JPRS ID: 8426 FRANCE: NUCLEAR, MISSILE, AND SPACE DEVELOPMENTS

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• Collection: JPRS
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82-00850R000100040062-8
• Release Decision: RIF
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 61
• Document Creation Date: November 1, 2016
• Sequence Number: 62
• Content Type: REPORTS

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UNLY
JPRS L/8926
27 Apri]. ].979
FRANCE; NUCLEAR, MISSILE, AND SPACE DEVELOPMENTS
. .
FOU~ No, 459 ~
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NOTE ~
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ron orr~cr~L us~ oNLY
JpRS L/s~z6
27 .~,pri~. ~979
FRANCE; NUCLEAR, MISSILE, AND SPACE DEVELOPMENTS
FOUO No. 459
CONTENTS PAGE
Nation's Clectronuclenr program's Progresa Uetailed
(RCVU~ CENCRALC NUCLEAIR~, Dec 78) 1
I~rench ~lectronuclear Program ~
. Stntus PWR Construction Program
~essenheim Nuclear Power P1anC, by A:~dre Leblond, Guy Ferriole
bevelopment Prospects, by Michel Durr
Creys-Malville Power plant ~
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_ _
NA'CION' S Gi.1:CTRONUCLEAEt PItOGitAM' 5 P~tOGEtCSS U~TAILED
French C1ecCronucLenr Program -
Pnris RCVt1~ G~N~kt1L~ NUCL~IIRE in ~rench Uec 78 pp 450-475
LTex~ The French electronucl.ear program which began in three
phases ~970,~~1974, and ig~6 succeeding the "~raphite-
gas generation~ is proceeding in conditinns that,on the who~.e
appear to be satisfae~ory. Of course~ ~here have been some
delays in the start of service of the first power plants
ordered, but it seems that such delays should ~radually be
recovered during the next few years. This becomes apparent
in the articles that we are publishing here today. The first
two deal with the 900 MW level of the P~~iR LPressurized l4ater
Reactor~ process. Special ~ttention is paid to Fessenheim~
the first power plant of this type to start opera~ing in France.
The current status of the 1~300 MW P'~!R program is described
in the third article, and the last part of our report discus-
ses the development of Super-Phenix, the large 1~200 MW breeder
plant now being built at Creys-Malville.
, 5tatus PWR Construction Program �
Paris REVUE GENERALE NUCL~AIRC in French Dec 78 pp 451-459
LArticle by Eloi Chardonnet~ head o� the 900 M~~l level in
_ EDF's Equipment Divisio>
LTex) The author gives the essential features o~ the 900 Dit;i
level. He then discusses the current status of all the seg-
ments of this level~ going into the issues of procedures~
studies~ civil Pngineering~ construction of equipment in
factories~ assembly~ tests~ and the start of service.
Before presenting the current status in the various aspects
oP construction of the 30 units or "segments" which make up
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, ,
rok n~~rcr.nL us~ ortt~Y
tihi~ ~.rvel., wQ shol~~.c] brie.fly revl.cw Lhe an~entinl f
oa~urQs
Churac:t~i~~.s~sc o.(' th~.s level und the dnctrinQ und~r~.ying ~1~.
the act~.vities invo~.ved in i~. ~
Wi~h3n EDF ~French Electric F~ower Company~ ~he po1,~.cy of
devElop~.ng 1evel,s of sQgmen~s genQra~ing e~ectr~.c power pre-
ceded ~he pr~sen~ devel.opment of the nucl.ear pro~ram. Bu~ the
importanee af this program~ begun in 1970~ then grEa~ly accele-
ra~ed in ~q74, and the scal.e of the problems entail.ed in s~udies
and 3.n 3.ndustrial pl.anning led EDF to make maximum use of ~h3.s
pol,icy 3n a11. the areas ~.nvolved: standardization of segmen~s~
group3n~ contracts for specific equipmen~ and award~ng a11
the work to the same builder~ adap~a~ion of the distribu~~.on of
work ~o this situa~ion~ etc. The advantages of this s~andardi-
zation~ tihe problems it caused, the me~hods and resources used
were discussed by Mr Brignon in an ar~iele which appeared in
REVUE GENERAI,E NUCL~AIRE, issue no 6 of 1977~ to which the ~
reader may be interested in referring. Some addi~ional infor-
mation on the definition of the g00 MW level~ on its develop-
ment program, and on the distribution of ~obs within EDF's
Equipment Division are given hereafter.
Definition of the 900 MW Level
This 1ev~1 inc~udes 30 units assembled two by two in 15 pairs
or segments~ forming four successive series:
1. Fessenheim 1-2 (two segments)
2. Bugey 2-3 and 4-5 (four segments)
3~ Dampierre~lT2iand~in41 Bl~nd~3-4~ Gravelines 1-2 and 3-4~
3, ya s 1 2 and 3-4 (16 segmentis)
4. CP 2 type: Saint Laurent 1-2~ Chinon 1-2~ Cruas 1-2 and
3-4 (eight segments). .
~ach pair of segments includes a standard part covering the
essentials of construction; this is identical i'or ull the
pairs of the same series (with th~ exception of a few adapta-
tions to meet 1oca1 conditions). The actual parts specific
to each pair concern essentially some of the annex buildings
and in part the cooling circuits~ whose plans are obviously
closely linked to the site conditions.
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Dampierre-en-Burly (May 19?8). -
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. 1~'OIt ON'~ICrAL USL ONLY
~he pl.ans for ~h~ Bugey segmonts ~rP no~ much dlfferen~ from
i;he p~.ans ,for the Fessenheim se~ments~ from which ~he Bug~y
_ plan~ are ve~~y directl.y dQriv~d. The experience acqu~.red i.n
~ho s~udy and construction of these f.lrst ~wo power plants
w~s put ~n use in the def~.n3~3.nn of ~he CP 1 plans ~ wh~.ch dn
conserv~ ~he ma~or ~.ines of the archi~ec~ure nf ~he earl3.er
~'es,~enh~im and Bugey power plan~s~ wi~h machine rooms placed
tangen~ially in :elation to the cy].indr~.cal re~c~or buildin,a.
For the Cp 2 type, the nucl~ar b~.].ock par~ 3s an identical
reproductiion of ~he precedi.ng ones but th~ overall 1.ayout
of the c~ns~ruction was changed~ g~.ving a radial. arrangement
o to the machine room~ which led t,o a complete individuallzat~.on
' of ~his part of the facility for each segment.
3 Of the 30 segments~ 16 are coo:led with open circui~s:
' ~essenhrim 1-2 on the Rhine~ Bugey 2-3~ Tricastin 1-2 and
_ 3-4 on the Rhone~ Gra~.ines 1-2 and 3-~f on the North Sea~
Blayais 1-2 and 3-4 on the Gironde river.
j Tr.e remaining 14 are cooled with closed circuits using cooling
~owers: Bugey 4-5 on the Rhone~ Dampierre 1-2 and 3-4~ Saint
Laurent 1-2~ Chinon 1-2 on the Loire~ and Cruas 1-2 and 3-4
on ~he Rhone.
mhe Ctiinon and Cruas power plants each deserve mentien of a
special feature: cooling with induced draft at Chinorl~ where
powerful blowers (8 MW in al].) take the place of a natural
draft; and a special fowndation on neoprene studs for Gruas.
This made it possible to avoid special reinforcement of
the structures to adapt construction to local seismic condi-
tions .
Development Program _
Fessenheim 1-2: begun in 1970~ segments conriected to the
network in 1977~
Bugey 2-3 and 4-5: begun in 1971, segments 2-3 connected in
197~� Connections of 4-5 scheduled in 1q79.
CP 1 type: first segment begun in 1974. Connections scheduled
in 1979 (for the first segment of Tricastin~ Gravelines~ and
Dampierre)~ 19~4, 1981~ and 1982 (the last two Blayais se~ments). t
CP 2 type: first segmFnt begun in early 1976. Connect:lons
scheduled in 1980 (fii�st segment of Sa3.i~t Laurent) ~ 1q~'1 ~ 1982~
1983, and 1984 (the last two segments of Cruas).
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1~01t dH'l~ CCIAL U5L ONI.~Y
7'able T presents in de~~i1. the connection tttrget dates now
scheduled. A11 the planning for the various ~obs is based
on these dates. mhe del~y in the nucl.ear program which has
ac~ual.ly occurred or which is made offic3.a1 in the target date
is shown in th3.s tab].e, which for each segmen~ shows ~he slip-
pages observed or expec~ed. It is bel.ieved that these s1.ip-
. pages can gradu~lly be reduced from nearl.y 2 years for the
" firs~ segments to zero for the 1.as~ ones. The last segments
obviously benefit �rom the research and development done
throughout ~he entire program.
ob)ectits ob)ecUts (
Sranches Initiaux couplages ~ Giissements
couplege au 15/11/197Bi
~
Fessenhelm 1 06/75 RBaIisA 22 mois
6/4/77 ~
Fessenheim 2 04h6 RAalis~ ~ 18 mois
7/10/70
Bugey 2 08J76 RAallsB ( 21 mois
10/5h8
Bugey 3 08/77 R~alisA 15 mois
21 /9/78
- Bugey 4 03h8 03/79 12 mols
Bugey 5 09h8 07h9 11 mois
Tricestin 1 10/78 08/79 10 mois
Ciravelines 1 12/78 07/79 7 mois
Dampierre 1 03/78 11/79 9 mois
Tricastin 2 ~ 05h9 12h9 7 mois
Grevelines 2 I 07/79 01/80 , 6 mois
Dampiorre 2 10/79 05/80 7 mois
Triscastin 3 ~ 12/79 07/80 I 7 mofs
Gravelines 3� 02/80 a8/80 ; 6 mois
St�Laurent B1 ~ 09/80 10/80 ' 1 mois
Tricastin 4 06/80 ~ 11/80 ~ 5 mois
Dampierre 3 04/80 I 01/81~ ! 9 mois
Blayais 1~ 10/90 03/81 ( 5 mois
Gravelines 4 11/80 04/81. 3 mois
SI-Laurent 82 03/81 04/B1 ~ 1 mols
Dampierro 4 01/81 08/91 5 mois
Blayais 2 06/B1 09/81 3 mois
Ch(non B1 10/81 10/81 0 mois
Chinon 82 03/82 03/82 0 mois
Bleyais 3 05/B2 OS/82 0 mois
Blayafs 4 11/82 11/82 f 0 mols
Crues 1 W/63 03/83 ( 0 mois
C~u~s 2 a8/83 08/83 ~ 0 mois
Cruas 3 02/84 02/84 0 mois
Crues 4 08/84 08/84 ~ 0 mois
Table I: General Construction Program for the 900 r~iWe PWR
Segments.
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P'OEZ OE~'T'iCtAL USL nNLY
Key:
Segmen~s
2. Initial. targe~ dates for c:onnect~.on
" 3� ~arge~ dates for connec~ion as o~' 15 Nov 197E
4. Slippages ~
5. Done "
6. Months
Uistribut3.on of Jobs within EDF's Equipment Division
The Equipment Region to which the Division assigns the respon-
sib3l.ity for building a power plant (this is ~he "Operational
- Region" .for this plant) is responsible for carrying out or for
guidin~ the studies for the specific part of the pro~ec~ and
for managing contracts for this ( ~he civil en~ineer3ng contract
is the lar~est of these).
Studies for the standard part~ its possible modifications~ and
management of contracts (for construction done in factories)
related to this are the responsibility of 1;he Pilot Region~
whose activities cover a~ll the sites concernAd. ~
, The five x~egions of the Equipment Division are involved in
the =9~~ i~IW program:
a. The Clamart Region: Fessenheim power plant~
. b. Alp~s-Lyon Region: Bugey power plants (the Operational
Region and the Pilot Region funetions are combined for
thes e two operations)~ '
c. A1pes-Marse3.lle Region: Operational for Tricastin and
Cruas. Pilot for part of the standard CP 1(nuclear
: block with the exception ~f the nucle3r anriex building
and miscellaneous facilities);
d. Paris Region: Operational for Gravelines and Blayais.
Pilot for the second part of the standard CP 1 ~
(nuclear annex huildin~ and machine room~ essentially);
_ e. Tours Region: Operational for Dampierre~ Saint Laurent~
and Chinon. Pilot for the part of the pro3ect specific
. to the CP 2 type (essentially the machine room).
~
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~ The f3.ve reg~.ons work in close re].ation with the two staff
serv~.ces'~,,5EPTEN cThermal and Tduclear fiesearch and P1ans
Serv3.ce7�and SCF ZManufacturing Control Service7.
The current status of the en~ire g00 I~ti? level is briefl.y
~ presented below. AZ1 0~' the features whieh form part of this ~
xecord are organized unQer six headings: procedures~ studies, .
civil engineering~ construction of equipment in factories~
assembly and. installation at the site~ an@ testin ~ and start
of serv3ce'.
The S'essenheim power plant~ the first one in the series~ whose
two se~men~s are now operating at 100 percent of their power~
has a].ready supnlied over 100 billion kWh. This plant~ ol"
course~ occupies a special. position. A first operatin~ record -
cover3.n~; a significan~~ period is now possible. This is given
3n an article in this issue by riessrs Leblond and Ferriole.
I Procedures ~
The public utility of all the operations of the 900 P~I~~: 1eve1
(nine sites) has been recognized by success~ve decrees. Most
of the sites needed have been purchased on friendly termsi
and now there ar~e ~ust a few very limited problems remaining
concerning site availabil3ty.
At the end of the creation authorization procedure which
includes a de~cailed examination of the preliminary saf.ety re-
port by the Standing Group on Reactor Safety~ the creation
authorization decisions for Bugey, Tricastin~ Cjravel.ines~
Dampierre~ Blayais 1-2 and Saint Laurent were made in succes-
sion by the prime minister. The preliminary safety reports
for Chinon~ Blayais 3-4 and Cruas are now being examined by the
standing group.
The ministerial authorization process for loading and ~unc-
tioning tests includin~ examination by the standing group
based on the report of the IPSN LNuclear Protection and Safe~y
Institut)~ of the lengthy provisional safety report~ includin~
the provisional operating regulations has been completed ~
for Bugey 2-3 and has begun for Bu ey 4-5~ Tricastin~ Grave-
lines~ Dampierre~ and Blayais 1-2 ~the latest reports were
filed at the end of 1978).
The process opening a new ministerial authorization for the
definitive start of service~ including the completion and exami-
nation of the definitive safety report conpletinF the provision-
al report, has been begun for Fessenheim-.and for Bugey 2-3~
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rox o~~~cr~ usL oNLY
~
The au~horizations ~'or intake and discharge o~' water~~which
list in particular the standards to be respected abou~ hea~ing
thE water~have been obtttined f'or the r~ssenheim, nugey~
Tricastin and B1.ayais 1-2 plants. The same is true for the
authnriza~ions for the c~ischar~;~ of 1:1.quid anr; gaseous radio-
active eff~.uents for Fessenheim~ Bugey~ and Tricastin. ~he
condit3ons set for this discharge~ which are determined by
ministerial decisions~ were recentl.y made for the latter ~wo
and are much more restrictive in nature ~han the one used for
the se~m~n~ execution studies; this will therefore require the
"~a , u~e of addit3onal faci.li~ies .
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The Gravelin~;s Power Plant (August 19'78) .
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~
IY Studies
l1 L l;l~c: ~~u.L?i~ whc:rU I,I~~.c~E;:~ ul~u rww ~ dc~;;l~;it una ~~lur?ri Lrl~ l,ucll~.~
and t;he essent:Lals oi' ~he s~udies needed for execu~ion have.
been completed both from ~he poin~ of v3ew o~' the prime contrae-
tor and research offices which are w~.c~tin~ together and from
the point of view of the builders.
A1ong with this~ a ma~or+~esearch followup program 3.s ac~:om-
, panying the execution~ thus ~,aking use of the experience ac-
quired during construct3.on and during the first ~ests and
start of serv3ce; this has led to a signif3cant amount of
modifications made 3n t;he plans and 3.n the facili~ies. This
shoul.d significantly decrease after the start of service of ~he
first few segments.
Then we should mention the s~udies now in progress:
a. Work on the general funetioning te~ts~ with special
attention being given to loading tests (funetioning
with control rods of a special type called "gray rods"); _
b. Studies related to manufacturing anomalies in equip-
ment and construction~; these studies are done to
determine the acceptability of developments which do ,
not strictly conform to the ori~inal instructions~
and include remedies to be used.
~
c. Special safety and radiation protection studies done
in relation with the standing group (these deal in
particular with the effects of earthquakes and
certain equipment failures);
d. Some research and developm.ent activities involving
fuel~ etc.
III Civil Engineering Work
The civil engineering work for th~ nuclear segments~ a complex
program considering the high concentration of the work~ was
discussed in an article by Messrs Cousyn and Goubin which
appeared in a previous issue of REVUE GENERALE NUCLEAIRE
(issue no 3 of 1977). The magnitude of the work to be done
can be seen from the following informati~n for the Cruas
power plant~ the I.ast in the series (four segments separated
by E-month intervals).
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1~'bit ~F't~ tC l AI. US1: hNLY
_
CnnGretiQ 550,000 ~3
~r~~8~ 70,000 ti~ns
Casin s
General clearing anci earth w~rk 1~0~0~002 m3~lior~ m3
ft~mnv~l of sand ~nd gravel ~'or
~'i11 and ~oncr~te 3~2 million m3
l~ax~.mum work�orc~ 1 ~ $00 ~~rorkers
rhese figures do ~oti include ~he four atimospher~.c coa~in
_ towers (100~000 m- of reinforced concretie~ approximately~.
The civil engineering work for the entire 900 t~4! level is very
~w~e11 aflv~nced now. It has been complete~ for the Bugey power
pl~nt $nd the essential part of the heavy constiruction work is
abou~ ~o be complet:.d for tihe ~ricastiin~ Graveli~les~ and
Dampierre power plan~s~ Ati the Cruas constructiion site~ where
work stttrted in October ~977, the firsti concrete was pourQd in
July 197$ and work on the leakproof wall~ which precedes the
exc~vation for segments 3~nd 4~'tih~ last pair of the 900 MW
level~ wi11 begin soon. The end of the heavy construction~WOrk
is scheduled for mid-19~2 (4 years of conerete work).
Considering the matter in greater detail~ the situation at each
of the siL�es is as follows.
Tricas~in
By the end of October 19?8, 443,000 m3 of concrete of a total
of 455,000 m3 had been poured. The prestressin& of the reactor
buildings of segments 3 and and the end of the concrete work
on the dome for the reactor building of segment 4 are being
done now. The metal framework and covers of the machine room
are about to be completed and all the ma~or handling mecY~anisms
are operational. The secondary fr~mes and the Yarger wooden
constructions have been done at the rate of 100~ ~0~ 50~ and
15 percenti~ respectively, for the four segments. The smaller
woodwork and painting are also proceeding well.
Gravelines
At this site~ the situation is almost identical with the ~itua-
tion at Tricastin. By the end of October 197E~ 45i~000 m f
concr~te had been poured of an estimated total of 465~000 ro~.
The pres~ressing of reactor builc?ing no 3 is being done the
concrete work on ~he dome for segment 4 has been starte~d, and
th~ ma~.nine room should be completely enclosed during December.
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F'Utt Ob'1~' IC I Al, U5L ONLY
Ati tihis sitie~ builti par~ly on an area ~hati was former~y under
seawa~er tihe excavatiion work (3 000 000 m3) w~s preceded by
~he pour~.ng o~ a fi~l of ~~OOO~OaO m~ of sand ~aken from
~he new entry to the port of Dunkerque,
Damp3erre
Here ~~here tihe work is at~outi 5 ~0 6 mon~hs beh~.nd Tricastin
and ~ravelines, 370 000 m~~ of concre~e had been poured by tihe
end of IJovember 197~ (exclud~ng cooling structures)~ of an
es~3mated tiotal of 380~000 m~ and layoffs of construc~ion
workers have begun. Sti11 tio be done is :~ome concretie work
for tihe nuclear block of 3-4~ especially the dome of segment 4~
as well as the concretie work for the upper parti of cooling
. tower n~ 3 and the entiire cool~ng tiower for no 4(tiota~ volume
of concre~e us~d for the cooling stiructures: 120~000 m)~ plus
~h~ cover f'or the machine room df segmenti 4.
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Le Blayais Power Plant Construction Site (June 197$).
11
FOEt OFFICIAL USE ONLY
~
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~
t~0I2 Ol~ii~'ICIAL USL ONLY
,
,
~
Sa~.nti Lguren~ ~n
~
, '~he c~rth work', ~ m3.~.l;ton m~ ) has boen cdmpleti~d and tt?a
conCr~t;~ wo~k f~r thi~ pair nt s~~m~nts is approxima~~~.y q0
percent compl~~t~ (1~O~O~d m3 of a to~a1 of 200~000 m). ~he
dame nS' ~hs secc~~ld s~~ment was ~ut 1n place ir Cetiober~
Maehitie room 1~~~~;~,osa main f'rame is completied and w;1nse
movin~; crane 3s o~~rationa1~ was turned over ~o the builder
of ~h~ ~urboal.~erna~or group on 15 Septiember. The hois~~.n~
of the declc for machine room 2 was done in October. The con-
struc~ion of ~h~ tiwo a~mospheric cooling towers wi11. be
fin3shed soon.
Le Fil,ayais
The naturo of the foundation soil (mud unatile to suppor~ such
s~ruc~ur~s) required a ma~or excavatiinn ~ob (2 million m3
of
mud removed to a depth of 15 m) ~nd ~he pouring oi' a sandy
fi11 taken from the C�ironde and b~i1t up on the stronger sub-
soil under ~he mud (5.2 million m). The edges of the tiwo
excavation pits were stab3lize~ by building a large concrete
wa11. with braces~ poured in the soil~ then anchored 3n it after
dredging of the mud (2~000 m of wa11, 30 m in height).
All this work is now finished for both pairs, and ~;he concrete
w~rk is 50 percent completed (240~000 mj of a~otal of 480~000
m
The dome of segment 1 was put in place in Nove~nber 1978; the
dome of segment 2 is scheduled to be raised in April 1979. As
for the machine room for 1-2, work on the nain frame for the
machine room began in Sep~ember 1978 and the mov3ng cranes
were raised in November (see Figure 4Jork and Test Program).
Chinon
With the exception of the type of atmospheric cooling tower,
~his plant with two segments of the CP 2 type is pr~ctically
an identical repetition ef the Saint Laurent plant~ with a
target date 1 year later. The target date is in fact ~ess~
since far the main p~rt o� the construction, 138 000 m had
already been poured at the end of November 197~ ~6~ percent).
The dome of segment 1 was ta be put in place in January 1979 -
and the start af the frame of the machine room is to be done
in /:pril 1979 �
12
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, 13
FOR OF~ICU~L l?~E U?~i.Y
APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2007/02/09: CIA-RDP82-00850R000100040062-8

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1~`Ok UN't~'IC tAL USL t~NLY
K~y for I~'~~ure 1: .
- 1. L~~end
~ 2, Civi.~. engineering
3, AssemblY
4. ~es~s
~egm~nts
6, ~ar~hwork ~
Bui~d~ng
8. BUtll{~P
Reactor
- 10. Rais~.ng of dome
11. Prestr~ssing
12. Nuclea~ boiler
13. ~FCO LOpen ~ank Functional ~es~s~
14. Machine room
~ 5� Condenser
_ 16. GTA LTurboal.tiernator ~roup,7
. Cruas
7'he volume of work ~'or this power plant, the last of the 900 MW
1eve1~ has already been given eara3er. A year into the work
.tihe gener~l clearing and earthwork are riow being completed
million m at the ond of November) the river borrow pit~s
for alluvi~l materials are over 1/~ done (1.3 milllon m)~ the
concrete work on the apron supporting the neoprene stiuds for
the 1-2 pair ~nd the peripheral wa11 attached to it are largely
done~ and the concrete pouring of the nuclear block itself
should start in December.
IV Construction in Fac~ories
Equipment for the 900 "4W level i~ covered in contracts
betweoen EDF ~nd the buil~ers; most often these contracts are
for series o� ident3cal equipment for several segments ("level"
contracts)~ and if necessary~ they also cover assembly at the
appropriate site. We should mention here that while the
Fessenheim and Bugey pawer plants had specific contracts for
each one~ the equipment for the nucle$r blocks for all of the
CP 1 an~ CP 2 segments (24 units) is handled in the same
serYes of contracts, each covering all tihe equipment to be
manufactured and assembled. The same is true of equipment
for the machine rooms of the C:~ 1 type (16 segments) and o~'
the CP 2 typs (eight segmer~ts
. 14
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i~Ok Ot~'t~'1CIAG USL nNLY
Af~er ~h~ ~nevitiabl~ probZems~ de~.ays~ and ~hanges ~ha~ are
a~.ways par~ of' ~~ob of sueh a sea~.e ~ manufac~uring ~.s now
pro~eeding in ~~ti~factory con~~.t~.ons and ati a sui~ab~e pace.
mh3s s~~uat~.on do~s not ~.n any way excl~de the pass~.b~.li~y
of cons~r~etiion inc~.dents of a random nature whieh a~e eal~ed
"manufacturing anoma~ies. ~hese demand cons~an~ v~.giJ.ance
on ~he part of ~he bu~~der an8 the con~rac~or~ natural~y to
detec~ ~hem~ but also ~o evalua~e ~arefu~ly ~heir real s~g-
ni~icance an~ ~o de~ermine the appropria~e correc~~ons.
. , , _
,
. .
~ _ - . .
; ,
_ ';~z,:,
~
r:~~
Model of the Chinon Site with the Two Pt~JR Segments.
15
~OR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
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~~dK oN~rrc;I~1L USL ONLY
~n th~~ shor~ article ~~hera can be no poas:Lb~.li,~y o#' ~~v~.n~
d~~ai~s on ~he s~a~us o~' ~he manufac~u~ing nf ~h~ many p~.eces
b~' ~quipm~nt .~or the 90~ MW ~~ve~. Th~re ara hundr~ds of ~
con~rdetg betH~~~n tih~' var~,ous ~eg~~ns af ~h~ E~~a3pm~nt Div3-
si~n and th~ bu~.l~~rs. Ul~ w~.ll c~t~~.y ~ive bri~f~.y ~he situa~ion
~~r ~ha n~clo~r`bo~l.~rs ~nd ~urn~-alt~rnator gro~ps~ wh~.eh ~s
qui~Q eh~~iac~er~.stic o� ~h~ av~~a1~. si~u~~ion.
Nuclear ~c~~.1Qrs ~u31~ by ~'~tA;;A~OtdE
`rh~ autpu~ rat~ ~~f the ~anks and s~eam ~~neratiors~ whose in-
stia~lmen~ in ~h~ r~actior bui~.dings naw controls the essent~als
af th~ on-si~E assemb~.y in ~he nucl8ar block~~ in practice
gnv~rns ~h~ programming of a11 the assembly work of the boilers
~nd ~hus of tihe campl~~ion of the 90o Mw ~evei ~o a grea~ ~~c-
~~nt. Seven CP 1 tanks wi11 have been suppll~d by the en~ of
1~78~ a~'ter ~he six Fessenhe3m end Bugey ti~nks. Ten ~anks are
ta b~ delivered in ~g79, from Gravelln~s 3 to Chinon ~1; three
in 1q80~ two in 19$2~ anc' ~wo in 1983~ Qradually the ~anks
being built for export and for the 1300 MW level will ~~p1ac~
~he produc~iott of those for the French 900 MW 1eve1 in the
builder's plants.
~'or tihe first eighti CP 1 segments~ the pr~mary tubing and
ste~m generator~ have been delive~ed to ~he sitie and have
either been instglled or are being instialled now. The stieam
g~nerators, which so far have come from the factory in two
sections and then been assembled on the site for Fessenheim
and Bug~y ar~ now~ at least in part~ delivered in a sin~le
unit; the design of the reactor buildin~ makes this possible
for the Cp 1 and CP 2.
W~ shou~d also men~ion that the nuclear fuel produce3 in ~he
~'BFC Lexpansion unknow) plants (a ~'RAMATOMC subcontractor)
at Dessel~and Romans is bein~ delivered 3n the required per~ods
o~' time (deliveries for the Bugey 5~ Tri~ast3n 1~ and Gravel~nes
1 segment~ during the first quarter of ~979' the fuel ~or
Dampier:e 1 is ~~.ready being sent to EDF's ~nterregional
~t~rage i'acility at Chinon).
Turbo-Alternator Groups of the CP 1 Type Bui1t by Alsthom-
Atilantique
A11 the parts for the first four Tricastin 1~ Gravelines 1~
D~mpierre t~ and Tricastin 2 se~ments have beQn delivered and
installed~ or are in the process of installation now: the '
t~P LHigh Pressur~ and Bp LLow Pressur) internal an~ externel
16
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POR d~~tCiAL USts ONLY
~ ~as~ngs~ exhaus~ ene~osurss IiP and BP ro~ors~ HP anci BP intaks
uni~s~ HP and BP ~u~d~s al~erna~or s~a~or and ro~or~ dryers~ -
- superhea~ers~ e~e~ Del~veries for ~he following segmen~s ars '
we1~. underway~ and a~1 tihe res~ of the equipment for th~s ~.m- -
pressive ser~~a af 16 i~~n~3,c~1 machinea ~s a~ d~fferen~ s~ages ~
o~' deve~opmen~: being manu#'ac~ured in ~he foundry~ forge~
meeh~nieal welding~ or m~~~~ng shops of the buil.der and of
thQ nume~ous Fren~h and~ foreigr? sub~ontrac~ors and supp~~.ers ~
u
Saint Laurent des Eaux: Construction of Two PWR Segments
(May 1978),
17 .
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~io~ n~{r~tcin~, us aHLY
~~P ~ Typa Tu~bc~-A1.~~rna~ors Bui.~.~ by A~s~hom~At~.ant~.que
'I'h~se ~y~~Qm~ bas~cl on C~d ~r~.ec~ro-Me~h~n:Lca1. Company,7
technnlo~y~ el~.f~e~ fr~m th~ p~ec~ding by the number of ~p -
~urb~.ne ro~ors ~hey have~ which have been redueed fram ~hree
~o tiwo. ~h~a pr~1~.m~.ria~y Leats a~~e now b~:tn~ c~one by the
builder~ and th~ firgt aquipm~nt should be sen~ soon ~o ~he
S~~n~ Lauren~ s~.~e~ For ~he ~a~er segmen~s~ prodttc~ion ~.s
can~inuin~ w~thduti nny ma~or problems~ of~en in advance of
~he site schedul.es. Deliver3~s of the inain parts for ~he
turbines (BP shaf~s and intake frames) and alternators
(bady ro~or) far ~he 1as~ segments of the 90o rna ieve~. (Cruas)
are a~ready being made,
V In~ ra~.lation ~nd Assembly ZJork
The installa~ion and assembly work for a nuclear power plant
has alsn been d3scussed in an article by t~iessrs Rou2aud
Baudriller and. La arde ~ which appeared ~.n REVUE GENERA~,~
NUCL~AII~E ~.n 19'J~ ~~.ssue no 3) .
The instiallat:ion work 3s praetically completed a~ ~he Bugey
site; i~s first tiwo segments are now connected ~o the electric~
power network (on 10 May and 21 September 19'~8~ respectively).
Th~ third segment shoul.d be connec~ed in March 1979 and the
_fourth in Ju1y 19~9. Aside from the work in progress on Bugey
4~ the anly remaining work consists of a few additions and
modi�ications which have been found to be of use. This work
wi11 be done during the first shutdown for refueling~
Equipment 3ns~a1lat;ion is now well underway at Saint Laurent
and is beginning at Blayais where the air conditioning and
general. electrical contrac~ors are now workin~~ installing
air conditionin ducts_and electr,~c boxes and panels~ MT
~edium Vo1~ag~~ BT LLow Voltag~~~ransformers in the electri-
cal building and the control room~ and auxiliary tubing for
the nuclear boiler or for all of the nuclear annexes. A
certain amount of heavy equipment was placed in the buildings
bef'ore comple~ion of the civil engineering in order to sim-
plify handling p~rocedures and limit or eliminate the need to
provide temporary acesss passages (bunkers, tanks~ exchangers~
etc.). `
This is the ma3or part of the work now in progress at
Tric~stin~ Gravelines~ and Dampierre~ where nearly 2~000
: workers are employed at each site~ and whose 12 segments are '
~o ~o on line in less than 2 years (from mid-1979 to mid-1981).
18
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I~'Oit dH'rICIAL U5L ONLY .
A~ bo~h ~ricas~3.n and Grave~.ines~ se gmen~s no 2~ whose work
~.s a~ ~.dentieal s~ages ~ a 13.tt~e behind Bugey 5~ ~he pr~.mary
c~.rcu~.~ ~.s now comple~ely ~.ns~a7.].ed ana ~he prescr~.bed comple~e
hydraul~.e ~es~~.ng (225 bars) was done ~.n ear~y November 1978.
By ~he end of November~ the ~nstaiigt~~n of ~he aux3].3ary
nuclear tubing of the boiler was a~mos~ comp~eted and some
mod~fica~~.ons dec~.ded on in the last few mon~hs were being
incorporated. There is some concern about the ins~a~.lation of
the secondary ~ubing for a11 ~he nuclear annexes~ for ~here
~.s a~reat deal of work to be done on modifications~ and th~.s
may cause some delay ~.n meeting the target date for connection
in July-kugust 1979.
The ins~allation of the turbo-al~erna~or groups is in advance
_ of the nuclear boiler work.
On ~he following segment~ Dampierre 1~ scheduled to go on
line in November 1979, the welding of the main pr3.mary circuit
of the boiler has been completed and it is now being conneeted
to the last secondary circuits which are attached to it. The
status of the assembZy of the tubing of the auxiliary circuits
(of the boiler 80 percent by the end of November 19~8; of
a11 ~he nuelear annexes 85 percent completed) and that of
the control.-command electrical systems and the general elec-
trical system is close to the point required for the start of
operations to f3.11 the tank and the EFCO LOpen Tank Funetional
Tes~>~ which mark the start of the period of ma3or systems
testing.
The installation of the turbo-alternator ~roup tias reached a
phase where the first mechanical rotation tests can be done
in February 197q, and a first connection to test steam can be
made (the ~'irst o� the CP 2 series~ as the ~P~:rierre site
has a steam ~eneratin~ facility using oil ) in ~-:2y ~ 979 ~
At segr~ents no 2 at botY~ Tricastin and Gravel.ines~ for which
the start of the EFCO are schec?uled for approxir~ately P7arch
~979, the tanks and steam generators are installec~ and the
welding of the main tL.bing connectin~ them is well advanced.
It is the installation of the auxiliary tubing anc~, of the
electrical circuits which is now at a critical point~ anc~
~reat efforts are bein~ asked of the bu~lCers who are employ-
ing hundreds of tubing asse~blers and electricians at each
site.
19
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t~~nn o~~~'tCIAL U5C nNI,Y
At the group consis~~.ng of Dampierre 2~ ~ricas~in 3~ and
Gr~vel.ines 3~ about 6 mon~hs beh~.nd ~he preced~n~ group~ ~he
we~.d~.ng nt' ~he primary circui~ is now go~.ng on. A~ C~rave~.~.nes
3~ new cpera~ions sequence had to be used because the ~ank
w~.1.~. no~ arr~.ve at the si~e un~37. ~'anuary 1979. The insta7.-
la~ion of ~he auxil~.ary tubing and of the coni:rol.-command
electr3.c~1 circuii;s ~nd of the genera~. e].ectrica7. sys~em is
we11 underway at Damp~.erre and has been begL~n at Tricas~~n
and Grav~l3.nes ,
Worlt is be~~.nning on the fo11ow3.ng segments: Tricas~in 4~
Dampierr~ 3~ Crravelines 4, and Dampierre 4~ their ~anks shoul.d
leave the factory between March and August 1979�
VI Testing and Start of Service
The first two Bugey segments (2 and 3) went on line on 10
Ntay and 21 September 1978. At the end of November 1978~ the
maximwn power came to 87 percent of normal power for Bugey 2
and 75 percent for Bugey 3. During the inerease in power~ the
plant had several shutdowns for a variety of reasons~ and so
this power increase took longer ~han expected. The following
problems were encounterec~:
a. riech anical incidents: in particular~ the alteration of
some of the condenser's tubes;
b. Modifications of some equipment~ based on the experience
at Fessenheim (dryers and superheaters~ etc.).
c. External events~ primarily high levels of muddy water
in the Rhone;
d. Problems of a social nature strike of operating
personnel.
At segment 4~ whose connection is scheduled for March 1979~
all of the tests before fuel loading have been done. Fuel
loading should start in early January 19~9. Connection of the .
turbo-alternator group to test stea~ was done on 15 June
197~.
At Bu~ey 5~ Tricastin 1~ and Gravelines 1~ the overall tests
of the boiler~ which take approximately 10 months preceding
the first connection~ were well underway at the end of November.
The filling of tanks and the EFCO, which mark the start of these
tests~ began at the end of the third quarter of 1978. The
20
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,
FOR OFFICIAL US~ ONLY
. �
~ ~ ~
~e ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
' cold ~es~s and ~es~ing of ~he primary circui~ under pressure
. have now been completed'a~'the three segments~ and opera~ions
will proceed sl~ghtl.y differently at eaeh of them~ The
- sehedule given below is for Tr~.eas~in 1: ~ .
a. Tests of ~he crane for handling fuel under water;
b. Res~npt3on~ and end o~', EFCO;
c. Comple~ion of initial checkout (in accordance with provi-
sions of decis3on of 26 February 19?4);
d� Placing of internal parts with instrumentation ~.n tank;
e. Test of seal of containment enclosure (4 bars~;
f. Hot tests of primary circuit; � ~
g. Loading of fuel~ previously placed in the pool of the
' fuel building; -
h. Precritical tests both cold and hot;
i. Going critical and being put on line.
The successful completion of these test
EDF eight additional operational segmentsrofrthe 9001r2Wisystem ~
for the winter of 1979-1980.
A new and large group of six segments will be added to the
preceding for the winter of 1980-1981: Dampierre 1 and 2~
. Tricastin 2 and 3~ Gravelines 2 and 3. Of these segments
phases 1 and 2 of the tests~ which precede the ph ase of ma or
system testing~ and whose contents~ described very briefly~
below are given in an article by Messrs Broch and Cayol ,
(REVU~ GENERALE NUCLEAIRE no 3 of 1977)~ are now more or les
in progress. s
Phase 1
Last checkout of end of installation~ preliminary tests an
tests of start of service of isolated components. For exad
hydraulic tests, checkout of relays while unconnected~ tests le:
of pumps with zero flow~ etc.
21
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I~nE~ UP'~ICIAL US~ ONLY ,
, _
. , _
K,
t y~;`.t' ' 'ii~'r r "
fi
u
_ ~ _
Ci;�(~p~~ . . .
. ~ _ . .
i,.
f
. . ~ ' ~ ~ . . . . . ~ ~ ~ . . . . . : ~ , . ~ . . ^ . . . . . . . . . . ~ ' . . . . . . ~
. . . . . .
Tricastin Power P1ant and Eurodif Cooling Towers (June 1978).
Phase 2 , _ :
.
Tests of integrated components or of functions which require
functioning configurations which can only be done during
partia]._ system tests. . -
Each of the "elementary systems" of the plant has a~ series of
specific tests which are carefully defined in the test pro- `
cedures. These tests are designed to check that the system
can function correctly in a11 normal. or accidental situations
''either expected or imagined at the de~;~n hase. �
_ d P
_ . :
A11 these operations take place as soon as the installation
and assembly status permits; each group of equipment or systems
moves'in succession from the "assembly area" to the "test
- area~'~ in which any intervention requires the use of very
strict procedures~ as`the system is then connected to fluid
or electrical power sources. ~
22
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~ I~OR Ot~ P''[C IAL USls ONLY
, Phase 3 ~
Ma~or system tests~ whose nature and sequencing have already '
been given~
Tab1e Ir: Expend3.~ures Listed as of 30 September 1978 for
Each Fair of 900 MW Segments. Given iri Percentage
of Total Cos~.
Tranches % du coat total
Fessenhelm t�2 g2,2
Bugey 2-3 , 89,0
8ugey 4-5 79,4
Tricasfin 1-2 ~g 8 -
Oravelines 1�2 73,4
Damalerre 1�2 ~~,p
TricasUn 3-4 , 50,5
GraveUnes 3�4 45,0 �
St�Laurent 1-2 48,4
Dampierre 3�4 39~g
Le 8layais 1�2 38,3
Chinon 1-2 42~g
Ls Blayais 3-4 ~q,p
Cruas 1-2 2~g
: Key:
~ 1. Segments
2. Percentage of total cost
To conclude at the end of this short presentation of the
status of construction of the 900 i~IW PWR power plants (see
Table IT~ percentage of expenditures for each pair), perhaps
we should again mention the delay in the nuclear ~jrogram and
discuss it in terms of its true significance. TY:e few
elements presented in this article~ while they do of course
reveal the slippage between the original schedul~~ (set to
accelerate the start and "running in" ph ase of industrial
systems) and the ?~~al situation at the end of 197$a will
enable the reade'r to measure the work done now and�~=to
conclude~ we th:tnk~ that the nuclear program with its goal
of 19~5~ as defined by the government in 1974, is now well
under way towar,ds completion. -
' 23
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
' I
e
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l~Ult 0!~'i~'[CtAI, USL dNLY
Th~ r~3u~.t o~ ~ninti ~c~ion by huridr~d:s o~' bu~.~~~r.~ ~ r~se~rch
nf�ic~~~ ~n~''s an~ ~overnmen~'s con~r~~tor s~rvi~~~~ ~h~.s
' prngi�~m in the ye~r~ tin comQ wi1~, bring abouti ~ profbund
ch~n~~ in savin~ our r~sources used for producin~ ~i~~~~~cgi
ener~y~ ~nd wi~.1 ~hus make ~ bi~ con~r~bu~~.on tio tihe develop-
men~ o.~ Ch~ diver~~.fi.c~tion n~' ~he primary ~ner~y sources~
whi~h ig a vi~al, n~c~ss3~y for our n~~ion~~ ~ednomy.
.
Fessenheim Nucl.~ar pow~r Plan~
pttri~ E~~VUC GEN~RAL~ NUCL~AI~t~ in French bec 7~ pp 460-4~0
.
~Artic~.e by Andre Leblond~ chief of the ~'essenheim power pl.anti~
anc~ (}uy I'erriole~ ehief of tihe general re~earch division of
the prnduction-tiransporti oFfic~~ thQrmal produc~ian service
of
~bF~
LText7 After presentiing ~he essential �eatiures of the
Fessenheim power pl~nti and the ph ases of its construc~ion and
s~art of service~ the authors discuss the starti of service
te~ts and ~he problems encountiered. They analyze the main
results obtained and draw atten~ion to the l~sson th~t can
be learned from this experience.
The Fessenheim nuclear power plant wi11 hav~ supplied in
~97g its first year of industrial operation over 11~5
billion kiiowaLt-hours to the French electrical power systiem.
This is over 40 percent of the electrical energy of nuclear
origin produced in F'rance during 197P�
This excellent result is even more significant and promising
as the two segments of this power plant are the first of a
sEries of facilities which~ in the years to come~ are to
provide the basis far electricity prod~~ctiion in France: the
history and record of this first provir~g ground are thus
of great interest.
I General Panorama
The Fessenheim power plant~ built on the left bank of the
grand canal of Alsace, has two segments each with a net
electric power of 890 MW.
Each segment has a nuclear boiler of the Pk'R type supplying
steam to a turbo-alternator group.
24
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ThQS~ bo~lers coh~~3t o� a~~660 ~?~J (~h2rma~) reae~o~ whieh
~ransmits i~s ~hermal energy to th~~~ s~~am gener~~ors. ~h~s
is done by ci~ou].a~in~ wa~er und~r pr~ssure by ~hr~e pumps
~Qa iea. "primary pwnps ~ ~
The essential charaetierist~cs o#' thQ most import;an~ equipment
ar~ ~iven ~n an annex~ along witih a~ransv~rsal vi~w of ~he
power plant and a sch~mat~.a af th~ aireu3try~
- The m$~.n phases o#' eons~ruetiion and o� ~he s~ar~ of op~ra~ions
were ~he following:
Decis3on to build 19~0
b. Instiallation of the reactor tiank
Segment 1: October 1974
Segment 2: January 1975
c. Nydrostiatic tiestiing of prfmary circuit
Segm~nt 1: :iarch 1976
Se~ment 2: October 19?6
d. Firsti loadin~ of �uel
Segment 1: December 19;'6
Segment 2: ' MarCh 197~
e. ~irst connectiion of alternator
to network Segment 1: 6 April 19??
Segment 2: 7 October 1977
f. Fu11 power Segment 1: October 1977
Segment 2: February 19?$
g. Start of industrial service
Segment 1: December 1977
Segment 2: 2~iarch 197~
The construction period was disrupted by ~ change of option
concernin~ the type of fuel (change from a 15 x 15 pencil
system to a 1~ x 1~ system~ in order to have the same flexi-
bility as the other 900 t~tJ segments which will follow)~ by
manufac~uring problems~ by one act of sabotage~ and also by
stiffened regulatory requirements.
Concerning the actual start o~ operations of the equipment
and circuits~ this covered a period of nearly 3 years~ i"rom
the firs~ tiesting of annex functions (production of water~ of
25
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.
~'OR i~E~'~tCIAt, U~~ hNLY
c~m~~~~s~d ~i~~ ~r a1~xi~iary ~ow~r supply) uri~3,~. th~ s~a~t of
indus~ria~. ~erv~.ce ~h~ ].~rge~C con~rac~~d sy~~~m~ ~he -
nucl~ar bdilQr, ~
_ _ , a
>
.
_ n~
' ~
s`
~
a~`; ' !
.~:~:;:ti;.
Fe~senh~im Power Plan~ (August 197R~.
Industrial operaLinn began in J`anuary 1978 for segment 1 and in
~Pri~- ~978 for s~gment 2; it is now continuing in very satis-
factory canditions. The first ter~ of this operation will
come with the shutdown of each segment in ~979 for 4 months~
in order to replace a third of the fuel and to make many
required checkouts (associated wlth this first shutdown and
with the 10-year review); this shutdown wil~ also be used to ~
make additions to the equiFment~ modifications~ repairs~
preventive investigations~ etc.
26
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~
~Ott tl~FtGIAL U~~ ONLY
Th~ f~~.~.~awing ro~~u~1c~ wi~.~. conoon~ra~e mast an t}~~ mo9~ r~c~nt
pe~~.od~ par~~.cu~arly the per~.od s~artin~ wi~h ~he fi.rs~
connoctlon oP ~h~ ~e~m~nt~ t;o ~ho ho~work; thon we w~.11
examine:
a. ~~ar~ o� s~rv~.c~e ~esting: 3tis go~1.~ cont~r~t~~ ~hc~. H~w
- i~ was cot~duc~~d;
b. P~oblems enooun~ered;
c. hiain resul~s ob~ai.ned;
d. Wha~ was learned from this.
tI aoals and Organi~ation o� Tes~s
- Th~ start of serv~.ce testis were div3ded ~.ntio ~hree phases:
- The firs~ phase preceded the hydr~u].ic ~es~ing of ~he primary
circuit of the boi~.er. In addition to the prelim~.nary tests~
it included ~he gradual starti of opera~c3on of equ~.pment and ~
circuits; this phase ensured that the circuits and ~heir
con~rol and command equipment were capable of func~ionin~~
without heet~ according tio the design specifications.
The second phase (5 to 9 months) tested the circuits in their
en~irety, first co1~ and then hot in conditions as close as
possible to normal operating cond~.tions. This period came ~o
an end with the first loadin~ of fuel into the reactor.
The lasti phase (~baut 10 montihs) included:
a. Precritical tests, both co1~i An~ r~t ~n@ in particular
including monitoring of the funetion~ng o: the control
rods;
b. Physical tests at low power desiEned te check the
neutron characteristics of ~he core;
c. The increase in power after electirical connection of the
alternator to the network. During tihis period ch~racteris-
t3cs of the core a~ different power levels and the capa-
bility of the facilities to withstan~ power spikes~
either normal or incidenta].~ were monitored. It had to
be ascertained:
27
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1. That in aa~~ of ~ pa~t~:~~ o~ eompl~te ~.~s~ a~ a f~na~ion~
th~ fttci~.ity w~~ p~~tac~~d an~ if n~e~~sa~y cou~.d
r~~tor~d to ~ ~~f~ eond~ti.o~;
T~iaL� i~h~ }~yp~th~s~s ~z~~d ~n ca~.c~~.~~~n~ ~ceiden~s and
11miLs ~f ~p~ra~i~n did i~~].u~~ ~uf~icient ma~~ins.
t~~ ~ariduc~3ng th~ T~~ts
A~i th@~~ ~est~ w~r~ e~nduc~~d under ~he au~ho~~.za~ion and
c~n~ral nf ~h~ SCSIN LC~n~~al Sa�etiy ~erv~ce for huelear
Facili~i~~ ~xf~er ~onsultation wi~h exp~rts from ~he : ~anding
~roup ~n Reacti~i~s.
Abaut ~+c~ m~~~ings ~f th~ ~~andin ~reup werQ he1d; ~hese
me~tin~s w~~e pr~e~ded by about ~'0 prepara~ory sess3ons~
t~~for~ ab~ainir~.g ~h~ au~hori~a~ion for loading fuel in~o ~he
�irst ~e~ment; thi~ was ~her. ~'~1lowed by authorizat3on for
pr~critical hot ~es~s~ for goin~ cri~ical~ an@ for ties~s
50 p~rc~n~ power~ th~n at 100 percen~ o� the nominal power.
At ~he ~im~ of ~h~ firs~ connection of the turbo-al~ernator
gr~up~ the bo~l.er had a~.ready operated at abou~ 20 pereen~ of
its nomin~l power~ with the steam produce~ being vented
directly to ~he condenser by a~urbine bypass circuit.
At each ~.evel of power which followed (30~ ~0~ ~5 90~ and
100 percent)~ the following ma~or ~ests were carr~ed outi:
a. Survey of furic~ioning conditions;
b. Chart3ng of neutron flows in the core;
c. Tests of re~ulations;
d. Power vari~tions.
The ar?alysis of tests done at one power l~v~l determined the
possibility of inereasing the power to the following level.
The di~~ram showing daily power (Figure 1) illustrates the
chronology and duration of tihese tests~ which were disrupted
by a certain number of incidents. Between the first connection
and functioning at nominal power~ the duration of tests or
work was 204 days for the firsti segment and 142 days for tihe
second. An ideal ~uration is about $0 days.
28
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. 29
~Uk OF E TC ( ~SF U~di.Z'
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~OK t~FFICi11L U3E t~NLY
li~y 1.'t~t~ 1~'1~;urci 1:
j . ~~~r~ant i
l~aw~~ i.n :~C~f ~~,,~~~etiri~#~ty
- 3. ~'3r~t ~~nn~6tion (;~f~dr~~~~~~t~ ~ A~ril a~ j04~)
~urbi~~ ~.nc~.d~n~ (~ow p~essure eas~ 3)
Rep~,ac~men~ ot eonneet~ons in ~eaetor tat'lt
6. R~pa~r of adapt~~s
~ ,~:isc~~lan~ous plumbing l~aks
;iork on ~.o~~? pre~~ure wa~~r stA~ion
tJork on fe8~d turbopt~:?ps an~ rciscellaneous work
10. St~r~ of industrial serv~ce on ~1 Deeembe~r 1~~~
11. ,,tiscel~.an~ous work
1?. ;ti'ork on seconda~y ci~cuit
1~. ;~ork on pr3mary an!~ s~cond~ry circu~t~
14. t~ork on dryers-suparh~a~er~
1~. Checkout o~' dryers-sup~rhea~ers
16. 3~~tr,~nt 2
1~. First conn~c~ion (Friday~ 7 Oc~ober e~ 1240)
13. Ch~ek oi' al~~rna~or benrSngs
j9� L~ak in s~condary circui~ anC defec~ in clus~e~
cammanc~
20. Various checks of turbine anr' n:iscellaneous �~?ork
21. 'rfork on primary circuit Cpress~,~rizer s~ray va?ve)
22. Turbine plurubing an~ secondary aircuit plumbin~
23. tJork on corulectors
24. Start oi' industriaZ service on 1 April 1~~~
2~. ~lork on d~ye~s-superheaters
26. ~eak in pressurizer spray velve
2~. Check of dryers-superheaters
'1^he ~'ollowing inforr.!ation can be drawn from tr.i~s phase
prec~ding industrial functioning ar.d fror~ the actual start
- of service testing itself:
a. GenQrally speakinP~ unlike the maiori~y o" thermal
pow~r plan~s for which fu11 capacity is reached
quickly after the :irst connection~ the r~se in power
o;' a nuclear ~1nnt of the P:~~fi type necessarily ta~tes
a lonp tiim~.
b. Cons~derin~; th~ site aspects~ the exFerience with ~
- startin~ the f3rst seg~?ent greatl;~ accelerates the
5peed of startin~ service at the second.
~0
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~V ~r~b~,~m~ ~count~rae~
~+fe ~houl~ say fi~st o~ al~. tiha~ ~he ~too s~~m~n~s arQ ~.d~nt~c~1
and ~ntir~aly ~hd~p~nd+~nt ~xc~pt fo~ ~h~ ~~~luen~ ~~~a~m~n~
fa~ili~y a~hich ~harQd~ and also that ~hey are ~h~ �~~s~ ~f
a s~ri~~. ~
Of ~he ~quirc~~nt �~r the nuolear boi~er~ the maior equ~~men~
w~s built ~nd~r 1ie~~ae. ~tos~ ~f ~he ~e~t of ~he ~q~~,p~nent
bein~ put to a r?~w use ~n th~~ ~ype o� :ae~li~y~ The ma3or
~3~c~~ af ~qui~m~nt ~f i;he s~~ort~e~y p~rt are p~o~o~ype~ and ,
the eff~.uent t~~a~ment Qqui.pmetit is ent~~8~.y ne~~r in ~.~s ~unet3on-
in~ condi~ions.
Ar~on~ ~he prok~~~~s ~inc~ ~h~ F~rs~ eonnection~ w~ shoul.c~
m~n~ion thos~ wi~h a~ip,n3ficant incid~r~c~ on ~he dura~~.on o~
t~s~s or on plan~ apQ~a~ing tir~e.
flor s~~men~ 1~ 1ist~d in ~hronoloci~~~ arder~ ~hes~ were:
- 1. An inciden~ af�ect~.ng ~he ~urt~ine on 2 t~:ay 197? While
the segmen~ ca~s ~t 3o percen~ of nomin~l ~:ower; serious
dama?~e of ~ stgtianary guide o~ a low pressure casin~~
prob~bly caused by a manufacturin~ de:'ect~ required
chan~in~ all the clearances b~tween wheels and guides~
checkin~ all the lo~~r pressure casings and replacing
guides exceeding tolerances (10 weeks3.
A leak which appeared in oid-July betiween the reac~ar
~ank and its cover; ~his required the replacement of
two connections and the oodif3cation of the closin~
bearing (20 days).
3. Ttie discovery at the end of July 19?7 of a we~kness
in the seal of the welding on the control. rods
come:and rr.echanism housing located on the reactor
cov~r; a corr.plete checkout of the are~s int�olved
uncovered several defects of the sa~e type (20 days).
4. A~ the end of October 1977 dar~a~~e was found on one
o!' thE two turbopunps feedin~ the water station
after contacts between the drw:~ an~ the ~1an~ rings;
the ~amaped pump was re~?laced and the second lump
wns c~odifie~ ~uring a 1-~conth shutdown in November-
Decer~ber schedt~led ~'or other reasons.
31
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5� nur3r~~ ~h~ 11~v~mb~r-~QC~r..b~~ shu~d~wn~ s~.x s~~ar,. b~owou~
bd~.~.oon~ sur~aun~~n~ ~he ~u~bi.ne and p~aced 3n ~he con- ~
c~en~~r w~re mod~fi~~; the~a hac~ r~.pped because of a
de~~~;n d~~~ct.
~n a~l~ ~h~ i.ncid~nt~ ~el~~ed ~o the p~o~o~ype nature o~ ~he
seeondary part ot' th~ f.~ci~i~y and ~he work done on the ~ank
connec~ion~ ~~used a 112�day delay ~.n ~et~~.ng ~he se~men~ ~o
~tis orer~~ion ~t nominal power; if ~hese problems had no~
nc~urrec~~ ~h~.s pow~r would ~h~ore~ically_havo been reached 92
day~ ~ft~r ~he first conna~tion.
Fwr~hermore~ all ~hrou~hout tih3s period~ the prescribed
requirem~ntis on metihods af d~.sposing of l~.quid effluen~s in
~he ~nv~.~onm~nt havQ become more and more res~ric~ive~ and
~his ~au~ed some probl~ms~ even includin~ in~erruptin~ ~he
qchec~ul.~.
7'he au~horizatiions for waste disposal contiroled by ~he
SCPAI ~en~ral Fro~ection 5ervice againsti Ion~zin~ fiadia~3on~
reauire ~hat a1.1 effluents ~ whether sl~.p,htly or high].y
radi~act~ve~ be retained and monitiored before removal. This
requiroment has affec~ed tihe continuing secondary draining
o~' ~h~ steam generators~ done in order ~o ob~a3n and main~ain
very s~rict chemical characteristics of the water; ~his is
ir~portiant to keep the equipment workin~ for a long period
of time. At the time of design~ it was felt that these ef-
fluen~s cauld be disposed of. directly.
Aftier the s~ar~ of 3ndustrial service~ the only incidents
~~'fecting tihe satiisfactory functioning of segment 1 were:
1. A leak in a valve of an au~ciliary circuit o� the boiler;
the motor nf a primary pump had to be replaced (6 da~ls).
2. The detierior~tion of internal parts o� the four dryers-
superheaters associated with the turbo-alterna~or group
(inspectiion doors on the separation plate between intake
and outlet of h~ating steam on two of them~ protective
bulbs for the tubular bundles on all four); the duration
oi' sh utdown for this was 3? days (including 5 days for
checking repairs af~er 2 months of operation).
~'here have also been some shutdoWns causeci primarily by defects
in ~he tightness of some of the plur.~~in~; ~ althoueh all the
shutdowns for othe~r reasons were used for repairs. The inci-
dents first affected the pri~!ary and secondary circuits~ then
32
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ma~.n~y ~he seconda~y c3.rcu~,~ (ex~erna~. ~eaks weak 3.n~erna~
sea~ rup~ure of rod~ bl.ocka~e) .~.'he ~o~a~ ~~.mo 1.os~~ e~.~h~r
~ota~ly or par~iay~.y~ caused spec~.f~.c~~~y by p~.umbin~ prob~.e~s
amoun~s to the equival~n~ of 15 d~ys of shu~down sinee ~he
firs~ connQC~ien.
~'or se~ment ~he exper~enee acquired ~~r~.~h se~c~en~ 1 did make
poss3bl,e ~d c?o a cer~ain amoun~ o� work before ~.~s f~.rs~
connec~ion (rr,odifica~~.on o� ~ow pre~sure cases of ~he turb~.ne~
repair of ~he we~d3.n~ on the clus~er command mechan~.sm).
Causes of delay or ~iMe 1os~ were roughly ~he sa~ne as in seg-
men~ 1. The ma~.n occurrences tio be mentioned are:
1~ To~~1 ~oss o� ~'unction for 10 days because of heat~.n~
of a bearin~ of the al~ernator and a defee~ in a con-
tro1, cluster commdnd dev~.ce;
2. A 3-week shutdown in November 19ry~ ~o do some work
similar ~o the work done in segment 1 a~ ~he same
time~ primaril.y on the secondary par~ of the facill-
ty (blowou~ balloons near the turbine~ plumbing
work~ checkout ~n~? repair of feed ~urbopumps);
3. An internal defect in the circuiti breaker at ~he
outle~ of the alternator (6 days);
4. Feplacement of a prototype ad~usting valve on ~he
turbine steam intake (6 days);
5. ~dork on dryers-superheaters after ~he incident in
segment 1 (25 days);
6. Several short c?uration shutdowns required by plumbing
failures (35 days).
V First Reports
Corisidering the "f3rst of a series" and p~rtially pro~oty~e
nature o~' the two segments~ the first operat3ng period h~s
been satisfactory.
Of a11 the technicai probleros encountered, none has invalidated
the fundamental options selected for this pl~nt anC then used
for the remainder of the 90o rtt~; prograt~.
33
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The a~~ua~ nucl.ear par~ ~.~se1.f suf~erod on~y a~'ew fa~.~.ures
of ined~.wn impor~ance and ~he many ehanges ~ha~ had ~o be made
in ~he conventiana~ equ~.pmen~ or equ~.pmen~ based on conven~~.onal
d~si~n~ wa~~ not ~f ~ radi~al nature.
S~.nce ~he s~ar~ o~' indus~rial opera~ion~ ~ho record of ~~.me
~.n opar~t~.on o~' the ~wn segments is good (7~ an~. percen~) ~
~nd hlgh~r ~han the va~uE of 50 percen~ used 3.n the FEON
~dvisory Comm~iss~.on on ~h~ Product~.on E~.ectr~.ci~y o� Iducl.ear
- Orig~.n~ s~ud~.es ~ By way oF comparison~ ~he average ~~.me in
ac~ual opera~ion of ~DF's conventional. thermal pl.ants was ~2
percent in 1977�
~igure ~ shows ~hat the bchavior of ~ho two Fessenheim un~.ta
since they supplied ~heir fi.rs~ kt~Pu bo the network ~.s fully
sa~isf't~e~ory compared wi~h other similar production faci].~.~~.es~
such as the U.S~ Beaver V~11.ey planti~ which was a point o~'
r~ference for the nuclear part~ and the T3han~e plan~~ w~.~h
simil.ar secondary faci].i~ies ~o those at Fessenheim.
From the point of view o~' the performances expected~ the
behavior of the facility in its transitional,~hase seems ver
satisfACtory; the re ulations on "i].otage" Lmeaning unknow~
and load variations ~increase of
5 percent of nominal power per
minutie an~ spikes of ~ 10 percen~) are being respected; follow-
up of laad and ad~ustment by remote control are not authoriz~d
at ~he prosent time. ~
~'or the time being the behavior of the fuel is satisfac~ory;
the total radioactivity of the water in the rinary circuit
(excluding tritiua) is about 0.2 to 0.3 Ci/m~.
~'he effects of the plant's operation on exposure of the
personnel and the environnent to radiation have been very
slight,
The average annual dosages received by plant workers comes
tn 11 millirems for 19;7 and 100 millire~s for 1978; ~hese
figures ~ay be compared with the value of 1F8 millirems for
all of EDF's power plants in 1977. We must~ however~ say that
these 1ow values are not very significant~ since they cover
_ a period durin~ which no refueling was done.
34
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_ : ~oee
. ;
:
A~
tr11
.
. /
_ 5000
i
/ ,
i
�
i ~
~00~ ~ ~
~
C I/ ,
. ~ . 1000 / ' ? 1 . .
I
~ I
_ ~ ~ ~r .
~ . ,
. l000 . ~ � � .
. . . I~ ~ ~ .
i
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~ ~
1000
~ ? /
/ ~ ?
~r' r
.
e
i i ~ i i u i ~ ~
. . . ~ Ia ~~.rw~ . . . 14~ ~y.M.u .
w~~l
Figure 2:~ Behavior of Fessenheim in relation to Beaver
Va11ey and Tihan~e.
Key:
1. Start of Fessenheim and several 900 i�I?~l PWR
W'estinghouse Units
2. Hours Equivalent to Full Power
3. 100 Percent Operation
4. First On-Line
5. Age of se~ments (in months)
35
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rnk at~rtcinr, us~ n~n.Y
- D~sp3.~e ~ ~arger produc~ion of effluen~s ~han expec~ed~ ~he
radinac~~.v~.~y c~used by was~QS released in the water ~nd air
in 1978 reached ~he f.'ol.lowin~ ~eve~.s ~.n rcl~~~.on to ~he
author3.zed v~~ues:
a. Abou~ 10 pareQn~ for ~.3.qu~.d effl.uents (excl.ud3ng ~ritium);
: b. Les~ than 4~ pQrc~nr f'or ~r~.~3um;
c. Less than 5 perc~n~ for ~aseous wtts~es.
Consequences for the p~pul.ation w3.th ~he hi~;hest theoretic~l
exposure~ based on very pess3mis~ic assumptions~ for 19'77
~ave an amoun~ of irradia~~.on equivalent ~o abou~ 0.02 mi1~.3rem
_ far ~he en~ire organism; ~his is nearly 10~000 times less ~han
the regu~.atory limit and ~han natural raciioactivitiy.
VI ;~~a~ 'Aas Learned From the Start and S'irs~ ~e~r of
Indus~rial Operation
A. Conc~uc~in~ of th e S~arting Tests
There are obvi.ously many reasons far the very sa~isfactory
start of the power plant; in addition to the use of an already
proven ~ype of nuclear boi].er~ there are the good organization
of the ~ests and a s pecial adaptation o� the resources usec?..
The orpanization of the tests, implemented gradually and
becor~in~ ~'ully operational a year before the connection~ was
maintained until the start of industrial service of the two
se~rr.ents. The teams included personnel. either from EDF's
Equipment and Thermal Production Region or from the contrac-
tors~ with the overall coord.ination in the hands of EDF. A
very close cooperation betiween all the parties involved~ pri-
marily in matters affect~ng safety~ grea tly ~'acilitated the
pronress of the various phases.
During this entire ~eriod, tests were carried out accordin~
to test procedures (about a thousand) drawn up in advance;
- their very extensive preparation (45~000 pa~es of documenta-
tion per segment) represented a ma~or amount of work. For,-~--
~he tests and their ~'ollowup ~DF sent a special team whi;ch
at peak ca~e to near~y 30 people (engineers and technic;ians);
personnel sent:by the builder of the nuclear boiler am~unted
to a n~axir~um force of 24 people.
36
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. _ , , ,
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. -0~her posi~~.ve fac~ors were:
a. The rap~.d availabili~y o~' the test resti~lts and ~lie3.r
, cr~.~ica1 ex~mination;
� ~ b� The ~very extens3.ve yoiiowu~ o~ moc~ ~~'icF,tions m.ade in
c3.rcuits anc? ec~~:iprrlent dt~ring the s tarting ~rocedure t
c. Hi~h1y effec~3.ve com~rnunica;~~.ons bet~reen rese~xchers ~
~ and neopl.e at the s~:te.
~Fiowever~ some changes shoul.d be made ' as they caused too
burdensome a workload~ or signif3can~ delays: the effluent
, treatment system anc~ the condition of the plumbin~ fa~.l into
this category.
Since the start of the rise in power~~ the somewhat larger than
' expec~ed proc~uction of effluents and the high levels of radio-
act3~rit~ . 3.n the y ~
,T primar circuit at shutdown have caused large
amounts of radioactivity in the liquid effluents~ althou~h
the 1evels are still acceptable. The higher than expected
production has st~.ll not been explained~ f.or, on one hand~
there are no means of' identifying sources in the relatively
complex collection circuits~.and also because problens have
arisen in reusin~ water from the primary circuit because of
the len th of time spent on improvin~ the e~'fluent treatment
system ~mainly evaporators and equipment for placin~ effluents
3.n containers). The radioactivity could not be quickly,elimi-
. nated as the flow passing over,the demineralizers of the che- .
mical and volume control circuit was generally too low. This ~
radioactivity did cause some rad.iation protection probler~s.
Concerning the plumbing~.the many (already~listed) defects
� which caused loss of operating time and doses of radiation
~ for the personnel during repairs should be~reduced by decrea-
sin~ the number and types of equipment~ a better adaptation
of the equipment to its function~ precautions taken in instal- ~
lation elimination of all unnecessary cla~:ps~ an appropriate
select~on of leakproof'~ointings~ checkin~ of clamps and
the quality of connections.
B Organization of Operations ~
. _ Since the start of testing~ the plant's operating personnel
have operated the equipment (from a centralized command room).
This ~ave them a@ditional trainin~~ and at the same time it -
tested the operating instructions (there are about 200 in-
structions contained in 2~000 pa~es).
: ~ 37 ~
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~.1
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