ML16221A392
| ML16221A392 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Reed College |
| Issue date: | 07/27/2016 |
| From: | Krahenbuhl M Reed College |
| To: | Document Control Desk, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| References | |
| Download: ML16221A392 (17) | |
Text
REACTOR FACILITY 3203 Southeast Woodstock Boulevard Portland, Oregon 97202-8199 telephone 503/777-7222 fax 5031777-7274 email reactor@reed.edu web http://reactor.reed.edu REED COLLEGE Document Control Desk US Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington, DC 20555 Docket 50-288 Enclosed is Reed College Reactor's Annual Report.
Please feel free to contact me for additional information.
- Regards, Melinda P. Krahenbuhl Director, Reed College Reactor July 27, 2016
REED RESEARCH REACTOR ANNUAL REPORT July 1, 2015 -- June 30, 2016 3203 Southeast Woodstock Blvd.
Portland, Oregon 97202-8199 503-777-7222 http:/ !reactor.reed.edu reactor@reed.edu
~TABLE OF C'ONTENTS Overview.......................................................... -.......................................................................... 1 Pe*ople......................................................................................................................................... 2 Reactor Staff........................................................................................................................................ 2 Reactor Operations Committee (ROC)....................................................................................... 3 Facilities..................................................................................................................................... 4 Reactor Facility.................................................................................................................................. -4 Rotating Specimen Rack Facility.................................................................................................. 4 Pneumatic Transfer System... :....................................................................................................... 4 In-Core Facilities.................................................................. :... ~......................................................... 4
.In-Pool Facilities................................................................................................................................ 4 Beam Facilities................................................................................................................................... 4 Inspections and Audits................................................................................................ ~************ 5 Users............................................................................................................................................ 6 Reactor Operations Seminar................................................................................................. ~....... 6 Outside Users...................................................................................................................................... 6 High School Student Project................................................................................................... ~~..... 7 Scaler Kits............................................................................................................................................ 7 Reed Classes........................................................................................................................................ 7 Industrial and Commercial Applications.................................................................................. 8 Reactor Operations................................................................................................................. 9 Operations............................................................................................................. ;............................. 9 Unplanned Reactor Sputdowns................................................................................................. 10 Reactor Maintenance........................................................................................................... 12 Significant Maintenance............................................................................................................... 12 Radiation Protection............................................................................................................ 13 I
Personnel Dosimetry...................................................................................... -.............................. 13 Fixed Area Dosi.metry................................................................................................................... 13 Gaseous Releases............................................................................................................................ 14
, Liquid Waste Releases.................................................................................................................. 14 Solid Waste Disposal..................................................................................................................... 14 Environmental Sam piing.....................................-................... ;.................................................... 14 Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 3
jjOVERVIEW This report covers the period from July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016, and is intended to fulfill the reporting requirements of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission License No. R-112, Docket 50-288, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Oregon Department of Energy Rule No. 345-030-010.
Reed College operates a 250 kW TRIGA Mark I reactor. The Reed College Research Reactor has been a resource for research and* educational projects in the Portland area since 1968. The main uses of ~he Reed Research Reactor are instruction and research, especially in the field of trace-element analysis.
During the year there were 1642 visitors from schools, colleges, universities, and special groups. Specifically, 727 visitors were part of Reed College activities (prospective students, family of students, Reed classes, etc.). Eighty-eight members of emergency response organizations came for training. Including tours and research conducted at the facility, the Reed Research Reactor contributed. to the educational programs of 52 colleges, universities and K-12.
During the year the reactor was taken critical 402 times on 149 days. The total energy produced was approximately 30 megawatt-hours.
The reactor staff consists of a Director, a Reactor Operations Manager, and Reed College undergraduate students who are licensed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission as reactor operators or senior reactor operators. During the reporting period, 15 RO candidates and 7 SRO candidates received NRC licenses after passing NRC exams in May 2015'. Twelve RO candidates and 9 SRO candidates took exams in May 2016. In July 2016, all 12 RO candidates and 9 SRO candidates were granted NRC licen~es.
There were no radiation exposures to individuals in excess of the any limits during the year. There were no releases of liquid 'radioactive material from the facility and airborne releases were well within regulatory limits. There were no shipments of low-level
-radioactive waste from the facility.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission conducted inspections during Nov. 16-18, 2015 and Jm_1e 27-29, 2016.
!PEOPLE Reactor Staff During the period July 1, 2015 to June 30, 2016, the staff consisted of:
Table 1 Supervisory Staff 2015-2016 Reactor Director:
Melinda Krahenbuhl 6111 - present Reactor Operations Manager:
Christina Barrett 6/15 - present Radiation Safety Officer:
Kathleen Fisher 1/03 - 1116 April Karr 5/16 - present Operations Supervisor:
Ilana Novakoski 5/15 -5/16 Joewie Koh 5/16 - present Training Supervisor:
Charlie Mcintyre 5/15 - 5/16 Margie Oxley
- 5116 - present Sarah Brodesser 5/16 - present Requalification Supervisor:
Joewie Koh (5/15 - 5/16)
Trent Freeman (5/16 - present)
Projects Supervisor Malcolm McCarthy (5/15 - present)
Table 2 Staff 2015-2016 Senior Reactor Operators (SRO)
Lily Ben-Avi Vincent Griffith Malcolm Helena Pedrotti McCarthy Christina.Barrett Josh Hepworth Charlie-Mcintyre
- Edgar Perez Sarah Black Melinda Ilana Novakoski Nathan Showell Krahenbuhl Audrey Dannar Joewie Koh Evan Peairs Natalie Stone Kevin Freymiller Simran Mahtani Alexander Pan Reilly.Villanueva Reactor Operators (RO)
Amanda Asato Natalie Hawkins Anthony Loya Andrew Simler Sarah Brodesser Kristen Hirata Benjamin Anton Zaytsev Morrison Yuka Esashi Palak Jain Margie Oxley Trenton Freeman Rhody Kaner Helena Pedrotti Hunter Gill Noah Lerner Marin Sklan The list of operators includes everyone who held a license at any time during the reporting period. Reactor Operators who upgrade their licenses to Senior Reactor Operators during the reporting period are listed under Senior Reactor Operators. For the 2015-2016 year. There are 32 licensed operators at Reed College.
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Reactor Operations Committee (ROC)
For the 2015 -2016, the membership of the Reactor Operation committee is listed.
Reactor Operations Committee*
Wayne Lei - (Director of Research and Development, Portland General Electric)
Norm Dyer (OAR Services)
John Essick (Physics Faculty, Reed College)
Robert McCollough (Neighborhood Association)
Kathleen Fisher I April Karr (Director, Reed Environmental Health and Safety)
Dan Gerrity- (Chemistry Faculty, Reed College)
Steve Reese (Radiation Center Director, Oregon State University)
Nigel Nicholson (Dean of the Faculty, Reed College)
Melinda Krahenbuhl (Director, RRR)
Christina Barrett (Reactor Operations Manager, RRR)
Ilana Novakoski (Supervisor, RRR)
Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 3
I FACILITIES Reactor Facility In addition to the reactor, Reed College has a radiochemistry lab. The equipment available at the reactor facility includes high purity germanium gamma spectrometers, ion chambers, beta counters, Geiger Muller tubes, and alpha detectors: These instruments are used for experiments and training in nuclear science and radiation detection. One exit monitor is in the control room. A liquid sc.intillation detector serves both the reactor and broad scope license users. The reactor facility has several systems for performing irradiations, described below.
Rotating Specimen Rack Facility The rotating specimen rack is located in a well on top of the graphite reflector surrounding the core. The rack consists of a circular array of 40 tubular receptacles, each of which can accommodate two irradiation tubes. The rack automatically rotates during irradiation to ensure each sample receives the same neutron flux.* The approximate thermal neutron flux in a rotating rack position at full power. is 1.7 x 1012 n/cm2s with a cadmium ratio of 6.
Pneumatic Transfer System*
The pneumatic transfer system ("rabbit") consists of an irradiation chamber in the outer F-ring of the core and its associated blower and piping. This allows samples to be transferred in and out of the reactor core very rapidly while the reactor is at power. The flux in the core terminal is approximately 5xl012 n/cm2s when the reactor is at full power.
In-Core Facilities The central thimble is a water-filled irradiation chamber about 3 cm in diameter. It provides the highest available neutron flux, about lxl013 n/cm2s.
Foil-insertion holes, 0.8 cm in diameter, are drilled at various positions through the grid plates. These holes allow inserting special holders containing flux wires into the core, to obtain neutron flux maps of the core.
In-Pool Facilities Near core, in-pool irradiation facilities can be arranged for larger samples. Neutron fluxes will be lower than in the rotary specimen rack and will depend on the sample location.
An iridium gamma irradiator is also in the reactor pool for gamma only irradiations.
Beam Facilities The central thimble can be evacuated with gas, producing a vertical neutron beam. The flux above the beam exit is. approximately lxl06 n/cm2s when the reactor is at full power.
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INSPECTIONS AND AUDITS The Nuclear Regulatory Commission conducted inspections during Nov. 16-18, 2015 and June 27~29,2016.
One audit was completed during this period. Kevin Herminhuysen (Reactor Operator -
The Ohio State) conducted an external audit on May 23-25, 2016. Recommendations are currently being evaluated.
Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 5
Reactor Operations Seminar The Reed Research Reactor conducts an annual seminar series. This non-credit course serves as an introduction to nuclear reactor theory, health physics, and reactor operation.
Some of the students continue with in-depth reactor operator training and subsequently apply for a Reactor Operator (RO) license. If successful, the individual may be hired to operate the reactor. In addition, existing ROs may take the NRC Senior Reactor Operator (SRO) exam to upgrade their licenses.
During the reporting period, 15 out of 15 RO candidates and 7 out of 7 SRO candidates received NRC licenses after passing NRC exams in May 2015. Fifteen out of 15 RO candidates and 9 out of 9 SRO candidates received NRC licenses after passing NRC exams in May 2016.
Figure 1 is a graph of the pass rate for RO and SRO since 2000.
- SRO pass rate
.,. RO pass rate a
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N Figure 1 Reed Research Reactor License Exam Results Outside Users During the year there were 1642 visitors from schools, colleges, universities, and special groups. Additionally, 727 individuals visited as part of Reed College activities (prospective students, family of students, Reed classes, etc.). Eighty-eight members of emergency response organizations came for training.
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Figure 2 is a graph showing the history of visiting groups.
Colleges and Universities
High Schools/ Middle Schools/
Elementary Schools
- Special Groups I
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2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Figure 2 Visiting Groups Many reactor tours include hands-on use of facility equipment to conduct experiments in radiation science, health physics, and nuclear physics. A typical lab involves determining the background of a Geiger Muller scaler system and then determining the half-life of a sample of radioactive material.
Several special programs for gifted children use the reactor for projects. These are designed to enrich their educational program and prepare them for college. Some of the groups who use the reactor target minority and disadvantaged youth who are historically under-represented in science professions. Additionally several Boy Scouts of America r
troops have visited the facility to complete the Nuclear Science merit badge.
High School Student Project The Reed Research Reactor continues to be used in independent science projects initiated by students from several Oregon and Washington State high schools.
Scaler Kits Through the generosity of Portland General Electric, the reactor lends out kits containing a Geiger counter, a scaler, and some small exempt sources to local high schools.
Reed Classes Chemistry Thesis "Separation and Quantification of Radioactive 14C from irradiated graphite" by Ilana Novakoski Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 7
Chemistry 101 (Molecular Structure and Properties) students explored the properties of alpha, beta and gamma irradiation.
r_
Chemistry 311 (Analytical Chemistry) students quantified the extent of chemical reaction using potassium as the tracer Physics 332 (Advanced Laboratory II) students completed independent projects Independent Chemistry project - "Self Shielding properties of Cadmium".
Industrial and Commercial Applications The Reed Research Reactor is available for industrial or commercial concerns when it does not conflict with oµr educational goals. As in the past, the primary operations involved analysis of environmental samples. The facility also provides radiation protection training to interested parties and schools in the area.
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[I REACTOR OPERATIONS Operations During the year the reactor was taken critical 402 times on 149 days. The total energy produced was approximately 30 megawatt-hours. Operating history by month appears in Table 3. A history of the data is shown in Figure 3.
Table 3 Operating History 2015-2016 TIMES CRITICAL DAYS OPERATED MW-HOURS July 2015 17 10 1.51 August2015 20 9
2.09 September 2015 77 20 6.52 October 2015 62 16 2.07 November 2015 35 12 1.85 December 2015 23 9
1.38 January 2016 12 11 1.06 February 2016 48 20 4.83 March2016 28 16 2.07 April 2016 68 22 5.00 May 2016 12 4
0.60 June 2016 0
0 0
Total 402 149 29.9 Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 9
500 -<--------<
_._Times Critical
~Days Operated
~Irradiations MW-hrs 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2_006. 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Figure 3. Operations Unplanned Reactor Shutdowns There were 10 inadvertent reactor shutdowns (scrams) as shown in Table 4. The number of unplanned reactor shutdowns is shown in Figure 4.
Table 4 Unplanned Reactor Shutdowns DATE SCRAM TYPE CAUSE OF SCRAM Aug. 29, 2015 Power Transient Reactor Facility lost power Sept. 20, 2015 Power Transient Power transient-due to work conducted on console Sept. 23, 2015 Linear High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point Oct. 11, 2015 Linear High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point Oct. 15, 2015 Linear High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point Oct. 15, 2015 Linear High Pow~r Overshot high power SCRAM set point Oct. 23, 2015 Linear High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point Nov. 15, 2015 Linear* High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point I
Feb. 19,2016 Linear High Power Overshot high power SCRAM set point Apr. 28, 2016 Power Transient Reactor Facility lost power 10
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Figure 4 Unplanned Shutdowns Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 11
~REACTOR MAINTENANCE Significant Maintenance Reactor staff performs routine equipment checks on a daily, weekly, bimonthly, semiannual (January and July) and annual (January) basis as required by facility procedures. Reed College maintenance personnel assist with routine preventative maintenance to auxiliary equipment. The following is a list of significant maintenance preformed during this reporting period.
Table 5 Maintenance 2015-2016 DATE COMPONENT EXPLANATION Dec. 11, 2015 Secondary Cooling Replace High Point Vent System Jan. 11, 2016 Continuous Air Replace broken gas-filled chamber Monitor Jan. 13, 2016 Shim Rod Motor Re-soldered broken wire Jan. 28, 2016 Primary Filter Replace 0-ring fixture Feb'. 16,2016 Water Leveler Replaced sensor on automatic water addition system Apr. 20, 2016 Shim Rod Motor Magnet adjusted to be flush with control rod May 5,2016 Percent Power Replaced Ramp Up test button Ramp Up June,2016 Log and Percent Maintenance conducted on electronics after water Power Channels damage 12
llRADIATION PROTECTION Personnel Dosimetry Dosimeters are changed on a calendar quarter schedule. Individuals were issued beta-gamma sensitive ring badges and whole-body badges.
No doses received were high enough to initiate an investigation. The highest individual doses received were 70 mrem to a left ring dosimeter and 60 mrem to a right ring dosimeter. No chest badge indicated a dose above the minimum detectable quantity.
Fixed Area Dosimetry Radiation levels are continually monitored to provide an indication of the average radiation levels in the reactor bay and dose outside the facility. All dosimeters monitor beta and gamma radiation. Three locations also measure neutron dose.
The deep dose equivalent radiation measured by fixed dosimeters during the period July 1, 2015 to March 31, 2016 are shown in Table 5. Dosimeters from April 1, 2016 to June 30, 2016 are currently being processed. An "M" indicates less than 1 mrem during the quarter.
LOCATION Reactor East Wall Reactor North Wall Reactor West Wall Reactor South Wall Reactor North Wall -
High Control Room Outside North Outside Roof Outside East Outside South Counting Room Table 6 Area Radiation Dosimeters (doses are in mrem per calendar quarter)
HEIGHT RADIATION mLl-OCT 1-(M)
DETECTED SEP 30 DEC31 1.5
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~,y 4
4 1.0
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6 1.5
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6 2.8
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M 1.5
~,y 92 M
JAN 1-MAR31 2
4 4
7 1
5 M
M M
M M
Reed Research Reactor Annual Report 2015-2016 TOTAL 5
12 22 20 12 11 M
M M
M 92 13
Gaseous Releases The only routine release of gaseous radioa~tivity is from 41Ar (l.83-hour half-life) and 16N (7.13-second half-life). These come from activation of pool water and air in the pool water and in the irradiation facilities. For the reporting period, the average gaseous activity at the site boundary was 3.96 x 10-10 µCi/ml, which would deliver a dose to a member of the public of approximately 1.98 mrem, well below regulatory guidelines and constraints.
Figure 5
shows the gaseous releases for each year.
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 Figure 5 Gaseous Releases Activity (JlCi/ml) at Site Boundary Liquid Waste Releases No liquid radioactive waste was released from the Reed Research Reactor during this report period.
Solid Waste Disposal There were no shipments of low-level radioactive waste from the facility during this reporting period.
Environmental Sampling Soil samples taken from the area surrounding the facility showed no activity above background. Water from the facility's secondary cooling system and the nearby ~anyon were sampled for activation products and tritium, but showed no activity above.normal.
background.
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