Doel Nuclear Power Station
Doel Nuclear Power Station | |
---|---|
EDF Luminus | |
Operator(s) | Electrabel |
Nuclear power station | |
Reactor type | PWR |
Reactor supplier | ACECOWEN FRAMACEC |
Cooling towers | 2 |
Cooling source | Scheldt river |
Thermal capacity | 2 × 1312 MWt 1 × 3064 MWt 1 × 3000 MWt |
Power generation | |
Units operational | 1 x 466 MW (gross) 1 x 466 MW (gross) 1 x 1056 MW (gross) 1 x 1090 MW (gross) |
Units cancelled | 1 |
Annual net output | 44.12 (2021) |
External links | |
Website | Doel nuclear power plant |
Commons | Related media on Commons |
] |
The Doel Nuclear Power Station is one of two
The station is located in the most densely populated area for any nuclear power station in Europe as of 2011, with 9 million inhabitants within a radius of 75 kilometres (47 mi).[4][5][6]
History
The powerstation was built by public utility EBES (Sociétés Réunies d'Energie du Bassin de l'Escaut), which in 1990 merged with Intercom and Unerg to become Electrabel. The plant was designed by the Belgian engineering firm Tractebel. Doel 1 and 2 are twin units that entered commercial operation in 1975. Doel 3 entered commercial operation in 1982 and Doel 4 in 1985. Doel 1, 2 and 4 were constructed by the ACECOWEN (ACEC-Cockerill-Westinghouse) consortium. While Doel 3 was constructed by FRAMACEC (Framatome-ACEC-Cockerill).[7]
Earthworks for Doel 5, a 1400 MW reactor also known as N8 (8th nuclear reactor in Belgium), were stopped in 1988. Participation in the French twin plant in Chooz however continued. French industry was compensated for already ordered components.[8]
Reactors
The plant consists of four second-generation
Reactor [9][10] |
Loops | Supplier | Thermal power |
Gross power |
Net power |
Start of construction |
First criticality |
Grid connection |
Commercial operation |
Licensed until |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Doel 1 | 2 | ACECOWEN | 1312 MW | 466 MW | 445 MW | 1 July 1969 | 18 July 1974 | 28 August 1974 | 15 February 1975 | 2025 |
Doel 2 | 2 | ACECOWEN | 1312 MW | 466 MW | 445 MW | 1 September 1971 | 4 August 1975 | 21 August 1975 | 1 December 1975 | 2025 |
Doel 3 | 3 | FRAMACEC | 3064 MW | 1056 MW | 1006 MW | 1 January 1975 | 14 June 1982 | 23 June 1982 | 1 October 1982 | 2022 |
Doel 4 | 3 | ACECOWEN | 3000 MW | 1090 MW | 1039 MW | 1 December 1978 | 31 March 1985 | 8 April 1985 | 1 July 1985 | 2035 |
Design
The design of the plant is reviewed completely every ten years through a TJH (tienjaarlijkse herziening), a legal obligation imposed by the Belgian state and the operation licence of the plant. The purpose of the review is to update the plant to the most recent international safety standards.[11]
Meteorological conditions
Various weather conditions have been analysed including
Earthquakes
Since the design of Doel 3 and 4 and the first TJH of Doel 1 and 2
Floods
The Doel plant was originally designed for a 10,000 year flood of 9.13 m TAW (Tweede Algemene Waterpassing).[12]: 90 The highest measured level was 8.10 m TAW during the North Sea flood of 1953.[12]: 78 The site was filled to 8.86 m TAW during construction and fitted with a seadyke of 12.08 m TAW. The other dykes around the site have a height of 11 m TAW.[12]: 20 Probabilistic studies performed after Fukushima showed the height of a 10,000 year flood had slightly increased to 9.35 m TAW, 22 cm higher than the studies performed in the 1960s.[12]: 91 The highest possible tsunami is lower than 0.5 m.[12]: 77 During post-Fukushima stress tests a dyke failure with a water level of 10.2 m was simulated. Due to the presence of bulkheads and pedestals in the buildings no safety functions were endangered.[12]: 98–108
Safety systems
Besides regular primary level safety systems, in common with most nuclear power plants in the world, Doel has secondary level safety systems that can autonomously keep the power plant safe during large external accidents such as the crash of an aircraft, external explosions or loss of the primary level.[12]: 30 [12]: 14 The primary level systems have a redundancy of three or four times.: 26–29 The secondary level systems are 2x100% or 3x50%.[12]: 30–33 and have their own heatsink separate from the primary heatsink, the Scheldt river. Doel 1 and 2 have aircoolers [12]: 32 while Doel 3 and 4 have three separate artificial cooling ponds.[12]: 33
Double containment
Nuclear plants are designed with multiple physical barriers to prevent fission products escaping into the environment. In the case of a pressurized water reactor there are three barriers: the fuel cladding which surround the fuel pallets, the primary circuit which houses the fuel rods and finally the containment building in which the primary circuit is built. In Belgium it was decided to add an extra double containment barrier.[13] The primary containment, a steel sphere in Doel 1 and 2 and a pre-stressed concrete cylinder with steel liner in Doel 3 and 4, is surrounded by a secondary containment made of 1.2 to 1.3 m thick reinforced concrete. The space between both containments is kept at sub-atmospheric pressure and filters are used to filter potential leaks of the primary containment.[12]: 14
Filtered containment venting system
In answer to a question of
As part of the stress tests following the Fukushima incident, this issue had already been identified to be included in the stress-test action plan (BEST). Construction of containment filter venting systems at Doel 3 and 4 was completed in 2017, with Doel 1 and 2 scheduled to be operational in 2020.[16][17]
Turbo feed pump
Every reactor has at least one steam driven
Cooling towers
While Unit 1 and 2 have no cooling towers, Unit 3 has one 169.48 metres tall and Unit 4 has one 172.61 metres tall. The latter is the tallest cooling tower in Belgium.
Nuclear waste
Light and intermediate level waste, which represents 99% of the volume of waste,[19] is treated on site in the WAB (Water and Waste Treatment Building).[20] Category A waste with half lives of less than 30 years is transported to Belgoprocess in Dessel for surface disposal.[21]
High level waste was originally recycled to MOX fuel, and re-used in the Doel 3 reactor. In 1993, the Belgian federal government placed a moratorium on the reprocessing activities in order to research other options.[22] Pending further decisions regarding the moratorium, spent fuel was stored on site in dry cask storage. Final disposal of the waste is being researched at the HADES underground laboratory 225m deep in the Boom Clay.[23] Nuclear transmutation of the waste is also being researched with the MYRRHA project.
In October 2013, NIRAS suspended Electrabel's licence to treat two types of waste, concentrate and resins, after foam was discovered on previously treated waste due to an alkali–silica reaction. Electrabel has started a licensing procedure to use the process used in Tihange to process future waste. This process can take up to two years and in the meantime the waste in question is stored on site.[24]
Incidents
2011 Doel 4 INES-2 incident
There has been one INES-2 incident on the International Nuclear Event Scale. After the replacement of an auxiliary feedwater turbopump, during the 2009-outage, one of the three feedwater pumps of the first level was adjusted to a lower level of rotational speed, delivering insufficient flow rates during certain circumstances.[25][26] The two other first level feedwater pumps and three second level feedwater pumps were still available. The incident was rated 2 on the scale rather than 1 because the "Federal Agency for Nuclear Control felt that Electrabel waited a little too long to report the incident".[27]
2012 Doel 3 pressure vessel cracks
In June 2012 Doel 3 was shut down for its third scheduled 10-year in-service inspection. Ultrasound inspections revealed a number of cracks in the lowest forged ring of the reactor pressure vessel. The cracks were determined to be an original manufacturing defect, not related to tension, and theoretically of no risk.[28][29][30][31]
The reactor remained offline for further inspections and assessment for a year. Eventually the nuclear regulator judged short-term safety concerns initially raised had been solved in a satisfactory manner and that the reactor could operate safely, and it was restarted in June 2013.[32][33]
2014 Doel 4 turbine incident
In August 2014, there was a major incident in the non-nuclear part of the plant. The main turbine overheated while operating without oil. A valve had been deliberately opened, which rapidly evacuated 65,000 litres of oil to an underground storage tank. The procedure was normally used in case of fire. The valve was normally secured by a padlock.[34] Authorities and the plant operator suspected an act of deliberate sabotage. The unit was eventually back on grid by 19 December 2014. Combined with the outage of Doel 3 and Tihange 2, blackouts were not ruled out for the winter period of 2014–2015.[35]
In December 2016, Electrabel requested that the justice department in Brussels prolong the search for the perpetrator of the turbine sabotage. Repairs cost more than 100 million euros.[36]
Other
Transmission
The power plant has two
The line to Zandvliet crosses the Scheldt River using one of the highest transmission towers in Europe. The tower is 170 metres (560 ft) high and built on a caisson in the middle of the river. The line is part of the interconnection between the Dutch and Belgian grids.
Cooling towers
With a height of 169 metres(554 feet),[38] the two cooling towers are the most visible structures in the Port of Antwerp. Due to their proximity to the Dutch-Belgian border, the towers and the accompanying wet steam can be seen over large areas of the Dutch provinces of Zeeland and western North Brabant. Since the spring of 1996, one of the cooling towers has hosted a nest of peregrine falcons.[39]
Security
On 15 March 2016, the
See also
References
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- ^ "CREG Nota" (PDF). CREG. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 20 August 2017.
- ^ a b "Nuclear Power in Belgium". London: World Nuclear Association. February 2017. Archived from the original on 3 April 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
- ^ Chrisafis, Angelique (25 March 2016). "Belgium steps up security at nuclear sites in wake of attacks". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 17 April 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
- ^ Kerncentrale Doel in dichtstbevolkte gebied, deredactie.be
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- ^ "Nuclear Power Reactors in the World" (PDF). IAEA. 2007. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 May 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2012.
- ^ Laes, Erik; Chayapathi, Lakshmi; Meskens, Gaston (2004). "Kernenergie en Maatschappelijk Debat" (PDF) (in Flemish). Brussels: viWTA. p. 96. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
- ^ Elia. Archivedfrom the original on 7 April 2019. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
- ^ Cortvriendt, Chantal (3 October 2016). "Description of the Financing Arrangement for Nuclear Power Plant Decommissioning in Belgium" (PDF). FOD Economie, KMO, Middenstand en Energie. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 7 April 2019.
- ^ FANC (22 March 2016). "TJH". FANC. Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u "Kerncentrale Doel rapport weerstandstesten. Bijkomende veiligheidsherziening van de installaties" (PDF). FANC (in Flemish). Brussels: Electrabel. 31 October 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 October 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ "Nucleaire veiligheid in de Belgische kerncentrales van Doel en Tihange : van de dagelijkse uitbating tot en met de tienjaarlijkse herzieningen". FANC (in Dutch). Brussels: Federaal Agentschap voor Nucleaire Controle. 18 January 2010. Archived from the original on 25 January 2010. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
- ^ Pennings, Mathijs (11 March 2016). "'Kernreactor Doel mist belangrijk onderdeel dat radioactieve straling filtert'". Omroep Brabant (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
- ^ "Duitsland zegt dat Belgische kernreactoren filters missen". NU.nl (in Dutch). Sanoma Media Netherlands Group. Algemeen Nederlands Persbureau. 11 March 2016. Archived from the original on 8 April 2019. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
- ^ Seventh Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention on Nuclear Safety (FANC) http://fanc.fgov.be/GED/00000000/4200/4218.pdf Archived 14 April 2017 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Sombré, Lionel; Claes, Jurgen; Hermans, Audrey (January 2020). "PARCOM Recommendation 91/4 on Radioactive Discharges - Seventh Belgian Implementation Report". London: OSPAR Commission. p. 31. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
- ^ ANS (1 March 2017). "Stresstest=Fukushima" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 June 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ NIRAS. "Soorten afval". NIRAS. Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ "Doelbewust 81" (PDF) (in Flemish). Brussels: Electrabel GDF Suez. December 2012. p. 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on 28 May 2018. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
- ^ "Het cAt-project". NIRAS (in Flemish). Archived from the original on 28 July 2017. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
- ^ FOD Economie. "Moratorium". fgov. Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ "HADES underground laboratory". Belgian Nuclear Research Centre. Archived from the original on 14 June 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- ^ Engie Electrabel (1 March 2017). "Doelbewust" (PDF). Electrabel. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
- ^ Afwijking op Doel 4 Archived 26 April 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Engie, 18 maart 2011, geraadpleegd 19 April 2017
- ^ "Inadequate setting of the auxiliary feedwater turbopump". www-news.iaea.org. 18 March 2011. Archived from the original on 7 August 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
- ^ Nieuw incident in Kerncentrale Doel Archived 6 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Het Nieuwsblad, 31 maart 2011, geraadpleegd 3 juni 2011
- ^ "Doel-3 in Belgium reports possible pressure vessel flaw". Nuclear Newswire. La Grange Park, Illinois: American Nuclear Society. 16 August 2012. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
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- ^ Doel 3: Safety Authorities Meet in Brussels Archived 24 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Belgian Federal Agency for Nuclear Control
- ^ "Experts okay restart of worrisome Belgian nuclear plants". Phys.org. Douglas, Isle of Man: Science X. 6 January 2013. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
- ^ Dombret, Philippe; Bogaert, Anne-Sophie; Somville, Frédéric (2016). "A review of inspections conducted on Belgian reactor pressure vessels affected by hydrogen flaking" (PDF). NDT.net. p. 709. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
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- ^ "Engie Electrabel vraagt bijkomend onderzoek naar de sabotage van Doel 4". Gazet van Antwerpen (in Flemish). Antwerp, Belgium. 24 December 2016. Archived from the original on 28 July 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
- ^ "Belgian TSO Elia upgrades Zandvliet-Doel line under Brabo Project". Global Transmission Report. New Delhi. 7 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2021.
- ^ https://skyscraperpage.com/cities/?buildingID=5695
- ^ "Electrical falcons". Brussels: Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. 18 May 2016. Archived from the original on 17 April 2017. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
- ^ De Redactie (4 March 2016). "Militairen zullen ook". De Redactie. Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
- ^ "Beveiliging kerncentrales". FANC. 4 August 2016. Archived from the original on 2 March 2017. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
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