Overview of the Integrated Pressurized Thermal-Shock (IPTS) study
By the early 1980s, (PTS)-related, deterministic, vessel-integrity studies sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) indicated a potential for failure of some PWR vessels before design end of life, in the event of a postulated severe PTS transient. In response, the NRC established screening criteria, in the form of limiting values of the reference nil-ductility transition temperature (RT{sub NDT}), and initiated the development of a probabilistic methodology for evaluating vessel integrity. This latter effort, referred to as the Integrated Pressurized Thermal-Shock (IPTS) Program, included development of techniques for postulating PTS transients, estimating their frequencies, and calculating the probability of vessel failure for a specific transient. Summing the products of frequency of transient and conditional probability of failure for each of the many postulated transients provide a calculated value of the frequency of failure. The IPTS Program also included the application of the IPTS methodology to three US PWR plants (Oconee-1, Calvert Cliffs-1, and HBRobinson-2) and the specification of a maximum permissible value of the calculated frequency of vessel failure. Another important purpose of the IPTS study was to determine, through application of the IPTS methodology, which design and operating features, parameters, and PTS transients were dominant in affecting the calculated frequency of failure. The scope of the IPTS Program included the development of a probabilistic fracture-mechanics capability, modification of the TRAC and RELAP5 thermal/hydraulic codes, and development of the methodology for estimating the uncertainty in the calculated frequency of vessel failure.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- NRC
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84OR21400
- OSTI ID:
- 6772228
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9009273-1; ON: DE91000733
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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