<p>Nuclear energy is one of the most efficient types of electricity production. However, it is one of the biggest fears of people due to radiation effects on human health. Despite the major developments in the nuclear sector, some gaps need to be studied for the higher safety scrutiny of Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs). Besides technical advances for the safer management of an NPP, another important part is having a well-constructed and planned probabilistic risk assessment and management. Realistic probabilistic risk assessment and management provide proper emergency response in case of an accident or hazardous situation to human health. On the other hand, aside from the radiation emitted directly from radioactive sources inside the NPP, there may be indirect radiation emission from dispersions outside the plant’s protected area. For example, we can look at forest fires occurring in radioactively contaminated areas surrounding NPPs, such as Chernobyl or Fukushima Daiichi. Radioactive particles produced by burning contaminated forests could spread in the air and threaten public health. It was previously determined that fires in forests around Chernobyl increased the level of radiation in the air. Such events have the possibility to occur in all areas where nuclear facilities are located. For forests contaminated after the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant accident, there is a risk similar to that of Chernobyl. This study aims to develop an early sensing and emergency response by doing an atmospheric dispersion modeling and supporting a probabilistic risk assessment for a wildfire scenario in radioactively contaminated areas, such as Chernobyl and Fukushima Daiichi. Also, this study provides a pathway to assessing the risk of nuclear contamination caused by wildfires around nuclear facilities. We aimed to draw the fire propagation map in an area around the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant, which depends on the atmospheric and geographical conditions. For this purpose, we determined an area around the plant, selected a fire season date, and extracted the atmospheric dispersion map to be seen in case of a possible fire with the HYSPLIT code. While doing this, we chose the most affected area by running the HYSPLIT code with the source terms from the day of the accident. We observed the particle distribution of the fire simulated for 24 hours. Thus, we have also seen the locations at risk in the event of a fire in the selected area on that date. Taking precautions in situations that require early intervention will allow many risks to be eliminated. Moreover, these preliminary studies provide supporting documentation for local authorities to have an emergency plan in the event of a fire.</p>

On the Modeling of Wildfires-Induced Release and Atmospheric Dispersion in Radioactively Contaminated Regions

Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/IMECE/IMECE2021/volume/85543

ASME 2021 International Mechanical Engineering Congress and Exposition (IMECE2021)

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