ML20004C797

Advises That Encl IE Circular 81-08, Foundation Matls, Was Sent to Listed Licensees on 810529

ML20004C797
Person / Time
Site:	Monticello, Dresden, Davis Besse, Palisades, Perry, Fermi, Kewaunee, Point Beach, Byron, Braidwood, Prairie Island, Callaway, Duane Arnold, Clinton, Cook, Quad Cities, La Crosse, Big Rock Point, Zion, Midland, LaSalle, Zimmer, Bailly, Marble Hill
Issue date:	06/01/1981
From:	Carroll D NRC OFFICE OF INSPECTION & ENFORCEMENT (IE REGION III)
To:	Wright G ILLINOIS, STATE OF
References
NUDOCS 8106050285
Download: ML20004C797 (2)

Text

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Illinois Department of f

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ATTN: Mr. Gary N. Wright b, p s'

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Deputy Director 1035 Outer Park Drive

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Gentlemen:

The enclosed IE Circular No. 81-08 titled " Foundation Materials" was sent to the licensees listed below on May 29, 1981:

i ACTION Cincinnati Gas & Electric Compant j

Zimmer (50-358) 1 Cleveland Electric Illuminating Company Perry 1, 2 (50-440, 50-441)

Commonwealth Edison Company l

Braidwood 1, 2 (50-456, 50-457)

Byron 1, 2 (50-454, 50-455) l LaSalle 1, 2 (50-373, 50-374)

Consumers Power Company Midland 1, 2 (50-329, 50-330) l Detroit Edison Company Fermi 2 (50-341)

Illinois Power Company Clinton 1, 2 (50-461, 50-462)

Northern Indiana Public Service Company Bailly (50-367)

Public Service of Indiana Marble Hill 1, 2 (50-546, 50-547)

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b Union Electric Company Callaway 1, 2 (50-483, 50-486)

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y gW American Electric Power Service Corporation Yy @6 p

Indiana and Michigan Power Company D. C. Cook 1, 2 (50-315, 50-316) 810605o g Q..

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Nuclear Safety Commonwealth Edison Company Dresden 1, 2, 3 (50-10, 50-237, 50-249)

Quad-Cities-1,- 2 (50-254, 50-265)

Zion 1, 2 (50-295, 50-304)

Consumers Power Company Big Rock Point (50-155)

Palisades-(50-255)

Dairyland Power Ccoperative LACBWR (50-409)

Iowa Electric Light and Power Company Duane Arnold (50-331)

Northern States Power Company Monticello (50-263)

Prairie Island 1, 2 (50-282, 50-306)

Toledo Edison Company Davis-Besse 1 (50-346)

Wisconsin Electric Power Company Point Beach 1, 2 (50-266, 50-301)

Wisconsin Public Service Corporation Kewaunee (50-305)

Sincerely, 1

Q rothy E. C o 1, Chief Word Proces ing and Document Control Section

Enclosure:

IE Circular No. 81-08 cc w/ encl:

Mr. D. W. Kane, Sargent & Lundy DMB/ Document Control Desk (RIDS)

Resident Inspectors, RIII J. G. Keppler, RIII Acting Division Directors, A.'T l

P. R. Wohld, RIII l

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SSINS No.: 6830 Accession No.:

8103300374 IEC 81-08 UNITED STATES NUCLE'AR REGULATORY COW!ISSION OFFICE OF INSPECTION AND ENFORCEMENT WASHINGTON, D.C.

20555 May 29, 1981 IE Circular No. 81-08:

FOUNDATION MATERIALS Description of Circumstances:

Insufficient compaction of foundation and backfill materials during the con-struction of nuclear plants has resulted in excessive settlement of plant structures at a number of sites.

At the Midland Plant, Units 1 and 2, insuf,i::iently compacted backfill was discovered as a result of excessive settlement of the diesel generator build-ing. The results of extensive subsurface investigations subsequent to settle-ment of the diesel generator building identified that fill materials beneath portions of the auxiliary building, feedwater isolation valve pits, essential service water intake structure, borated water storage tanks, and plant area utilities were not compacted to specification requirements.

Other specific nuclear power plant sites and identified problems _are listed to illustrate the extent of the problem.

North Anna Service water pumphouse settlement-Summer Service water pumphouse settlement Shearon Harris Indequate moisture control in fill material Cherokee Inadequate field density control and soils tests Hatch Inadequate QC procedures and fill placement Vogtle Inadequate compaction, groun: water, and soil erosion j

controls South Texas Inadequate QC procedures and inspection documentation The above problems necessitated extensive remedial work; for example, removal of large quantities of fill material, underpinning structures, surcharging foundation materials, project delays, extensive reanalysis, and, in some cases technical specification requirements pertaining to settlement monitoring during plant operation.

The causes of insufficient compaction were investigated by NRC, licenseei/ con-t struction permit holders, contractors and architect-engineering firms. Based on these investigations, the various contributing causes were found to include the following:

1.

Soil selection, fill, and compaction activities were not acccmplished under the direction of a qualified geotechnical engineer.

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IEC 81-08 May 29, 1981 Page 2 of 3 l

2.

Compaction equipment was not qualified to achieve the required compaction using the material specified, lift thickness, moisture control, equipment speed, or number of equipment passes.

i 3.

Procedures for control of soil testing were not adequate to assure correct soil identification, selection of laboratory standards, and centrol of field density tests.

4.

Relative density and percent compaction test results fell outside the l

theoretical limits, indicating an unrealistic comparison of laboratory and field density tests.

l 5.

Soils inspections did not verify controls specified in construction specifications.

6.

Quality assurance audits did not identify the procedural inadequacies or l

the cause of repetitive nonconforming conditions.

7.

Design requirements were not properly translated into construction specifi-cations.

8.

Design change notices were not issued to reflect changes of construction specification requirements.

9.

Settlement calculations based on actual design-bases (i.e., load intensity, index of soil compressibility, and type of. foundation) were not performed.

Recommended Action for Construction Permit Holders:

i 1.

For those facilities with ongoing soils work activities, verify that l

quality assurance and quality control measures including procedures, test results, inspection personnel and audits are implemented to assure that the causes identified above do not exist for the soils work in progress or planned.

2.

For those facilities with completed soils work activities that have a settlement monitoring program in effect, verify that the measured settle-

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ment values are within the projected values.

In the event the measured settlement values exceed projected values, it is recommended that an investigation to determine the cause be initiated.

In those cases, an evaluation which includes soil borings may be in order.

3.

For those facilities with completed soils work activities that do not have an ongoing settlement monitoring program, verify that the quality assurance and quality control measures described in item 1 above were in effect during construction.

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IEC 81-08 May 29, 1981 Page 3 of 3 Although no specific response is required by this circular, soil compaction construction deficiencies identified and corrective actions initiated as a result of the actions recommended may be repcrtable in accordance with the requirements of 10 CFR 50.55e.

If you need additional information regarding this matter, contact the Director l

of the appropriate Regional office.

Attachment:

Recently issued IE Circulars t

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Attachment IEC 81-08 May 29,-1981 RECENTLY ISSUED IE CIRCULARS Circular Date of No.

Subject Issue Issued to 81-07 Control of Radioactively 5/14/81 All power reactor Contaminated Material facilities with an OL or CP f

81-06 Potential Deficiency Affecting 4/14/81 All power reactor Certain Foxboro 20 to 50 facilities with an Mi111 ampere Transmitters OL or CP 8c 05 Self-Aligning Rod End Bushings 3/31/81 All power reactor l

for Pipe Supports facilities with an OL or CP 81-04 The Role of Shift Technical 4/30/81 All power reactor Advisors and Importance of facilities with an

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Reporting Operational Events OL or near-term OL

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l 81-03 Inoperable Seismic Monitoring 3/2/81 All power reactor Instrumentation facilities with an i

OL or CP 1

l 81-02 Performance of HRC-Licensed 2/9/81 All power reactor l

Individuals While on Duty facilities (research

& test) with an OL I

or CP 81-01 Design Problems Involving 1/23/81 All power reactor Indicating Pushbutton facilities with Switches Manufactured by an OL or CP Honeywell Incorporated 80-25 Case Histories of 12/5/80 All radiography Radiography Events licensees 80-24 AECL Teletherapy Unit 12/2/80 All teletherapy Malfunction licensees 80-23 Potential Defects in Beloit 10/31/80 All power 'e*: tor Power Systems Emergency facilities with Generators OL oe ' CP l

OL = Operating Licenses CP = Construction Permit 1

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