ML20236N130

Amend 4 to License R-117,changing Nuclear Engineering from Program to Dept & Amending Paragraph 2.C(1) of License to Include Peak Induced Power Level Allowed for Transient Operation

ML20236N130
Person / Time
Site:	05000356
Issue date:	08/04/1987
From:	Berkow H Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation
To:
Shared Package
ML20236N104	List: ML20236N101 ML20236N130 ML20236N151
References
R-117-A-004, R-117-A-4, NUDOCS 8708110382
Download: ML20236N130 (10)

Text

i of 'o, UNITED STATES

! ' ,n NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION 3

$  : $ WASHING TON, D. C. 20555

....+

/a 1

i THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS ]

DOCKET NO. 50-356 I

LOW POWER REACTOR ASSEMBLY (LOPRA)

AMENDMENT TO FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE Amendment No. 4 License No. R-117

1. The Nuclear Regulatory Comission (the Comission) has found that:

A. The application for amendment filed by the University of Illinois (the licensee), dated January 6, 1987, as supplemented on May 29, 1987, complies with the standards and requirements of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (the Act), and the Comission's regulations as set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; B. The facility will operate in confonnity with the application, the  !

provisions of the Act, and the regulations of the Commission; l C. There is reasonable assurance: (1) that the activities authorized by l this amendment can be conducted without endangering the health and .

safety of the public, and (ii) that such activities will be l conducted in compliance with the Commission's regulations set forth in 10 CFR Chapter I; D. The issuance of t L amendment will not be inimical to the common defense and security or to the health and safety of the public; E. The issuance of this amendment is in accordance with 10 CFR Part 51 of the Comission's regulations and all applicable requirements have been satisfied; and F. Publication of notice of this amendment is not required since it does not involve a significant hazards consideration nor amendment nf a license of the type described in 10 CFR Section 2.106(b)(2).

87081103B2 870804 PDR ADOCK 05000356 P PDR

i

, '{.

)

l

, i

2. Accordingly, paragraph 2.C(1) of License No. R-117 is hereby amended to  !

read as follows:

(1) Maximum Power Level l

The licensee may operate the reactor at power levels not to exceed 10 l

kilowatts (thermal) and, for transient operation, with peak induced 4 power levels up to a maximum of 10 megawatts.

3. Accordingly, the license is' amended by changes to the Technical '

Specifications, as indicated in the enclosure to this license amendment, and paragraph 2.C.(2) of License No..R-117 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1 (2) Technical Specifications The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised through Amendment No. 4, are hereby incorporated in the license. The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the Technical Specifications. )

1

4. This license amendment is effective upon its date of issuance. '

FOR T NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION d *

• He bert N. Berkow, Director Standardization and Non-Power Reactor Project Directorate

. Division of Reactor Projects III, IV, V and Special Projects Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation

Enclosure:

Appendix A Technical i Specifications Changes Date of Issuance: August 4,1987 i

i

l 1

1 ENCLOSURE TO LICENSE AMENDMENT NO. 4

)

i 1

FACILITY OPERATING LICENSE NO. R-117 DOCKET NO. 50-356 Replace the following pages of the Appendix A Technical Specifications with a the enclosed pages. The revised pages are identified by amendment number and l contain vertical lines indicating the areas of change.

I i

Remove Page Insert Page '

15 15 i

16 16 17 17 19 19 20 20 21 21 22 22 I

l

Bases

~In order that the movement of air can be controlled, the building contains no windows that can be opened. The room air is exhausted through absolute filters and discharged through a stack to provide dilution.

5.3 Fuel Storage Applicability This specification applies to the storage of reactor fuel. at times when it is not in the reactor core.

l Objective The objective is to assure that fuel which is being stored will not become.

Supercritical and will not reach an unsafe temperature.

Specifications 1

a. All fuel elements shall be stored in a geometrical array where the keff f is less than 0.8 for all conditions of moderation. - 1

! b. Irradiated fuel elements and fueled devices shall be stored infan array q which will permit sufficient natural convection cooling by water or air j such that the fuel element of fueled device tempe.rature will not l exceed 800*C for the stainless steel clad LOPRA fuel and 500 C for the l aluminum clad LOPRA fuel.

l Bases i New fuel is stored in its shipping containers or in a 15-position rack in a locked storage room. Hot fuel is stored in pits described. in Section IX of the SAR for the Advanced TRIGA reactor.- These pits are designed to hold 24 elements, an amount which cannot form a critical array. Very hot fuel is.

stored in racks in the main tank or the bulk shielding tank where cooling water is provided.

6.0 ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROLS 6.1 Organization l

a. The LOPRA facility shall be an integral part of the Department of Nuclear Engineering of the College of Engineering of the University of Illinois. The LOPRA shall be related to the University structure as shown in Chart 1.

15 Amendment No. 4 '

- b.* - The LOPRA f acility shall be under the supery151on of tne Hedctor Supervisor who shall have qualified as a licensed senior operator for the LOPRA. He shall be . responsible for assuring that all operations are conducted in a safe manner and within the limits prescribed by the f acility license and the provisions of the Nuclear Reactor Committee.

c. There shall be a Reactor Health Physicist responsible for assuring the day to day and routine radiological safety activities at the Nuclear Reactor Laboratory. The University of Illinois Radiation Safety Officer shall be responsible for monitoring, planning and promoting radiological safety at the Nuclear Reactor Laboratory. He has the responsibility and authority to stop, secure or otherwise control as necestary any operation or activity that poses an unacceptable radiological hazard.

CHART I Head of Department of Division of Environmental l.

Nuclear Engineering Health and Safety l

' l

'~~--~~1, Radiation Safety Officer Nuclear Reactor Director of ,

i Committee Nuclear Reactor

' Laboratory f l  ;

, i i , , <

Reactor Health j t~~~ Reactor .

- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ----

Supervisor Physicist ]

I I Licensed i Operators {

Reactor l Operation 4 Chart I. Administrative organization of the reactor facility. Dashed lines indicate reporting paths outside the operational chain of supervision, indicated by solid lines.

6.2 Review I

- l

a. There shall be a Nuclear Reactor Committee which shall review LOPRA operations to assure that the facility is operated in a manner con-sistent with public safety and within the terms of the facility license. -

b. The responsibilities of the Committee include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Review and approval of experiments utilizing the LOPRA facilities;

2. Review and approval of all proposed changes to the f acility, pro-cedures, and Technical Specifications;

3. Determination of whether a proposed chenge, test, or experiment would constitute an unreviewed safety question or a change in the Technical Specifications; ,

4. Review of the operation and operational records of the facility;

5. Review of abnormal. performance of plant equipment and operating anomalies; 16 Amendment No. 4

1

. 6. Review of unusual occurrences and incidents which are reportable -I '

under 10CFR@20 and 20CFRQ0; and l 7. Approval of individuals for the supervision and operation of the j LOPRA. l l

l l l c. The Committee shall be composed of at least five voting members, one 1 of whom shall be a Health Physicist designated by the Health Physics Office of the University, and one whom shall be the Director of the i

Reactor Laboratory. Three members'shall be appointed by the Head of l the Department of Nuclear Engineering, chosen from the faculty of 4 Nuclear Engineering so as to maintain a balanced knowledge of reactor j safety and regulation. The Reactor Supervisor and the Reactor Health- {

Physicist shall be non-voting members.

de The Comittee shall have a written statement defining such matters as 'i the authority of the Committee, the subjects within its purview, and j H

other such administrative provisions as are required for effective functioning of the Committee. Minutes of all meetings of the-Committee shall be kept.

1

. e. A quorum of the Committee shall be a majority of not less than one j half of the members and the reactor operating staff shall not consti- j tute a voting majority. l l 1

f. The Reactor committee shall meet at least quarterly with the interval i between meetings not to exceed 5 months.

6.3 Operating Procedures ]

Written procedures, reviewed and approved by the Nuclear Reactor Committee, shall be in effect and followed for the following items. The procedures shall be adequate to assure the safety of the LOPRA, but should not /

I preclude the use of independent judgment and action should the situation require such.

a. Startup, operation, and shutdown of the LOPRA.

I

b. Installation or removal of fuel elements, control rods, experiments, .

l and experimental facilities. ' l l

c. Actions to be taken to correct specific and foreseen potential malfunc- l tions of systems or components, including responses to alarms and l abnormal reactivity changes. i

d. Emergency conditions involving potential or actual release of radio-activity, including provisions for evacuation, re-entry, recovery, and  ;

medical support.  ;

e. Maintenance procedures which could have an effect on LOPRA safety.

f. Periodic surveillance of LOPRA instrumentation and safety systems, area monitors and continuous air monitors. i l

17 Amendment No. 4

i

, )

threat to the integrity of the LOPRA or to the safety of individuals),

the approval for the Nuclear Reactor Committee 'may be made by the Reactor Supervisor and Reactor Health Physicist. )

d. In evaluating experiments, the following assumptions shall be use'd for -

the purpose of determining whether failure of the experiment would j cause the appropriate limits of 10CFR 20 to be exceeded:

1. If the possibility exists that airborne concentrations of radio-active gases or aerosols may be released within the facility,100 percent of the gases or aerosols will escape;

2. If the effluent exhausts through a filter installation designed for greater than 99 percent efficiency for 0.3 micron particles, at least 10% of the particulate will' escape; and  !

\

3. For a material whose boiling point is above 130'F and where. vapors i formed by boiling this material could escape only through a column l of water above the core, at least 10 percent of these vapors will j escape. i 1

l 6.5 Action to be Taken in the Event a Safety Limit is Exceeded In the event a safety limit is exceeded, or thought to have been exceeded:

a. The LOPRA shall be shut down and LOPRA operation shall not be resumed until authorized by the USNRC. I

b. An immediate report of the occurrence shall be made to the Chairman of the Nuclear Reactor Comittee and reports shall be made to the USNRC in (  ;

accordance with Section 6.7 of these specifications. j 1

c. A report shall be made which shall include an analysis of the causes j and extent of possible resultant damage, efficacy of corrective action, and recommendations for measures to prevent or reduce the probability l of reoccurrence. This report shall be submitted to the Nuclear Reactor  :

Comittee for review, and a suitable similar report submitted to the l USNRC when authorization to resume operation of the LOPRA is sought. l 6.6 Action to be Taken in the Event of, a Reportable Occurrence In the event of a reportable occurrence, as defined in Section 1.12 of the specifications, the following actions shall be taken.

a. The Reactor Supervisor shall be notified and corrective action taken prior to resumption of the operation involved.

19 Amendment No. 4

b. A report shall be made which shall include an analysis of the cause of

~

the occurrence, efficacy of corrective action, and recommendations for measures to prevent or reduce the probability of reoccurrence. This report shall be submitted to the Nuclear Reactor Committee for review.  ;

c. Where appropriate, a report shall be submitted to the USNRC in accor- l dance with Section 6.7 of these specifications.

6.7 Reporting Requirements In addition to the requirements of applicable regulations, and in no way substituting therefore, reports will be made to the USNRC as follows:

a. An imediate report (by telephone and telegraph to the Regional Administrator, USNRC, Region III) of:

1. Any accidental off-site release of radioactivity above permissible limits, whether or not the release resulted in property damage, l personal injury or exposure; and

2. Any violation of_a safety limit.

b. A report within 24 hours2.777778e-4 days <br />0.00667 hours <br />3.968254e-5 weeks <br />9.132e-6 months <br /> (by telephone and telegraph to the Regional Administrator, USNRC, Region III) of:

1. Any significant variation of measured values from a corresponding predicted or previously measured value of safety-connected operating characteristics occurring during operation of the LOPRA;

2. Incidents or conditions relating to operation of the facility which prevented or could have prevented the performance of engi-neered safety features as described in these specifications; and

3. Any reportable occurrences as defined in Section 1.12 of these specifications.

c. A report within 14 days (in writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Document Control Desk, USNRC Headquarters) of:

1. Any significant variation of measured values from a corresponding predicted or previously measured value of safety-connected operating characteristics occurring during operation of the LOPRA;

2. Incidents or conditions relating to operation of the facility which prevented or could have prevented the performance of engi-neered safety features as described in these specifications; and 20 ,

Amendment No. 4

3. Any reportable occurrences as defined in Section 1.12 of these l' specifications.

d. A report within 30 days (in writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Document Control Desk, USNRC Headquarters) of:

1. Any substantial variance from performance specifications contained .

in these specifications;

2. Any significant change in the transient or accident analyses as described in the Safety Analysis Report;

3. Any changes in facility organization; and

4. Any observed inadequacies in the implementation of administrative or procedural controls,

e. A report within 60 days after criticality of the LOPRA (in writing to  !

the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation, Document Control '

Desk, USNRC Headquarters) upon receipt of a new facility license or an amendment to the license authorizing an increase in LOPRA power level ,

or the installation of a new core, describing the measured values of 1 the operating conditions or characteristics of the LOPRA under the new l conditions, including:

1. Total control rod reactivity worth;

2. Reactivity worth of the single control rod of highest reactivity  ;

worth; '

3. Total and individual reactivity worths of any experiments inserted in the LOPRA; and

4. Minimum shutdown margin both at room and operating temperatures.

f. A routine report (in writing to the Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor i Regulation Document Control Desk, USNRC Headquarters) within 60 days after completion of the first six months of facility operation and at ,

the end of each 12-month period thereafter, providing the following {

information: -

i

1. A narrative summary of operating experience (including experiments performed) and of changes in. facility design, performance charac- )

teristics and operating procedures related to LOPRA safety.

occurring during the reporting period;

2. A tabulation showing the energy generated by the LOPRA (in megawatt-hours), the amount of pulse operation, the number of hours the LOPRA was critical.

I i

21 Amendment No. 4 l

_ _ _ - _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ - _ _ _ . . . ~

1

. l l

3. The number of emergency shutdowns and inadvertent scr'.ms, including the reasons therefore; l

4. Discussion of the major maintera-ce operations performed during 3 the period, including the effect  : any, on the safe operation of 1 the LOPRA,-and the reasons for say corrective maintenance l required; 1

5. A summary of each change to the facility or procedures, tests, and experiments carried out under. the conditions of< Section 50.59 of 10CFR 50; .g

6. A summary of the nature and amount'of radioactive effluents ~

released or discharged to the environs beyond the effective control of the licensee as measured at or prior to the point of such release or discharge; J

7. A description of any. environmental surveys performed outside the j facility; and

8. A summary of radiation exposures received by. facility personnel and visitors, including the dates and times of significant expo-sures, and a summary of the,results of radiation and contamination s surveys performed within the facility. j

'l 6.8 Records  !

l Records to be Retained for a Period of at least Five Years:

a. Normal reactor facility operations (including scheduled and unscheduled shutdowns)

b. Principal maintenance operations -J

c. Reportable occurrences

d. Surveillance activities required by Technical Specifications .,

e. Facility radiation and contamination surveys I

f. Experiments performed with the reactor

g. Approved changes to operating procedures

h. Records of meetings of the Nuclear Reactor Committee 22

-Amendment No. 4