Good practices of the online training on physical protection of nuclear materials and facility

Noro, Naoko; Scharmer, C.*; Kawakubo, Yoko; Sekine, Megumi; Okuda, Masahiro; Inoue, Naoko

Proceedings of INMM & ESARDA Joint Virtual Annual Meeting (Internet), 10 Pages, 2021/08

In the amid of COVID-19 pandemic, Integrated Support Center for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Nuclear Security (ISCN) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) developed and conducted regional training course on physical protection of nuclear materials and facility (PP RTC) for Asian countries in October 19-30, 2020 as an online course. Maintaining the quality of in-person two-week training through online platforms was a big challenge. For effective learning, ISCN combined e-learning (self-study) and interactive learning (virtual classroom) for its online PP RTC, and engaged participants through group exercise via Zoom meeting. The paper will describe efforts of ISCN and SNL to develop the online curriculum of PP RTC and share lessons learned and good practices for course development and course implementation. The paper will also explore future application of online contents in nuclear security capacity building even after the pandemic.

Development and implementation of online trainings at ISCN/JAEA

Inoue, Naoko; Noro, Naoko; Kawakubo, Yoko; Sekine, Megumi; Okuda, Masahiro; Hasegawa, Nobuhiko*; Naoi, Yosuke

Proceedings of INMM & ESARDA Joint Virtual Annual Meeting (Internet), 10 Pages, 2021/08

Integrated Support Center for Nuclear Nonproliferation and Nuclear Security (ISCN) of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) celebrated its 10th anniversary in December 2020. One of its pillars is capacity building support mainly to Asian countries. 183 trainings were implemented with more than 4,600 participants since its establishment, however, the COVID-19 pandemic impacted in the implementation of the trainings. ISCN/JAEA has started to develop the online trainings since April 2020, and implemented two regional trainings, Physical Protection and State System of Accounting for and Control (SSAC) for IAEA Safeguards in October and November 2020, respectively. The efforts continue in further development of trainings/workshops, including the regional training on Additional Protocol for IAEA Safeguards Agreement Commodity Identification Training, and other two national workshops with foreign instructors. Online training can provide not only training opportunities for those who have difficulty in traveling for security and safety reasons including under the travel restriction by COVID-19 pandemic, but also could serve in making them more effective and efficient, especially by the combination with in-person trainings. The pandemic, as a result, accelerate ISCN/JAEA to develop and implement the online trainings, which key is the international collaboration with the partners including IAEA, DOE/NNSA and Sandia National Laboratories and International Nuclear Nonproliferation and Security Academy (INSA) of the Korea Institute of Nuclear Nonproliferation and Control (KINAC). This paper will provide the efforts of ISCN/JAEA how to address the online training development and implementation, current status, lesson learned, and future plan.

Study of transparency in the field of nuclear nonproliferation conducted at JAEA

Kawakubo, Yoko; Sekine, Megumi; Tomikawa, Hirofumi

JAEA-Review 2016-017, 57 Pages, 2016/10

JAEA-Review-2016-017.pdf:7.73MB

Nuclear transparency is recognized as essential to provide additional assurance and enhance confidence building in the Asia-Pacific as this region has a broad spectrum of nuclear development underway and planned in the future. It is expected that elevated nuclear transparency should also supplement and reinforce International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. With this recognition, Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has committed various studies and activities for enhancing regional transparency mainly with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and its national laboratories. The efforts include transparency concept study, development of the remote monitoring system at the Experimental Fast Reactor JOYO, cooperation to Council for Security and Cooperation in Asia Pacific (CSCAP) to develop internet-based transparency tools, establishment of Information Sharing Framework (ISF), and the hosting of a series of workshops. Based on all the achievements of the past efforts, JAEA is now moving from "study phase" toward the "implementation phase" of information sharing for enhancing its nuclear transparency. The ISF website was opened in 2015 as a part of Asia Pacific Safeguards Network (APSN) website for JAEA to provide relevant information to APSN members. This report summarizes the past studies and activities performed in JAEA for almost 20 years to enhance regional nuclear transparency and discusses the future prospect.

Experimental studies of passive neutron measurement for fuel debris at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plants

Nagatani, Taketeru; Shirato, Atsuhiko*; Kosuge, Yoshihiro*; Sato, Takashi*; Kawakubo, Yoko; Shiromo, Hideo; Asano, Takashi

Proceedings of INMM 56th Annual Meeting (Internet), 10 Pages, 2015/07

As one of the candidate material accountancy technologies for the fuel debris at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plants (1F), we propose the application of a passive neutron technique. The applicability of the new concept to the fuel debris at 1F was evaluated by simulation and the results were presented at the last INMM annual meeting. As the next phase, we conducted experimental tests to confirm the validity of the simulation results. Because actual fuel debris or irradiated fuel cannot be handled at our facility due to a licensing limitation, un-irradiated MOX samples, neutron absorbers and Cf-252 sources were utilized as the best available material to imitate the property of the fuel debris and various configurations were measured using an Epithermal Neutron Multiplicity Counter. The fissile mass in the samples, neutron absorber mass surrounding the samples and intensity of Cf-252 source were varied to confirm the correlation between DDSI response and the leakage multiplication. Test results agreed well with the trend of the simulation results. This indicates that DDSI has sufficient capability to evaluate the leakage multiplication of a sample which includes an unknown amount of fissile material and neutron absorber such as the fuel debris at 1F. This paper provides experimental studies of passive neutron measurement based on the combination of DDSI technique and coincidence counting for fuel debris at 1F.

JAEA's efforts for regional transparency in the area of nuclear nonproliferation

Hoffheins, B.; Kawakubo, Yoko; Inoue, Naoko

JAEA-Review 2013-006, 47 Pages, 2014/03

JAEA-Review-2013-006.pdf:2.65MB

The Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has undertaken a joint R&D project entitled "Development of an Information Sharing Framework for Regional Nonproliferation Cooperation" with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) under the arrangement with U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA). This project is carried out as an informal, multilateral cooperation among JAEA, KINAC, KAERI and SNL to develop requirements for an ISF that will ensure nonproliferation transparency success and sustainability. The project partners have identified the compelling reason for establishing an ISF, needs and particular audience, and developed and refined requirements through discussions at workshops, face-to-face meetings, and regular teleconferences. Project activities have included drafting and conducting a survey to identify stakeholder information needs and requirements for an ISF, launching a website to practice information sharing concepts, and presenting papers at the 2012 Annual Meeting of the Institute for Nuclear Material Management (INMM) and other venues. This paper provides the historical context of the current project, and reports the progress to date and speculates on future directions.

Information sharing framework among nuclear nonproliferation experts for enhancing nuclear transparency

Kawakubo, Yoko; Inoue, Naoko; Tomikawa, Hirofumi

Kaku Busshitsu Kanri Gakkai (INMM) Nihon Shibu Dai-34-Kai Nenji Taikai Rombunshu (Internet), 9 Pages, 2013/10

Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) is carrying out R&D to design and establish an Information-Sharing Framework (ISF) for supporting and promoting nuclear transparency in cooperation with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), the Korean Institute for Nonproliferation and Control (KINAC), and Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI). Partner organizations have agreed on starting by establishing ISF with a focus on nuclear nonproliferation experts in Track II as primary information providers/receivers. Thus far, requirements for ISF have been developed for providing clear steps to design and establish ISF and ensuring its sustainability. As the next step, ISF is to be established following the requirements and demonstration of information sharing will be carried out. In the long-term, ISF could be expanded to invite other interested organizations and include other information. This paper describes the effort to design and establish ISF by focusing on the requirements which has been developed under the joint R&D.

Introduction to the Revision 5 of Evaluation Methodology for Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection of Generation IV Nuclear Energy Systems

Kawakubo, Yoko; Inoue, Naoko; Senzaki, Masao

JAEA-Review 2011-024, 75 Pages, 2011/12

JAEA-Review-2011-024.pdf:3.61MB

Revision 5 of the "Evaluation Methodology for Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection of Generation IV Nuclear Energy Systems" is also known as the Rev. 5 report. The Rev. 5 report provides an important evaluation framework that was developed with consensus-based discussions, and published by the OECD-NEA in November, 2006. The activities of PR&PP WG has contributed to establish PR&PP culture. Japan has to develop the future nuclear cycle system with sufficient proliferation resistance and physical protection features and demonstrate and explain about its effectiveness to the domestic and international society. For these reasons, and recognizing the usefulness of the Revision-5 Report, it was translated and published here as a Japanese-language edition with the concurrence of the OECD-NEA. The original report in English language can be downloaded at the OECD-NEA website.

The Status of proliferation resistance evaluation methodology development in GEN IV International Forum

Inoue, Naoko; Kawakubo, Yoko; Seya, Michio; Suzuki, Mitsutoshi; Kuno, Yusuke; Senzaki, Masao

Kaku Busshitsu Kanri Gakkai (INMM) Nihon Shibu Dai-31-Kai Nenji Taikai Rombunshu (CD-ROM), 9 Pages, 2010/12

The GIF Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection (PR&PP) evaluation methodology has been developed for GEN IV nuclear energy systems under the international consensus. The PR&PP WG activities include development of the measures and metrics; establishment of the framework of PR&PP evaluation, the demonstration study using Example Sodium Fast Reactor (ESFR), which included the development of three evaluation approaches; the Case study using ESFR and four kinds of threat scenarios; the joint study with GIF System Steering Committees (SSCs) of the six reactor design concepts; and the harmonization study with the IAEA's International Project on Innovative Nuclear Reactors and Fuel Cycles (INPRO). This paper reviews the status of GIF PR&PP studies and identifies the challenges and directions for applying the methodology to evaluate future nuclear energy systems in Japan.

Cooperation between JAEA and DOE in safeguards and nuclear nonproliferation

Kawakubo, Yoko; Hori, Masato

Proceedings of INMM 50th Annual Meeting (CD-ROM), 10 Pages, 2009/00

Cooperative activities between JAEA and the US-DOE have played a significant role in the research and development of safeguards and nuclear nonproliferation technologies. The achievements of the cooperative activities have been applied to the enrichment plant, reprocessing facility, MOX fabrication facility, and advanced reactors in JAEA. These cooperative activities have contributed substantially to develop reliable and cost-effective IAEA safeguards systems. In addition, the safeguards technologies developed through these activities play an important role when the integrated safeguards is implemented to those facilities and sites. This paper provides an overview of the cooperative activities carried out for over 20 years between DOE and JAEA (JNC/JAERI). This paper also presents a comprehensive analysis of the 99 programs. Finally we suggest potential future cooperative activities between DOE and JAEA for the further enhancement of efficient and effective safeguards, transparency, and nuclear security.

Collaborative study between system designers of future fuel cycle and nuclear nonproliferation experts; Its benefits and challenges

Inoue, Naoko; Kawakubo, Yoko

no journal, , 

"Workshop on Proliferation Resistance and Physical Protection (PR&PP) Evaluation Methodology for GEN IV Nuclear Energy Systems; Toward Application to System Design from Methodology Development" was held on February 22, 2011, at Tokyo International Forum, Japan. Based on the discussion in the Panel discussion 2 titled "Benefits and Challenges of Collaborative Work between System Designers and PR&PP Experts", The direction that should be taken during system designing stage, was analyzed and identified, in order to enhance nuclear proliferation resistance.