At Southern Nuclear Company (SNC), the PWR Fuel Engineering team worked with Westinghouse to implement the PRIMETM fuel features, that offer safety and economic improvements due to a more robust fuel design. Implementing PRIMETM fuel ensures that operator burden from fuel performance is minimized while keeping the reactor in a safe operating condition.
PRIMETM fuel features consist of three enhancements to the 17x17 Optimized Fuel Assembly (OFA) fuel design: Low Tin ZIRLOTM grid strap material, reinforced dashpot for the guide thimble tubes, and a lower pressure drop bottom nozzle (PRIMETM BN)