Probabilistic risk assessment of station blackouts in nuclear power plants

George-Williams, Hindolo and Lee, Min and Patelli, Edoardo (2018) Probabilistic risk assessment of station blackouts in nuclear power plants. IEEE Transactions on Reliability, 67 (2). pp. 494-512. ISSN 0018-9529 (https://doi.org/10.1109/TR.2018.2824620)

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Abstract

Adequate ac power is required for decay heat removal in nuclear power plants. Station blackout (SBO) accidents, therefore, are a very critical phenomenon to their safety. Though designed to cope with these incidents, nuclear power plants can only do so for a limited time, without risking core damage and possible catastrophe. Their impact on a plant's safety are determined by their frequency and duration, which quantities, currently, are computed via a static fault tree analysis that deteriorates in applicability with increasing system size and complexity. This paper proposes a novel alternative framework based on a hybrid of Monte Carlo methods, multistate modeling, and network theory. The intuitive framework, which is applicable to a variety of SBOs problems, can provide a complete insight into their risks. Most importantly, its underlying modeling principles are generic, and, therefore, applicable to non-nuclear system reliability problems, as well. When applied to the Maanshan nuclear power plant in Taiwan, the results validate the framework as a rational decision-support tool in the mitigation and prevention of SBOs.

  • Item type:Article
    ID code:70371
    Dates:
    Date
    Event
    1 June 2018
    Published
    3 April 2018
    Accepted
    Notes:© 2018 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.
    Subjects:Science > Mathematics
    Department:Faculty of Engineering > Civil and Environmental Engineering
    Depositing user: Pure Administrator
    Date deposited:31 Oct 2019 12:31
    Last modified:09 Apr 2024 08:37
    URI:https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/70371
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