Accident Management to Prevent Containment Failure and Reduce Fission Product Release

Brookhaven National Laboratory, under the auspices of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, is investigating accident management strategies which could help preserve containment integrity or minimize releases during a severe accident. The strategies considered make use of existing plant systems and equipment in innovative ways to reduce the likelihood of containment failure or to mitigate the release of fission products to the environment if failure cannot be prevented. Many of these strategies would be implemented during the later stages of a severe accident, i.e. after vessel breach, and sizable uncertainties exist regarding some of the phenomena involved. The identification and assessment process for containment and release strategies is described, and some insights derived from its application to specific containment types are presented. 2 refs., 5 figs., 2 tabs