Callaway: Another Junk Nuclear plant

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Update 9/22

As I have said often, it is highly suspicious to have a ongoing problems with a gasket, a main feed pump trip and all the issues with the steam generator Feed Reg Valves. Maintenance problems just over ran them.

I caught this pretty early as the organization being in tough shape and paperwork issues. It sure looks likes I am a prophet. I thought the Dec 2014 scram was a big deal with multiple equipment failures showing up. Can't be clearer with this July 23 message. There are a lot of recent scrams and equipment failure showing up in a concentrated amount of time.

Hmmm, Ameren... 

There is no question was a NRC failure:

Callaway Plume In Containment: Is This How the Nuclear Industry Ends in the USA?

This is the guy: "Motor Driven Auxiliary Feedwater Pump "B" to Steam Generator "D"".

Already looking like the Millstone's turbine driven feed pump and the SRV valves of Pilgrim?

At 00:22 hours on December 3, 2014, during normal power operations, A turbine and reactor trip occurred, when the main generator excitation transformer faulted to ground. The reactor trip was classified as "uncomplicated." Safety system performed as designed. During recovery the valve providing flow from Motor Driven Auxiliary Feedwater Pump "B" to Steam Generator "D" failed to throttle closed afterwards. Repair of the excitation transformer was completed and the plant returned to power operations on December 6, 2014.  

I am a little irked at the NRC, why can't they identify the technical name of the valves?

NRC to Begin Special Inspection at Callaway Nuclear Station 9/11 

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun a special inspection at the Callaway nuclear plant to review circumstances following a reactor shutdown involving the failure of three of four control valves that regulate water flow to the steam generators. The plant, operated by Ameren Missouri, is located near Fulton, Mo.

Following a reactor trip on Aug. 11, all systems performed as expected, including the automatic start of a system that controls water flow to the steam generators. However, when operators tried to switch to the motor-driven water pumps, a control valve failed to operate. Internal circuitry in the control valve system had been previously modified in late 2014, apparently introducing a flaw in the design that resulted in the failure.  

The NRC learned that another control valve in the system had been similarly modified and also experienced a failure in December 2014. The affected valves were repaired and tested prior to the plant being restarted on Aug. 12. Additionally, the NRC is aware of a third unrelated control valve failure in the same system earlier this year that had already been corrected.  

"The purpose of this special inspection is to better understand the circumstances surrounding the valve failures, determine if the licensee’s extent of condition review was sufficiently comprehensive, and review the licensee’s corrective actions to ensure that the causes of the failures have been effectively addressed," NRC Region IV Administrator Marc Dapas said. 

The NRC staff determined that a special inspection is warranted because the valves provide an important function in the mitigation of selected plant events. NRC inspectors will spend about a week on site looking into outstanding questions with respect to the licensee’s testing, maintenance, design change, and corrective action processes specific to these valves and the associated system. They will also evaluate the licensee’s root cause analysis and extent of condition review, and the adequacy of corrective actions. 

An inspection report documenting the team’s findings will be publicly available within 45 days of the end of the inspection.

Originally posted on Aug 11, 2015

Right, the grid problem in Pilgrim and Seabrook.

Why hasn't Callaway had a LER since March 2015?

We aren't doing the proper maintenance on the grid. Is the grid safe enough to support nuclear plant operations? Or people working on the grid aren't qualified to be working on the grid.

Facility: CALLAWAY Region: 4 State: MO Unit: [1] [ ] [ ] RX Type: [1] W-4-LP NRC Notified By: MARK COVEY HQ OPS Officer: MARK ABRAMOVITZ	Notification Date: 08/11/2015 Notification Time: 05:19 [ET] Event Date: 08/11/2015 Event Time: 01:39 [CDT] Last Update Date: 08/11/2015
Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY 10 CFR Section: 50.72(b)(2)(iv)(B) - RPS ACTUATION - CRITICAL 50.72(b)(3)(iv)(A) - VALID SPECIF SYS ACTUATION	Person (Organization): BOB HAGAR (R4DO)

Unit	SCRAM Code	RX CRIT	Initial PWR	Initial RX Mode	Current PWR	Current RX Mode
1	A/R	Y	100	Power Operation	0	Hot Standby

Event Text

AUTOMATIC REACTOR TRIP AFTER AN OFFSITE ELECTRICAL FAULT "Reactor trip caused by turbine trip. Turbine tripped immediately following the trip of one of four 345KV offsite lines. The reason for protective relaying not preventing the grid disturbance from tripping the turbine generator is not known at this time. All normal offsite and onsite power sources are available. "Auxiliary Feedwater actuated as expected on low steam generator level following the trip from 100% power. All systems functioned as expected in response to the trip. "The NRC Senior Resident Inspector has been notified." An electrical fault on a 345 kV line 2 miles from the site caused the bus to strip and reclose, which cleared the fault. All control rods fully inserted and the plant is in its normal shutdown electrical lineup.

Calvert Cliff NRC Special Inspection and another grid disturbance.  

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission has begun a special inspection at the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant to review issues during the unplanned shutdown of both reactors on April 7. The plant, which is operated by Exelon, is located in Lusby, Md.

Calvert Cliffs, like all nuclear power plants, transmits power to the grid but also receives power back for operational purposes. A grid disturbance due the failure of a transmission line in Southern Maryland on April 7th caused both Calvert Cliffs reactors to automatically shut down as designed.  

Callaway nuclear plant shut down after 'non-emergency' leak 

JIM SALTER, Associated Press

Originally published July 23, 2015 at 1:19 p.m., updated July 23, 2015 at 4:36 p.m.

The Ameren Corp. nuclear power plant in central Missouri was shut down for the second time in eight months Thursday after a "non-emergency" leak was found in the reaction control system. 

The shutdown occurred at 1:15 a.m. at the plant near Fulton. Jeff Trammel, a spokesman for St. Louis-based Ameren, called it a "minor steam leak." He said no one was hurt and there was no risk to the public. 

Ameren officials are investigating the cause. Trammel said it was unclear when the plant would restart. 

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission was advised of the leak and inspectors are at the plant, spokeswoman Lara Uselding said. 

"The plant is in a safe shutdown condition and there is no risk to public health and safety or the environment," Uselding said. 

The Callaway plant also shut down in December, due to an electrical equipment failure. That shutdown was the first in more than two years. No one was hurt and the public was not threatened in that leak, Ameren said. 

An NRC report on the latest incident classified it as a "non-emergency." The report said the shutdown was initiated after a reaction control system leak was detected at the plant that sits about 100 miles west of St. Louis. 

"A containment entry identified a steam plume; due to personnel safety the exact location of the leak inside the containment building could not be determined," the NRC report said. 

The NRC report said radiation levels were "slightly above normal," but stable inside the containment building, and there were no releases from the plant "above normal levels." 

Ed Smith of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment said the shutdown raises concerns for the plant, which turned 30 last year. 

"As the Callaway nuclear reactor ages, I think we're going to see more incidents like this," Smith said. 

Ameren, based in St. Louis, provides electrical power to customers in Missouri and Illinois. Trammel said customers will see no impact from the shutdown. The Callaway plant generates about 20 percent of electricity for Ameren's 1.2 million Missouri customers...

Another recent trip?

At 00:22 hours on December 3, 2014, during normal power operations, A turbine and reactor trip occurred, when the main generator excitation transformer faulted to ground. The reactor trip was classified as "uncomplicated." Safety system performed as designed. During recovery the valve providing flow from Motor Driven Auxiliary Feedwater Pump "B" to Steam Generator "D" failed to throttle closed afterwards. Repair of the excitation transformer was completed and the plant returned to power operations on December 6, 2014.