Before a nuclear power plant can return to full power following a refueling outage, low power physics testing is performed to ensure the newly constructed core represents the designed core. In order to help our customers get their units back online, Westinghouse utilizes our Dynamic Rod Worth Measurement (DRWM™) technique to accurately and quickly measure control rod worths.
For more than 20 years, our DRWM methodology has been successfully utilized during more than 400 control rod worth tests. As part of our commitment to helping our customers reduce costs and increase efficiency, we’ve taken this proven technique and enhanced it with the introduction of our RhoPRO® reactivity computer. This innovative technology performs the same data processing to obtain the total bank worth and the integral worth as a function of bank position in a compact equipment package. Each bank of rods can be measured in approximately 15 minutes; the nine banks in a large Westinghouse four-loop Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) can be measured in about two hours with consistent critical path durations.
The RhoPRO reactivity computing equipment and its supporting software have been specifically designed to support data acquisition and analysis with DRWM using the Intermediate Range nuclear instrumentation channel. This enhances equipment reliability, eliminates replacement parts and alleviates obsolescence issues with the Westinghouse Advanced Digital Reactivity Computer (ADRC). The equipment size is greatly reduced, allowing for greater flexibility in its placement and permitting better coordination with plant operations in the control room. The connection of the monitoring equipment requires a minimal set of connections to the plant instrumentation and control (I&C), significantly reduced from the previous version.
With our innovative technologies and years of proven experience, Westinghouse continues to develop and deliver products and services that shorten the refueling outage period while helping to increase accuracy and reliability.