The purpose of this study is to provide technical issues in upgrade and modification of fuel handling equipment at operating nuclear power plants. The improvement for safety function and performance enhancement of fuel handling equipment has been going on for 20 years since the early 2000’s. This improvement is recently focused on the replacement of components through the performance analysis and the operation and maintenance plan based on replacement cycle of its component. Additionally, it is required to secure spare parts so that it can be operated at all times with compatibility and standardization to other domestic nuclear power plants. The fuel handling equipment is consisted of refueling machine, upender and carriage of fuel transfer system, spent fuel handling machine, new fuel elevator and various tools, and the equipment are linked in systematic interlocks. Fuel handling is a critical task during a nuclear power plant refueling outage. Even minor component defects may stop operation of the whole system and have a significant impact on the overall system process. To achieve this goal, major components that are expected to be replaced for reliable operation are summarized as follows; 1) motor assembly with AC servomotors and driver for bridge, trolley and hoist of refueling machine and spent fuel handling machine, 2) winch motor and drive for upender and carriage of fuel transfer system, 3) operator control console with a HMI PC base PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) control system, 4) positioning and load weighing sensors such as an encoder and a load cell with its support for periodic calibration and maintenance, 5) main power drapped style festoon cable assembly for bridge of refueling machine, 6) pneumatic control assembly for gripper operation of refueling machine, 7) active components (e. g., air motor, hydraulic cylinder and limit switch) to be removable and reinstallable without requiring the water level to be lowered. It is advisable to utilize such various information as it can help to improve reliability of fuel handling as a critical path in upgrade and modification of fuel handling equipment at operating nuclear power plants.

The purpose of this study is to provide lessons learned in the experience of improvement work of fuel handling equipment at operating nuclear power plants. The upgrade of fuel handling equipment for safety enhancement and performance improvement has been going on for 15 years since the early 2000’s. The main goal is to increase fuel loading/unloading capability of the equipment from about 2.5 fuel assemblies per hour to more than six (6). It is achieved with sequential operations of three (3) fuel handling equipment, which consists of the refueling machine, the fuel transfer system and the spent fuel handling machine. The scope of the upgrade for fuel handling equipment is summarized as follows. The PC data control system based on PLC for interlocks and high speed motor drive system is introduced for better operating efficiency. The motors and drives for bridge, trolley, and hoist are replaced with AC servomotors and drivers, respectively. The fuel transfer system has an auto-initiation feature operating from the refueling machine or the spent fuel handling machine. The winch motor and drive for the carriage of fuel transfer system is also replaced with AC servomotors and drivers. And some of HPU (hydraulic power units) equipment for each building (reactor containment building and fuel handling building) are replaced to improve their function. The considerations for improvement of fuel handling equipment are as belows. 1) Fuel handling should be consistent with the instructions provided by the fuel designer and/or manufacturer, which are for Standard type fuel and Westinghouse type fuel, used in domestic nuclear power plants. Each fuel has unique design characteristics, which are PLC setpoints for overload and underload, slow speed zones for a bridge, trolley and hoist, allowable acceleration/deceleration value in handling, hoist elevation and manual speed in off-index operation at reactor. 2) The interlock system should be designed in accordance with design criteria specified by the utilities of nuclear power plant. 3) Performance should be improved according to the operating characteristics of the fuel handling equipment. High-speed and optimization of FTS upender and carriage are essential for operating performance so that its modification should be considered first. And the low speed and range in the operation mechanism of the hoist should be designed to comply with guidelines. 4) The accident analysis through self-diagnosis function and operation history in modification at domestic operating nuclear power plants would be good lessons learned. It is advisable to utilize such various information as it can help to improve reliability of nuclear fuel handling operation and power plant operation rate.

This study provides technical information about the nuclear fuel handling process, which consists of various subprocesses starting from new fuel receipt to spent fuel shipment at a nuclear power plant and the design requirements of fuel handling equipment. The fuel handling system is an integrated system of equipment, tools, and procedures that allow refueling, handling and storage of fuel assemblies, which comprise the fuel handling process. The understanding and reaffirming of detailed code requirements are requested for application to the design of the fuel handling and storage facility. We reviewed the design requirements of the fuel handling equipment for its adequate cooling, prevention of criticality, its operability and maintainability, and for the prevention of fuel damage and radiological release. Furthermore, we discussed additional technical issues related to upgrading the current code requirements based on the modification of the fuel handling equipment. The suggested information provided in this paper would be beneficial to enhance the safety and the reliability of the fuel handling equipment during the handling of new and spent fuel.