Peach Bottom SRV Seal notes

Feb 21
Oversight of Nuclear Reactor Suppliers

See, they don't have broadly the proper quality framework to maintain standards...either operating and new.

Like I said, the NRC doesn't have the power or know how to us power and coercion to maintain standards againt the corporate interest of making profits...

Somebody's got to be the bad guy...not a consensus maker?

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Vermont's Attorney General appealed on Saturday a federal judge's ruling that had prevented the state from shutting down its only nuclear power plant, escalating a two-year battle over state's rights and atomic energy.

Was that pretty neat yesterday in the 2.206 proceeding inviting all the NRC and Exelon employees to watch the Sunday CCN special about the NRC and VY...

Wasn't that neat when i said to them, "does anyone think this is a coincidence that I on am on a phone in my house and I got all you people in your offices listening to me today, and you got a CNN special about Vermont Yankee later this weekend. Does anyone not believe this was intentioned this way?

Then I give them my rendition of the Vermont Yankee problem..."it is excuses over and over again of the NRC and utilities with intentionally turning your heads away from immediately addressing and fixing known problems in the industry"...

Main Steam Safety Relief Valves Buna-N thread seals (March17, 2002)

You like that picture, these electrical towers are what the back-up to the back-up Fukushima emergency supply of electricity get supplied to VY through...

First Transcripts

Second TranscriptsSome commonalities with the SRV seals

1) Buna-n.

2) Both facilities when they got new actuators ...during the next cycle their buna-n failed. VY had multiple seal failures after new actuators and Peach Bottom's seal failure came after they were just installed.

3) As a thumb rules, you can't trust the quality of buna-n material after 2002.

Mr Mulligan

I have also spoken with the Peach Bottom Resident Inspectors regarding your request to discuss the Peach Bottom safety relief valve (SRV) seal failure history with them prior to the PRB teleconference. The Senior Resident Inspector, Sam Hansell, and Resident Inspector, Adam Ziedonis, would be happy to speak with you. You can contact them directly at 717-456-7614.

The PRB met internally on February 3, 2012, and denied the request for immediate action to shutdown Peach Bottom Units 2 and 3, and replace the SRV pneumatic actuator threaded seals, because there was no immediate safety concern to the plant, or to the health and safety of the public. Specifically, the PRB determined that threaded seals with Buna-N material have been used in the PBAPS Unit 2 and 3 SRVs for 20 years with no seal failures until the subject failure in September 2011. The 3-ADS-SRV 71B seal had been in service for less than one year before its failure and the seals are replaced every 4 years. In addition, the insulation configuration on the Vermont Yankee SRVs that contributed to their 2 seal failures was confirmed to not be a contributing cause for the PBAPS Unit 3 ADS-SRV 71B failure. These facts support the conclusion that the failure of the 3-ADS-SRV 71B threaded seal was not a common mode failure, or an age related failure, but was isolated to the particular seal installed in the 3-ADS-SRV 71B actuator in November 2010. This information will be included in a future NRC Inspection Report regarding the subject SRV threaded seal failure.

Thank you,

John Hughey

Peach Bottom Project Manager

NRR / Division of Operating Reactor Licensing

Phone: 301-415-3204

e-mail: John.Hughey@nrc.gov