Book Description

The economic incentives for low-cost electricity generation will continue to drive more plant owners to identify safe and reliable methods to increase the electrical power output of the current nuclear power plant fleet. A power uprate enables a nuclear power plant to increase its electrical output with low cost. However, power uprates brought new challenges to plant owners and operators. These include equipment damage or degraded performance, and unanticipated responses to plant conditions, etc. These problems have arisen mainly from using dated design and safety analysis tools and insufficient understanding of the full implications of the proposed power uprate or from insufficient attention to detail during the design and implementation phase. It is essential to demonstrate that all required safety margins have been properly retained and the existing safety level has been maintained or even increased, with consideration of all the conditions and parameters that have an influence on plant safety. The impact of the power uprate on plant life management for long term operation is also an important issue. Significant capital investments are required to extend the lifetime of an aging nuclear power plant. Power uprates can help the plant owner to recover the investment costs. However, plant aging issues may be aggravated by the power uprate due to plant conditions. More rigorous analyses, inspections and monitoring systems are required.