Morning Report for July 27, 2005

Headquarters Daily Report

• N/A
• REGION III

N/A

Part 21 2005-0027: Surveillance Program for Channel-Control Blade Interference

Licensee/Facility: GENERAL ELECTRIC Dockets: License No:

Notification: MR Number: H-2005-0019 Date: 07/14/2005

Source Document: Letter

Reviewer: TABATABAI, OMID

Discussion:

Part 21 2005-0027: Surveillance Program for Channel-Control Blade Interference

In a letter dated July 14, 2005, GE Energy (GE) reported a condition related to increased irradiation-induced deformation of Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF) Zr-2 thick/thin fuel channels. This condition may lead to channel-control blade interference, and increased friction to affect control rod operability, scram performance, fuel bundle lift, and loads on reactor components.

GE has developed two sets of revised surveillance programs, for BWR/6 and BWR/2-5 reactors, to detect channel-control blade friction, assess the extent of the condition, and take compensatory actions before reaching excessive levels of control rod friction. GE's letter to NRC, including a list of plants recommended for surveillance program, is available in ADAMS with accession number ML052000328.

Because GE's revised surveillance programs are classified as proprietary information, for obtaining details regarding these programs, please contact Mr. Jason Post, Manager, Engineering Quality and Safety Evaluations, at (910) 675-6608.

Accession Numbers:

Accession No	Accession Date
ML052000328	07/14/2005

Contacts:

Name	Office Abbrev	Phone No	E-Mail
TABATABAI, OMID	NRR	(301) 415-6616	OTY@nrc.gov

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REGION III

Part 21 2005-0025 - Insufficient Adhesion of Carboline Topcoat to Carboline Primer

Licensee/Facility: HOWDEN BUFFALO HOWDEN BUFFALO NEW PHILADELPHIA, Ohio Dockets: License No:

Notification: MR Number: H-2005-0020 Date: 07/01/2005

Source Document: Letter

Reviewer: RINI, BRETT A

Discussion:

Part 21 2005-0025 - Insufficient Adhesion of Carboline Topcoat to Carboline Primer

This morning report is being issued due to a safety concern related to Carboline topcoat paint used on top of Carboline primer on the surface of safety-related fans (See Event Notification 41819). On June 27, 2005, Howden Buffalo informed the NRC that Duke Energy reported insufficient adhesion of Carboline topcoat to Carboline primer, resulting in separation of the topcoat on two fans and one other fan inlet bell at Oconee. The items were manufactured, painted, and supplied to Oconee between February 2002 and March 2002. The three affected items were part of ten complete fans delivered to Oconee.

Howden Buffalo, Duke Power Materials Engineering & Lab Services, and Carboline conducted an initial investigation that concluded that the coating materials were not defective. However, the application of Carboline primer was not performed in accordance with Carboline recommendations for sufficient curing. While the primer was drying, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were evaporating off of it. The topcoat was applied to the primer before it had dried fully, resulting in accumulation of VOCs from the uncured primer which led to the separation of the topcoat.

Howden Buffalo has reviewed internal plant procedures for application of Carboline primer and topcoat, including surface preparation, and found that the procedures failed to incorporate Carboline updated requirements for sufficient curing of the primer. According to the vendor, all internal procedures are now revised to incorporate Carboline requirements in their entirety. Howden Buffalo procedures for supplying Carboline coating were applicable during the period from October 2001 through March 2005. Howden Buffalo is contacting each of their customers to a) advise them of a potential defect in the Carboline coating, b) recommend inspection criteria, and c) provide contact information.

A Howden Buffalo review of documentation for this sales order, including all paint surveillance records, did not conclude that this defect is limited only to the fans delivered for this order. According to the vendor, the root cause of the paint failure appears to be insufficient training in procedures for surface preparation and preparation and application of primer and paint. Environmental limitations for temperature and relative humidity may not have been correctly considered for drying time requirements.

The affected fan unit is Howden Buffalo item number 540059-080. Nuclear utilities that have purchased safety-related fans potentially affected by this issue are: Oconee (shipped 11/2/01), Dresden (shipped 3/28/03), San Onofre (shipped 7/28/04), and Oyster Creek (shipped 10/31/02).

During a telephone conversation with NRC staff on July 25, 2005, the vendor stated that the only reported failure of the topcoat paint occurred at Oconee. The licensee scraped off the topcoat to prevent the flakes from potentially affecting other systems.

Information for this issue as well as other Part 21s is available at the NRC's Operating Experience web page at:
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/doc-collections/event-status/part21/. Previous issues with Carboline paint were reported in ENs 39408 and 39593 and in Morning Reports H-2003-0021 (4/22/03) and H-2003-0012 (1/29/03).

Accession Numbers:

Accession No	Accession Date
ML051940302	06/27/2005
ML051940305	06/27/2005

Contacts:

Name	Office Abbrev	Phone No	E-Mail
RINI, BRETT A	NRR	(301) 415-3931	BAR3@nrc.gov