Two horizontal steam-heater separators (SPPs) have been shipped from the production site of Atomenergomash, Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division in St Petersburg, for delivery to unit 1 of the Akkuyu NPP under construction in Turkiye. Previously, such equipment in Russia was manufactured only as a vertical design. The adaptation was made in line with the decision to use low-speed turbines based on Arabelle 1200 technology. The 640-tonne cargo will be transported first by special road to the factory pier, then from there to the seaport of St Petersburg. It will then be loaded onto a vessel or a sea trip to the Akkuyu NPP berth.
Previously four SPPs were installed in domestic turbine plants but only two are needed for the new configuration. This effectively halved the metal needed to manufacture the steam heaters and increased their efficiency and reliability, increasing the cost-effectiveness of the entire turbine unit.
“Rosatom is developing a roadmap for the development of nuclear technologies for a century ahead and continuous work is underway to improve existing methods and find new solutions, said Igor Kotov, Director General of Atomenergomash. “The production of innovative steam-heater separators was implemented by the Rosatom’s Engineering Division for the first time. Several plants located in St Petersburg and Podolsk were involved in the production. The team work of our teams made it possible to fulfil a particularly responsible task at a high level.”
SPPs are at NPPs with VVER-1200 reactors and serve to separate and heat the steam in the high pressure cylinder that is transferred to the turbine medium pressure cylinder. The equipment is located in the engine room and is part of auxiliary systems that increase the efficiency and reliability of the turbine unit. The product is a horizontal cylindrical body of seven welded shells with a thickness of 30mm and 50mm and two elliptical bottoms 42mm thick. The internal parts in contact with steam are made of ferritic stainless steel, which eliminates erosive and corrosive wear. Each 320-tonne unit is 22.3 metres long with a diameter of 4.5 metres.
Akkuyu, Turkiye's first NPP, will eventually host four Russian-designed VVER-1200 reactors. The pouring of first concrete for unit 1 took place in 2018, for unit 2 in 2020, for unit 3 in 2021, and for unit 4 in 2022. Completion of unit 1 is expected in the third quarter of 2023. Rosatom is constructing the reactors according to a build-own-operate model.
Image courtesy of Rosatom
