ML19329F160
| ML19329F160 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Midland |
| Issue date: | 09/01/1977 |
| From: | Howell S CONSUMERS ENERGY CO. (FORMERLY CONSUMERS POWER CO.) |
| To: | Boyd R Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation |
| References | |
| 4154, NUDOCS 8006200730 | |
| Download: ML19329F160 (4) | |
Text
._
i
,y
,y Censumars
-(
1 M'.l.ler
(
YW Stephen H. Howell Vice President General officos: 1945 West Pernell Road, Jackson, Michtgen 49a1
- Aree Code 517 788-0453 3eptember 1, 1977 1-Director of Juclear Reactor Regulation 1
Attn: Mr Roger Boyd, Director
{
Division of Project Panagement US Iluelear Regulatory Co::: mission Washington, DC 20555 I
MIDLAND PROJECT
-}[
DOCKET 30S 50-329, 50-330
~
' ^ ' ~ '
r y' Y ' 'C.i._/i;6.$; * ~ a'"-*.
I' -
PROCUSS STEAM MONITORI'IG
[bl54 FILE: 0505.2, B10 5 SERIAL:
This letter is in response to an action item identified in a meeting with the NRC staff on May 3,1977, concerning the process steam radiation monitoring program as documented in the IIRC meeting summary dated May 11, 1977 The staff indicated that Const.=ers Power Company should submit to the URC for review and approval, a letter that requests and justifies the elimination of the resea ch and development program discussed in Amendment No 8 (2/9/70) to the PSAR and referenced in part in SER Section 15.6 (11/12/70).
In Amendment No 8 to the PSAR Consumers Power Co proposed that an R&D program be conducted to assure the adequacy and feasibility of the measurement system used to detect radioactivity in the process steam. The program was to ecnsist of:
1.
Testing at the 31g Rock Point Plant to determine decontamination factors for various isotopes on various pieces of equipment typicc1 to that equipment which vill be encountered by the l'idland process steam; and 2.
Operation of a system at Palisades including the means of steam condensing to be used at Midland to resolve the feasibility and adequacy of the radio-activity =easurement concept prior to staff review for the Midland operating license. Specific emphasis was to be given to:
verification of using Ultrogen - 13 as a tracer element to indicate a.
primary to secondary carryover, and b.
determination of how the partitioning of noble gases vill affect the measurement system.
SER Section 15.6 indicated that Consumers Power Co would conduct a researen and
-development progra= at the Palisades Plant to verify the required sensitivity of the proposed gross ga=ma monitor on the steam line carrying export steam to Dov.
The tests were to be completed prior to submittal of the FSAR.
- 6eo swssvar#
o go
_, 4'au..;.sm my. w, aww cc-
's, r
s e
@N
L [(,
4
- Y g
3 [21 SERIAL: 4154
- ,v n
+
=%: 4 t
+
s i As discussed belov,1thelneed for such an R&D program has been obviated by
~ further evolution of the design of'the process steam system and of the asso-
ciated monitoring program and byl advancement.in the state of the art relative to prediction ~ of radioisotope transport in nuclear-power plant systems and relative to process: radiation monitoring. - Consumers Power Co hereby requests 1
Ethe elimination of the subject research and development program.
- In February:1970, when Amendment no 8 to the PSAR was submitted. the design called for theLdirect export of secondary steam to Dov. In Amendment No 15
- (8/14/70) to the PSAR, = the tertiary heat exchangers (TiiX) were introduced to
. isolate the process' steam from the secondary system and thus provide an addi-
' tional~ barrier to radioactivity release to the. process steam. The current
' design results in a.significant reduction in the following: probability of
. process steam contamination; sensitivity of process steam radioactivity levels
- to specific decontamination. factors for various isotopes on various pieces of
~
~ equipment in'the secondary system; and process ~ steam radioactivity levels for a postulated THX' leak and given' secondary conditions.
In particular, the r
..various pieces of equipment found in ste== systems at the Big Rock Point and 1-Palisades Plants'are not typical for the Midland process steam under the current design. In addition, there has been significant progress over the
- post seven years in our_ ability to predict transport of radioisotopes through-ot t nuclear power plant systems. An eva' lation of radioactivity in the tertiary p ocess steam system for various postulated plant conditions has been conducted using the data and analytical techniques which have previously been found accept-able by;the NRC staff in the GALE computer code Ot'MJ- 0017, April,1976).
c Therefore the tests at Big Rock Point proposed in Item 1 of Amendment No 8 to the PSAR are no longer applicable or necessan.
4 f.
As mentioned above, the Palisades secondary steam. system is no longer represent-I.
ative of the Midland tertiary process ' steam system.. W.e current process steam radiation monitoring system design calls for continuous gross gacma monitoring E:
of a continuously flowing condensed sample steam from each of the three process steam lines providing export steam to Dov. The monitoring system vill obtain 1 -
additional measurements from' tertiary heat exchanger blowdown water (a more sensitive monitoring point);and vill not depend solely on condensed process 1-steam samples. The. continuous ~ process steu samples vill be condensed and ecoled
. using:a series of rough.and fine coolers basea on conventional and well demon-strated: process 1 sampling techniques. Therefore the operation of a system at F
Palisades as proposed in Item 2 of Amendment No 8 to the PSAR and referenced in SER Section 15.6 isJalso no longer applicable or necessary.
! Amendments No '6 and 8 to the PSAR suggested the use of Nitrogen - 13 as the t
principal" radioisotope to be monitored as an indicator of process steam contami-
'4
. nation.. Considering the introduction of the tertiary heat exchangers, calculations
'now indicate that even with large postulated primary-secondary and secondary--
l
[
= tertiary ' leak rates, the H - 13 activity levels in the. process steam would be too lov to be considered the principal radioisotope for leak detection monitoring.
F Thus-the' verification of N -~ 13 as a tracer element as proposed in Item 2.a
/ Amendment No. 8 ~ to the PSAR lis no longer -applicable or necessan.
- I
~
3,.
i
~
'The introductioniof the tertiary heat exchangers has significantly reduced the impact'of noble gases on the process steam monitoring system. In the present
+
- concept,1the' conitoring system design basis assumes that non-condensibles vill w
V h
s
- g
= = - -,
~
,A..
5 5
3 SERIAL: kl54 not be present in the condensed stesn camples. Consequently, any non-condensibles-present would effectively increase the system sensitivity to secondary-tertiary
- leaks over that assumed as a design basis.. Thus the investigation of noble gas partitioning effects proposed 4,n Item 2.b of Amendment No 8 to the PSAR is no longer applicable or necescary.
The above discussion provides: ample justification for elimination of the subject proposed R&D progran, and we are re_ questing that the URC provide written concurrence that its elimination is acceptable. As discussed in the !!ay 3,1977 meeting, the design of the process steam radiation monitoring system commenced in late 1976.
The system and associated sampling program vill be described in Midland P3AR Section 11.6 which vill be provided as an early amendment but in no case later than April
'1978.
b' ML SHH/jbg
-=
! NRC fonM '195
,T U.S. NUCLCAR f:0 Gut.ATO::Y COMMISSICL--
-. mvM km f co-SE9=76SO l
[%
NRC DISTRIBUTION con PART 50 DOCKET MATERIAL L
DISr.
FROM:
oATscP occuMENT TO:
-Mr. Roger Boyd Consumers Power Co.
09/01/77 Jackson, Michigan 49201 Stephen H. Howell
- MINE l 2CETTEn CNOTOMfZED PMoP INPUT PCRM NUMSER CP CCPIES RECEIVED GNAL UNC LASSIPt E D
/
g l OESCRIPTION Furnishing' response to an action item ENCLOSU R E identified in a meeting with NRC on May 3, 1977 concerning the process steam radiation monitoririg
- program....
i l
3P i
Uhalv.Girg l
i
,s
.1-.
l
't5 4
s
~~
.-~w.,,-
u, _,
1 i
PLANT NAME: - MIDLAND UNITS 1 & 2 jcm 09/13777 i l FOR ACTION /INFORMATION I I ASSIGNED AD:
(LTR)
/)dffO M O
! I BRANCH CHIEF?
"/lar a O
! l PROJECT MANAGER:
Nog LICENSING ASST:
(LTR) 5 d#vM O I
I i
[
J INTERNAL DISTRIBUTION i
e - - -
LAINAS I
IPPOLITO i
I&E F. ROSA I I OELD (LTR)
GA.\\DfILL (2) l l P. COLLINS VOLLMER (LTR) i HOUSTON BUNCH
{
l HELTEMES J. COLLINS
{
I l CASE (LTR)
KREGER 1
! l MIPC (LTR)-
i
! ! KNIGHT (LTR)
I BOSNAK SIHWEIL 1
PAWLICKI ROSS (LTR) l-NOVAK l i ROSZTOCZY l i CHECK l
l TEDESCO (LTR) i BENAROYA EXTERNAL DISTRIBUTION CONTROL NUMBER LPDR:
rflorJZa red F9it s.6r TIC NSIC ff,Gd((
ACRS 16 CYS SENT CATICCRY [$
/d j