Profile

Thierry Sollier is an NDT and Nuclear Safety specialist with 35 years of professional experience. He has worked 22 years for the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA) at Saclay in the NDT department, mostly doing research and development on eddy current technique. Since 2007, he is working for the French Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) as a Nuclear Safety Engineer specialized in NDT. Thierry Sollier has an experience as a group manager in NDT and materials both at CEA and IRSN.

Abstract

General aspects of reactor safety in the context of LTO in France

Long term operation (LTO) of existing nuclear power plants in France is a technical, industrial and human challenge. Among other tasks, the operator needs to address the ageing mechanisms of Systems Structures and Components (SSC) which were designed for 40 years of operation for some of them. The operator has also to propose an upgrade of nuclear safety level with an aim to reach whenever possible the safety level of Generation III reactors such as EPR. In this presentation an emphasis is given to the 4th Periodic Safety Review (PSR) of 900 MWe reactors of EDF fleet. Several SSC have been inspected, renewed, updated or added. Some modifications stem from the lessons learns of the Fukushima-Daiichi 2011 accident. Some SSC such as the Reactor Pressure Vessel or the containment building cannot be replaced and therefore the ageing management program and the performances of NDT are of utmost importance. After a presentation of the 4th generic PSR for 900 MWe reactors, some examples of IRSN’s research programs on ageing mechanisms related to LTO are given.