FFTF (Fast Flux Test Facility) fuel handling experience (1979--1986)
The Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF)is a 400 MW (th) sodium-cooled fast flux test reactor located on the Hanford Site in southeastern Washington State. The FFTF is operated by the Westinghouse Hanford Company for the United States Department of Energy. The FFTF is a three loop plant designed primarily for the purpose of testing full-scale core components in an environment prototypic of future liquid metal reactors. The plant design emphasizes features to enhance this test capability, especially in the area of the core, reactor vessel, and refueling system. Eight special test positions are provided in the vessel head to permit contact instrumented experiments to be installed and irradiated. These test positions effectively divide the core into three sectors. Each sector requires its own In-Vessel Handling Machine (IVHM) to access all the core positions. Since the core and the in-vessel refueling components are submerged under sodium, all handling operations must be performed blind. This puts severe requirements on the positioning ability are reliability of the refueling components. This report addresses the operating experience with the fuel handling system from initial core loading in November, 1979 through 1986. This includes 9 refueling cycles. 2 refs., 8 figs.
- Research Organization:
- Hanford Engineering Development Lab., Richland, WA (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76FF02170
- OSTI ID:
- 5916135
- Report Number(s):
- HEDL-SA-3626; CONF-8709450-1; ON: DE89014953
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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ENERGY SOURCES
ENERGY TRANSFER
EPITHERMAL REACTORS
EQUIPMENT
FAST REACTORS
FFTF REACTOR
FUEL ASSEMBLIES
FUEL ELEMENTS
FUEL PINS
FUELS
HEAT TRANSFER
HOT CELLS
IRRADIATION
LABORATORY EQUIPMENT
LIQUID METAL COOLED REACTORS
MATERIALS
NUCLEAR FUELS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR FUELING
REACTOR MATERIALS
REACTOR SAFETY
REACTORS
REMOTE HANDLING
RESEARCH AND TEST REACTORS
RESEARCH REACTORS
SAFETY
SODIUM COOLED REACTORS
SPENT FUELS
TEST REACTORS