ML20247B328

Safety Evaluation Re Mechanical Draft Cooling Tower Tests

ML20247B328
Person / Time
Site:	Byron
Issue date:	04/24/1989
From:	Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:
Shared Package
ML20244A681	List: ML20244A680 ML20247B316 ML20247B328
References
NUDOCS 8905240089
Download: ML20247B328 (1)

Text

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. ENCLOSURE BYRON UNITS 1 and 2 ,

SAFETY EVALUATION REPORT i MECHANICAL DRAFT COOLING TOWER TESTS l

1. INTRODUCTION Section 2.4 of the Byron SER (NUREG-0876) contains a requirement for pre-operational testing of the Mechanical Draft Cooling Towers which are part of the ultimate heat sink. These tests were completed by the licensee in October 1986, but the results were inadequate to predict tower performance over a wide range of operational conditions. The licensee subsequently retained Environmental Systems Corporation (ESC) to perform 4 more elaborate and complete tests on the cooling towers. The staff retained Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL) to monitor the test procedures, tests and review the test results.

1 II. EVALUATION 1

ESC performed a wide range of cooling tower tests from May 21 to June 4, 1967. The ' completed tests far exceeded the acceptance testing required

_ by either the ASME power test code or the Cooling Tower Institute (CTI) acceptance test code and allowed characterization of the cooling towers so that their capabilities can be accurately predicted for the design l conditions. The tests were conservatively designed and resulted in a reasonable estimate of the cooling tower's capability over the expected range of conditions. Our contractor, INEL, reviewed the test procedures,  ;

test apparatus and actual testing at the site, submitted written comments and received responses and reviewed the final ESC report. By letter dated March 9, 1988 INEL transmitted the final Technical Evaluation Report (TER) I to the NRC. A copy of this report is included as Appendix A. The TER concludes that the Byron Essential Service Water Cooling Towers are capable of removing the peak accident heat load of 580 Million Btu /hr at the design conditions with four of the eight cells and a return water temperature less than 95'F.

l III. CONCLUSIONS  !

The staff has reviewed the test procedures, test data and results as well l as the TER and we concur in the TER conclusions and find that the Byron Essential Service Water Cooling Towers meet our design criteria.  ;

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