ML20065M865

Forwards Description of Contents of Tape Sent to BNL on 940302,providing Info Requested by RAI 950.43,in Fulfillment of NRC 940308 RAI Re Sbwr Design.Subj Info Withheld from Public Disclosure in Accordance w/10CFR2.790

ML20065M865
Person / Time
Site:	05200004
Issue date:	04/21/1994
From:	Marriott P GENERAL ELECTRIC CO.
To:	Borchardt R NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM), Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
Shared Package
ML19304C007	List: ML20065M865
References
MFN-026-94, MFN-26-94, NUDOCS 9404260226
Download: ML20065M865 (5)

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< Cenvis!Dectnc bmpany 175 Cutner Aveavn. $sa Josc. CA 95125 April 21,1994 MFN No. 026-94 Docket STN 52-004 Document Control Desk U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Washington DC 20555 Attention: Richard W. Borchardt, Director Standardization Project Directorate

Subject:

NRC Requests for Additional Information (RAls) on the Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (SBWR) Design, RAI 950.43

References:

Transmittal of Requests for AdditionalInformation (RAls) Regarding the SBWR Design, Letter from M. Malloy to P. W. Marriott dated March 8,1994 The Reference letter requested SBWR core neutronics data to permh Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL) to modify the RAMONA - 4B code for the staff's use. In fulfillment of this request, GE is submitting Attachment 1 to this letter which describes the contents of a tape sent to BNL on March 2,1994 that provided the information requested by RAI 950.43, and which BNL subsequently identified as constituting an appropriate response to this RAI.

Please note that the information contained in the enclosure is of the type which GE maintains in confidence and withholds from public disclosure. It has been handled and classified as proprietary to GE as indicated in the attached affidavit. We hereby request that this information be withheld from public disclosure in accordance with the provisions of 10CFR2.790.

Sincerely,

/

!4%W P W. Marriott 7 Manager, Advanced Plant Technologies MC-781,(408)925-6948 0%

L Attachment 1," Responses to NRC RAls" ec: M. Malloy, Project Manager (NRC) (w/2 copies of Attachment 1)

F. W. Ilasselberg. Project Manager (NRC) (w/l copy cyf Attachment 1)

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9404260226 940421 PDR ADOCK 05200004 i/) { l g - [ [) [ j g A -PDR j g

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GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY AFFIDAVIT I, Patrick W. Marriott, being duly sworn, depose and state as follows:

(1) I am the Manager, Advance Plant Technologies, General Electric Company

("GE") and have been delegated the function of reviewing the information ,

described in paragraph 2 which is sought to be withheld, and have been authorized to apply for its withholding.

(2) The information sought to be withheld is contained in the GE proprietary response to NRC Requests for Additional Information (RAI) 950.43. This information is contained on GE proprietary tapes and delineated by bars marked in the margin adjacent to the specific written material.

(3) In making this application for withholding of proprietary information of which it is an owner, GE relics upon the exemption from disclosure set forth in the Freedom of Information Act ("FOIA"),5 USC Sec. 552(b)(4), and the Trade Secrets Act,18 USC Sec.1905, and Nf3C regulations 10 CFR 9.17(a 4 ,

2.790(a)(4), and 2.790(d)(1) for " trade secrets and commercial or fin)a(nc)ial information obtained from a person and privileged or confidential"(Exemption 4). The material for which exemption from disclosure is here sought is all

" confidential commercial information", and some portio 1s also qualify under the narrower definition of" trade secret", within the meanin s assigned to those terms for purposes of FOIA Exemption 4 in, respective , Critical Mass Energy J'nsect v. Nucientilegulatory Commission 975F2d871 DC Cir.1992), and l'ublic Citizen llcalth Research Group v. FDA,704F2d1280 (DC Cir.1983).

(4) Some examples of ca,tegories of information which fit into the definition of proprietary information are:

a. Information that discloses a process, method, or apparatus, including supporting data and analyses, where prevention of its use by General Electric's competitors without license from General Electric constitutes a competitive economic advantage over other companies;

b. Information which,if used by a competitor, would reduce his expenditure of resources or improve his competitive position in the design, manufacture, shipment, ins.allation, assurance of quality, or licensing of a similar product;

c. Information which reveals cost or price information, production capacities, budget levels, or commercial strategies of General Electric, its customers, or its suppliers; Mfidant Pege 1

d.' Information which reveals aspects of past, present, or future General .

Electric customer-funded development commercial value to General Electric; plans and programs, of potential

e. Information which discloses patentable subject matter for which it may be desirable to obtain patent protection.

The information sought to be withheld is considered to be proprietary for the reasons set forth in both paragraphs (4)a. and (4)b., above.

(5) The information sought to be withheld is being submitted to NRC in confidence. The information is of a sort customarily held in confidence by GE, and is in fact so held. Its initial designation as proprietary information, and the subsequent steps taken to prevent its unauthonzec disclosure, are as set forth of(my knowledge and belief, consistently been held in confidence by G pubhc disclosure has been made, and it is not available in public sources. All disclosures to third parties including any required transmittals to NRC, have been made, or must be made, pursuant to regulatory provisions or proprietary agreements which provide for maintenance of the information in confidence.

(6) Initial ap of the on, proval of proprietary treatment of a document is made by the manager ginating com aonent, the person most likely to be acquainted with the value and sensitivity of the information in relation to industry knowledge.

Access to such documents within GE is limited on a "need to know" basis.

(7) The procedure for approval of external release of such a document typically requires review by the staff manager, project manager, principal scientist or other ec uivalent authority, by the manager of the cognizant marketing function .

(or his c elegate), and by the Legal Operation, for technical content, competitive effect, and determination of the accuracy of the proprietary designation. Disclosures outside GE are limited to regulatory bodies, customers, and potential customers, and their agents, suppliers, and licensees, and others with a legitimate need for the information, and then only in '

accordance with appropriate regulatory provisions or proprietary agreements.

(8) The information identified in paragraph (2) is classified as proprietary because it contains details of the method of development and supportmg data and analyses, including test data and modeling, relative to the TRACG computer program. This program is intended for use as the licensing basis code for evaluating BWR response to transients, loss-of-coolant accidents, reactivity insertion accidents, and anticipated transients without scram. This code has been under development b,y GE for over ten years, at a total cost in excess of $3 million. This information is considered to be proprietary for the reasons set forth in both paragraphs 4.a and 4.b, on the previous page.

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(9) Public disclosure of the information sought to be withheld is likely to cause substantial harm to GE's competitive position and foreclose or reduce the availability of profit-making opportumties. The information is part of GE's comprehensive BWR safety and technology base, and its commercial value '

extends beyond the original development cost. The value of the technology base goes beyond the extensive physical database and analytical methodology and includes the value derived from providing annlyses done with NRC-approved methods.

The research, development, engineering, analytical, and NRC review costs comprise a substantial investment of time and money by GE and its associate.

The precise value of the ex pertise to devise an evaluation process and apply the correct analytical methodo: ogy is difficult to quantify, but it clearly is substantial.

GE's competitive advantage will be lost if its com >ctitors are able to use the results of the GE experience to normalize or veri their own process or if they are able to claim an equivalent understanding by emonstrating that they can arrive at the same or similar conclusions.

The value of this information to GE would be lost if the information were disclosed to the public. Making such information available to competitors without their having been required to undertake a similar expenditure of resources would unfairly provide competitors with a windfall, and deprive GE amd its associates of the opportunity to exercise their competitive advantage to seek an adequate return on their large investment in developing these very valuable analytical tools.

STATE OF CALIFORNIA ,

COUNTY OF SANTA CLARA ))33. j 3

Patrick W. Marriott, being duly sworn, deposes and says:

That he has read the foregoing affidavit and the matters stated therein are true and correct to the best of his knowledge, Executed at San Jose, California, this im day of ArXI ,19_94

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Patrick,W. Marriott General Electric Company Subscribed and sworn before me this 42 bayof dud ,193/

9 l(tLL<.y k Notary Ptiblic, State at California hk Affidavit Page 3

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MARY L KENDALL COMM # 907264 E k # Notorv Fut%c - CoHornio 3 7

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RAI Numbere 950.43 Question:

In order to generate a complete set of SilWR core cross sections and their associated ,

void and moderator temperature feedback coefficients, the staff needs GE to supplement l the responses to Qi40.1-Q140.5 (transmitted in GE letter MFN No.174-93 dated October 25,1993) relating to neutronics data.

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a. For the void feedback, GE did not provide the perturbed cases at the histoir I dependent void fraction of 0.0 and 0.7 for all live fuel types. For the moderator temperature feedback, the perturhed cases were improperly generated (hoth the , g fuel and moderator temperatures were perturbed at the same time).

Run each of the following 10 cases as a func tion of exposure (0.0 to 55 GWl)/T) for all live fuel types. (Cases 1-8 are for the void feedback as a function of void history. Cases 9 and 10 are for the moderator temperature feedback at an average instantaneous void of 40 percent and an average history-dependent void of 40 percent.)

Case ai/uh Tf/Tf,r ( C) Tm/Tm,r( C) Control Rod 1 0. I/0.0 532/532 286/286 Out 2 0.4/0.0 532/532 286/286 In 3 0.7/0.0 532/532 286/286 Out 4 0.7/0.0 532/532 286/286 In 5 0.0/0.7 532/532 286/286 Out 6 0.0/0.7 532/532 286/286 In 7 0.4 /0.7 532/532 286/286 Out X 0.4 /0.7 532/539 986/286 in 9 0.4 /0.1 532/532 160/286 Out 10 0,1/0.1 532/532 160/286 In ui = instantaneous void fraction uh history-dependent void fraction Tf = perturbed fuel temperature Tf,r = reference (rated) fuel temperature Tm = perturhed moderator temperature Tm ,r = reference (rated) moderator temperature

b. The reduced power cases at 0,25,50, and 75 percent of rated, needed for the evaluation of the coefficients for equilibrium xenon, appear to have been improperly generated as they all have identical cross sections. Regenerate the cross sections for the reduced power cases of 25 and 50 percent of rated power.