On 06 Febraury 1996 with the unit operating at 100 percent power; a loss of offsite power (LOOP) and automatic reactor trip occurred as a result of phase-to-ground faults in two phases of the isophase electrical buswork between the main generator and two potential transformers. When these faults occurred simultaneously (one or both believed to be intermittent), a phase-to-phase fault was created causing the LOOP. The LOOP caused the reactor to trip upon loss of the reactor coolant pumps. Prior to this event, one of the two emergency diesel generators (EDG) and its associated electrical equipment were out of service of scheduled maintenance. The available EDG automatically started and loaded to its associated electrical bus. After almost 3 hours into the event, the EDG initially out of service was returned to service and loaded. Electrical power from crossties with unit 1 was established approximately 8 hours after the start of the event. Following the reactor trip, an automatic reactor safety injection occurred due to low main steam pressure caused by excess steam loads. The injection continued for approximately 30 minutes until terminated by operators. The reactor coolant system was completely filled during safety injection, and overflow caused the pressurizer relief tank rupture disk to fail. This event involved a challenge to a safety function due to an initiator with a high expected frequency of occurrence (loss of offsite power). Although one of the two EDG and its associated electrical equipment were out of service, plant operation with the remaining EDG was permitted for a limited time by the technical specifications. Thus, safety function availability remained within operational limits and conditions. Additionally, the second EDG was returned to service within approximately 3 hours of the initial event. This event was given a rating of level 1 in accordance with Table II of the INES user's manual. On-site and off-site impact criteria were not relevant for this event.
The Netherlands has agreed to allow Urenco to be used for the British military nuclear program. This clears the way for uranium enriched by Urenco to be used in nuclear weapons. With his decision, Foreign Minister Berendsen (CDA Christen Democrats) is departing from the principle that civilian and military nuclear applications must remain strictly separate. […]
Behnam Raeesian is an internationally recognized visual artist and poster designer from Iran, known for bold political and cultural works. Through exhibitions, workshops, jury roles, and collaborations with cultural institutions worldwide, he has built a strong voice in contemporary political graphic design. His projects confront complex issues such as nuclear risk and technological impact, transforming […]
Everywhere you look, the nuclear industry’s hype machine is in overdrive. Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, and the UK government all tout small modular reactors as the silver bullet for climate change and energy security. Tech billionaires are hiring nuclear veterans. Wall Street is whispering about “round-the-clock power” for artificial intelligence data centers. For those old enough […]
Kernenergie en veiligheid: A wargame sought to test if a major radiological release that would prompt the evacuation of millions of civilians in South Korea could distract key US allies from assisting and rebuffing an all-out military invasion of Taiwan. The short answer was yes. The game originally presumed that China, wanting to keep the […]
Big batteries and EVs to the rescue again as faults with new nuclear plant cause chaos on Nordic grids The Finnish nuclear power plant Olkiluoto was finally connected to the grid last year, at an estimated cost of €11 billion compared to the original budget of €3 billion. That cost blowout forced its developer, the […]
