ML18136A421
| ML18136A421 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Surry, North Anna  |
| Issue date: | 12/21/1979 |
| From: | James O'Reilly NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION II) |
| To: | Proffitt W VIRGINIA POWER (VIRGINIA ELECTRIC & POWER CO.) |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 8001240143 | |
| Download: ML18136A421 (4) | |
Text
,I' Refer To:
e UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION REGION II 101 MARIETTA ST,, N.W., SUITE 3100 ATLANTA, GEORGIA 30303 DEC 2 1 1979 Virginia Electric and Power Company Attn:
W. L. Proffitt Senior Vice President, Power P. 0. Box 26666 Richmond, Virginia 23261 Gentlemen:
This Information Notice is provided as an early notification of a possibly significant matter. It is expected that recipients will review the Information for possible applicability to their facilities.
No specific action or response is requested at this time.
However, we anticipate that further NRC evaluations will result in issuance of an IE Circular or Bulletin in the near future which will recommend or request*specific applicant or licensee actions. If you have questions regarding the matter, please contact ~he Director of the appropriate NRC Regional Office.
Enclosures:
- 1.
IE Information Notice No. 79-33
- 2.
List of Recently Issued Information Notices Sincerely,
~~-
James P. O'Reilly Director p
Virginia Electric and Power Company cc w/encl:
e*
W.R. Cartwright, Station Manager Post Office Box 402 Mineral, Virginia 23117 P. G. Perry Senior Resident Engineer Post Office Box 38 Mineral, Virginia 23117 W. L. Stewart, Manager Post Office Box 315 Surry, Virginia 23883 e
UNITED STATES NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION OFFICE OF INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT WASHINGTON, D.C.
20555 December 21, 1979 SSINS No. :
6870 Accession No.:
7910250520 IE Information Notice No. 79-33 IMPROPER CLOSURE OF PRIMARY CONTAINMENT EQUIPMENT ACCESS HATCHES Description o*f Circumstances:
On December 8, 1979, difficulty was experienced in establishing the required nitrogen pressure in primary containment during power range startup testing of the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant, Unit 3, following a refueling outage.
On December 9, 1979, the licensee found three loose bolts on an equipment hatch to be the cause of leakage from the primary containment.
The leakage was calculated to have been ten times the allowable containment leakage rate.
This hatch had previously passed a local leak rate test (LLRT) and an integrated leak rate test of the containment in November 1979.
The reactor had returned to operation on December 6, 1979, from the refueling outage and had operated at power levels less than 25 percent since Decemper 6, 1979.
A subsequent inspection by the licensee of both primary containment equipment access hatches for Unit 2 was performed.
TVA reported on December 20, 1979, to the NRC that they had found six of twelve closing dogs on one hatch improperly aligned and one closing bolt not torqued.
A LLRT, performed with the hatch in this condition, showed a leakage rate higher than normal but within Technical Specification limits.
The second hatch on this unit was found to have eight of twelve closing dogs improperly aligned.
,/
The licensee is in the process of inspecting the closure of both primary contain-ment equipment access hatches on Unit 1 and is reinspecting these hatches on Unit 3.
It is anticipated that further NRC evaluation will result in issuance of an IE Circular or Bulletin in the near future which will recommend or request.
specific applicant or licensee actions.
This information is provided to inform licensees *of a possibly significant matter.
The improper closure of the primary containment access hatches resulted from a
,lack of procedures for torque values, sequence of torque, and alignment of the closin~ dogs.
We expect that recipients will review the adequacy of their pro-cedures for access hatch installation at all facilities. If installation pro-cedures do not exist or are inadequate, inspection and local leak rate testing can be used to confirm containment penetration integrity. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please contact the Director of the appropriate NRC Regional Office.
No written response to this Information Notice is required.
e IE Information Notice No. 79-33 December 21,.1979 Information Notice No. 79-33 79-32 79-31 79-30 79-29 79-28 79-27
'79-12A 79-26 79-25 79-24 RECENTLY ISSUED IE INFORMATION NOTICES Subject Date Issued Improper Closure of Primary 12/21/79 Containment Equipment Access Hatches Separation of Electrical 12/21/79 Cables for HPCI and ADS Use of Incorrect Amplified 12/13/79 Response Spectra (ARS)
Reporting of Defects and 12/6/79 Noncompliances, 10 CFR Part 21 Loss of NonSafety-Related 11/16/79 Reactor Coolant System Instrumentation During Operation Overloading of Structural 11/16/79 Elements Due to Pipe Support Loads Steam Generator Tube 11/16/79 Ruptures At Two PWR Facilities Attempted Damage To New 11/9/79 Fuel Assemblies Breach of Containment 11/5/79 Integrity Reactor Trips At Turkey 10/1/79 Point Units 3 And 4 Overpressurization.Of 10/1/79 Containment Of A PWR Plant After A Main Steam Line Break Enclosure Issued To All holders of power reactor OLs and CPs All power reactor facilities holding OLs and CPs All power reactor facilities holding OLs and CPs All power reactor facilities holding OLs and CPs and vendors inspected by LCVIP All power reactor facilities holding OLs or CPs All power reactor facilities with an OL or CP All power reactor facilities holding OLs and CPs All Fuel Facilities, research reactors, and power reactors with an OL or CP All power reactor facilities holding OLs and CPs All power facilities with an OL or a CP All power reactor facilities with a CP