Are you afraid of a nuclear reactor accident? Should you be? This book will arm you with the scientific knowledge necessary to make a rational and informed opinion on the subject, without having to be an expert in nuclear physics. Written so that a non-specialist can easily approach the highly technical aspects, it looks at all significant nuclear reactor accidents since the dawn of the Atomic Age and brings to light many crucial details that rarely, if ever, appear in the general media. Serge Marguet, an internationally renowned expert in reactor physics, breaks down the must-know technical aspects of numerous nuclear reactor accidents throughout history ― both famous and unknown ― from the first ever nuclear accident in Leipzig to the Chernobyl explosion and, finally, the Fukushima affair and its most recent developments. With many high-quality photographs and diagrams, this book is essential reading for anyone concerned about nuclear safety, curious about nuclear reactors, or simply interested in the history ― and future ― of nuclear power.
Author(s): Serge Marguet
Series: Springer Praxis Books
Publisher: Springer
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 479
City: Chester
Preface
Introduction
The First Ever Nuclear Reactor Accident
Contents
List of Figures
List of Photos
List of Tables
1: The Physics of Nuclear Accidents
The Physics of Nuclear Fission
Some Basic Technology
The Reactor Accidents
The Radioactive Releases
2: Reactor Accidents in the Early Days of Nuclear Power
Windscale, a Fire in the Reactor (England, 1957)
Vandellos, a Fire of Turbo-Blowers (Spain, 1989)
Vinča, a Serious Criticality Accident (Винча, 1958)
Zoé, a Near Criticality Accident (France, Circa 1948)
Santa Susana, a Partial Blockage of the Flow in the Core (California, 1959)
Idaho Falls, a Control Rod Ejection (USA, 1961)
Barentz Sea, the Submarine K-19 Suffers a Loss of Primary Coolant Accident (USSR, 1961)
Fermi-1, Fuel Melting in a Sodium Cooled Reactor (1966, Michigan, USA)
Chapelcross, a Carbon Dioxide Flow Blockage and Magnesium Cladding Melting (1967, Great Britain)
Siloé, Melting of Fuel Plates (Grenoble, France, 1967)
Lucens, Partial Fusion of a Fuel Rod (Switzerland, 1969)
Saint Laurent des Eaux A1 (France, 1969), Saint Laurent des Eaux A2 (France, 1980)
Bohunice A1: (Czechoslovakia, 1976, 1977)
Constituyentes RA-2 (Argentina, 1983)
3: The Three-Mile-Island Accident
French Post-TMI Action Plan
Conclusion
4: The Chernobyl Accident
The RBMK Reactor Type
Chernobyl (1986, Ukraine)
Chernpbyl Forever?
Sosnovy Bor: The Precursor Accident of Chernobyl (Leningrad, Russia, 1975)
Sosnovy Bor (Leningrad, Russia, 1992)
5: The Fukushima Accident
And France?
The “Blayais” Case
The Consequences of Fukushima in France
The Ultimate Safety Diesel (DUS)
The SEU System: The Ultimate Cold Source
Conclusions and Perspectives
Zaporizhzhia or the Madness of Men
What Future for Nuclear Energy?
Appendix A: The INES Scale
Appendix B: The Deterministic Approach to Barrier Design: Applications to Pressurized Water Reactors
Incident/Accident Classes
Deterministic Safety Criteria
Appendix C: History of Significant Nuclear Reactor Accidents in the World
Bibliography
