Nuclear News Weekly Roundup – 01/01 - 01/05
Prestress Platform of World’s First HPR1000 Delivered to Fuqing NPP
The prestress platform for Fuqing Unit 5 was delivered on January 2nd. It paves the way for subsequent work such as installation and commissioning. The prestress engineering needs to meet the functional requirements for the tendons, tensioning and grouting. The engineers must also manage their work within the limited space inside the containment shell, and complete the complex tasks while avoiding contact with the other equipment already installed. The prestress platform is the most optimized of its type within China’s nuclear industry in terms of size, extent of integration, and convenience of engineering operations. It increases the efficiency of the prestress engineering operations and lowers its impact on other ongoing engineering operations.
Manufacturing of Xudapu Phase I’s Mechanical Modules Begins
The opening ceremony for Xudapu NPP Phase I’s mechanical module manufacturing project was recently held within the 1st Work Division of Dalian Shipbuilding Industry Company (DSIC, a subsidiary of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation). This is the first nuclear safety-grade equipment manufacturing project awarded to DSIC after receiving its HAF 601 nuclear safety certification. The project will result in 90 mechanical modules to be used at Xudapu Units 1&2, which are built by China Nuclear Power Engineering Company (CNPE). There are 14 nuclear safety-grade modules, including one nuclear Safety-Class 1 component. Some of the primary components include structural frames, piping, cable conduits, air ducts, valves, pressure vessels, etc., weighing a total of approximately 900 tons. The largest module, designated as “Q601” (a safety-class 1 module), has a size of 4709 X 5137 X 9763 mm and weighs 55 tons by itself.
Tianwan Unit 3 Successfully Connected to the Grid
On December 30th, 2017, the generator circuit breaker for Tianwan Unit 3 was officially switched on, marking the unit’s first successful connection to the grid. This is the ninth time CNPE has served as an EPC contractor for an NPP that has been fully built and connected to the grid. Tianwan Unit 3 uses Russian VVER 1000 / 428 PWR technology, which was permitted as China’s “NPP icebreaker” after the Fukushima accident. The reactor design was contracted to Atomstroyexport, Russia’s nuclear power equipment and service exporter. CNPE served as the CI and BOP designer and EPC contractor, while CNNC’s Jiangsu Nuclear Power Company performed the commissioning work.
China’s First Gen IV Fast Reactor Quietly Pours First Concrete – First and Only FCD of 2017
On December 29th, CNNC published the news on its company website that its sodium-cooled fast reactor pilot project in Xiapu, Fujian Province, began construction earlier that day. It was the only nuclear project initiated in 2017, as well as the first since 2015. According to CNNC, the fast reactor project is a key part of China’s “Three-step Strategy” for nuclear power development, which includes constructing thermal neutron reactors, fast breeder reactors, and finally controlled fission reactors.