From the inception of nuclear energy, the important role of the sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) and its fuel cycle has been recognized for long term sustainability of nuclear power. This publication covers the status and trends of SFR fuel technology, highlighting manufacturing processes, out of pile properties and irradiation behaviour of mixed uranium–plutonium oxide, monocarbide, mononitride and metallic U–Zr and U–Pu–Zr fuels. Minor actinide (Np, Am, Cm) bearing fuels are also covered in this publication. The information compiled in this book will be a valuable resource for materials scientists and engineers involved in fuel development for fast reactors, in general, and SFRs, in particular.

The nuclear power field, comprising industry, government authorities, regulators, research and development organizations, and educational institutions, relies for its continued success on a specialized, highly trained and motivated workforce. The aim of the present publication is to provide information on the use of integrated workforce planning as a tool to effectively develop these resources for the spectrum of organizations that have a stake in nuclear power programmes. It is based on the framework contained in the IAEA publication, Milestones in the Development of a National Infrastructure for Nuclear Power, and addresses the workforce requirements for each of the three phases, focusing on three main organizational entities (NEPIO, regulatory body and operating organization) and their responsibilities in relation to each of the 19 infrastructure issues. It also includes actual case studies to illustrate how other Member States have implemented or are implementing their first nuclear energy programme.

The process of increasing the licensed power level of a commercial nuclear power plant is called ‘power uprate’. In most cases, this is an economic way of producing more electricity in a nuclear power plant, while maintaining adequate safety, design and operational margins. There are a number of options for uprating the power level and these are discussed in this publication. Furthermore, it provides information on current trends, licensing aspects, monitoring, lessons learned from many countries and verification technology.

The International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO) helps to ensure that nuclear energy is available to contribute in a sustainable manner to meeting the energy needs of the 21st century. This publication was prepared to ease the application of the INPRO methodology, an IAEA tool that assists Member States in strategic planning and decision making on nuclear power programmes. It provides an overview of the methodology and recommendations on how to perform a nuclear energy system assessment using the methodology. Different users of the INPRO methodology are addressed: nuclear technology developers, experienced nuclear technology users and prospective first time users of nuclear power technology.

This publication presents the results of an IAEA INPRO study. It includes a set of technical scenarios of nuclear deployment and consideration of their implications. It considers a global energy supply system composed of several reactor and fuel cycle types available today and of fast reactors that may be developed in the future, to illustrate a possible modelling approach to identify the potential role of interregional transfer of nuclear fuel resources in supporting the global growth of nuclear energy based on the availability of uranium resources in the 21st century. The study was performed with the participation of sixteen experts from nine Member States and includes a dynamic simulation of material flows in nuclear energy systems using available nuclear power development modelling tools.

This publication is based on the coordinated work of international experts with the aim of developing a global radioelement map with comparable results from different States. It is intended to support the identification of prospective areas for uranium exploration and mining, and also for environmental actions associated with uranium production and other human activities. The utility of the publication is expected to motivate many States to standardize the status of their radioelement mapping based on the global development and experience.

This publication is intended to assist nuclear utilities in planning control room and other human-system interface changes that make appropriate use of modern technologies, to manage ageing and obsolescence, and to facilitate improvements to plant performance and safety. It discusses the wide spectrum of such changes to the control room and highlights the importance of their proper planning, design and implementation. The publication describes a formal, well-planned approach to modernization, which involves all stakeholders from the utility, design organizations and regulatory authorities. It will be a valuable resource for nuclear power plant organizations, their suppliers/contractors and other technical support organizations in achieving the desired benefits.

The safety of nuclear power plants (NPPs), one of the most important conditions for their acceptance, is achieved by numerous methods and techniques during their design, manufacture and maintenance. Risk informed inspection is one strategy for improving the effectiveness of in-service inspection (ISI) and is based on a combination of independent assessments of the probability of failure of components and the consequences of these failures. This publication describes the general process of developing and implementing risk informed in-service inspections (RI-ISI) methodologies, the technological issues which lie behind the methodologies, application and status, and the current development activities. The information provided is primarily intended for managers, ISI supervisors, lead engineers of NPPs and technical support organizations, but will also be useful for regulatory staff reviewing RI-ISI programmes.

This publication provides a qualitative framework for examination of the proliferation resistance of the innovative nuclear fuel cycle options, focusing on the intrinsic features of proliferation resistance. It also includes a survey of a number of innovative nuclear energy systems and fuel cycles with respect to that framework. This survey does not attempt to perform a comparative assessment among the various nuclear energy systems, but identifies the possible impacts and the tradeoffs (if any) that should be carefully evaluated in deciding what technologies merit further consideration.

Research reactors are expected to make important contributions in coming decades to the further development of peaceful uses of nuclear technology. However, they must be managed according to sound financial principles. The objective of this publication is to provide research reactor operators and associated institutions or organizations with information and an analytical approach for assessing and determining the cost structure of the fuel cycle related activities of their reactors. It serves as a useful guide in finding ways to achieve the lowest possible cost structure for fuel cycle related reactor operations, consistent with the operating needs and utilization requirements of a reactor. Case studies of sound management practice are provided.

This publication responds to the growing awareness of a need for open discussion and concerted actions to improve nuclear fuel reliability. It contains unique worldwide statistics on fuel failure rates, covering about 96% of water cooled reactor fuels. This gives the most representative picture of fuel reliability available in the open literature and presents a number of valuable conclusions. The publication also describes modern methods of detection and examination of fuel failures, analyses their mechanisms and root causes, and recommends failure prevention and mitigation measures. These data and information are important elements for closing the circle of the fuel quality management system through providing feedback information about fuel performance.

This publication has been written to assist Member States in the development of their uranium mineral resources. It sets out the basic tenets of best practice in terms of environmental management of uranium mining and processing operations from the viewpoint of both operators and regulators, and is accompanied by a collection of case studies from leading representatives of the global mining industry.