ML20148T477

Forwards Review of Recent Studies of Radiation Induced Behavior of Ion Exchange Media. Util Must Develop Contingency Plan to Stabilize Liners While in Extended Storage & Perform Final Evaluation of Resin Stability

ML20148T477
Person / Time
Site:	Three Mile Island
Issue date:	01/22/1981
From:	Snyder B Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:	Hovey G METROPOLITAN EDISON CO.
Shared Package
ML20148T481	List: ML20148T477 ML20148T483
References
NUDOCS 8102270013
Download: ML20148T477 (2)

Text

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JAN 2 2 to8f Docket No. 50-320 l

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\D : o) l Mr. Gale Hovey k I T i

Vice President and Director of TMI-2 h6 ,, ,

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Metropolitan Edison Company t4 FEEO51 Sol * -

1 P.O. Box 480 " ,,wesa nar^ tan  !

Middictown, Pennsylvania 17057 - So*"* 5 "

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Dear Mr. Hovey:

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Subject:

Evaluation of EPICOR-II Wastes Under Projecte andling, Storage, l Transportation, and Disposal Conditions Our letter, NRC/TMI-80-087, of May 15,1980 requested among other iter. ,

the evaluation by your staff of EPICOR-II resin stability and liner integrity under projected use conditions. Met-Edison letter, TLL-316, of July 2,1980 l provided " Preliminary Evaluations of Liner Integrity and Resin Stability for .

the EPICOR-II Radwaste System." Further assessments with recommendations  !

were received on December 4,1980 in letter TLL-634 including a report,

' Evaluation of the Liner Integrity of the TMI Unit 2 EPICOR-II Radwaste Systems."

l These evaluations, based on conservative assumptions, concluded that certain l

l liners have the potential for perforation in 15-19 months from loading without I taking into account the effects of radiation on the liner contents. On i December 15, 1980, your staff forwarded a report, " Methodology and Calculation l of Integrated [icse to EPICOR-II Prefilters." This document provides an esti-mate of the integrated radiation dose to the contents of Prefilter 29. This document conludes that this liner contains slightly less than 2000 curies and estimates that the localized integratgd dose within one year after removal f om service will be approximately 100 rad in the maximally loaded region.

l This latest information provides the estimated source data for assessment of the resin stability which is important to both near-tarm and long-term perfor-mance of these wastes and their containers.

Based upon potential concerns about the performance of EPICOR-II prefilters and their contents under conditions projected to be encountered, NRC had Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) undertake limited related research work and also review the work of others on this subject. Our referenced letter of May 15, 1980 included a letter status report on some early work and analyses by BNL. During discussions at the TMI site on EPICOR-II operations on December 3,1980, your staff was provided with an informal report, BNL-NUREG-286C2,

" Review of Recent Studies of the Radiation Induced Behavior of Ion Exchange Media." This informal report reviewed work performed at BNL, Pennsylvania i

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t Mr. Gale Hovey ,

! State University and Georgia Institute of Technology on this subject. This

report finds that pH changes, gas generation, resin agglomeration and carbon steel liner corrosion may occur in resin systems that are exposed to inte-grated doses in the range that may be encountered in the case of the EPICOR-

! II wastes. A copy of this report is formally transmitted herewith.

Accordingly, we are most desirous of obtaining your final evaluation of resin i

stability and believe that it should be expedited to the maximum extent feasi-ble. A firm timetable as to its availability is requested to be provided within 2 weeks. In addition, your referenced letter of December 4,1980 provided reconnendations to further test liners and conten's to determine solutions to preclude leakage and to develop contingency plans to handle any leakage situations. We believe that an assessment of the recommendations should be included in your final evaluation of resin stability together with your plans and schedule for implementation of any additional required actions.

With regard to contingency plans, you are requested to proceed with the development of a contingency plan which would provide for the stabilization (e.g., provision of a liner overpack) of the liners while in extended storage.

This contingenc.v plan should be submitted to the Director (Dr. Bernard J. Snyder),

Three Mile Island Program Office, for review and approval within 4 weeks of receipt of this letter. Your efforts to date on this matter are appreciated and we look forward to an early response.

Sincerely, Bernard J. Sny , Program Director l TMI Program Office Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Enclosure:

BNL-NUREG-28682 cc: L. Barrett l l

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