New Junk Plant Watts Bar 2 Consequential Trip.

Update: June 7

You get it, about a zillion stories about first startup and very few stories explaining what happened during the trip. Something is fishy? 

These guys are the worst in the industry with how they treat safety complaints from employees. I can't even begin to tell how much more worst this will become if the NRC is perceived as pulling their punches concerning the Unit 2's trip.

Say, if risk perspectives indicate this plant needs a special inspection...would the NRC say this is a special case, we need not do the inspection telegraphing Watt Bar 2 is in serious trouble.  

I'll bet you it was chaotic as hell in the control room. How many people do you think was in the control room when this happened.  

Watts Bar received more safety complaints from employees this year than any other US plant

By Dave Flessner, Chattanooga Times Free Press

April 07, 2016 0
Employees at TVA's Watts Bar nuclear plant near Spring City, Tenn., have made more allegations about safety problems to federal regulators this year than any other nuclear plant in the country, according to a new report from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

The NRC has received six safety concerns from employees at Watts Bar already this year, bringing to 54 the number of such complaints made to regulators in the past three years. Only the Millstone Nuclear Power Station, the biggest power plant in Connecticut, has had more such complaints from its employees since 2012.

More allegations have been substantiated by the NRC in 2016 for Watts Bar than for any other plant. In fact, the only allegation substantiated by the NRC in 2016 for the entire fleet of operating nuclear plants was at Watts Bar.

TVA vows to thaw chilled atmosphere, better handle employee safety concerns

Under regulatory pressure to change the way employee concerns are handled, TVA says it is trying to thaw the often chilled atmosphere for employees to raise safety concerns at its Watts Bar nuclear plant.

TVA's top nuclear officials said Tuesday they have revamped management procedures, coached bosses on how to better treat workers and conducted surveys and employee meetings to better encourage and respond to safety issues raised by workers.

"We recognize that the Watts Bar environment, and specifically in operations, had degraded to a point where some operators felt reluctant to raise issues — we get that and we own that," Mike Balduzzzi, senior vice president at TVA, told nuclear regulators Tuesday. "We firmly believe it is necessary for our employees to feel free to raise nuclear safety issues without fear of retaliation and, in fact, they should expect to be complimented for doing so."

Despite such reassurances, however, a nuclear watchdog group questioned why TVA keeps having problems with employee concerns at its nuclear plants. During a hearing before the Nuclear Regulatory Commission's regional staff in Atlanta, the director of the Union of Concerned Scientists' Nuclear Safety Project said the corrections program outlined by TVA "is troubling in that it shows how blind TVA continues to be" in its culture and response to worker concerns about potential safety problems at nuclear plants. 

"It's disappointing for a company that has gone through a number of safety-conscious work environment problems repeatedly over a number of years can't recognize signs of those problems until someone else calls their attention to it," said David Lochbaum, a nuclear engineer who once worked at the NRC and now studies the industry for the Union of Concerned Scientists. "Since they are having trouble figuring out that they have those problems, there's not much confidence that they will be able to solve problems that are invisible to them."

Upon the plants first start-up ever, they got only up to 12% 18%, then scrammed on a turbine control valve slamming open.

It doesn’t like the NRC properly vetted the plant for power operation?

June 2, 2016: WATTS BAR NUCLEAR PLANT UNIT 2 CONSTRUCTION - NRC INTEGRATED INSPECTION REPORT 05000391/2016604

It is a risk full accident at this power level. It reminds me of Indian Point's leaking steam generator where they cooled down too quickly. It is implicated in the baffle bolt problem. Wonder what the cool down rate was?

TVA and the NRC are doing a terrible job at preparing the public for the rocky road with a new plant startup.  

Could get a lot of steam generator water slamming down the main steam lines?

What is the significance of Unit 1's annulus over pressure. Must be associated with the air filtering (SBGT) system startup.

You got a very fragile 1960s technological age reactor vessel here. With the amazing metallurgical technological advancement in recent times, you’d get a much more safer plant with current technology. Imagine the risk this is to the nuclear industry public relations if the plant is abandoned at this point. Here comes yet another nuclear industry's perfect storm?  

Right, basically upon governor valve slamming open, the steam generator level went low.  The safety ejection must have came about with a low pressurizer level. The Plant safety logic must have thought they had vessel leak. Did anyone check the underwear with all employees leaving the control room?

Wonder what the delay time between when the governor started to fail and then the scram? They must have been preparing to put the turbine on the grid.

Check out the historic power history. A full week almost :) It is a brand new 43 year old plant. First startup can be very troublesome. But this looks abnormal. Sounds like they were having trouble with the turbine or its control system. It is a very erratic startup. The power level here  is taken at midnight, once a day. It probably much more erratic than shown

Watts Bar Unit 2 begins power generation

The  newest reactor at the Watts Bar Nuclear Plant began generating electricity over the weekend.

The Tennessee Valley Authority synced Unit 2 reactor to the grid for the first time Friday and licensed operators have begun an initial test run of generation equipment.

The team is using this run to collect data to be sure generating equipment is prepared for continuous full-power operation later this summer.

"This is another major step in fully integrating Watts Bar Unit 2 as the seventh operating unit in TVA's nuclear fleet," TVA Chief Nuclear Officer Joe Grimes said in a statement. "It is rewarding to see TVA taking the lead on delivering the first new nuclear unit of the 21st century and providing safe, affordable and reliable electricity to those we serve."

The next step is full-plant testing of systems and controls at increasing reactor power levels up to 100 percent power by this summer.

Combined with Watts Bar Unit 1, the plant will supply power to roughly 1.3 million homes in the TVA service area.

May 31  0%
June 1  14%
2  14%
3  18%
4  18%
5  10%

Power Reactor	Event Number: 51982
Facility: WATTS BAR Region: 2 State: TN Unit: [ ] [2] [ ] RX Type: [1] W-4-LP,[2] W-4-LP NRC Notified By: MICHAEL BOTTORFF HQ OPS Officer: DONG HWA PARK	Notification Date: 06/05/2016 Notification Time: 16:22 [ET] Event Date: 06/05/2016 Event Time: 12:27 [EDT] Last Update Date: 06/05/2016
Emergency Class: NON EMERGENCY 10 CFR Section: 50.72(b)(2)(iv)(A) - ECCS INJECTION 50.72(b)(2)(iv)(B) - RPS ACTUATION - CRITICAL 50.72(b)(3)(iv)(A) - VALID SPECIF SYS ACTUATION	Person (Organization): OMAR LOPEZ (R2DO)

Unit	SCRAM Code	RX CRIT	Initial PWR	Initial RX Mode	Current PWR	Current RX Mode
2	A/R	Y	13	Power Operation	0	Hot Standby

Event Text

REACTOR TRIP AND ECCS ACTUATION CAUSED BY TURBINE GOVERNOR VALVE FAILURE "On June 5, 2016 at 1227 Eastern Daylight Time (EDT), Watts Bar Nuclear Plant (WBN) Unit 2 was in MODE 1 at approximately 12.5% power when a safety injection actuation occurred, followed by an automatic reactor protection system (RPS) trip. Preliminary data suggests that the #1 high pressure turbine governor valve failed open causing a steam header pressure rate of decrease safety injection [SI] actuation signal. As designed, the safety injection actuation caused both trains of the shared Emergency Gas Treatment System (EGTS) to align to Unit 2, requiring WBN Unit 1 to enter Technical Specification (TS) LCO 3.0.3 at 1227 [EDT]. Also as designed, Unit 1 annulus pressure momentarily increased, causing operation personnel to enter LCO 3.6.15 Condition B at 1240 [EDT]. At 1242 [EDT], after annulus pressure normalized, operations personnel exited LCO 3.6.15. At 1245 [EDT], Operations personnel secured safety injection and Unit 2 was stabilized in MODE 3 at normal operating pressure and temperature. By 1349 [EDT], Unit 1 Operations personnel had restored both trains of EGTS to standby readiness, and exited TS 3.0.3. No primary safety barriers (RCS, containment and fuel clad) were challenged and no primary or secondary safety or relief valves actuated during the event. The Unit 2 plant trip was uncomplicated and safety equipment operated as expected. "Unit 2 is stable in Mode 3 at normal operating temperature and pressure, in normal shutdown power alignment. Unit 1 is stable in Mode 1 at 100% power. "The Senior Resident Inspector has been notified of this event." The MSIVs are shut with the steam generators (SG) discharging steam using the atmospheric dump valves. There is no primary to secondary leakage. Motor driven AFW pumps are running to maintain SG levels. RCS pressure remained above ECCS (Emergency Core Cooling System) discharge pressure