Suitability Evaluation of Commercial Grade Products for Use in Nuclear Power Plant Safety Systems
IAEA-TECDOC-2034 ¦ English ¦ 94 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

The suitable design and quality of systems, structures, and components important to safety is vital for the construction and operation of nuclear power plants. The IAEA has developed this publication to provide information on approaches to evaluating the suitability of commercial grade items for use in nuclear power plant safety systems.

Nuclear power plants in long-term operation have greatly benefited from the use of commercial-grade products, while the near-term deployment of advanced reactor designs, including small modular reactors, is expected to leverage such products to a large extent. The intended audience ranges from nuclear power plant senior management to experts procuring and controlling products and services vital for safety.

Decontamination Methodologies and Approaches
IAEA Nuclear Energy Series No. NW-T-1.38 ¦ English ¦ STI/PUB/2066 ¦ 90 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

The use of decontamination methods and techniques are complex, and an integrated assessment of technical performance, environmental factors, and costs is necessary for selection where large decontamination projects in the Nuclear Industry requires a combination of processes. This publication focusses on decision making in the planning of nuclear and radiological decontamination projects and provides guidance on the selection of the most appropriate approach.

It includes consideration of relevant factors and how individual factors are weighed, merged and combined leading to an integrated decision on the preferred approach. The publication is expected to be of use to all those involved in the planning of a decontamination project.

Status of Knowledge for the Qualification and Licensing of Advanced Nuclear Fuels for Water Cooled Reactors
IAEA-TECDOC-2032 ¦ English ¦ 96 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

The development and qualification of advanced cladding materials (including advanced zirconium cladding alloys, advanced steels, silicon carbide composite) and fuel materials (such as doped uranium dioxide, high density fuels) have made significant progress in the last decade, since the initiation of various national research and development and industry projects launched after the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Written for operators and regulators of nuclear power plants and those involved in the development and qualification of advanced fuels, the aim of this publication is to review the status of development, qualification and licensing of some advanced fuel technologies for Water Cooled Reactors (WCRs); and to consider the applicability of the current IAEA Safety Requirements and Safety Guides in addressing the safety of advanced fuels in design and operation, identifying specific aspects that might evolve into recommendations in the future. The objective is primarily to identify and collect the status of knowledge in Member States on the applicability to advanced fuels of regulatory requirements, acceptance criteria and regulatory guidance documents that have been developed for the licensing of current nuclear fuel systems. It also aims to review the status of development, qualification, and licensing of some advanced fuel technologies for WCRs, with a focus on evolutionary as well as revolutionary technologies.

Technical Aspects Related to the Design and Construction of Engineered Containment Barriers for Environmental Remediation
Technical Reports Series No. 493 ¦ English ¦ STI/DOC/010/493 ¦ 163 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

Containment barrier systems are among the most widely used technologies for remediating contaminated sites. Various structures have been engineered to address site-specific needs, while barrier selection depends largely on whether regulatory requirements are prescriptive, or performance based.

This publication provides an introduction to the design and construction of different containment barriers for low-level radioactive waste generated from remediation activities: basal (bottom) liners, final covers, in situ vertical barriers and in situ permeable reactive barriers. Practical aspects of each structure are discussed in theoretical case studies, which allow remediation project designers, implementers and regulators to make more informed decisions about the use of these barriers.

Development and Management of Regulatory Oversight for Operation of a First Nuclear Power Plant
IAEA-TECDOC-2033 ¦ English ¦ 104 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

This publication is intended to support Member States by providing practical information to develop and implement a structured regulatory oversight programme for the operation of a first nuclear power plant by identifying challenges and providing corresponding practical guidance from experienced Member States. The process is further elaborated by sharing good practices in the respective regulatory processes and actions taken to address those challenges.

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Global Inventories of Secondary Uranium Supplies
IAEA-TECDOC-2030 ¦ English ¦ Date published: 2023

The publication qualifies and quantifies the secondary supplies available across the world at the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle. It explains some of the key drivers for inventory policy related to nuclear fuel supply management and addresses the current ability of surplus or strategic uranium supplies to supplement the primary uranium supply chain for front end components of the nuclear fuel cycle. It also informs Member States of the important question as to the appropriate level of inventories sufficient to ensure the ongoing supply of nuclear fuel for end users.

This publication includes a supplementary file, available on-line, and contains tables of uranic inventories by country and region.

A Taxonomy for the Decommissioning of Nuclear Facilities
IAEA-TECDOC-2029 ¦ English ¦ 50 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

This publication is the result of a collaborative effort, between the IAEA, OECD Nuclear Energy Agency and European Commission, to develop a standard taxonomy for nuclear facility decommissioning and thereby facilitate the sharing of knowledge on this topic. Adoption of the taxonomy will support the capture of knowledge from the ongoing implementation of decommissioning activities involving nuclear power plants, research reactors, and fuel cycle facilities.

This publication will benefit a wide range of professionals working on gathering and organizing knowledge to be shared in the field of decommissioning, including government officials, managers of nuclear facility operating organizations, regulators, and industrial organizations offering decommissioning and waste management services.

Dosimetry in Brachytherapy – An International Code of Practice for Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratories and Hospitals
Technical Reports Series No. 492 ¦ English STI/DOC/010/492 ¦ 151 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

The brachytherapy process requires consistent reference dosimetry that is traceable to metrological primary standards and common procedures to be followed for reference dosimetry globally. The Code of Practice is addressed to both Secondary Standards Dosimetry Laboratories and hospitals.

It fulfils the need for a systematic and internationally unified approach to the calibration and use of vented well-type re-entrant ionisation chambers in determining the strength of brachytherapy sources with intensities measurable by such detectors. The dosimetry formalism as well as common procedures for calibration, reference dosimetry, reference-class instrument assessment and commissioning of the well-type ionisation chamber system are provided.

Basics of Quality Management for Nuclear Medicine
IAEA Human Health Series No. 43 ¦ English ¦ STI/PUB/1984 ¦137 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

A quality health service, as defined by the World Health Organization, ‘is one which organizes resources in the most effective way to meet the health needs of those most in need, for prevention and care, safely, without waste and within higher level requirements’. As health care standards improve globally, providing an optimal service that meets international standards and public expectations requires effective quality management.

The process of quality improvement aims at defining, measuring and setting quality standards, and overcoming the associated challenges that include rising costs and skills shortages. The objective of this publication is to provide a framework for quality management systems (QMSs) to be implemented, managed and sustained holistically in nuclear medicine departments. It builds upon the IAEA’s QUANUM programme, which has successfully been implemented in more than 80 countries worldwide.

Radioactive Waste Management: Solutions for a Sustainable Future
Proceedings of an International Conference, Held in Vienna, Austria, 1–5 November 2021 STI/PUB/2077 ¦ English ¦ 490 pages ¦ Date published: 2023

Radioactive waste is a by product of nuclear technologies used in medicine, industry, agriculture, research and power generation. Nuclear technologies play a vital role in diagnosing and treating various diseases, identifying and assessing material properties, measuring pollution levels, providing safe and effective means of disinfecting and sterilizing tools and equipment, diagnosing technical issues in industrial equipment, confirming weld integrities or enhancing crop yields and resilience.

Nuclear power accounts for 10% of the world’s low carbon electricity supply. This publication provides a summary of the conference sessions, including the full text of papers from the oral sessions and both the opening and closing speeches delivered during the conference. The papers associated with the poster presented at the conference are also included as supplementary files available on-line.