How to interpret nuke plant statuses?

greenspun.com : LUSENET : TimeBomb 2000 (Y2000) : One Thread

An earlier thread linked to the statuses of nuclear power plants. The one near me is rated 3 and shows this status:

Power Operation COASTDOWN TO REFUELING OUTAGE

The 3 rating and comment don't fill me with confidence, though I don't know what the technical terms mean. Can anyone explain what these comments mean?

-- Christopher Brewster (brewsterc@excite.com), December 24, 1999

Answers

The reactor core is loaded for an expected eighteen month run. So when the plant runs at full power for the entire duration, the core is depleted to the point of not being able to maintain 100% power and 'coasts down' to the time for refueling. Just like you might let your car coast down a hill to the gas station if your tank is running low. In your car, you should have gotten gas an hour ago. For a nuke plant, you planned it perfectly for maximum generation per dollar of uranium.

As to the '3', are you talking about Monticello? That would be region three. Simply a region of NRC oversight. Roughly, the NE,SE,NW,SW quadrants of the USA. Cold up there, isn't it?

-- q (qwerty@jkl.jkl), December 25, 1999.


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