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{{#Wiki_filter: | {{#Wiki_filter:UNITEDSTATESOFAMERICANUCLEARREGULATORY COMMISSION IntheMatterofRochester GasandElectricCorporation (R.E.GinnaNuclearPowerPlant,UnitNo.1))))DocketNo.50-244))APPLICATION FORAMENDMENT TOOPERATING LICENSEPursuanttoSection50.90oftheregulations oftheU.S.NuclearRegulatory Commission (the"Commission" | ||
(1'l VWHEREFORE, | ),Rochester GasandElectricCorporation | ||
("RG&E"), | |||
holderofProvisional Operating LicenseNo.DPR-18,herebyrequeststhattheTechnical Specifica-tionssetforthinAppendixAtothatlicensebeamended.ThisrequestforachangeinTechnical Specifications issubmitted asaresultofanalysisperformed indesigning Ginnafuelcycle10.ThenewfuelbeingloadedinCycle10includesfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies. | |||
Theproposedtechnical specification changeissetforthinAttachment AtothisApplication. | |||
Asafetyevaluation issetforthinAttachment B.Thisevaluation alsodemonstrates that)theproposedchangedoesnotinvolveasignificant changeinthetypesorasignificant increaseintheamountsofeffluents oranychangeintheauthorized powerlevelofthefacility. | |||
Justification forclassification oftheamendment pursuantto10C.F.R.Section170.22isincludedasAttachment C.Acheckfortheappropriate feeaccompanies thisApplication. | |||
-Attachment DpresentstheResearch, Demonstration, andDevelopment AspectsofProposedUseofMixedOxideFuelAssemblies. | |||
(1'l VWHEREFORE, Applicant respectfully regueststhatAppendixAtoProvisional Operating LicenseNo.DPR-18beamendedintheformattachedheretoasAttachment A.Rochester GasandElectricCorporation ByL.D.White,Jr.UicePresident, ElectricandSteamProduction Subscribed andsworntobeforemeonthisISAdayofDecember1979.GARYL'pREISSNOTARYPUBLIC,StateofN.Y.MontoeCo.MyCommission ExpiresMereh30,epg/. | |||
IP NOTETO:hiI:eCollins8DonLan!am,DSB,016)FROH: | IP NOTETO:hiI:eCollins8DonLan!am,DSB,016)FROH: | ||
==SUBJECT:== | ==SUBJECT:== | ||
RcbaDiaas,l.icenseFee!'anaaerien+Branch,AD!' | RcbaDiaas,l.icenseFee!'anaaerien+ | ||
{'II | Branch,AD!'ROCESSING LETTERS'.IT!'H,CKSPECEIVEDDIRECLYBYTILELICENSEFEE!!,"NAGEI'aENT BPriNCHPleaseprocesstheenclnsedletterundertheapplicable docketandgivethefolio'.zing distribution undercodeBOOB:OriginalofltrtoRgulatoryDocketFileActionCyionic~ckto'.(.0.hiller,LFtlB(L-233)3cystoappli-able BranchofDORorDPI<'1toLABOR1toPDRIamretaining thecheckandthefolio.zing information isforyourrecords.CheckNo.:Amount:Date:Ltr.Date:Applicant: | ||
DocketNo:SPlant:Thanks!RebaH.DiggsLicenseFeet!aementBranchOfficeofAdministration (IJ Attachment AReplacepage5.3-1withtheenclosedreplacement. | |||
~~ | page.i~QIVrqI C'I0 ReactorDesinFeaturesReactorCorea.Thereactorcorecontainsapproximately 48metrictons'furaniumintheformofslightlyenricheduraniumdioxidepellets.Thepelletsare'encap-sulatedinZircaloy4tubingtoformfuelrods.Thereactorcoreismadeupof121fuelassemblies. | ||
Ill | Eachfuelassemblycontains179fuelrods.b.Theaverageenrichment oftheinitialcoreisanominal2.90weightpercentofU-235.Threefuelenrichments are,usedintheinitialcore.Thehighestenrichment isanominal3.48weight,percentofU-235.c.Reloadfuelshallbesimilarindesigntotheinitialcore.Theenrichment ofreloadfuelwillbenomorethan3.5weightpercent,ofU-235oritsequivalent intermsofreactivity. | ||
lI.I Inlate1974,- | d.Burnablepoisonrodsareincorporated intheinitialcore.Thereare528poisonrodsintheformof8and12-rodclusters, whicharelocatedinvacantrodclustercontrolguidetubes.Theburnablepoisone.rodsconsistofboratedpyrexglasscladwithstain-lesssteel.Thereare29full-length RCCassemblies and4partial-lengthRCCassemblies inthereactorcore.Thefull-5.3-1PROPOSED (iI0 Attachment B!TheR.E.GinnaNuclearPlantwillberefueledinMarch1980.Thereloadwillconsistof36freshfuelassemblies, 32ofwhichwillbesuppliedbyExxonNuclearCorporation and4ofwhichwillbesuppliedbyWestinghouse ElectricCorporation. | ||
I1cI 1. | Thebalanceofthecoreload,85previously exposedassemblies, iscomprised of13Region9assemblies fabricated byWestinghouse and72assemblies fabricated byExxon.The32freshExxonassemblies haveanenrichment of3.45w/owhilethe4freshWestinghouse assemblies aremixedoxideassemblies designedtobeequivalent toa3.10w/ouraniumoxideassembly. | ||
tThefuelrodandfuelassemblydesignsoftheExxonassemblies areidentical topreviousreloads,including theCycle8reloadwhichwasreviewedandapprovedbytheNRCinlicenseamendment 19,datedMay1,1978.ThefuelrodandfuelassemblydesignoftheWestinghouse mixedoxidefuelassemblies isdescribed intheenclosedreport,"FuelandLOCAEvaluation ofR.E.GinnaMixedOxideFuelAssemblies". | |||
c'I AtGinna,allthefuelinthecorewillbezircaloyclad. | Asdescribed inthatreport,theassemblymechanical designisidentical totheWestinghouse assemblies previously | ||
: employed, including Region9fuel.Thus,compatibility betweentheseWestinghouse assemblies andtheExxonfuelisassuredandhasbeenapprovedbytheNRCinamendment 19.Thecoreloadingpatternandanalysishasbeenperformed byExxon.Thenucleardesignandanassessment oftheplanttransients tanalysesaredescribed intheenclosedExxonreport,"R.E.GinnaNuclearPlantCycle10SafetyAnalysisReportwithMixedOxideAssemblies." | |||
{'II TheExxonreportdemonstrates thatalltransients areboundedbythepreviousreference analysis., | |||
Thereference | |||
: analysis, "PlantTransient AnalysisfortheR.E.GinnaUnitNo.1NuclearPowerPlant"XN-NF-77-40, Rev.1,datedJuly3,1979isenclosedforNRCinformation. | |||
~Revision1incorporated achangeintheCycle9boronworthanddemonstrated that,previously approvedmarginswerenotdecreased. | |||
Thecoreanalysishasbeen.performed withthemixedoxidecomposition whichexistsat,thetimeofplantstartup.Ithasbeenrecognized andcarefully considered thatthecomposition ofthematerialchangesfromthetimeofinitialreprocessing totimeofuse,including thedecayofPutoAm.Itisof241241interesttocomparethePuloadingatthebeginning ofCycle10withthePucurrently inthereactor.. | |||
Thefourmixedoxidefuel,assemblies haveapproximately 47.2kgofPu.At.theendofCycle9,thetotalPuinventory inthereactorwillbeapproximately 285kg.Atthebeginning ofCycle10,thePuinventory ofthe117uraniumassemblies inthereactorwillbeapproximately 170kg.Thus,itcanbeseenthatthestandard"alluraniumcore"hasasignificant quantityofPuandthattheadditionofthefourmixedoxideassemblies attributes about29%ofthetotalPuloadingatthebeginning ofCycle10.Hence,itisthefactthatthePuisfabricated intofourdiscreteassemblies ratherthanthetotalguantitywhichisofsignificance. | |||
ThereportpreparedbyExxonaddresses alltransients whichtmaybelimitingexcepttheevaluation ofthelossofcoolantaccident(LOCA).TheLOCAevaluation hasbeenperformed by l'I tWestinghouse andispresented intheWestinghouse report,"FuelandLOCAEvaluation ofR.E.GinnaMixedOxideFuelAssemblies". | |||
Bycomparison, itisconcluded. | |||
thattheresultsforthemixedoxidefuelassembl3:hs willbeboundedbyresultspreviously IobtainedforWestinghouse uraniumassemblies. | |||
Whenitisnotedthat,themixedoxidefuelassemblies willbelocatedonthecoreperiphery fortheirfirst,fuelcycleandwilloperateatanassemblypowerwhich'isbelowcore'verage powerandsubstantially belowlicensedrelativepower,itbecomesapparentthatsignificant margintothelimitsof10CFR50.46 isbeingaffordedfortheseassemblies. | |||
UponreceiptatGinnaStationthemixedoxidefuelassemblies twillbeunloadedfromtheshippingcontainers, inspected forshippingdamageandinsertedintostoragelocations inthespent,fuelpoolpendingloadingintothecore.Ananalysishas,there-fore,beenperformed toassurethat,thespentfuelpoolevaluation previously performed remainsvalid.Theonlydifference fromtheprevious | |||
: analysis, whichwassubmitted onJanuary30,1976withNRCapprovalissuedwithlicenseamendment lldatedNovember15,1976istheneutronics evaluation. | |||
Therefore, theattachedreport,preparedbyPickard,LoweandGarrick,Inc.(PLG)andentitled"Addendum toCriticality AnalysesfortheGinnaNuclearPlantFuelStorageRackstoAddresstheStorageofMixedOxideFuelAssemblies" isprovided. | |||
Theanalysis, whichhasbeenperformed withthesamemodelsandassumptions astheinitialanalysis, whichwasalsoperformed byPLG,demonstrates thatthetresultsformixedoxidefuelassemblies areboundedbythepre-viouslyapprovedresultsforuraniumassemblies. | |||
Theresultant l | |||
tmultiplication factor,including additional uncertainties whichhavebeenappliedduetothemixedoxidefuel,isbelowtheplantTechnical Specification limitof0.90andwellbelow0.95.Theeffectoftheinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies onthepreviously. | |||
performed environmental impactassessments hasbeenreviewed. | |||
Thisreviewhasincludedoccupational | |||
: exposure, offsiteimpactasaresultofnormaloperation, andoffsiteimpactasaresultofpostulated accidents. | |||
Thereisaslightincreaseintheoccupational exposureasaresultofthefuelreceiptinspection whichisperformed atGinna.Thefourfuelassemblies havebeenestimated byWestinghouse tohaveacontactdoserateofapproximately 100mr/hr.Inspections typically tinvolvetwopeopleand30minutesperassembly. | |||
Inaddition, handlingwillrequireanaverageof2peoplefor1hourperassembly. | |||
Thus,onearrivesatatotaloccupational exposureof1.2person-rem assumingcontact.Inasmuchasallexposurewillnotbecontactexposure, theactualoccupational exposureisexpectedtobebelowthe1.2person-rem. | |||
Thismaybecomparedwith551personremperyearaverageactuallyexperienced atGinnabetween1970and1978andanaverageof371person-rem peryearfor1977and1978.Oncethemixedoxidefuelisinthespentfuelpool,theincremental exposureisinsignificant duetothesubstantial shielding providedbythewaterinthepool.Thus,theimpactonoccupational exposures issmall.Theenclosedreportentitled, "Radiological ImpactofMixedtOxideFuelAssemblies", | |||
addresses effluents fromnormaloperation andfrompostulated accidents. | |||
Itisdemonstrated thatoperation withfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies hasonlyasmalleffecton 1 | |||
~~plantreleasesandthatallTechnical Specification andregulatory limitscontinuetobemet.Asdescribed intheWestinghouse report,thefuelintheformofrodsisin'storageat.Westinghouse facilities. | |||
Therodswillbeloadedintotheassemblyskeletons atExxonNuclearfacilities usingWestinghouse fabricated skeletons andemploying Westinghouse acceptance criteriaforallfuelassemblymanufacturing parameters. | |||
Exxonisperforming thistaskbecauseofthephysicalincapability oftheWestinghouse facilitytoliftthecompleted fuelassemblyuprightforqualitycontrolandassurance checks.Allshippinguntilthefuelassemblies arriveatGinnaistheresponsibility ofothersandRochester GasandElectricisnotseekinganyapprovals forthisaspectoftheprogram.Finalshippingfollowing fuelexposureisnotexpectedforseveralyearsfollowing finaldischarge, orat,leastuntilthemidtolate1980s,duetotheuncertainty surrounding thataspectofthefuelcycle.Shippingwillbeaccomplished inaccordance withthethenapplicable regulations. | |||
thistime.Noapprovals arebeingrequested atTheevaluations described aboveandintheenclosures haveaddressed allaspectsofthedemonstration programtoloadfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intothereactorbeginning withCycle10operation. | |||
Theevaluations includedfuelroddesign,fuelassemblydesign,coredesign,planttransients evaluation, LOCA,fuelassemblystorage,transportation, andenvironmental impact.Theconclusion isthattheinsertion offourmixedoxidefueltassemblies, whileservingasademonstration programtoreduce f1I0 etheuncertainties surrounding theuseofmixedoxidefuelinIgeneralandintheGinnareactorinparticular, hasaverysmalleffectonoverallplantperformance and-impacts. | |||
Ithasbeendemonstrated that.theinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies doesnotadversely affectpublichealthandsafety. | |||
Ill Attachment CTheproposedamendment isdeemedtobewithinClassIVof10CFRgl70.22sinceit.involvesasinglecomplexissue:theacceptability oftheuseofmixedoxidefuelassemblies intheGinnareactor.Thisclassification isinaccordwiththeCom-mission's practiceofclassifying reloadapplications inClassIV.Anenvironmental appraisal hasbeenpreparedwhichdemonstrates thattheproposedactionwillnothaveasignificant, environmental impact.Theproposedamendment willnotrequiredACRSrevieworpreparation ofanenvironmental impactstatement. | |||
Accordingly, acheckforthefeeof912,300isenclosed. | |||
0 Ilt'I Attachment DRESEARCH, DEMONSTRATION ANDDEVELOPMENT ASPECTSOFPROPOSEDUSEOFMIXEDOXIDEFUELASSEMBLIES | |||
~kdTheproposedinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intotheGinnareactoristheculmination ofaResearch, Demonstra-tion,andDevelopment | |||
("RDD")programthatwasactivelyinitiated oversixyearsago.RG&Eacquiredthematerialaspartofanequivalent materials optionunderitsreprocessing agreement withNuclearFuelServices, Inc.("NFS").Underthis-option, RG6EcouldrequireNFStoprovideuraniumandplutonium ofequivalent valuetothatcontained inspentfuelifNFScouldnot.reprocess spentfuelfromGinnaontheschedulerequested. | |||
Following ship-mentoftheinitialcoreofspent,fuel(121assemblies) fromGinnainearly1973,RG&Ereceiveduraniumandsufficient plutonium forthefabrication offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies. | |||
Theplutonium wasdelivered toWestinghouse inthesummerof1973,andfuelrodsforfourassemblies werefabricated byWestinghouse in1974andplacedinstorage.Inearly1974,RG&Einitiated aprogramtoinsertfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intothecoreduringthe1975refueling outage.Aspartoftheprogram,Westinghouse preparedanevalua-tionofthetotalcapability oftheGinnareactortoutilizetmixedoxidefuel.Thestudyprovidedabandofrecyclecapability thatwasdependent oncoremanagement andcycleburnup. | |||
lI.I Inlate1974,-alleffortsdirectedtowardusingmixedoxidefuelina1975reloadweredeferredduetotheperceived needtoconcentrate onotherlicensing effortstheninprogress. | |||
Adecisionwasmadetodesignanadditional fourfuelassemblies, withthegoalofinserting eightassemblies intheGinnareactorat,the1976refueling outage.Thematerialrequiredfortheadditional assemblies wastohavebeenimported. | |||
TheinformalreactionoftheNRCStafftoourproposedprogramofeightmixedoxidefuelassemblies wasnegative. | |||
Inaddition, therewasasubstantial possibility ofopposition tothe,plantoimporttheadditional materialthroughNewYorkCity.Asaresult,thedecisionwasmadetocanceltheproposedimportandfurthertopostponethemixedoxideRDDproject.InJune1979,RG&EwasinformedthatWestinghouse wasgoingtocloseitsstoragefacilityandthat.thestoragecontractwouldnot,berenewed.Thisnotification ledRGGEtoreevaluate itspriordeferralofthemixedoxideRDDprogramandtoconclude-thattheprogramshouldbereactivated. | |||
GinnaRDDProramDescritionTogoforwardwithitsmixedoxideRDDprogram,RGSEisrequesting NRCconcurrence forreceiptandtemporary storageoffourmixedoxidefuelassemblies, followedbyinsertion ofthoseassemblies intotheGinnareactorcoreandirradiation foratleastthreecyclesofnormalreactoroperation. | |||
tThefollowing RDDwillbeperformed duringoperation withthefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies: | |||
I1cI 1.Verification ofcurrentneutronic methodology appliedtomixedoxideassemblies throughcomparisons ofmeasuredandpredicted assemblypowers(radialandaxial).Thisisaseveretestinthatthecalculated diffusion lengthsinmixedoxideassemblies aresignificantly lessthanthoseofall-uranium assemblies. | |||
2.Verification ofcurrentcapabilities tocalculate incoredetectorresponses inmixedoxideassemblies relativetoall-uranium assemblies. | |||
3..Throughthecomparison ofmeasuredandpredicted mixedoxideassemblypowers,adegreeofconfidence canbeobtainedrelativetothecapability topredictmixedoxideassemblyreactivity andmigration areaasafunctionofburnup.4.Infuturecycles,themixedoxideassemblies couldbeplacedinroddedlocations toallowcomparisons ofcalculated andmeasuredcontrolrodworthsformixedoxideassemblies. | |||
5.Duringeachrefueling outage,andfollowing discharge, avisualexamination ofthefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies willbeperformed todetermine ifthereareanydifferences inthoseassemblies, asopposedtotheall-uranium assemblies. | |||
Duringthefirstburnupcycle,thefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies willbeplacedinlowpowerlocations ontheperiphery ofthecore.Inlightofitems1through4,thelocations havebeenspecifically selectedsothattwoofthefourassemblies willbetraversed bytheincoremovabledetectorsystem.ThiswillenableRG&Etorecordandcarefully assesstheactualpowertdistribution forthosetwoassemblies onaregularbasis.Analysis 0 | |||
eofthemeasurements sorecordedwillbeperformed bybothRGSEandExxon.ForExxon,thiswillresultinvalidation ofexistingPWRdesigncodesbycomparison withactualoperating data.Theothertwomixedoxidefuelassemblies willbemonitored byincorethermocouples. | |||
Thethermocouples willbe,locatedat.thefuelassemblytopnozzle,whichistheexitforthewaterflowpath,andmaybeusedtoprovideadditional dataconcernin xngtheperformance ofthemixedoxidefuelassemblies. | |||
Nospecificpost-irradiation RDDprogramisbeingproposedat,thistime.However,RG6Eispreparedtocooperate inthedevelopment ofaprogramforpost-irradiation examination byoneormoreGovernment entitiesorNationallaboratories. | |||
AdvantaesofGinnaRDDProramTheproposedRDDprogramtobecarriedoutinconjunction withtheirradiation formixedoxidefuelassemblies atGinnaisexpectedtoproduceasubstantial advanceinstate-of-the-art knowledge concerning theperformance ofmixedoxidefuelincommercial nuclearreactors. | |||
Theresearchconducted attheSouthernCalifornia EdisonCo.reactorSanOnofreUnitNo.1hasbeentheonlypriorresearchconcerning theuseofmixedoxidefuelinaU.S.Westinghouse commercial reactor.There,fourassemblies withunprepressurized zircaloy-clad fuelrodswereirradiated fortwofuelcycles.Theuseofmixedoxidefuelrodswasterminated prematurely becauseofconcernthattheremightbeexcessive fueldensification intheunprepressurized fuelrods.Inaddition, althoughthemixedoxidefuelirradiated at.SanOnofrewaszircaloyclad,thebalanceofthecorehadstainless steelclad. | |||
c'I AtGinna,allthefuelinthecorewillbezircaloyclad.ITheuseofzircaloycladresultsinadifferent energyspectrumthanthatforstainless steelclad.DatareportedatGinnawill,therefore, bemoreiepresentative ofwhatcanbeexpectedfromtheuseofmixedoxidefuelinthemajorityofPWRs.Inaddition, themixedoxidefuelhereinvolvedhasbeenpressurized andfabricated withprocesses developed andapprovedfollowing theidentification offueldensification whereastheSanOnofrefuelwasfabricated priortothattime.Thisagainwillproducedatamorerepresentative ofcurrentreactoroperations. | |||
Finally,themixedoxidefuelassemblies at.Ginnawillbeirradiated foratleastthreefuelcycles.Depending ontheirradiation historyoftahefuelforthethreecycles,oneormoreoftheassemblies maybeusedforafourthfuelcycle,therebyproviding additional data.Forallofthesereasons,theRDDprogramatGinnawill,provideinformation thatisnot,currently available andwilladvancethestateoftheart,withrespect,tofutureuseofmixedoxidefuelassemblies. | |||
s1}} | s1}} |
Revision as of 14:56, 29 June 2018
ML17249A369 | |
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Site: | Ginna ![]() |
Issue date: | 12/14/1979 |
From: | WHITE L D ROCHESTER GAS & ELECTRIC CORP. |
To: | |
Shared Package | |
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Download: ML17249A369 (34) | |
Text
UNITEDSTATESOFAMERICANUCLEARREGULATORY COMMISSION IntheMatterofRochester GasandElectricCorporation (R.E.GinnaNuclearPowerPlant,UnitNo.1))))DocketNo.50-244))APPLICATION FORAMENDMENT TOOPERATING LICENSEPursuanttoSection50.90oftheregulations oftheU.S.NuclearRegulatory Commission (the"Commission"
),Rochester GasandElectricCorporation
("RG&E"),
holderofProvisional Operating LicenseNo.DPR-18,herebyrequeststhattheTechnical Specifica-tionssetforthinAppendixAtothatlicensebeamended.ThisrequestforachangeinTechnical Specifications issubmitted asaresultofanalysisperformed indesigning Ginnafuelcycle10.ThenewfuelbeingloadedinCycle10includesfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies.
Theproposedtechnical specification changeissetforthinAttachment AtothisApplication.
Asafetyevaluation issetforthinAttachment B.Thisevaluation alsodemonstrates that)theproposedchangedoesnotinvolveasignificant changeinthetypesorasignificant increaseintheamountsofeffluents oranychangeintheauthorized powerlevelofthefacility.
Justification forclassification oftheamendment pursuantto10C.F.R.Section170.22isincludedasAttachment C.Acheckfortheappropriate feeaccompanies thisApplication.
-Attachment DpresentstheResearch, Demonstration, andDevelopment AspectsofProposedUseofMixedOxideFuelAssemblies.
(1'l VWHEREFORE, Applicant respectfully regueststhatAppendixAtoProvisional Operating LicenseNo.DPR-18beamendedintheformattachedheretoasAttachment A.Rochester GasandElectricCorporation ByL.D.White,Jr.UicePresident, ElectricandSteamProduction Subscribed andsworntobeforemeonthisISAdayofDecember1979.GARYL'pREISSNOTARYPUBLIC,StateofN.Y.MontoeCo.MyCommission ExpiresMereh30,epg/.
IP NOTETO:hiI:eCollins8DonLan!am,DSB,016)FROH:
SUBJECT:
RcbaDiaas,l.icenseFee!'anaaerien+
Branch,AD!'ROCESSING LETTERS'.IT!'H,CKSPECEIVEDDIRECLYBYTILELICENSEFEE!!,"NAGEI'aENT BPriNCHPleaseprocesstheenclnsedletterundertheapplicable docketandgivethefolio'.zing distribution undercodeBOOB:OriginalofltrtoRgulatoryDocketFileActionCyionic~ckto'.(.0.hiller,LFtlB(L-233)3cystoappli-able BranchofDORorDPI<'1toLABOR1toPDRIamretaining thecheckandthefolio.zing information isforyourrecords.CheckNo.:Amount:Date:Ltr.Date:Applicant:
DocketNo:SPlant:Thanks!RebaH.DiggsLicenseFeet!aementBranchOfficeofAdministration (IJ Attachment AReplacepage5.3-1withtheenclosedreplacement.
page.i~QIVrqI C'I0 ReactorDesinFeaturesReactorCorea.Thereactorcorecontainsapproximately 48metrictons'furaniumintheformofslightlyenricheduraniumdioxidepellets.Thepelletsare'encap-sulatedinZircaloy4tubingtoformfuelrods.Thereactorcoreismadeupof121fuelassemblies.
Eachfuelassemblycontains179fuelrods.b.Theaverageenrichment oftheinitialcoreisanominal2.90weightpercentofU-235.Threefuelenrichments are,usedintheinitialcore.Thehighestenrichment isanominal3.48weight,percentofU-235.c.Reloadfuelshallbesimilarindesigntotheinitialcore.Theenrichment ofreloadfuelwillbenomorethan3.5weightpercent,ofU-235oritsequivalent intermsofreactivity.
d.Burnablepoisonrodsareincorporated intheinitialcore.Thereare528poisonrodsintheformof8and12-rodclusters, whicharelocatedinvacantrodclustercontrolguidetubes.Theburnablepoisone.rodsconsistofboratedpyrexglasscladwithstain-lesssteel.Thereare29full-length RCCassemblies and4partial-lengthRCCassemblies inthereactorcore.Thefull-5.3-1PROPOSED (iI0 Attachment B!TheR.E.GinnaNuclearPlantwillberefueledinMarch1980.Thereloadwillconsistof36freshfuelassemblies, 32ofwhichwillbesuppliedbyExxonNuclearCorporation and4ofwhichwillbesuppliedbyWestinghouse ElectricCorporation.
Thebalanceofthecoreload,85previously exposedassemblies, iscomprised of13Region9assemblies fabricated byWestinghouse and72assemblies fabricated byExxon.The32freshExxonassemblies haveanenrichment of3.45w/owhilethe4freshWestinghouse assemblies aremixedoxideassemblies designedtobeequivalent toa3.10w/ouraniumoxideassembly.
tThefuelrodandfuelassemblydesignsoftheExxonassemblies areidentical topreviousreloads,including theCycle8reloadwhichwasreviewedandapprovedbytheNRCinlicenseamendment 19,datedMay1,1978.ThefuelrodandfuelassemblydesignoftheWestinghouse mixedoxidefuelassemblies isdescribed intheenclosedreport,"FuelandLOCAEvaluation ofR.E.GinnaMixedOxideFuelAssemblies".
Asdescribed inthatreport,theassemblymechanical designisidentical totheWestinghouse assemblies previously
- employed, including Region9fuel.Thus,compatibility betweentheseWestinghouse assemblies andtheExxonfuelisassuredandhasbeenapprovedbytheNRCinamendment 19.Thecoreloadingpatternandanalysishasbeenperformed byExxon.Thenucleardesignandanassessment oftheplanttransients tanalysesaredescribed intheenclosedExxonreport,"R.E.GinnaNuclearPlantCycle10SafetyAnalysisReportwithMixedOxideAssemblies."
{'II TheExxonreportdemonstrates thatalltransients areboundedbythepreviousreference analysis.,
Thereference
- analysis, "PlantTransient AnalysisfortheR.E.GinnaUnitNo.1NuclearPowerPlant"XN-NF-77-40, Rev.1,datedJuly3,1979isenclosedforNRCinformation.
~Revision1incorporated achangeintheCycle9boronworthanddemonstrated that,previously approvedmarginswerenotdecreased.
Thecoreanalysishasbeen.performed withthemixedoxidecomposition whichexistsat,thetimeofplantstartup.Ithasbeenrecognized andcarefully considered thatthecomposition ofthematerialchangesfromthetimeofinitialreprocessing totimeofuse,including thedecayofPutoAm.Itisof241241interesttocomparethePuloadingatthebeginning ofCycle10withthePucurrently inthereactor..
Thefourmixedoxidefuel,assemblies haveapproximately 47.2kgofPu.At.theendofCycle9,thetotalPuinventory inthereactorwillbeapproximately 285kg.Atthebeginning ofCycle10,thePuinventory ofthe117uraniumassemblies inthereactorwillbeapproximately 170kg.Thus,itcanbeseenthatthestandard"alluraniumcore"hasasignificant quantityofPuandthattheadditionofthefourmixedoxideassemblies attributes about29%ofthetotalPuloadingatthebeginning ofCycle10.Hence,itisthefactthatthePuisfabricated intofourdiscreteassemblies ratherthanthetotalguantitywhichisofsignificance.
ThereportpreparedbyExxonaddresses alltransients whichtmaybelimitingexcepttheevaluation ofthelossofcoolantaccident(LOCA).TheLOCAevaluation hasbeenperformed by l'I tWestinghouse andispresented intheWestinghouse report,"FuelandLOCAEvaluation ofR.E.GinnaMixedOxideFuelAssemblies".
Bycomparison, itisconcluded.
thattheresultsforthemixedoxidefuelassembl3:hs willbeboundedbyresultspreviously IobtainedforWestinghouse uraniumassemblies.
Whenitisnotedthat,themixedoxidefuelassemblies willbelocatedonthecoreperiphery fortheirfirst,fuelcycleandwilloperateatanassemblypowerwhich'isbelowcore'verage powerandsubstantially belowlicensedrelativepower,itbecomesapparentthatsignificant margintothelimitsof10CFR50.46 isbeingaffordedfortheseassemblies.
UponreceiptatGinnaStationthemixedoxidefuelassemblies twillbeunloadedfromtheshippingcontainers, inspected forshippingdamageandinsertedintostoragelocations inthespent,fuelpoolpendingloadingintothecore.Ananalysishas,there-fore,beenperformed toassurethat,thespentfuelpoolevaluation previously performed remainsvalid.Theonlydifference fromtheprevious
- analysis, whichwassubmitted onJanuary30,1976withNRCapprovalissuedwithlicenseamendment lldatedNovember15,1976istheneutronics evaluation.
Therefore, theattachedreport,preparedbyPickard,LoweandGarrick,Inc.(PLG)andentitled"Addendum toCriticality AnalysesfortheGinnaNuclearPlantFuelStorageRackstoAddresstheStorageofMixedOxideFuelAssemblies" isprovided.
Theanalysis, whichhasbeenperformed withthesamemodelsandassumptions astheinitialanalysis, whichwasalsoperformed byPLG,demonstrates thatthetresultsformixedoxidefuelassemblies areboundedbythepre-viouslyapprovedresultsforuraniumassemblies.
Theresultant l
tmultiplication factor,including additional uncertainties whichhavebeenappliedduetothemixedoxidefuel,isbelowtheplantTechnical Specification limitof0.90andwellbelow0.95.Theeffectoftheinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies onthepreviously.
performed environmental impactassessments hasbeenreviewed.
Thisreviewhasincludedoccupational
- exposure, offsiteimpactasaresultofnormaloperation, andoffsiteimpactasaresultofpostulated accidents.
Thereisaslightincreaseintheoccupational exposureasaresultofthefuelreceiptinspection whichisperformed atGinna.Thefourfuelassemblies havebeenestimated byWestinghouse tohaveacontactdoserateofapproximately 100mr/hr.Inspections typically tinvolvetwopeopleand30minutesperassembly.
Inaddition, handlingwillrequireanaverageof2peoplefor1hourperassembly.
Thus,onearrivesatatotaloccupational exposureof1.2person-rem assumingcontact.Inasmuchasallexposurewillnotbecontactexposure, theactualoccupational exposureisexpectedtobebelowthe1.2person-rem.
Thismaybecomparedwith551personremperyearaverageactuallyexperienced atGinnabetween1970and1978andanaverageof371person-rem peryearfor1977and1978.Oncethemixedoxidefuelisinthespentfuelpool,theincremental exposureisinsignificant duetothesubstantial shielding providedbythewaterinthepool.Thus,theimpactonoccupational exposures issmall.Theenclosedreportentitled, "Radiological ImpactofMixedtOxideFuelAssemblies",
addresses effluents fromnormaloperation andfrompostulated accidents.
Itisdemonstrated thatoperation withfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies hasonlyasmalleffecton 1
~~plantreleasesandthatallTechnical Specification andregulatory limitscontinuetobemet.Asdescribed intheWestinghouse report,thefuelintheformofrodsisin'storageat.Westinghouse facilities.
Therodswillbeloadedintotheassemblyskeletons atExxonNuclearfacilities usingWestinghouse fabricated skeletons andemploying Westinghouse acceptance criteriaforallfuelassemblymanufacturing parameters.
Exxonisperforming thistaskbecauseofthephysicalincapability oftheWestinghouse facilitytoliftthecompleted fuelassemblyuprightforqualitycontrolandassurance checks.Allshippinguntilthefuelassemblies arriveatGinnaistheresponsibility ofothersandRochester GasandElectricisnotseekinganyapprovals forthisaspectoftheprogram.Finalshippingfollowing fuelexposureisnotexpectedforseveralyearsfollowing finaldischarge, orat,leastuntilthemidtolate1980s,duetotheuncertainty surrounding thataspectofthefuelcycle.Shippingwillbeaccomplished inaccordance withthethenapplicable regulations.
thistime.Noapprovals arebeingrequested atTheevaluations described aboveandintheenclosures haveaddressed allaspectsofthedemonstration programtoloadfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intothereactorbeginning withCycle10operation.
Theevaluations includedfuelroddesign,fuelassemblydesign,coredesign,planttransients evaluation, LOCA,fuelassemblystorage,transportation, andenvironmental impact.Theconclusion isthattheinsertion offourmixedoxidefueltassemblies, whileservingasademonstration programtoreduce f1I0 etheuncertainties surrounding theuseofmixedoxidefuelinIgeneralandintheGinnareactorinparticular, hasaverysmalleffectonoverallplantperformance and-impacts.
Ithasbeendemonstrated that.theinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies doesnotadversely affectpublichealthandsafety.
Ill Attachment CTheproposedamendment isdeemedtobewithinClassIVof10CFRgl70.22sinceit.involvesasinglecomplexissue:theacceptability oftheuseofmixedoxidefuelassemblies intheGinnareactor.Thisclassification isinaccordwiththeCom-mission's practiceofclassifying reloadapplications inClassIV.Anenvironmental appraisal hasbeenpreparedwhichdemonstrates thattheproposedactionwillnothaveasignificant, environmental impact.Theproposedamendment willnotrequiredACRSrevieworpreparation ofanenvironmental impactstatement.
Accordingly, acheckforthefeeof912,300isenclosed.
0 Ilt'I Attachment DRESEARCH, DEMONSTRATION ANDDEVELOPMENT ASPECTSOFPROPOSEDUSEOFMIXEDOXIDEFUELASSEMBLIES
~kdTheproposedinsertion offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intotheGinnareactoristheculmination ofaResearch, Demonstra-tion,andDevelopment
("RDD")programthatwasactivelyinitiated oversixyearsago.RG&Eacquiredthematerialaspartofanequivalent materials optionunderitsreprocessing agreement withNuclearFuelServices, Inc.("NFS").Underthis-option, RG6EcouldrequireNFStoprovideuraniumandplutonium ofequivalent valuetothatcontained inspentfuelifNFScouldnot.reprocess spentfuelfromGinnaontheschedulerequested.
Following ship-mentoftheinitialcoreofspent,fuel(121assemblies) fromGinnainearly1973,RG&Ereceiveduraniumandsufficient plutonium forthefabrication offourmixedoxidefuelassemblies.
Theplutonium wasdelivered toWestinghouse inthesummerof1973,andfuelrodsforfourassemblies werefabricated byWestinghouse in1974andplacedinstorage.Inearly1974,RG&Einitiated aprogramtoinsertfourmixedoxidefuelassemblies intothecoreduringthe1975refueling outage.Aspartoftheprogram,Westinghouse preparedanevalua-tionofthetotalcapability oftheGinnareactortoutilizetmixedoxidefuel.Thestudyprovidedabandofrecyclecapability thatwasdependent oncoremanagement andcycleburnup.
lI.I Inlate1974,-alleffortsdirectedtowardusingmixedoxidefuelina1975reloadweredeferredduetotheperceived needtoconcentrate onotherlicensing effortstheninprogress.
Adecisionwasmadetodesignanadditional fourfuelassemblies, withthegoalofinserting eightassemblies intheGinnareactorat,the1976refueling outage.Thematerialrequiredfortheadditional assemblies wastohavebeenimported.
TheinformalreactionoftheNRCStafftoourproposedprogramofeightmixedoxidefuelassemblies wasnegative.
Inaddition, therewasasubstantial possibility ofopposition tothe,plantoimporttheadditional materialthroughNewYorkCity.Asaresult,thedecisionwasmadetocanceltheproposedimportandfurthertopostponethemixedoxideRDDproject.InJune1979,RG&EwasinformedthatWestinghouse wasgoingtocloseitsstoragefacilityandthat.thestoragecontractwouldnot,berenewed.Thisnotification ledRGGEtoreevaluate itspriordeferralofthemixedoxideRDDprogramandtoconclude-thattheprogramshouldbereactivated.
GinnaRDDProramDescritionTogoforwardwithitsmixedoxideRDDprogram,RGSEisrequesting NRCconcurrence forreceiptandtemporary storageoffourmixedoxidefuelassemblies, followedbyinsertion ofthoseassemblies intotheGinnareactorcoreandirradiation foratleastthreecyclesofnormalreactoroperation.
tThefollowing RDDwillbeperformed duringoperation withthefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies:
I1cI 1.Verification ofcurrentneutronic methodology appliedtomixedoxideassemblies throughcomparisons ofmeasuredandpredicted assemblypowers(radialandaxial).Thisisaseveretestinthatthecalculated diffusion lengthsinmixedoxideassemblies aresignificantly lessthanthoseofall-uranium assemblies.
2.Verification ofcurrentcapabilities tocalculate incoredetectorresponses inmixedoxideassemblies relativetoall-uranium assemblies.
3..Throughthecomparison ofmeasuredandpredicted mixedoxideassemblypowers,adegreeofconfidence canbeobtainedrelativetothecapability topredictmixedoxideassemblyreactivity andmigration areaasafunctionofburnup.4.Infuturecycles,themixedoxideassemblies couldbeplacedinroddedlocations toallowcomparisons ofcalculated andmeasuredcontrolrodworthsformixedoxideassemblies.
5.Duringeachrefueling outage,andfollowing discharge, avisualexamination ofthefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies willbeperformed todetermine ifthereareanydifferences inthoseassemblies, asopposedtotheall-uranium assemblies.
Duringthefirstburnupcycle,thefourmixedoxidefuelassemblies willbeplacedinlowpowerlocations ontheperiphery ofthecore.Inlightofitems1through4,thelocations havebeenspecifically selectedsothattwoofthefourassemblies willbetraversed bytheincoremovabledetectorsystem.ThiswillenableRG&Etorecordandcarefully assesstheactualpowertdistribution forthosetwoassemblies onaregularbasis.Analysis 0
eofthemeasurements sorecordedwillbeperformed bybothRGSEandExxon.ForExxon,thiswillresultinvalidation ofexistingPWRdesigncodesbycomparison withactualoperating data.Theothertwomixedoxidefuelassemblies willbemonitored byincorethermocouples.
Thethermocouples willbe,locatedat.thefuelassemblytopnozzle,whichistheexitforthewaterflowpath,andmaybeusedtoprovideadditional dataconcernin xngtheperformance ofthemixedoxidefuelassemblies.
Nospecificpost-irradiation RDDprogramisbeingproposedat,thistime.However,RG6Eispreparedtocooperate inthedevelopment ofaprogramforpost-irradiation examination byoneormoreGovernment entitiesorNationallaboratories.
AdvantaesofGinnaRDDProramTheproposedRDDprogramtobecarriedoutinconjunction withtheirradiation formixedoxidefuelassemblies atGinnaisexpectedtoproduceasubstantial advanceinstate-of-the-art knowledge concerning theperformance ofmixedoxidefuelincommercial nuclearreactors.
Theresearchconducted attheSouthernCalifornia EdisonCo.reactorSanOnofreUnitNo.1hasbeentheonlypriorresearchconcerning theuseofmixedoxidefuelinaU.S.Westinghouse commercial reactor.There,fourassemblies withunprepressurized zircaloy-clad fuelrodswereirradiated fortwofuelcycles.Theuseofmixedoxidefuelrodswasterminated prematurely becauseofconcernthattheremightbeexcessive fueldensification intheunprepressurized fuelrods.Inaddition, althoughthemixedoxidefuelirradiated at.SanOnofrewaszircaloyclad,thebalanceofthecorehadstainless steelclad.
c'I AtGinna,allthefuelinthecorewillbezircaloyclad.ITheuseofzircaloycladresultsinadifferent energyspectrumthanthatforstainless steelclad.DatareportedatGinnawill,therefore, bemoreiepresentative ofwhatcanbeexpectedfromtheuseofmixedoxidefuelinthemajorityofPWRs.Inaddition, themixedoxidefuelhereinvolvedhasbeenpressurized andfabricated withprocesses developed andapprovedfollowing theidentification offueldensification whereastheSanOnofrefuelwasfabricated priortothattime.Thisagainwillproducedatamorerepresentative ofcurrentreactoroperations.
Finally,themixedoxidefuelassemblies at.Ginnawillbeirradiated foratleastthreefuelcycles.Depending ontheirradiation historyoftahefuelforthethreecycles,oneormoreoftheassemblies maybeusedforafourthfuelcycle,therebyproviding additional data.Forallofthesereasons,theRDDprogramatGinnawill,provideinformation thatisnot,currently available andwilladvancethestateoftheart,withrespect,tofutureuseofmixedoxidefuelassemblies.
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