Southern Nuclear and Georgia Power have unveiled the newest backup safety feature at the Edwin I. Hatch Nuclear Plant near Baxley, Ga., the Hatch FLEX Dome storage building that will house portable emergency equipment, including backup power resources, such as DC battery banks and generators.
One of the critical lessons learned from the March 2011 accident at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear generating station in Japan was the absolute need to secure backup power for emergencies. Operators say the equipment stored in the nearly-impervious FLEX Dome can keep radioactive fuel in the reactors cool for up to 72 hours by a conservative estimate and for as long as a month by some estimates.
The Hatch Flex Dome adds yet another layer of protection to the robust safety systems for Hatch Units 1 and 2. U.S. nuclear plants, including Plant Hatch, are equipped with numerous redundant safety systems to prevent or respond to emergencies, including backup power resources,” the companies said.
The Hatch Flex Dome with its circular base is 39-feet tall with a ground level diameter of nearly 50 yards. The walls are constructed by inflating a tent-like dome, then applying foam, which hardens to provide enough of a framework for building the steel-reinforced concrete walls on top of that.
At completion, the steel and concrete walls are 18-inches thick. Taking a hard-earned lesson from Japan, the building is designed to hold up through an earthquake or to take a direct hit by a tornado, which would not only come with severe winds, but would also include airborne objects, such as trees, light poles and even vehicles. The dome is egg-shaped to allow it to withstand winds up to 360 miles-per-hour. Engineers also anticipate winds of that nature will include heavy debris. If it takes a direct hit, the shape gives the building enough inherent strength to remain intact.
The dome will store portable generators, pumps, communication equipment, refueling equipment and other redundant resources. The equipment, said the plant operators, are considered a last-resort response. “The portable equipment would be put into service only in the event other redundant resources at the plant were depleted or damaged,” said the companies.
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