INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY 

DEPARTMENT OF SAFEGUARDS

DESIGN INFORMATION 

QUESTIONNAIRE *

IAEA USE ONLY

N-73 (11-2020)

CONVERSION AND-OR FUEL FABRICATION PLANTS

APPROVED BY OMB: NO. 3150-0056 EXPIRES: 11/30/2023

Estimated burden per response to comply with this mandatory collection request: 360 hours. NRC is 

required to collect this information for reporting to IAEA from facility licensees appearing on the U.S. 

Eligible List. Send comments regarding burden estimate to the FOIA, Library, and Information 

Collections Branch (T-6 A10M), U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-0001, 

or by e-mail to Infocollects.Resource@nrc.gov, and the OMB reviewer at: OMB Office of Information 

and Regulatory Affairs, (3150-0056), Attn: Desk Officer for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 725 

17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503; e-mail: oira_submission@omb.eop.gov. The NRC may 

not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless 

the document requesting or requiring the collection displays a currently valid OMB control number.

The purpose of this document is to 

obtain the facility design information 

required by the Agency in order to 

discharge its safeguards responsibilities. 

It will also serve as a checklist for 

examination of design information by 

Agency inspector(s). If, in any area, 

insufficient space is available add further 

shee ts to the extent necessary.

TYPE

IAEA USE ONLY 

COUNTRY 

COUNTRY OFFICER

DATE OF INITIAL DATA

VERIFICATION

LAST REVIEW AND UPDATING

Conversion and-or fuel 

fabrication plants
N-73 (11-2020)

ALL FACILITIES

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Name of the facility 

(include usual abbreviation)

2. Location and postal 

address

3. Owner 

(Legally responsible)

4. Operator 

(Legally responsible)

5. Description 

(Main features only)

6. Purpose

7. Status 

(e.g., planned; under construction, 

in operation; shut down; closed 

down; decommissioned)

8. Construction schedule dates 

(if not in operation) 

Start of Construction (MM/DD/YYYY) Commissioning (MM/DD/YYYY) Operation (MM/DD/YYYY)

9. Normal operating mode 

(days only, two shift, three shift; 

number of days/annum, etc.)

10. Facility layout 

(structural containment, fences, 

access, nuclear material storage 

areas, laboratories, waste disposal 

areas, routes followed by nuclear 

material, experimental and test areas, 

etc.) 

DRAWING(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs.

11. Sitting of facility 

(Maps showing in sufficient detail: 

location, premises and perimeter of 

facility, other buildings, roads, railways, 

rivers, etc.) 

DRAWING(S) AND/OR MAPS ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs.

12. Names and/or titles and address 

of responsible officers 

(for nuclear material accountancy and 

control and contact with the Agency. If 

possible attach organization charts 

showing position of officers) 
OVERALL PROCESS PARAMETERS

13. Facility description 

(indicating important items of 

equipment which use, produce or 

process nuclear material, all process 

stages, storage areas and feed, 

product and waste points as pertaining 

to the measurement, control and 

accountancy of nuclear material)

GENERAL FLOW DIAGRAM(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs. (The diagram(s) should also indicate 

equipment, hoods, cells, and those areas which contain nuclear material as those specific areas where holdup of nuclear material can occur.)

14. Process description 

(indicating type of conversion, 

method of fabrication, sampling 

methods, etc., indicating also the 

modification of physical and chemical 

forms)

15. Design capacity 

(In weight of principal products per 

annum)

16. Anticipated annual throughput 

(in the form of a forward programme 

(if applicable), indicating the proportion 

 of various feeds and products)

17. Other important items of 

equipment using, producing or 

processing nuclear material 

(such as testing and experimental 

equipment)

18. Main material description

N-73 (11-2020)

NUCLEAR MATERIAL DESCRIPTION AND FLOW

Feed

Intermediate product 

(powder, pellets, etc. separately stored 

or shipped)

Product 

i) Main types of accountability units to 

be handled in the facility

ii) Chemical and physical form 

(for product include types of fuel 

element/assemblies, give detailed 

description indicating general structure 

and overall structure and overall 

dimensions of fuel element/

assemblies, including nuclear material 

content and enrichment). Attach 

drawing(s)

iii) Throughput, enrichment ranges and 

Pu contents 

(for normal flowsheet operation 

indicating if blending and/or recycling 

takes place)

iv) Batch size/flow rate and campaign 

period, means of batch identification

v) Storage and plant inventory 

(indicating any change with 

throughput)

vi) Frequency of receipt or shipment 

(batches/units per month)
NUCLEAR MATERIAL DESCRIPTION AND FLOW

19. Scrap material

20. Waste material 

(including contaminated equipment, 

measured discards and retained 

waste) 

Describe for each waste stream: 

i) Major contributions (sources)

ii) Types of waste

iii) Chemical and physical form 

(liquid, solid, etc.)

iv) Estimated enrichment ranges and 

uranium/plutonium content

v) Estimated quantities per year, 

period of storing

vi) Waste generated rates (as % of 

input/ throughput, quantities per 

month)

vii) Store inventory range and 

maximum capacity

viii) Method and frequency of 

recovery/disposal

21. Waste treatment system

DIAGRAM(S) ATTACHED UNDER FIG. NOs.

22. Other nuclear material in the 

facility and it's location, if any 

DIAGRAM(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs.

23. Schematic flowsheet for nuclear 

material 

(identifying sampling points, flow and 

inventory measurement points, 

accountability areas, inventory 

locations, etc.)

DIAGRAM(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs.

N-73 (11-2020)
NUCLEAR MATERIAL DESCRIPTION AND FLOW

29. Transportation routes followed 

by nuclear material 

(with reference to plant layout)

27. Containers, packaging and 

storage area description 

28. Methods and means of transfer 

of nuclear material 

(describe also equipment used for 

handling of feed, product, waste)

25. Recycle processes 

(briefly describe any such processes 

giving source and form of material, 

method of storage, normal inventory, 

frequency of processing, duration of 

temporary storage, schedules for any 

external recycling, measurement 

method of fissile content of recycle 

material)

24. Types, form, ranges of nuclear 

material content (Including 

enrichment, as applicable), ranges of 

quantities of nuclear material flow for 

each nuclear material handling area, i.

e.: 

 -- process area 

 -- storage area 

 -- other locations 

(Also indicate maximum quantities of 

nuclear material to be handled in 

accountability areas at the one time.)

DIAGRAM(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs.

26. Inventory 

(within plant and equipment during 

normal operation; indicate quantity, 

range of enrichment, Pu content, form 

and principal locations and any 

significant change in time or 

throughput; indicate anticipated 

residual hold-up and mechanism, e.g. 

plate out, condensation) 

i) In-process

ii) Feed and product storages

iii) Other locations 

(quantity, range of enrichment, Pu 

content, form and location of inventory 

not already specified)

NUCLEAR MATERIAL HANDLING (FOR EACH ACCOUNTABILITY AREA)

SEPARATE NOTE TO BE ATTACHED. 

Describe for feeds, products and wastes: the type and size of storage and shipping containers and packaging 

used (including nominal capacity and capacity for normal operation, and type of material); method of storage or 

packing, filling and emptying procedures, shielding; and any special identification features.

DRAWING(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs. 

DRAWING(S) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs. 

30. SHIELDING 

(for storage, transfer and process area) 

N-73 (11-2020)
PLANT MAINTENANCE

N-73 (11-2020)

NUCLEAR MATERIAL ACCOUNTANCY AND CONTROL

34. System description 

Give a description of the nuclear 

material accountancy system, the 

method of recording and reporting 

accountancy data and establishing 

material balances, frequency of 

material balances, procedures for 

account adjustment after plant 

inventory, mistakes, etc., under the 

following headings:

ii) Receipts 

(including method of dealing with 

shipper/receiver differences and 

subsequent account corrections; the 

checks and measurements used to 

confirm nuclear material content and 

the persons responsible for those 

determinations should be defined)

SPECIMEN FORMS USED IN ALL PROCEDURES ATTACHED UNDER REF. No.

31. Maintenance, 

decontamination, clean-out

32. Basic measures for physical 

protection of nuclear material

SEPARATE NOTE TO BE ATTACHED. 

Describing plans and procedures for decontamination and clean-out of equipment containing nuclear material, 

defining all sampling and measurement points associated with: 

(In cases where clean-out and/or sampling is not possible, indicate how the hold-up of nuclear material is 

measured or calculated.)

i) Normal plant maintenance

ii) Plant and equipment 

decontamination and subsequent 

nuclear material recovery 

iii) Plant and equipment clean-out 

including means of ensuring vessels 

are empty 

iv) Plant start-up and and plant 

shut-down (If different from normal 

operation) 

PROTECTION AND SAFETY MEASURES

33. Specific health and safety rules 

for inspector compliance 

(if extensive, attach separately)

i) General 

(This section should also state what 

general and subsidiary ledgers will be 

used, their form (hard copies, tapes, 

microfilms, etc.) as well as who has the 

responsibility and authority. Source 

data (e.g. shipping and receiving 

forms, internal transfer documents, 

physical inventory forms, the initial 

recording of measurements and 

measurement control sheets) should 

be identified. The procedures for 

making adjustments, the source data 

and records should be covered as well 

as how the adjustments are authorized 

and substantiated.)
iv) Physical inventory 

Description of procedures, scheduled 

frequency, estimated distribution of 

nuclear material, methods of operator's 

inventory taking (both for item and/or 

bulk accountancy, including relevant 

assay method), accessibility and 

possible verification method for nuclear 

material, expected accuracy, and 

access to nuclear material. (In 

particular the description of procedures 

should also provide the basic inventory 

approach to be used, i.e. planning, 

organizing, and conducting the 

inventory, prelisting, use of prior 

measurement data; who has the 

primary responsibility for the inventory; 

how process clean-out is 

accomplished; the accountancy of 

process residual hold-up.)

NUCLEAR MATERIAL ACCOUNTANCY AND CONTROL

iii) Shipments 

(products, waste, measured discards)

N-73 (11-2020)

v) Measured discards 

(method of estimation of quantities per 

year/month, method of disposal)

LIST OF MAJOR ITEMS OF EQUIPMENT REGARDED AS NUCLEAR MATERIAL CONTAINERS 

ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOS.

vi) Retained waste 

(method of estimation of quantities per 

year, method and envisaged period of 

storage; indicate also possible 

subsequent uses of retained waste)

vii) Unmeasured losses 

(indicate the methods used to estimate 

unmeasured losses)

viii) Operational records and accounts 

(including logbooks, general ledgers, 

internal transfer forms, method of 

adjustment or correction and retention 

location, and languages; control 

measures and responsibility for 

records)

35. Features related to containment 

and surveillance measures 

(general description of applied or 

possible measures in reference to floor 

plan or plant layout)

36. For each flow and inventory 

measurement point, and sampling 

points of accountability areas, 

identified in particular under Qs. 13, 

23, 24, Give the following: 

For each measurement point fill in 

separate sheet. 

Number of measurement points: 1 

i) Description of location, type, 

identification

ii) Expected types of inventory change 

at this measurement point
iii) Possibilities to use this 

measurement point for physical 

inventory taking

NUCLEAR MATERIAL ACCOUNTANCY AND CONTROL

iv) Physical and chemical form of 

nuclear material (including enrichment 

range, Pu content, and cladding 

materials description)

v) Nuclear material containers, 

packaging and method of storage

vi) Sampling procedure and 

equipment used (including number of 

samples taken, frequency and 

rejection criteria)

vii) Measurement/analytical method(s) 

and equipment used and 

corresponding accuracies

viii) Source and level of random and 

systematic errors for feed, product, 

scrap, waste (weight, volume, 

sampling, analytical)

ix) Calculative and error propagation 

techniques

x) Technique and frequency of 

calibration of equipment used, and 

standards used

xi) Programme for the continuing 

appraisal of the accuracy of weight, 

volume, sampling and analytical 

techniques and measurement methods 

N-73 (11-2020)

xii) Programme for statistical 

evaluation of data from (x) and (xi)

xiii) Method of converting source data 

to batch data 

(standard calculative procedures, 

constants and empirical relationships 

for feed, products in sub-accounting 

areas, waste and scrap)

xiv) Means of batch identification

xv) Anticipated batch flow rate per 

year
N-73 (11-2020)

OPTIONAL INFORMATION

38. Decommissioning 

schedule dates 

End of operations (MM/DD/YYYY) Decommissioned (MM/DD/YYYY)

PLAN(s) ATTACHED UNDER REF. NOs 

Signature of Responsible Officer

Date (MM/DD/YYYY)

NUCLEAR MATERIAL ACCOUNTANCY AND CONTROL

xvi) Anticipated number of inventory 

batches

xvii) Anticipated number of items per 

flow and inventory batches

xviii) Type, composition and quantity 

of nuclear material per batch 

(with indication of batch data, total 

weight of each element of nuclear 

material and form of nuclear material)

xix) Features related to containmentsurveillance measures

37. Overall limit of error 

Describe procedures to combine 

individual measurement error 

determination to obtain the overall limit 

of error for: 

i) S/R differences

ii) Book inventory

iii) Physical inventory

iv) MUF

POST-OPERATION INFORMATION

39. Facility decommissioning 

plan

i) Key events of the decommissioning 

plan

ii) Removal and recovery of nuclear 

material

iii) Removing or rendering inoperable 

essential equipment

40. Optional information 

(that the operator considers relevant to 

safeguarding the facility)