[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 175 (Tuesday, September 9, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52429-52432]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-20998]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-027; EA-08-250]


In the Matter of Washington State University (Washington State 
University TRIGA Reactor); Order Modifying Facility Operating License 
No. R-76

I

    Washington State University (the licensee) is the holder of Amended 
Facility Operating License No. R-76 (the license) originally issued on 
March 6, 1961, by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission and subsequently 
renewed on August 11, 1982, by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission 
(the NRC or the Commission). The license authorizes operation of the 
Washington State University TRIGA Reactor (the facility) at a power 
level up to 1,000 kilowatts thermal and to receive, possess, and use 
special nuclear material associated with the operation. The facility is 
a research reactor located on the campus of the Washington State 
University, in the city of Pullman, Whitman County, Washington. The 
mailing address is Nuclear Radiation Center, Washington State 
University, P.O. Box 641300, Pullman, Washington 99164-1300.

II

    Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR) Section 50.64, 
limits the use of high-enriched uranium (HEU) fuel in domestic non-
power reactors (research and test reactors) (see 51 FR 6514). The 
regulation, which became effective on March 27, 1986, requires that if 
Federal Government funding for conversion-related costs is available, 
each licensee of a non-power reactor authorized to use HEU fuel shall 
replace it with low-enriched uranium (LEU) fuel acceptable to the 
Commission unless the Commission has determined that the reactor has a 
unique purpose. The Commission's stated purpose for these requirements 
was to reduce, to the maximum extent possible, the use of HEU fuel in 
order to reduce the risk of theft and diversion of HEU fuel used in 
non-power reactors.
    Paragraphs 50.64(b)(2)(i) and (ii) require that a licensee of a 
non-power reactor (1) not acquire more HEU fuel if LEU fuel that is 
acceptable to the Commission for that reactor is available when the 
licensee proposes to acquire HEU fuel, and (2) replace all HEU fuel in 
its possession with available LEU fuel acceptable to the Commission for 
that reactor in accordance with a schedule determined pursuant to 10 
CFR 50.64(c)(2).
    Paragraph 50.64(c)(2)(i) requires, among other things, that each 
licensee of a non-power reactor authorized to possess and to use HEU 
fuel develop and submit to the Director of the Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation (the Director) by March 27, 1987, and at 12-month 
intervals thereafter, a written proposal for meeting the requirements 
of the rule. The licensee shall include in its proposal a certification 
that Federal Government funding for conversion is available through the 
U.S. Department of Energy or other appropriate Federal agency. The 
proposal should also provide a schedule for conversion, based upon 
availability of replacement fuel acceptable to the Commission for that 
reactor and upon consideration of other factors such as the 
availability of shipping casks, implementation of arrangements for 
available financial support, and reactor usage.
    Paragraph 50.64(c)(2)(iii) requires the licensee to include in the 
proposal, to the extent required to effect conversion, all necessary 
changes to the license, the facility, and licensee procedures. This 
paragraph also requires the licensee to submit supporting safety 
analyses in time to meet the conversion schedule.
    Paragraph 50.64(c)(2)(iii) also requires the Director to review the 
licensee proposal, to confirm the status of Federal Government funding, 
and to determine a final schedule, if the licensee has submitted a 
schedule for conversion.
    Section 50.64(c)(3) requires the Director to review the supporting 
safety analyses and to issue an appropriate enforcement order directing 
both the conversion and, to the extent consistent with the protection 
of public health and safety, any necessary changes to the license, the 
facility, and licensee procedures. In the Federal Register notice of 
the final rule (51 FR 6514), the Commission explained that in most, if 
not all cases, the enforcement order would be an order to modify the 
license under 10 CFR 2.204 (now 10 CFR 2.202).
    Any person, other than the licensee, whose interest may be affected 
by this proceeding and who desires to participate as a party must file 
a written request for hearing or petition for leave to intervene 
meeting the requirements of 10 CFR 2.309, ``Hearing Requests, Petitions 
to Intervene, Requirements for Standing, and Contentions.''

III

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) maintains the 
Agencywide Documents Access and Management System (ADAMS), which 
provides text and image files of the

[[Page 52430]]

NRC's public documents. On August 15, 2007 (ADAMS Accession Nos. 
ML072410493 and ML080170058), as supplemented on December 14, 2007 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML080090628), and January 15 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML080170037), June 13, (ADAMS package Accession No. ML082380270 which 
consists of ADAMS Accession Nos. ML082380265, ML082380266, ML082380267, 
ML082380268, ML082380269, ML082380271, ML08238272, ML082380273 and 
ML082380279) and August 4, (ADAMS Accession No. ML082210118), 22, 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML082390030), and 25, 2008 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML082400522), the NRC staff received the licensee's conversion 
proposal, including its proposed modifications and supporting safety 
analyses. HEU fuel elements are to be replaced with LEU fuel elements. 
The reactor core contains fuel clusters, each fuel cluster contains up 
to four fuel elements of the TRIGA design, with the fuel consisting of 
uranium-zirconium hydride with 30 weight percent uranium. These fuel 
elements contain the uranium-235 isotope at an enrichment of less than 
20 percent. The NRC staff reviewed the licensee's proposal and the 
requirements of 10 CFR 50.64 and has determined that public health and 
safety and common defense and security require the licensee to convert 
the facility from the use of HEU to LEU fuel in accordance with the 
attachments to this Order and the schedule included herein. The 
attachments to this Order specify the changes to the license conditions 
and technical specifications that are needed to amend the facility 
license and contains an outline of a reactor startup report to be 
submitted to NRC within 6 months following return of the converted 
reactor to normal operation.

IV

    Accordingly, pursuant to Sections 51, 53, 57, 101, 104, 161b, 161i, 
and 161o of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended, and to 
Commission regulations in 10 CFR 2.202 and 10 CFR 50.64, it is hereby 
ordered that:
    Amended Facility Operating License No. R-76 is modified by amending 
the license conditions and technical specifications as stated in the 
attachments to this Order (Attachment 1: MODIFICATIONS TO FACILITY 
OPERATING LICENSE No. R-76; Attachment 2: OUTLINE OF REACTOR STARTUP 
REPORT). The Order becomes effective on the later date of either (1) 
the day the licensee receives an adequate number and type of LEU fuel 
elements to operate the facility as specified in the licensee proposal 
dated August 15, 2007 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML072410493 and 
ML080170058), as supplemented on December 14, 2007 (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML080090628), and January 15, (ADAMS Accession No. ML080170037), June 
13, (ADAMS package Accession No. ML082380270 which consists of ADAMS 
Accession Nos. ML082380265, ML082380266, ML082380267, ML082380268, 
ML082380269, ML082380271, ML08238272, ML082380273 and ML082380279) and 
August 4, (ADAMS Accession No.ML082210118), 22, (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML082390030), and 25, 2008 (ADAMS Accession No. ML082400522), or (2) 20 
days after the date of publication of this Order in the Federal 
Register.

V

    Pursuant to 10 CFR 2.202, any person(s) whose interest may be 
affected by this proceeding, other than the licensee, and who wishes to 
participate as a party in the proceeding must file a written request 
within 20 days after the date of publication of this Order, setting 
forth with particularity the manner in which this Order adversely 
affects his or her interest and addressing the criteria set forth in 10 
CFR 2.309. If a hearing is held, the issue to be considered at such 
hearing shall be whether this Order should be sustained.
    A request for a hearing must be filed in accordance with the NRC E-
Filing rule, which became effective on October 15, 2007. The NRC issued 
the E-filing final rule on August 28, 2007 (72 FR 49139) and codified 
it in pertinent part at 10 CFR part 2, ``Rules of Practice for Domestic 
Licensing Proceedings and Issuance of Orders,'' subpart B. The E-Filing 
process requires participants to submit and serve documents over the 
Internet or, in some cases, to mail copies on electronic optical 
storage media. Participants may not submit paper copies of their 
filings unless they seek a waiver in accordance with the procedures 
described below.
    To comply with the procedural requirements associated with E-
Filing, at least 10 days before the filing deadline, the requestor must 
contact the Office of the Secretary by e-mail at [email protected], 
or by calling (301) 415-1677, to request (1) a digital identification 
(ID) certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or 
representative) to digitally sign documents and access the E-Submittal 
server for any NRC proceeding in which it is participating, and/or (2) 
creation of an electronic docket for the proceeding (even in instances 
when the requestor (or its counsel or representative) already holds an 
NRC-issued digital ID certificate). Each requestor will need to 
download the Workplace Forms Viewer\TM\ to access the Electronic 
Information Exchange (EIE), a component of the E-Filing system. The 
Workplace Forms Viewer\TM\ is free and is available at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/install-viewer.html. Information 
about applying for a digital ID certificate also is available on the 
NRC's public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/apply-certificates.html.
    Once a requestor has obtained a digital ID certificate, had a 
docket created, and downloaded the EIE viewer, he or she can then 
submit a request for a hearing through EIE. Submissions should be in 
portable document format (PDF) in accordance with NRC guidance 
available on the NRC public Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html. A filing is considered complete at the time the filer 
submits its document through EIE. To be timely, electronic filings must 
be submitted to the EIE system no later than 11:59 p.m. eastern time on 
the due date. Upon receipt of a transmission, the E-Filing system time-
stamps the document and sends the submitter an e-mail notice confirming 
receipt of the document. The EIE system also distributes an e-mail 
notice that provides access to the document to the NRC Office of the 
General Counsel and any others who have advised the Office of the 
Secretary that they wish to participate in the proceeding, so that the 
filer need not serve the document on those participants separately. 
Therefore, any others who wish to participate in the proceeding (or 
their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a digital 
ID certificate before a hearing request is filed so that they may 
obtain access to the document via the E-Filing system.
    A person filing electronically may seek assistance through the 
``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC Web site at http://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html or by calling the NRC technical help line, 
which is available between 8:30 a.m. and 4:15 p.m., eastern time, 
Monday through Friday. The help line number is (800) 397-4209 or, 
locally, (301) 415-4737.
    Participants who believe that they have good cause for not 
submitting documents electronically must file a motion, in accordance 
with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper filing requesting 
authorization to continue to submit documents in paper format. Such 
filings must be submitted by (1) First class mail addressed to the 
Office

[[Page 52431]]

of the Secretary of the Commission, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, 
Washington, DC 20555-0001, Attention: Rulemaking and Adjudications 
Staff; or (2) courier, express mail, or expedited delivery service to 
the Office of the Secretary, Sixteenth Floor, One White Flint North, 
11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852, Attention: Rulemaking 
and Adjudications Staff. Participants filing a document in this manner 
are responsible for serving the document on all other participants. 
Filing is considered complete by first-class mail as of the time of 
deposit in the mail, or by courier, express mail, or expedited delivery 
service upon depositing the document with the provider of the service.
    Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the 
NRC's electronic hearing docket at http://ehd.nrc.gov/EHD_Proceeding/home.asp, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the Commission, an 
Atomic Safety and Licensing Board, or a Presiding Officer. Participants 
are requested not to include personal privacy information, such as 
social security numbers, home addresses, or home phone numbers, in 
their filings. With respect to copyrighted works, except for limited 
excerpts that serve the purpose of the adjudicatory filings and would 
constitute a fair use application, participants are requested not to 
include copyrighted materials in their works.
    If a hearing is requested and granted by the Commission, the NRC 
will issue an order designating the time and place of any hearing.
    In the absence of any request for hearing, the provisions as 
specified in Section IV shall be final twenty (20) days after the date 
of publication of this Order in the Federal Register.
    In accordance with 10 CFR 51.10(d) this Order is not subject to 
Section 102(2) of the National Environmental Policy Act, as amended. 
The NRC staff notes, however, that with respect to environmental 
impacts associated with the changes imposed by this Order as described 
in the safety evaluation, the changes would, if imposed by other than 
an order, meet the definition of a categorical exclusion in accordance 
with 10 CFR 51.22(c)(9). Thus, pursuant to either 10 CFR 51.10(d) or 
51.22(c)(9), no environmental assessment or environmental impact 
statement is required.
    Detailed guidance which the NRC uses to review applications from 
research reactor licensees appears in NUREG-1537, ``Guidelines for 
Preparing and Reviewing Applications for the Licensing of Non-Power 
Reactors,'' February 1996, which can be obtained from the Commission's 
Public Document Room (PDR). The public may also access NUREG-1537 
through the NRC's Public Electronic Reading Room on the Internet at 
http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html under ADAMS Accession Nos. 
ML0412430055 for part one and ML042430048 for part two.
    For further information see the application from the licensee dated 
August 15, 2007 (ADAMS Accession Nos. ML072410493 and ML080170058), as 
supplemented on December 14, 2007 (ADAMS Accession No. ML080090628), 
and January 15, (ADAMS Accession No. ML080170037), June 13, (ADAMS 
package Accession No. ML082380270 which consists of ADAMS Accession 
Nos. ML082380265, ML082380266, ML082380267, ML082380268, ML082380269, 
ML082380271, ML08238272, ML082380273 and ML082380279) and August 4, 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML082210118), 22, (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML082390030), and 25, 2008 (ADAMS Accession No. ML082400522), the NRC 
staff's requests for additional information (ADAMS Accession Nos. 
ML073240018, ML080460523 and ML082250618), and the cover letter to the 
licensee and the staff's safety evaluation dated September 4, 2008 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML082401484). On January 23, 2008, the NRC staff 
issued an Order to the licensee to allow receipt and possession of the 
special nuclear material needed for the conversion (ADAMS Accession No. 
ML073550839). These documents are available for public inspection at 
the Commission's Public Document Room (PDR), located at One White Flint 
North, Public File Area O1 F21, 11555 Rockville Pike (first floor), 
Rockville, Maryland. Publicly available records will be accessible 
electronically from the ADAMS Public Electronic Reading Room on the 
Internet at the NRC Web site, http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html.
    Persons who do not have access to ADAMS or who have problems in 
accessing the documents in ADAMS should contact the NRC PDR reference 
staff by telephone at 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737 or by e-mail to 
[email protected]

    Dated this 4th day of September 2008.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
James T. Wiggins,
Deputy Director, Office of Nuclear Reactor Regulation.

Attachment 1--Modifications To Facility Operating License No. R-76

    A. License Conditions Revised by This Order
    2.B.(2) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR part 70, ``Domestic 
Licensing of Special Nuclear Material'', to receive, possess, and 
use in connection with operation of the reactor:
    a. Up to 25 kilograms of contained uranium-235 enriched to less 
than 20 percent in the form of TRIGA reactor fuel.
    b. Up to 500 grams of contained uranium-235 enriched to any 
enrichment in the form of nuclear detectors and material for 
experimental research.
    c. Up to 32 grams of plutonium in the form of a plutonium-
beryllium neutron source.
    2.B.(4) Pursuant to the Act and 10 CFR part 70, ``Domestic 
Licensing of Special Nuclear Material,'' to possess, but not use, up 
to 15 kilograms of contained uranium-235 at equal to or greater than 
20 percent enrichment in the form of TRIGA fuel until the existing 
inventory of this fuel is removed from the facility.
    2.C.(2) Technical Specifications
    The Technical Specifications contained in Appendix A, as revised 
through Amendment No. 20 are, hereby, incorporated in the license. 
The licensee shall operate the facility in accordance with the 
Technical Specifications.

Attachment 2--Outline of Reactor Startup Report

    Within 6 months following the return of the converted reactor to 
normal operation, submit the following information to the NRC. 
Information on the HEU core should be presented to the extent it 
exists.
    1. Critical mass:
    Measurement with HEU;
    Measurement with LEU;
    Comparisons with calculations for LEU and if available, HEU.
    2. Excess (operational) reactivity:
    Measurement with HEU;
    Measurement with LEU;
    Comparisons with calculations for LEU and if available, HEU.
    3. Regulating and safety control rod calibrations:
    Measurement of HEU and LEU rod worths and comparisons with 
calculations for LEU and if available, HEU.
    4. Reactor power calibration:
    Methods and measurements that ensure operation within the 
license limit and comparison between HEU and LEU nuclear 
instrumentation set points, detector positions and detector output.
    5. Shutdown margin:
    Measurement with HEU;
    Measurement with LEU;
    Comparisons with calculations for LEU and if available, HEU.
    6. Thermal neutron flux distributions:
    Measurements of the core and measured experimental facilities 
(to the extent available) with HEU and LEU and comparisons with 
calculations for LEU and if available, HEU.
    7. Reactor physics measurements:
    Results of determination of LEU effective delayed neutron 
fraction, temperature coefficient, and void coefficient to the 
extent that measurements are possible and comparison with 
calculations and available HEU core measurements.
    8. Initial LEU core loading:
    Measurements made during initial loading of the LEU fuel, 
presenting subcritical

[[Page 52432]]

multiplication measurements, predictions of multiplication for next 
fuel additions, and prediction and verification of final criticality 
conditions.
    9. Primary coolant measurements:
    Results of any primary coolant water sample measurements for 
fission product activity taken during the first 30 days of LEU 
operation.
    10. Pulse Measurements:
    Results of any test pulses performed and comparison with 
calculations and available HEU core measurements.
    11. Discussion of results:
    Discussion of the comparison of the various results including an 
explanation of any significant differences that could affect normal 
operation and accident analyses.

[FR Doc. E8-20998 Filed 9-8-08; 8:45 am]
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