Expert systems in nuclear power plants - How soon can they be implemented?

Real-time Expert Systems (RTES) techniques will probably be implemented in an eventual nuclear power station in Israel. In preparation for this goal, expertise in this field can be developed locally and maintained by applying these techniques in similar environment, such as the chemical processing industry. An example of demonstration RTES is described, in which spread-sheet software was used as a shell for a fault analyzing operator-aid in low-level radioactive wastewater evaporation facility. The status of RTES implementation in the chemical industry is discussed, and it seems that the needed development effort is higher than expected. The only reported major industry/university project had to invest 12 man-years in actual plant implementation of RTES for fault analyzing of relatively simple chemical reactor operation. A major part of the effort was concerned with the simulation, checking and verification of the RTES software prior to it's installation in the control room. The implication for nuclear power plant use, with it's much higher complexity and stringent safety requirements and regulations, is that full scale RTES development and implementation will be both expensive and slow. The perceived increase in the safety and plant availability seems, however, attractive enough to warrant continued efforts in RTES development, even only for sub-systems, with special attention to the problem of verification and validation needed for the regulatory authorities certification. (author). 7 refs, 10 figs