The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) requires all CANDU operators to conduct a thorough examination of the structure every 12 years
- By April Murelio -
Unit 6 at the Bruce B generating station has returned to service following a brief outage that allowed workers to perform maintenance on the unit. Units 3, 4, 5, 7 and 8 remain at full power and Unit 6 is ramping up to high power.
Unit 4 at the Bruce A Generating Station returned to service last week after being taken off line in September as part of the scheduled inspection of the station’s vacuum building.
A unique safety feature of CANDU reactors, the vacuum building is designed to prevent the release of radioactive material to the environment in the unlikely event of an accident. A large cylindrical structure, it is connected to the generating station by a pressure relief duct and kept at negative atmospheric pressure so any potential release of radioactive steam can be sucked into the structure.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) requires all CANDU operators to conduct a thorough examination of the structure every 12 years.
During the outage, crews examined the integrity of the structure and examine any penetrations into the vacuum building where pipes or ducts are run to check the leak tightness, structural integrity and condition of systems internal to the building.
Work on the Bruce A Unit 1 and 2 Restart Project continued during the outage.
Bruce Power is a partnership among Cameco Corporation, TransCanada Corporation, BPC Generation Infrastructure Trust, a trust established by the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, the Power Workers’ Union and The Society of Energy Professionals.