December 1998

- Armenia - Bulgaria - Czech Republic - Hungary - Kazakhstan

- Lithuania - Russia - Slovakia - Ukraine - United States

- Cross-Cutting Activities - Planned Activities - Previous Activity Reports

The December Activity Report documents safety improvements achieved in late November and December at Soviet-designed nuclear power plants through U.S. and host-country cooperation. To request a hard-copy version or to provide comments or suggestions, send an e-mail message to andrea.currie@pnl.gov.

Monthly Highlight

U.S. Team Tours Improvements to Ignalina Control-and-Protection System

During the week of December 7, U.S. team representatives from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory visited Vilnius, Lithuania, and Ignalina nuclear power plant (NPP) to review recent improvements in the control-and-protection system at the plant.

The control-and-protection system is among the most critical safety equipment in a nuclear power reactor. It is designed to rapidly shut down or "trip" the reactor under specified abnormal conditions, such as decreased reactor coolant flow or significant pressure increases--preventing core damage and the release of radioactive materials.

Improvements at Ignalina NPP include developing new electronic modules for the original system and designing, building, and installing new backup systems in Unit 1 in 1998 and Unit 2 in 1999. Having an original and a backup control-and-protection system provides added safety for the plant's RMBK-1500 reactors.

Module Development Review. First, the team visited the Center for Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC) in Vilnius, Lithuania. EMC, a subcontractor to Scientech, Inc., was completing final assembly for 200 analog-to-relay modules to replace defective modules in the original systems at the plant's Unit 2 reactor. The U.S. team members toured the recently remodeled facilities at EMC, including the manufacturing and testing areas set up for the assembly of the modules. EMC representatives described for the U.S. team the development and implementation of the company's quality assurance program for the module manufacture.

At the Center for Electromagnetic Compatibility, U.S. visitors viewed some of the 200 new electronic modules that will be shipped to Ignalina NPP to replace defective modules in the original control-and-protection systems at Units 1 and 2.

Backup System Installation Review. Next, the U.S. team reviewed the installation of the new backup system at Ignalina Unit 1. The backup system was completed in September (see Activity Report for October 1998).

In Vilnius, the team members held a post-project debriefing with representatives of the State Institute of Information Technology. Institute specialists had participated with Parsons Power Group, Inc., in the detailed design and with Scientech, Inc., in developing the safety case for the backup system. The safety case is to demonstrate to the Lithuanian Nuclear Power Safety Inspectorate that the backup system would fulfill its safety functions. The Inspectorate is requiring the new backup control-and-protection systems for the Ignalina plant. The new backup systems meet strict international guidelines.

U.S. team members then traveled to Ignalina NPP where plant representatives toured the visitors through the new four-channel backup system at Unit 1. Highlights included observing the system's 16 pressure and 32 flow transmitters and their associated racks, the conduit runs to the logic cabinets, and the four logic cabinets themselves--one for each channel. In a four-channel system, agreement among two or more channels can shut down the plant, but if one channel is faulty, it cannot shut down the plant unnecessarily.

The Ignalina project manager for installing the new control-and-protection system poses with U.S. visitors before touring Unit 1. From left, Norman Fletcher, U.S. Department of Energy; Ron Wright, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Victor Sidnev, Ignalina NPP; and Dan Couch and Laurin Dodd, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

On the tour of Ignalina Unit 1's new backup control-and-protection system, leaders of the effort pause near part of the installation. From left, Ron Wright, U.S. project manager; Victor Sidnev, Ignalina NPP project manager; and Norman Fletcher, U.S. Department of Energy, who has oversight of the U.S. contributions to the project.

Next, plant staff displayed the control room portion of the new system, where they demonstrated the system's new Titan computer display. U.S. and Ignalina officials also discussed a cooperative effort with the plant to provide an identical backup system for Unit 2 in 1999, which will complete the overall project.

The collaborative international effort to install the new backup system at Unit 1 was funded by the United States and managed for DOE by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Parsons Power provided Ignalina NPP with management and engineering support, the Foxboro Company developed the design of the logic system, and Scientech, working with the State Institute of Information Technology and the Lithuanian Energy Institute, developed the safety review of the system. Ignalina plant staff, who had responsibility for all project phases, managed system specifications, quality control, and installation in Ignalina Unit 1. (Norman Fletcher, DOE, 301-903-3275; Ron Wright, PNNL, 509-372-4076)

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Coordinating Committee Reviews Russian Reactor Safety Work, Sets Priorities for 1999. On December 7 and 8, the coordinating committee for safety projects in Russia held its semiannual meeting in Moscow. Committee members include high-ranking representatives of Minatom and leaders of the U.S. team. The committee reviewed reactor safety projects under way in Russia. Members also agreed on which projects will be funded for 1999. Discussions of key issues specific to the ongoing work in Russia led to determination of the path forward. Those issues include Russian customs, support for Year 2000 work, RBMK costs, and funding for in-depth safety assessments. (Dan Couch, PNNL, 509-372-6415)

Novovoronezh Training Center Offers Instructor Training. Staff trainers at Russia's NPPs now can sharpen their instructor skills, thanks to an instructor training course offered recently at the Novovoronezh Training Center.

Instructors from Balakovo NPP and the Smolensk Training Center collaborated with U.S. training experts to develop and present the initial class at the Novovoronezh center during the week of November 30. The students included staff members from the training departments of Beloyarsk, Kalinin, Kola, Kursk, Leningrad, and Smolensk NPPs. Training specialists developed the course as part of the U.S. effort to transfer training technology to Russian NPPs.

The course includes instructional modules that address specific skills and knowledge required of a training instructor at a nuclear power plant--for example, presentation skills, learning methodology, test question development, and on-the-job training techniques. Specialists developed the modules using the Systematic Approach to Training, a methodology adopted at all NPPs in the United States after the 1979 accident at Three Mile Island. The approach provides a standard framework for identifying training needs, analyzing jobs and their specific tasks, developing course materials based on these analyses, and using teaching methods that combine classroom instruction with hands-on use of equipment. The new course forms the core curriculum of the instructor training school that Russian specialists are establishing at the Novovoronezh Training Center. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

Russian Customs Clears Safety Maintenance Equipment for Shipment. The Russian customs committee gave its approval in early December for the U.S. team to ship safety maintenance equipment to Russia. As a result, the equipment is on its way to Russian NPPs with RBMK reactors. Russian customs had delayed the shipment for several months. The equipment includes U.S.-developed state-of-the-art tools for bolt-stress analysis, spare parts for the previously delivered EFCO valve repair equipment, and a newly developed system for detecting faults in high-voltage lines and generator windings. The U.S. team purchased the equipment in spring 1998 as part of the ongoing effort to augment host-country safety maintenance capabilities at Kursk, Leningrad, and Smolensk NPPs. Maintenance technicians will use the tools for maintaining components of safety-related systems at their respective plants. (Ray Pugh, PNNL, 509-372-4103; Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

Russian Developers Demonstrate Reliability Database. In mid-December, VNIIAES specialists demonstrated the current draft version of the reliability database they are developing for NPPs in Russia. The U.S. team member for whom the specialists gave the demonstration reported being "extremely impressed" with the database assembled to date. The database is not yet ready for actual use--not all data have been entered, and beta testing must wait for that initial data entry to be completed. However, the structure, queries, and data that are installed all function very well, according to the U.S. observer. Specialists expect to complete data entry by the end of December. (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581; Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

International Group Reviewing Strategic Plan for Russian NPPs. Earlier this fall, the Nuclear Energy Agency of the France-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development formed a group of senior experts to review the Safety Research Strategic Plan for Russian Nuclear Power Plants. Russia's Ministry of Atomic Energy (Minatom) developed the plan. Group members include experts from France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. They met in Paris on December 4 and 5 for a first joint review session with representatives from the U.S. International Nuclear Safety Center and the Russian International Nuclear Safety Center. The group is scheduled to meet in Moscow in late January 1999 to complete the review. The plan will be used to guide efforts to improve the safety of Soviet-designed reactors in Russia. (Jeff Binder, ANL, 630-252-7265; Joe Braun, ANL, 630-252-5574)

Russian Specialists Receive Code-Validation-Related Training. Russian specialists involved in projects to validate U.S. computer codes for application to RBMK and VVER reactors participated in a workshop in Moscow on December 9 through 11. The specialists represented the Electrogorsk Research and Engineering Center, the Research and Development Institute of Power Engineering, and the Russian International Nuclear Safety Center (RINSC, at which the workshop was held). A specialist from DOE's Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory presented the workshop, which provided specific training on computer code configuration and maintenance. The Russian participants will use the information and examples provided to develop a plan to control code configuration that RINSC will apply during validation of the codes. (Jordi Roglans, ANL, 630-252-3283)

Protocol Signed for 1999 Cooperative Work with Gosatomnadzor. Key leaders representing Gosatomnadzor and the U.S. team signed a protocol in Washington, D.C., on December 9, formalizing the agreement on cooperative work between the two organizations for 1999. The signing followed an earlier meeting in mid-September, at which representatives of the U.S. team and senior managers from Gosatomnadzor discussed plans for 1999 projects. Specific activities for the coming year will extend previous efforts to strengthen the independent nuclear safety regulatory organization. Those efforts include inspector training, standards development, and the transfer of technology needed to develop safety analysis capability indigenous to Russia. (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581; George Vargo, PNNL, 509-375-6836)

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Coordinating Committee Holds Semiannual Meeting. The coordinating committee for reactor safety projects in Ukraine met in Kyiv on December 3 and 4. Committee members include high-level representatives of Energoatom and leaders of the U.S. team. The committee reviewed the safety projects under way in Ukraine and set priorities for projects to be supported during 1999. Committee members discussed and agreed on the next steps related to issues specific to the work in Ukraine--schedules for in-depth safety assessments, selection of software for specific projects, support for Ukraine's Nuclear Power Plant Operations Support Institute (NPP OSI), and support for Year 2000 efforts. (Dan Couch, PNNL, 509-372-6415)

Working Council Reviews Energoatom Procedures. The Ukraine NPP Quality Assurance Working Council met at Chornobyl NPP offices in Kyiv on December 14 through 17 to review final drafts of Energoatom procedures. The group also reviewed and commented on a statement of work for developing general quality programs at each NPP site in Ukraine.

Members of the working council include representatives from each NPP, Energoatom, the NPP OSI, and their respective subcontractors conducting work on quality assurance procedures. They reviewed three draft procedures: Management of Documents and Records, Independent Assessment, and Management Assessments. The Energoatom procedures represent three out of ten manuals for quality assurance at Energoatom and will serve as the guidelines for procedure development at the NPPs in the near future. The assessment procedures will support safety improvements by providing a process for assessing the quality of activities performed at the power plants. The document control and records procedures will facilitate document review, approval, and distribution that will ensure that appropriate work documents are available to plant personnel.

The council discussed in detail two of three procedures. Council members agreed to provide comments on the third procedure by telephone or electronic mail to complete the procedures by the end of 1998. Members also discussed the statement of work for NPP quality program development.

The procedures reviewed represent significant progress toward establishing plant-level procedures. The statement of work for NPP quality program development represents Energoatom's initiative to undertake this activity without Western funding.

U.S. team members from DOE's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Scientech, Inc., observed the meeting, provided comments, and discussed plans for the next procedure development seminar, Work Planning, to be held in February. (Lief Erickson, PNNL, 509-372-4097)

Progress Reviewed on Strategic Plan for Operational Safety. On December 17, U.S. team representatives from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and Scientech, Inc., met with top leaders of the NPP OSI to review progress on the Operational Safety Strategic Plan and discuss infrastructure development activities for 1999. NPP OSI hosted the meeting at its offices in Kyiv.

Participants agreed to finalize the strategic plan following a meeting in January where the NPP OSI will present the plan to Energoatom management and the NPP directors. The NPP OSI has drafted and will transmit work orders for development of a quality plan for the institute and procedures for its interfaces with Energoatom. The discussions and resulting strategic plan will lead to capability development that will improve support to Ukraine's NPPs in the future. (Lief Erickson, PNNL, 509-372-4097)

Guidelines Developed for Simulator Training Exercises. The Engineering and Technical Center for the Training of Nuclear Industry Personnel hosted a week-long workshop for Ukrainian specialists at its Kyiv offices beginning November 30. The workshop participants developed guidelines for preparing training exercises for use with full-scope simulators at several of Ukraine's NPPs. Ukrainian specialists attending the workshop represented the Engineering and Technical Center, the Nuclear Regulatory Administration, and Rivne, South Ukraine, and Zaporizhzhya NPPs.

Simulator training experts from Khmelnytskyy NPP, the Engineering and Technical Center, and the United States facilitated the workshop. Working with the participants, the facilitators reviewed existing U.S. standards and techniques for developing simulator exercise guides. They also examined the exercise guides developed specifically for the full-scope simulator now in operation at Khmelnytskyy NPP. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

Ukrainian Simulator Instructors Train at Khmelnytskyy. Simulator instructors from Khmelnytskyy, Chornobyl, and Zaporizhzhya NPPs participated in a training course during the week of December 7. U.S. simulator and training specialists from Sonalysts, Inc., and Brookhaven National Laboratory presented the course, which was held at Khmelnytskyy NPP. The course combined traditional classroom instruction techniques with extensive use of Khmelnytskyy's full-scope simulator. As a result, the instructors gained experience in developing and presenting teaching materials that effectively incorporate the full-scope simulator into operator training. The course ended on December 11 with an exercise in which the simulator instructors provided lectures to already qualified NPP operators. The operators evaluated the simulator instructors' efforts and provided feedback. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

Management Courses Presented at Khmelnytskyy and Chornobyl. During December, U.S. instructors presented the Management and Supervisory Skills course to upper- and middle-level managers of Khmelnytskyy and Chornobyl NPPs. The course provides plant managers with enhanced skills and knowledge needed to improve the organizational culture and safety of their facilities. The instructors taught the course for Khmelnytskyy staff on December 4 through 6 and for Chornobyl personnel on December 8 through 10. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

INIT Work Scope Expanded by Two New Tasks. Kyiv-based contractor Information and Technology (INIT) increased its involvement in the Ukraine reliability database project by taking on two new tasks issued by the U.S. team during December. Under the first new task, U.S. specialists are asking INIT to help create, test, and issue the software for the first version of the Ukraine reliability database to be distributed to the pilot plants and Energoatom. The work includes populating the initial database with the database classifiers (which provide the structure for organizing the data) and developing the technical documentation and user information for the initial version of the database.

Under the second task, INIT specialists will develop and approve the testing program for the first version of the database at Khmelnytskyy NPP, one of the pilot plants in Ukraine. INIT will install the database software at Khmelnytskyy, populate the database with available data on systems and components specific to Khmelnytskyy, and collect and enter historical failure data from the plant. In addition, the firm will conduct beta tests of the database software in all modes, collect comments from Khmelnytskyy expert reviewers, and incorporate test results into the database. Finally, INIT specialists will provide training on use of the database to Khmelnytskyy NPP end users and database administrators.

INIT is a joint venture between INIT in Kyiv and the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York. (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581; Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

Ukrainian Project Team Trains for Zaporizhzhya Safe-Shutdown Study. In preparation for their work on the safe-shutdown study for Zaporizhzhya Unit 5, Ukrainian analysts on the project team participated in three days of specialized training early this month. The training, presented by staff of Burns & Roe Enterprises, Inc., focused on techniques for initial data collection, the definition of safe-shutdown equipment, and the division of Zaporizhzhya Unit 5 into fire zones.

Training sessions took place in Kyiv on December 8 through 10, in Energoproekt facilities established specifically for the study. Energoproekt specialists are leading the project team.

The Zaporizhzhya study began in November 1998. It will follow the guidelines spelled out in the Reactor Core Protection Evaluation Methodologies for Fires at RBMK and VVER Nuclear Power Plants. The guidelines, completed in November 1996 through a cooperative effort involving U.S., host-country, and international specialists, define the methodology for performing safe-shutdown analyses at NPPs with RBMK and VVER reactors.

The safe-shutdown study at Zaporizhzhya is a pilot for all NPPs in Ukraine. Consequently, to maximize technology transfer, the project team includes participating analysts from all of Ukraine's NPPs. (Rich Denning, PNNL, 614-424-7412)

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New Training Course Transferred at Kozloduy. Training specialists from Sonalysts, Inc., were on site at Kozloduy NPP December 7 through 18 to begin transferring a course for presentation to Kozloduy workers. U.S. specialists developed the course--Motor-Operated Valve Maintenance Technician--in collaboration with host-country trainers during 1997 as part of DOE's original work to enhance personnel training programs at Soviet-designed nuclear power plants. The Sonalysts staff began collaborating with Kozloduy training instructors to tailor the pilot course specifically for the Bulgarian plant. Instructors will present the course to Kozloduy staff for the first time during 1999. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

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Training Being Transferred to Ignalina. A U.S. training specialist representing Sonalysts, Inc., worked with Ignalina NPP trainers during the week of November 30 to develop instructional materials for a course being transferred to the plant. The course--Control Room Reactor Operator--is one of the core training courses developed as part of DOE's original work to enhance personnel training programs at Soviet-designed nuclear power plants. U.S. team members expect the course to be implemented at Ignalina NPP in early 1999. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)

Lithuanian Specialists Developing Computer Models of RBMK-1500 Reactor. Two Lithuanian nuclear specialists are halfway through a six-month stay in the United States to work on computer-generated models of an RBMK-1500 reactor. The specialists, a professor from Lithuania's University of Kaunas, and a student, who also is a technical staff member at Ignalina NPP, are using the MELCOR computer program to develop models representing the reactor coolant system and the reactor core.

MELCOR is a U.S.-developed computer code for analyzing severe accidents involving nuclear reactor systems. Nuclear systems analysts use it in assessments of nuclear power plant safety.

To date, the Lithuanian specialists have partially developed a MELCOR thermal-hydraulic input model for an intact loop of the Ignalina RBMK-1500 coolant system. The model incorporates the major components: steam drums, main coolant pumps, various pipe segments, feedwater supply, and steam outflow. The model simulates the coolant system simply as an internal heat source and a pressure drop in one of the connected control volumes. The simulation includes flow-loss coefficients, and specialists plan to add input for broken coolant pipes. As they run MELCOR with the input model, the specialists are assessing model performance for steady-state operating conditions and determining any needed improvements.

The specialists also are developing a separate simple input model of the Ignalina reactor core. The current model now simulates one fuel channel by a single radial ring and seventeen axial shells. The model simulates coolant flow by connecting the core to two large partially filled coolant control volumes at different pressures. Through calculations with the model, the specialists are investigating whether MELCOR can realistically simulate flow boiling in the core under RBMK operating conditions. Eventually, the core and reactor coolant system input will be merged into one model. If time permits, the specialists also will model the reactor confinement for the RBMK-1500.

The Lithuanian specialists began their work at Argonne National Laboratory on October 1. The International Atomic Energy Agency/U.S. Nuclear Safety Fellowship Program is sponsoring their stay in the United States. (Jeff Binder, ANL, 630-252-7265; Joe Braun, ANL, 630-252-5574)

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Reliability Database Developers Get Firsthand Look at EPIX System. Russian and Ukrainian developers of reliability databases for NPPs participated in an early-December workshop on a U.S.-developed reliability database. The Institute of Nuclear Power Operations maintains the Equipment Performance Information and Exchange (EPIX) system as a major reliability database for U.S. commercial NPPs. Through its affiliation with the World Association of Nuclear Operators, the institute is making the EPIX structure available to Russian and Ukrainian specialists for incorporation into their reliability databases.

The workshop gave participants hands-on experience with the database structure and use of the central repository of EPIX data. It also enabled the specialists to see firsthand how the system is implemented at Duke Energy Services, a major U.S. utility. The Institute of Nuclear Power Operations co-hosted the workshop with Duke Energy Services at their respective facilities in Atlanta, Georgia, and Charlotte, North Carolina. (Grigory Trosman, DOE, 301-903-3581; Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

Hungary's VEIKI Supports Safety Projects in Czech Republic. Specialists at Hungary's Institute for Electric Power Research, VEIKI, are working with the U.S. team to transfer to the Czech Republic the methodology for collecting and analyzing data related to human reliability in the nuclear power plant context. Under a March 1998 agreement with the Czech Nuclear Research Institute (NRI-Rez), VEIKI is serving as project consultant and working with Institute personnel and Dukovany plant staff to modify their methodology and procedures.

During December, VEIKI specialists updated the U.S. team on their work. Dukovany plant staff will develop the format and procedures to collect expert opinion data using an interview process. The U.S. team issued a new task order to VEIKI for continued support of NRI-Rez for the Dukovany simulator data collection project. This is a continuation of the excellent cooperation between VEIKI and Paks NPP in Hungary and NRI-Rez and Dukovany NPP to transfer technology initially provided to Hungary by the United States to the Czech Republic. (Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

Dukovany Data Collection Methodology Tested. With support from U.S. and Hungarian analysts (see above article), Czech analysts are collecting and analyzing data on the reliability of reactor operators' decisions during full-power operations. To collect the data, staff from Dukovany and the Czech Republic's Nuclear Research Institute are monitoring operator actions while they train on a full-scope simulator at Slovakia's Trnava Training Center.

During December, Dukovany specialists conducted a practice data collection session on the Trnava simulator. A U.S. team member observed the session. Dukovany staff used the simulator scenarios to validate the new symptom-based emergency operating instructions being implemented at their plant. Based on lessons learned during the practice session, project team members rapidly adapted the forms and data collection procedures to actual conditions, smoothing the way for designing and conducting the actual data collection. That activity is to begin in spring 1999. (Thomas Vehec, PNNL, 509-372-4072)

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* indicates the event is a new item or has been changed from the last report.

* January 25-29 -- South Ukraine NPP, Ukraine.

Simulators/Training. Ukrainian training specialists will transfer the simulator exercise guides already completed at Khmelnytskyy NPP to training staff of South Ukraine NPP. (Peter Kohut, BNL, 516-344-4982)