ML20248J190

Operations Rept 41 for 1988

ML20248J190
Person / Time
Site:	National Bureau of Standards Reactor
Issue date:	12/31/1988
From:	Rowe J NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS & TECHNOLOGY (FORMERL
To:	NRC OFFICE OF INFORMATION RESOURCES MANAGEMENT (IRM)
References
NUDOCS 8904140348
Download: ML20248J190 (11)

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' 4 NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY REACTOR (NBSR)

Docket #50-184 Facility License No. TR-5 Operations Report

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January 1, 1988 - December 31, 1988 l

I This report contains a summary of activities connected with the i

operations of the NBSR.

It is submitted in fulfillment of section 7.8(3) of the NBSR Technical Specifications and covers the period from January 1, 1988 to December 31, 1988.

Section numbers in the report (such as 7.8(3)(a)) correspond to those used in the Tecnhnical Specifications.

1 April 5, 1989

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J._ ichael Rowe lef, Reactor Radiation Division 1

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8904140348 881231 /i PDR ADOCK0500g4 R

1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 7.8(3)(a) Summary of Plant Operations 7.8(3)(b) Unscheduled Shutdowns 7.8(3)(c) Tabulation of Major Items of Plant Maintenance 7.8(3)(d) Tabulation of Major Changes in the Facility and Procedures, and the Test and Experiments, Carried Out Without Prior Approval by the NRC Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.59 7.8(3)(e) Summary of Radioactive Material Released and Results of Environmental Surveys Performed 7.8(3)(f) Summary of Significant Exposures Received by Facility Personnel i

and Visitors ,

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7.8(3)(a)' Summary of-Plt-t Operations During the calendar year 1988, the reactor was critical for 4846 hours0.0561 days <br />1.346 hours <br />0.00801 weeks <br />0.00184 months <br /> and the energy generated was 82542 MWH. The following are highlights of rt significant activities during this period.

1. Guide Hall Construction of 'the new guide hall adjacent to the reactor building was nearly completed. Penetrations for guide tubes will be made in 1989.

Once the guide tubes are installed, the cold neutron facility, the first of its kind in the U. S. will be ready for use.

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2. Thermal Shield Cooling System The National Nuclear Corporation of England developed a method for sealing leaks in inaccessible high' radiation areas. The method was used successfully at several reactors around the world, It appeared to be ideal for repairing leaks in the thermal shield cooling tubes, Several applications of sealant are generally required. The method was tried in' June 1988 on 40 tubes previously isolated, and again on 25 tubes in December of 1988, 21 of whi h were previously treated. The treatment.will continue to be monitored and re-applied if necessary.

So far the treatment appears to be satisicetory with the number and frequency of leaks reduced.

3. Cryostat During reactor shutdown, the vacuum to the cryostat experiment was inadvertently shut off. This resulted in the freezing and subsequent damage to the cryostat heavy and light water cooling lines which are supplied by the experimental cooling systems. The small amount of i

water that leaked was all contained within the confinement building, 3

. i and most of the heavy water was recovered. The cryostat was subse-quently replaced and provisions were made to assure that the vacuum is not shut off inadvertently in the future.

A Heat Exchangers A new addition to the process room for housing two new main heat ex-changers is near completion. Procurement of new heat exchangers will be initiated in 1989 with emphasis on long term reliability. No new leaks were detected in the present heat exchangers. There is still a very small leak, on the order of 0.1 gallons per day, that is too small to be located.

.7.8(3)(b) Unscheduled Shutdowns

1. There were nine (9) scrams due to commercial power dips. On four of the occasions the reactor stayed down. The other five times power was restored lumediately.

2. The reactor was shutdown one time to retrieve a rabbit that would not return. The reactor returned to power on the same shift.

3. The reactor scramed one time because of low flow to the bismuth  !

tip. After correcting the flow problem power was restored.

4 The reactor was shutdown when domestic water pressure was lost.

Power was restored after the pressure returned.

7.8(3)(c) Tabulation of Major Items of Plant Maintenance

1. Replaced RD4-1 detector

2. Performed test discharge of station battery l

3. Performed ultrasonic testing of primary system piping

4. Installed d/p cell for primary to secondary pressure on HE-2 i

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5. Overhauled and cleaned #2 Shim Arm drive which includes replace- -1 i-ment of bearings' and lead screw. Constructed a test stand for testing Shim Arm drives outside the reactor.

6. Re-piped thermal shield leak collection system into 350 gallon i

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poly storage vessel

'7. Replaced drive belts on EF-23

8. . Repaired RD3-4'6 RD3-5 blower controls 9 . Regenerated Demineralized water station (twice)

10. Plugged leaking tubes of Exp Domin heat exchanger (4 tubes).

11. Replaced valve diaphram of DCV-21

12. ' Replaced #2 Exp D 20 pump with new one

=13. Changed'"0" rings in.RT-3 receiver 14 Cleaned cooling tower basin and suction screens

15. Rep 1' aced trumium blower with new unit

.16. : Inspected secondary side of HE-1B 17 Sealed. leaking tubes of thermal shield ring header

18. Started replacing original globe valves of thermal shield ring header with brass Conbraco ball valves

19. Installed new fiberglass storage tank for Emergency Diesel Genera-tor fuel oil i

20. Replaced back-up air regulator for seals to auto closing doors

21. Replaced both battery banks of "A" Emergency Diesel Generator.

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. Retested satisfactorily weekly for several weeks.

22. Installed switchgear "C" to service new office wing and guide hall

23. Installed vertical riser to collect blowoff of D 0 from primary 2

system loop seal

24. Plant division performed sub-station breaker maintenance l

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25. Repaired AC line contactor on invertor / diverter controller l- ,

2 6 ', Replaced pre-filters of. storage pool purification system L 27. Replace'd chart drive gears on weather recorder

28. Readjusted Shim Arm #2 position indicator pot

29. Repaired stack monitor pre-amp wiring

30. Completed overhaul on Reg Rod control amplifier

31. Replaced stack monitor CM tube and wiring

32. Repaired weather recorder chart drive

33. Recalibrates reactor flow recorder FR-1 34 Adjusted control valves DWV-28 and DWV-39

35. Repaired Exp. Demin water controller

36. Replaced. transmitter in thermal column level channel

37. Repaired short in HP office annunciator

38. Repaired Helium gas holder level recorder

39. Repaired DWV-22 valve position controller

'40. Recalibrates radiation monitor RM1-9

41. Repaired temperature transmitter on thermal shield storage tank

42. Replaced Shim Arm #3 digital readout

43. Recalibrates reactor level transmitters

44. Replaced llE-1A outlet temperature recorder

45. Replaced input unit in servo deviation channel

46. Replaced reector inlet temperature recorder

47. Replaced CM tube in liquid waste monitor

48. Repaired input connector on NC-3 channel

49. Recalibrates secondary inlet temperature transmitter

50. Replaced transmitter in secondary cooling flow channel

51. Replaced thermal shield storage tank temperature transmitter 6

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. 52. Replaced alarm unit.in Bismuth.Tip flow channel

53. Adjusted gain on recombiner outlet temp transmitter s

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- 54. Recalibrates N-16 monitor count rate meter

55. Rezeroed Barton: pressure gage on Pri/Sec diff.

56. Recalibrates storage pool temp' transmitter

57. Replaced servo motor in radiation recorder

58. Replaced chart drive on-outlet temp recorder

59. Rebuilt ovacuation alarm control circuit

60. . Replaced amplifier.in recombiner pressure channel

61. Replaced chart, drive. motor in nuclear recorder

62. Replaced +10VDC nuclear power supply

63. -Replaced Shim #2 digital readout module

64. Replaced liquid waste monitor GM tube

65. Replaced radiation recorder print head

66. Repaired tritium monitor +6VDC power' supply

67. Replaced amplifier in recombiner pressure transmitter

68. The following instrument calibration surveillance tests were per-formed:

TIA-40A Reactor Delta Temperature Indicator NC-8 Nuclear Power Range Channel NC-7 Nuclear Power Range Channel RM3-4 Irradiated Air Monitor ,

1 BTUR-1 Reactor Thermal Power NC-4 Nuclear Intermediate Range Channel l

RM1 to 10 Area Radiation Monitors l FRC-3 Reactor Outer Plenum Flow s FRC-4 Reactor Inner Plenum Flow 7

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L' . p RM4-1 Stack Air' Monitor lt i RM4-4 N~ Criticality Monitor RM4-4 S Criticality Monitor LRC-1  : Reactor Level Recorder NC 3 Nuclear Intermediate Range Channel PC-3 Normal Exhaust' Monitor Process Room Fan Controller

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.PC-21 SPC-150 Emergency Fan Controller SPS-150 Emergency Standby Controller SPS-151 Vacuum Breaker Controller j RM3-5. Normal Air Monitor NC-6 Nuclear Power Range Channel NC-9 Nuclear Interlock Trip Test RM3-2 Fission Products Monitor-TIA-40B Reactor Delta Temperature Indicator FIA-40 Reactor Outlet Flow Indicator 7.8(3)(d). Tabulation of Major Changes in the Facility and Procedures, and the Test and Experiments, Carried Out Without Prior Approval by the NRC pursuant to 10 CFR 50.59.

Relevant Engineering Changes are summarized below:

ECN-297 Install twin booster pumps into the secondary cooling supply 1lne for the auxiliary heat exchangers HE-2, HE-6, and HE-7'. Also added a differential pressure detector and alarm to HE-2.

This change increases the cooling flow to the auxiliary heat exchangers and does not affect the safety analysis, 8

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k-l'U reduce safety margin or increase'the possibility'of a 3 failure affecting Se reactor. There is.no unreviewed h

7 safety question.

ECN-331 . Tie Cryogenic Refrigerator Compressor into Experimental Chilled Water System. I The Experimental Chilled Water System has no connection 1

with the reactor safety system, thus there is no un-reviewed safety question.

ECN-332 Provide 480 Volts AC uninterruptible power for the Ex-perimental Chilled Water System.

The Experimental Chilled Water System has no connection with the reactor safety system, thus there is no un-reviewed safety question.

ECN-336 Install temporary Diesel fuel tank for emergency Diesel generators during construction of Cold Neutron Research Facility (CNRF).

This temporary tank in no way reduced any margin of safety and therefore it does not involve an unreviewed safety question.

T ECN-345 Replaced relays in the building evacuation alarm system.

This change does not reduce any safety margin and there-fore does not reflect an unreviewed safety question.

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7,8(3)(e) Summary of Radioactive Material Released and Results of Environ-

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L mental Surveys Performed, h

L The gaseous waste released was 393 curies of tritium and 900 curies of Argon-41. There wcre 5.1 curies of tritium and 2.6 mil 11 curies of other i beta-gamma emitters were released into the sanitary sewer.

Environmental samples of the streams, vegetation, and/or soil, and air showad no significant changes. l 7.8(3)f Summary of Significant Exposures Received by Facility Personnel and Visitors

1. None to visitors. l

2. Dosimetry results for this reporting period indicated that no facility personnel received significant exposures.

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(. 4res W Marylerd 20899 L (301) 975-6210 iU FTS 879-6210 FAX (301) 921-9847 April 5, 1989 U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Document Control Desk Washington, DC 20555 Subj ect : Docket #50 184

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Gentlemen: ,

Transmitted herewith is Operations Report No. . 41 forf he'NBSR.

t The report covers the period January '1,- 1988 to ' December- 31, 1988. ,

Very truly youts, .

4 9-r .,

Michael Rowe <

l Chief, Reactor Radiation Division ,

4 Attachment cc: Director, Division of Reactor Licenring

( U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commiss!on: ,

Washington, DC 20555

[ Project Inspector U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission i

Region 1

l. 475 A11andale Road

! King of Prussia, PA 19406 l l hO i i l

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