An Unsupervised Anomaly Detection Method for Nuclear Reactor Coolant Pumps Based on Kernel Self-Organizing Map and Bayesian Posterior Inference

Lin Wang, Shuqiao Zhou (), Tianhao Zhang, Chao Guo and Xiaojin Huang
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Lin Wang: Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Shuqiao Zhou: Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Tianhao Zhang: Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Chao Guo: Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
Xiaojin Huang: Institute of Nuclear and New Energy Technology, Key Laboratory of Advanced Reactor Engineering and Safety of Ministry of Education, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 11, 1-19

Abstract: Effectively monitoring the operational status of reactor coolant pumps (RCPs) is crucial for enhancing the safety and stability of nuclear power operations. To address the challenges of limited interpretability and suboptimal detection performance in existing methods for detecting abnormal operating states of RCPs, this paper proposes an interpretable, unsupervised anomaly detection approach. This innovative method designs a framework that combines Kernel Self-Organizing Map (Kernel SOM) clustering with Bayesian Posterior Inference. Specifically, the proposed method uses Kernel SOM to extract typical patterns from normal operation data. Subsequently, a distance probability distribution model reflecting the data distribution structure within each cluster is constructed, providing a robust tool for data distribution analysis for anomaly detection. Finally, based on prior knowledge, such as distance probability distribution, the Bayesian Posterior Inference is employed to infer the probability of the equipment being in a normal state. By constructing distribution models that reflect data distribution structures and combining them with posterior inference, this approach realizes the traceability and interpretability of the anomaly detection process, improving the transparency of anomaly detection and enabling operators to understand the decision logic and the analysis of the causes of anomalous occurrences. Verification via real-world operational data demonstrates the method’s superior effectiveness. This work offers a highly interpretable solution for RCP anomaly detection, with significant implications for safety-critical applications in the nuclear energy sector.

Keywords: reactor coolant pump; anomaly detection; interpretability; kernel self-organizing map; Bayesian posterior inference (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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