Life cycle considerations for pressurized water reactor vessels

This paper reports on the pressurized water reactor (PWR) reactor vessel identified by the Surry 1 life extension project as a critical element for life extension considerations. This ranking was based on a prioritization of all the plant systems, components, and structures taking into account difficulty to repair/replace and wear out considerations. The study also determined the vessel has a high probability for extended service life based on best estimate analysis of actual usage, maintenance, in-service inspection programs, and presently available methods for prolonging vessel life. Feasibility studies have also been performed for PWR reactor pressure vessels designed by the three domestic vendors. All of these studies concluded that the reactor vessel has a high probability for extended service life beyond the original license period