ML20059L235

Summary of 930930 Meeting W/Util at Zion Nuclear Power Station Re Electronic Fire Watch Sentry Program Being Considered for Use at Zion Nuclear Power Station.List of Attendees Encl

ML20059L235
Person / Time
Site:	Zion  File:ZionSolutions icon.png
Issue date:	11/08/1993
From:	Shiraki C Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
References
NUDOCS 9311160375
Download: ML20059L235 (21)

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UNITED STATES l'

NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

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n WASHINGTON, D. C. 20555 q

November 8, 1993 Docket Nos. 50-295 and 50-304 LICENSEE:

Commonwealth Edison Company FACILITY:

Zion Nuclear Power Station

SUBJECT:

MEETING

SUMMARY

- ISSUES CENTERED AROUND THE USE OF ELECTRONIC FIRE WATCH SENTRIES On September 30, 1993, employees of Commonwealth Edison Company (the licensee) briefed the NRC staff concerning an electrcnic fire watch sentry program it is considering for use at the Zion Nuclear Power Station. is a list of the meeting attendees. Enclosure 2 is the handout that was passed out by-the licensee.

The licensee's objective in investigating the electronic fire watch sentries is the eventual elimination of all contractor fire surveillance patrols.

Instead, the electronic fire watch sentries would be used on a continual basis, supplemented by the routine operator tours of the areas twice per shift (every 6 hours6.944444e-5 days <br />0.00167 hours <br />9.920635e-6 weeks <br />2.283e-6 months <br />). The licensee's position is that the electronic system performs the same functions as the human fire surveillance patrol. That is, it will detect and report a fire.

Each unit consists of a photoelectric smoke detector, ultraviolet flame detector, power supplies, and control panels.

Upon loss of its normal AC power, it would automatically switch over to a 24 hour2.777778e-4 days <br />0.00667 hours <br />3.968254e-5 weeks <br />9.132e-6 months <br /> duration battery.

Each unit checks into the control room every hour, and a unit failing to check in would cause an alarm in the control room. A fire is reported to the control room by a digital dialer that continues to dial l

every 30 seconds until the control room acknowledges the call.

Station policy 1

would be to dispatch the fire brigade in the event of a fire alarm rather than sending an operator to verify that there is a fire before responding with the fire brigade.

The only significant deviation from the National Fire Protection Association i

Code is that there is only one phone line. However, the phone line is continually monitored and an alarm sounds if it is lost. A local alarm would sound if the phone line is disconnected, but not one in the control room.

However, an alarm would sound in the control room when it is reconnected.

And, if it remained disconnected, an alarm would sound in the control room because that unit would miss its hourly check in.

The system also has a continual self test capability which would alarm if a malfunction were detected. The licensee's insurance underwriter has been briefed on the proposed system and according to the licensee, its initial response has been favorable - although it wishes to see the final system proposal before making a final decision.

The in-plant locations for the units were determined by fire area walk downs.

Placement of the sentries is determined by the location of safety equipment, 9311160375 931108 g

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combustibles, and transient combustible pathways. The number of sentries to be used in an area will depend on the type of impairment (loss of barrier and/or detection system) and physical layout of equipment in the area.

The ultraviolet detection range of the unit is 30 feet, with a cone of vision of 180 degrees. There are no motion detectors on the units, so if one were moved or removed from an area, the potential exists that its mispositioning would go undetected for up to 6 hours6.944444e-5 days <br />0.00167 hours <br />9.920635e-6 weeks <br />2.283e-6 months <br />. Station policy would be to limit the use of a unit to 14 consecutive days. However, with the concurrence of the station manager, this period could be extended. The staff questioned whether the station manager could extend the period indefinitely. The licensee acknowledged that this possibility exists, but that this is not its intent.

The licensee used the replacement of a fire door as an example of a circumstance in which the 14 days could be extended because it may take 2 months to get a replacement door.

The Zion Technical Specifications, Section 3.21.1.B, currently require hourly fire surveillance patrols in the event of a loss of fire detection capability.

If a fire barrier is lost, TS Section 3.21.6.B requires establishment of a i

continuous fire surveillance patrol if no detection system is present in the area.

If a detection system is present, an hourly fire surveillance patrol may be performed.

Zion currently has only one TS area that requires a continuous fire surveillance patrol.

The staff questioned whether it is an adequate detection system, and acked for the licensee's basis for eliminating the hourly fire surveillance patrol. The staff also expressed concern that a system of this sort could become a permanent (temporary) measure to compensate for long-term problems such as Thermo-Lag. The licensee stated that it is not trying to substitute this system for the 500 linear feet of Thermo-Lag at Zion, but wanted to wait for the results of the Thermo-Lag tests being conducted by NUMARC prior to deciding on a permanent solution in its Thermo-Lag areas. The licensee stated that there is currently no intent to limit the total number of these sentries in use at a given time.

It restated that its objective is the elimination of contractor fire surveillance patrols. The licensee also stated that it has not considered visual enhancement of the detection system.

However, the purpose of using an ultraviolet flame detector was to give the system somewhat of a visual capability.

The staff could not speculate whether it would approve this type of system.

At issue is the replacement of a permanent system with a temporary one, and the reduction of patrol frequency from continuous or tourly to every 6 hours6.944444e-5 days <br />0.00167 hours <br />9.920635e-6 weeks <br />2.283e-6 months <br />.

The reduction in patrol frequency to 6 hours6.944444e-5 days <br />0.00167 hours <br />9.920635e-6 weeks <br />2.283e-6 months <br /> would be construed as a reduction in fire protection. The staff does not consider an electronic fire sentry system equivalent to a human fire surveillance patrol because a human fire surveillance patrol should be able to see events that can lead to problems, such as work starting in an area, or the accumulation of transient combustibles.

The licensee stated that its transient combustible administrative program is adequate to prevent the accumulation of transient r

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fire hazards and that for most planned process work and for all hot work, human fire watches would still be used.

The staff said it would evaluate the Zion proposal.

Information that might be helpful is a better definition of the fire areas, the respective combustible loads where the electronic sentries would be used and the safety equipment in those areas.

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l OriginalSigned Dy; Clyde Y. Shiraki, Sr. Project Manager Project Directorate III-2 Division of Reactor Projects III/IV/V Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Enclosures:

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i Mr. D. L. Farrar Zion Nuclear Power Station Commonwealth Edison Company Unit Nos. I and 2 i

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i Michael I. Miller, Esquire Sidley and Austin One First National Plaza Chicago, Illinois 60603 l

Dr. Cecil Lue-Hing Director of Research and Development Metropolitan Sanitary District of Greater Chicago 100 East Erie Street Chicago, Illinois 60611 Phillip Steptoe, Esquire Sidley and Austin One First National Plaza I

Chicago, Illinois 60603 5

Mayor of Zion Zion, Illinois 60099 l

Illinois Department of Nuclear Safety Office of Nuclear Facility Safety 1035 Outer Park Drive Springfield, Illinois 62704 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Resident Inspectors Office 105 Shiloh Blvd.

Zion, Illinois 60099 Regional Administrator, Region III U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 799 Roosevelt Road, Bldg. #4 Glen Ellyn, Illinois 60137 Robert Neumann Office of Public Counsel State of Illinois Center 100 W. Randolph Suite 11-300 Chicago, Illinois 60601

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LIST OF MEETING ATTENDEES ISSUES CENTERED AROUND THE USE OF ELECTRONIC FIRE WATCH SENTRIES SEPTEMBER 30. 1993 i

NRiE AFFILIATION Richard Tuetken Ceco, Zion Site Vice President Theo Cox CECO, Fire Marshall f

j Susan Kaplan Ceco, Regulatory Assurance Supervisor j

i Michael Mundt Ceco, Regulatory Assurance Engineer.

Terry Simpkin Ceco, Nuclear Licensing Administrator l

i Tony Broccolo Ceco, Zion Station Manager i

Ken Hansing Ceco, Zion Operating Engineer Carlos Diaz CECO, Fire Protection Engineer Marty Virgilio NRC, NRR, Deputy Division Director, DSSA

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i Conrad McCracken NRC, NRR, Chief, Plant Systems Branch Steven West NRC, NRR, Chief, SPLB, Special Projects Section Amarjit Singh NRC, Reactor Engineer Clyde Shiraki NRC, Zion Project Manager 1

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NRC/ CECO Presentation On Electronic Fire Watch Sentries I

September 20,1993 1

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Agenda

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1 September 20,1993

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Opening Comments T. Broccolo Station Manager

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Technical Aspects C. Diaz FireProtecdon Engineer 1

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Operational Aspects K. Hansing Operating Engineer

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Closing Comments D. Tuetken Site VwePresident 1

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Purpose of Visit j

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Expected Outcome 1,

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Station Fire Watch History i

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TechnicalAspects N Yl t

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Origin of System

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NFPA allows the use of an electronic system to supplement fire watches.

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Unique industry needs led CECO to design and develop the proposed system.

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Advantages of electronic fire watch system as a supplement to human fire watches.

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Development of the System

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The development of the system had I goal in mind:

to provide the equivalent functions of a human fire watch in order to:

Detect a fire, Report a fire, Perform a "Self Check".

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TechnicalAspects (Cont.)

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System Functions

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Description and construction:

UUFM Comr>onents:

e Smoke detector, e

Flame detector, Power supplies, e

o Control panels.

I Key features:

e Digital dialer, e

Auto switchover, i

e Circuit supervision.

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NFPA Code reconciliation.

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J TechnicalAspects (Cont.)

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System testing.

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Other reviews.

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In-plant Placement

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Each fire area was walked down by a System Engineer, Fire Marshall and a member-grade Fire Protection Engineer.

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The optimum location for each fire area has been predetermined by these walk-downs.

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Safety Evaluation

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The possibility of a new or different type of accident not created.

No new fire hazards are introduced.

No interaction with other plant safety systems.

No change in the installation or operation of equipment important to safety.

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TechnicalAspects (Cont.)

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Safety Evaluation (cont.)

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The possibility or consequences ofpreviously evaluated accidents is not increased.

The design basis for each component required for normal plant operation or safe shutdown will not be degraded.

The probability of a fire going undetected over a six hour period is 6.2 X 10-".

Continuous monitoring of the impairment I

provides a greater opportunity for early detection over the patrol.

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The margin ofsafety is not reduced.

The level of fire protection will not be reduced.

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Will only be used as a temporary Compensatory Measure.

Will not alter the performance or function of any component.

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Electronic Fire Watch Prese

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OperationalAspects

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Placement of Sentries

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An administrative procedure will provide guidelines for the placement ofsentries in each area.

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Sentries will be placed by the Operating Staff.

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The Fire Marshall / Fire Brigade Leader has responsibility to ensure that the sentry is in the optimum position for the affected area that it is monitoring.

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For emergent work, a human fire watch will be established until the sentIy can be placed.

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Forplanned work, a sentry will be placed prior to commencement ofwork.

Sentries will not be used for high hazard actisities (such as hot work).

1 Sentries are intended to supplement the existmg fire watch program.

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OperationalAspects (Cont.) ()

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Surveillance Activities

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At the tim?. ofplacement of the sentry unit, the following items will be verified:

Power on, Unit diagnostic checks, Communication link established, Location conect.

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While the unit is monitoring an area, the following items will be verified on a twice-per-shift basis:

Power on, ll Communications, Correct location, Detector alanns are not present, Inspection of area for uncontrolled hazards.

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) Electronic Fire Watch Presentation f OperationalAspects (Cont.)

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Surveillance Activities (cont.)

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On a semi-annual basis, the following items will be checked on a_!! sentry units to verify operability:

Selfdiagnostic check, Power availability, Actuation of detectors and verification of

response, Verification of trouble alanns.

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Alarm Response

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If the unit detects a fire, the Fire Brigade will be dispatched to the scene as prescribed in station procedures.

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If the unit signals a trouble alarm:

An operator will be dispatched, A response procedure will be utilized to correct i

the trouble alarm, 1

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OperationalAspects (Cont.)

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Ifno replacement unit is available, a human fire watch will be established.

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Control of Transients

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Administrative Procedure ZAP 900-03, " Fire Prevention for Transient Fire Loads", controls transient combustibles in the plant.

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Transient combustibles are analyzed, approved and controlled by the Fire Marshall.

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Compensatory measures are established ifneeded.

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Transient loads are monitored by the Fire Marshall.

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Impaired fire zones will be monitored by Operations during their twice-per-shift rounds.

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Training

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The Fire Marshall will provide training to the appropriate members of the Operating Staff on placement, operation and testing of the sentry units.

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OperationalAspects (Cont.)

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Administrative Controls

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Use of the sentries will be limited to 14 days.

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If the impairment cannot be restored within 14 days, the Station Manager will be notified of the cause of i

the inoperability and plans for restoration.

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protection. Although it may be possible to consider use of th'is type of system under the marginal to safety program,- the staff is committed to resolving the thermo lag issue in and of itself before it. considers alternatives as marginal to safety. The staff does not consider an electronic-fire sentry system equivalent to a human fire surveillance patrol because a human fire surveillance patrol should be able to see events that can lead to-l problems, such as work starting in an area, or'the accumulation of transient combustibles. The licensee stated that.its transient combustible administrative program is adequate to prevent the accumulation of transient-fire hazards and that for most planned process work and for all hot work,-

human fire watches would still be used.

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1 The staff closed by saying that the system did have some merit worth considering, but wanted to know more details of the specific areas'of use.-

7-The staff stated that it would review the technology to see if it met the-i requirements for a lost barrier without fire detection.

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Sincerely, j

i Clyde Y. Shiraki, Sr. Project Manager l

Project Directorate III-2 Division of Reactor Projects III/IV/V Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Enclosures-d As stated d

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NRC & Local PDRs l

PDIII-2 r/f l

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. fire hazards and that for most planned process work and for all hot work, human fire watches would still be used.

The staff said it would evaluate the Zion proposal. _ Information that might be helpful is a better definition of the fire areas, the respective combustible loads where the electronic sentries would be used and 'the safety equipment'in those areas.

OriginalSigned By; Clyde Y. Shiraki, Sr.' Project Manager Project Directorate III-2 Division of Reactor Projects III/IV/V Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Enclosures:

As stated cc w/ enclosures:

See next page DISTRIBUTION w/ enclosures 1 and 2:

Docket File l

NRC & Local PDRs I

PDIII-2 r/f CShiraki BClayton, RIII w/ enclosure 1:

TMurley/FMiraglia JPartlow JRoe JZwolinski JDyer CMcCracken CMoore OGC EJordan ACRS(10)

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