The Nuclear Safety And Security Commission approved changes to the pressure and temperature limits for the reactor coolant system of Hanbit Units 1 and 2 and to the structures of the Gijang research reactor.
The commission said it held its 221st full meeting on the 11th and reviewed and passed three agenda items, including these.
The reactor coolant system is a device that circulates heat generated by the fuel's nuclear fission. The Gijang research reactor is a facility that produces and studies medical and industrial radioisotopes. The commission said it confirmed that Hanbit Units 1 and 2 remain safe despite material changes caused by radiation exposure, and that the Gijang research reactor met safety standards by adjusting the sample transfer device and the height of the pool tank.
The commission also improved its review process for facility modifications to research and training reactors. Going forward, matters where safety is critical will be reviewed in person, while other matters will be reviewed in writing, to raise both review efficiency and safety.
The meeting also discussed a plan to improve site criteria for next-generation nuclear plants, including small modular reactors (SMRs). Previously, plant site safety was judged against U.S. standards, but this time the commission pushed to establish new criteria that reflect Korea's level of science and technology. SMRs are safer than existing nuclear plants and do not require a wide safety radius, but under existing rules they had to follow criteria for conventional plants.
In response, the commission abolished the existing siting notice and prepared a new notice that includes detailed criteria such as geological and seismic safety assessments and the establishment of restricted areas and low-population zones. It also included grounds to apply separate criteria suited to the design characteristics of next-generation nuclear plants.
However, at the meeting some noted that the contents of the new notice remain unclear, so the commission decided to supplement it and discuss it again later.