Hello Norm:

 

There's a two-fold approach to this problem. The first part involves increased awareness that installation configurations can cause underground cabling to deteriorate faster than normal.

 

But since increased awareness is a catchy phrase but not a guarantee, the second part involves testing and/or monitoring of buried cabling. With cables in service, they can monitor the voltage drop from one end of the cable to the other end. If the voltage drop increases, it suggests the cable insulation is degrading. With the cables not in service, they can run a test called "meggaring" that measures how well the cable carries current.

 

I put most weight on this second part of the solution. If they are testing enough of the cables often enough, they have reasonable assurance that the deterioration is detected before it gets too bad.

 

It's nearly impossible to find out how many cables were affected/checked. PSEG sent in a letter to NRC saying they've got it under control. NRC inspectors can audit any and all records at the site to confirm or refute that notion. But since PSEG didn't submit those records, they are not publicly available.

 

VY's cooling towers are made of wood. Hope Creek has a concrete tower. While more resistant to aging, concrete towers can also fall down if load-bearing members degrade too much.

 

However, there's a big difference in the function of the towers at VY and Hope Creek. Part of one of the towers at VY is needed to cool water after an accident that is then used to cool the emergency diesel generators, control room air chillers, and other emergency equipment. The White River is not as large as the Delaware River and the pumps and piping used at VY to fetch water from the White River is not designed to survive earthquakes, etc. So, if the safety part of the VY cooling tower collapses, the plant is without a reliable means of cooling vital equipment. The cooling tower at Hope Creek only serves to assist the plant generate electricity. If it were to collapse, making electricity is impacted but none of the safety systems and the systems needed to cool the safety systems are affected.

 

If I were a betting soul, I'd bet that the turbine electro-hydraulic control (EHC) system, the generator stator and bus duct cooling systems, and main transformers are likely to be Hope Creek's version of the Vermont Yankee cooling towers.

 

The turbine EHC system uses oil pressure to control the valves that admit steam to the turbine. With Hope Creek recently receiving a power uprate, more steam flows to the turbine. More steam flow can cause higher vibrations. Higher vibrations can cause fittings in the oil lines to come loose and leak oil, allowing the turbine valves to move.

 

The generator stator cooling system removes the heat from the shell around the generator rotor. With the recent power uprate, the generator makes more electricity, creating more heat to be removed. The generator bus duct cooling system is an air conditioning system for the three electrical phases running from the main generator to the transformers. With the recent power uprate, these phases carry more electricity and dissipate more heat. The generator bus duct cooling system has to have increased heat removal ability, otherwise electrical equipment runs hotter and ages more quickly.

 

The main transformers are non-safety-related equipment - meaning they don't get tested and inspected as often as the emergency diesel generators. Transformers across the country are wearing out and literally blowing up. One of the transformers at Diablo Canyon blew up this past July, sending shrapnel into the adjacent office building. Luckily, it happened around midnight when the office was empty, otherwise people could have been killed.

 

 

NOrm