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Passive thermal shutdown seal enhances safety of nuclear plants
NEWS
Editorial Office: Elsevier Ltd The Boulevard, Langford Lane Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, UK Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 Web: www.sealingtechnology.info Publisher: Greg Valero E-mail: Editor: [email protected] Simon Atkinson Tel/Fax: +44 (0) 1904 655944 Editor: Simon Atkinson E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1904 655944 Editor: Bob Flitney E-mail: Technical [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1588 661056 Technical Editor: Bob Flitney E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1799 501659 Production Support Manager: Lin Lucas E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Production Support Manager: Lin Lucas Editorial advisory board: E-mail: [email protected] 9VES "IREMBAUT & s #YRIL 8 ,ATTY & Editorial advisory board: !MRAT 0ARMAR 5+ s 2ICHARD & 3ALANT 53! 9VES "IREMBAUT & s #YRIL 8 ,ATTY & 7OLFGANG 3CHÚPPLEIN $ s 3HUZO 3EYA * !MRAT 0ARMAR 5+ s 2ICHARD & 3ALANT 53! 3COTT 3VENDSEN 53! s $R "RIAN 3 %LLIS 5+ 7OLFGANG 3CHÚPPLEIN $ s 3HUZO 3EYA * Subscription Information Scott Svendsen (USA) An annual subscription to Sealing Technology includes 12 issues and onlineInformation access for up to 5 users. Subscription Prices: An annual subscription to Sealing Technology includes 12 1273 for online all European countries Iran issues and access for up to 5 &users. US$1427 Prices: for all countries except Europe and Japan ¥169 1215100 forfor all Japan European countries & Iran (Prices valid 31 December US$1362 for until all countries except2012) Europe and Japan To subscribe ¥161 400 forsend Japanpayment to the address above. Tel: +44valid (0)1865 (Prices until 843687 31 March 2012) or www.sealingtechnology.info To via subscribe send payment to the address above. Subscriptions run843687/Fax: for 12 months, the date payment is Tel: +44 (0)1865 +44from (0)1865 834971 received. Email: [email protected], or via www.sealingtechnology.info. Permissions mayrunbeforsought directlyfrom fromthe Elsevier Global Rights Subscriptions 12 months, date payment is Department, received. PO Box 800, Oxford OX5 1DX, UK; phone: +44 1865 843830, fax: +44 1865 853333, email: [email protected]. You may also contact Rightsdirectly directly from through Elsevier’s homeRights page Permissions may Global be sought Elsevier Global (www.elsevier.com), first ‘Support & contact’, then +44 ‘Copyright Department, PO Boxselecting 800, Oxford OX5 1DX, UK; phone: 1865 & permission’. In 1865 the USA, users [email protected]. clear permissions and make 843830, fax: +44 853333, email: You payments throughGlobal the Copyright Clearance Center,Elsevier’s Inc., 222home Rosewood may also contact Rights directly through page Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; phone: +1 978 750 8400, fax: +1 978 (www.elsevier.com), selecting first ‘Support & contact’, then ‘Copyright 750 4744, and inInthe through themay Copyright Licensing Agency & permission’. theUKUSA, users clear permissions and Rapid make Clearance (CLARCS), 90 Tottenham Court Road, payments Service through the Copyright Clearance Center,London Inc., W1P 222 0LP, UK; phone: +44 (0)20 7631 5555; fax: +44 (0)20 7631 5500. Other Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; phone: +1 978 750 8400, countries may have a local reprographic rights agency for payments. fax: +1 978 750 4744, and in the UK through the Copyright Licensing Derivative Agency RapidWorks Clearance Service (CLARCS), 90 Tottenham Court Road, Subscribers tables contents prepare artiLondon W1Pmay 0LP,reproduce UK; phone: +44of(0)20 7631or5555; fax:lists +44of(0)20 cles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. 7631 5500. Other countries may have a local reprographic rights Permission the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside agency for of payments. the institution. Permission of the Publisher is required for all other Derivative Works derivative including compilations and translations. Subscribersworks, may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of artiElectronic Storage Usage cles including abstractsorfor internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of the Publisher is required to store use electronically Permission of the Publisher is required for resale orordistribution outside any material contained in this journal, including any article of the institution. Permission of the Publisher is required for orallpart other an article. Except as outlined above, no part of this publication may derivative works, including compilations and translations. be reproduced, stored or in aUsage retrieval system or transmitted in any form Electronic Storage or by any means, electronic,ismechanical, recording or Permission of the Publisher required tophotocopying, store or use electronically otherwise, without priorinwritten permission of the any material contained this journal, including anyPublisher. article orAddress part of permissions requests Elsevier Science Department, at an article. Except as to: outlined above, no Global part ofRights this publication may the mail, fax and email addresses noted above. be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form Notice or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or No responsibility is assumed by the Publisher of forthe anyPublisher. injury and/ otherwise, without prior written permission Address or damage torequests personsto: or Elsevier propertyScience as a matter products liability, at permissions GlobalofRights Department, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any meththe mail, fax and email addresses noted above. ods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein. Notice Because of rapid advan ces inby thethe medical sciences, in injury particular, No responsibility is assumed Publisher for any and/ independent verification dosages shouldliability, be made. or damage to personsofordiagnoses property and as adrug matter of products Although is expected to conform negligencealloradvertising otherwise, material or from any use or operation of to anyethical meth(medical) standards, inclusion in thiscontained publication does not constitute ods, products, instructions or ideas in the material herein. a guarantee or endorsement of the quality or value of such product or Because of rapid advances in the medical sciences, in particular, indeof the claims made ofofitdiagnoses by its manufacturer. pendent verification and drug dosages should be made. Although all advertising material is expected to conform to ethical (medical) standards, inclusion in this publication does not constitute a guarantee or endorsement of the quality or value of such product or of the claims made of it by its manufacturer. 12980
Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) Ltd 02129 Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) Ltd
2
Sealing Technology
Passive thermal shutdown seal enhances safety of nuclear plants
W
estinghouse Electric Co reports that utilities throughout the USA are choosing its Shield reactor coolant pump (RCP) passive thermal shutdown seal to further enhance the safety of their nuclear plants. According to the company, to date, the seal has been installed in one dual-unit nuclear plant, and it has received orders from a further five for a total of 37 RCP installations. The passive thermal shutdown seal protects a nuclear plant’s reactor core by preventing a loss of reactor coolant system water inventory, should an event occur that causes a loss of all RCP seal cooling. The seal provides fail-safe protection that requires no operator action, power or control logic. It is activated by heated reactor coolant and provides an extremely tight seal if cooling for the RCP seals is lost. The company partnered with Southern Nuclear Co to successfully install the Shield seal in each RCP at the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Power Plant (Unit 1) near Dothan, Alabama, USA, during the facility’s refuelling outage in 2010 and at Farley Unit 2 during 2011. The seal installation at Farley Unit 1 garnered a 2011 Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) Top Industry Practice (TIP) Award for Southern Nuclear. The seal reduced the estimated risk of core damage by some 40%, claims Westinghouse, and the overall plant safety margin also has been improved. The shutdown seal improves the mitigating system performance index (MSPI) margin by reducing RCP seal cooling vulnerabilities and decreasing core damage frequency by up to 50%. Currently, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved 24-hour survivability of the Shield seal under station blackout (SBO) conditions for regulatory applications. Testing is in progress to extend the mission time for the seal to seven days, and it is expected that NRC approval will be requested during the first quarter of 2012. The Shield’s flow limit of less than 1 gpm (3.8 l/min) also addresses the need for supplemental make-up for compliance with NRC’s 10 CFR Part 50 Appendix R – Fire Protection regulation. Additionally, its response time supports easy-to-implement fire protection strategies for National Fire Protection Association Standard NFPA 805 requirements.
With the shutdown seal installed operators do not need to implement an immediate cool-down to address RCP seal leakage at the onset of a SBO event, says Westinghouse. This means they are able to focus on other critical tasks, such as power recovery and maintaining a heat sink. The safety evaluation report supporting the installation of Shield at Farley Units 1 & 2 has been reviewed and approved by the NRC and is acceptable for referencing in licensing applications for nuclear power plants that install the RCP shutdown seal. Contact: Westinghouse Electric Co, 4350 Northern Pike, Monroeville, PA 15146-2886, USA. Tel: +1 412 374 4111, Fax: +1 412 374 3272, Web: www.westinghousenuclear.com, Web: www.westinghouse.com
SKF upgrades its seal manufacturing machines
S
KF has launched its latest series of stand-alone systems for manufacturing precision machined seals. The firm says the upgraded Seal Jet machines enable it to quickly deliver to its customers customised seals in a wide range of diameters and materials – reducing costs and production times, while increasing flexibility in many different applications. Incorporating high-speed, in-house designed and built CNC lathes with digital controls this latest generation of machines can produce a precision machined seal in a range of sizes up to 600 mm in diameter in a short cycle time and with a high-quality surface finish. The technology provides a flexible approach to producing prototypes, single-pieces and short runs to meet a specific customer’s needs and can deliver results in a matter of hours to solve almost any sealing problem, says SKF.
SKF’s Seal Jet machines can produce a precision machined seal in a range of sizes up to 600 mm in diameter.
March 2012
Editorial Office: Elsevier Ltd The Boulevard, Langford Lane Kidlington, Oxford OX5 1GB, UK Fax: +44 (0)1865 843973 Web: www.sealingtechnology.info Publisher: Greg Valero E-mail: Editor: [email protected] Simon Atkinson Tel/Fax: +44 (0) 1904 655944 Editor: Simon Atkinson E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0) 1904 655944 Editor: Bob Flitney E-mail: Technical [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1588 661056 Technical Editor: Bob Flitney E-mail: [email protected] Tel: +44 (0)1799 501659 Production Support Manager: Lin Lucas E-mail: [email protected] E-mail: [email protected] Production Support Manager: Lin Lucas Editorial advisory board: E-mail: [email protected] 9VES "IREMBAUT & s #YRIL 8 ,ATTY & Editorial advisory board: !MRAT 0ARMAR 5+ s 2ICHARD & 3ALANT 53! 9VES "IREMBAUT & s #YRIL 8 ,ATTY & 7OLFGANG 3CHÚPPLEIN $ s 3HUZO 3EYA * !MRAT 0ARMAR 5+ s 2ICHARD & 3ALANT 53! 3COTT 3VENDSEN 53! s $R "RIAN 3 %LLIS 5+ 7OLFGANG 3CHÚPPLEIN $ s 3HUZO 3EYA * Subscription Information Scott Svendsen (USA) An annual subscription to Sealing Technology includes 12 issues and onlineInformation access for up to 5 users. Subscription Prices: An annual subscription to Sealing Technology includes 12 1273 for online all European countries Iran issues and access for up to 5 &users. US$1427 Prices: for all countries except Europe and Japan ¥169 1215100 forfor all Japan European countries & Iran (Prices valid 31 December US$1362 for until all countries except2012) Europe and Japan To subscribe ¥161 400 forsend Japanpayment to the address above. Tel: +44valid (0)1865 (Prices until 843687 31 March 2012) or www.sealingtechnology.info To via subscribe send payment to the address above. Subscriptions run843687/Fax: for 12 months, the date payment is Tel: +44 (0)1865 +44from (0)1865 834971 received. Email: [email protected], or via www.sealingtechnology.info. Permissions mayrunbeforsought directlyfrom fromthe Elsevier Global Rights Subscriptions 12 months, date payment is Department, received. PO Box 800, Oxford OX5 1DX, UK; phone: +44 1865 843830, fax: +44 1865 853333, email: [email protected]. You may also contact Rightsdirectly directly from through Elsevier’s homeRights page Permissions may Global be sought Elsevier Global (www.elsevier.com), first ‘Support & contact’, then +44 ‘Copyright Department, PO Boxselecting 800, Oxford OX5 1DX, UK; phone: 1865 & permission’. In 1865 the USA, users [email protected]. clear permissions and make 843830, fax: +44 853333, email: You payments throughGlobal the Copyright Clearance Center,Elsevier’s Inc., 222home Rosewood may also contact Rights directly through page Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; phone: +1 978 750 8400, fax: +1 978 (www.elsevier.com), selecting first ‘Support & contact’, then ‘Copyright 750 4744, and inInthe through themay Copyright Licensing Agency & permission’. theUKUSA, users clear permissions and Rapid make Clearance (CLARCS), 90 Tottenham Court Road, payments Service through the Copyright Clearance Center,London Inc., W1P 222 0LP, UK; phone: +44 (0)20 7631 5555; fax: +44 (0)20 7631 5500. Other Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; phone: +1 978 750 8400, countries may have a local reprographic rights agency for payments. fax: +1 978 750 4744, and in the UK through the Copyright Licensing Derivative Agency RapidWorks Clearance Service (CLARCS), 90 Tottenham Court Road, Subscribers tables contents prepare artiLondon W1Pmay 0LP,reproduce UK; phone: +44of(0)20 7631or5555; fax:lists +44of(0)20 cles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. 7631 5500. Other countries may have a local reprographic rights Permission the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside agency for of payments. the institution. Permission of the Publisher is required for all other Derivative Works derivative including compilations and translations. Subscribersworks, may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of artiElectronic Storage Usage cles including abstractsorfor internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of the Publisher is required to store use electronically Permission of the Publisher is required for resale orordistribution outside any material contained in this journal, including any article of the institution. Permission of the Publisher is required for orallpart other an article. Except as outlined above, no part of this publication may derivative works, including compilations and translations. be reproduced, stored or in aUsage retrieval system or transmitted in any form Electronic Storage or by any means, electronic,ismechanical, recording or Permission of the Publisher required tophotocopying, store or use electronically otherwise, without priorinwritten permission of the any material contained this journal, including anyPublisher. article orAddress part of permissions requests Elsevier Science Department, at an article. Except as to: outlined above, no Global part ofRights this publication may the mail, fax and email addresses noted above. be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form Notice or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or No responsibility is assumed by the Publisher of forthe anyPublisher. injury and/ otherwise, without prior written permission Address or damage torequests personsto: or Elsevier propertyScience as a matter products liability, at permissions GlobalofRights Department, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any meththe mail, fax and email addresses noted above. ods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein. Notice Because of rapid advan ces inby thethe medical sciences, in injury particular, No responsibility is assumed Publisher for any and/ independent verification dosages shouldliability, be made. or damage to personsofordiagnoses property and as adrug matter of products Although is expected to conform negligencealloradvertising otherwise, material or from any use or operation of to anyethical meth(medical) standards, inclusion in thiscontained publication does not constitute ods, products, instructions or ideas in the material herein. a guarantee or endorsement of the quality or value of such product or Because of rapid advances in the medical sciences, in particular, indeof the claims made ofofitdiagnoses by its manufacturer. pendent verification and drug dosages should be made. Although all advertising material is expected to conform to ethical (medical) standards, inclusion in this publication does not constitute a guarantee or endorsement of the quality or value of such product or of the claims made of it by its manufacturer. 12980
Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) Ltd 02129 Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) Ltd
2
Sealing Technology
Passive thermal shutdown seal enhances safety of nuclear plants
W
estinghouse Electric Co reports that utilities throughout the USA are choosing its Shield reactor coolant pump (RCP) passive thermal shutdown seal to further enhance the safety of their nuclear plants. According to the company, to date, the seal has been installed in one dual-unit nuclear plant, and it has received orders from a further five for a total of 37 RCP installations. The passive thermal shutdown seal protects a nuclear plant’s reactor core by preventing a loss of reactor coolant system water inventory, should an event occur that causes a loss of all RCP seal cooling. The seal provides fail-safe protection that requires no operator action, power or control logic. It is activated by heated reactor coolant and provides an extremely tight seal if cooling for the RCP seals is lost. The company partnered with Southern Nuclear Co to successfully install the Shield seal in each RCP at the Joseph M. Farley Nuclear Power Plant (Unit 1) near Dothan, Alabama, USA, during the facility’s refuelling outage in 2010 and at Farley Unit 2 during 2011. The seal installation at Farley Unit 1 garnered a 2011 Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI) Top Industry Practice (TIP) Award for Southern Nuclear. The seal reduced the estimated risk of core damage by some 40%, claims Westinghouse, and the overall plant safety margin also has been improved. The shutdown seal improves the mitigating system performance index (MSPI) margin by reducing RCP seal cooling vulnerabilities and decreasing core damage frequency by up to 50%. Currently, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has approved 24-hour survivability of the Shield seal under station blackout (SBO) conditions for regulatory applications. Testing is in progress to extend the mission time for the seal to seven days, and it is expected that NRC approval will be requested during the first quarter of 2012. The Shield’s flow limit of less than 1 gpm (3.8 l/min) also addresses the need for supplemental make-up for compliance with NRC’s 10 CFR Part 50 Appendix R – Fire Protection regulation. Additionally, its response time supports easy-to-implement fire protection strategies for National Fire Protection Association Standard NFPA 805 requirements.
With the shutdown seal installed operators do not need to implement an immediate cool-down to address RCP seal leakage at the onset of a SBO event, says Westinghouse. This means they are able to focus on other critical tasks, such as power recovery and maintaining a heat sink. The safety evaluation report supporting the installation of Shield at Farley Units 1 & 2 has been reviewed and approved by the NRC and is acceptable for referencing in licensing applications for nuclear power plants that install the RCP shutdown seal. Contact: Westinghouse Electric Co, 4350 Northern Pike, Monroeville, PA 15146-2886, USA. Tel: +1 412 374 4111, Fax: +1 412 374 3272, Web: www.westinghousenuclear.com, Web: www.westinghouse.com
SKF upgrades its seal manufacturing machines
S
KF has launched its latest series of stand-alone systems for manufacturing precision machined seals. The firm says the upgraded Seal Jet machines enable it to quickly deliver to its customers customised seals in a wide range of diameters and materials – reducing costs and production times, while increasing flexibility in many different applications. Incorporating high-speed, in-house designed and built CNC lathes with digital controls this latest generation of machines can produce a precision machined seal in a range of sizes up to 600 mm in diameter in a short cycle time and with a high-quality surface finish. The technology provides a flexible approach to producing prototypes, single-pieces and short runs to meet a specific customer’s needs and can deliver results in a matter of hours to solve almost any sealing problem, says SKF.
SKF’s Seal Jet machines can produce a precision machined seal in a range of sizes up to 600 mm in diameter.
March 2012