Amphibious operations represent a pivotal military maneuver involving the transfer of landing forces via ships, boats, and aircraft from sea to land. The success of such operations can be the decisive factor in the outcome of a war. Nevertheless, planning an amphibious assault is an intricate and formidable task, demanding careful consideration of numerous variables. This complexity is particularly evident in the formulation of loading plans for troops and equipment onto naval vessels. Historical accounts underscore the profound repercussions of errors in planning and loading on the execution of these operations. In pursuit of efficient loading procedures characterized by precision and time-effectiveness, our study has delved into the realm of optimization modeling. Employing a mixed-integer mathematical programming approach, this optimization model offers a valuable tool to streamline and enhance the preparatory phase of amphibious operations.

During wartime, the operation of engineering equipment plays a pivotal role in bolstering the combat prowess of military units. To fully harness this combat potential, it is imperative to provide efficient support precisely when and where it is needed most. While previous research has predominantly focused on optimizing equipment combinations to expedite individual mission performance, our model considers routing challenges encompassing multiple missions and temporal constraints. We implement a comprehensive analysis of potential wartime missions and developed a routing model for the operation of engineering equipment that takes into account multiple missions and their respective time windows. Our approach centered on two primary objectives: maximizing overall capability and minimizing mission duration, all while adhering to a diverse set of constraints, including mission requirements, equipment availability, geographical locations, and time constraints.

In nuclear power plant (NPP) decommissioning, ventilation and purification of the building atmosphere are important to create a working environment, ensure worker safety, and prevent the release of gaseous radioactive materials into the environment. The heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system of each building is maintained, modified, or newly installed. In this study, based on APR1400, operation strategies were presented in case of ventilation abnormalities in the reactor containment building (RCB), where highly radioactive particles and high dust are most frequently generated during NPP decommissioning. For research, it was assumed that the entire RCB atmospheric ventilation during decommissioning would use the RCB purge system of the existing NPP and perform continuous ventilation. Additionally, it is assumed that areas where high radiation particles and high dust occur locally, such as reactor containers or internal segments, are sealed with tents and purified using a HEFA filter of a temporary portable HVAC, and a exhaust flow path is connected to the discharge duct of the existing RCB purge system. The possibility of abnormal occurrence was largely divided into two cases. First, when large amounts of uncontrolled pollutants are released into the atmosphere inside the RCB, discharge to the environment is stopped manually or automatically by a modified engineered safety function activation signal (ESFAS). Afterwards, the RCB purge system should be operated in recirculation mode to sufficiently purify the RCB atmosphere with a HEPA filter. Second, when the first train of the low volume purge system is not running due to a failure, standby train should be operated. If both low volume purge trains fail, a high volume purge system is used. Intermittent purge operation is preferred due to large capacity during high volume purge operation. In cases where it is not possible to operate all purge systems due to common issues such as power supply, atmospheric sampling is performed to determine whether to proceed with the work inside RCB.

The critical hazards generated from operation of a melting facility for metal radioactive waste are mainly assumed to be such as vapor explosion, ladle breakthrough and failure in the hot-cell or furnace chamber using remote equipment. In case of vapor explosion, material containing moisture and/or enclosed spaces may, due to rapid expansion of gases when heated, cause an explosion and/or violent boiling. The rapid expansion of gases may lead to ejection of molten radioactive metal from the furnace into the furnace hall. If there is a large amount of liquid the explosion may damage or destroy technical barriers such as facility walls. The consequences for the facility ranges from relatively mild to very severe depending on the force of the explosion as well as the type of waste being melted. Nonradiological consequences may be physical damage or destruction of equipment and facility barriers, such as walls. Due to the radiological consequences a longer operational shutdown would likely be required. Cleanup efforts would include cutting of solidified metal in a problematic radiological environment requiring use of remote technology before damage and repair requirements can be assessed. Even though there is a risk for direct physical harm to operators for example in the control room and hot-cell, this analysis focuses mainly on the radiological impact. The extent to which remote equipment could be used in the decontamination effort will largely determine the health consequences to the workers. It is reasonable to assume that there will be a need for workers to participate manually in the effort. Due to the potentially large dose rates and the physical environment, it is possible that the maximum allowable dose burden to a worker will be reached. No major consequence for the environment is expected as most of the radioactivity is bound to the material. In case of ladle breakthrough, a ladle breakthrough involves loss of containment of the melt due to damage of the ladle. This may be caused e.g. by increased wear due to overheating in the melt, or from physical factors such as mechanical stress and impact from the waste. A ladle breakthrough may lead to spread of molten metal in the furnace hall. Molten metal coming into contact with the surrounding cooling equipment may cause a steam explosion. The consequences of a ladle breakthrough will depend on the event sequence. The most severe is when the molten metal comes into contact with the cooling system causing a vapor explosion. The basic consequences are assumed to be similar to those of the vapor explosion above. While the ejection of molten metal is likely more local in the ladle breakthrough scenario, the consequences are judged to be similar. In case of failure in the hot-cell or furnace chamber using remote equipment, the loss of electric supply or technical failure in the furnace causes loss of power supply. If not remedied quickly, this could lead to that the melt solidifies. A melt that is solidified due to cooling after loss of power cannot be removed nor re-melted. This may occur especially fast if there is not melted material in the furnace. An unscheduled replacement of the refractory in the furnace would be required. It could be unknown to what degree remote equipment can be used to cut a solidified melt. It is therefore assumed that personnel may need to be employed. This event could not have any impact on environment

Working with molten metal has always been and will always be a dangerous workplace. No matter how carefully equipment is designed, workers are trained and procedures are followed, the possibility of an accident can occur in melting workplace. Some primary causes of melt splash and furnace eruptions include wet or damp charge material, dropping heavy charge into a molten bath, wet or damp tools or additives and sealed scrap or centrifugally cast scrap rolls. Induction melting brings together three things (water, molted metal and electricity) that have the potential for concern if the furnace is not properly working. Induction furnace must have a water cooling system built into the coil itself. Water picks up the heat caused by the current as well as heat conducted from the metal through the refractory. The water carries the heat to a heat exchange for removal. Spill pits serve to contain any molten metal spilled as a result of accident, run out or dumping of the furnace in an emergency. If a leak is suspected at any time, cease operation and clear the melt deck area of all personnel and empty the furnace. Molten metal fins can penetrate worn or damaged refractory and come into contact with the coil. A furnace or a close capture hood which suddenly swings down from a tilted position will cause injury or death. Whenever workers are working on a furnace or close capture hood when it is in the tilted position, be sure that it is supported with a structural brace that is strong enough to keep it from dropping if hydraulic pressure is lost. In theory refractory wear should be uniform, however, in practice this never occurs. The most causes of lining failure are improper installation of refractory material, inadequate sintering of refractory material, failure to monitor and record normal lining wear, allowing the lining to become too thin, installation of the wrong refractory, improper preheating of a used cold lining, failure to properly maintain the furnace the sudden or cumulative effects of physical shocks or mechanical stress, and excessive slag or dross buildup. Pouring cradles provide bottom support for crucibles. A crack in the crucible occur below the bottom ring support, the bottom of the crucible can drop and molten metal will spill and splash, possibly causing serious injury or death. To reduce this danger, a pouring cradle that provides bottom support for the crucible must be used. Power supply units must have safety locks and interlocks on all doors and access panels. Workers who work with low voltage devices must be made aware of the risk posed by high levels of voltage and current. The most causes of accidents are introduction of wet or damp material, improper attention to charging, failure to stand behind safety lines, coming into contact with electrically charged components and lack of operator skills and training. Only trained and qualified personnel are to have access to high risk areas. Safety lockout systems are another effective measure to prevent electrical shock

KAERI has developed a Radioactive Waste Information Management System (RAWINGS) to manage the life-cycle information from the generation to the disposal of radioactive waste, in compliance with the low- and medium-level radioactive waste acceptance criteria (WAC). In the radioactive waste management process, the preceding steps are to receive waste history from the waste generators. This includes an application for a specified container with a QR label, pre-inspection, and management request. Next, the succeeding steps consist of repackaging, treatment, characterization, and evaluating the suitability of disposal, for a process to transparently manage radioactive wastes. Since the system operated in 2021, The system is enhanced to manage dynamic information, including the tracking of the location of radioactive waste and the repackaging process. Small packages of waste could be classified as either radioactive or clearance waste during pre-inspection. Furthermore, waste generated in the past has already been packaged in drums, and a new algorithm has been developed to apply the repackaging when reclassification is required. All radioactive waste with the unique ID number on the specific container is managed within a database, the total amount and history of waste are managed, and statistical information is provided. This system is continuously be operated and developed to oversee life-cycle information, and serve as the foundational database for the Waste Certification Program (WCP).

Spent nuclear fuels (SNFs) are stored in nuclear power plants for a certain period of time and then transported to an interim storage facility. After that, SNFs are finally repackaged in a disposal canister at an encapsulation plant for final disposal. Finland and Sweden have already completed the design of the spent nuclear fuel encapsulation plant. In particular, Finland has begun the construction of the encapsulation plant and is on the verge of completion. Korea Radioactive Waste Agency (KORAD) is conducting a conceptual design of a deep geological repository for SNFs. Conceptual design of the encapsulation plant is part of the research activity. It is highly required to draft an operation process of the encapsulation plant before an actual design activity. As part of the activity, Finnish design concept of the encapsulation plant and experience were thoroughly reviewed. Finally a preliminary concept of the operation process was proposed considering Korean unique situations such as the volume of SNFs estimated to be disposed of, types of transportation cask and other considerations.

Recently, as carbon-neutral energy sources become increasingly important worldwide, SMRs (Small Modular Reactors), which offer significantly enhanced safety, versatility, and mobility compared to conventional nuclear reactors, are gaining attention as a viable alternative. SMR generally refers to small modular reactors with a power output of 300 MWe or less. Unlike conventional reactors, SMRs are characterized by an all-in-one design where peripheral systems and equipment are all integrated into the reactor itself, leading to enhanced reliability and durability. Additionally, the nuclear fuel reloading cycle is significantly extended compared to traditional reactors, resulting in a substantial reduction in maintenance difficulty and costs. Researchers have taken note of these characteristics of SMRs, particularly the extended fuel reloading cycle. Therefore, we have initiated the initial design of an ultra-small Micro Modular Reactor with an electricity generation capacity of 10 MWe and a fuel cycle of up to 55 years, with the goal of using it as a propulsion power source for various transportation modes, especially ships. Our design of MMR, called ‘ARA,’ is primarily distinguished by its use of U233 and Th232 fuels instead of conventional UO2 fuel. Due to various features of ‘ARA,’ including different fuel compositions, ARA is predicted to exhibit several characteristic features compared to conventional PWRs. In this study, among these characteristics, we focused on predicting changes in material composition within the fuel rod during the extended cycle operation of high-enriched fuel, rather than short-cycle operation using low-enriched fuel, unlike conventional reactors. The primary goal of this research is to observe the behavior of the composition of the materials used in the fuel cycle of the MMR, which utilizes U233 and Th232 fuels instead of UO2. Considering the difficulties in the spent nuclear fuel disposal process, many different trials were made to minimize the fission products of ARA, which differs from conventional reactors in terms of fuel type, size, and fuel cycle, in relation to waste generation.

Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute’s Post Irradiated Examination Facility safely stores spent nuclear fuel using a wet storage method to conduct research. Here, in order to remove the radioactivity released into the water, the stored water is passed through an ion exchange resin tower, and the radionuclides are exchanged with the bead-shaped ion exchange resin filled inside to lower the radioactivity concentration. At this time, because the stored water passes in one direction, clogging of the ion exchange resin occurs. If this phenomenon continues, the flow rate of the water treatment process decreases and operation efficiency decreases, so a backwashing process is necessary to re-mix the ion exchange resin and secure the flow rate again. In this study, the flow rate reduction trend according to the lifespan of the ion exchange resin and the flow rate recovery according to the backwash process operation amount were analyzed. The flow rate reduction trend of the ion exchange process was analyzed immediately after the backwashing process was started. In addition, the amount of flow recovery according to the backwash process operation amount was evaluated by the amount of waste generated during the backwash process and the number of days of operation until the backwash process was needed again. As a result, the flow rate of the ion exchange process decreased rapidly right after the backwash process until the position of the ion exchange resins was stabilized, and then stabilized. After that, it gradually decreased and reached the point where the backwash process was necessary. However, the decline trend was analyzed to be the same regardless of the lifespan of the ion exchange resin. In addition, the amount of waste generated during the operation of the backwash process was increased in the order of 400 L, 600 L, 1,100 L, 1,400 L, 3,500 L, and 4,200 L to increase the amount of operation of the backwash process. As a result, the number of days of ion exchange resin operation was 285 days, 338 days, and 342 days, was analyzed as 422 days, 322 days, and 720 days. Based on this study, it was confirmed that the flow rate reduction trend is the same regardless of the lifespan of the ion exchange resin, and as the backwash process operation increases, the number of days the ion exchange process can be operated increases, but there is a turning point where the waste treatment cost exceeds the number of days of operation.

This study examined the heat balance in the electrolytic reducer during oxide reduction of pyroprocessing. The adoption of carbon anodes instead of conventional platinum anodes in the oxide reduction process has made it possible to apply high currents, and it has been observed that the temperature of the molten salt of in the reactor rises rapidly when applying high currents, so it is important to maintain an optimal operational temperature range. In this study, salt resistant heat, reaction heat, and decay heat were identified as factors affecting heat balance during the operation of oxide reduction process. Equations describing the relationships among these factors were established. Then using this, a correlation was developed to understand the relationship between applied current and the molten salt temperature in the reactor observed in the actual operation of the carbon anode electrolytic reducer of KAERI. Furthermore, this study proposed strategies to mitigate excessive temperature elevation during oxide reduction operation. A comparative assessment of these approaches was conducted. Considering KAERI electrolytic reducer operation environment, among the considered cooling strategies, the cooling effectiveness was calculated to be highest in the following order: heat transfer to extra salt, convection, conduction, argon gas bubbling.