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Swiss nuclear power and the case for long-term operation
Designed for 40 years but built to last far longer, Switzerland’s nuclear power plants have all entered long-term operation. Yet age alone says little about safety or performance. Through continuous upgrades, strict regulatory oversight, and extensive aging management, the country’s reactors are being prepared for decades of continued operation, in line with international practice.
Yoshiaki Himeno, Kazuo Mukai, Tatsuro Iguchi, Ken Yamamoto, Fumio Nagai, Masao Fujita
Nuclear Technology | Volume 58 | Number 1 | July 1982 | Pages 84-89
Technical Paper | Material | doi.org/10.13182/NT82-A32961
Articles are hosted by Taylor and Francis Online.
A large cold trap with sodium inventory of ∼1.0 m3, which had been regenerated at high temperatures (i.e., 450 to 600°C) 16 times during its 6-yr life, was subjected to destructive examinations. Emphasis was placed on determination of material damage to the mesh wires and the compositional material due to the multi-time high temperature regenerations. With regard to the mesh wires, the results of examinations revealed that mechanical strength was significantly reduced due to selective leaching of metal elements such as nickel and chromium. Before the examination, formation of a crack or defect that could have been caused by stress corrosion was suspected in the stainless steel structural material. But no such crack or defect was found.