ML062500401
| ML062500401 | |
| Person / Time | |
|---|---|
| Site: | Pilgrim |
| Issue date: | 09/08/2006 |
| From: | Subbaratnam R NRC/NRR/ADRO/DLR/RLRA |
| To: | Kansler M Entergy Nuclear Operations |
| SUBBaratnam R, NRR/DLR/RLRA, 415-1478 | |
| References | |
| %dam200612, TAC MC9669 | |
| Download: ML062500401 (8) | |
Text
September 8, 2006 Mr. Michael Kansler President Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601-1839
SUBJECT:
REQUESTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR THE REVIEW OF THE PILGRIM NUCLEAR POWER STATION LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION (TAC NO. MC9669)
Dear Mr. Kansler:
By letter dated January 25, 2006, Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc., submitted an application pursuant to Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations 10 CFR Part 54, to renew the operating license for Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station, for review by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). The NRC staff is reviewing the information contained in the license renewal application and has identified, in the enclosure, areas where additional information is needed to complete the review. These requests for additional information on Time Limited Aging Analysis of Reactor Vessel Internals in License Renewal Section: 4.2.1.
These questions were discussed with a member of your staff, Bryan Ford, and a mutually agreeable date for this response is within 30 days from the date of this letter. If you have any questions, please contact me at 301-415-1478 or by e-mail at RXS2@nrc.gov.
Sincerely,
/RA/
Ram Subbaratnam, Project Manager License Renewal Branch A Division of License Renewal Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation Docket No. 50-293
Enclosure:
Requests for Additional Information cc w/encl: See next page
ML062500401 OFFICE PM:RLRA:DLR LA:RLRA:DLR BC:REBB:DLR NAME RSubbaratnam YEdmonds LLund DATE 09/08/06 09/08/06 09/08/06
Letter to Michael Kansler from Ram Subbaratnam dated: September 8, 2006
SUBJECT:
REQUESTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR THE REVIEW OF THE PILGRIM NUCLEAR POWER STATION LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION (TAC MC9669)
HARD COPY DLR R/F E-MAIL:
JFair RWeisman AMurphy RPettis GGalletti DShum GBagchi SSmith (srs3)
SDuraiswamy YL (Renee) Li RidsNrrDlr RidsNrrDlrRlra RidsNrrDlrRlrb RidsNrrDe RidsNrrDci RidsNrreEemb RidsNrrDeEeeb RidsNrrDeEqva RidsNrrDss RidsNrrDnrl RidsOgcMailCenter RidsNrrAdes DLR Staff RSubbaratnam Shoffman SUttal JShea AWilliamson CSydnor MMtichel GWilson CAnderson, Region 1 WRaymond, Region 1 NSheehan, Region 1
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station cc:
Regional Administrator, Region I U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 475 Allendale Road King of Prussia, PA 19406-1415 Senior Resident Inspector U. S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station Post Office Box 867 Plymouth, MA 02360 Chairman, Board of Selectmen 11 Lincoln Street Plymouth, MA 02360 Chairman Nuclear Matters Committee Town Hall 11 Lincoln Street Plymouth, MA 02360 Chairman, Duxbury Board of Selectmen Town Hall 878 Tremont Street Duxbury, MA 02332 Office of the Commissioner Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection One Winter Street Boston, MA 02108 Office of the Attorney General One Ashburton Place 20th Floor Boston, MA 02108 MA Department of Public Health Radiation Control Program Schrafft Center, Suite 1M2A 529 Main Street Charlestown, MA 02129 Secretary of Public Safety Executive Office of Public Safety One Ashburton Place Boston, MA 02108 Director, Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency Attn: James Muckerheide 400 Worcester Road Framingham, MA 01702-5399 Mr. William D. Meinert Nuclear Engineer Massachusetts Municipal Wholesale Electric Company P.O. Box 426 Ludlow, MA 01056-0426 Mr. Michael A. Balduzzi Site Vice President Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station 600 Rocky Hill Road Plymouth, MA 02360-5508 Mr. Stephen J. Bethay Director, Nuclear Safety Assurance Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station 600 Rocky Hill Road Plymouth, MA 02360-5508 Mr. Bryan S. Ford Manager, Licensing Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station 600 Rocky Hill Road Plymouth, MA 02360-5508 Mr. Gary J. Taylor Chief Executive Officer Entergy Operations 1340 Echelon Parkway Jackson, MS 39213
Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station cc:
Mr. John T. Herron Sr. VP and Chief Operating Officer Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Mr. Oscar Limpias Vice President, Engineering Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Mr. Christopher Schwarz Vice President, Operations Support Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Mr. John F. McCann Director, Nuclear Safety Assurance Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Ms. Charlene D. Faison Manager, Licensing Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Mr. Michael D. Lyster 5931 Barclay Lane Naples, FL 34110-7306 Mr. Michael J. Colomb Director of Oversight Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Ms. Stacey Lousteau Treasury Department Entergy Services, Inc.
639 Loyola Avenue New Orleans, LA 70113 Mr. James Sniezek 5486 Nithsdale Drive Salisbury, MD 21801 Mr. Travis C. McCullough Assistant General Counsel Entergy Nuclear Operations, Inc.
440 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Mr. James Ross Nuclear Energy Institute 1776 I Street, NW, Suite 400 Washington, DC 20006-3708 Plymouth Public Library Attn: Dinah OBrien 132 South Street Plymouth, MA 02360 Duxbury Free Library ATTN: Ms. Elaine Winquist 77 Alden Street Duxbury, MA 02332 Kingston Public Library ATTN: Reference Librarian 6 Green Street Kingston, MA 02364 Ms. Mary Lampert Duxbury Nuclear Advisory, Chair Pilgrim Watch, Director 148 Washington Street Duxbury, MA 02332
ENCLOSURE REQUESTS FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PILGRIM LICENSE RENEWAL APPLICATION (LRA)
TIME-LIMITED AGING ANALYSIS (TLAA) OF REACTOR VESSEL (RV) INTERNALS SECTION: 4.2.1 NEUTRON FLUENCE RAI 4.2.2-1 Section 4.2.2 of the Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station (PNPS) License Renewal Application (LRA),
"Pressure-Temperature [P-T] Limits," states that in a license amendment request dated December 4, 2002, PNPS requested to use the present P-T limit curves through the end of operating cycle 16, which corresponds to approximately 23 effective full power years (EFPY) of facility operation. The end of operating cycle 16 is expected to occur in 2007. Section 4.2.2 also states that, in this December 4, 2002 submittal, PNPS committed to develop and submit updated P-T limit curves and revised fluence calculations based on an NRC-approved calculation method that adheres to Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.190, Calculational and Dosimetry Methods for Determining Pressure Vessel Neutron Fluence, prior to the end of operating cycle
- 16. License Amendment 197 granted this request in 2003. Section 4.2.2 then states that recent fluence calculations that were done per RG 1.190 confirm that the fluence for 54 EFPY is less than the fluence used to calculate the P-T limits that were approved for use only through the end of operating cycle 14. Based on the above statements, you conclude that the current Technical Specification (TS) P-T limit curves remain valid for the period of extended operation.
(a) Please confirm whether the P-T limit curves currently established in the PNPS TSs expire at the end of operating cycle 16 (23 EFPY).
(b) Please explain why the recent fluence calculations that were done per RG 1.190 confirm that the fluence for 54 EFPY is less than the fluence used to calculate the P-T limits that were approved for use through the end of cycle 14. Explain how this information was used to determine that the existing P-T limits remain valid for the period of extended operation.
(c)
The staff does not require the P-T limit curves for the extended period of operation to be submitted as part of the applicant's LRA for this time-limited aging analysis (TLAA).
However, the staff does require NRC approval of the P-T limit curves for the extended period of operation prior to the expiration of the P-T limit curves for 32 EFPY. Please state when you intend to submit P-T limit curves for NRC approval for the extended licensed period of operation (54 EFPY).
RAI 4.2.4-1 Table 4.2-2 of the PNPS LRA lists initial RTNDT values for the PNPS RV beltline materials. The initial RTNDT values for Lower Intermediate Shell Plate G-3108-1 (Heat No. C-2921-2) and Lower Intermediate Shell Plate G-3108-3 (Heat No. C-2945-2) are less conservative than the corresponding initial RTNDT values established in the NRC staff's reactor vessel integrity database (RVID) for these materials. Section 4.2.4 of the PNPS LRA states that, initial RTNDT values are from report SIR-00-82, which was submitted in 2001 as part of the PNPS P-T limit change request (Reference 4.2-5). Reference 4.2-5 points to the April 13, 2001, license amendment issued by the NRC authorizing revised P-T limit curves.
Please provide additional information that points to where the NRC staff authorized the use of the specific initial RTNDT values listed in Table 4.2-4 for determining the adjusted reference temperature (ART) values for the PNPS reactor vessel (RV) beltline materials.
RAI 4.2.4-2 The %Cu and chemistry factor (CF) values for Lower Shell Axial Welds 2-338A, B, and C from LRA Table 4.2-2 are less conservative than the corresponding %Cu and CF values that were established in the staff's RVID for these welds. Please provide the following information:
(a) verification of whether the %Cu and CF values listed in Table 4.2-1 are valid for the above
- welds, (b) justification for the use of these chemistry data for the above welds, including the source of the data, and a specific reference for the documentation/analysis demonstrating that these chemistry data represent the best available estimate of the weld chemistries.
RAI 4.2.4-3 Lower Intermediate / Upper Shell Circumferential Weld 3-339B (Heat No. 13253) is listed in the NRC staff's RVID. However this weld is not represented in LRA Table 4.2-2 or (LRA Table 4.2-1). Please resolve this discrepancy.
RAI 4.2.5-1 Section 4.2.5 of the PNPS LRA addresses the TLAA for the RV Circumferential Weld Examination Relief. Table 4.2-3 of the LRA compares the limiting RV circumferential weld parameters for PNPS to those used in the NRC evaluation of the BWRVIP-05 report, BWR Vessel and Internals Project, BWR Reactor Pressure Vessel Shell Weld Inspection Recommendations. The PNPS limiting RV circumferential weld parameters are based on Lower Intermediate / Lower Shell Circumferential Weld 1-334 (Heat No. 21935), which is the only circumferential weld represented in LRA Table 4.2-2. However, as discussed in RAI 4.2.4-3, the NRC staff's RVID also lists Lower Intermediate / Upper Shell Circumferential Weld 3-339B (Heat No. 13253) as one of the RV welds for PNPS. Furthermore, the chemistry and CF data for this weld are more limiting than for the Circumferential Weld 1-334. Please explain why this TLAA did not address Lower Intermediate / Upper Shell Circumferential Weld 3-339B (Heat No. 13253).
RAI 4.2.5-2 The NRC staff requires that a request for relief from the American Society of Mechanical Engineer Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code) RV circumferential shell weld examination requirements be submitted prior to the beginning of the extended period of operation. Please state whether you intend to apply for relief from the ASME Code RV circumferential weld examination requirements for the extended licensed period of operation.
State when you plan to submit this relief request.
RAI 4.2.5-3 In the July 28, 1998 SER on BWRVIP-05, the NRC staff concluded that examination of the RV circumferential shell welds would need to be performed if the corresponding volumetric examinations of the RV axial shell welds revealed the presence of an age-related degradation mechanism. Confirm whether or not previous volumetric examinations of the RV axial shell welds have shown any indication of cracking or other age-related degradation mechanisms in the welds.
RAI 4.2.6-1 The limiting axial weld failure probability calculated by the NRC staff in the BWRVIP-05 SER is based on the assumption that essentially 100 percent (i.e., greater than 90 percent) examination coverage of all RV axial welds can be achieved in accordance with ASME Code,Section XI requirements.
State whether your ISI examinations achieve essentially 100 percent (i.e., greater than 90 percent) overall examination coverage for the RV axial welds for the duration of the current licensed operating period. If less than 90 percent overall examination coverage is achieved for the RV axial welds, revise this TLAA to account for the effects of the limited scope examination coverage.