Comparative Study on the Technical Standards for the In-Service Inspection of Nuclear Power Plant Components in Several Countries

In each country, the periodic ISI(In-Service Inspection) is required by the law to protect the public health and property from the potential accident of the nuclear facilities. To support the implementation of ISI program, the prescriptive ISI technical standards have been established. As the key parts of the ISI program, the non-destructive examination techniques are widely used to identify the degree of degradation of the pressure boundary components and welds. Recently, the risk informed-ISI program has been developed and implemented in several countries. Nonetheless, the existing ISI program which prescriptively decides the scope of inspection still has its own significance. In this article, the technical standards of ISI in leading countries like US, France, Canada, and Japan are reviewed and compared with the safety guide by IAEA. An outline to revise the domestic technical standards of ISI has been suggested