ML20065L746
| ML20065L746 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | University of California - Irvine |
| Issue date: | 04/15/1994 |
| From: | Olin S CALIFORNIA, UNIV. OF, IRVINE, CA |
| To: | NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM) |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20065L751 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 9404210265 | |
| Download: ML20065L746 (2) | |
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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE BERKELEY e DAV!9 e IRVINE e LOS ANGELES e RIVERSIDE e SAN DtEGO e BAN FRANCISCO ? SANTA HARHARA e SANTA CRUZ EXECtrnVE VICE CHANCELLOR IRVINE, CALIFoRNI A 92717 Nuclear Regulatory Conunission April 15,1994 Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555 Re: Request for Revisions to Technical Specifications for UCI Reactor Facility Docket 50-326 License R-116 Ladies and Gentlemen:
Revisions are hereby proposed for Sections 4.1,4.2,4.3, and 6.2 to the Technical Specifications for the UCI Nuclear Reactor Facility.
The purpose of this proposalis to adjust the surveillance schedules for certain core components at the facility in accordance with nearly 25 years of experience with the reactor fuel, operational cycles, calibrations, and safety system reliability. This adjustment will allow surveillance in accord with prudent practice to reduce the risks of damage to facility components from,un-necessary handling of fuel and control rods and un-needed re-adjustments of satisfactorily operatmg instrumentation. This will also pennit staff personnel to operate at lower risk from radiation exposure and other safety hazards by requiring less frequent work around the reactor pool for purely surveillance purposes. Our facility has operated ahnost exclusively as a radiochemistry facility where samples are routinely irradiated in standard irradiation posiaons. Thus no core changes, or other changes that might tr approved under the provisions of 10CFR Part 50.59, have been implemented for many years, or will be made in ensuing years. Neither reactor physics nor nuclear engmeering training have ever been carried out or planned for at the UCI facility.
We would be pleased to provide actual data from our records should you need them to show that parametric changes have been very small since initial criticality in 1969.
With respect to the extension of meeting times for the Reactor Operations Committee, we enclose a brief report of a violation for last calendar year based on our current quarterly requirement. This has been a repeated issue at our facility. Past inspections by Regional and lleadquarters staff from NRC have examined this issue and have recommended a less frequent meeting schedule requirement based on the lack of key business for such meetings, mostly due to the style of operations mentioned in the previous paragraph. They also have noted that the excellent and thorough safety surveillance mspection provided on a routine quarterly basis by staff from the Campus Office of Environmental llealth and Safety provides adequate external supervision of the facility operations. We are satisfied that sufficient mechanisms exist to bring attention to any mismanagement at the facility if the oversight Committee meets on a semi-annual rather than a quarterly basis.
We request that approval of these changes at this time be provided in a timely manner to assist staff with planning for immediate future operations. It will be most helpfulif the new cycles could begin at the time of the most recent surveillance for each system prior to the date of this request. We are currently in an extende/ .sut-down period for instrumentation upgrades that has been much longer than originally planned because of delivery and installation delays. Thus major handling activities would be required to be completed on the fonner schedule cycle before we could resume operations.
Staff would prefer to resume operations temporarily so the fonner and newer instrumentation can be properly compared before complete recalibrations are conducted.
9404210265 PDR 940415 ADOCK 05000326 0p PDR ,
<UCI Reactor Docket 50-326 Tech. Spec. Amendment Request Page 2 An exempt ion of fees for this licensing action is requested under the provisions of 10CFR Part ,
170. I1(a)(4).
If you have any questions about this matter, please address them to Dr. George Miller, the Reactor Supervisor, at (714) 856-6649 (FAX (714) 856-6571).
Sincemly, C ~
v" _ -
$ encer C. Olin A.. 'ing Executive Vice Chancellor enclosures:
- 1. Proposed wording for revised Technical Specifications Sections 4.1,4.2,4.3, and 6.2.
- 2. Licensee Report of Violation of Technical Specificaticn 6.2.
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