Nuclear Power T
Streamlining
Converting a nine-piece weldment to a single investment casting lowered the total cost of ownership for a nuclear fuel assembly component produced by Westinghouse Electric Co. BY SHANNON WETZEL, SENIOR EDITOR
he fuel assembly for a nuclear reactor produced by West- inghouse Electric Co., Cranberry Town- ship, Pa., provides the
power plant’s energy source. In the fuel assembly, the primary water flow is heated to approximately 600F with the ultimate end goal of turning the turbine for electricity production. Te assembly was functioning adequately in West- inghouse Electric’s current reactors, but according to Mark Peterson, principal value engineer at Westinghouse, the design and purchasing team couldn’t help but think, “We can do this better.” Te fuel assembly top nozzle
The Westinghouse AP1000 nuclear reactor uses 157 fuel assemblies. The top portion of the assembly is shown here.
42 | MODERN CASTING January 2013
constrains the location of the fuel rods while channeling the water flow to the exit of the nuclear core. Originally, Westinghouse designed the nozzle as a nine-piece weldment made from plate and bar stock. It produced a few components internally and sourced the rest to an external supplier. When the company started to think about its next generation reactor, the AP1000® power plant, it focused on reducing its supply chain and value stream, and the nozzle was a prime candidate for a casting conversion. Te AP1000 core consists of 157 14-ft. fuel assemblies with a removable top nozzle. “Tis effort came about while
working on our next generation fuel
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