Framatome was recently awarded a multi-million-dollar contract to perform mitigation of buried condenser feed pipes at a three-unit operating nuclear plant in the U.S. Using its innovative spray-in-place structural pipe liner solution, Framatome will mitigate more than one mile of large diameter piping running underground to plant condenser boxes. The condenser feed pipe mitigation project will be performed during nine outages over eight years, with the first application planned in Fall 2025.
“Framatome’s teams innovated to adapt an industrial solution and apply it to the nuclear industry in support of our customer’s long-term operational needs and competitiveness,” said Catherine Cornand, senior executive vice president for the Installed Base BU at Framatome. “Now utility customers have access to an innovative, technically advanced, turnkey rehabilitation solution that includes in-depth engineering, manufacturing, application, project management, technical support and OEM experience.”
Buried pipes and underground components for nuclear power plant operations range from just a few inches to more than 10 feet in diameter. Aging and degradation of buried piping is an industry challenge with the location of these critical components rendering necessary repairs and inspections costly. Framatome’s spray-in-place liner provides the nuclear industry with a safe solution that rehabilitates pipe internals and overcomes cost, safety and outage duration challenges.
Framatome, working with leading industry partners, developed an engineered structural spray-in-place liner system to rehabilitate safety-related piping beyond its original 50-year design life and through to the end of plant life. Delivered remotely using in-pipe robotic crawlers, the fast-curing liner is sprayed evenly onto the inside of the pipe, fully rehabilitating the pipe, becoming the new pipe pressure boundary. The quick-installing system does not require excavation, thus minimizing safety risks, reducing outage durations, and costs.