[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 28 (Friday, February 10, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 8918-8921]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-02840]



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NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION

[Docket No. 50-184; NRC-2023-0039]


National Institute of Standards and Technology; National Bureau 
of Standards Test Reactor

AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission.

ACTION: License amendment application; opportunity to comment, request 
a hearing, and petition for leave to intervene.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC, the Commission) 
is considering issuance of an amendment to Renewed Facility Operating 
License No. TR-5, issued to the National Institute of Standards and 
Technology (NIST, the licensee), for operation of the National Bureau 
of Standards Test Reactor (NBSR). The proposed amendment would 
authorize the use of a specific method to perform core loading analyses 
of the NBSR.

DATES: Submit comments by February 24, 2023. Requests for a hearing or 
petition for leave to intervene must be filed by April 11, 2023.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by any of the following methods; 
however, the NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal rulemaking website:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0039. Address 
questions about Docket IDs in Regulations.gov to Stacy Schumann; 
telephone: 301-415-0624; email: [email protected]. For technical 
questions, contact the individual listed in the For Further Information 
Contact section of this document.
     Mail comments to: Office of Administration, Mail Stop: 
TWFN-7-A60M, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 20555-
0001, ATTN: Program Management, Announcements and Editing Staff.
    For additional direction on obtaining information and submitting 
comments, see ``Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments'' in the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section of this document.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patrick Boyle, Office of Nuclear 
Reactor Regulation, U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC 
20555-0001; telephone: 301-415-3936; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Obtaining Information and Submitting Comments

A. Obtaining Information

    Please refer to Docket ID NRC-2023-0039 when contacting the NRC 
about the availability of information for this action. You may obtain 
publicly available information related to this action by any of the 
following methods:
     Federal Rulemaking Website: Go to https://www.regulations.gov and search for Docket ID NRC-2023-0039.
     NRC's Agencywide Documents Access and Management System 
(ADAMS): You may obtain publicly available documents online in the 
ADAMS Public Documents collection at https://www.nrc.gov/reading-rm/adams.html. To begin the search, 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 license amendment request is 
available in ADAMS under Package Accession No. ML23033A114.
     NRC's PDR: You may examine and purchase copies of public 
documents, by appointment, at the NRC's PDR, Room P1 B35, One White 
Flint North, 11555 Rockville Pike, Rockville, Maryland 20852. To make 
an appointment to visit the PDR, please send an email to 
[email protected] or call 1-800-397-4209 or 301-415-4737, between 8 
a.m. and 4 p.m. eastern time (ET), Monday through Friday, except 
Federal holidays.

B. Submitting Comments

    The NRC encourages electronic comment submission through the 
Federal rulemaking website (https://www.regulations.gov). Please 
include Docket ID NRC-2023-0039 in your comment submission.
    The NRC cautions you not to include identifying or contact 
information that you do not want to be publicly disclosed in your 
comment submission. The NRC will post all comment submissions at 
https://www.regulations.gov as well as enter the comment submissions 
into ADAMS. The NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove identifying or contact information.
    If you are requesting or aggregating comments from other persons 
for submission to the NRC, then you should inform those persons not to 
include identifying or contact information that they do not want to be 
publicly disclosed in their comment submission. Your request should 
state that the NRC does not routinely edit comment submissions to 
remove such information before making the comment submissions available 
to the public or entering the comment into ADAMS.

II. Introduction

    The NRC is considering issuance of an amendment to Renewed Facility 
Operating License No. TR-5, issued to NIST, for operation of the NBSR, 
located in Montgomery County, Maryland.
    The proposed amendment would revise the NBSR safety analysis report 
allowing a change to the method used to analyze the core loading 
pattern. The licensee was developing its core loading pattern and only 
recently determined that a license amendment would be required prior to 
any startup with the proposed core. NIST is otherwise prepared to 
resume operations upon any approval by the NRC of its separate restart 
request; therefore, a delay in the NRC's acting on the license 
amendment request could delay the ability of the NBSR to resume 
operations. Accordingly, consistent with paragraph 50.91(a)(6) of title 
10 of the Code of Federal Regulations (10 CFR), the NRC finds that 
exigent circumstances exist, in that the licensee and the NRC must act 
quickly and that time does not permit the NRC to publish a Federal 
Register notice allowing 30 days for prior public comment.
    Before any issuance of the proposed license amendment, the NRC will 
need to make the findings required by the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as 
amended, and NRC's regulations.
    Pursuant to 10 CFR 50.91(a)(6) for amendments to be granted under 
exigent circumstances, the NRC has made a proposed determination that 
the license amendment request involves no significant hazards 
consideration. Under the NRC's regulations in 10 CFR 50.92, this means 
that operation of the facility in accordance with the proposed 
amendment would not (1) involve a significant increase in the 
probability or consequences of an accident previously evaluated; or (2) 
create the possibility of a new or different kind of accident from any 
accident previously evaluated; or (3) involve a significant reduction 
in a margin of safety. As required by 10 CFR 50.91(a), the licensee has 
provided its analysis of the issue of no significant hazards 
consideration, which is presented as follows:
    1. Does the proposed change involve a significant increase in the 
probability or consequences of an accident previously evaluated?
    Response: No.
    AFMS [alternative fuel management scheme] loadings deviate from the 
core loading scheme as described in the

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FSAR [Final Safety Analysis Report] 4.5.1.1.2 ``Fuel Management 
Scheme''. This amendment introduces a new section to the updated FSAR, 
``4.5.1.1.3 Alternative Fuel Management Schemes (AFMS)'', which 
describes bounding conditions and analysis requirements for any AFMS. 
The amendment also introduces an engineering procedure, namely ``NBSR-
0018-DOC-00 NBSR Alternative Core Loading Schemes Analysis Procedure'' 
which describes the OFMS [original fuel management scheme] and AFMS, a 
basis for the analysis, providing limitations to evaluate potential 
AFMS, detailed safety review for a demonstration AFMS, along with a 
discussion of results and conclusions to be included in subsequent ECNs 
[engineering change notice] dealing with similar AFMS core loadings. 
The procedure provides a basis to analyze core loading so that none of 
the Technical Specifications (TS) are exceeded.
    Several accident scenarios and therefore consequences may be 
affected by AFMS core loading deviations. Particularly, all accidents 
shown in Table 1 are required to be reevaluated for any AFMS core 
loading. Other accident scenarios given in the FSAR, including ``Loss 
of Primary Coolant'' (a major rupture in the cold leg of the primary 
system is assumed, which leads to draining the reactor core), ``Maximum 
Hypothetical Accident (MHA)'', ``Experiment Malfunction'' and 
``External Event'' are independent of core loading changes and 
therefore remain unchanged. Additionally, Natural Circulation Cooling 
at Low Power Operation must be analyzed for each AFMS to show 
compliance with Technical Specification 2.2. Natural Circulation 
Cooling at Low Power Operation is not an accident scenario but an 
analysis to show natural circulation at low power operations.
    Note that all of the accident scenarios and Natural Circulation 
Cooling at Low Power Operation conditions are analyzed using the RELAP5 
[Reactor Excursion and Leak Analysis Program] model as described in the 
``NBSR-0018-DOC-00 NBSR Alternative Core Loading Schemes Analysis 
Procedure''. The misloading accident is the only one that will require 
unique power distributions from corresponding MCNP [Monte Carlo N-
Particle] simulations with the misloaded fuel configuration. Some 
scenario conditions are updated based on facility changes and available 
new information. ``NBSR-0018-DOC-00 Appendix C'' provides descriptions 
and modifications for accident scenarios.

 Table 1--The Accident Sequences To Be Re-analyzed, and Their References
                               in the SAR
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                          Section in the
                                 Accident sequence              SAR
------------------------------------------------------------------------
#1.......................  Startup Accident.............    13.1.2.2.2.1
#2.......................  Maximum Reactivity Insertion           13.2.2
                            Accident.
#3.......................  Loss of Offsite Power........        13.1.4.1
#4.......................  Loss of Offsite Power with           13.1.4.5
                            Shutdown Pump failure.
#5.......................  Seizure of One Primary Pump..        13.1.4.2
#6.......................  Throttling of Coolant Flow to        13.1.4.4
                            the Outer Plenum.
#7.......................  Throttling of Coolant Flow to        13.1.4.3
                            the Inner Plenum.
#8.......................  Misloading of Fuel...........          13.1.5
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Based on detailed analysis provided in the technical report, and 
because these AFMS accident scenarios are specifically analyzed for 
probability and consequences, there are, by definition, no changes in 
the probability of occurrences or the consequences of previously 
analyzed accidents.
    Therefore, the proposed FSAR amendment allowing analysis of AFMS 
does not involve a significant increase in the probability or 
consequences of an accident previously evaluated.
    2. Does the proposed change create the possibility of a new or 
different kind of accident from any accident previously evaluated?
    Response: No.
    The requested amendment to the facility license involves a SAR 
change to describe engineering analysis procedures for any [AFMS] 
wherein which the NBSR core is loaded with a different core loading 
pattern than as described in the updated FSAR. An AFMS is any core 
loading pattern that deviates from the [OFMS] in a manner such that the 
number of the specific type of fuel elements, such as fresh, or used is 
different than usual and/or their locations in the core are modified. 
As there are no other changes besides that of fuel loading, changes in 
the core loading pattern do not initiate a different kind of accident.
    Therefore, the proposed amendment will not create the possibility 
of a new or different kind of accident from any accident previously 
evaluated.
    3. Does the proposed change involve a significant reduction in a 
margin of safety?
    Response: No.
    The requested amendment to the facility license involves a SAR 
change to describe engineering analysis procedures for any Alternative 
Fuel Management. The requested amendment to the facility license 
involves a SAR change to describe engineering analysis procedures for 
any [AFMS] wherein which the NBSR core is loaded with a different core 
loading pattern than as described in the updated FSAR. An AFMS is any 
core loading pattern that deviates from the [OFMS] in a manner such 
that the number of the specific type of fuel elements, such as fresh, 
or used is different than usual and/or their locations in the core are 
modified. The AFMS can be deemed acceptable as long as the proposed 
AFMS is analyzed according to the ``NBSR-0018-DOC-00'' and found to be 
within the updated FSAR, Technical Specifications limitations and 
boundary conditions listed therein. The boundary conditions are based 
on the Technical Specifications and updated FSAR requirements. Because 
these alternate fuel management schemes are specifically analyzed for a 
reduction in margin of safety, there is, by definition, no significant 
reduction in margin of safety. The proposed amendment contains no 
changes in the Technical Specification or other safety limitations as 
described in the updated FSAR.
    Therefore, the proposed amendment of the SAR in allowing this 
operation does not involve a significant reduction in a margin of 
safety.
    The NRC staff has reviewed the licensee's analysis and, based on 
this review, it appears that the three standards of 10 CFR 50.92(c) are 
satisfied. Therefore, the NRC staff proposes to determine that the 
license amendment request involves a no significant hazards 
consideration.
    The NRC is seeking public comments on this proposed determination 
that the license amendment request involves no

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significant hazards consideration. Any comments received within 14 days 
after the date of publication of this notice will be considered in 
making any final determination.
    Normally, the Commission will not issue the amendment until the 
expiration of the 14-day notice period. However, if circumstances 
change during the notice period, such that failure to act in a timely 
way would result, for example, in prevention of resumption of operation 
the Commission may issue the license amendment before the expiration of 
the 14-day notice period, provided that its final determination is that 
the amendment involves no significant hazards consideration. The final 
determination will consider all public and State comments received. If 
the Commission takes this action, it will publish in the Federal 
Register a notice of issuance. The Commission expects that the need to 
take this action will occur very infrequently.

III. Opportunity To Request a Hearing and Petition for Leave To 
Intervene

    Within 60 days after the date of publication of this notice, any 
person (petitioner) whose interest may be affected by this action may 
file a request for a hearing and petition for leave to intervene 
(petition) with respect to the action. Petitions shall be filed in 
accordance with the Commission's ``Agency Rules of Practice and 
Procedure'' in 10 CFR part 2. Interested persons should consult 10 CFR 
2.309. If a petition is filed, the presiding officer will rule on the 
petition and, if appropriate, a notice of a hearing will be issued.
    Petitions must be filed no later than 60 days from the date of 
publication of this notice in accordance with the filing instructions 
in the ``Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)'' section of this document. 
Petitions and motions for leave to file new or amended contentions that 
are filed after the deadline will not be entertained absent a 
determination by the presiding officer that the filing demonstrates 
good cause by satisfying the three factors in 10 CFR 2.309(c)(1)(i) 
through (iii).
    If a hearing is requested and the Commission has not made a final 
determination on the issue of no significant hazards consideration, the 
Commission will make a final determination on the issue of no 
significant hazards consideration, which will serve to establish when 
the hearing is held. If the final determination is that the amendment 
request involves no significant hazards consideration, the Commission 
may issue the amendment and make it immediately effective, 
notwithstanding the request for a hearing. Any hearing would take place 
after issuance of the amendment. If the final determination is that the 
amendment request involves a significant hazards consideration, then 
any hearing held would take place before the issuance of the amendment 
unless the Commission finds an imminent danger to the health or safety 
of the public, in which case it will issue an appropriate order or rule 
under 10 CFR part 2.
    A State, local governmental body, Federally recognized Indian 
Tribe, or designated agency thereof, may submit a petition to the 
Commission to participate as a party under 10 CFR 2.309(h) no later 
than 60 days from the date of publication of this notice. 
Alternatively, a State, local governmental body, Federally recognized 
Indian Tribe, or agency thereof may participate as a non-party under 10 
CFR 2.315(c).
    For information about filing a petition and about participation by 
a person not a party under 10 CFR 2.315, see ADAMS Accession No. 
ML20340A053 (https://adamswebsearch2.nrc.gov/webSearch2/main.jsp?AccessionNumber=ML20340A053) and on the NRC's public website 
at https://www.nrc.gov/about-nrc/regulatory/adjudicatory/hearing.html#participate.

IV. Electronic Submissions (E-Filing)

    All documents filed in NRC adjudicatory proceedings including 
documents filed by an interested State, local governmental body, 
Federally recognized Indian Tribe, or designated agency thereof that 
requests to participate under 10 CFR 2.315(c), must be filed in 
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302. The E-Filing process requires 
participants to submit and serve all adjudicatory documents over the 
internet, or in some cases, to mail copies on electronic storage media, 
unless an exemption permitting an alternative filing method, as further 
discussed, is granted. Detailed guidance on electronic submissions is 
located in the ``Guidance for Electronic Submissions to the NRC'' 
(ADAMS Accession No. ML13031A056) and on the NRC's public website at 
https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html.
    To comply with the procedural requirements of E-Filing, at least 10 
days prior to the filing deadline, the participant should contact the 
Office of the Secretary by email at [email protected], or by 
telephone at 301-415-1677, to (1) request a digital identification (ID) 
certificate, which allows the participant (or its counsel or 
representative) to digitally sign submissions and access the E-Filing 
system for any proceeding in which it is participating; and (2) advise 
the Secretary that the participant will be submitting a petition or 
other adjudicatory document (even in instances in which the 
participant, or its counsel or representative, already holds an NRC-
issued digital ID certificate). Based upon this information, the 
Secretary will establish an electronic docket for the proceeding if the 
Secretary has not already established an electronic docket.
    Information about applying for a digital ID certificate is 
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals/getting-started.html. After a digital ID certificate is 
obtained and a docket created, the participant must submit adjudicatory 
documents in Portable Document Format. Guidance on submissions is 
available on the NRC's public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/electronic-sub-ref-mat.html. A filing is considered complete at the 
time the document is submitted through the NRC's E-Filing system. To be 
timely, an electronic filing must be submitted to the E-Filing system 
no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on the due date. Upon receipt of a 
transmission, the E-Filing system time-stamps the document and sends 
the submitter an email confirming receipt of the document. The E-Filing 
system also distributes an email that provides access to the document 
to the NRC's 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, applicants and other participants 
(or their counsel or representative) must apply for and receive a 
digital ID certificate before adjudicatory documents are filed to 
obtain access to the documents via the E-Filing system.
    A person filing electronically using the NRC's adjudicatory E-
Filing system may seek assistance by contacting the NRC's Electronic 
Filing Help Desk through the ``Contact Us'' link located on the NRC's 
public website at https://www.nrc.gov/site-help/e-submittals.html, by 
email to [email protected], or by a toll-free call at 1-866-672-
7640. The NRC Electronic Filing Help Desk is available between 9 a.m. 
and 6 p.m., ET, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Participants who believe that they have good cause for not 
submitting documents electronically must file an exemption request, in 
accordance with 10 CFR 2.302(g), with their initial paper

[[Page 8921]]

filing stating why there is good cause for not filing electronically 
and requesting authorization to continue to submit documents in paper 
format. Such filings must be submitted in accordance with 10 CFR 
2.302(b)-(d). Participants filing adjudicatory documents in this manner 
are responsible for serving their documents on all other participants. 
Participants granted an exemption under 10 CFR 2.302(g)(2) must still 
meet the electronic formatting requirement in 10 CFR 2.302(g)(1), 
unless the participant also seeks and is granted an exemption from 10 
CFR 2.302(g)(1).
    Documents submitted in adjudicatory proceedings will appear in the 
NRC's electronic hearing docket, which is publicly available at https://adams.nrc.gov/ehd, unless excluded pursuant to an order of the 
presiding officer. If you do not have an NRC-issued digital ID 
certificate as previously described, click ``cancel'' when the link 
requests certificates and you will be automatically directed to the 
NRC's electronic hearing dockets where you will be able to access any 
publicly available documents in a particular hearing docket. 
Participants are requested not to include personal privacy information 
such as social security numbers, home addresses, or personal phone 
numbers in their filings unless an NRC regulation or other law requires 
submission of such information. 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 
should not include copyrighted materials in their submission.
    For further details with respect to this action, see the 
application for license amendment dated February 1, 2023.
    Attorney for licensee: Henry N. Wixon, Chief of Counsel, National 
Institute of Standards and Technology, 100 Bureau Drive, Stop 1052, 
Gaithersburg, MD 20899-1052.
    NRC Branch Chief: Joshua Borromeo.

    Dated: February 7, 2023.

    For the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Patrick G. Boyle,
Project Manager, Non-Power Production and Utilization Facility 
Licensing Branch, Division of Advanced Reactors and Non-Power 
Production and Utilization Facilities, Office of Nuclear Reactor 
Regulation.
[FR Doc. 2023-02840 Filed 2-9-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7590-01-P