[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 186 (Tuesday, September 25, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 59023-59024]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-23560]


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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[NRC-2012-0065]


Preoperational Testing of Instrument and Control Air Systems

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: Regulatory guide; issuance.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC or Commission) is 
issuing Revision 1 to Regulatory Guide (RG) 1.68.3, ``Preoperational 
Testing of Instrument and Control Air Systems.'' This regulatory guide 
is being revised to address new issues that have been raised since RG 
1.68.3 was first issued. These include vibration testing of instrument 
and control air systems (ICAS) to meet seismic requirement, ICAS air-
dryer testing to meet dew point design requirements, ICAS accumulator 
check valves and solenoid valves operating and testing experience, an 
update to ISA S7.3 for acceptable industry standards for oil, water and 
particle matter in ICAS.

ADDRESSES: Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2012-0065 when contacting the 
NRC about the availability of information regarding this document. You 
may access information related to this document, which the NRC 
possesses and are publicly available, using any of the following 
methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Web site: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2012-065. Address 
questions about NRC dockets to Carol Gallagher; telephone: 301-492-
3668; email: [email protected].
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may access publicly available documents online in the NRC 
Library at http://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the 
search, select ``ADAMS Public Documents'' and then select ``Begin Web-
based ADAMS Search.'' For problems with ADAMS, please contact the NRC's 
Public Document Room (PDR) reference staff at 1-800-397-4209, 301-415-
4737, or by email to [email protected]. The ADAMS accession number 
for each document referenced in this notice (if that document is 
available in ADAMS) is provided the first time that a document is 
referenced. Revision 1 of Regulatory Guide 1.68.3, is available in 
ADAMS under Accession No. ML12160A047. The regulatory analysis may be 
found in ADAMS under Accession No. ML12160A049.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents at the NRC's PDR, Room O1-F21, One White Flint North, 11555 
Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852.
    Regulatory guides are not copyrighted, and NRC approval is not 
required to reproduce them.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kurt Cozens, Office of Nuclear 
Regulatory Research, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001, telephone: 301-415-7448; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Introduction

    The NRC is issuing a revision to an existing guide in the NRC's 
``Regulatory Guide'' series. This series was developed to describe and 
make available to the public information such as methods that are 
acceptable to the NRC staff for implementing specific parts of the 
agency's regulations, techniques that the staff uses in evaluating 
specific problems or postulated accidents, and data that the

[[Page 59024]]

staff needs in its review of applications for permits and licenses.
    Revision 1 of RG1.68.3 was issued with a temporary identification 
as Draft Regulatory Guide, DG-1268. This guide describes methods and 
procedures the staff of the NRC considers acceptable to implement 
preoperational testing of the instrument and control air systems (ICAS) 
in a commercial nuclear power plant. Successful demonstration of the 
operability of the ICAS is one of the items required by Appendix A, 
``General Design Criteria for Nuclear Power Plants,'' in part 50 of 
Title 10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), ``Domestic 
Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities.'' This guide also 
describes the methods that the NRC staff finds acceptable for the 
initial test program for ICAS systems, structures, and components 
(SSCs) in accordance with the regulations in 10 CFR Part 52, 
``Licenses, Certifications, and Approvals for Nuclear Power Plants,'' 
Subpart B, ``Standard Design Certifications,'' and Subpart C, 
``Combined Licenses.''

II. Further Information

    DG-1268, was published in the Federal Register on March 16, 2012 
(77 FN 15813), for a 60-day public comment period. The public comment 
period closed on May 18, 2012. No public comments on DG-1268 were 
received; therefore no content changes were made during its conversion 
to a regulatory guide.

III. Backfitting and Issue Finality

    Issuance of this final regulatory guide does not constitute 
backfitting as defined in 10 CFR 50.109 (the Backfit Rule) and is not 
otherwise inconsistent with the issue finality provisions in 10 CFR 
part 52. As discussed in the ``Implementation'' section of this 
regulatory guide, the NRC has no current intention to impose this 
regulatory guide on holders of current operating licenses or combined 
licenses.
    This regulatory guide may be applied to applications for operating 
licenses and combined licenses docketed by the NRC as of the date of 
issuance of the final regulatory guide, as well as future applications 
for operating licenses and combined licenses submitted after the 
issuance of the regulatory guide. Such action does not constitute 
backfitting as defined in 10 CRF 50.109(a)(1) or is otherwise 
inconsistent with the applicable issue finality provision in 10 CFR 
Part 52, inasmuch as such applicants or potential applicants are not 
within the scope of entities protected by the Backfit Rule or the 
relevant issue finality provisions in Part 52.

    Dated at Rockville, Maryland, this 17th day of September, 2012.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Thomas H. Boyce,
Chief, Regulatory Guide Development Branch, Division of Engineering, 
Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research.
[FR Doc. 2012-23560 Filed 9-24-12; 8:45 am]
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