Abstract:
In the field of radiological and nuclear safety, the Nuclear Regulatory Authority (ARN) of
Argentina controls three research reactors and three critical assemblies, by means of
evaluations, audits and inspections, in order to ensure the fulfilment of the requirements
established in the Licenses, in the regulatory standards and in the mandatory documentation
in general.
From the Nuclear Regulatory Authority’s point of view, within the general process of
research reactors safety management, the management of operating experience plays an
outstanding role.
In this aspect the ARN has established specific requirements in the Operation Licences in
relation to the communication, evaluation, investigation of causes, and adoption of corrective
measures, for the events that occurred.
From the experience collected in the analysis of the reports sent by the operators it has
been verified some weaknesses in relation to the methodology of analysis of events and in the
determination of the causal factors.
In such sense, with the purpose of establishing some help for the appraisers and to
homogenize the treatment of the events, two reference guides were designed: a guide for the
evaluation of events and the other with a grid of causal factors.
This paper describes the main aspects of the operating management system established for
research reactors and critical assemblies in Argentina, and the guides developed for the event
analysis and determination of causal factors.