ML20195G724
| ML20195G724 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | 07003054 |
| Issue date: | 11/22/1988 |
| From: | Mccaughey D NRC OFFICE OF NUCLEAR MATERIAL SAFETY & SAFEGUARDS (NMSS) |
| To: | |
| Shared Package | |
| ML20195G715 | List: |
| References | |
| NUDOCS 8811300016 | |
| Download: ML20195G724 (7) | |
Text
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NOV 18 M DOCKET NO: 70-3054 LICENSEE: Philadelphia Electric Company (PECo)
FACILITY: LimerickGeneratingStation(LGS), Unit 2
SUBJECT:
SAFETY EVALUATION REPORT, AMENCMENT APPLICATION DATED MAY 6, 1988. AND SUPPLEMENT DATED OCTOBER 28, 1988, RE FRESH FUEL STOPAGE I. INTRODUCTION On May 6,1988, PEco applied for an amendment to Materials License No. SNN-1977 1
for authorization to receive, possess, store, and use unirradiated nuclear fuel assemblies. On October 28, 1988, PECo supplied additienal infomation providing clarification of fuel specifications.
In June 1974, the Atomic Energy Comission issued CPPR-107 for LGS, Unit 2, which is located in Limerick Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, approxi-rately 25 miles west of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. LGS, Unit 2, is a boiling water reactor and will use fuel supplied by General Electric Company for the initial core loading.
The fuel rods consist of low-enriched uranium dioxide pellets encapsulated (clad) in zircelloy tubing. Each assembly contains 62 fuel rods and 2 locations
- for water rods arranged in an 8x8 square matrix. A fuel assembly weighs about
- 272 kg. The licensee requests authoritation to possess 764 assemblies for the initial core load. The license will not authorize loading the assemblies into the reactor vessel.
II. SCOPE OF REVIEW
- Staff reviewed and discussed the PEco application with the NRR Project Manager, NRC Resident inspector, and licensee's staff.
III .e0! SESSION LIMITS The licensee has requested authorization to receive 2,600 kg U-235 as low-enriched uranium oxide. The maximm U-235 enrichment will be 3.80 w/o U-235.
To accomodate this request, staff recommends the following license condition:
6.D Uranium enriched 7.D in reactor 8.D 2,600 kg U-235 l up to 3.80 w/o in UO,l fue asserblies I the U-235 isotope l
i ?!A23288at !!al C PDC b
N OV 1 1 19 N Philadelphia Electric Company 2 IV. AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES The licensee requests authorization to receive, possess, use, store, and
, deliver to a carrier for shipment unirradiated nuclear fuel assemblies at LGS, 1
Unit 2. The licensee previously had been granted the authorization to receive, possess, use, and store uranium as fission detectors installed in nuclear instrumentation. To authorize and incorporate all activities, staff recce ends Conditions 9 and 10 be revised as follows:
1
- 9. The licensee is authorized to receive, possess, use, and store uranium in -
accordance with the statements, representations, and ccnditions lii the licensee's application dated October 27, 1987, and supplements dated j May 6 and October 28, 1988.
l
- 10. The authorized place of use is the Limerick Generating Station, Unit 2, i which is located in Limerick Township, Montgonary County, Pennsylvania.
! Since revised Condition 9 incorporates Condition 16, it is recomended that i Condition 16 be deleted. Moreover, because 10 CFR Part 71 contains a General i i License which authorizes delivery of packages of licensed material to a carrier, ,
sJch authorization by license Condition is unnecessary. Accordingly, the staf" reconcends that Condition 15 be deleted.
. V. ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS A. Radiation Control The Senior Health Physicist, who reports through the Station Superintendent of Services to the Plant Manager, is responsible for the direction of the radiatien safety program. Because the licensee has incorporated the intent of existing License Condition No. 11 into the application and because the application will be incorporated by reference into the license (see revised License Condition L No. 9), the staff recoronends that existing Ccndition No.11 be deleted.
B. Nuclear Criticality Safety The Reactor Engineer (RE) will be responsible for nuclear criticality safety and fuel handling at LGS, Unit 2. The RE develops fuel handling procedures incorporating nuclear criticality safety guidelines.
C. Technical Qualifications The minimum qualifications for the Senior Health Physicist are in accordance with Section 4.4.4, "Radiation Protection," of ANS!/ANS 3.1-1978. The minimum qualificaticns for the Reactor Engineer are in accordance with Section 4.4.1, "Reactor Engineering," of ANS!/ANS 3.1-1978.
Philadelphia Electric Company 36V i t W D. Training Training in radiation safety, which includes the requirements of 10 CFR 19, will be provided to all persons having unescorted access to the controlled areas. Personnel who are involved in handling of fuel assecblies will be trained in procedures for fuel movement and inspection. However, since the licensee has not comitted to the completion of this training prior to the initiation of fuel handling activitics, the follcwing license condition is recomended: Personnel who are involved in handling fuel assemblies shall be trained in fuel handling procedures prior to the initiation of fuel handling activities. E. Procedures The radiation safety program will be conducted in accordance with prepared Health Physics operating procedures. All fuel handling activities follow procedures which include contamination surveys, fuel movement, fuel inspection, 9 and fuel storage. VI. NUCLEAR CRITICALITY SAFETY A. General fuel assemblies will be handled and stored in shipping containers in the new fuel storage area, the Unit 2 refueling floor, and spent fuel pool. Each fuel rod censists of slightly enriched uranium dioxide ceramic pellets contained in zircalloy tubing. The fuel pellets are right circular cylin-ders with a nominal diameter of 0.411 inches. The zircalloy cladding has a nominal thickness of 0.064 inches and a nominal outside diameter of 0.483 inches. Each fuel asscebly contains 62 fuel rods positioned in an 8x8 array with a rod pitch of 0.64 inches. The remaining two positions in the fuel asserbly contain water rods. Calculations performed by NRC steff assured fuel assemblies containing uranium enriched to 3.8 w/o U-235 in each of the 64 positions. Fuel assmblies will be received in General Electric Models RA-2 or RA-3 shipping containers (package) presently licensed under NRC Certificate of Ccepliance No. 4986. A package consists of two assemblies contained in two right rectangular boxes having an outer wooden container and an inner metal container. Certificate of Compliance No. 4986 authorizes Fissile Class I shiprents of 250 packages. B. New Fuel Storage Area The new fuel storage area is an outdoor storage facility enclosed by an 8-foot high fence. The fuel will be stored in the RA shipping containers in (1) 3 piles with 64 containers in each pile stacked 4 high and 16 across, and (2)
P' ?2 W Philadelphia Elt:ctric Company 4 4 piles with 48 containers in each pile stacked 4 high and 12 across. A spacing of 25 fcet will be maintained between any two piles and between each pile and the fence. A watchman will be provided 24 hours per day during the duration of the fuel's stay in this arca. This storage arrangement presents no criticality safety ccccerns since an undamaged Fissile Class I package can be stored in unlimited numbers and in any arrangement. C. Refuelino Floor Storage The fuel assec.blies will be moved to the reactor enclosure where the wooden centainer wili be removed. The fuel assemblies still within the metal RA containers will be stored in a predesignated storage area on the refueling ficor. The fuel :ontainers shall be stored no higher than a four-high configuration. Loss of the outer wooden container was assumed in establishing the container as a Fissile Class I packace, and therefore, 250 centainers can be stored in any arrangement. Pased on the height restriction, NRC staff has detemined tha*. even if all of the metal RA containers (382) were stored on the refueling floor, independent of moderation or reflection, the k-effective of the system would be less than 0.95. However, if the height restriction was violt.ted, the possibility exists that more than 250 containers could fonn a critical configuration. Therefore, to assure a safe configuration, the staff recorcends the following license condition: Not more than 250 loaded metal PA containers shall be on the refbeling floor at any one time. D. Spent Fuel Fool Storace The spent fuel storage racks consist of 16 free standing rodules. The modules are formed by cells which are arranged in a 10x12 or 11x12 array. The cell (can) walls erd structural components are fabricated from aluminum. These modules are designed to hold the fuel bundles on a 6.625-inch center-to-center spacing. The thickness of the can walls is 0.09 inches, and hdif of the cans in each module are designated as poison cans. The poison cans cersist of two 0.09-inch thi d concentric square aluminum tubes with four plates of Boral in the annular gaps. The Boral plates which are clad in aluminum are coaprised of boron carbide in an aluminum composite matrix with an aerial nominal density of 0.028 g/cm. The plates are 5.25-inches wide, 152-inches long, and 0.08-inches thick. The licensee reported that the k-eff for this storage array would not exceed 0.95 with a fuel of maximum enrichment of 3.5 w/o U-235 under optinon water l moderation conditions. The calculations were perfomed using P00-7, a four-i grcup diffusion theory code. Cross-sections for these calculations were generated with CHEETAH-8, a modified version of the LEOPARD code. Staff confirmed the licensee's results by calculating the array assuming maximum enrichment of 3.00 w/o U-235 and used the 27-group cross-section set which is found in the SCALE prcgram, along with KEh0-Ya, a Monte Carlo code. The results are independent of the degree of water rederation within and between asser.,blies or the degree of concrete reflection surrounding the array. , i
Philadelphia Electric Company 5 NOV ss W E. Handling of fuel Bundles The licensee has stated that fuel assemblies may be removed from storage for inspection purposes only. Two assemblies are authorized to be in the inspec-tion stand at one time. In addition, two additional assemblies will be stand-ing upright within their metal RA container with the top off in the unloading station. The distance between fuel in an open fuel box and the fuel in the inspection stand will be a minimum of 5 feet. .l To ensure that fuel assemblies outside of storage rerain safely subcritical at all times, the licensee will limit the number of fuel assemblies out of the RA containers or storage racks to three. Staff has analyzed this arrangement with KENO-Va and confirms that the assemblies outside of storage will remain safely suberitical. Staff's analysis is independent of the degree of water moderat. ion within and between assemblies or the degree of water reflectien surrounding the array. F. Ennption The licensee requests an exemption from the monitoring requirements of 10 CFR 70.24asprovidedin70.24(d). The licensee's reasons for requesting the exemption are that storage facilities and procedures provide assurance that criticality cannot 0: cur during receipt, inspection, and storage of new fuel at Limerick Generating Station. The licensee's reasons for the exerption are valid and good cause exists for the exeirption. The shipping containers and i storage racks provide physical protection to ensure suberiticality. The procedural controls provide reasonable assurance that r.uclear criticality will not occur during fuel handling, and monitoring is not needed. Even if the 1 procedural controls were violated, optimum conditions of neutron moderation, 4 physical spacing, and neutron reflection would be required for assemblies to be in a critical situation. The procedural centrols, considering the limited activities and material handling methods, are deemed adequate to grant the exemption. This exemption is authorized by law and will not endarger life or property or the conr.on defense ant' security and is otherwise in the public , interest. Therefore, the folicwing license condition is recommerded: The licensee is hereby exempted from the requirerents of 10 CFR 70.24, f insofar as this requirement applies to materials possessed under this license, i I VII. RADIATION SAFETY The licensee's radiation safety program includes assignrent of responsibility l for radiation safety, training, written procedures, surveys, ar.d instrument , calibration and testing. The primary hazard from encapsulated low-enriched uranium is low-level radiation. The licensee's program, combined with 10 CFR Part 20 requirerrents, is edequate to protect the health and safety of the public.
Philadelphia Electric Company 6 #0V 8 s e VIII. ENVIROPMENTAL PROTECTION NRC staff prepared an environmental assessment for the proposed activities at LGS, Unit 2. Based on that assessment, a Finding of No Significant Impact was made pursuant to 10 CFR Part 51. The Finding was published in the Federal Register on November 16, 1988. IX. FIRE SAFETY Each stacked pile of fuel assembly shipping containers in the new fuel storage area will be covered by a corrugated five-sided retal box. As a further pre-caution against fire, suff tetent hose line is available so that water can be directed to the fuel from two different directions. The new fuel storage area is also provided with a watchman 24 hours a day for the time the loaded shipping containers are stored in this area. Fire protection is provided to the refueling floor and the spent fuel pool by a hose system. Backup protection is provided by portable fire extinguishers. Considering that all licensed raterial is encapsulated, fire protection is adequate. X. CONCLUSION A. After reviewing the application, staff finds that:
- 1. PECo meets the requirements of the Atomic Energy Act, as amended, and the regulations of the Comission;
- 2. Issuance of the amendment would not be inimical to the comon defense and security; and
- 3. Issuance of the am(ndrent would not constitute an unreasonable risk to the health and safety of the public.
B. With the reconrended license conditions, staff finds that:
- 1. PEco is qualified by reason of training and experience to use the material for the purpose requested in accordance with regulattuns in 10 CFR Part 70,
- 2. PEco's proposed equipment and facilities are adequate to protect health and minimize danger to life or property.
- 3. PECo's proposed procedures to protect health and to minimize danger to life or property are adequate.
1 i i
NOV 2 3 mg Philadelphia Electric Company 7 XII. RECOMMENDATION Staff recommends issuance of the amendment provided the conditions identified above are incorporated into the license. Original aisand #ri David A. McCaughey Uranium fuel Section Fuel Cycle Safety Branch Division of Industrial and Medical Nuclear Safety. NMSS Original Signed B7 e Approved by: George 11. Bidinger, Section Leader OFC:IMUF: IMUF- IMUF: Risiiiafds ey:mh: n ved, ei--- p siiieinser: 6iiiiii;iiiii-~~~~- iiiiWii---~~~~~~ iiT,Wii-~~ i-~~~~~ OFFICIAL RECORD COPY
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