Comptes Rendus
Continuously improving safety of nuclear installations: An approach to be reinforced after the Fukushima accident
Comptes Rendus. Physique, Volume 13 (2012) no. 4, pp. 372-377.

After the Three Mile Island accident in 1979 and the Chernobyl accident in 1986, the Fukushima accident shows that the probability of a core meltdown accident in an LWR (Light Water Reactor) has been largely underestimated. The consequences of such an accident are unacceptable: except in the case of TMI2 (Three Mile Island 2) large areas around the damaged plants are contaminated for decades and populations have to be relocated for long periods. This article presents the French approach which consists in improving continuously the safety of the Nuclear Power Plants (NPP) on the basis of lessons learned from operating experience and from the progress in R&D (Research and Development). It details the key role played by IRSN (Institut de radioprotection et de sûreté nucléaire), the French TSO (Technical and scientific Safety Organization), and shows how the Fukushima accident contributes to this approach in improving NPP robustness. It concludes on the necessity to keep on networking TSOs, to share knowledge as well as R&D resources, with the ultimate goal of enhancing and harmonizing nuclear safety worldwide.

Après lʼaccident de Three Mile Island en 1979 et celui de Tchernobyl en 1986, lʼaccident de Fukushima montre que la probabilité dʼune fonte du cœur dans un réacteur à eau légère a été considérablement sous-estimée. Les conséquences dʼun tel accident sont inacceptables : à Tchernobyl comme à Fukushima de vastes zones autour des centrales endommagées sont contaminées pour des dizaines dʼannées et les populations ont été évacuées pour de longues périodes. Le présent article présente le programme français qui consiste en une amélioration continuelle de la sûreté des centrales nucléaires en tirant les leçons de lʼexpérience acquise et des progrès en Recherche et Développement (R&D). On insiste sur le rôle essentiel joué par lʼInstitut de radioprotection et de sûreté nucléaire et on montre comment lʼaccident de Fukushima contribue à améliorer le fiabilité des centrales. On conclut par la nécessité pour les Organisations de sécurité nucléaire de collaborer et de partager les connaissances ainsi que les ressources en R&D, avec le but ultime dʼaméliorer et dʼharmoniser la sûreté nucléaire à travers le monde.

Published online:
DOI: 10.1016/j.crhy.2012.03.005
Keywords: Nuclear safety, Fukushima accident, NPP life extension, Risk assessment, Radiation protection, Periodic safety review
Mot clés : Sûreté nucléaire, Accident de Fukushima, Vie des centrales nucléaires, Evaluation des risques, Radioprotection, Vérification périodique le la sécurité

Jacques Repussard 1; Michel Schwarz 1

1 Institut de radioprotection et de sûreté nucléaire, BP 17, 92262 Fontenay-aux-Roses, France
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Jacques Repussard; Michel Schwarz. Continuously improving safety of nuclear installations: An approach to be reinforced after the Fukushima accident. Comptes Rendus. Physique, Volume 13 (2012) no. 4, pp. 372-377. doi : 10.1016/j.crhy.2012.03.005. https://comptes-rendus.academie-sciences.fr/physique/articles/10.1016/j.crhy.2012.03.005/

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