Cracking In Feedwater System Piping

                                UNITED STATES
                        NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION
                    OFFICE OF NUCLEAR REACTOR REGULATION
                           WASHINGTON, D.C.  20555

                               April 15, 1991


Information Notice No. 91-28:  CRACKING IN FEEDWATER SYSTEM PIPING


Addressees:

All holders of operating licenses or construction permits for pressurized 
water reactors (PWRs).

Purpose:

This information notice is intended to inform addressees of the issuance of 
a document which closes out NRC Bulletin 79-13, "Cracking in Feedwater 
System Piping," and actions taken by some licensees to perform augmented 
inspections of their feedwater lines as part of their inservice inspection 
programs.  It is expected that recipients will review the information for 
applicability to their facilities and consider actions, as appropriate, to 
avoid similar problems.  However, suggestions contained in this information 
notice do not constitute NRC requirements; therefore, no specific action or 
written response is required.  

Description of Circumstances:

On June 25, 1979, the NRC issued Bulletin 79-13 in response to observed 
cracking in the feedwater lines at the Donald C. Cook Nuclear Plant.  The 
bulletin and its supplements required the licensees of 54 pressurized water 
reactors (PWRs) to provide responses that addressed specific safety 
concerns.  The NRC's closeout action involved the review of the licensees' 
responses to this bulletin, and review of related NRC documents, such as 
inspection reports, to determine if the bulletin actions have been 
completed.

Discussion:

The NRC issued NUREG/CR-5285, "Closeout of IE Bulletin 79-13:  'Cracking in 
Feedwater System Piping,'" dated March 1991 to document the closeout of the 
bulletin for all of the 54 PWRs that were required to respond.  The report 
concludes that (1) the licensees for all of the affected facilities 
identified in the bulletin and its supplements have taken the actions 
required by the bulletin, and (2) the concerns expressed in the bulletin 
were confirmed, in that cracks were found and corrected at 18 of the 54 
facilities.  Furthermore, the report indicates that some licensees have 
incorporated augmented inspections of their feedwater lines as part of their 
inservice inspection programs and recommends that such licensees continue to 
perform the inspections 


9104090046 
.

                                                            IN 91-28
                                                            April 15, 1991
                                                            Page 2 of 2


because these inspections appear to reliably detect degradation in feedwater 
piping.  Copies of the report may be obtained by contacting the Government 
Printing Office at the telephone number (202) 275-2060.

This information notice requires no specific action or written response.  If 
you have any questions about the information in this notice, please contact 
the technical contact listed below or the appropriate NRR project manager. 




                                   Charles E. Rossi, Director
                                   Division of Operational Events Assessment
                                   Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation


Technical Contact:  N. Prasad Kadambi, NRR
                    (301) 492-0841


Attachment:  List of Recently Issued NRC Information Notices
.