An integrated view on plant life management: EC-JRC-IE projects and programmes

Nuclear electricity accounts for more than one third of the total EU needs and the life distribution of the operating plants is such that in 2005 more than 70% of the plants will have passed the 20- year lifetime and almost 30% the 30-year age limit. In total, more than 100 LWRs in the EU and Associated States are producing more than 100 GWe. In view of the secure and safe supply of electricity, ageing of power plant is becoming of increasing concern in the EU as well as in the rest of the world. In fact, with increasing operational plant life approaching gradually to the original design life, ageing issues are arising. The list of issues is very long and research and development effort is required in order understand and tackle them properly. Such issues includes: RPV embrittlement, core shrouds, upper and lower head cracking, sticking control rods, cracking in control rod drive mechanism (CRDM) and upper head penetrations, reactor coolant piping issues, steam generator degradation, electric cable ageing, concrete ageing. The JRC-IE with the AMES, NESC, ENIQ, NET projects and the information and competence with the Tacis programmes is playing a key role on the plant life management issues in the various fields of: irradiation embrittlement issues, material degradation assessment and monitoring, surveillance, structural integrity, fracture mechanics studies, qualification of in service inspection methodologies for crack detection and, recently, risks aspects. In addition a new network, AMALIA, is in preparation in order to tackle the issues related to core internals and Irradiation Assisted Stress Corrosion Cracking (IASCC) phenomena. Aspects of managing and mitigation of accidents; neutron beams methods for residual stress measurements and other issues related to directives on pressure equipment are also dealt with. The expertise on the subject is also available in the Institute in the Unit supporting the TACIS programs. This papers gives an overview of the EC programmes and JRC-IE activities in particular dealing with the issues of plant life management of nuclear power plants and summarises the obtained key results and plans for future integrated projects. Examples of key results booked so far are presented and discussed. Such results, obtained in the frame of the several networks, shared cost activities and JRC institutional projects, represent the basis and give directions for the future PLIM efforts. Results include gained for example knowledge on irradiation embrittlement, material degradation assessment and monitoring, surveillance data analysis, structural integrity and fracture mechanics and qualification of in service inspection methodologies. In order to tackle the PLIM task an integration effort in JRC is ongoing aiming at defining a PLIM project, SAFELIFE, integrating the efforts done in the past and the competencies of the various European networks. SAFELIFE will start in 2003 and will last for the whole 6th Framework Programme. An integrated view of ageing mechanisms and optimisation of R and D activities for PLIM in view of: Safe and Secure Supply (3S) is clearly promoted together with the prevention, performance and risk informed based approach. The SAFELIFE 6th Framework Programme JRC project is presented. (author)