Industry Guidance From the Utility Requirements Document
The
Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR) Utility Requirements Document (URD) was established
through the efforts of the U.S. Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) and the
participation of both U.S. and international utilities. The URD uses the large experience
base from existing light water reactors to minimize the risk to the plant owner, provide
confidence relative to credibility of costs and schedules, and eliminate the need for a
plant prototype. The URD consistently emphasizes the use of field-proven technology to
achieve these objectives. The AP600 program has strictly followed the requirements and
guidance specified in the URD, and has incorporated field-proven technology into all
aspects of the design. The entire URD process contributes directly to the use of
field-proven technology because the URD captures the lessons learned from over 20 years of
operating plant experience, identifies the best practices, and incorporates these as
design requirements. Over 5000 design requirements are identified in the URD.
Areas of Specification
The ALWR program has
formulated policies in key areas that are central to achievement of advanced plant program
objectives and that have broad, fundamental influence on plant design requirements. These
policies help to form the foundation for the overall plant development and provide
guidance to plant designers. The key policy statements in the URD cover the following
areas:
Safety
Design Margin
Simplification
Field-Proven Technology
Human Factors
Design Basis vs Safety Margin
Operation and Maintenance
Reliability and Availability
Constructibility
Standardization
Regulatory Stabilization
Quality Assurance
Sabotage Protection
Good Neighbor Policy
The AP600 design is in accordance with the requirements outlined in the URD under
each of these key areas.
