IR 05000382/1989039
| ML20006E308 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Waterford  |
| Issue date: | 02/12/1990 |
| From: | Collins S NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION IV) |
| To: | Dewease J LOUISIANA POWER & LIGHT CO. |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9002220584 | |
| Download: ML20006E308 (3) | |
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Docket:,50-382/89-39 i
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. Louisiana Power & L'ght Company i
ATTN:
J. G. Dewease, Senior Vice President
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Nuclear Operations
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"317 Baronne Street i
New Orleans, Louisiana 70160 Y
Gentlemen:
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Thank you for your unsolicited letter of January 19, 1990, in response to our
L letter dated December 6, 1989, which forwarded NRC Inspection Report 50-382/89-39.
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.Your letter stated that additional information, necessary to resolve the NRC concerns discussed in Open Item 382/8632-08, was available to the NRC inspectors in the LP&L letter numbered W3P87-0543. As discussed with Mr. Dan Packer of
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your staff on February 9,1990, by Mr. Dwight Chamberlain of my staff, the NRC
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inspectors were not aware of this additional information nor was the information found or referenced in the appropriate equipment file during the inspection. We will evaluate the acceptability of this additional information in resolving
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Open Item 382/8632--08 during a future inspection of the appropriate equipment
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file.
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Sincerely, Original Signed By:
Samuel J. Collins Samuel J. Collins, Director Division of Reactor Projects
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cc:
Louisiana Power & Light Company ATTN:
R. P. Barkhurst, Vice President Nuclear Operations P.O. Box B
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Killona, Louisiana 70066 Louisiana Power & Light Company ATTN:
J. R. McGaha, Jr., Plant Manager P.O. Box B-Killona, Louisiana 70066
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Louisiana Power & Light Company-2-
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Louisiana Power & Light Company
ATTN:
L. W. Laughlin, Site Licensing Support Supervisor-P.O. Box B K111ona, Louisiana 70066 Louisiana Power & Light Company
- ATTN:
G. M. Davis, Manager, Events Analysis Reporting & Response P.O. Box B
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K111ona, Louisiana 70066 Monroe & Leman
- ATTN:- W..Malcolm Stevenson, Esq.
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201-St. Charles Avenue, Suite 3300 New Orleans, Louisiana 70170-3300
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Shaw, Pittman, Potts & Trowbridge ATTN: Mr. E. Blake
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2300 N Street, NW Washington, D.C.
20037
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Middle South Services, Inc.
ATTN:. Ralph T. Lally, Manager
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of Quality Assurance
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P.O. Box 61000 New Orleans, Louisiana 70161-
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Chairman Louisiana Public Service Commission One American Place, Suite 1630 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70825-1697 Louisiana Power & Light Coinpany ATTN:. R. F. Burski, Manager, Nuclear Safety and Pegulatory Affairs 317 Baronne Street New Orleans,. Louisiana 70112 Department of Environmental Quality ATTN: William H. Spell, Administrator
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. Nuclear Energy Division P.O. Box 14690 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70898 President, Police Jury St. Charles Parish Hahnv111e, Louisiana 70057
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L Louisiana Power & Light _ Company-3-
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Mr. William A. Cross
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Bethesda Licensing Office
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Bethesda,' Maryland' 20814
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ATTN: Resident Inspector-
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P.O. Box 822 i
K111ona, Louisiana 70066-
U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
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ATTN: Regional Administrator, Region IV
611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 1000
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Arlington, Texas 76011 bectoDMB(IE01)
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R; D. Martin Resident Inspector f
SectionChief(DRP/A)
DRP DRSS-FRPS MIS System
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RSTS Operator RIV file DRS.
D. Wigginton, NRR Project Manager (MS:
13-D-18)
Lisa Shea, RM/ALF T. Stetka.
P. Wagner
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R. F. Burski Nucmar Safety & Regulatory Affairs-Manager i
W3P90-0311 A4.05 QA
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~j U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission
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ATTN Document Control Desk
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JAN 2 31990
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Washington, D.C. 20555
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Subject: Waterford 3 SES
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L Docket No. 50-382
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License No. NPF-38
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NRC Inspection Report 50-382/89-39
Centlement The purpose of this letter is to clarify an apparent misunderstanding by i
the NRC regarding an LP&L letter for open item 382/8632-08, reference NRC y
inspection Report 50-382/89-39.
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The issue concerns the use of open terminal blocks installed at the Conax
penetrations for the Core Exit Thermocouples (CETs). LP6L prepared and issued LP&L letter W3B87-0222 in response to IEN 84-47.
IEN 84-47 discussed a Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) LOCA/MSLB simulation test which showed that a moisture film will form on the surface of terminal blocks reducing insulation resistance between terminal points and ground, and thus allowing
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some' leakage current to flow to ground. LP&L letter W3B87-0222 in assessing the applicability of the SNL test results to Waterford 3 made some statements about_the conditions and configuration of the SNL test (NUREG CR-3691). Specifically, LP&L letter W3B87-0222 stated:
"The NUREG CR-3691 analysis assumes the reference junction inside containment which is not the case for Waterford 3.
It also assumed a cable routing configuration that is less conservative than the Waterford 3 design. The resulting temperature readouts show a range of error of 300'F using the worst case arrangement closest to Waterford 3 design. The actual Waterford 3 error is expected to be much less than this."
Apparently, the NRC inspector misunderstood the statement of the 1 300'F error to mean this was the magnitude of the error at Waterford 3 when in fact the statement was referring to the magnitude of the error for the SNL test configuration. The interpretation by the NRC is documented in inspection report 50-382/89-39 section 3.a which states:
"During this inspection, the licensee provided a response to IEN 84-47 stating that the maximum exit thermocouple temperature error would be less than 1 300'F and that this value was sufficient for the application."
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W3P90-0311 January 19, 1990
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t LP&L letter W3B87-0222 in fact stated that the actual Waterford 3 error is
expected to be much less than 1 300'F.
LP&L also notes that nowhere in LP&L letter W3B87-0222 is any statement made that the 2 300'T error is sufficient for Waterford 3 application as documented in section 3.a of inspection report 50-382/89-39.
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Subsequent to LP&L letter W3B87-0222, LP&L issued LP&L letter W3P87-0543.
The letter discussed the result of a Waterford 3 plant specific analysis utilizing the SNL test and analysis.
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The assumptions used by SNL in their analysis of thermocouple circuits were based on worst case design features employed at other nuclear power plants. The conservative design used at Waterford 3 mitigates every
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concern raised by SNL. The use of larger wire sizes, the location of the cold reference junction outside containment, the absence of dissimilar metal connections, the neutral pH of the containment spray, and the significantly lower post accident containment temperature combine to eliminate any concern about the accuracy of the information generated by the core exit thermocouples. The maximum CET temperature errors were determined to be 6% at 550'F with a spuricus EMF of 0.5 volts, 3% at 1000'F with a spurious EMF of 0.5 volts, and in all cases 0% if no-spurious EMFs are generated. LP&L thus concluded in LP&L letter W3P87-0543 the CETs will perform their design function in postulated post-accident environments.
The NRC inspector was apprised of and provided a copy of the Waterford 3 plant specific analysis and LP&L letter W3P87-0543.
LP&L finally notes that inspection report 50-382/89-39 section 3.a states,
"The licensee. acknowledged the inspectors' concern and will reanalyze the effect of this error (meaning i 300'F) on system operation." Although a member of our staff acknowledged that a 1 300'F error would be significant.
the nature of the follow-up action conveyed to the NRC inspector was to review the matter with cognizant LP&L personnel. However, there was no intent to convey that LP&L would perform additional analysis. An analysis of the 1 300'F error would not be appropriate based on the facts concerning this issue.
LP&L respectfully requests that based on this letter and other information provided to the inspector open item 382/8632-08 should be closed by the NRC.
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=W3P90-0311 January 19, 1990 Page 3 h
Please. contact me or Robert J. Murillo should there be any questions concerning this matter r
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RFB/RJM/ddd cet Messrs.iR.D. Martin! NRC Region IV C. Paulk, NRC Region IV F.J. Hebdon, NRC-NRR
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D.L. Wigginton, NRC-NRR E.L. Blake W.H. Stevenson
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NRC Resident Inspectors Office
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