Same, Same but Different

This study provides evidence that Swedish corporations disclose more CSR information in their annual reports than Croatian corporations do. The study finds that size, industry, country of origin and management ownership affect the amount of CSR disclosures a company will make. Furthermore profitability cannot provide an answer while foreign listing and audit firm matter under different circumstances

The Geometry of Trifocal Curves with Applications in Architecture, Urban and Spatial Planning

In this paper we consider historical genesis of trifocal curve as an optimal curve for solving the Fermat's problem (minimizing the sum of distance of one point to three given points in the plane). Trifocal curves are basic plane geometric forms which appear in location problems. We also analyze algebraic equation of these curves and some of their applications in architecture, urbanism and spatial planning. The area and perimeter of trifocal curves are calculated using a Java application. The Java applet is developed for determining numerical value for the Fermat-Torricelli-Weber point and optimal curve with three foci, when starting points are given on an urban map. We also present an application of trifocal curves through the analysis of one specific solution in South Stream gas pipeline project.Comment: accepted in SPATIUM International Review, 201

Comparative Analysis of Limit Bearing Capacity of a Continuous Beam Depending on the Character of the Load

Determination of the bearing capacity of a structure, as well as the assessment related tothe structure failure is very valuable, not only as a simple control of beam bearing capacity,but also as a significant basis and factor in designing of structures. When the structure isexposed to the action of a proportionally increasing load, by applying the limit analysis it ispossible to determine the limit failure load which is one of the bearing capacity indicators. Inthe case when beam systems are exposed to repeated load, the limit theorems do not yield the adequate solutions, thus the adaptation theorems which made safe limit load determination possible were developed simultaneously. Applying the limit and shakedown analysis, the analysis of bearing capacity of a continuous beam with two spans was conducted in the paper.Also displayed is the difference between the values of failure forces depending on the character of load and the beam span value in order to assess justification for application of the shakedown method in the analysis of the limit bearing capacity of the beams

Supervisory Control Strategy Development

Task 4 of this collaborative effort between ORNL, Brazil, and Westinghouse for the International Nuclear Energy Research Initiative entitled “Development of Advanced Instrumentation and Control for an Integrated Primary System Reactor” focused on the design of the hierarchical supervisory control for multiple-module units. The state of the IRIS plant design – specifically, the lack of a detailed secondary system design – made developing a detailed hierarchical control difficult at this time. However, other simultaneous and ongoing efforts have contributed to providing the needed information. This report summarizes the results achieved under Task 4 of this Financial Assistance Award. Section 1.2 describes the scope of this effort. Section 2 discusses the IRIS control functions. Next, it briefly reviews the current control concepts, and then reviews the maneuvering requirements for the IRIS plant. It closes by noting the benefits that automated sequences have in reducing operator workload. Section 3 examines reactor loading in the frequency domain to establish some guidelines for module operation, paying particular attention to strategies for using process steam for desalination and/or district heating. The final subsection discusses the implications for reactor control, and argues that using the envisioned percentage (up to 10%) of the NSSS thermal output for these purposes should not significantly affect the NSSS control strategies. Section 4 uses some very general economic assumptions to suggest how one should approach multi-module operation. It concludes that the well-known algorithms used for economic dispatching could be used to help manage a multi-unit IRIS site. Section 5 addresses the human performance factors of multi-module operation. Section 6 summarizes our conclusions

Reactor physics modelling of accident tolerant fuel for LWRs using ANSWERS codes

The majority of nuclear reactors operating in the world today and similarly the majority of near-term new build reactors will be LWRs. These currently accommodate traditional Zr clad UO2/ PuO2 fuel designs which have an excellent performance record for normal operation and most transients. However, the events at Fukushima culminated in significant hydrogen production and hydrogen explosions, resulting from high temperature Zr/steam interaction following core uncovering for an extended period. These events have resulted in increased emphasis towards developing more accident tolerant fuels (ATFs)-clad systems, particularly for current and near-term build LWRs. R&D programmes are underway in the US and elsewhere to develop ATFs and the UK is engaging in these international programmes. Candidate advanced fuel materials include uranium nitride (UN) and uranium silicide (U3Si2). Candidate cladding materials include advanced stainless steel (FeCrAl) and silicon carbide. The UK has a long history in industrial fuel manufacture and fabrication for a wide range of reactor systems including LWRs. This is supported by a national infrastructure to perform experimental and theoretical R&D in fuel performance, fuel transient behaviour and reactor physics. In this paper, an analysis of the Integral Inherently Safe LW R design (I2S-LWR), a reactor concept developed by an international collaboration led by the Georgia Institute of Technology, within a U.S. DOE Nuclear Energy University Program (NEUP) Integrated Research Project (IRP) is considered. The analysis is performed using the ANSWERS reactor physics code WIMS and the EDF Energy core simulator PANTHER by researchers at the University of Cambridge. The I2S-LWR is an advanced 2850 MWt integral PWR with inherent safety features. In order to enhance the safety features, the baseline fuel and cladding materials that were chosen for the I2S- LWR design are U3Si2 and advanced stainless steel respectively. In addition, the I S-LWR design adopts an integral configuration and a fully passive emergency decay heat removal system to provide indefinite cooling capability for a class of accidents. This paper presents the equilibrium cycle core design and reactor physics behaviour of the I2S-LWR with U3Si2 and the advanced steel cladding. The results were obtained using the traditional two-stage approach, in which homogenized macroscopic cross-section sets were generated by WIMS and applied in a full 3D core solution with PANTHER. The results obtained with WIMS/PANTHER were compared against the Monte Carlo Serpent code developed by VTT and previously reported results for the I2S-LWR. The results were found to be in a good agreement (e.g. < 200 pcm in reactivity) among the compared codes, giving confidence that the WIMS/PANTHER reactor physics package can be reliably used in modelling LWRs with ATFs.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/epjn/201601