ML041750676

Amendment, Revised Action for Scram Discharge Volume Vent and Drain Valves

ML041750676
Person / Time
Site:	River Bend
Issue date:	06/16/2004
From:	Michael Webb NRC/NRR/DLPM/LPD4
To:	Hinnenkamp P Entergy Operations
Webb M, NRR/DLPM, 415-1347
References
TAC MC1943
Download: ML041750676 (9)

Text

June 16, 2004 Mr. Paul D. Hinnenkamp Vice President - Operations Entergy Operations, Inc.

River Bend Station 5485 US Highway 61N St. Francisville, LA 70775

SUBJECT:

RIVER BEND STATION, UNIT 1 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENT RE: REVISED ACTION FOR SCRAM DISCHARGE VOLUME VENT AND DRAIN VALVES (TAC NO. MC1943)

Dear Mr. Hinnenkamp:

The Commission has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 140 to Facility Operating License No. NPF-47 for the River Bend Station, Unit 1. The amendment consists of changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated February 3, 2004.

The amendment revises TS 3.1.8, "Scram Discharge Volume (SDV) Vent and Drain Valves," for the condition of having one or more SDV vent or drain lines with one valve inoperable. A notice of availability for this TS improvement using the consolidated line item improvement process was published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2003 (68 FR 18294).

A copy of our related Safety Evaluation is enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commissions next biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Michael Webb, Project Manager, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-458

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 140 to NPF-47

2. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: See next page

June 16, 2004 Mr. Paul D. Hinnenkamp Vice President - Operations Entergy Operations, Inc.

River Bend Station 5485 US Highway 61N St. Francisville, LA 70775

SUBJECT:

RIVER BEND STATION, UNIT 1 - ISSUANCE OF AMENDMENT RE: REVISED ACTION FOR SCRAM DISCHARGE VOLUME VENT AND DRAIN VALVES (TAC NO. MC1943)

Dear Mr. Hinnenkamp:

The Commission has issued the enclosed Amendment No. 140 to Facility Operating License No. NPF-47 for the River Bend Station, Unit 1. The amendment consists of changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) in response to your application dated February 3, 2004.

The amendment revises TS 3.1.8, "Scram Discharge Volume (SDV) Vent and Drain Valves," for the condition of having one or more SDV vent or drain lines with one valve inoperable. A notice of availability for this TS improvement using the consolidated line item improvement process was published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2003 (68 FR 18294).

A copy of our related Safety Evaluation is enclosed. The Notice of Issuance will be included in the Commissions next biweekly Federal Register notice.

Sincerely,

/RA/

Michael Webb, Project Manager, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-458

Enclosures:

1. Amendment No. 140 to NPF-47

2. Safety Evaluation cc w/encls: See next page DISTRIBUTION:

PUBLIC PDIV-1 Reading RidsNrrDlpmLpdiv (HBerkow)

RidsNrrPMMWebb GHill (2) RidsNrrDlpmLpdiv1 (RGramm)

RidsNrrLADJohnson RidsOgcRp RidsAcrsAcnwMailCenter TBoyce RidsNrrDlpmDpr RidsRgn4MailCenter (AHowell)

RidsNrrLADBaxley Accession No.:ML041750676 OFFICE CLIIP LPM PDIV-1/PM PDIV-1/LA PDIV-1/SC NAME WReckley MWebb DBaxley RGramm DATE 3/18/04 6/2/04 6/2/04 6/10/04 OFFICIAL RECORD COPY

ENTERGY GULF STATES, INC. **

AND ENTERGY OPERATIONS, INC.

DOCKET NO. 50-458 RIVER BEND STATION, UNIT 1 AMENDMENT TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 140 License No. NPF-47

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (the Commission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment by Entergy Gulf States, Inc.* (the licensee) dated February 3, 2004, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Commissions rules and regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in conformity with the application, as amended, the provisions of the Act, and the rules and regulations of the Commission; C. There is reasonable assurance (i) that the activities authorized by this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commissions regulations; D. The issuance of this license amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; and

• Entergy Operations, Inc. is authorized to act as agent for Entergy Gulf States, Inc., and has exclusive responsibility and control over the physical construction, operation and maintenance of the facility.

• • Entergy Gulf States, Inc., has merged with a wholly owned subsidiary of Entergy Corporation.

Entergy Gulf States, Inc., was the surviving company in the merger.

E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Commissions regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied.

2. Accordingly, the license is amended by changes to the Technical Specifications as indicated in the attachment to this license amendment, and Paragraph 2.C.(2) of Facility Operating License No. NPF-47 is hereby amended to read as follows:

(2) Technical Specifications and Environmental Protection Plan The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 140 and the Environmental Protection Plan contained in Appendix B, are hereby incorporated in the license. EOI shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications and the Environmental Protection Plan.

3. The license amendment is effective as of its date of issuance and shall be implemented within 120 days from the date of issuance.

FOR THE NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

/RA/

Robert A. Gramm, Chief, Section 1 Project Directorate IV Division of Licensing Project Management Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Attachment:

Changes to the Technical Specifications Date of Issuance: June 16, 2004

ATTACHMENT TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 140 FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-47 DOCKET NO. 50-458 Replace the following page of the Appendix A Technical Specifications with the attached revised page. The revised page is identified by Amendment number and contains marginal lines indicating the areas of change.

Remove Insert 3.1-24 3.1-24

SAFETY EVALUATION BY THE OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION RELATED TO AMENDMENT NO. 140 TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. NPF-47 ENTERGY OPERATIONS, INC.

RIVER BEND STATION, UNIT 1 DOCKET NO. 50-458

1.0 INTRODUCTION

By application dated February 3, 2004 (ADAMS Accession No. ML040420282), Entergy Operations, Inc. (the licensee), requested changes to the Technical Specifications (TSs) for the River Bend Station, Unit 1 (RBS). The requested changes would revise the required action within TS 3.1.8, "Scram Discharge Volume (SDV) Vent and Drain Valves," for the condition of having one or more SDV vent or drain lines with one valve inoperable. These changes are based on TSs Task Force (TSTF) change traveler TSTF-404 (Revision 0) that has been approved generically for the Boiling Water Reactor/6 (BWR) Standard Technical Specifications, NUREG-1434, Revision 2. A notice announcing the availability of this proposed TS change using the consolidated line item improvement process (CLIIP) was published in the Federal Register on April 15, 2003 (68 FR 18294). A notice announcing the use of this CLIIP for the RBS was published in the Federal Register on March 30, 2004 (69 FR 16619).

2.0 REGULATORY EVALUATION

U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) regulations and review standards such as Appendix A, "General Design Criteria for Nuclear Power Plants," to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), Part 50, include specific requirements for reactor protection and reactivity control systems. The reactor protection systems for BWRs use a hydraulic system to insert control rods into the reactor core. During an actuation of the reactor protection system (a scram), water is exhausted from the control rod drive mechanisms to the SDVs. Proper maintenance and operation of the SDVs in terms of instrumentation and limiting water volumes are essential for assuring the reliability of the reactor protection system (see NRC Bulletin 80-17, "Failure of Control Rods to Insert During a Scram at a BWR," related Orders to specific facilities, and information provided in plant final safety analysis reports and TS Bases). Maintaining the SDVs to ensure that accumulated water does not hamper or slow the insertion of control rods requires vent and drain valves. The vent and drain valves isolate during a scram to limit the amount of coolant discharged so that adequate core cooling is maintained and offsite doses remain within regulatory limits.

Specific regulatory requirements for SDV vent and drain valves are defined in TS 3.1.8. The existing Limiting Condition for Operation 3.1.8, requires that each SDV vent and drain valve be operable. The operability of all SDV vent and drain valves ensures that the SDV vent and drain

valves will close during a scram to contain reactor water discharged to the SDV piping. Since the vent and drain lines are provided with two valves in series, the single failure of one valve in the open position will not impair the isolation function of the system. Additionally, the valves are required to open on scram reset and during plant operation to control the amount of water accumulating in the SDV. If one or more SDV vent and drain lines have a single valve that is inoperable, the existing required action is to restore the valve(s) to operable status within 7 days. If an inoperable valve is not restored to operable status, a plant shutdown to MODE 3 is required within 12 hours1.388889e-4 days <br />0.00333 hours <br />1.984127e-5 weeks <br />4.566e-6 months <br />.

If one or more SDV vent or drain lines have both valves inoperable, the associated line must be isolated within 8 hours9.259259e-5 days <br />0.00222 hours <br />1.322751e-5 weeks <br />3.044e-6 months <br />. In this condition, the plant is allowed to operate indefinitely. A note associated with the required action clarifies that the valves may be opened under administrative controls to allow draining of the SDV. The existing SDV vent and drain valve required actions are inconsistent in that, although the operational and safety concerns are similar for having one or both valves in a line being inoperable, the actions for a single inoperable valve do not allow for the isolation of the line and administrative controls to support the draining of the SDV.

The proposed change would revise the required actions to be more consistent with the safety significance of one inoperable valve in a SDV line versus two inoperable valves in an SDV line.

3.0 TECHNICAL EVALUATION

The proposed changes to TS 3.1.8 are:

Required Action A.1 is revised from restoring the single inoperable SDV vent and drain valve in one or more SDV vent and drain lines to operable status to isolating the associated line.

The Note to Required Action B.1, which allows an isolated line to be unisolated under administrative controls for the purpose of draining and venting the SDV, is moved to a note that applies to both Conditions A (single inoperable valve) and B (both valves inoperable).

With one SDV vent or drain valve inoperable in one or more lines, the isolation function would be maintained since the redundant valve in the affected line would perform its safety function of isolating the SDV. The current ACTION statement allows 7 days to repair the inoperable valve; the proposed change is to allow for the isolation of the affected line and continue operation. If the affected line is not isolated within the 7-day time period (or the inoperable valve is not restored), the licensee would then be required to proceed to MODE 3 in the next 12 hours1.388889e-4 days <br />0.00333 hours <br />1.984127e-5 weeks <br />4.566e-6 months <br />.

Maintaining the 7-day Completion Time (CT) is acceptable because of the low probability of the concurrent events of a scram within the 7 days of the CT and a failure of the redundant valve(s). Alternately, if the inoperable valve was initially closed, there would be ample time and warning available to drain the SDV before an automatic scram would occur due to SDV high level.

The allowance to administratively open a line that is isolated to comply with the actions (to permit draining and venting the SDV) is allowed by the existing Required Action B.1. This allowance is being moved to apply to all ACTIONS based on the change proposed to Action A.

This would allow any accumulated water in the line to be drained, to preclude a reactor scram

on SDV high level. A reactor scram is initiated if the SDV water level in the instrument volume exceeds a specified setpoint. The setpoint is chosen so that all control rods are inserted before the SDV has insufficient volume to accept a full scram. Regarding the isolation of the SDV, the remaining operable SDV vent and drain valve(s) would close automatically on a scram signal to isolate the lines. Or, if both valves in a line were inoperable (and opened under this provision),

the reactor coolant release could be terminated by resetting the scram from the control room, or by manually closing the valves. Resetting the scram automatically closes the scram outlet valves, isolating the control rod drive discharge path to the SDV.

Based on the low probability of an event occurring during the defined CT associated with this condition, the subsequent isolation of the affected lines, and the ability to open and drain the lines before an automatic scram due to SDV high water level, the proposed change maintains the necessary safety features and is therefore acceptable.

The licensee stated that associated changes to the Bases Section for TS 3.1.8 will be made in accordance with the Bases Control Program defined by TS 5.5.11. The NRC staff agrees that the TS Bases Control Program is the appropriate process for updating the affected TS Bases pages.

4.0 STATE CONSULTATION

In accordance with the Commissions regulations, the Louisiana State official was notified of the proposed issuance of the amendment. The State official had no comments.

5.0 ENVIRONMENTAL CONSIDERATION

The amendments change a requirement with respect to installation or use of a facility component located within the restricted area as defined in 10 CFR Part 20. The NRC staff has determined that the amendments involve no significant increase in the amounts, and no significant change in the types, of any effluents that may be released offsite, and that there is no significant increase in individual or cumulative occupational radiation exposure. The Commission has previously issued a proposed finding that the amendments involve no significant hazards consideration, and there has been no public comment on such finding (69 FR 16619 dated March 30, 2004). Accordingly, the amendments meet the eligibility criteria for categorical exclusion set forth in 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). Pursuant to 10 CFR 51.22(b) no environmental impact statement or environmental assessment need be prepared in connection with the issuance of the amendments.

6.0 CONCLUSION

The Commission has concluded, based on the considerations discussed above, that: (1) there is reasonable assurance that the health and safety of the public will not be endangered by operation in the proposed manner, (2) such activities will be conducted in compliance with the Commissions regulations, and (3) the issuance of the amendments will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public.

Principal Contributor: W. Reckley Date: June 16, 2004

River Bend Station cc:

Winston & Strawn General Manager - Plant Operations 1400 L Street, N.W. Entergy Operations, Inc.

Washington, DC 20005-3502 River Bend Station 5485 US Highway 61N Manager - Licensing St. Francisville, LA 70775 Entergy Operations, Inc.

River Bend Station Director - Nuclear Safety 5485 US Highway 61N Entergy Operations, Inc.

St. Francisville, LA 70775 River Bend Station 5485 US Highway 61N Senior Resident Inspector St. Francisville, LA 70775 P. O. Box 1050 St. Francisville, LA 70775 Vice President - Operations Support Entergy Operations, Inc.

President of West Feliciana P. O. Box 31995 Police Jury Jackson, MS 39286-1995 P. O. Box 1921 St. Francisville, LA 70775 Attorney General State of Louisiana Regional Administrator, Region IV P. O. Box 94095 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9095 611 Ryan Plaza Drive, Suite 1000 Arlington, TX 76011 Brian Almon Public Utility Commission Ms. H. Anne Plettinger William B. Travis Building 3456 Villa Rose Drive P. O. Box 13326 Baton Rouge, LA 70806 1701 North Congress Avenue Austin, Texas 78701-3326 Mr. Michael E. Henry, State Liaison Officer Department of Environmental Quality Permits Division P.O. Box 4313 Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70821-4313 Wise, Carter, Child & Caraway P. O. Box 651 Jackson, MS 39205 Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Entergy Operations, Inc.

P. O. Box 31995 Jackson, MS 39286-1995 July 2003