ML13127A199

Susquehanna Steam Electric Station Proposed Relief Request No. 3RR-20 to the Third 10-year Inservice Inpsection Program for Susquehanna Ses, Unit 2

ML13127A199
Person / Time
Site:	Susquehanna
Issue date:	05/06/2013
From:	Franke J A Susquehanna
To:	Document Control Desk
References
PLA-7014
Download: ML13127A199 (10)

Text

I I I Jon A. Franke Site Vice President PPL Susquehanna, LLC 769 Salem Boulevard Berwick, PA 18603 Tel. 570.542.2904 Fax 570.542.1504 jfranke@pplweb.com

\ \ I I I \***/ ,' ****** # ... * * *" KAY 0 62013 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Attn: Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555 SUSQUEHANNA STEAM ELECTRIC STATION PROPOSED RELIEF REQUEST NO. 3RR-20 TO THE THIRD 10-YEAR INSERVICE INSPECTION PROGRAM FOR SUSQUEHANNA SES UNIT 2 PLA-7014 Docket No. 50-388 The purpose of this letter is to request relief pursuant to the requirements of 10 CFR 50.55a(a)(3)(ii) from the provisions of the ASME Section XI, 1998 Edition, 2000 Addenda, Code Category B-G-1, Item B6.190, Examination ofPump Flange surfaces when disassembled.

In accordance with the ASME Code, a one-inch annular surface surrounding each stud on the pump flange surface must be visually examined (VT -1) when the pump is disassembled.

PPL Susquehanna, LLC (PPL) hereby requests relief for Susquehanna Steam Electric Station (SSES) Unit 2, to deviate from the requirement to perform a 1 00% visual examination of the 'A' Reactor Recirculation Pump Flange surface. During the current SSES Unit 2 16th Refueling and Inspection Outage, the 'A' Reactor Recirculation pump was disassembled for a pump motor replacement.

As a result of the missed opportunity to perform a visual examination (VT -1) of the pump flange when it was disassembled, a 1 00% visual examination of the required pump flange surface could not be performed.

As discussed during the May 2, 2013 conference call between PPL and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), the ability to perform the VT -1 examination was no longer a viable option because the 'A' Reactor Recirculation pump had been reassembled.

Following the conference call, discussions with the SSES Engineering staff revealed that there was an opportunity to perform a partial examination of the flange surface. A qualified visual (VT -1) inspector was dispatched and the flange surface was inspected. No discontinuities or imperfections were identified.

Because the pump had been reassembled, examination coverage of the flange surface was limited to approximately 98% of the required surface due to interference from pump internals.

Since this inspect i on was not a 100% visual examination of the pump flange surface, PPL will list it as a limited examination. ' TM Document Control Desk PLA-7014 PPL requests that this relief request be approved by May 14, 2013 in order to support the SSES Unit 2 16th Refuel Outage startup. Please contact Mr. John Tripoli, Manager-Nuclear Regulatory Affairs at ( 570) 542-3100 if there are any questions concerning this letter. This letter contains no regulatory commitments.

Sincerely, Franke Attachment 1: PPL Susquehanna, LLC Third 10-Year Interval Request for Relief No. 3RR20 Attachment 2: Photos of the 'A' Recirculation Pump Flange Stud Area Attachment 3: Photo of the 'A' Recirculation Pump Sectional Drawing Copy: NRC Regional Administrator

-Region I Mr. P. W. Finney, NRC Sr. Resident Inspector Mr. J. A. Whited, NRC Project Manager Mr. L. J. Winker, PA DEP/BRP Attachment 1 to PLA-7014 PPL Susquehanna, LLC Third 10-Year Interval Request for Relief No. 3RR20 Attachment to PLA-7014 Page 1 of2 PPL SUSQUEHANNA, LLC SUSQUEHANNA SES, UNIT 2 THIRD 10-YEARINTERVAL REQUEST FOR RELIEF NO. 3RR20 SYSTEM/COMPONENT (S) FOR WHICH RELIEF IS REQUESTED The Unit 2 'A' Reactor Recirculation Pump Flange CODE REQUIREMENTS The 1998 Edition thru the 2000 Addenda of ASME Section XI, Table IWB-2500-1, Category B-G-1, Item B6 .190, requires a visual (VT -1) examination of a one-inch annular surface of the pump flange surrounding each stud when the connection is disassembled.

PPL Susquehanna, LLC (PPL) Susquehanna Steam Electric Station (SSES) Unit 2 is in the third period of the third inspection interval.

This is the last Unit 2 outage in the third ten-year inspection interval.

RELIEF REQUESTED Relief is requested in accordance with 10 CFR 50.55a(a)(3)(ii) from the provisions of Table IWB-2500-1, Category B-G-1, Item B6.190 Pump Flange Surface Examinations.

BASIS FOR RELIEF Table IWB-2500-1, Examination Category B-G-1, Item B6.190 requires a VT-1 visual examination of a one inch annular surface of the pump flange surface surrounding each stud when the pump is disassembled.

The SSES Unit 2 'A' Reactor Recirculation pump was disassembled during the Unit 2 16th Refuel and Inspection Outage (U2-16RIO).

During the time the pump was disassembled, a VT-3 of the pump bowl was performed.

However, the required VT -1 examination (examination for discontinuities) of the flange surface was not performed.

This omission was not recognized until the pump had been reassembled.

Originally, PPL reported that access to this area of the pump was not available.

After discussions with the SSES engineering staff, a qualified visual inspector was dispatched, and a VT -1 examination was performed on the pump flange surface. Since the pump was reassembled prior to this examination being performed, interferences from the pump internals limited the examination of the flange to approximately 98%. To obtain a 100% visual examination of the pump flange surface, the pump would have to be disassembled.

PPL estimates that disassembly of the pump would require an additional4500 man-hours of time with an expected dose of 12.4 person-rem.

The flange surface is acceptable for continued service based on upon the satisfactory results of a Attachment to PLA-7014 Page 2 of2 surface inspection that was performed by the pump vendor and SSES Quality Control personnel prior to pump reassembly.

No evidence of degradation was noted. Although the examinations were not VT -1 qualified, and not credited for ASME credit, it adds additional assurance that the flange surface (including the 2% of the flange surface that was not accessible) is acceptable for continued service. PPL will also perform at VT -2 examination on the pump prior to startup of Unit 2. ALTERNATIVE EXAMINATIONS None IMPLEMENTATION SCHEDULE PPL requests that this relief request be approved by May 14, 2013 in order to support the SSES Unit 2 16th Refuel Outage startup.

Attachment 2 to PLA-7014 Photos of the 'A' Recirculation Pump Flange Stud Area

Attachment 3 to PLA-7014 Photo of the 'A' Recirculation Pump Sectional Drawing Unit 2 'A' Recirculation Pump Sectional Drawing-Top of the Bottom Flange Surface