An automated intelligent analysis system for analysing reactor refuelling events

Within the UK a number of AGR stations are entering the latter stages of their original operating lives. One of the major factors for determining the operational life of an AGR station is the condition of the graphite bricks that comprise the reactor core. Routine outage inspections are now supported through the analysis of refuelling data, which provides more regular, albeit less detailed, information about the condition of the graphite core bricks. The volume of data generated and the amount of time and expertise required to analyse the data is a significant issue. This paper describes the development and deployment of an automated intelligent analysis system for fuel grab load trace (FGLT) data. This is an example of a system that was developed to leverage existing plant equipment to provide additional benefit to the station operators, through the application of intelligent analysis techniques. This paper describes the design, implementation and testing of the British Energy Trace Analysis (BETA) system, that automatically assesses event data gathered during routine refuelling operations to provide information relating to the condition of the graphite core bricks in the AGR reactor. Issues such as the reuse of existing data sources from legacy systems to support the monitoring process are discussed, which is timely considering that the AGR stations are entering the phase of their operation lives where lifetime extension is being considered.