X-822 -+, 1. HRP Director's office * 20, | | ! t E. Ge "Re. D. D. L. Se D, DATE: SUBJECT: TO: FROM: . UNCLASSIFE ——— OAK RIDGE NATIONAL LABORATORY Operated By UNION CARBIDE NUCLEAR COMPANY OIS POST OFFICE BOX P 'OAK RIDGE, TENNESSEE ORNL C F- 57-k-92 CENTRAL FILES NUMBER April 8, 1957 Maintenance of Verious Reactor Types corvral L] Distribution ~ B. D. Draper e s . T, sptevar C Kitzes - - Adamson | ~ 22. R. B. Korsmeyer = L2. R. W. Stoughton Beall 23, Ko Ao Kraus . - k3. J. A. Swertout Bohlmann . 2hke Jo Ao Lome - Lbh. E. H. Taylor . Bruce - 25.- Ri E. Leuze ~U4S. D. G. Thomas . Burch © 26. R. B. Lindauer L6 D. S. Toorb Cheverton 27. M. I. Lundin " L47. We E. Unger Corpere 28 R, H. Lyon L8. R; Ven Winkle Culver - 29. J. P, McBride k9. €. E, Winters Dreper 30. E. F. McDuffie 50. F; Co Zapp Ferguson 3l. E. M. Mcleod 5l. fil. Doc. Ref. Iib., Y-12 Gabbard 32. R, A. McKees 52. Centrel Research Library Gall 33. E. C. Miller 53-Sk. REED Livrary (2) Griess 3k. E, 0, Furmd 55-57. Ixboratory Records (3) Earley - ~ 35+ L. Fe Parsly - 58. F. €. Moesel, AEC Baubenreich = ~ 36. R, C. Robertson 59+ M. J. Skioner M1l @ 37. A. M. Rom | 60-66. Westinghouse PAR Project (7) Jenks 38. H. C. Savage 67-81. TISE-AEC (15) fffl Keplen 39. Ce Ho Becoy - ' 2 Lo. ¢. Segaser | . Kasten - NOTICE This document contains information of a preliminary nature and was prepared primarily for internal use ot the Oak Ridge National Leboratory. It is subject to revision or correction and therefore does not represent a final report. : C UNCLASSIFIED EAN 1) 2 MAINTENANCE OF VARIOUS REACTOR TYFES UNCLASSIFIED I. INTRODUCTION N R : It has been & common prectice in the past to investigate maintenance tech- ‘niques and relsted equipment efter many reactor features were esteblished. This is especiallyftrue of some of the experimental end reseerch reactors; the operation and mintenance of which unfortunately comprise most of our ectual knowledge in thie field; @ese reactors did not have as their objective the demonstration of meintenance feaeibility. With this in mind, it cen be seen that meny proposed power reactorémaintenance concepts are Just what the name implies; idems, that may or may not be prectical until tried out under at least simlated reactor operating conditions . | In the abeence of predecessors in most cacges upon which plant layout and design may be :‘be.sed, it has been necessary to establish certein rules in order that these processes may proceed while further development work is done on compon- ents and concepts. There are certain basic maintemance fundamentels that ere common to all types of reactors that may be incorporated in s power producing \fecility. The various coh:ponents of en ideal system '.should be Lérouped end related in such a monner that the maintenance of .th'e ‘equipment is éadily accomplished. In adflition, the system should 'be convenient for operation and require & minimmn of manpower and cepital outlay to achieve the desired ob,jectives.‘ It can be seen then the necessity of mking an early study of maintena.nce procedures in order that the sulting design will produce & program integrated and ‘ba.lanced with other features of the pla.nt.- For this reason, & prima.ry pla.nt mintena.nce philosophy should be . developed at the ‘beginning of the layout work. II. TYPES OF MATNTERANCE ) | | | Basically;_there are only two types _of mintenence procedures. The direct type, which iszconfinon to conirentional steam plents,. mey be used ih some areas where the redioa.ctivity level 1is low enough In most parts of the plant, main- tenance w:l.ll of necessity be remote due to the high level of radioactivity. UNGLASSIFIED IINBMSSIHEB "Remote maintenance may be further subdivided into "wet” or "dry." In the "wet“ remote type of meintenance, after the equipment is shut down and :d.ra.ined, the a.rea is flooded -the roof removed e.nd maintenance is done by tools ' with long extension handles looking down through 1'5 or 20 feet of weter. However, a d.isadvanta.ge ig that where & piping system must be opened d.uring maintenance | ‘operations there is alweys the possibility that the shielding water can enter and contemt nate the system. With “drjr" remote maintenance, after the equipment is shut down and drained, .... »ma.nipuletors mounted. on cranes or remote tools operated from behind mobile 1ee.d shields are used. However, the present development of remote dry maintenance has " been 1 very limited.. In the pest, decontemination and direct maintenance have been relied upon to permit repair of equipment, but in & 500 mw hémogeneous plant, for ememple ’ ra.dia.tion levels of 106 roentgen can be expected in some areas, thus the inacces sihility for direct maintenance. III. APPLICATION For simplicity of description in this report, all reactor types are divided into two general.claeses, 1.e., solid fuel %ypes‘and circulating fuel types. It ;shall be our pnrpose to examine the verious reactor types in each classificetion for progress, fee.si'bility and problems still feced by the design in question. 'A. Solid. Fuel '.l‘ypes In general, 1t may be said that solid fuel type reactors are easier to 'minta.in than circu.‘l.sting fuel types.. This is due, of course, to the retention of the fission fragments and poisons within the cladding of the fuel elements. However, some isolid fuel reactors are more difficult to maintain than others. Examples are the 'boiling water reactors which due to steem sctivation and the presence of activated impurities and radicactive non-condensibles ( El6 and Ahl) in the coolant meke maintene.nce of the primary loop impossible during operation, UNCLASSIFIED ¥ ») ONCLASSFED. -and the sodiwn cooled reactors which contain highly active Na~ upon irradiation of the coola.nt. 1. Gas -Cooled Reactors An integrel part of maintenance on solid-fuel reactors is fuel handling associated wvith charging end discharging 'bhe unit at per:l.odic intervals. :This fuel handling equipment must be highly reliable since failure of certain ‘components may be very costly. Handling equipment is subjected to severe environ- mental conditions. In addition, the equipment must be resistant to radiation attack. Wi‘hh the exception of the Savannah River Rea.ctor, most experience ‘has been gained on charging reactors having horizontal channels for fuel elements. At Calder Ha.l]_. the channels are vertical and blind at the bottom, thus charging and d_.ischarg:i.ng must be accomplished from the top. Two mobile charging machines and two 'dischs;rging machines are provided for each reactor. The machines are electrieally firopelled end carry a winch end en electrically operated grab for 'ra.ising end lovering the fuel elements. When the magazine of the discharge machine 1s ioaded w:l.th spent fuel elements, it moves to & ecircular well through which the -nilagazine is loiwered to ground level and deposited in a shielded flask for trans- _poft.a.tion to the storage pond. The time required for the charge end digcharge of ‘one group of 1+ channels is about 1 1/% hours. There are six fuel elements per fchannel a.nd. a 'hota.l of 1696 channels to give some :I.dea of the work involved. At an early stage of the Ca.lder Hall design, it was decldsd that itime did not permit 'bhe development of & system that would permit charging end idischarging the reactor wh:lle running at full pwer, thus the operation 1is performed ‘e.'b shutdown a.nd. vith the un:l.t depressurized. A hazerd that must be guarded against in the operation of a solid fuel type ree.cfcor is the possi'bil:l.ty of a fuel element failure which ygn}g }_jelease fission produ@ts into the coolant 'system and ereate radistion hazards in the portion UNCLASSIFIED » » - UNCLASSIFIE of -the plant occupied by operating personnel. ths would, of course, add con- slderable conplications,in the maintenance of epmponents in the coolant circuit. At Calder Hall each of the 1696 fuel chanmels is provided with a stainless steel - tube which ‘bleeds off a small portion of the gas passing through the channel and carries it to monitoring devices vhich detect the presence of the released fission products. For the first 8 months of operation, only 2 slug fallures have occurred which is much lower than predicted. Thus the complete system of burst slug detection and fuel replece- ment,if somewhat cumbersome and leborious, is also quite reliable which was the desifl-ed goal.é " ~ An important feature of gas-cooled reactors from both design and main}tenance sta.ndpoints is the i‘reedom to use mild carbon steels throughout the reac]tor, hest exchanger and ductwork systems This results from the use of clean, non-corrosive gs.s coolent. | For the proposed gas-cooled sta.tions to be bhullt :Ln Gres.t Britein, the most significent advance in new designs is the introduction of fuel changing under load. It has been postulated that this a.bility to charge end di scharge fuel elements under full 1oad and without any interruption to the operation of the plant may prove to be one of the most :I.mportent factors in establishing the superiority of the gas-cooled reactor over other designs. At present, one of the :most serious obdections to the designs of 1iquid cooled reactors is the need to shut down in order to chs.nge fuel elements. 'I'his-is due to the h:l.gh operating " Apressure of liq_uid cooled reaétors. | '.Ehree of the four new designs utilize 8 conventional top loeding, however, it is proposed by the GEC-Simon Carves group to 1oad the I-hmterston plent (e 300 mr electric stetion) from the bottom of the remctor. This design -coupled with charging a.nd discharging under full load conditions represents quite an edvance over the Calder Hs.ll design.\ UNCLASSIFIED i i » e In genersl, maintenance of a gas-cooled réactor‘plant is feasible pince the radiation is kept below toleréncé-levels throughout most of the plant, and the burst-slug detection equipment should enable removal of & defective | elemant,befofe‘any serious contamination occurs. With the new designs, the gas- cooled reactors are placed in an even more favorable light as far as maintenance - is concerned. 2. Organic Resctors | Organic cooled and moderated reactors offer several advantages as far as pqwer%reactors are~éoncernEd. First, the lack of acti}ation of‘the coolént in conjunctiqn'with a good purification system could eliminate all secondary shielding. Secqnd, the low vapor pressure of organics which are being considered ~ for the coolant and.modérator results in reduced thickness of pressure véss&l and piping wall. 4Third, the relatively low corrosifieness.and good lubricating propert;es ofjdiphenyl have been confirmed and this considerably simplifies the materisl prdbiems by eliminating the customarily required stainless stéels(l). ~ One important uncertainty in this system is the rate at which the organic would;have to be replaced es a result of thermal and radiation damage. In any event, the stability limitations of the most radietion stable organic materials ~are such thai]a purification system must bé a part of any reactor design. This :damage of the%orgapic is noted because of the possibility of deposition on heat transfer sfirféces'df the products of decomposition. However, tests by the :California'Reéearch Corporation(z) 1nd1caté that‘po épprécidble-depositiofi occurs ?until a'pointiof consi§erablé decomposition is reached.‘ The purificétion system :should preven£ this occurrence. § MaintenanceawiSe"this reactor concept_is_pfomisihg. Centrifugal pumps with shaft seals cen be used-since the coolant is non-radiocactive and leakage is not a problem. This of course permits the use of conventional style pumps with théir greaterfbackground'of operstional and maintenance experience. The use of commercially available carbon steel pipe will result in initial savings on fabri- UNCLASSIFIED #n UHBMSS HE) ! cation plus easier maintenance after the plant is in operation. A plate~fin type heat exchanger has been proposed for application in an organic\reactor. The low pressure on both primary and secondary sides of the reactor nake this-feasible. Advantages claimed for this type of unit are im- - proved heat transfer, lower’fabnication costs as a result of eliminating large pressure shells,'and trouble~free operation:since all critical'welds, those which “would allow fluid to escape, are on the outside and readily accessible for repair. The signi‘ficantly lower welght of the plate-fin type heat exchanger should result in easier replacement of units should a gross feilure occur. 7 A disadvantage of an organic moderated and cooled reactor system is the need for%a heating system to prehest the loop. However, the melting point of diphenyl‘is 156°F which is considerably lower than the melting point of sodium and some of the fused salts used in other reactor types, and therefore should 7 present probiems of no greater magnitude than are faced.by‘these‘types. Only limited date is available costwise on operation and maintenance of an organic moderated reactor. For a 12.5 mv plant, operation and maintenance have been estimated to be 2.7 mills/kvh. \ In summary, an organic reactor plant should be one of the easier types to maintain for the following reasons ; accessibility to components since - extensive shielding is not required; use of conventional pumps ; ‘use of low pressure | carbon steel piping and components, and the possible application of conventional maintenance procednres to a large part of the plant. 3. Pressurized.Water Reactors A typical layout for 8 pressurized'water reactor consists of a | reactor and a number of cireulating coolant 1oops. Eme PWR, for example, has four coolant loops each 1ocated in & shielded‘compartment(s); The shielding is 'designed to'provide radiation protection, from adjacent loops and the reactor cell, to personnel fiho may be inside the compartment engaged in maintenance work. All UNGLASSIFIED v UNCLASSIFIED. _3 i of the loop eouipnent is located within the shield except the hydreulic inlet and . " outlet stop ve.lves. The installstion of hyd.raulic a.nd. na.:msl stop velves in each inlet - and outlet pipe provides double protection for personnel performing maintenance ‘work on & d.eiressurized and 'd.econtamino.ted.‘ coole.nt 1oop. In addition’, dra.in lines &are provid.ed. between es.ch get of d.ouble stop va.lves to reveel any leak through " the first va.lve. Any loop ma.y be drained. separately into the discharge system. Ai’ter drainage is complete » it can be decontaminated. by mea.ns of & chem:lca.l wash _ line. Once & loop has been d.rained end decontaminated, repa.ir personnel can enter - the loop canpartment and isolate the loop by means of the manue.l stop valves. Thus d.irect ma.intenance is possible on & 1a.rge portion of the circulating coolant loops. Accessibility to the core may be prov_'ided. by & water shield over the pressure | vessel » which is d.rained during operation. All work done in the reactor compartment , must be done remotely, working through the water shield.. The refueling of the reactor will be accanplished by e fuel handling crane, which is equipped. with impact wrenches 3 extra.ction tool 9 a.nd. transfer and hand.ling d.evices. A pro'blem faced in refueling all solid fuel type rea.ctors is ~ methods of hea.t remove.l from the core d.uring shutd.own. To remove the reactor hea.t _ during an unlosding opera.tion, a8 sepa.rate circuit is usua.lly provided. In this system primary water is pumped. through a.n extema.l heat exchanger thus removing | hea.t frm the core of the reactor. In eddition, when fuel elements are removed, - uneven coolant flow may result in the creation of hot spots in some | sreas of the : core. Further study is necessary to d.etemine the feasibility of ;plugging these | lea.kage paths d.uring rei’ueling(h). This problem of cooling the core would be of | even greo.ter magnitud.e ‘should the coolazrl: circule.ting pumps fail during oPers.tion. The costs for opera.tion s.nd maintenance of & pressurized. water reactor - pover plant .111 the ra-nge of 150 mw to EOan-.;hnve;.been estimated at 1 mill/kwh - (5,6). UNCLASSIFIED tmctssmm 2 - The feasibility of maintenance on & reactor of this design has been demonstrated b; Mtbe submarine reactor program end will be further exhibited when the Shippin@ort plent of the Buquesne ‘Power and ILight Company goes on the 1line. | | lu Boiling Water Reactors j | A boiling water reactor presents problems from & maintenance point of view due to steam activation and the presence of e.ctivated impurites in the coolant. The reactor vessel and supporting core structure will contain various emounts of induced. ectivity ase result of direct neutron irradiation. Hence 5 ‘the radiation levels cannot be lowered by decontamination processes. Structurel failures inside the reactor vessel could possibly be repaired by removal of fuel elements and i‘looding the vessel. Tools equipped 'with extension handles would ensble the repairs to be mede. If the resctor shouldfi fall, it would probably : -have to be removed and replaced with & new one. The problem of removing the vessel and subsequently storing or safely disposing oi' it has never been satisfactorily golved in any known reactor design. Apparently it is planned to solve this problem _ rrhen it occtirs. | | | | 'i‘he eqnipment' associated with the primary loop becames highly activated during operation » but should be’ 'e.cces'r'si'ble 's. short time after shutdown. . This is due to the q;uick decay of the a.ctivated stenm. sy activated impurities deposit in the circuleting 1oops during long periods of operation, decontamination by chemical washing would be required. This is true of the steam separation drums which should impose about the seme general mecha.nical problems as are encountered in large cs.pacity steam boilers s limited only by the presence of the radioactive - materiels adhering to the internal surfeces of the drums or lodged in the steam. separator elements. fflle nse of remote tools 1s not planned for these units(?) - Velves which are associeted with the stesm and slso the feedwater systems shou]d impose about the same maintenance problems as are i‘aced in any large capacity steam plant egain, limited by the residual radioactivity deposited on exposed surfaces. funt L CCIEIEN {2 UNGLéSSIHED 0 Since the steem to the turbine is radioactive and more corrosive than ordinery due to the carryover of oxygen released by dieassocietion of the wvater, . the turbine must be designed to be especielly lesk tight as well as unusually corrosion resis_tant. - Pue to the severe oxygen generation by rediation in the EBWR, eboutj 25 prm in the wuter, -the cerbon steel steam pipes and turbines have ‘been nickel plated since start-up. The radiastion levels near the turbine complicates theus of p&ventive meintenence procedures s & fact which further decreases the - probability ‘of long periods of trouble free opere.tion. Thus the requirements of high integrity and complice.tion of design add considembly to the cost of plent construction and maintene.nce. | Hhen the turbine or condenser require maintenance they are decon- tamineted by filling with hot we.ter, vhich 1s circukted at & slow rate for a number of hours while the turbine is rolled 'by the turning: gea.r. After several citrie _e.cid_ 1ir,_e,shies ;. finnl water wash is made ei‘ter which the turbine a.nd con- denser ney be inspected. The time required for decontamination could - extend to severa.l dn.ys should the e.ctivity remain egbove tolerance levels. This undesire.ble : dele.y time is common o all decontamination processes and hence eny ree.ctor designl that tends to spread e.ctivity throughout the system is inviting 1onger ple.nt oute,ges e.nd higher maintenence coste. One edventage of the boiling water ree,ctor plent from & main- tens.nce ste.ndpoint is tha.t since the operating pressure is lover than the 2000 pei pressurized water reector, the pressure vessel end prime.ry loop ccmponents | ‘are easier to fa.'bricete. Procurement of components 18 e:lso eesier since they moxe closely epproech stock items. ‘ In stmmary, it may be seid ths.t 8 boiling vater reector presents | - more maintene.nce problems than ge.s cooled or pressurized weter reectors due to incree.sed ectivity levels throughout the circuleting loop e.nd the difficulty of access to components as & result of incree.sed shielding requirements. However, . 'eerly operetion of the EWR indicetes thet redioactive steem is less of & problem . muusmifl o I % “NBL&SS\HEII - u than feared - the activity level o? the stesm les.ving the res.ctor being on the order of 5000 times lesg than the s.ctivity of the water in the core(s) . This, of course, benefits the maintena.nce program - 5. Sodium Graphite Reactors _ Sodium graphite res.ctors are not strietly speaking. comps.ro.ble to. the solid fuel: rea.ctors ths.t have been described previously. ‘.The difference is that . .when Sodium is used &8 & coolent ..in e heterogeneous reactor, it hecomes highly; rsdioectitr'e ’due to the fom‘ation of Heeh as 8 result of neutron capture. This radioactive isotope hes 8 15 hour helf: life snd emits in s.ddition to 'bete particles, two gamna photons of fs.irly high energy, namely, 1.38 and 2.75 mev. As & result 'y maintensnce problems s.re increased s.nd shielding ie necessary for piping pumps s &nd hest exchengers. This condition is somewhet similar to s eirculeting fuel homogeneous reactor with the exception ths.t the ra.dioactive sodium produces no induced ectivity in the piping, vs.lves y OY conta.inment vessels. i!he volume to 'be shielded ma.y be decreesed by the use of a secondsry cools.nt ’ which leeves only the primsry circulating loop requiring : extensive shielding. Thie is. noted becense meintensnce of shielded equipment ig _ alweys complicated due to its inaccessibility. Coneeptus.l desi.gns of sodiwm graphite rea.ctor pls.nts usus.lly pla.ce the res.ctor core in a lsrge diameter steel- tenk ’ often located helow ground o .The circulating sodium coola.nt is divided into separate s.nd independent loops and flows froun the core to intemediate hest exchs.ngers, Tt is proposed to ' contain these loops in individusl ehielded vaults around the reactor tank and - below ground 1eve1(9) These individus.‘lly shielded comparhnents pemit '7 maintensnce on a.ny one of the loops without complete shutdown oi’ the plant. _This is contingent of course on the nonlea.kage of the nainstop vs.lves on each loop and the e.'bility to drs.in the sodium from the 100p requiring maintenance. 'After draining the radioactive sodium, the 1oop is flushed with clea.n sodium to remove any ectivity s.dhering to the pipe wslls or creviees in components. If | uflmssmm #t WASSIFIED 12 some aetivity remains after fluehing , 1t probably will be necegsary to wait until the m-"a.ell decays to tolerance levels. " A feature of 1liquid metal coolant reactors is that pump maintenance should be simplified. The electro-magnetic pump, having no moving parts, should zjequire less maintepance than conventional pumps and this is importent because the pumps may be contaminated with redicective materisls. Since oxygen free liquid sodium doee not attack steinless steels &t temperatures below 1110 degree F, failures of loop components due to metal afitack gshould be reduced. However, the temperature of the fuel elements of the Sodium Reeeter Experiment run as high as laoo/degrees F, and it is Loped that the mass transfer occurring in steel a.t ;th_is tempera.ture can be controlled by cerbain additives. ‘I'he sodium tempera.ture oA leaving the core however, is only 960 degree F. Fuel handling and charging nresent 'prorblemsv similer to those faced by other reactor designs using solid fuel elements. The basic need is to find materials, cledding especially, that are suita.'ble for use in molten sodium. __ Estimates of general operation and maintensnce costs for a 160 mw, electricaf’, sodium graphite resctor planf range in the area of 1 mil/kwh, which is in line with other solld fuel‘reaetor designs, One factor which might cause an upwvard trend in thie figure is the problem of heating the syetem; Sodium hee & melting point of 208 degrees F and therefore it is neeeSSary to first raise the te‘mperature of 'the syetem from ambient to at least 208 degrees F in ord.er to allow filling end circulating of the sodium. This can be d.one with mmers:lon heaters (only 1f the system is full), claxn shell pipe hea.ters ’ resista.nce heater wr&pping or 60 eycle induetion heating. The latter e being advocs.ted for the EBB-II because cf 1ts promise of greater relia.bility. - Induction hea.ting of a. non-ferritic stainless steel system requires ‘bhe :Lnsta.llation of & carbon steel shell around a.ll the piping and components. This shell plus the insulstion and. the copper vire wrapped eround the outside to provide the hea.ting presents seversl barriers to cross if maintenance is required on the system Maintenance would be es;pecially cxmberscane should. it have to be UNGLASSIFIFD # UNCLASSIFIED 5 ~ done remotely. In summary, & sodium graphite reactor should be as eesy to maintain as & boiling water reactor plent with the possible exeeption_of the hinderances caused by the heating elements attached to the system. 6 Faet Reactors * | Fest reaetore generelly present all the problems essocia.ted with Sodium cooled reactors plus several unique problems of their own. large fest ~ breeder resctors generating electric bawer rlece gevere burdens on equipment. This is espeeia11y true of the fuel handling facilities which‘must'be'deeigned for a high Qegfee of relidb;lity. | As & reeul;_of frequent shutdowne\fer fuel replecement,‘ofiee‘per veek for the 100 mw electric Enrico Fermi Atafiie Plant at startup, the fuel handling eystem:m&st1ncom§o:ate‘eutdmafie, remote oferated, fast moving com- ponents 1# the system. The use of sodium a8 e'coolanf adds_additicnal problems of seaiing penetrations 1n,the resctor shield in order to keep the eodiemrand its assoeiated'vepore‘contained'with;n the vessel end free fram contamination, The resultantrfuel handling sysfem ie_cemplex, costly, and not.adaptable‘to other reactor typee. fuithermore, the system as designedefe; the above mentioned plant - can never refuel the reaetor‘while_under 1oad.. It cammot be said that a fast reector can.hever‘be‘refueledfinder'load,»heWEver, the eqmpaetness of-the machine makes the removal of g fuel element rieky sinee there may'not he—enough excess ' reactivity'pmesent to,sustain criticality. Thia is contrasted to & gas-cooled | reactor of sfimilar lew pressure whieh due to 1ts lerge bulk, ir using natural uranium, y have fuel elements remaved end the loss campensated for bw'the control reds, thus enebling recherging'while under 1ami ; In order to reduce the radiation effeet on the cumponente of the fuel handling and control.mechanisme, a8 much of the equipment a8 possible should be laceted ontside the biologieal shield° Extensions are then required to reach - UNGLASSIFIED #\ <) ’th:otigh this shield and to the reactor which is ‘submerged under several feet of sodium. It becomes apparent then that if & malfunction occurs, either in the fuel handling or in the control mechanims during operation or refueling; the following problems will be faced by meintensnce personnel: - | 1. Teuperature ebove the submerged resctor core is more then 700 - degrees F even during shutd.own for refueling.. 2. Sodium is opaque and this mee.ns tha.t mach of the equipment within the reac'bor vessel cannot be geen. The internal heet generation of the fuel elments mekes it mpossible to drain the sodium during & shutdown. This clearly points up the need \for relieble mechanisms inside the vessel. 3« Induced sctivity in mechenisms inside the vessel and the continued activity of the core require remote methods of maintenance, thus only minor repair is possi‘ble within the reactor vesael. However, since sll electrical components and d.ri.ves ere located outside the biologica.l shield in en erea of low rad.ia:bion, most maintenance of thia equiment 18 poesible by direct means. ' The ‘operating cost for & 500 mw fast bree.der reactor plant heve been estimated to be 1 mill/kwh(lo) In summary, e fast ‘breed.er reactor power pla.nt requires the 1nsta.lla.tion oi' & eomplex a.nd expensive (estimated. a.t $1, 500,000 for the Enrico Fermi: Atcmic Pla.nt) fuel handling system The opera.tion a.nd ma.intena.nce of the plent ‘should gpgse problems of no greater magnitude tha.n are faced by other reactor ty:pes using liqfii& netals as ‘ébola.nts. Hawever, 1n eny 1nsta.11ation where complex eom;ponents operate and remain in unfa.vora‘ble enviromnents 9 traubles are 1nvited to & hrger degree than weuld. he present under more favemble ccnditions. B, Circulating Fuel Reactors _ ’.Ehe maintemnce of circulating fuel reactors is cemplicated due to the spreading of ectivity throughout the system a.nd. a8 & result 3 remote maintenance is a necessity. Because of the spread of thie high level activity, 11: may ‘be said that circula.ting fuel reactors as & cla.ss aere ha.rder to maintein than the solid UNCLASSIFIER UNGLASSIFIED 15 fuel type of reactors described previouslyo 1. Aqueous Homogeneous Fuel Reactor In & resctor of this type, ajueoue fuel solutions of uranium-selts are circulated 'bhrough ‘a core vesgel where criticality occurs end thence through en external heat exchanger and back through & cenned :eo;hor pump to the core. The fuel golution leaving the core is no longer criticel lbut does continue to emit deleyed neutrons, which cause radicactivity to be induced in all parte of the circuleting system. HMost of the metal present in the componente and connecting pipe is 'stei'filess.steel. Ari:er one dey'e decay time, the activity remeining in stain- less steel is largely due to cobalt fihieh hag 'a.‘ 5,3 year half-life ; hence the speeia.l care reguired for meititenance operations. | If the circuleting fuel is kept below the critical velocity, an oxide £ilm will form on the internal surfaces of the system and elthough this is beneficial ;frmn the standpoint of reduced eerrdsiqn attack, it also ig & source of depogited a.c't:ivity vhen the system is dra.inecl for maintensnce., Tt ig hoped" tfiet d_e'co:;teminatien by acld rinses will remove moet of ‘this deposited _aetiv:l.ty, ~hov}rever, the presence of the induced sctivity in the mefa.l precludes any direct maintenance. The. question may erise as.to‘ the feasibility of operating and main- -haining 8 -hcfiogeneeus reactor plant. Westinéhouse Electric Corporation in conjunction with Tfie Pemisylva.nia Pow‘er e.nd Light Ccmpa.ny had. efiuflies "mde of this phase of the proposed Pennsylva.nia Adva.nced Reactor (PAR) Pro,ject (1 ,12) Thege analyses ind.i- cated that ma.intenance is feasible. Hdwever, the maintenance philestaphs‘ of this large sca.le , 150 mw electric, reactor plent differs wid.ely frcm tha.t employed on the experimental reactors constructed to de.te. It we.s decid.ed. ea.rly in the design ste,ge of the PAR not to rely c cn remote ‘wet maintenance for the follwing reesons: :(13) 1. Eydrostatie pressures imrelved 1n flooding the plant require increased. structural strengbh in the shielding and vapor container, 2. Ificreased. c.est-s in 8ll electrical equix.ment end ixistnzfien- tation f,or_waterproef construction. “NGL ASS'HEB hat Y UNCLASSIFIED 8 3. Poseibility that shielding water can enter and conteminate - the system. k. Deley ‘time necessary to allow large pieces of equipment to . cool down before being submerged in éhielding vater to avoid thermal shock. " As & basic temant of the maintenance philosophy, it was decided thet only large components such es steam generators would be repaired in place, that 1is, within the vepor shiélq.. The preferred maintenence procedure for all other items is to disconnect the faulty cofiponents es quickly as possible and replace with & spare unit and t.hen decontaminate and repair the faulty unit and use it es & spare This philosophy has limitations since e large ce.pital investment is required for stocking stand.by equiment. For this reegon, &ll four fuel circus | la.ting loops of the PAR will be of the seme "ha.nd thus pemitting & smaller stock of replacement parhs. | Another decision mede eerly in the PAR design progrem was to eliminate 8ll flanges end velves in the main 20 inch diemeter fuel circulsting loops; The‘refore‘, efter the plent goes critical, eny maintenance req_uiring' cutting the main ,lo‘op ie dependent uppn the develomment of successful remote positioner, cutter-grinder, welder, and inspection devices. Sizice one might say ‘the future successful operation and maintenance of the plant depend.s upon these d.evices, .;"'Westinghcmse :l.s comitted to & sizable develolzuent program in thie respect. BStudies heve ind.icated that remote welding end insPection are feasi‘ale(lh-) Problems s‘cill to be solved. in the homogeneous reactor design that | te gome exbent are -common to all reaetors a.re 1. Insulation - When mwtion is placed on canpcnents and 'piping it no'c om.y presents a problem a.s fa.r as remaval with remote tools 1is ) concerned, but it. also hid.es the locatien and size of & defect. Easily detachable pre=fomed. insula.tion may be the answer to this problem. 2. Stea:n Generator Ma.intenance Equipment - Detection of & 1eak1ng tu’be in & stea.m genera.tor containing hund.reds of tubes has never been sa.tisfactorily ~ UNGLASSIFIED < UNCLASSIFIED 17 regolved. After the leaking tube is found, plugging by remote means presents further difficulties. Vertical steam generstors may help slleviate this problem. 3. Repair of components - Faulty pieces of equipment, such &s eirculeting pumps, when removed from the reactor will be radioactive end hence if .they ere to be salvaged, must be repaired using remote tools end menipulators. These toole should be rugged end relieble in operetion in order to complete the repair job once it has sterted. Techniquee will have to be developed for the epplicetion of these remote tools to every item in the plent as most will have to be either replaced or repairgq. during the lifetime of the plant. Swsll items of equipment Amigfit be scrapped rather than repaired economically. Estimates on the maintenance costs of homogeneous reactor plants vary fram 0.70 mills/lwh to e figure of from 2 to 5 times the operating end maintensnce costs of a cdnparable fossil fired stesm plent. The estimate of 0.70 mills/kwh was besed on 1 per cent per year of the capital investment of the turbine- generstor plant plus 3 per cent per year of the ca.pitél investment of the reactor plant. It vas estimated that maintenance of the reactor plant would be of the same order costwise as that of an industrial chemical processing plant(ls). The estimate of 2 to 5 times the cost of & fossil fueled plent was based on the observation that maintenance perfomed with remote tools a.nd panipulators plus the possible limited working time of personnel due to radiation levels would involve longer periods of down time. | | - As & group ’ circulating fuel rea.c'bors are the most difficult to maintain. A survey of pro;pesed homogeneous circula.ting fuel resctors reveals that the present philosophy is directed toward remote dry maintenzmce. This method of maintenance depends e.lmost entirely on the use of remotely operated toole and equipment which at the present are ,just entering the d.evelopment stage. It seens quite pro'ba'ble that & year will be required before an evaluation can be made of thisg development program. 2. Fused Salt Homogeneous Reectors The use of & fused selt homogeneous reactor system hes been proposed UNCLASSIFIED crx L m— _— e - * flNBlASSlFIEB | 18 for the attainment of high temperatures without the necessity for excessive pressures, A ree.ctor of this design reta.ins most of the good features of & circulating fuel reactor with the a.d.ded fea.ture of low pressure components. One of the dised- venteges a.cqmired however, is the neceSsity i’or heeting the circulating loop, dump tanks, and other components in which the fused salt might be present. The problem is more difficult than that faced for exemple in sodium cooled reactors becausge the selts usually have & higher melting point. ‘I'he capacity of the pre- _- hee.ting equipment should be lerge enough to raise the loop temperature to at least 1000 degrees F. K feasibility study on & fused salt reactor plent has been made by the Ok Ridge School of Reactor: Technology(ls) A duplex-oompertanented ghielding ~ design was e.dopted to fit thei_r philosophy the.t no maintenance vill be performed inside the conteinment_ vessel while the reactor is eriticel. | The erra.ngement of the plent pls,ccs the resactor, primary hee.t ex- changers, a.nd fuel dump tanks within the primary shield. Located in six shield.ed. comparinnents ;a.ro_und the primary systen are | the pmimary loop sodium circulating pumps, expension tanks, drain end charge tanks, and intermediate heat exchangers. Outside the shielding but isoleted to prevent spreading of fires. in case of sodium leaks a.re the steem genere.tors e.nd. intemédiete sodium pumps. | The primary shield is desigied to proteet personnel i‘rom decay b ge.mmas only, :since maintena.nce will not be performed. while the reactor is in ‘ operstion. Provisions are ma.de for dra.ining and flushing the sodium from individual | 'intemedia.te hea.t exchanger circuits so that no radio‘ective sod:l.um 1is within the ‘ compartment where meintenanoe 1is to be perfomed. The sides of the ra.die.l com~ po.rtments serve &s shields o.nd. provid.e protection i’rom dccs.y gemns.s from the redioactive sodium in ad,jacent compartments. As & result, it is not necessary : | to drain all the prima.ry loops when only one circuit req_uires maintenence. The equipment outs_ide the contaimment vessel is non-radioe,ctive and may be maimta.ine'a in the conventional ,me.nmer. : Haintenance of the equipment UNGLASSIFIEB UNGLASSIFIE 2 inside the cohte.iment vessel and shielded areas will require remote tools and techniques. The major items vhich will require this special equiment ere the fuel circulating pumps, primery heat exchanger tube 'bundles s intermediate heat excha.nger tube bundles, end primery circuit sodium circula.ting PUMpE . - Access to the fuel circuleting pumps and primery heat exchanger tube bundles 15‘ through an openins in the top shield plug.-. Feulty pumpe csn be removed and replaced by spare units whieh will be kept on ha.nd. . The maintenance of the primry heat excfi@ger tube bHundles poses nore difficult problems. A leek in a tube bundle would introduce sodium into the fused fluoride selt fuel solution and dilute it, which might be onemethod of identifying & lesk. However, the methods of determining which bundle is leaking end consequently remotely cutting the feed lines to that bundle end blenking them off by wvelding heve not yet been developed. It is hoped that meintenance on the intermediate sodium systems cean be perfome_;l directly in the shieldgd compart:me_nts sfter dralining and flushing the radiosctive sodium from the loop. | | ¥While this is only one of severa.l_ proposed designs for fused salt homogeneous rgacbr systems, it illusltrates most of the maintensnce problems faced; na mely, 1ndu¢¢d activity in a.]_l_l components touched fiy the circulating fuel, decreased acceissifi_ility to prima.ry and intermediate 'loopé' as & result of shielding, a.nd. f:lnaliy difficulty of eccess to faulty componex;jf_ ahbuld 8 method. such a8 inducffi'on hea;ting ’be used &s & means of preheating. Maintenance costs for 2 plant of this type will ;probably run higher then for an a.queous homogeneaus reactor plant i’or the a.bove reasons. | 3. Liquid Metal Fueled Reactor Qne of the many reactor concepts which appear ‘prgmising for electric power production is the liquid metal fuel reactor und.er development at Brookha.ven fiationa.l I.abcra.tory. A stud.y(l7 )'by the Babcock and Wilcox Company indicates the feasibility of & reactor of this design. Included in the study program was the UNGLASSIFIED IINL‘LASSIFIEB : = engineering design of & reactor which generates 550 mw of heat. - _Mo.intenonce of e liquid metel fuel reactor will not be easy. Most of the problems faced in' en aqueous homogenous system are present in this reactor type; namely, Induced activity in all oomponents' due to deleyed neutron emission form the circulating fuel, extensive ahieldirlg requi:ed because of activity in the primary system end Polonimn210 ; and the refiuireme’ot of & leak tight system to oonte,_ih the ectiveteo. i’uel end Po210, In -a.d.dition, heating facilities are required for the piping and componente, thus edding to tlie maintenance problem. ‘ The oomplexity of the hea.ting problen may be illustrated in the following mazmer. Should the heaters feil after the reactor hes been crit.ica.l for some time, the d.ecay heet_ of the fuel plus the expangion vol\nneo in the blanket and fuel systems ehould prevent .e‘olidifioe.tion of the fuel and blanket liquids with their accompanying volumetric expeneione. However, 1f the heeteis failed during sta.rtup ) no decey hee.t would be present to prevent solid.ifioa.tion end o serious fa.ilure could occur. The resulte of thie possi‘olity are duplice.te hegter eircuits and sta.ndby emergency dieoel-generetor sets. | The use of ehield.ed. eanpar‘%ente for the eireule.ting locps in the iotermeo.iete system will pemit_the ieole.tion of & single feulty intermediate -heo.t ex'cbanger;or primary coolent"plmp‘ However, even after & period of cooling off and deconteminetion the equipment will etill be quite ective as & result of ‘indueed aotivity end the preeenoe of- fiesion and corrosion produets which reme.in e.fter deeontemioatioe. Removel of the equipment will of neoessity be & remote operation am will be tiiffieult et best. » o As is the eese with aqueous homogeneous reaetore , the success of the meintenence effort will depend. to e lerge degree upon the development of remote outting, weld.ing, end inspeotion d.eviees. - | It 18 understood the.t d.esign ple.nning for the IMFR 18 progressing even though the problem of pitting on the insid.e of loop components hes not been resolved. The oignirieo.noe of thie problem on the naintenance aspecte of the plent “NBLASNHEB | IIHBLASSIFIEB ' | 2 could be important eince heretofore corrosion, 1f 1t be that ) Wes not coneidered 28 dcsign problom. | : In the qpcratbn and maintenance of 8 reactor plant using bismuth as & fuel carrier, certain hazardous conditions exist bocausc of the formation of ,P Z0unich 1s toxic end hardto contein. For this reason, the lesk tightness of the cystem.must be of & high lcvel of integrity. operating and.maintenanoc costs of the 550 mw liqnid.mctal reactor plent proposed in.tho-Babcock and Wilcox foasibility‘study are 0.60 mills/kwh. In view of thc complexity of the maintenance problcms faccd this appears to be & ‘rether lOW'figurc | | | | | ;_Summariging, it mig#t'bc_soidithfit e plent of thio design would be one of thc 'most difficult 'i-.y;se's to ’maintain‘. | 'Activity tfirou@ofit the system rcquircs shiclding which in turn reduoes acccssibility to componcnts, hcating requiremcnts edd to the oporational and.maintcnance problcms, and the formotion of | Poalorccessitatcs & leak tight cystem The possibility of corroflbn or'mass tranafer 'of mctal could rcduce tho life cxpcctcncy of the cqnipmont and increasc the maintcnancc ‘eosts. ‘ | : | e - - Maintcnnnco of rcactor powcr plants is morc complex than convontional foseil -.fircd steam turbo-gencrator plarts becausc of thc prcsencc of radioactivity either localized in thc rcactor vcsocl or scattercd throughout thc circulating loqps dcpcnding upon thc rcactor typc.: It-is obvious that thc easicst syatems to opemte and mo.intain aro those vhich pemit thc use. of convcntionc.l tocls and tech- :niqucs on & largc portion of thc rcactor auxiliarics. Following is e liat of ) ‘rcactor power plant typos, arrangcd in ordcr of increaoing difficulty of maintcn- _."anee 1n the opinion of the suthor with advantages end disadvantages maintenance- visc of each, r £ UNGLASSIFIED e - il mReen el iacn e o e———— - = - od [ S U OSSR e A e e e e e e sttt ol UNCLSSIFEp. 22 | ABVAHTAGES Low pressure system piping and components o _Clea.n and H,onfccrrooive coolant Use of ‘etaioiess steels not required .' Permite fuel che.ngiing under load Coolant dées xiot become redioactive ‘Some Operating and meintemnce experience a.vailable from Calder Hell | Activity 1imited to\rea.ctor vessel No induced a.ct;iv_ity in pipi’hg end components- : | : DISABVAETAGES Fo d.isa.dvantages apparen’c compa.rc.ble to other reactor types oacmxc;fioofl'amm " onmmors | ‘I.ow pressure system piping and ccmponents Non-corrosive coola.nt | Uge of stainless steels not required. in piping or a.uxilieries COolant does not ’become rodioe.etive unless 'l'.here is e leaka.ge of steam into coole.nt Activity is 1imited to rea.ctor vessel Fo induced. activity in piping and components | DISADVAH‘I’AGES " ,_ Orga.nic decomposes under radietion requ‘iring p'uriricetion and make-up _Possibility of decomposition prod.ucfie depositing on heat exchanger surfa.ces Fo. satiefaetory meta.ls are ava.ila.ble for uee as fuel element cledding and reector vessel materiel in: orga.nic coclants - : o , _ UNCLASSIFIED . UNCLASSIFED 25 ' PRESSURIZED WATER ‘Relatively non-corrosive ‘coolant coola.nt does not 'become rediocactive \ With exception oi' corrosion prodncta, aetivity ghould be concentrated in reactor vesgel : ‘Shielded canpar‘hnents a.llow meintena.nce to be carried out on an individual loop without shuttingdown the ‘entire system No induced ectivity in piping e.nd components | nmvmmem Eigh pressure piping end components required . COrrosion products become radioactive and ma.y settle out in auxilinries s however, wvater rinses should reduoe a.ctivity level to tolene.nce 1imits for meintenance Bteinless steels required in primary 1oops High opereting pressure ma.kes fuel cha.nging nnder load elmost an impossiblity BOILING WA‘EE{B AIJVAHEEAGES Low pressure piping a.nd components permissible No induced e.etivity in piping e.nd. components nzsmvmmens | 3 | »Stee.m ectiva.tion req_nires extensive shielding vhic.h reduces emount of preventive maintena.nce pos si‘ole ) Steinless stee].s required in primery oystem Corrooion prodncts become activa.ted and deposit in system, requireing deoontam- ine.tion before maintene.nce is possible Oxygen cerry-over neceositetes corrosion reoista.nt turbines a.nd euxilia.ries. - sonmm GRAPHITE | ADVANTAGES | : No induced e.ctivity in piping e,nd canponents S S -Sodium is non-corrosive in the -a.'bsence of oxygen lep me.intene.nce should be easier if electro-magnetic pumps e.re perfected _:,ow preseure Piping end cmnronents permigsible . “flBLiSS‘F‘EB E‘ woussres DISADVANTAGES Formetion of Ne. mekes cools.nt highly radicactive Possibility of sod.ium-we.ter reaction present Heating facilities are necesss.ry on cimule.ting system a.nd storage te.nks to keep sodium in & liquid phase Stainless steel piping e.sd ggn;ponents are required | FAST REACTOR ADVANTAGES Low pressure piping and components permissible No induced e.ctivity in piping snd components Pumps end hes.t exchangers cen be desigmed to be removed. without cutting pipes , or draining systen ' , . Sodium 1s non-corrosive in the a'bsence of oc:ygen BISADVANTAGES Stainless steel piping end cmnponents req_uired Expensive s.nd complex i’uel hs.ndling system required. Frequent down time i’or refueling Possibility oi‘ sodimn-we.ter reaction present Hea.ting facilitbs necessary to keep sod.ium in liquid phase Coolsnt becomes, redioactive due to fomation of | fla‘?'h under irre.:lis.tion AQUEOUS E@’LOGMOUS | mes Continuous i‘uel processing should reduce down time Absence of control rod.s eliminates the essocieted ms.intens.nce req_uirements | BISADVAN‘]!AGES Induced detivity in ell }setals touched by the i‘nel solution Stainless steels required throughout system ‘ Eigh pressure piping end components required. Cimuhting i‘uel solution 1s both corrosive end rs.dioactive UNCLASSIFIED flflfil.mSlFlEfi - = A very lesk tight system 18 required Film formation on inside of piping end suxilia.ries mey be hard to remove ut : Equipment and. techniques not perfectea. for remote cutting, velding end inspection | of pipe ' | » - FUSED mm&ocmous Anvmmsss | - Low pressure fpiping end components permissible | | No induced s.ctivity in sodium systems | | DISABVANTAGES '_Sts.inless steel required. throughout the system . I.s.rge hee.ting capacity necessary to keep fused. se.lt in 1iquid phase Remote cutting, welaing end inspection equipment mot yet developed % Possibility oi‘ sod.ium-ws.ter reaction | LIQUID PETAL FE)EL REACTOR I | | Anmmcns B Low pressure ;piping and components permissa.‘ole Continuous fuel processing possible | DISABVAETAGES | -Induced. a.ctivity in all metals touched. 'by fuel | : _'Hcs.ting fscility necessary to keep sod.ium in liquid phase _ | 210 Requirement of extremely 1eek tight system_ due to the i‘oms.tion of Po if | bismuth ig useci as & fuel ca.rrier UNCLASSIFIED ONCLASSIFIED 26 BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. G. A. Frewd end H. P. Iekenderian, ANL-5583, Classified. Y 2¢ Re 0. Balt end J. G Garroll, Sumary E'valuation of Organics as_Reactor | Hodemtor-coola.nts s AECD-3T11. _ . e 3. PHR Prel_iM~. Design Beport, WAPD-112, k. KAPL-1623, Classified. . -+ De WIAP-13, ¢lasaif1ed. 6. nmeomeg,'- Yolume 1k, Number 8, August 1956, p. T2+ 7. W. K. ncIean end M. X, Glfia.rottino, G111, Classified. 8. Hueleom.cs, Volume 15, Number 3 (March 1957), p. ES. 9. -DOW-EB~55001-1-S, Classified. ‘ - 10, EBR-II Dea;E, TIB-7506, Part I. ‘ o, 1. Mlvania Advansed Reactor Maintenance Study, American Machine and Foundry e T Company, Job Order Wumber T7743. | e 15.- _M' Progress Relaart) WGAP—&OO b, A Feasibility Beport for the Remote Disassenbly end Assembly of Nuclear Reactor B _E% Cayuga Machine mdrabrieatingcomam‘ 15 H. G. ea.rson and L. H. Iandnm, EPG«-112, elassified. 160 Re We- mflEE, D. He Ffimr, Wt AQ Frefierick: Ko Bt Goller, Io G‘I‘Eflet, Ge. Bo .Schneid.er and Fo W, mbk:e, =-56-l-20 classifled., | - 7. ‘BAW-E, classified. * UNGLASSIFIED