[en] The updating of the instruments as the operation console of the TRIGA Mark III Salazar Reactor is based on the use of a personal computer that works as data acquisition and control device. The power changes on the reactor have been made through the inserting or extraction of four control rods, that they are operated by mechanisms based in alternate current motors. That is with the object to handling each of the bars and so avoiding too the degradation about the performance of the computer of process. Also it is using four drives of smart kind which do the basic duties for generating the control signals and verifying the sensors state of the limits in continuous form. The computer and drivers are organized as a ring net using the serial port R S-232. The computer of process sends the orders and the identification of destination instrument throughout the net. (Author)

[en] The filtered venting of the containment has been adopted in European countries to mitigate the consequences of excess pressure containment during a severe accident. When venting has taken place, the fission products are released directly into the environment, unless a filter on the same path is placed, so that various types of filters are used to trap the fission products. The venting filters of the containment currently installed use different filtration technologies that involve more than one medium. Those using water as the first stage of filtration are called wet systems and are equipped with additional steps to remove water drops and fine aerosols emissions. And even they may also be equipped with an element containing certain absorption means for the filtration of gaseous iodine species. Other designs based on filtration of deep bed as the primary retention step; called dry filters, use filtration media of metal fiber, ceramic or sand to trap aerosols. This paper evaluates the hydraulic characteristics of the filter sand bed type designed by EDF as a candidate to be installed in the containment of BWR Mark II (type of primary containment of the nuclear power plant of Laguna Verde). The evaluation of filter sand bed type was performed using the software package of open source OpenFOAM. Models of each zone of the filtered device were generated and through a series of parametric calculations of computational fluid mechanics relevant hydrodynamic characteristics of the device were obtained, such as pressure drops against mass flow rate and pressure fields and speed at different operating conditions. On the other hand, the model validation of the sand bed filter when comparing the results of experimental tests on a sand column of PITEAS program (1985-1986) against OpenFOAM simulation was realized. The results are very close to those obtained experimentally. (Author)

[en] Due to the obsolescence of the instrumentation and control system of the nuclear research reactor IAN-R1, the Institute of Geology and Mining of Colombia, IngeoMinas, launched an international convoking for renewal it which was won by the Instituto Nacional de Investigaciones Nucleares (ININ). Within systems to design, the reactor protection system is described as important for safety, because this carried out, among others two primary functions: 1) ensuring the reactor shutdown safely, and 2) controlling the interlocks to protect against operational errors if defined conditions have not been met. To fulfill these functions, the various subsystems related to the safety report the state in which they are using binary signals and are connected to the inputs of two redundant logic wiring circuits called action logics (Al) that are part of the reactor protection system. These Al also serve as logical interface to indicate at all times the status of subsystems, both the operator and other systems. In the event that any of the subsystems indicates a state of insecurity in the reactor, the Al generate signals off (or scram) of the reactor, maintaining the interlock until the operator sends a reset signal. In this paper the design, implementation, verification and testing of circuits that make up the Al 1 and 2 of IAN-R1 reactor is described, considering the fulfillment of the requirements that the different international standards imposed on this type of design. (Author)

[en] The filtered venting of the containment has been adopted in European countries to mitigate the consequences derived from the excess pressure of the containment during a severe accident. When venting has taken place, the fission products are released directly into the environment, unless a filter is placed in the path of the same, so various types of filters are used to trap the fission products. The containment venting filters currently installed use different filtering technologies that involve more than one medium. Those who use water as the first stage of filtration are called wet systems, are equipped with additional stages to eliminate water drops and emissions of fine aerosols, and may even be equipped with an element that contains certain means of absorption for the gaseous iodine species filtration. Other designs, based on deep bed filtration as the main retention stage, called dry filters; use metal fiber, ceramic or sand filtration media to trap aerosols. The present work evaluates the hydraulic characteristics of the sand bed type filter designed by EDF as a candidate to be installed in the containment of the BWR Mark II (primary containment type of the Laguna Verde nuclear power plant). The evaluation of the sand bed filter was performed using the OpenFOAM open source software package. Models of each zone of the filtering device were generated and by means of a series of parametric calculations of computational fluid mechanics, the relevant hydrodynamic characteristics of the device were obtained, such as pressure drops against mass flow and pressure fields and velocity under different operating conditions. On the other hand, the validation of the sand bed filter model was made when comparing the results of experimental tests carried out in a sand column of the PITEAS program (1985-1986) against the simulation in OpenFOAM. The results obtained are very close to those obtained experimentally. (Author)

[en] Since the Chernobyl nuclear accident, European nuclear power plants have opted to install filters in the containment vent pipes, whose function is to help mitigate the consequences of a severe accident, by means of the controlled depressurization of the containment passively through of a containment filtering vent system. These systems are designed to relieve the internal pressure of containment by deliberately opening pressure relief devices, either a valve or rupture disk during a severe accident and being channeled to the filtering unit. In this work, the hydraulic response of a liquid gas washing filtration system is evaluated, since this information is necessary to estimate the effect of the increase of the containment pressure on the venting capacity of the vent pipes. Through CFD simulation, using the programs with open source license CaeLinux-2014 and OpenFoam, the hydrodynamic characteristics of the Multi-Venturi system were obtained for the washing of the gases coming from the containment, which could be included in the general model of the vent pipe. Representative models of the venturi tubes of each concentric sector that are part of the washing system were generated and by parametric calculations the average mass expense established by each venturi was estimated, according to its dimensions and depth to which is located inside the tank. In the same way, the pressure and mass expense required to activate each concentric sector was calculated according to the pressure and mass load from the containment, in order to estimate the maximum expenditure that is established through the filter. The velocity profiles and the characteristic pressure at which each sector operates were also calculated, as well as the local and global discharge pressure drop. (Author)

[en] From the nuclear accident of Chernobyl, the European nuclear power plants have chosen to install filters on the venting pipes of the containment, whose function is to help to mitigate the consequences of a severe accident, by controlled depressurization of the containment passively through a filtered venting of the containment system. These systems are designed to relieve the internal pressure of the containment by means of the deliberate opening of pressure relief devices, either a valve or rupture disc during a severe accident and be channeled to the filter unit. In this paper the hydraulic response of a filter system of gases washing by liquid is evaluated, due to this information is necessary to estimate the effect that has the pressure increase of the contention on the discharge capacity of the venting pipes. By simulation of computational of fluid dynamics with the programs: CAELINUX-2014 and OpenFOAM, the hydrodynamic characteristics of the Multi Venturi System for gases washing from the containment, which could be included in the general model of the venting pipe, were obtained. Representative models of the Venturi tubes of each concentric area that forming the washing system were generated; and using parametric calculations the average mass flow rate established through each venturi, depending on its size and depth in which it is located inside the tank was estimated. Also, the pressure and mass flow rate required to activate each concentric area depending on the pressure and mass load from the containment were calculated, to estimate the maximum flow that is established through the filter. Finally, the velocity profiles and the characteristic pressure at which each area operates as well as the pressure drop of local and global discharge also were calculated. (Author)

[en] Different hospitals of nuclear medicine require of the technical attendance for the design, construction and instrumentation of an effluents retention system coming from the room dedicated to the medical application of iodine 131, with the one object of giving execution to the normative requirements of radiological protection, settled down in the General Regulation of Radiological Safety (RGSR) emitted by the CNSNS in November, 1988 and in the corresponding official standards. An automatic system of flow measurement, the activity concentration of the effluents to the drainage, the discharges control and the automated report it will allow the execution of the national regulations, also the elimination of unhealthy activities as the taking of samples, analysis of those same and the corresponding paperwork, its will allow that the SACEL is capable of to carry out registrations that are to consult in an automated way. The changes in the demands of the National Commission of Nuclear Safety and Safeguards in relation to the liberation of radioactive material in hospitals by medical treatments, it has created the necessity to develop a system that quantifies and dose the liquid effluents of people under thyroid treatment with iodine-131 to the drainage. The Automated System of Control of radioactive liquids effluents generated in Hospitals of Nuclear Medicine (SACEL) developed in the National Institute of Nuclear Research, it fulfills this regulation, besides improving the work conditions for the medical and technical personnel of the hospital in that are installed, since this system has the advantage of to be totally automated and to require of a minimum of attendance. The SACEL is an electro-hydraulic system of effluents control, based in the alternate operation of two decay deposits of the activity of the material contaminated with iodine-131. The system allows to take a registration of those volumes and liberated dose, besides being able to be monitoring in remote form. (Author)

[en] In the procedure elaborated to repair the vessel of TRIGA III Mark reactor is required to move toward two tanks of temporal storage the fuel elements which are in operation and the spent fuel elements which are in decay inside the reactor pool. The National Commission of Nuclear Safety and Safeguards (CNSNS) has requested as protection measure that it is carried out a surveillance of the criticality approach of the temporal storages. This work determines the main regulation aspects that entails an experiment of criticality approach, moreover, informing about the results obtained in the developing of this experiments. The regulation aspects are not exclusives for this work in the TRIGA Mark III reactor but they also apply toward any assembling of fissile material. (Author)

[en] The cathodic protection is the technique by which the harmful effects of the corrosion for metallic storage tanks can be resisted that they are on the ground. This method causes that all the metallic surface behaves like the cathode of an electrochemical cell. For systems of external cathodic protection, sacrifice anodes can be used or printed current, when sacrifice anodes are used, buried galvanic anodes in the ground are used and connected to the tank, and they are used generally in small tanks. With this technique the anodes are degraded leaving the metallic plate intact. The system proposed for the mathematical simulation of external cathodic protection systems, is an application dedicated to the simulation of a system of anodes for the corrosion protection of diesel containers installed on the ground, that allows to analyze the effects of the resulting current given to the motherboard of the container, that is to say, allows to observe the results before any physical installation and with this of reducing the expenses in the acquisition of unnecessary equipment or its defect, to realize an optimization in the equipment to install to obtain better results. The proposed system was divided in units of sequential processing and not like a whole, the previous thing to allow processing the problem in stages, because it consumes great amount of processing resources and storage during the execution of the same. The aplication was programmed in the programming language of called high level Python. Due to the auxiliary characteristics and units on which it counts, having like basic characteristic the being of open source, reason why it does not require of expensive payments to obtain a license. In the development of the system I am used and unit that allows to visualize controls style Windows, although it is counted on the same version that can be used in operating systems based on Linux. (Author)

[en] Inside the Programs of Surveillance of the nuclear power stations periodic information is required on the state that keep the materials with those that builds the vessel of the reactor. This information is obtained through some samples or test tubes that are introduced inside the core of the reactor and it is observed if its physical characteristics remain after having been subjected to the radiation changes and temperature. The rehearsal with the instrumented Charpy pendulum offers information on the behavior of fracture dynamics of a material. In the National Institute of Nuclear Research (ININ) it has an instrumented Charpy pendulum. The operation of this instrument is manual, having inconveniences to carry out rehearsals with radioactive material, handling of high and low temperatures, to fulfill the normative ones for the realization of the rehearsals, etc. In this work the development of a computational program is presented (virtual instrument), for the automation of the instrumented pendulum. The system has modules like: Card of data acquisition, signal processing, positioning system, tempered system, pneumatic system, compute programs like it is the visual interface for the operation of the instrumented Charpy pendulum and the acquisition of impact signals. This system shows that given the characteristics of the nuclear industry with radioactive environments, the virtual instrumentation and the automation of processes can contribute to diminish the risks to the personnel occupationally exposed. (Author)