Physical Security - Reports
Cost Benefit Analysis (1)
| Report Title | Brief Narrative | Link | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Analysis of Physical Security at Nuclear Power Plants, INL/EXT-20-59737 | The Physical Security Pathway aims to lower the cost of physical security through directed research into modeling and simulation, application of advanced sensors or deployment of advanced weapons. Modeling and simulation are used to evaluate the excessive margin inherent in many security postures and to identify ways to maintain overall security effectiveness while lowering costs. | Download | 9/20/2020 |
Integrated Modeling (9)
| Report Title | Brief Narrative | Link | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Evaluation of Physical Security Risk for Potential Implementation of FLEX using Dynamic Simulation Methods, INL/EXT-22-70315 | Overview of lessons learned in applying a dynamic computational framework that links results from a commercially available FOF simulation tool, a commercially available thermal-hydraulic tool, and EMRALD to an operating commercial nuclear power plant. | Download | 12/12/2022 |
| Guidance Document for Using Dynamic Force-on- Force Tools, INL/EXT-21-64214 | This document provides an overview of lessons learned in applying a dynamic computational framework that links results from a commercially available FOF simulation tool, a commercially available thermal-hydraulic tool, and EMRALD to an operating commercial nuclear power plant. | Download | 9/12/2021 |
| Integration of Physical Security Simulation Software Applications in a Dynamic Risk Framework, INL/EXT-21-64333 | The overall operation and maintenance cost to protect nuclear power plants accounts for approximately 7% of power generation’s total cost with labor accounting for half of this cost. In the current research, from interactions with utilities and other stakeholders, it was determined physical security forces account for nearly 20% of the entire workforce at several nuclear power plants. | Download | 8/12/2021 |
| Risk-Informed Adversary Timeline Tool, SAND2021-9430 | This work has a focus on reducing conservatisms in adversary timelines which potentially lead to over protection of a potential attack path resulting in inefficiencies in areas of a plant’s security posture. Applying the risk-informed tool to these adversary timelines may reduce some of these conservatisms. This user guide presented in this report is intended to go over the use and execution of the Risk-Informed Timelines tool and Timeline Builder software. | Download | 8/12/2021 |
| Methodology and Application of Physical Security Effectiveness Based on Dynamic Force-on-Force Modeling, INL-EXT-20-59891 | The generic framework for modeling FLEX portable equipment is described in detail, followed by a case study modeling an adversarial attack aimed at causing a radiological release by sabotaging the plant’s power supply and its ultimate heat sink capabilities at a hypothetical pressurized-water reactor. Two distinct FLEX deployment strategies, series and parallel, are modeled with distinct timelines. | Download | 9/12/2020 |
| Integration of FLEX Equipment and Operator Actions in Plant Force-On-Force Models with Dynamic Risk Assessment, INL/EXT-20-59510 | This report presents a modeling and simulation framework for integrating Diverse and FLEX portable equipment performance with Force-on-Force models of a plant’s physical security posture. The generic framework is described in detail, followed by a case study of modeling an adversarial attack aimed at causing a radiological release by sabotaging the plant’s power supply and its ultimate heat sink capabilities at a hypothetical nuclear power plant. | Download | 8/12/2020 |
| Modeling for Existing Nuclear Power Plant Security Regime, SAND2019-12015 | This document details the development of modeling and simulations for existing plant security regimes using identified target sets to link dynamic assessment methodologies by leveraging reactor system level modeling with force-on-force modeling and 3D visualization for developing table-top scenarios. This work leverages an existing hypothetical example used for international physical security training, the Lone Pine nuclear power plant facility for target sets and modeling. | Download | 10/12/2019 |
| Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program: September 2019 Physical Security Stakeholder Working Group Meeting, SAND2020-0764 | The LWRS Program Physical Security Pathway held the first meeting of the Physical Security Stakeholder working group on September 10-12, 2019 at Sandia National Laboratories. This working group is comprised of nuclear enterprise physical security stakeholders and the meeting included over 10 Utilities representing roughly 60 nuclear power plants, two staff from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, physical security vendors, the Nuclear Energy Institute, the Electric Power Research Institute, and staff from Sandia National Laboratories and Idaho National Laboratory. | Download | 1/22/2020 |
| Plan for the Vulnerability Analysis of Deliberate Motion Analytics Algorithm | This work provides a written plan for identifying vulnerabilities within the DMA algorithm. The plan outlines the methodology for evaluating potential exploitation by intruders, focusing on physical intrusion detection performance, and vulnerability identification and analysis. | Download | 9/12/2025 |
Risk-Informed Physical Security (5)
| Report Title | Brief Narrative | Link | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plant-Specific Model and Data Analysis using Dynamic Security Modeling and Simulation, INL/RPT-23-73490, Rev 1 | An update on the progress in applying a dynamic computational framework that links results from a commercially available force-on-force simulation tool, a commercially available thermal-hydraulic tool, and EMRALD to an operating commercial NPP. | Download | 11/20/2023 |
| Special issue on Nuclear Physical Security Risk and Uncertainty Analysis | A special issue of Nuclear Science and Engineering as the first look into performance-based, risk-informed physical security for nuclear facilities. | Download | 9/20/2023 |
| An Evaluation of The Dynamic Physical Security Risk Assessment Methodology for Fleet-Wide Applications; INL/RPT-24-80303 | This document provides an update on the progress in applying the Modeling and Analysis for Safety Security using Dynamic EMRALD Framework (MASS-DEF) process to an operating commercial nuclear power plant as well as additional industry feedback regarding use of the tool for other physical security risk-informed topics. | Download | 09/29/2024 |
| A Comparison of Data from Physical Security Simulation Tools for use in MASS-DEF Optimization | Nuclear power utilities in the United States typically use one of two commercial vendors software tools, RhinoCorps’ Simajin or ARES Security’s AVERT, for physical security modeling and simulation. As the MASS-DEF process couples with physical simulation tool result output, their results can have significant impact on the overall results of the optimization. This research has compared the results of these two software tools and how that data feeds into the MASS-DEF process. Results show that while the two software tools have similar overall outcomes for attack scenarios, there can be significant differences in the time required for adversaries to achieve their objectives due to multiple factors all of which can impact modeling tools that use those timing results. | Download | 8/13/2025 |
| Advancing Nuclear Security: A Risk Quantification Methodology | This paper proposes a risk quantification methodology centered on the concept of "Probability of System Effectiveness" (PE), and based upon the U.S. Department of Energy’s Vulnerability Assessment process. PE is a quantitative metric representing the likelihood that a PPS will successfully detect, delay, respond to, interrupt, and neutralize an adversary before they achieve their objectives. PE provides a consistent, repeatable, and scalable framework for evaluating security risk. This methodology empowers licensees to optimize their PPS while maintaining compliance with NRC standards, offering a more agile and efficient pathway for security planning. | Download | 8/15/2025 |