSONNEL
PRIMATES
PROBABILISTIC ESTIMATION
RADIOACTIVE AEROSOLS
RADIOACTIVITY TRANSPORT
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
REACTOR CHANNELS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR CORE DISRUPTION
REACTOR EXPERIMENTAL FACILITIES
REACTOR OPERATION
REACTOR OPERATORS
REACTOR SHUTDOWN
REACTORS
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
RESEARCH REACTORS
RISK ASSESSMENT
RUPTURES
SCRAM
SHUTDOWN
SOLS
SYSTEM FAILURE ANALYSIS
SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
TANK TYPE REACTORS
THERMAL REACTORS
TUBES
US AEC
US DOE
US ERDA
US ORGANIZATIONS
VERTEBRATES