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Nuclear Energy Conference & Expo (NECX)
September 8–11, 2025
Atlanta, GA|Atlanta Marriott Marquis
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NRC approves V.C. Summer’s second license renewal
Dominion Energy’s V.C. Summer nuclear power plant, in Jenkinsville, S.C., has been authorized to operate for 80 years, until August 2062, following the renewal of its operating license by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for a second time.
P. V. Balakrishnan, P. McSweeney, C. R. Frost, P. Walmsley
Nuclear Technology | Volume 55 | Number 2 | November 1981 | Pages 349-361
Technical Paper | Materials | doi.org/10.13182/NT55-349
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A chemical cleaning process for the dissolution of deposits containing iron and copper on steam generator tubes was developed. The process consists of sequences of copper and iron removal steps. The solvent for the iron removal process is a mixture of ethylene dinitrilo tetra acetic acid, citric acid, hydrazine, and a corrosion inhibitor and is applied at 90 to 95°C. The pH of the solvent is adjusted with ammonia. The composition of the solvent was optimized to balance the rate of dissolution of the deposits and the rate of corrosion of steam generator materials. Copper is removed by sparging air through a strong ammonia solution at a temperature between 25 and 65°C. The steam generator at the Nuclear Power Demonstration Nuclear Generating Station was cleaned successfully using this process. Severe fouling of the steam generator had restricted the power output of the station to ∼70% of its rated value of 25 MW(electric). About 500 kg of magnetite, 200 kg of copper, and 200 kg of other metals and anions were removed, using a total of six copper removal steps and four iron removal steps. The station has returned to full power operation and is continuing to operate at full power with 3 to 4 MW(electric) of excess capacity in the steam generator.