Benchmarking Study of Maintenance Performance Monitoring Practices

This Report summarizes the results of a research carried out in the year 2007 under the SONIS (Safety of Nuclear Installations) programme for 2007, Task 1.1.1, Maintenance effectiveness indicators and risk monitors. The research was based on the survey of the experience of European nuclear utilities in the use of maintenance performance indicators at selected European nuclear utilities. The survey results proved the validity of the specific maintenance performance indicators selected for the maintenance performance monitoring framework proposed by IE/JRC and published in the EU Report 22602. The obtained results provide good basis for further development and implementation of the proposed maintenance monitoring system. The analysis of the survey results revealed additional maintenance aspects critical to the effectiveness of maintenance programme. All these topics will be carefully analysed in the next steps of the research in connection to their coverage in the maintenance monitoring system and identification of critical items that could be subject for the further activities in the SONIS Research program.JRC.F.5-Nuclear operation safet

Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on NDE in Relation to Structural Integrity for Nuclear and Pressurized Components

This conference, the tenth in a series on NDE in relation to structural integrity for nuclear and pressurized components, was held from 1st October to 3 October 2013, in Cannes, France. The scientific programme was co-produced by the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre, Institute for Energy and Transport (EC-JRC/IET). The Conference has been coordinated by the Confédération Française pour les Essais Non Destructifs (COFREND). The first conference, under the sole responsibility of EC-JRC was held in Amsterdam, 20-22 October 1998. The second conference was locally organized by the EPRI NDE Center in New Orleans, 24-26 May 2000, the third one by Tecnatom in Seville, 14-16 November 2001, the fourth one by the British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing in London, 6-8 December 2004, the fifth by EPRI in San Diego, 10-12 May 2006, the sixth by Marovisz in Budapest, 8-10 October 2007, the seventh by the University of Tokyo and JAPEIC in Yokohama, the eight by DGZfP, 29 September to 1st October 2010, the ninth by Epri NDE Center, 22-24 May 2012 in Seattle. The theme of this conference series is to provide the link between the information originated by NDE and the use made of this information in assessing structural integrity. In this context, there is often a need to determine NDE performance against structural integrity requirements through a process of qualification or performance demonstration. There is also a need to develop NDE to address shortcomings revealed by such performance demonstration or otherwise. Finally, the links between NDE and structural integrity require strengthening in many areas so that NDE is focussed on the components at greatest risk and provides the precise information required for assessment of integrity. These were the issues addressed by the papers selected for the conference.JRC.F.5-Nuclear Reactor Safety Assessmen

International Forum on Reactor Ageing Management (IFRAM) - Proceedings of the European Engagement Workshop

In 2009 the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (US NRC) together with the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) initiated the "International Forum on Reactor Ageing Management (IFRAM)". The aim of the forum is to consolidate the present knowledge on ageing management (AM) and long term operation (LTO) of commercial NPPs, identify open gaps and prioritize and even conduct the necessary R&D work to fill these gaps. IFRAM is seeking to share knowledge and data and to avoid duplication of work since human and financial resources for AM/LTO are limited. IFRAM should be an international forum with members from Asia, America and Europe and all common commercial nuclear reactor types around the world should be represented. An Asian Engagement workshop was held successfully in Seoul from 11th - 13th October 2009 to bring together Asian nuclear organisations & research institutes and US NRC & PNNL to further discuss the idea of IFRAM. The Asian Engagement workshop was followed by the European Engagement workshop held in Petten, the Netherlands from 25th - 27th May 2010 and hosted by JRC-IE. Similar to the Asian Engagement workshop the aim of the European Engagement workshop was to bring together European nuclear organisations & research institutes and US NRC & PNNL to further discuss the idea of IFRAM and open scientific / technical issues on AM/LTO. The European Engagement workshop was held successfully and this EUR report summarizes the presentations given by the workshop participants and the outcome of the two discussion sessions, i.e. establishment & benefits of IFRAM and scientific / technical issues on AM/LTO 60 years+ of NPPs.JRC.DDG.F.5-Safety of present nuclear reactor

Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on NDE in Relation to Structural Integrity for Nuclear and Pressurised Components, San Diego, 10-12 May 2006

This conference, the fifth in a series on NDE in relation to structural integrity for nuclear and pressurised components, was held from 10 to 12 May 2006, in San Diego, USA. The scientific programme was produced by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre, Institute for Energy (EC-JRC/IE), the conference co-organiser. It was locally organised by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The first conference, under the sole responsibility of EC-JRC was held very successfully in Amsterdam, 20-22 October 1998. The second conference was locally organized by the EPRI NDE Center in New Orleans, 24-26 May 2000, the third one by Tecnatom in Seville, 14-16 November 2001, and the fourth one by the British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing in London, 6-8 December 2004. The theme of this conference series is to provide the link between the information originated by NDE and the use made of this information in assessing structural integrity. In this context, there is often a need to determine NDE performance against structural integrity requirements through a process of qualification or performance demonstration. There is also a need to develop NDE to address shortcomings revealed by such performance demonstration or otherwise. Finally, the links between NDE and structural integrity require strengthening in many areas so that NDE is focussed on the components at greatest risk and provides the precise information required for assessment of integrity. These were the issues addressed by the papers selected for the conference.JRC.F.5-Nuclear operation safet

Proceedings of the Seventh International Conference on NDE in Relation to Structural Integrity for Nuclear and Pressurised Components. 12-14 May 2009 - Yokohama, Japan

This conference, the seventh in a series on NDE in relation to structural integrity for nuclear and pressurised components, was held from 12 to 14 May 2009, in Yokohama, Japan. The scientific programme was produced by the European Commission¿s Joint Research Centre, Institute for Energy (EC-JRC/IE), the conference co-organiser. It was locally organised by Jaipeic. The first conference, under the sole responsibility of EC-JRC was held very successfully in Amsterdam, 20-22 October 1998. The second conference was locally organized by the EPRI NDE Center in New Orleans, 24-26 May 2000, the third one by Tecnatom in Seville, 14-16 November 2001, the fourth one by the British Institute of Non-Destructive Testing in London, 6-8 December 2004, the fifth by EPRI in San Diego, 10-12 May 2006 and the sixth by Marovisz in Budapest, 8-10 October 2007. The theme of this conference series is to provide the link between the information originated by NDE and the use made of this information in assessing structural integrity. In this context, there is often a need to determine NDE performance against structural integrity requirements through a process of qualification or performance demonstration. There is also a need to develop NDE to address shortcomings revealed by such performance demonstration or otherwise. Finally, the links between NDE and structural integrity require strengthening in many areas so that NDE is focussed on the components at greatest risk and provides the precise information required for assessment of integrity. These were the issues addressed by the papers selected for the conference.JRC.DDG.F.5-Safety of present nuclear reactor

The Tacis Nuclear Programme Assistance in Upgrading Russian Nuclear Power Stations - An Overview of the Individual Projects in the Internet

The European Union TACIS1 programme has been established for the New Independent States (NIS), among them in the Russian Federation since 1991. One priority of TACIS funding is Nuclear Safety. The European Commission has made available a total of 944 Million euro for nuclear safety programmes covering the period 1991-2003. The TACIS nuclear safety programme is devoted to the improvement of the safety of Soviet designed nuclear installations in providing technology and safety culture transfer. JRC is carrying out works in the following areas: • On-Site Assistance for TACIS operating Nuclear Power Plants • Design Safety and Dissemination of TACIS results • Reactor Pressure Vessel Embrittlement for VVER in • Regulatory Assistance • Industrial Waste Management • Nuclear Safeguards All TACIS projects, dealing with these areas of activity are now available in so called Project Description Sheets (PDS) or Project Results Sheets (PRS) in the Internet for everybody. JRC has created in the Internet an easy to open and to browse database which contains the result of works in relation to the above mentioned nuclear activities. This presentation gives an on-line overview of the app. 430 projects which have been implemented so far since the outset of the TACIS Nuclear Progremme in the Russian Federation, which is representative to the other CIS countries, benefiting from the TACIS. The presentation will mainly consist of an on-line-demonstration of the TACIS Nuclear WEB Page, created by JRC.JRC.F.5-Nuclear operation safet

Proceedings of the 9th International Conference on NDE in Relation to Structural Integrity for Nuclear and Pressurized Components

The theme of the Ninth International Conference on NDE in Relation to Structural Integrity for Nuclear and Pressurised Components was the link between the information provided by NDE and the use made of this information in assessing structural integrity. In this context, there is a need to determine NDE performance against structural integrity requirements through a process of qualification. There is also a need to develop NDE to address shortcomings revealed by such qualifications or otherwise. Finally, the links between NDE and structural integrity require strengthening in many areas so that NDE is focussed on the components at greatest risk and provides the precise information required for assessment of integrity. These were the issues addressed by the papers presented at the conference. The level of interest in the subject matter of the conference was maintained from previous events and over 150 suitable papers were submitted for presentation at the conference. This required the programme to be organised in three parallel sessions, each on a specific theme, to provide each paper with sufficient time for presentation and to accommodate all of them within the overall time allocated. A major conference theme was related to the links between NDE and structural integrity. One of the three sessions contained all the qualification and structural integrity papers, including those on risk-informed inspection. This session also included papers on NDE reliability, material properties measurement and mathematical predictions of inspection performance through modelling. A second session was devoted to the theme of development of new inspection methods. The third session was concerned with inspections of specific reactor components. Two developments noted at the previous conferences in Budapest, San Diego, Yokohama and Berlin were the increased number of papers on the subjects of austenitic and bi-metallic weld inspection and also the use of phased arrays. These were also well represented in the programme of the conference in Seattle and are clearly topics which continue to arouse a high level of international interest. Seventeen countries were represented in the final programme from Europe, America, Asia and Africa. In the event, the conference was highly successful. The 156 presented papers maintained the high promise suggested by the written abstracts and the programme was chaired in a professional and efficient way by the session chairmen who were selected for their international standing in the subject. The number of delegates, at 312, was also highly gratifying, showing the high level of international interest in the subject. This is also indicated by the large number of countries, 17, represented by the delegates. These Proceedings provide the permanent record of what was presented. They indicate the state of development at the time of writing of all aspects of this important topic and will be invaluable to all workers in the field for that reason.JRC.F.5-Nuclear Reactor Safety Assessmen

Upgrading In-Service Inspection of Russian Designed Nuclear Power Reactors

Assistance and cooperation programmes of the European Commission for Russian designed Nuclear Power Reactors have been established since 1991 through the TACIS and PHARE programmes. The TACIS and PHARE nuclear safety programme have been focused on reactor safety issues, contributing to the improvement in the safety of Russian designed reactors and providing technology and safety culture transfer. The main parts of these programmes are related to the On-Site Assistance and to the Design Safety of VVER and RBMK Nuclear Power Plants where In-Service Inspection of the primary circuit components is addressed. This paper gives an update of the TACIS and PHARE projects dealing with In-Service Inspection of VVER and RBMK NPPs, such qualification of the In- Service Inspection for Russian designed Nuclear Power Plants and In-Service Inspection upgraded equipment for RBMK fuel channels and VVER reactor pressure vessel. It details the main objectives and the results obtained.JRC.DDG.F.5-Safety of present nuclear reactor

Maintenance Issues in Relation to Plant Life Management Models

Due to current social and economical framework, in last years many nuclear power plant owners started a program for the Long Term Operation (LTO)/PLIM (Plant Life Management) of their older nuclear facilities. PLIM/PLEX has already been implemented in many countries (USA, Russia, etc.). This process has many nuclear safety implications, other than strategic and political ones. The need for tailoring the available safety assessment tools to such applications has become urgent in recent years and triggered many research actions. In particular, a PLIM framework requires both a detailed review of the features of the main safety programs (Maintenance, ISI, Surveillance) and a complete integration of these programs into the general management system of the plant. New external factors, such as: large use of subcontractors, need for efficient management of spare parts, request for heavy plant refurbishment programs demand for updated techniques in the overall management of the plant. Therefore new organisational models have to be developed to appropriately support the PLIM framework, integrating both safety related and non safety related issues. Last year a network of European Organisations operating Nuclear Power Plants, SENUF (Safety of European Nuclear Facilities), under the coordination of the JRC-IE (European Commission, Joint Research Center, Institute for Energy), carried out an extensive questionnaire on maintenance practice in their facilities aiming at capturing the aspects of the maintenance programs where research is mostly needed. This paper uses some results of the questionnaire, which was not oriented to LTO/PLIM, to draw some conclusions on how the current maintenance programs could support a potential LTO/PLIM, among the other programs running at NPPs. In this sense, it is spin-off of the SENUF WG on maintenance. The paper aims at identifying the technical attributes of the maintenance programs more directly affecting the decision for a long-term safe operation of a nuclear facility, the issues related to their implementation and safety review. The paper includes an analysis of the questionnaire circulated among the SENUF participants and a discussion on the implications of optimised maintenance programs in existing plants. Some examples at VVER plants taken by sources other than SENUF complete the overview, with some proposals for solution of practical implementation problems.JRC.F.5-Nuclear operation safet

Research Studies in Support of Nuclear Power Plant Life Management

The analysis of the plant operating practice in European countries shows a growing interest in plant life management programs (PLIM), integrating nuclear safety, economic and knowledge management issues in operating procedures and tools able to support optimised decision making. Such a trend is considered essential in market economies where optimised asset management is becoming imperative, keeping safety at the highest possible level. It is recognised that only an integrated approach to the management of some key safety and non-safety programs could guarantee full control on the plant assets, providing also invaluable frameworks for refined plant overall safety assessment, even in the long term, beyond the plant design life. The PLIM programs specifically address and control ageing phenomena, support optimisation of maintenance strategies, plan major plant reconstruction works, drive plant staff knowledge management and optimise economic resources. R&D is essential to support this development process of PLIM models, especially in the analysis of both the technical issues related to all types of component ageing, and in the challenging integration of safety and non-safety programs, such as in the case of maintenance optimisation, spare part management, staff ageing, and component obsolescence. The European Commission took important initiatives in contributing and supporting this R&D effort in selected PLIM areas, in the framework of the EURATOM programme, both by ¿direct actions¿ i.e. projects managed and executed by its Directorate General Joint Research Centres (JRC) and by indirect actions i.e. funding selected projects, managed by the Directorate General Research (RTD). This paper outlines the JRC¿s priorities in the current 7th Framework Programme in relation to R&D tasks for PLIM methods to support the highest safety level at member NPPs and appropriate decision-making tools, also in view of long-term safe operation of the European plants. Some results made available by the on-going research programs are also shortly described, in the areas of PLIM models and operational indicators respectively.JRC.F.5-Nuclear Reactor Safety Assessmen