PRESSURIZED WATER REACTOR (PWR) PROJECT. Technical Progress Report, April 24, 1962 to June 23, 1962

Technical Report · Wed Oct 31 00:00:00 EST 1962

OSTI ID:4786969

: : ; 3 7 7 : 7 ce was reevaluated and improved, utilizing values for the thermal conductivety of natural UO/sub 2/ which include experimentally derived effects of temperature and depletion of conductivity. The end channel of the blanket subassembly was redesigned in view of fabrication experience and new thermal information. Processing of PWR-2 blanket fuel elements is approximately 97% complete with an overall acceptance yield of 96% being maintained. Processing of seed fuel elements is continuing satisfactorily. A technique was developed to utilize seed elements with surface bulges which were the major cause of rejection. Special oxide proof tcst assembly (SOAP II) is proceeding on schedule for installation at Shippingport during Seed 3 and 4 refueling. A problem in the design of the poison fuel elements developed in relation to the eutectic melting in the Inconel ringlet areas during seed subassembly welding. A development program was initiated to evaluate modification to the existing fuel element design and subassembly welding technique. In PWR Core 1 work, a re-evaluation of PWR Core 1 Seed 3 thermal limits for the last half of core life confirmed that Seed 3 can deliver 60 Mw/sub e/ for the remainder of life without exceeding safe operating conditions. The protective coating test patches in the Deep Pit were inspected after more than a year of submersion in demineralized water. Several test patches did not contain blisters or pinholes and had a good appearance. A metallurical report on a tube extracted from the coolant charging system heat exchanger concluded that the heat exchanger tubes had failed owing to chloride stress corrosion. Recommendations were made that the stainless steel tubes and tube sheet be replaced with Inconel tubes and tube sheet which will be capable of withstanding chemical attack of Ohio River water containing high amounts of chlorides. It was indicated that radiation levels of the main loop piping and associated components increased from crud released to the reactor vessel during the first and second refueling. Recommendations were made to measure the crud released during Seed 3 and 4 refueling and to determdne whether filtration of reactor vessel water is an effective means of reducing plant radiation levels following refueling. The feasibility of using electrodecontamination procedures on pump volutes was demonstrated on the Allis-Chalmers pump volute removed from D'' Loop, indicating 90% of the activity was removed. Three timesteps of the detailed three-dimensional depletion calculation of Core 1 were performed, with results which indicate no significant improvement over the results of the less detailed three-dimensional depletion calculation. Consequently, no further timesteps are planned at present. A digital computer program was completed which calculates the fission product poison buildup including the effects of radioactivity decay and can treat both seed and blanket conditions. Numerical results were obtained for both seed and blanket regions. These include additional poisons, based on reeent experimental work, that have not been included dn previous studies. During the resumption of full power at 4050 EFPH, a spontaneous fluctuation of behavior was similar to that observed during Seed 2 lifetime after a similar shutdown for zero power physics testing. For the Irradiated Fuel Reactivity Experiments, the analytical model for the interpretation of reactivity measurements was modified to incorporate both Doppler Broadening in the self- shielded resonance integrals and the augmentation of the fast flux introduced by fission within a sample. Two PWR-1 blanket type rods in the B4-10 loop test which failed after exposures of 13.9 x 10/sup 20/ fission/cc are being examined. Preliminary conclusions based on incomplete data indicate that one of the rods developed a cladding

• Research Organization: Westinghouse Electric Corp. Bettis Atomic Power Lab., Pittsburgh Page(s): 140
• DOE Contract Number: AT(11-1)-GEN-14
• NSA Number: NSA-16-030098
• OSTI ID: 4786969
• Report Number(s): WAPD-MRP-98
• Resource Relation: Other Information: Orig. Receipt Date: 31-DEC-62
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

REACTOR TECHNOLOGY
ALUMINUM ALLOYS
BLANKETS
BREEDING
BRITTLENESS
BURNUP
CHLORIDES
CHROMIUM ALLOYS
COMPUTERS
CONTROL ELEMENTS
COOLANT LOOPS
CORROSION
DECAY
DECONTAMINATION
DEFORMATION
DEPOSITS
DIFFERENTIAL EQUATIONS
FABRICATION
FAILURES
FAST NEUTRONS
FILTERS
FISSION PRODUCTS
FUEL CANS
FUEL ELEMENTS
HEAT EXCHANGERS
IMPURITIES
INCONEL ALLOYS
INSPECTION
LIQUID FLOW
MELTING
METALLURGY
NATURAL URANIUM FUEL
NEUTRON FLUX
NICKEL ALLOYS
NIOBIUM ALLOYS
NUMERICALS
OPERATION
PERFORMANCE
PIPES
PLANNING
POISONING
POWER PLANTS
PRESSURE
PRESSURE VESSELS
PROGRAMMING
PWR
RADIATION DOSES
REACTIVITY
REACTORS
RESONANCE ESCAPE PROBABILI