AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE TAIPEI ECONOMIC AND CULTURAL REPRESENTATI-
VE OFFICE IN THE UNITED STATES AND THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE IN TA-
IWAN IN THE AREA OF PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSMENT RESEARCH
WHEREAS subject to the availability of personnel, material, and
appropriated funds, the American Institute in Taiwan (hereinaft-
er referred to as the "AIT"), through its designated representa-
tive, the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ("USNRC"), is carr-
ying out a research program in the area of Probabilistic Risk
Assessment of Nuclear Power Reactors;
WHEREAS the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office
in the United States (hereinafter referred to as "TECRO") has an
interest in access to information which has been developed and
continues to arise from this program and wishes to collaborate
with AIT;
Considering that the AIT and TECRO, hereinafter referred to as
the Parties:
1.Have a mutual interest in cooperation in the field of safety
research with the objective of improving and thus ensuring the
safety of civilian nuclear installations on an international
basis;
2.Recognize a need to equitably share both the resources result-
ing from this research and the effort required to develop tho-
se resources;
3.Have an interest in cooperating in the reliability, risk asse-
ssment, and other related areas of nuclear safety research;
4.Have been cooperating since January 1, 1999, under the terms
of a five year Agreement between AIT and TECRO in the Area of
Probabilistic Risk Assessment Research and have indicated the-
ir mutual interest in continuing this cooperation.
They have therefore AGREED as follows:
ARTICLE I - PROGRAM COOPERATION
The Parties, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement
and subject to applicable laws and regulations in force in the
territories they represent, will join together for cooperative
nuclear reactor safety research in the area of probabilistic ri-
sk assessment programs and other related program areas in nucle-
ar reactor safety sponsored by the Parties.
ARTICLE II - FORMS OF COOPERATION
Cooperation between the Parties, through their designated repre-
sentatives, may take the following forms:
A.The exchange of information in the form of technical reports,
experimental data, correspondence, newsletters, visits, joint
meetings, and such other means as the Parties agree.
B.The temporary assignment of personnel of the designated repre-
sentative of one Party or of the designated representative's
contractors to the laboratory or facilities owned by the desi-
gnated representative of the other Party or in which the desi-
gnated representative of the other Party sponsors research.
Each assignment will be considered on a case-by-case basis
and may be the subject of a separate attachment-of-staff arra-
ngement between the Parties.
C.The execution of joint programs and projects, including those
involving a division of activities between the designated rep-
resentatives of the Parties. Each joint program and project
will be considered on a case-by-case basis and may be the sub-
ject of a separate agreement between the Parties, if determin-
ed to be necessary by either of the Parties to this Agreement
or their designated representatives. Otherwise, it will be ac-
complished by an exchange of letters between the designated
representatives of the Parties, subject at least to the terms
and conditions of this present Agreement.
D.The use, by the designated representative of one Party, of fa-
cilities that are owned by or in which research is being spon-
sored by the designated representative of the other Party.
Use of these facilities may be subject to commercial terms and
conditions.
E.If a Party or its designated representative wishes to visit,
assign personnel, or use the facilities owned or operated by
entities other than the Parties to this Agreement or their de-
signated representatives, the Parties recognize that prior ap-
proval of such entities will, in general, be required by the
receiving Party or its designated representatives.
F.Any other form agreed between the Parties.
ARTICLE III - SCOPE OF AGREEMENT
The Parties, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement
, will undertake, through their designated representatives, a
program for cooperative research in probabilistic risk assessme-
nt (referred to as COOPRA). This cooperative program will incl-
ude technical information exchange in the areas of reliability,
risk, and other related areas of research as mutually agreed by
the Parties.
The specific elements and details of this cooperation are outli-
ned in Appendix A, which is an integral part of this Agreement.
The topics and programs outlined in Appendix A will be updated
and adjusted periodically as the programs develop during the ti-
me this cooperation is in force.
ARTICLE IV - ADMINISTRATION OF THE AGREEMENT
A.The designated representatives of AIT and TECRO will each des-
ignate an Administrator to coordinate and determine the detai-
led implementation of this Agreement. These Administrators may
, at their discretion, delegate this responsibility to the ap-
propriate technical staff with respect to a given issue.
B.Information on matters related to organization, budget, perso-
nnel, or management may be restricted and not provided as part
of the general information exchange under this Agreement.
C.AIT and TECRO, through their designated representatives, will
endeavor to select technical personnel for assignments to the-
se cooperative programs who can contribute positively to the
programs. The technical personnel assigned for extended peri-
ods will be considered visiting scientists (non-salaried) wit-
hin the programs in this Agreement and will be expected to pa-
rticipate in the conduct of the analyses and/or experiments as
necessary.
D.Each Party to this Agreement and its designated representativ-
es will have access to all nonproprietary reports written by
the technical personnel of the other Party's designated repre-
sentative assigned to the respective programs that derive from
the first Party's participation in those programs.
E.Administrative details concerning questions such as security,
indemnity, and liability related to the assignees or trainees
will be addressed in personnel assignment agreements between
the respective Parties.
F.Travel costs, living expenses, and salaries of visiting techn-
ical personnel or personnel participating in program review
meetings will be borne by their respective organizations.
ARTICLE V - EXCHANGE AND USE OF INFORMATION AND INTELLECTUAL PR-
OPERTY
A.General
The Parties support the widest possible dissemination of info-
rmation provided or exchanged under this Agreement, subject
both to the need to protect proprietary or other confidential
or privileged information as may be exchanged hereunder, and
to the provisions of the Intellectual Property Addendum, which
is an integral part of this Agreement.
B.Definitions (As used in this Agreement)
1.The term "information" means nuclear energy-related regulat-
ory, safety, safeguards, waste management, scientific, or
technical data, including information on results or methods
of assessment, research, and any other knowledge intended to
be provided or exchanged under this Agreement.
2.The term "proprietary information" means information created
or made available under this Agreement which contains trade
secrets or other privileged or confidential commercial info-
rmation (such that the person having the information may de-
rive an economic benefit from it or may have a competitive
advantage over those who do not have it), and may only incl-
ude information which:
a.has been held in confidence by its owner;
b.is of a type which is customarily held in confidence by
its owner;
c.has not been transmitted by the owner to other entities (
including the receiving Party or its designated represent-
ative) except on the basis that it be held in confidence;
d.is not otherwise available to the receiving Party, or its
designated representative, from another source without re-
striction on its further dissemination; and
e.is not already in the possession of the receiving Party or
its designated representative.
3.The term "other confidential or privileged information" mea-
ns information, other than "proprietary information," which
has been transmitted and received in confidence and which is
protected from public disclosure under the laws and regulat-
ions of the territory represented by the Party providing the
information.
C. Marking Procedures for Documentary Proprietary Information
A Party receiving documentary proprietary information pursua-
nt to this Agreement will respect the privileged nature ther-
eof, provided such proprietary information is clearly marked
with the following (or substantially similar) restrictive le-
gend:
"This document contains proprietary information furnished in
confidence under an Agreement dated between the Taipei Econo-
mic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) and the Ameri-
can Institute in Taiwan (AIT) and will not be disseminated
outside these organizations, their designated representatives
, consultants, contractors, and licensees, and concerned dep-
artments and agencies of the authorities in the territories
represented by AIT and TECRO without the prior approval of (
name of transmitting Party). This notice will be marked on
any reproduction hereof, in whole or in part. These limitat-
ions will automatically terminate when this information is
disclosed by the owner without restriction."
This restrictive legend will be respected by the receiving
Party and proprietary information bearing this legend will
not be used for commercial purposes, made public, or dissemi-
nated in any manner unspecified by or contrary to the terms
of this Agreement without the consent of the transmitting Pa-
rty.
D.Dissemination of Documentary Proprietary
Information
1.In general, proprietary information received under this Agr-
eement may be freely disseminated by the receiving Party wi-
thout prior consent to persons within or employed by the re-
ceiving Party, and to concerned authorities in the territory
represented by the receiving Party.
2.In addition, proprietary information may be disseminated wi-
thout prior consent:
a.to prime or subcontractors or consultants of the receiving
Party, or its designated representative, located within
the geographical limits of the territory represented by
that Party for use only within the scope of work of their
contracts with the receiving Party in work relating to the
subject matter of the proprietary information;
b.to domestic organizations permitted or licensed by the au-
thorities of the territory represented by the receiving
Party to construct or operate nuclear production or utili-
zation facilities, or to use nuclear materials and radiat-
ion sources, provided that such proprietary information is
used only within the terms of the permit or license; and
c.to domestic contractors of organizations identified in D.2
.b., above, for use only in work within the scope of the
permit or license granted to such organizations;
Provided that any dissemination of proprietary information
under D.2.a., b., and c., above, will be on an as-needed,
case-by-case basis, will be pursuant to an agreement of
confidentiality, and will be marked with a restrictive le-
gend substantially similar to that appearing in Article V.
C., above.
3.With the prior written consent of the Party furnishing prop-
rietary information under this Agreement, the receiving Par-
ty may disseminate such proprietary information more widely
than otherwise permitted in subsections 1. and 2. The Parti-
es will cooperate in developing procedures for requesting
and obtaining approval for such wider dissemination, and ea-
ch Party will grant such approval to the extent permitted by
its policies, regulations, and laws of the territory it rep-
resents.
E.Marking Procedures for Other Confidential or Privileged Infor-
mation of a Documentary Nature
A Party receiving under this Agreement other confidential or
privileged information will respect its confidential nature,
provided such information is clearly marked so as to indicate
its confidential or privileged nature and is accompanied by a
statement indicating:
1.that the information is protected from public disclosure by
the authorities of the territory represented by the transmi-
tting Party and
2.that the information is transmitted under the condition that
it be maintained in confidence.
F.Dissemination of Other Confidential or Privileged Information
of a Documentary Nature
Other confidential or privileged information may be dissemina-
ted in the same manner as that set forth in paragraph D., Dis-
semination of Documentary Proprietary Information
G.Non-Documentary Proprietary or Other Confidential or Privileg-
ed Information
Non-documentary proprietary or other confidential or privileg-
ed information provided in seminars and other meetings arrang-
ed under this Agreement, or information arising from the atta-
chments of staff, use of facilities, or joint projects, will
be treated by the Parties according to the principles specifi-
ed for documentary information in this Agreement; provided,
however, that the Party, or designated representative, commun-
icating such proprietary or other confidential or privileged
information has placed the recipient on notice as to the char-
acter of the information communicated.
H.Consultation
If, for any reason, one of the Parties or its designated repr-
esentative becomes aware that it will be, or may reasonably be
expected to become, unable to meet the non-dissemination prov-
isions of this Agreement, it will immediately inform the other
Party and its designated representative. The Parties will the-
reafter consult to define an appropriate course of action.
I.Other
Nothing contained in this Agreement will preclude a Party from
using or disseminating information received without restricti-
on by a Party from sources outside of this Agreement.
ARTICLE VI - FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS
TECRO will contribute in-kind technical information exchange in-
dicated in Appendix A (Part II) to AIT and its designated repre-
sentative's program described in this Agreement.
ARTICLE VII - DISPUTES AND WARRANTY OF INFORMATION
A.All costs arising from implementation of this Agreement will
be borne by the Party, or designated representative, that inc-
urs them except when specifically agreed to otherwise. It is
understood that the ability of the Parties and their designat-
ed representatives to carry out their obligations is subject
to the availability of funds. It is also understood that the
terms herein agreed to represent feasible commitments accordi-
ng to the best understanding regarding resources and costs at
the time of signature.
B.Information furnished by one Party to the other under this Ag-
reement will be accurate to the best knowledge and belief of
the Party supplying the information. However, the application
or use of any information exchanged or transferred between the
Parties under this Agreement will be the responsibility of the
Party receiving the information, and the transmitting Party
does not warrant the suitability of the information for any
particular use or application.
C.Cooperation under this Agreement will be in accordance with
the laws and regulations of the respective territories repres-
ented by AIT and TECRO. Any dispute or questions between the
Parties concerning the interpretation or application of this
Agreement arising during its term will be settled by mutual
agreement of the Parties.
D.AIT and its designated representative make no warranties, wha-
tsoever, for the ability or suitability of any code or other
analytical technique to perform in any particular manner for
any particular purpose, or to accomplish any particular task.
AIT and its designated representative accept no liability for
damages of any type that may result from the use of codes or
other analytical techniques provided under this Agreement.
ARTICLE VIII - OTHER CONSIDERATIONS
A.All AIT and designated representative computer codes dissemin-
ated under this Agreement are to be considered privileged inf-
ormation unless otherwise noted, are protected as such by AIT
and its designated representative, and shall be treated likew-
ise by TECRO and its designated representative. They are, in
particular, subject to all of the provisions of this Article
including the requirement for an agreement of confidentiality
(see Article V) prior to dissemination, with the exception
that they need not be marked with the restrictive designation.
The codes are subject to this protection in both object and
source forms and as recorded in any media.
B.AIT and its designated representative's codes and other relat-
ed analytical techniques covered under this Agreement, and any
improvements, modifications or updates to such codes or techn-
iques, are for the purpose of reactor and plant systems safety
research and licensing and will not be used for commercial pu-
rposes, or for other benefits not related to the study of rea-
ctor safety without the prior consent of AIT's designated rep-
resentative. Neither will these codes nor any other related
analytical techniques be advertised directly or by implication
to obtain contracts related to the construction or servicing
of nuclear facilities, nor will advertising imply that AIT or
its designated representative has endorsed any particular ana-
lyses or techniques.
C.All reports published within the scope of this Agreement and
all meetings held will be in English.
ARTICLE IX - FINAL PROVISIONS
A.This Agreement will enter into force upon signature, retroact-
ive from January 1, 2004, and will remain in force for a peri-
od of five years.
B.The Parties enter into this Agreement with the understanding
that reasonable allowances for normal delays will be made in
completing the work. The Parties and their designated repres-
entatives have the right to utilize information provided under
this Agreement after the expiration date; however, all inform-
ation protected by provisions of this Agreement as proprietary
, confidential, privileged, or otherwise subject to restricti-
on on disclosure will remain so protected indefinitely unless
mutually agreed otherwise in writing by the Parties.
C.A Party may terminate this Agreement after providing the other
Party written notice of its intent to terminate 180 days in
advance. The Party not terminating will notify the terminati-
ng Party before the effective date of termination if terminat-
ion will result in the terminating Party receiving a dispropo-
rtionate share of the expected benefit from this Agreement.
Both Parties will endeavor to reach an equitable settlement of
the matter through negotiation.
D.The Parties to this Agreement reserve the right to modify or
extend the specific activities described in Appendix A within
the intended scope of the Agreement upon written concurrence
of their Administrators of their designated representatives.
E.If the portion of the research program of any Party that is
pertinent to this Agreement is substantially reduced or elimi-
nated, the technical scope described in Article III may be ad-
justed to substitute research of equivalent programmatic inte-
rest upon mutual agreement of the Parties.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have signed the present Agreeme-
nt.
FOR THE AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR THE TAIPEI ECONOMIC AND
IN TAIWAN: CULTURAL REPRESENTATIVE
OFFICE IN THE UNITED STATES:
───────────── ──────────────
BY: BY:
NAME: NAME:
Barbara J. Schrage Jaw-ling J. Chang
TITLE: TITLE:
Deputy Managing Director Deputy Representative
DATE: 12/29/04 DATE: 12/29/04
PLACE: PLACE:
Washington D.C. Washington D.C.
APPENDIX A
PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSMENT PROGRAM ELEMENTS
Part I. AIT AND DESIGNATED REPRESENTATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAMS IN
PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSMENT
The international cooperative research effort in probabilistic
risk assessment (PRA), has been divided into four general areas
of research: (1) Methods Development, (2) Analysis of Operating
Events, (3) Development of Advanced PC-Based PRA Software, and
(4) Regulatory Applications of PRA. The activities planned in
each of these areas are broadly described in the following sect-
ions.
1.Methods Development
It is generally recognized that the broad application of PRA
to support regulatory decision-making requires methods improv-
ements in a number of risk-significant areas. Among the areas
needing improvement are treatment of fire risk, equipment agi-
ng, human reliability, and digital systems reliability and
risk. AIT and its designated representative's programs in th-
ese areas are as follows:
a.Fire Risk
The overall purpose of the fire risk research program is to
provide technical information in support of the AIT's desig-
nated representative's Risk-Informed Regulation Implementat-
ion Plan (RIRIP). In particular, the program will develop
fire PRA methods, tools, data, results, and insights needed
by AIT's designated representative to perform risk-informed
decision making.
The fire risk program includes activities that: 1) improve
qualitative and quantitative understanding of the risk cont-
ribution due to fires in operating nuclear power plants (NP-
Ps) and other facilities regulated by AIT's designated repr-
esentative; 2) support ongoing or anticipated fire protecti-
on activities in AIT's designated representative's program
offices, including the development of risk-informed, perfor-
mance-based approaches to fire protection for operating NPPs
; and 3) evaluate current fire PRA methods and tools and de-
velop improved tools (as needed to support the preceding ob-
jectives).
Previous work has led to: the development of improved metho-
ds, tools, and data in a number of areas, including circuit
analysis, fire detection and suppression analysis, and unce-
rtainty analysis; and to the development of fire PRA insigh-
ts from reviews of past significant fire events. Ongoing wo-
rk includes efforts to: develop comprehensive, state-of-art
guidance for the conduct of fire PRA (and gain insights from
plant-specific application; develop (in cooperation with a
number of international organizations) an improved understa-
nding of the uncertainties and limitations in current fire
models; support ongoing fire-related regulatory efforts (e.g
., the AIT's designated representative's fire protection Si-
gnificance Determination Process and associated circuits in-
spections); and support development of the American Nuclear
Society full power fire risk standard.
b.Equipment Aging
The objective of this research effort is to assess the feas-
ibility of using reliability-based physics models to incorp-
orate the effects of aging into an integrated probabilistic
risk assessment. Earlier work in this area assessed the fe-
asibility of using this technique for the aging of piping.
This work was published in NUREG/CR-5632, in the year 2001.
Additional work in this area is the application of this tec-
hnique to assessing the effect of aging on the failure of
in-containment instrumentation and control cables during a
loss of coolant accident. A report will be published in 200
4 describing a method of assessing the probability of failu-
re of these cables as a function of their age, and the inse-
rvice dose rate and temperature the cables are exposed to,
with some numerical examples. Additional work will be depe-
ndent on obtaining the cooperation of a licensee to provide
data on cable insulation materials and the environment of
cables.
c.Human Reliability
The general objectives of the human reliability analysis (
HRA) research are to: 1) develop improved human reliability
analysis (HRA) methods, tools (including guidance), and data
needed to support the designated representative's regulatory
activities, including the broad implementation of risk-info-
rmed regulation; and 2) develop HRA insights to support the
development of technical bases for addressing identified or
potential safety issues.
Previous work has led to the development of ATHEANA, an imp-
roved method for HRA that focuses on the identification of
error forcing contexts that increase the likelihood of human
errors; the application of ATHEANA in the assessment of pre-
ssurized thermal shock (PTS) risk in support of efforts to
re-examine the technical basis for 10 CFR 50.61, the PTS ru-
le; and the development of an improved method for HRA quant-
ification that explicitly treats uncertainties. Current work
includes the continual use of ATHEANA in PRA applications (e
.g., the fire requantification and steam generator tube rup-
ture), the development of an improved method for HRA quanti-
fication that includes the use of evidence from a variety of
sources; the development of a repository for human event re-
liability analysis (HERA), and the development of HRA guida-
nce, i.e., an HRA Good Practices document, to support the
use of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME)
PRA standard.
d.Digital Systems Reliability and Risk
The increased use of digital instrumentation and control sy-
stems in nuclear power plants is introducing some unique re-
liability and risk issues. This project will be focused on
providing methods for more quantitative, probabilistic asse-
ssments of digital systems reliability and their impact on
overall plant risk, including hardware and software reliabi-
lity and human-system interface issues. The staff is curre-
ntly focusing on Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (FMEA) in
support of developing reliability models of digital systems.
The potential goals are finding a better definition of the
reliability problems of digital systems and a better process
of applying FMEA to digital systems. The future work is ex-
pected to be in the areas of software reliability and the
failure rate data development.
2.Analysis of Operating Events
a.ASP Program
The Accident Sequence Precursor (ASP) Program was establish-
ed by AIT's designated representative in 1979 in response to
the Risk Assessment Review Group report (see NUREG/CR-0400,
September 1978). The primary objective of the ASP Program
is to systematically evaluate U.S. nuclear plant operating
experience to identify, document, and rank operating events
most likely to lead to inadequate core cooling and severe
core damage (precursors), if additional failures had occurr-
ed.
The other objectives of the ASP Program are:
* To categorize the precursors by their plant-specific and
generic implications,
* To support performance measures contained in AIT's design-
ated representative's annual Performance and Accountabili-
ty Report to Congress,
* To provide a measure for trending nuclear plant core dama-
gerisk, and
* To provide a partial check on probabilistic risk assessme-
nt (PRA)-predicted dominant core damage scenarios.
Events and conditions from licensee event reports, inspecti-
on reports, and special requests from AIT's designated repr-
esentative's staff are reviewed for potential precursors.
These potential precursors are analyzed, and a conditional
core damage probability (CCDP) is calculated by mapping fai-
lures observed during the event onto accident sequences in
risk models. An event with a CCDP or a condition with a ch-
ange in core damage probability greater than or equal to 1 x
10-6 is considered a precursor in the ASP Program.
Plant-specific and generic insights and lessons learned from
the ASP program, and other issues of interest that were enc-
ountered during the precursor analysis of operating experie-
nce (e.g., pr- ojection of unanticipated accident scenarios,
risk exposure from precursors, and adequacy/availability of
risk mitigation measures) are currently being exchanged in
annual meetings with OECD countries.
b.SPAR Model Development Program
The Standardized Plant Analysis Risk (SPAR) models are the
analysis tool used by staff analysts in many regulatory act-
ivities, including the ASP Program. The current set of SPAR
models includes PRA models for internal initiating events
during full power operation for each operating plant in the
U.S. In addition, generic models for low-power and shutdown
operations, and Level 2/large early release frequency (LERF)
analysis are being developed for several plant categories.
Currently, plant specific SPAR models are available only to
AIT's designated representative and licensees.
c.Reactor Performance Data Collection Program and Industry Tr-
ends Program The objectives of these programs are to:
* Collect industry data and produce industry trends for ini-
tiating events, common-cause failures, system and compone-
nt reliabilities, and fire events
* Establish thresholds for the associated industry trends.
* Develop integrated industry indicators and thresholds for-
the above.
* Produce parameter estimates for use in the SPAR models and
other risk analyses for initiating events, components, and
common-cause failures.
AIT's designated representative is currently developing a
new approach for industry trends. The proposed Baseline Risk
Indicator for Initiating Events (BRIIE) uses industry data
available from AIT's designated representative's programs,
and is closely tied to risk, e.g., core damage frequency.
The BRIIE uses a risk-significant subset of initiating event-
s along with appropriate risk weights obtained from the vari-
ous plant PRAs.
d.Development of Risk Based Performance Indicators
AIT's designated representative is developing a mitigating
systems performance index (MSPI) to monitor the performance
of six systems based on their ability to perform risk-signi-
ficant functions. The index comprises two elements - system
unavailability and system reliability. Plant-specific PRA
models are used to calculate the contribution of component
failures and maintenance unavailability to the index, which
approximates the change in core damage frequency. AIT's de-
signated representative is currently evaluating several tec-
hnical issues arising from the pilot plant program and is
also investigating the feasibility of implementing the MSPI
as part of AIT's designated representative's Reactor Oversi-
ght Process.
3.Development of PC-Based PRA Software
The AIT's designated representative has developed and maintai-
ns the SAPHIRE (Systems Analysis Programs for Hands-on Analys-
is Integrated Reliability Evaluations) PRA computer code.
SAPHIRE offers a state-of-the-art capability for assessing the
risk associated with any complex system or facility. In part-
icular SAPHIRE can be used to assess the risk associated with
nuclear power plants in terms of core damage frequency (Level
1 PRA) and containment performance and radioactive releases (
Level 2 PRA). SAPHIRE includes GEM, a separate subroutine th-
at provides a simplified user interface for performing analys-
is using SPAR models, discussed above.
Both the continual advancement of the state-of-the-art in the
use of computers and the continual expansion of the use of ri-
sk-information in the AIT's designated representative's decis-
ion-making, necessitate continual maintenance and improvement
of SAPHIRE.
It is expected that this program will continue to provide sof-
tware maintenance and user support and expand SAPHIRE capabil-
ities by: decreasing size limitations (on the number of basic
events, fault trees, sequences, end states, etc. handled by
SAPHIRE), speeding up cutset generation and data analysis usi-
ng multiple processors, adding work group project integration
capability, and creating a web-page type user interface with
the goal of reducing complexity without losing SAPHIRE's func-
tionality. Furthermore, SAPHIRE's documentation will be revi-
sed by issuing a new report for the Windows Versions 6 and 7.
Finally, a SAPHIRE interface is being developed to be used in
the Reactor Oversight Process.
4.Regulatory Applications of PRA
a.Changes to Reactor Regulations
AIT's designated representative has been actively pursuing
the increased use of PRA methods, models, and insights to
support regulatory decisions. Among the active programs are
those which use PRA results to identify changes needed in
reactor safety requirements. There are currently two regul-
ations 10 CFR 50.44 "Standards for Combustible Gas Control
Systems in Light-Water-Cooled Power Plants" and 10 CFR 50.46
"Acceptance Criteria for Emergency Core Cooling Systems for
Light-Water-Cooled Power Plants" that the staff is revising
based on current risk information and research results. In
September 2003, AIT's designated representative concluded
rulemaking on 50.44 by issuing risk-informed revision to 50.
44 which among other changes, eliminated the current requir-
ements for hydrogen recombiners. Proposals are under consi-
deration for risk-informing 50.46.
b.Regulatory Guidance on PRA
AIT's designated representative's staff has developed a dra-
ft regulatory guide (RG) that provides guidance to licensees
on how to use PRA standards and industry peer review progra-
ms to demonstrate that the risk input to a risk-informed de-
cision is technically defensible. This new RG will be acco-
mpanied by a Standard Review Plan (SRP) chapter. The main
body of the RG provides guidance on the use of PRA standards
and industry guidance by licensees to determine the level of
confidence that can be afforded PSA insights/results in sup-
port of decision-making. AIT's designated representative's
staff's endorsement of the standards and industry program
will be the appendices to this RG. Specifically, Appendices
A and B include the staff's position on the American Society
of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) PRA standard and the Nuclear
Energy Institute (NEI) peer review process respectively both
addressing full-power, internal events, excluding internal
fire, Level 1 and limited Level 2 (LERF) PRA. As the Ameri-
can Nuclear Society (ANS) PRA standards are issued on exter-
nal hazards, low power and shutdown and internal fires, add-
itional appendices will be added to the regulatory guide.
The draft RG was issued in November 2002 for public review
and comment. A RG for trial use will be issued for pilot
applications in February 2004. Pilot applications include
different allowed outage time (AOT) for technical specifica-
tions changes and 10CFR 50.69.
c.Risk of Dry Cask Fuel Storage
AIT's designated representative is performing a pilot PSA of a
spent fuel dry cask storage system, the Holtec International
HI-STORM 100. This cask is being studied at a specific BWR
site where the operations can be observed and modeled. (Alth-
ough developed for a specific cask at a specific site, the an-
alytical models developed for this preliminary study can be
modified and applied to other dry cask systems at other react-
or sites.) During its service life, the cask has three opera-
tional modes - handling in the reactor building, transfer to
the storage pad, and storage for 20 years. In each of these
modes, accidents that could result in mechanical and thermal
challenges to the cask and that have the potential to cause
the release of radioactive material, are postulated. Availab-
le data are used to estimate accident frequencies. Engineering
analyses are used to determine the stresses that would be imp-
osed by the postulated events. Fracture mechanics and other
engineering disciplines are used to determine the probability
of a cask failing when subjected to postulated accident condi-
tions.
The preliminary results of the PSA suggest that the risk to
the public of the HI-STORM cask at the BWR plant is very low
compared to the risk of accidents involving the core of opera-
ting nuclear power plants. Accidents that have a high condit-
ional probability of failing the cask have a very low frequen-
cy. Furthermore, the consequences of the postulated accidents
that can fracture the cask and the fuel are low because the
energy driving the radionuclides from the fuel pellets is low
and the inventory of radionuclides in the fuel pellets is rel-
atively low compared to the reactor inventory. Accordingly,
the risk, defined as the sum of the products of the accident
frequencies and consequences, is very low.
d.Development of Risk Guidelines for Nuclear Materials and Waste
Applications
AIT's designated representative's Commissioners have approved
the plans to continue advancements in risk-informing activiti-
es in the nuclear materials and waste arenas as a means of im-
proving the AIT's designated representative's Agency's focus
on safety, effectiveness, and efficiency, and in reducing unn-
ecessary regulatory burden. As work is completed in the risk
informed activities in the nuclear materials and waste arenas,
the information will be shared.
Part II. TECRO RESEARCH PROGRAMS IN PROBABILISTIC RISK ASSESSME-
NT
The international cooperative research effort in the territory
represented by TECRO on Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) has
been divided into three general areas of research: (1) PRA Model
Development, (2) Development of Risk Monitors, and (3) Regulato-
ry Applications of PRA. The activities planned in each of these
areas are broadly described in the following sections. The rep-
ort of each ongoing activity will be issued in a couple of mont-
hs after the associated project is completed. All reports will
be written in Chinese, but an English version of the executive
summary will be prepared upon request.
1.PRA Model Development
It is generally recognized that the broad applications of PRA
to support regulatory and operational decision-making require
comprehensive PRA models for operating nuclear power plants (
NPPs) in the territory represented by TECRO. In 1983, PRA me-
thodology was first introduced to the territory represented by
TECRO, consulted by an U.S. company and reviewed by AIT's des-
ignated representative. PRA models for three operating NPPs
have been completed: Kuosheng (GE BWR-6, 1983-1985), Maanshan
(Westinghouse 3-loop PWR, 1985-1993), and Chinshan (GE BWR-4,
1988-1991). Level II models were established for each NPP,
including internal and external events (typhoon, earthquake,
fire, and flooding) at power operation stage. The SETS code
was adopted for model construction and a CDC mainframe was ch-
osen as the quantification environment. Since plant-specific
data were insufficient at that time, generic data were occasi-
onally used. These reports were written in English.
Starting from 1994, a project co-sponsored by the designated
representatives of TECRO, Taiwan Power Company (TPC), and Ins-
titute of Nuclear Energy Research (INER) of Atomic Energy Cou-
ncil (AEC), was initiated. The objectives of this project we-
re (1) to revise the previous models and establish the mechan-
ism to reflect the current plant condition, and (2) to constr-
uct a shutdown model for each operating NPP. For revision of
the models at power, plant-specific data and design change fr-
om commercial operation up to the end of 1994 were collected
and analyzed. This information along with the state-of-the-
art knowledge was used to reconstruct the models of a PC-based
software (NUPRA). These living PRA models were completed at
the end of 1995. Due to the limited availability of manpower
and other resources, only Level I analyses of internal, typho-
on, and seismic events were included in this project. In June
of 1997, shutdown models for three NPPs (Level I internal eve-
nts only) were also completed. These PRA reports were written
in Chinese.
Starting from 1997, a project co-sponsored by TECRO's designa-
ted representative (TPC) was initiated to refine the living
PRA models. The objects of this project were to refine the
shutdown models, the level II PRA analyses, and the fire and f
looding analyses. The shutdown models were refined and tested
on the recent plant outages to show the robustness for all fo-
reseeable outage durations from 30 to 60 days. The level II
analyses of PRA at power were updated including the CSET (Con-
tainment System Event Tree) and CPET (Containment Phenomena
Event Tree) for each NPP. Fire and Flooding analyses were up-
dated including the reconstruction of the event trees, fault
trees and data. The refined living PRA models were peer revi-
ewed in 2002.
A project co-sponsored by TECRO's designated representative,
TPC, will be initiated in 2004 to incorporate suggestions from
PRA peer reviews. Both the PRA models at power and shutdown
will be refined.
2.Development of Risk Monitor
PRA modeling is generally recognized as a powerful tool in pr-
oviding risk information to decision-makers. But due to the
difficulty in understanding and interpreting the results gene-
rated from PRA model, usually only PRA experts or ones who ha-
ve been involved in model development can easily manipulate
the models. In order to promote the application of PRA on de-
cision-making in NPPs, on the basis of the accomplished living
PRA models on all of the three operating NPPs in the territory
represented by TECRO, TECRO's designated representatives, INER
and TPC, have collaboratively developed a risk monitor, the
Taipower Integrated Risk Monitor (TIRM), for each NPP in July
of 1997. The scope of this program was limited to PRA Level I
, internal events only.
The main features of TIRM include: Top Logic Fault Tree adopt-
ed, risk profile display of 24 hours re-quantification for a
new plant configuration in less than 10 minutes, using P&IDs
as interface for configuration change (at power only), risk
prediction for maintenance plan (each plan up to 96 hours).
Other features include display of historical risk profile, li-
st of components under maintenance, status of Critical Safety
Functions (CSF), qualitative Risk Manage Guideline (RMG), etc.
Risk profile, CSF, and RMG for a shutdown schedule were also
developed for each NPP.
Due to TIRM's robust function and its successful development,
since June of 2001, the nuclear regulatory body in the territ-
ory represented by TECRO has requested that each NPP evaluate
shutdown risk before TEPCO's designated representative, TPC,
performs refueling outages and calculate the associated risk
profile daily by the TIRM. However, for further risk-informed
applications, only Core Damage Frequency (CDF) index involved
in TIRM is not sufficient. The constraint features of TIRM's
fault tree engine about how to add a powerful fault tree engi-
ne and about how to incorporate the LERF index become a chall-
enge to the next generation of risk monitor. A new risk engi-
ne, INERISKEN, developed by INER was incorporated into the
TIRM-2. By introducing the new powerful risk model solver IN-
ERISKEN, the TIRM-2 is designed to have more capabilities and
to run faster than TIRM does. The TIRM-2 provides both CDF
and LERF calculations by solving the new risk model with CDF
model and LERF model within several minutes. In 2003, an adv-
anced approach to construct a new risk model for TIRM-2 and to
integrate LERF into TIRM-2 has been developed successfully.
Currently, the TIRM-2 at power and refueling outages has been
released to all of the three operating NPPs for their usage.
This powerful risk monitor, TIRM-2, has replaced TIRM to prov-
ide the basis of risk-informed applications. With the capabi-
lity of performing CDF and LERF calculations, the TIRM-2 beco-
mes a very helpful tool in monitoring the risk associated with
various plant states and provides further information directly
for risk-informed applications.
The risk engine, INERISKEN, is more powerful than NURELMCS (a
commercial code) and is used to replace the NURELMCS in TIRM-2
. A new risk measure, LERF, was resolved simultaneously in ad-
dition to CDF. Risk measures of both CDF and LERF can be res-
olved with a particular risk model that can only be recognized
by INERISKEN. The results can be obtained within 5 minutes
for any plant configuration. An enhanced version, the version
2.0 of TIRM-2 will be developed to comply with the changes in
the updated living PRA models incorporating suggestions of PRA
peer review in 2006.
3.Regulatory Applications of PRA
Since July of 1997, a risk-informed regulation project sponso-
red by the authorities of the territory represented by TECRO
has been conducted by the staff of TECRO's designated represe-
ntatives, INER and TPC. The objectives of 5-year project were
: (1) to review the adequacy of the current regulations at sh-
utdown operating conditions, (2) to establish regulatory revi-
ew guidelines for On-Line Maintenance (OLM) applications, and
(3) to establish regulatory review guidelines for applications
of changes on the current licensing basis. The scope of the
study includes the adequacy of the current operating procedur-
es, maintenance schedule, and safety policy. Unlike the situ-
ation in the territory represented by AIT that treats OLM as
one of the activities covered by the Maintenance Rule, the is-
sue of OLM is treated as one of the changes of the current li-
censing basis in the territory represented by TECRO. Regulat-
ory guidelines for changes of current licensing bases (e.g.,
OLM, changes of Surveillance Test Intervals and In-Service Te-
sting) were developed during fiscal years 1999-2002. Pilot
programs of RHR OLM for each NPP were endorsed by TECRO's des-
ignated representative, AEC, in 2003.
Risk-informed fire analysis applications in cable tray fire
wrapping issues for Kuosheng and Maanshan NPPs are on-going.
The study of pilot plant, Chinshan NPP was finished in 2003.
An optimal alternative for Appendix R was suggested. A displ-
ay system, RIFADISP, was also developed to show the important
results of the study.
A pilot study of Risk-Informed In-service Inspection (RI-ISI)
for RHR system of Kuosheng NPP was finished in 2003. Full sc-
ope studies of RI-ISI for all NPP will be preceded in the near
future.
A table-based Significance Determination Process (SDP) of the
Reactor Oversight Process (ROP) has been provided by AIT's de-
signated representative to determine the safety significance
of resident inspection findings. After a preliminary screeni-
ng (Phase 1 of SDP) of inspection findings, an assessment pro-
cess is conducted to obtain a risk approximation and to help
the inspectors determine the risk significance (Phase 2 of SDP
). TECRO's designated representative INER has developed a wi-
ndow-based tool with the SDP context to help the resident ins-
pectors perform the Phase 2 SDP assessment and obtain the ass-
ociated results more quickly and precisely. This SDP tool has
released its beta version in 2004 and it is expected to be co-
mpleted in 2005.
In addition to the progress of TIRM-2 and the window-based SDP
tool, on-line maintenance of RHR systems for current three op-
erating NPPs of TECRO's designated representative TPC has been
approved in October of 2003. Dedicated PRA models mentioned
above were established for all of the three nuclear plants by
1992. The third party, ABS Consulting of United Stated and
Professor George Apostolakis of MIT have reviewed the accompl-
ished living PRA reports on all of the three NPPs operating in
the territory represented by TECRO in 2002. The regulatory
body in the territory represented by TECRO has accepted the
associated peer review reports in December of 2003 and is well
satisfied with the PRA quality. Other subsequent risk-inform-
ed applications will be proposed soon. It is expected that a
new era of risk-informed applications will be initiative in
the territory represented by TECRO.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ADDENDUM
Pursuant to Article V of this Agreement:
AIT and TECRO shall ensure adequate and effective protection of
intellectual property created or furnished under this Agreement
and relevant implementing arrangements. AIT and TECRO agree,
through their designated representatives, to notify one another
in a timely fashion of any inventions or copyrighted works aris-
ing under this Agreement and to seek protection for such intell-
ectual property in a timely fashion. Rights to such intellectu-
al property shall be allocated as provided in this Addendum.
I.SCOPE
A.This Addendum is applicable to all cooperative activities
undertaken pursuant to this Agreement, except as otherwise
specifically agreed by AIT and TECRO through their designat-
ed representatives.
B.For purposes of this Agreement, "intellectual property" sha-
ll have the meaning found in Article 2 of the Convention Es-
tablishing the World Intellectual Property Organization, do-
ne at Stockholm, July 14, 1967; viz., "intellectual property
' shall include the rights relating to:
- literary, artistic and scientific works,
- performances of artists, phonograms, and broadcasts,
- inventions in all fields of human endeavor,
- scientific discoveries,
- industrial designs,
- trademarks, service marks, and commercial names and desig-
nations,
- protection against unfair competition,
and all other rights resulting from intellectual activity in
the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields."
C.This Addendum addresses the allocation of rights, interests,
and royalties between AIT and TECRO and their designated re-
presentatives. Acting through their designated representat-
ives, AIT and TECRO shall ensure that the other Party can
obtain rights to intellectual property allocated in accorda-
nce with the Addendum by obtaining those rights from its own
participants through contracts or other legal means, if nec-
essary. This Addendum does not otherwise alter or prejudice
the allocation between
- AIT and nationals of the territory represented by AIT whi-
ch shall be determined by the laws and practices applicab-
le in that territory or
- TECRO and nationals of the territory represented by TECRO
which shall be determined by laws and practices applicable
in that territory.
D.Disputes concerning intellectual property arising under this
Agreement should be resolved through discussions between AIT
and TECRO and their designated representatives. Upon mutual
agreement of AIT and TECRO, a dispute shall be submitted to
an arbitral tribunal for binding arbitration in accordance
with the applicable rules of international law. Unless AIT
and TECRO or their designated representatives agree otherwi-
se in writing, the arbitration rules of the United Nations
Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) shall gove-
rn.
E.Termination or expiration of this Agreement shall not affect
rights or obligations under this Addendum.
II.ALLOCATION OF RIGHTS
A.The designated representatives of AIT and TECRO shall be
entitled to a non-exclusive, irrevocable, royalty-free lic-
ense in all countries to translate, reproduce, and publicly
distribute scientific and technical journal articles, repo-
rts, and books directly arising from cooperation under this
Agreement. All publicly distributed copies of copyrighted
work prepared under this provision shall indicate the names
of the authors of the work unless an author explicitly dec-
lines to be named.
B.Rights to all forms of intellectual property, other than
those rights described in Section II(A) above, shall be al-
located as follows:
1.Visiting researchers, for example, scientists visiting
primarily in furtherance of their education, shall recei-
ve intellectual property rights under the policies of the
host institution. In addition, each visiting researcher
named as an inventor shall be entitled to share in a por-
tion of any royalties earned by the host institution from
the licensing of such intellectual property.
2.
(a) For intellectual property created during joint research
, for example, when the designated representatives of
AIT and TECRO, participating institutions, or particip-
ating personnel have agreed in advance on the scope of
work, the designated representatives of AIT and TECRO
shall be entitled to obtain all rights and interests in
the territory they represent. For inventions made in
the territory represented by AIT, AIT's designated rep-
resentative shall have first option to acquire all rig-
hts and interests in territories not represented by AIT
or TECRO. For inventions made in the territory repres-
ented by TECRO, TECRO's designated representative shall
have first option to acquire all rights and interests
in territories not represented by TECRO or AIT. If re-
search is not designated as "joint research," rights to
intellectual property arising from the research will be
allocated in accordance with paragraph II.B.1. In add-
ition, each person named as an inventor shall be entit-
led to share in a portion of any royalties earned by
either institution from the licensing of the property.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraph II.B.2.(a), if a type of int-
ellectual property is available under the laws of the
territory represented by AIT but not under the laws and
practices applicable in the territory represented by
TECRO, the designated representative of AIT shall be
entitled to all rights and interests worldwide. Notwi-
thstanding paragraph II.B.2.(a), if a type of intellec-
tual property is available under the laws and practices
applicable in the territory represented by TECRO but
not under the laws of the territory represented by AIT,
the designated representative of TECRO shall be entitl-
ed to all rights and interests worldwide. Persons nam-
ed as inventors of the property shall nonetheless be
entitled to royalties as provided in paragraph II.B.2.(
a).