A Romanian state-owned utility company Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica S.A. (SNN) has selected L3Harris Technologies to upgrade the Cernavodă utility operator training simulator.
L3Harris will modernise the existing simulator’s ageing hardware and improve its software performance and maintainability. The upgraded CANDU operator training simulator is expected to be in service in the third quarter of 2021.
CNE Cernavodă director Dan Bigu said: “Extending the service life of the full scope simulator is an important element for continued initial, authorisation and re-authorisation training, as SNN prepares for the refurbishment of the Unit 1 reactor.”
We look forward to working closely with L3Harris’ high-performance team to upgrade the simulator.”
In the first stage of the project, L3Harris will upgrade the simulation computers and operating systems, while re-platforming the existing plant models to L3Harris’ state-of-the-art Orchid® simulation environment. The primary heat transport, boilers and containment models will be redeveloped in Orchid Modeling Environment.
The simulator will be enhanced to include severe accident simulation capabilities using a version of the Modular Accident Analysis Program, known as MAAP5-CANDU, augmented with 2D and 3D animated, interactive visualisations of the reactor vessel and containment building to provide trainees with further insight into the behaviour of the plant during unlikely severe accidents.
During the second stage, the simulator’s AC and DC power supplies will be replaced and the legacy Datapath SC input/output (I/O) system will be replaced with a new compact I/O system driven by L3Harris’ Orchid Input Output software.
L3Harris business development, power systems and simulation vice-president Michael Chatlani said: “This agreement extends our nearly 30-year partnership with CNE Cernavodă and demonstrates their confidence in us to tackle extremely challenging projects.”
L3Harris has over 45 years of experience in delivering high-fidelity power plant simulation to leading utilities worldwide. In addition, the company has more than four decades of expertise in supplying plant computer systems for heavy water reactors.
Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica S.A. operates the only nuclear power plant in Romania. The electricity annually generated by Cernavodă Units 1 and 2 ensures 20% of Romania’s overall electricity production. Units 1 and 2 have been in commercial operation since December 1996 and October 2007 respectively. Both units are 706 MWe CANDU units.
L3Harris Technologies is an agile global aerospace and defence technology innovator, delivering end-to-end solutions that meet customers’ mission-critical needs. The company provides advanced defence and commercial technologies across air, land, sea, space and cyber domains. L3Harris has approximately $17 billion in annual revenue and 50,000 employees, with customers in 130 countries.