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Nuclear Energy and Technology 3 (2017) 319–322

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Results of preoperational inspection at unit 1 of Novovoronezh NPP II

O.V. Urazov
Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant, Branch of JSC “Concern Rosenergoatom”, 1 Promyshlennaya Zona Yuzhnaya, Novovoronezh, Voronezh Reg. 396072,
Russia
Available online 6 December 2017

Abstract
Preoperational inspection for the base metal and welded joint state in components and pipelines at unit 1 of Novovoronezh NPP II is
discussed. Aspects involved in the inspection of the reactor vessel welded joints on the anticorrosive cladding side and the steam generator
heat-exchange tubes, using innovative test systems and techniques, are considered.
For the reactor vessel inspection, a dedicated computational and engineering justification, RTO-KR-UZK-15, [1] was developed, based on
which manual ultrasonic testing of the VVER-1200 reactor vessel welded joints was performed from the inside, through the anticorrosive
cladding.
A procedure [2], developed by experts of Politest Eddy-Current Testing Center Co. Ltd. and the Scientific and Technical Center for
Emergency Engineering Operations at NPPs, a branch of JSC “Concern Rosenergoatom”, and used for the first time at a Russian NPP at the
stage of preoperational incoming inspection for the base metal and weld state in components and pipelines at unit 1 of Novovoronezh NPP II
using Politest-PG, an innovative system for automated eddy-current testing of the steam generator heat-exchange tubes at NPPs with VVER
reactors, was employed to inspect the heat-exchange tubes for all steam generators. As the result of the test, the steam generator tubes were
found to contain discontinuities with a maximum depth of up to 10% of the rated wall thickness which is tolerable. The inspection results
have confirmed the unit to be fit for commercial operation.
Copyright © 2017, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute). Production and hosting by
Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

Keywords: Preoperational inspection; Ultrasonic testing; Ultrasonic testing technology; Eddy-current testing; Reactor vessel; Steam generator.

Introduction ther in-service inspection shall be compared against the pre-

Mandatory inspection is carried out for welded joints and
anticorrosive cladding, the base metal in stress concentration
zones and in regions opposite the reactor core, welded joints
and radius blends of the piping-component connections, seal-
ing surfaces of the vessel shell and lid joints, the internal
surfaces of vessels in the steam-water region, and other com-
ponents and pipelines.
Preoperational inspection for components and pipelines is
performed nondestructively prior to the commissioning and
has the purpose of recording the state of the base metal,
welded joints and anticorrosive cladding. The results of fur-
operational inspection results.
Preoperational inspection of the equipment and piping
base metal and welded joint state at unit 1 of
Novovoronezh NPP II
Preoperational inspection of the equipment and piping
base metal and weld metal was performed at unit 1 of
Novovoronezh NPP II in the period of 05.05.2015 to
02.03.2016.
The purpose of the equipment and piping base metal pre-
operational inspection was to:

E-mail address: UrazovOV@nvnpp1.rosenergoatom.ru.

- inspect the equipment and piping state after the completion
Peer-review under responsibility of National Research Nuclear University
MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute). of the stages preceding the first criticality stage: transporta-
Russian text published: Izvestiya vuzov. Yadernaya Energetika (ISSN tion to the NPP site, temporary onsite storage, installation,
0204-3327), 2017, n.3, pp. 142–150. hydraulic tests, circulation flushing and “hot” trials;
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucet.2017.11.008
2452-3038/Copyright © 2017, National Research Nuclear University MEPhI (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute). Production and hosting by Elsevier
B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license. (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
320 O.V. Urazov / Nuclear Energy and Technology 3 (2017) 319–322

- acquire, by such methods and means as will be used for in-

service inspection, initial data on the base metal, cladding
metal and weld metal state.

As required by the Standard Program for the Preopera-

tional Inspection of the Base Metal and Welded Joints in
Safety-Related Components and Pipelines at NPPs with the
VVER-1200 Reactor Facilities (ATPP-15-2011) [2], compo-
nents and pipelines shall be inspected by nondestructive tech-
niques [2–7] at the following stages:

- incoming inspection stage;

- substage A-3 “Cold and Hot Trials of the Reactor Facility”
(audit 1);
- substage A-4 “Audit of the Reactor Facility Main Compo-
nents” (audit 2).

Preoperational inspection is performed by the following

nondestructive test methods:

- visual inspection (VI);

- liquid penetrant testing (LPT);
- ultrasonic testing (UT);
- eddy-current testing (ECT);
- TV inspection (TVI);
- magnetic particle inspection (MPI);
- radiographic inspection (RI).

According to the ATPP-15-2011 requirements (with

amendments no. 1) [2], the components and pipelines shall
be inspected by nondestructive techniques, including with the
use of the reactor plant’s automated remote inspection system
developed in accordance with the reactor design technical re-
quirements.
Based on resolution no. NVOAES-21R-368K(04-03)-2015,
dated 25.06.2015, [8] in connection with the fact that the cer-
tification procedures had not been completed, the inspection
using the design automated remote inspection tools was re-
placed for other automated and manual inspection methods
permitted for use at nuclear installations [3–14]. At the same
time, the available automation devices were used to record
the reference weld state data to ensure that the requirements
of the standard ATPP-15-2011 [2] program be met during the
preoperational inspection to the greatest extent possible.
The preoperational inspection showed that the unit assem-
bly operations had been performed with a high quality.
Aspects of the reactor vessel weld ultrasonic testing on
the anticorrosive cladding side
Normally, preoperational inspection for the reactor ves-
sel is performed using Russian- and foreign-made automated
systems. These systems are designed for inspection both on
the outside, if accessible, and from the inside (through the
austenitic cladding). One of the key nondestructive reactor
vessel techniques is ultrasonic testing (UT). On the outside,
Fig. 1. Arrangement of the VVER-1200 vessel welded joints.
automated ultrasonic testing of welds is performed in accor-
dance with PNAE G-7-030-91 [13]. Manual ultrasonic testing
of welds is performed on the outside also at the manufacturer
site. Anticorrosive cladding does not affect the results of the
base metal inspection. The reactor vessel UT on the inside
(through the cladding) is used to record the initial state of
the reactor vessel and to observe further the dynamics of the
indications revealed in the process of the NPP unit operation
[15–19].
The reactor vessel material is 15Kh2NMFA and
15Kh2NMFA-A. The internal surface of the vessel is cov-
ered with a two-layer anticorrosive cladding with a thickness
of 9 mm. Welding materials of the grade sv.07Kh25N13T and
the OF-10 flux were used for the first layer application. Weld-
ing materials of the grade sv.04Kh20N10G2B and the OF-10
flux were used to apply the second layer. Fig. 1 presents the
arrangement of the welded joints on the reactor vessels.
 O.V. Urazov / Nuclear Energy and Technology 3 (2017) 319–322
Fig. 2. Test pattern with the test portions shut off.
Fig. 3. Design of a multi-element eddy-current sensor.
During an ultrasonic test through the anticorrosive
cladding, the weld root will be at a depth equal to 1/3 of the
welded joint section thickness. Due to the dissimilar cladding,
the UT sensitivity starts decreasing. The following factors lead
to the decreased sensitivity to UT through the anticorrosive
cladding [4–10]:
- the damping factor in the base metal and in the cladding;
- the beam quasibending;
- waviness of the anticorrosive cladding–base metal inter-
face.
For the UT of the welded joints in the VVER-1200 reactor
vessel at unit 1 of Novovoronezh II, with the above factors
taken into account, the lead materials research organization,
JSC NIKIMT-Atomstroy, has developed a design-basis engi-
neering justification, RTO-KR-UZK-15, [1] based on which
manual ultrasonic testing of the VVER-1200 reactor vessel
welded joints was performed from the inside, through the an-
ticorrosive cladding.
No discontinuities with the echo amplitude equal to or in
excess of the detection level were revealed as the result of
the inspection. The inspection results are positive.
Aspects of the steam generator heat-exchange tube
eddy-current testing
Eddy-current testing allows discontinuities of the wall
outer or inner thinning type with a depth of not less than
321
10% of the rated tube wall thickness to be detected on the
SG heat-exchange tubes.
A 100% eddy-current test of the heat-exchange tubes in all
steam generators was performed at the equipment and piping
base metal and weld preoperational incoming inspection state
at Novovoronezh II’s unit 1 with the VVER-1200 reactor fa-
cility using Politest-PG, an innovative system for automated
eddy-current testing of the VVER NPP steam generator heat-
exchange tubes, based on MT 1.2.1.15.001.0206-2014 “Au-
tomated Eddy-Current Test System” for the steam generator
heat-exchange tubes in nuclear power plants with the VVER
reactor facilities, “Politest-PG. Inspection Procedure” [16].
This procedure was developed in 2014 by experts of Po-
litest Eddy-Current Testing Center Co. Ltd. and the Scientific
and Technical Center for Emergency Engineering Operations
at NPPs, a branch of JSC “Concern Rosenergoatom”. The ex-
perience of the expert staff and the engagement of personnel
made it possible to perform the test with priority given uncon-
ditionally to safety and observance of all effective standards
and regulations.
An eddy-current test (ECT) based on this procedure en-
ables detection of discontinuities and anomalies occurring in
the process of the steam generator fabrication, assembly and
operation. The ECT was performed for the SG heat-exchange
tubes using a multifrequency eddy current technique. In accor-
dance with the procedure, the test was performed throughout
the heat-exchange tube length. The heat-exchange tube was
tested with an eddy-current sensor (probe) (ECS) introduced
from different headers (“cold”, “hot”), the test portions in the
322 O.V. Urazov / Nuclear Energy and Technology 3 (2017) 319–322
bend region shut off, according to the test pattern shown in
Fig. 2.
The use of a multi-element eddy-current sensor (probe)
made it possible to determine more accurately the disconti-
nuity depth, type (pit, crack), morphology (internal, external),
orientation (longitudinal, transverse, multidirectional) and lin-
ear characteristics in the heat-exchange tube portions having
indications detected earlier by the single-element ECS.
The multi-element ECS detector (Fig. 3) consists of 16
transformer-coupled inductance coils arranged in two rows.
The centralizers are used to align the ECS detector in the
tested heat-exchange tube.
The ECS data is analyzed by an analyzer using the Pe-
gas code [17] after the collection of data [16–19] for the
whole of the tested item or its part by examining the ar-
ray of recorded data, detection of signals from discontinuities
(including against the background of different interfering fac-
tors), depth measurement, and determination of the disconti-
nuity type, morphology, length and location.
The test results were as follows:
- 10 discontinuities with the maximum depth of up to 10%
of the rated heat-exchange tube wall thickness were de-
tected on 10 tubes in SG 1;
- 15 discontinuities with the maximum depth of up to 10%
of the rated heat-exchange tube wall thickness were de-
tected on 12 tubes in SG 2;
- 18 discontinuities with the maximum depth of up to 10%
of the rated heat-exchange tube wall thickness were de-
tected on 15 tubes in SG 3;
- 16 discontinuities with the maximum depth of up to 10%
of the rated heat-exchange tube wall thickness were de-
tected on 11 tubes in SG 4.
As the result of the eddy-current test for discontinuities in
SGs 1 through 4 with a depth equal to or in excess of the
reject level, no tube manufacturing deviations were revealed.
Within the scope of the testing performed, the state of the
heat-exchange tubes meets the requirements of the quality
assessment standards.
Conclusions
The preoperational inspection of the component and pip-
ing base metal and weld state at unit 1 of Novovoronezh
NPP II was completed within the specified time period. In
accordance with requirements of the Standard Program for
the Preoperational Inspection of the Base Metal and Welded
Joints in Safety-Related Components and Pipelines at NPPs
with the VVER-1200 Reactor Facilities (ATPP-15-2011), pre-
operational inspection working programs have been developed
and approved.
A dedicated computational and engineering justification,
RTO-KR-UZK-15, was developed for the reactor vessel in-
spection, based on which manual ultrasonic testing of the
VVER-1200 reactor vessel welded joints was performed from
the inside, through the anticorrosive cladding. The inspection
results are positive with no discontinuities with an echo am-
plitude equal to or in excess of the detection level recorded.
The heat-exchange tubes in all steam generators were also
inspected at the equipment and piping base metal and welded
joint preoperational incoming inspection stage at unit 1 of
Novovoronezh II using Politest-PG, an innovative systems for
automated eddy-current testing of the heat-exchange tubes in
the steam generators at Novovoronezh II’s unit 1. The inspec-
tion results have shown that no discontinuities with a depth
equal to or in excess of the reject level were detected.
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