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New calandria tubes in the Unit 1 reactor at the Bruce Nuclear station are all installed. It took just three months to complete the installation of 480 new tubes.

John Sauger, executive vice-president of project management and construction, says the restart crew has been unwavering in its commitment to excellence and safety, in performing this job. 

The first calandria tube was installed in the Unit 1 reactor during a trial run in November, 2009, after Atomic Energy of Canada Limited crews spent more than two years with remote-controlled tools, removing the original core components and refurbishing what remained. 

The final tube was securely installed on Oct. 27, and all seal tests concluded Wednesday (Nov. 10). Other work undertaken at the same time included preparing feeder tubes, cleaning the reactor vessel’s inside surfaces and installing initial fuel channel assemblies.

Thirty-eight of 480 new fuel channels in the Unit 1 reactor have been installed. Sauger says work on Unit 2’s fuel channels is at the halfway mark, and expected to be complete by year’s end.

Unit 2 is expected to synchronize with Ontario’s electricity grid in late 2011 with Unit 1 following in 2012.

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Saturday, November 13, 2010