View source for JAFP-06-0059, Response to Request for Additional Information, Regarding Request for Approval of Relief Request No. 39, Section XI Code

{{Adams
| number = ML061040275
| issue date = 04/03/2006
| title = Response to Request for Additional Information, Regarding Request for Approval of Relief Request No. 39, Section XI Code
| author name = Sullivan T
| author affiliation = Entergy Nuclear Northeast, Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc
| addressee name = 
| addressee affiliation = NRC/Document Control Desk, NRC/NRR
| docket = 05000333
| license number = DPR-059
| contact person = 
| case reference number = JAFP-06-0059, TAC MC8587
| document type = Letter type:JAFP
| page count = 8
| project = TAC:MC8587
| stage = Response to RAI
}}

=Text=
{{#Wiki_filter:Entergy Nuclear Northeast Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
James A. Fitzpatric NPP
-En teriy                                                                       P.O. Box 110 Lycoming, NY 130M3 Tel 315 349 6024 Fax 315 349 6480 T.A. Sullivan April 3, 2006                                                                Site Vice President - JAF JAFIP-06-0059 U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission ATTN: Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555-0001

==SUBJECT:==
Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant Docket No. 50-333 License No. DPR-59 Response to Request for Additional Information (RAI)
Regarding Request for Approval of Relief Request No. 39, Implementation of BWRVIP Guidelines in lieu of ASME Section XI Code Requirements on Reactor Vessel Internals and Components Inspection (TAC No. MC 8587)

==REFERENCES:==
: 1. Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. letter to USNRC (JAFP-05-015 1), Request for Approval of Relief Request No. 39, dated October 7, 2005.
: 2.      USNRC letter to Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., Request for Additional Information (RAI) Regarding Relief Request RR-39, Implementation of BWRVIP Guidelines, (TAC Nc.
MC85 87) dated February 9, 2006.
: 3.      Telecom dated March 8, 2006 between NRC Staff and JAF Regarding Clarification of Questions in Response to Reference 2.

==Dear Sir:==

By letter dated October 7, 2005 (Reference 1), Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. (ENO) submitted a relief request for the James A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant (JAF) which would implement various Boiling Water Reactor Vessel Internals Program (BWRVIP) guidelines in lieu of the American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME), Section XI, Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code inspection requirements on reactor vessel internals and components.
On February 9, 2006, ENO received a request for additional information (RAI)
(Reference 2) regarding clarification of this submittal.
(04X7

Or, March 8, 2006, a telecom (Reference 3) was held with your Staff to obtain further clarification regarding ENO's response to the RAI.
Attachment 1 to this letter provides ENO's response to the RAI. Attachment 2 provides JAF's currently planned reactor vessel internals inspection schedule requested during the March 8, 2006 telecom.
This response does not change the scope or conclusions in the original Relief Request (Reference 1).
There are no commitments contained in this report.
Should you have any questions or comments concerning this submittal, please contact Mr. Jim Costedio, Regulatory Compliance Manager, at (315) 349-6358.
Sincerely, TAS:GB:gb Attachments:
: 1.      Response to Request for Additional Information
: 2.      Reactor Vessel Internals Inspection Five (5) Cycle Look-Ahead cc:
Regional Administrator, Region I               Resident Inspector's Office U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission             U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 47:5 Allendale Road                            James .A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant King of Prussia, PA 19406-1415                 PO Box 136 Lycoming, NY 13093 Mr. John Boska, Project Manager Plant Licensing Branch I-I                     Mr. Paul Eddy Division of Operating Reactor Licensing        New York State Dept. of Public Service Of.lce of Nuclear Reactor Regulation           3 Empire State Plaza U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission             Albany, NY 12223-1350 Mil Stop O-8-C2 Washington, DC 20555 Mr. Peter R. Smith, President New York State Energy, Research,
& Development Authority 17 Columbia Circle Albany, NY 12203-6399

Attachment 1 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Response to Request for Additional Information (RAI)
RAI]
          "According to Sections 3.3 and 3.4 ofthe BWRVIP-76, "BWR Vessel and Internals Project, BWR Core ShroudInspection and Flaw Evaluation Guidelines" report, core shroud welds shall be inspected every 6 years when the enhanced visual test (EVT-1) method is usedfor one-sided weld inspections, and shall be inspected every IO years when the subject welds are examined with the ultrasonic test (UT) method. The inspectionfrequencyfor the core shroudwelds as indicatedin Section 6.4 of the submittal is not consistent with the aforementioned requirement. Therefore, the NRC staff requests that the licensee revise the inspectionfrequency requirementfor the subject welds in Section 6.4 of the submittal."
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 1:
Entergy concurs with the clarification that the inspection intervals for core shroud welds per BWRVIP-76 is 6 years (maximum) if the enhanced visual test (EVT-1) method is used for one-sided weld inspections, and 10 years (maximum) if the inspection is full volumetric or two-sided EVT-1 (BWRVIP-76, Figure 3-3).
For Section 6.4 of the original Relief Request RR-39 submittal, under the heading of "BWR Core Shroud Inspection and Flaw Evaluation Guideline (BWRVIP-76)", the 2 nd bullet is hereby replaced with the following:
         "The BWRVIP requires an EVT-1 or UT of each core shroud design reliant weld every 10 years (maximum). When the EVT-1 method is used for one-sided weld inspection, the inspection interval shall be 6 years (maximum)."
RAI2 "In Attachment 2 of the submittal, the licenseeprovides a comparison ofASME Category B-I andB-2 examination requirements with the BWR VIP guidelines.
The NRC staff requests that the licensee include thefollowing welds in this attachment.
(A) ASME Item B13.30, Table IWB-2500-1, Shroud support welds H9 and H12.
(B) ASME Item B13.40, Table IWB-2500-1, Shroud horizontal welds HI and H2.
(C) ASME Item B13.40, Table IWB-2500-1, ShroudH8 Attachment welds. "
I

Attachment 1 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Response to Request for Additional Information (RAI)
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 2(A):
The shroud support H9 weld was already included in Attachment 2 (Reference 1),
under the ASME Item B13.30 section "Shroud Support (Weld 119)".
The JAF shroud support configuration does not have an H12 weld. The support configuration consists of gusset plates welded to the RPV wall and to the shroud support plate (BWRVIP-38, Figure 2-5).
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 2(B) AND RAI 2(C):
Shroud horizontal welds HI and H2 and the shroud H8 attachment welds were structurally replaced by the tie-rod repair. Inspection is not required for the welds that are structurally replaced by repair (Reference BWRVIP-76, Section 3.2). Tie roils are inspected per vendor and BWRVIP-76 (Section 3.5 and 3.6) guidelines at 10 year inspection intervals, by EVT-1IVT-3 methods.

===RAI 3===
          "According to Figure 3-3 of the BWR VIP-76 report, vertical and top guide ring segment welds shall be inspected every 6 years when the E VT-J is used for one-sided weld inspections and shall be inspected every I0 years when the subject welds are examined with the UT method. In Attachment 2 of the submittal, the inspectionfrequency requirementfor the vertical and top guide ring segment welds (Item B13.40 in Table IWTB-2500-1 of the ASME Code, Section XI) is not consistent with the aforementionedrequirement specified in the BWRVIP-76 report. Therefore, the NRC staff requests that the licensee revise the inspectionfrequency requirementfor the subject welds in Attachment 2 of the submittal. "
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 3:
The BWRVIP inspection requirements for top guide ring segment welds in repaired shrouds shall be specified by the repair designer (BWRVIP-76, Section 3.4) and is submitted in Attachment 2 of Reference 1.
Shroud repair vendor examination requirements for top guide ring segment welds in repaired shrouds include EVT-1 or UT inspection methods at intervals not to exceed ten (10) years, since inspections performed to date have shown no indications in any of the top guide ring segment radial welds.
2

Attachment 1 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Response to Request for Additional Information (RAI)
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 3 (cont.)
NOTE:
Duringthe 3/8/2006 telecom, while reviewing RAI 3 with the NRC (Cover Letter, Reference 3), an NRC Staff member requestedthat JAFprovide reactorwater chemistry data including hydrogen/oxygen molar ratio concentrations.
JAF RESPONSE:
JAF measures the molar ratio from a reactor water sample line. The typical molar ratio of Hydrogen to Oxygen ranges from 800 to 1200. Since 1999, when the first Noble Metal Chemical Application (NMCA) occurred, the 112/02 molar concentration ratio has exceeded the minimum requirement levels in proposed BWVRVIP Guideline BWRVIP-62, "Technical Basis for Inspection Relief for BWR Internal Components With Hydrogen Injection," which recommends a ratio value of greater than 3 to 1.

===RAI 4===
        "In Attachment 2 of the submittal, the licensee indicates that the BWRVIP-38, "BWER Vessel InternalProject, BWR Shroud Support Inspection and Flaw EvaluationGuideline" report will be usedfor inspecting core shroud attachment welds. The staffsfinal safety evaluation (SE) of the BWRVIP-38 report indicates that when inspection tooling and methodologies are developed that allow the welds in the lower plenum to be accessible, the guidelines will state that the licensee will inspect these welds with the appropriatenon-destructive examination methods in order to establish a baselinefor these welds. One of the core shroud attachment welds that has limited accessibility in the lower plenum is the H12 weld. Therefore, the NRC staffrequests that the licensee revise Attachment 2 to include a commitment that the shroud support weld-H1i2 be inspected when the inspection tooling and methodologiespermit such an inspection."
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 4:
The JAF shroud support configuration has no H12 weld [see above response to RAI 2(A)].
3

Attachment 1 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Response to Request for Additional Information (RAI)
RAIS "In Attachment 4 of the submittal, the licensee does not address the inspection requirementsfor the following welds, and the NRC staffrequests that the licensee include them in this attachment.
* Jetpumps riser welds RS-4 and RS-5."
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 5:
The JAF jet pump configuration does not have riser welds RS-4 and RS-5. These welds only apply to BWR/3's and Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Station (B WRVIP-41, Rev.1, Table 3.3-1).

===RAI 6===
        "In a letter dated October 1, 2003, the licensee submitted a similar reliefrequest for the Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power PlantStation (VYNPS). The NRC staff approved the VYNPS reliefrequest by an SE datedSeptember 19, 2005. In Table 1 of the VYWNPS reliefrequest, the licensee provideddetails of its inspection requirementsforthe reactorvessel internals (R VI) components and the correspondinginspection bases that were delineated in the respective BWRVIP reports. The NRCstaff requests that the licensee provide similar inspection requirements and the inspectionfrequencyfor the JAFNPP's R VI components. This informationwill enable the NRC staff to perform an effective review of the BWR VIP inspection criteriathat will be used by the licenseefor the JAFNPP 's R VI components."
JAF RESPONSE TO RAI 6:  to ENO's Request for Relief dated 10/7/2005 (Cover Letter, Reference
: 1) provided a comprehensive inspection history of the JAF reactor internals, updated through Refuel Outage 16 (RO16), October 2004. Attachment 2 to this letter provides a listing of JAF's reactor internal components, with corresponding inspection bases, and the currently planned inspection schedule through the year 2014 (RO22).
4

Attachment 2 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Reactor Vessel Internals Inspection Five (5) Cycle Look-Ahead Reactor Internal Component                                   Inspection Bases            RO17 (2006)       RO18 (2008)     ROI9 (2010)      R020 (2012) R022 (2014)
Control Rod Drive Guide Tube Body Welds                   BWRVIP-47-A. Table 3-3                             EVT-I          EVT-I(IN)   l_l_EVT-I Control Rod Drive Guide Tube Lug and Pin                  BWRVIP-47-A, Table 3-3                      l       V'T-3          VT-3(IN)   l                    VT-3 Core Plate Rim Ilold-Down Bolts                            BWRVIP-25, Table 3-2         VT-3/VT- (*)          VT-I         VT-3NT-1I(*)     VT-3NT-I(*) VT-3/VT-I(*)
l                                                                                         (IN)          (IN)
Core  Shroud Vertical & Ring Segment Welds              BWRVIP-76, Figure 3-3 & 3-4       EVT-I/UT          EVT-I(IN)       EVT-I(IN)         EVT-I         EVT-I Core  Shroud Tie-Rod Repair                                BWRVIP-76, Section 3.5       VT-3/EVT-1(4)     VT-3/EVT-1(6)                   _
Core  Shroud Support Welds ( 119)                          BWRVIP-38, Figure 3-5             EVT-I           EVT-I                                          EVT-I Core  Shroud Gusset Welds                                BWRVIP-38, Figure 3-2 and           EVT-I            EVT-I                                         EVT-I BWRVIP-76, Section 3.6 Core Spray Thermal Sleeve Welds (Hidden)                BWRVIP-18-A, Section 3.2.4                            UT (*)         UT (IN)          UT (IN)       UT (IN)
Core Spray Piping Welds                                   BWRVIP-18-A,Table3-5               EVT-I            EVT-I           EVT-I           EVT-I         EVT-I Core Spray Sparger Large Circ Welds                       BWRVIP-1 8-A. Table 3-5            EVT-I                            EVT-I                         EVT-I Core Spray Sparger Nozzle Welds                           BWRVIP-18-A, Table 3-5          VT-I (50%1O)                      VT-I (50%)                   VT-I (50%)
Core Spray Piping Brackets                                BWRVIP-18-A, Table 3-5             EVT-I                                                          EVT-I Core Spray Sparger Brackets                               BWRVIP-18-A, Table 3-5             VT-I                              VT-I                          VT-I Feedwater Sparger Tee Welds                                    NUREG 0619                                                      VT-I Feedwater Sparger Bracket Attachment                      BWRVIP-48-A, Table 3-2                                              EVT-I Feedwater Sparger Assembly                                     NUREG 0619                                                      VT-3 Jet Pump Beams                                        BWRVIP-41, Rev.l, Table 3.3-1 and        UT                                               UT BWRVIP-138, Section 6.4 Jet Pump Thermal Sleeve Welds (Hidden)                 BWRVIP-41, Rev.l, Table 3.3-1                          UT()            UT (IN)         UT (IN)       UT (IN)
Jet Pump Assembly (High Priority Welds)                BWRVIP-41. Rev.1 Table 3.3-1        UT/EVT -I    II                                  EVT-I (50%)
Jet Pump Assembly (Medium & Low Priority Welds)        BWRVIP-41, Rev. l, Table 3.3-1        EVT-I                                          EVT-I (25%)   i Jet Pump Riser Brace Welds                             BWRVIP-41, Rev.l, Table 3.3-1         EVT-I                                          EVT-I (25%)
Jet Pump Restrainer Wedges                             BWRVIP-4 1, Rev. I, Table 3.3-I        VT-I                                           VT-I(50%)
Lower Plenum                                              BWRVIP-47-A, Section 3.2                                      WHEN ACCESSIBLE Miscellaneous Vessel Intemal Attachments Orificed Fuel Support Castings (Sampling)
BWRVIP-48-A, Table 3-2 BWRVIP-47-A, Table 3.2-1 VT-3 VT-3             VT-3 I     VT-3            VT-3 VT-3/EVT-I VT-3 SLC Nozzle-to-Safe End Weld                             BWRVIP-27-A, Section 3.3.1       PT or EVT-2*      EVT-2* (IN)     PT or EVT-2*     EVT-2* (IN) PT or EVT-2*
Top Guide Ilold-down Assemblies                           BWRVIP-26-A, Table 3-2            VT-I (2)                         VT-I (2)                      VT-I (2)
Top Guide Grid Beams (Sampling)                         BWRVIP-26-A, Section 3.2.2         VT-3/VT-I 1

Attachment 2 to JAFP-06-0059 Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc. - FitzPatrick Docket No. 50-333 Reactor Vessel Internals Inspection Five (5) Cycle Look-Ahead Table Key Standard Print  = Inspections mandated by BWRVIP I & E Guidelines Italics = Inspections recommended for Risk-To-Generation purposes UT   = Ultrasonic Testing planned UT (*)   = Ultrasonic Testing when the technique becomes available VT-3NT-I(*)     = Contingency examination subject to lower plenum access VT   = Visual Testing planned EVT-I    = EVT-I; Enhanced Visual Test to look for cracking; 1/2 mil wire resolution with cleaning assessment EVT-2*    = Enhanced Leakage Inspection (direct view of component during pressure test)
VT-I   = VT-I; Visual Test to look for cracks, wear, corrosion, etc.; resolution required: 1/32" black line VT-3   = VT-3; Visual Test to determine general mechanical/structural condition; no resolution requirements PT  = Surface examination (IN)  = If necessary, to complete number of inspections not performed in previous outage(s)
(all, number, or %)   = Perform inspection on all or on remainder components, limited number (or percentage) of components, or just flawed components 2}}