Advanced Nuclear Power - AREVA

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Nuke NotesNuke NotesGERMANYNew Contracts for LargeValve Test Facility in KarlsteinIn May 2001, Wyle Laboratories (US)awarded Framatome ANP a contractto functionally test an nominal diameter24" (DN 600) gate-type mainsteam isolation valve under simulatedpipe break conditions. This gate valve,which is to be installed at the PWRunits of Ulchin 5&6 (Korea), is manufacturedby Edward Valves, Inc.(USA). The tests are intended todemonstrate that the valve will reliablyclose under the severe loading conditionsthat can arise in the event of amain steam line break. Anothercontract has been signed by theGerman Association of LargeATRIUM 10 Achieves WorldRecord BWR Fuel BurnupFramatome ANP's ATRIUM 10fuel for BWR has set a world recordfor burnup. Four ATRIUM 10 assembliesachieved a burnup of 71MWd/kg U (average for each fuelassembly) without a single defect aftereight cycles. The fuel assemblies wereloaded in a European nuclear plant aslead assemblies in 1992 and wererecently replaced during the 2001refueling outage.The achievement of this worldrecord burnup for BWR fuel is theresult of extensive research and developmentin which the reliability andperformance of the product line havebeen enhanced while adhering todesign limits. Ongoing development isfocused on further increasing the marginsto design limits and enhancingthe burnup potential. The combinedresult will be additional improvementin the reliability and operating economyof nuclear power plants. AdvancedATRIUM 10 fuel is scheduled for initialloading in 2002.A 28”(DN 700) valve being tested atFramatome ANP’s Large-Valve Test Facility1500 "SIPLUG Online 3"Modules for NeckarThe operator of Germany's NeckarNuclear Power Station has placed alarge order with Framatome ANP for avalve diagnostics system comprisingthe new "SIPLUG Online 3" measuringsystem module along with thestandard ADAM software for dataanalysis and trending. Over a period offour years, Framatome ANP will besupplying the two PWR units ofNeckar with a total of no less than1,500 SIPLUG modules.SIPLUG and ADAM represent afurther innovative milestone in thediagnosis of valve performance.Permanent installation of SIPLUG atthe valve's switchgear - either in theoutgoing power feeder leading to theactuator or directly in the drawoutmodule itself - provides a fully on-linesystem for active power monitoring.As soon as the valve is actuated, all relevantdata (such as active power, currentand voltage) is recorded andtransferred via a particularly noiseprooffield bus system to one or morePCs where they are analyzed using theADAM software. Plant personnel arePower Plant Operators (VGB) forexperiments to study sump cloggingby insulation debris. In these tests, ahigh-pressure jet of hot water measuring200 mm in diameter will bedirected on thermal insulation panelscontaining mineral wool to determinehow they disintegrate under water jetimpact loading.Both test programs will beperformed at Framatome ANP's LargeValve Test Facility (GAP) in Karlstein(Germany) - the only test facility inthe world that allows valves havinga nominal diameter of up to 28"(DN 700) to be tested under simulatedaccident conditions.thus kept informed at all times aboutthe performance of the valve and itsactuator and can then, if necessary,decide on exactly what kind of maintenancework will be needed - thuspaving the way for condition-basedmaintenance. Furthermore, the numberof individual valve and/or actuatortests is reduced, resulting in considerablesavings of both time and cost.Testing a SIPLUG Valve monitoring systemat KarlsteinOECD Participates inReactor Safety ResearchThe Organization for EconomicCooperation and Development(OECD) participates in the programof thermal-hydraulic investigations ofboron dilution scenarios at the PKL(Primärkreislauf) primary systemlarge-scale test facility ofFramatome ANP in Erlangen. This isthe only experimental program inGermany to be sponsored by theOECD. Half is financed by theGerman side (operators of GermanPWRs and Framatome ANP), and theother half by the other member statesof OECD’s Nuclear Energy Agency(NEA).The experimental program thatstarted in April of this year and willrun for more than two years willprovide a major contribution towardbetter understanding of the thermalhydraulicprocesses in hypotheticalaccident situations. The investigationsfocus on events concerning localChemical Decontaminationof Krümmel’s RHR SystemAt the German BWR plant, Krümmel,operated by the utility HamburgischeElektricitäts-Werke (HEW), all fourtrains of the residual heat removal(RHR) system - each of which has avolume totaling around 30 m 3 - werechemically decontaminated during thisyear's refueling outage. In talkingabout the decon project, Hans-JürgenRokita, head of mechanical systemmaintenance labeled it "... great work,many thanks ..." and Dr. GüntherHallfarth, head of health physics, said"... the results are outstanding ..."Thanks to the optimal combinationof Framatome ANP's mobiledecontamination apparatus AMDA ®with the CORD ® process (chemicaloxidation reduction decontamination),exceptionally high decontaminationParticipants from the OECD/NEA member states at their kick-off meeting in Erlangen,May 2001boron dilution in the primary systemsof PWRs and possible impacts on corebehavior. Based on the results, theprescribed reactor operating modesafter postulated accidents can beexperimentally validated and furtheroptimized in terms of safety-relatedaspects.The PKL test facility, which ispart of Framatome ANP's TechnicalCenter, is the only system test facilityfactors were achieved. In the end,fewer CORD cleaning cycles wereactually needed to do the job than hadoriginally been planned. As a result ofthis as well as the extremely hard workput in by the decon team, the projectwas completed three days ahead ofschedule.Service Factorsfor SiemensBWR Plantsin 2000in operation in Europe, featuring amockup of western-design pressurizedwater reactors in an original heightscale. The facility comprises the entireprimary system with an electricallyheated core, major parts of the secondarysystem and the most importantoperational and safety systems of a1,300MWe PWR. It has been used forresearch into topical safety issues inPWR technology for almost 25 years.Excellent Performance bySiemens' BWR PlantsSiemens-built BWR nuclear powerplants again posted excellent performanceresults in 2000. The six BWRplants currently in operation inGermany generated a total of morethan 50,100 GWh of electricity.34 Advanced Nuclear Power 08/2001 08/2001 Advanced Nuclear Power 35
Nuke NotesNuke NotesJAPANPipe Crawler InspectionsExtend Service Life of PipingFramatome ANP has built andsupplied a new remote-controlledin-pipe manipulator - called a pipecrawler for Japanese customers. Thecrawler can easily be inserted into thepiping through valve bodies after thevalve trim has been removed (e.g.wedge-type gate valves, angle valves orcheck valves) and is capable of examiningthe entire inner surface of a pipefor cracks. If defects are found, theySLOVENIAExchanger Replacementin Kr koFramatome ANP replaced one regenerativeheat exchanger on the primaryside of the 660 MWe PWR unit ofKr ko during the recent 2001 outage.Decontamination of the oldexchanger and piping was completedprior to replacement and reduced thedose by a factor of 20. The replacementwas completed on schedule andwithin dosimetry parameters byFramatome ANP and its local partner,NUMIP.Framatome ANP has replacedmore than 31 heat exchangers inFrance, South Africa, the US,and Germany.Installing a heat exchanger in Kr kocan be removed by grinding using ahigh-precision grinding head. Thegrinding process has been speciallyqualified for such applications. Fulldocumentation is provided for allinspection results.The new crawler is designed fordeployment in pipes with nominaldiameters ranging from 8" (DN 200)to 40" (DN 1000) and has alreadybeen used with success in nuclearpower plants all over the world.SPAINTrillo Standby OffsitePower System Connectionto be UpgradedThe operator of the Spanish PWRnuclear power plant, Trillo has awardedFramatome ANP a contract toupgrade the plant's standby offsitepower system connection for auxiliarypower supply. A new 220-kV standbyconnection is to be installed that willtake over the functions currently performedby the plant's 132-kV standbyconnection. In the future, the 132-kVconnection will serve as a secondstandby offsite power system connection.The supply and services scopeincludes two transformers (220/10/10kV, each rated for 76 MVA), 220-kVcables, 10-kV switchgear panels, transformervoltage control and protectionequipment, modernization of theentire auxiliary power supply transfersystem as well as all associated instrumentationand control (I&C) equipment.The last of these items is to bebased on a digital process control system(TELEPERM XP from Siemens).This will be the first time that digitalI&C is being implemented at Trilloand will provide the groundwork forupgrading other plant systems withdigital I&C in the future.Some of the engineering work -particularly civil engineering has beenNew pipe crawler for Japanesecustomerscontracted out to Spanish companies.Performance of the electrical upgradeat Trillo requires not only know-howin electrical engineering but also indepthknowledge of plant processengineering, especially for the loadreconnection programs - one of themain reasons why this upgrade wasawarded to Framatome ANP.SWITZERLANDBeznau Awards ATEA ContractSociété Atlantique de TechniquesAvancées (ATEA), a wholly ownedsubsidiary of Framatome ANP, hasbeen awarded a contract for the cleaningand eddy current inspection ofthimble tubes for the two Beznaunuclear units for outages in 2001 and2002. ATEA's experience in designingand supplying incore instrumentationas well as development of specialprocesses and tooling contributed tothe success of this award.ATEA has been building equipmentfor PWR nuclear power plantsfor over 25 years, in particular in-coreinstrumentation systems, fuel handlingand control rod guide tubes. Theyhave built in excess of 70 in-coreinstrumentation systems.USAIngenuity Reduces Dose LevelsDuring the VC Summer hot-leg pipereplacement non-destructive examination(NDE), visual inspection showedexcessive weld buildup in the insidediameter of the pipe. Thus, grindingfrom the inside diameter (ID) of thepipe was required. Due to the locationof the weld root and the dose insidethe pipe, a special tool was designedand fabricated to perform this grindingoperation.Access to the work area wasthrough the steam generator via theman-way. The remote-controlledcrawler had to fit through the manway,drive through the steam generatorbowl, into the pipe and around severalobstacles en-route to the weld. Onceat the weld location, the crawler wassteered to align with the weld usingremote video. Grinding was thenaccomplished by driving the crawleraround the circumference of the pipewhile operating a standard grindermounted in the center of the tool.This simple tool reduced doselevels from 5R per hour to less than1mr per hour.Framatome ANP Createsa Special Inconel 600Weld Project TeamSeveral plants have reported problemswith their control rod drive mechanism(CRDM) nozzle vessel headwelds. Cracks have been detected inboth the inner diameter (ID) and theouter diameter (OD) areas of thenozzles, some causing leaks. To addressthis need, Framatome ANP hascreated a special I-600 Weld ProjectTeam to focus on solutions toproblems related to CRDM nozzlevessel welds. As the issues surroundingInconel 600 welds emerge,Framatome ANP's project team willidentify problem welds and executerepairs, including replacing reactorvessel heads.The I-600 Weld Project Teamincludes high-level representativesfrom engineering and licensing, componentfabrication, welding, remotetooling, contracts, resource procurementas well as technical consultants.Framatome ANP's team performsinspection, welding repair, Ni plating,temper bead repair and remediation toprovide plants with short-term solutions.Specialized tooling for remoteoperation has been designed to reducedose levels. The Framatome ANPteam will customize and implementthe optimum solution for each repair.Framatome ANP MakesTechnical Papers AvailableEngineers and managers are deliveringtechnical papers on a wide range ofsubjects at meetings and conferencesthroughout the year. Up to now, thesehave been available only toFramatome ANP personnel. Now,customers and other interested partieshave access to them through a newlink on the Framatome ANP website.The Framatome ANP website canbe accessed via:www.Framatome-anp.comOnce on the site, go to Literaturewhere either product bulletins or technicalpapers can be accessed. Paperscan be downloaded or read on line.Permanent Canal Seal PlateReduces Dose and CostsAmerGen's TMI has awardedFramatome ANP a contract for thedesign, fabrication and installation of apermanent reactor vessel canal sealplate (PCSP). The PCSP installationreduces the time required to performstandard refueling outage operationswhich in turn reduces personnelradiation dose levels and the costsassociated with performing therefueling outage activities.This PCSP installation is consideredan nth-of-a-kind activity(NOAK) and will be the 9th PCSPinstalled by Framatome ANP personnel.As with all past Permanent CanalSeal Plates, Oscar Fields Inc. (OFI) ofRichmond, Virginia will perform thehardwarefabrication activities underthe supervision of Framatome ANPpersonnel. The contract includes adesign change package and will beinstalled in the October 2001 outage.EVENTSTIP Awards Presented atRecent NEA MeetingAt the recent Nuclear EnergyAssembly (NEA) in Washington DC,US, the "Top Industry Awards" (TIP)were presented. These awards provideindustry-wide recognition of nuclearcompanies who have developed aninnovative new process or equipmentwithin the last three years. Criteriainclude safety, cost-saving impact,productivity/efficiency, innovation,outstanding attributes and transferability.Out of a total of 77 entries, a totalof 8 awards were given, with "The Bestof the Best" chosen from the winners.Four NSSS vendors sponsorawards: Framatome ANP, GE NuclearEnergy, Westinghouse, andWestinghouse CE Nuclear. Inaddition there are 5 NEI Awardspresented.The Framatome ANP winner for2000 was VC Summer for their reactorvessel nozzle leak repair. Otheraward winners included:Calvert Cliffs for their IntegratedRisk Management (IRM) processSouth Texas for their boraflexremoval project "Best of the BestAward"Arkansas Nuclear One (ANO) forelimination of the Post AccidentSampling SystemExelon for their RPV and InternalsAsset Management StrategyBraidwood station Steam GeneratorHigh Impact TeamDetroit Edison's Fermi 2 nuclearplant for their Utilities ServiceAlliance implementation projectQuad Cities Unit 1 RecirculationRiser Pipe Repair36 Advanced Nuclear Power 08/2001 08/2001 Advanced Nuclear Power 37
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