Methods for Controlling Carbonate Deposits on Heat Exchange Equipment in Nuclear Power Industry

Abstract

All heat exchange equipment of nuclear power plants is subject to carbonate deposits, and especially strongly the one in which water circulates from the cooling pond. The appearance of contamination on the surface of the heat exchange leads to various consequences from a slight deterioration of heat transfer to premature wear of equipment. Increasing the thickness of contamination in heat exchangers at nuclear power plants also leads to losses of electrical power, and this is a direct economic loss. As a result, the problem of controlling carbonate deposits is very urgent and does not have a universal solution at present. The paper shows how heat exchange worsens in one month if no measures are taken. However, existing cleaning methods do not give 100% results and have their own disadvantages. This paper highlights the methods used for cleaning deposits, considers ways to increase their efficiency, and presents new ideas that were not previously used at nuclear power plants (including the Rostov NPP). These include increasing the efficiency of the ball cleaning system, reducing the salt content of the cooling reservoir, ultrasonic cleaning, and last of all, water magnetization. Their advantages over the existing ones are that cleaning is carried out during operation, there is no large waste for disposal, there is no probability of damage to the tubes, and they can be performed by the personnel of the nuclear power plant, which is less time and financial costs. The proposed ways are completely different, but they work for the same end goal, that is, to reduce pollution, reduce energy underutilization and eliminate lost profits.

Keywords

• карбонатные отложения
• теплообменная поверхность
• недовыработка
• инжектор
• система шарикоочистки
• система газоохлаждения турбогенератора
• ультразвуковая очистка
• намагничивание воды
• атомная электростанция