ML19305C060

Annual Rept of Operations,1979.

ML19305C060
Person / Time
Site:	Berkeley Research Reactor
Issue date:	03/15/1980
From:	Lim T CALIFORNIA, UNIV. OF, BERKELEY, CA
To:
Shared Package
ML19305C056	List: ML19305C055 ML19305C060
References
NUDOCS 8003250536
Download: ML19305C060 (13)

Text

. _ _ _ _ __. . - _ _ . . _ _ _ . _ _ . . . - - - - _ . . - _ . . . _

,~ .

o . ,. .

.A 0-(

9 March 15, 1980 I

NUCLEAR ENGINEERING REACTOR LABORATORY TRIGA MARK III Facility

.. University.of California I

a Berkeley: California 1

1

.l -

BERKELEY RESEARCl! REACTOR l ANNUAL REPORT OF OPERATIONS January 1, 1979 through December 31, 1979

! (BRR Technical Specifications 6.7.2) i

(

4

! I Dr. Tek H. Lim Reactor Supervisor i

}

k I

i~

fi c

~

[ ,

3 () . - 3 2 5 0 53c l

7.;

. . . . . . . . _ . ~ . _ . , _ . . - . - . . .-__ ,

BERKELEY RESEARCH REACTOR OPERATIONS, 1979 Reactor Use The Berkeley Research Reactor (BRR) is a TRIGA Mark III facility capable of producing 1 MW steady state and of pulsing to 1200 MW peak power. The Berkeley Research Reactor is a research and educational tool of the University of California, is located on the Berkeley Campus and is operated by the Department of Nuclear Engineering.

Besides being used by the Department of Nuclear Engineering it is used by other departments and campuses of the University, by the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and is available to Universities and Colleges in the area. The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory is operated by the University of California under contract from the Department of Energy.

In addition the Berkeley Research Reactor is used as an irradi-ation source for service to industry contracts and provides a stimulant to touring and interested high school and college students.

Experiments Performed Table I lists the experiments which were performed in the Berkeley Research Reactor during the year 1979. A total of 23 different experiments were performed. Five new experiments were approved between January 1 and December 31, 1979. The last column in Table 1 illustrates the number of times each experiment was performed.

~.

~

Tabl"o I. Experiments Performed at the Berkeley Researhh Reactor in 1979 Experiment Title Principal Investi- . Dept. or No. of 4 Class' . Objective Pacility gator, Experimenter Company

• Runs

. 13 A Staff operating of reactor, any, all Staff NE 60 calibrations, demonstrations etc.

i 37 B Br-83 & Br-84 determination Lazy Prussin, Zendel NE 1 of fission yields Susan 188 B Determination of fission Lazy Prussin NE 2 yield Susan 196 A A short term activation Central Asaro LBL 63 analysis study on archae- Thimble ological artifacts 247 B Production of Au-198 Ilohlraum Kaplan NE 6 272 A Activation of inorganic Rabbit Prussin NE 25 iodide 273 A. Origin of pottery Central Asaro, McCracken LBL 11 Thimble 274 A Irradiation of Ethylene Lazy Somorjai, Angeles Chem, 11~

Dibromide Susan 275 B Electronic components test Exposure Young, et al LMSC 94 Room 280 A Production of Co-60m Lazy Prussin, Markowitz NE 2 4 Susan a j

i Table I. Experiments Performed at the Herkeley Research Reactor in 1979 Experiment _ Title Principal Investi- Dept. or- No. of f Class Objective Pacility gator, Experimenter Company

• Runs 281 A Production of Au-198 Lazy Prussin, Markowitz NE 'l Susan 282 A Production of P-32 Lazy Prussin, Markowitz NE 1 Susan 283 A Irradiation of household Lazy Prussin, Cann NE 4 Aluminium foil- Susan 286 B Characteristics of Short- Rabbit Prussin, Zendel NE 6 Lived Pission Products 306 B Graphite Prism and Thermal Thermal Ruby, Lim NE 1 Column Experiment Column 313 A Activation analysis of Central Prussin, Lim, Cann NE 6 biological materials Thimble 314 A Activation Analysis of Plex Prussin, Cann NE 22 biological materials Rabbit 319 A Production of Plourine 18 Central Cann UCSP 2 Thimble 345 B Identification of Pu-244 central Asaro, McCracken LBL 4 Thimble 346 A Irradiation of Meteorites Central Michel, McCracken LBL 1 Thimble a

w i

Table I. Experiments Performed at the Herkeley Research. Reactor in 1979 cxperiment Title Principal.Investi- Dept. or No..of

1. - Class Objective Facility gator, Experimenter ' Company

• Runs 347 B Calibration of Fission Hohlraum Kaplan NE 21 Chamber in the Hohlraum 349 A- Trace Sodium Identification Lazy Ruby NE/LBL 9 Susan 350 A Bone Irradiation and Analysis Rabbit Cann UCSF 1

• Chem.: Department of Chemistry, University of California Berkeley LBL: Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory LMSC: Lockheed Missile & Space Co.

NE: Department of Nuclear Engineering, University of California Berkeley UCSF: University of California San Francisco, Department of Radiology b

I

Reactor Maintenance other than routine maintenance, no other work was performed at the Berkeley Research Reactor facility during 1979.

License Renewal and Revision of the Berkeley Research Reactor Technical Specifications License No. R-101 of the Berkeley Research Reactor was renewed on September 28, 1979 and will expire on February 3, 2005. A new revised Technical Specification was approved concomitant with the license renewal.

A previously requested change #6 in the Berkeley Research Reactor Technical Specifications was incorporated in the new revised specification.

10 CFR 50.59 Changes A statement was added to the second paragraph of section 5.4.1 and on page 52 starting on line 18 of the Berkeley Research Reactor Emergency Plan. This change was made by the Reactor Supervisor, and reviewed by the Reactor Administrator and the Chairman and Secretary of the Reactor Hazards Committee. The addition does not constitute an unreviewed safety question.

On the contrary the addition will assure proper notification to the. Nuclear Regulatory Commission in case immediate reporting of an accident is required. The revised pages were sent to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, D. C. in April, 1979.

Routine Tests and Calibrations The limit of transverse bend and longitudinal elongation of each reactor fuel element was measured during September, _1979 and was found to be within limits specified by the operating license. Thermal power calibrations were performed in May and October 1979.

^

-- . P The' Constant Air Monitor was calibrated during the month of January 1979.

The Reactor Pool Water Radiation Monitor and the Area Radiation Monitors were calibrated in August, 1979 while the Stack Gas Argon-41 Monitor was calibrated in September 1979.

-Cperating Schedule The Berkeley Research Reactor normally operates on a single 8 hour9.259259e-5 days <br />0.00222 hours <br />1.322751e-5 weeks <br />3.044e-6 months <br /> shift between 8 AM and 5 PM, Monday through Friday.

One day every two weeks is set aside for routine monthly checks and maintenance. Extended reactor runs and overtime operation are allowed if required by the experimental program.

Fuel Addition There were no fuel additions in 1979.

Energy Production and Fuel Burn-up The Berkeley Research Reactor produced 110,595 kW-hours or 4.61 MW-days of energy during 1979. As there were 185 operating days in 1979 this corresponds to an average daily energy production of 598 kW-hours per operating day. In 1979 the Berkeley Research Reactor was critical approximately 216.0-hours and was operated at full power (1 MW) for approximately 102.0 hours0 days <br />0 hours <br />0 weeks <br />0 months <br />. The total burnup in 1979 was 5.0 grams elemental and 6.0 grams of the isotope U-235.

The total cumulative energy production since initial criticality was 246 MW-days.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission Inspection Respectively in April, May and August of 1979 inspections of the Berkeley Research Reactor operations, security and safety were performed by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Walnut Creek office. No items of non-compliance to the Technical Specifications

t. ,_

-7 and_ Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations were found during the operations and security inspections. Ilowever, during the radiation safety inspection a deficiency was found for not reporting personnel dosimetry under 10 CFR 20.407 for the year 1978.

Operating Procedures The-following new and revised operating and safety procedures were introduced in 1979:

NERL 30 1-15-79 Reporting Defects and Noncompliance of Components Which are Currently Used Within,

, or Will be Used at the BRR Facility.

NERL 31 10-23-79 Additional BRR Procedures

1) Note on stackgas printout paper tape in ll10-A Etcheverry Hall when test is performed;

2) Emergency evacuation and security exercises in June and December;

3) Annual Personnel Monitoring Report to NRC.

Emergency Shutdowns and Inadvertent Scrams Date Scram Circuit Reasons 2-21-79 Linear Power Operators error 9-10-79 Linear Power Operators error-11-30-79 Period Scram Operators error Operators Training

'In December of 1979, one reactor operator passed'the Nuclear Regulatory Commission Reactor Operator's examination.

Recualification Training Program In'accordance with regulations a successful requalification written examination was given to licensed operators and senior operators in November 1979.

e. .

- ~

8-Exercise Securicy and emergency evacua'eion exercises were performed during the months of August and December 1979. Both the reactor staff and campus police participated in the drills.

In addition a special training tour for the Campus police was given in April 1979.

Also, an emergency exercise, including the Berkeley Research Reactor staff, Environmental Health and Safety, Campus police, Herrick Hospital, and the Berkeley Fire Department, was per-formed in October 1979.

Tours 1

Tours of'the reactor laboratory are held on the afternoon of Fridays once every four to six weeks for students and the general public. In addition, tours are held as requested for classes from the University and nearby high schools and colleges.

4-hi w.- c..* - w -

• ses -

e Radioactive Effluent Released or Shipped

. Liquid Waste All liquid waste from the facility was picked up by Campus Environmental floalth & Safety personnel for disposal in accor-dance with their regulations. All waste was in one gallon glass. jugs except for the 1/2 gallon of MAP (miscellaneous activation product). picked up on 5-7-79, which was a large num-ber of capped glass vials.

Material shipped included:

-6 1-5-79 5 gal. 1.67 x 10 Ci U-nat (5 gms)

~

2 gal. 2 x 10 Ci MAP

-5 5-7-79 3 gal. 1 x 10 Ci U-dep1. (30 gms)

-5 1/2 gal. 1 x 10 Ci MAP

-8 7-30-79 2 gal. 6-7 x 10 Ci U-nat (0.2 gm)

~

11-14-79, 4 gal. 1.3 x 10 Ci U-nat (0.4 gm)

-5 -5 Total 16-1/2 gal 3 x 10 Ci MAP plus 1,17 x 10 Ci U-238 No liquid wasto was discharged to the sewer from this facility in 1979.

Gaseous Waste All gaseous. waste discharged was calculated as Ar-41, since studies in the past have shown no other significant radionuclides.

Total curies released was 2.311 Ci as Ar-41.

Average concentration at stack mouth was 2.6 x 10 -9 pCi/ml.

This concentration is 0.0008 of allowable maximum concentration

-6 for this facility of 3.12 x 10 .uci/ml.

San.ples showed no particulate radioactivity was released.

-No other significant radionuclides were released in gaseous waste-discharges.

(-

• . l Solid (Dry) Waste All solid-(dry) waste was picked up by Campus Enviornmental 1:ealth and Safety personnel for disposal in accordance with their regulations.

Material shipped included:

3 -3 1-5-79 16 ft 1 x 10 Ci MAP

-5 5-7-79 8 ft 4 x 10 Ci MAP 3 ~4 ~7 7-30-79 8 ft 1 x 10 Ci MAP plus lx10 Ci U-238

-5 11-14-79 8 ft 4 x 10 Ci MAF

-3 ~

Total 40 ft 1.2 x 10 Ci MAP plus lx10 Ci U-238 Personnel Radiation Exposures Recorded radiation exposures to personnel included:

a. Facility personnel (routine users of dosimeters)

Maximum total exposure to an individua' - 310 mrem Minimum total exposure to an individual - 0 4

Average total exposure to an individual - 8.2 mrem Note: Thirty-eight individuals were assigned dosimeters; only one individual incurred any recorded exposure.

b. Visitors (non-routine dosimeter users)

Maximum total exposure to any individual - 98 mrem Minimum total exposure to any individual - 0 Average total exposure to any individual - 0.45 mrem Note: 1070 entrees were made by 775 individuals.

100 positive results were recorded.fer 53 individuals.

Eight individuals incurred total annual exposures exceeding 6 mrem each; two of these incurred total annual exposures exceeding 25 mrem each,

c. There were no' exposures in excess of 10 CFR 20 limits.

- . _ . . ,_ __ _ ~_

r i

s a

Radiation and' Contamination Levels

a. Routine' monthly meter surve/s generated 322 individual radiation level readings.

Maximum reading observed wa- 15.5 mrem /hr.

Minimum reading observed wt O.

-Average of readings observed was 1.15 mrom/hr.

.b. Routine monthly and quarterly area film dosimeter readings totalled 168.

Maximum total dose at any location for the period was 9,120 mrem.

Minimum total dose at any location for the period was 0.

Average dose for the thirty locations was 581 mrcm.

c. Routine quarterly area TLD dosimeter readings totaled 20.

Maximum total dose at any location for the period was 29 mrem.

Minimum total dose at any location for the period was 3 mrem.

Average total dose at any location for the period was 11 mrem.

Note: Periods for quarterly dosimeters were changed in

-carly 1979 to begin in February, May, August, and November.

Hence periods reported for film and TLD is the thirteen-month period 1-1-79 chrough 1-31-80.

d. Routine waily swipe program generated 2140 swipes, of which ,

35 showed contamination above normally expected level.

3 Maximum swipe activities recorded was 2.3 x 10 cts / min from 2

normally contaminated surfaces, 8.3 x 10 ets/ min from not-normally-contaminated surfaces.

Minimum activities for both categories is 0.

Averages were not determined.

Environmental Surveys Environmental TLD measurements at eleven locations outside the facility generated 55 radiation readings.

w

. _: . =a

c. . ..

Maximum total recorded dose at any location for the period was 333 mrem.

Minimum total recorded dose at any location was 5 mrem.

Average recorded dose for the eleven locations was 71.8 mrem.

Note that the - period reported was 1-1-79 through 1-31-80. See note in previous section.

I

'I J

i

. . , . . . . _ . ~ . _ _ . _ . -

y - - , -+o--