Ukraine

Parent Company Severodonetsk State Manufacturing Enterprise 

The major USNRC sponsored studies for the Grand Gulf and Surry NPPs have been completed and their results published in NUREG/CR-6143 and NUREG/CR-6144. Those studies were multimillion dollars R D efforts aimed at developing the state-of-the-art methods and approaches which could eventually be applied to other NPPs in the USA. 

The requirements for stricter control of plant configurations in outages helped spur the development and utilization of configuration control tools like ORAM, which is now used by the majority of the USA plants. Although the USNRC does not license the use of ORAM, it recognizes the benefits to utilities using this (as well as other) configuration control tools. 

The USNRC is currently performing a demonstration project wherein the ATHEANA (a detailed human reliability) methodology is being used to identify the potential for operator actions (e.g., errors of commission and errors of omission) during full power operation for a limited set of conditions at one nuclear power plant. Current NRC plans call for a demonstration application of the ATHEANA methodology to low power and shutdown conditions. 

As part of the USNRC s risk-informed regulatory initiative, low power and shutdown conditions should be considered by a utility when making a risk-informed regulatory submittal request for a change to graded quality assurance, in-service-testing, in-service-inspection, or technical specifications. 

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L. Kroutikova - Novolipetsk Iron Steel. J.O. Shashenkova - Central Research Inst.. Russia. V.N. Fishev, Mariupolsky Iron Steel, Ukraine. 

The Supplement B (reference) contains a description of the process to render an automatic construction of mathematical models with the application of electronic computer. The research work of the Institute of the applied mathematics of The Academy of Sciences ( Ukraine) was assumed as a basis for the Supplement. The prepared mathematical model provides the possibility to spare strength and to save money, usually spent for the development of the mathematical models of each separate enterprise. The model provides the possibility to execute the works standard forms and records for the non-destructive inspection in complete correspondence with the requirements of the Standard. 

L Kroutikova, Novolipetsk Iron Steel. V.F. Muzhitskiy, B.F. Popel - Cran. Rm.sia. G.Y. Bezlyudko, Special Set. Instr., Ukraine. 

E. Pereverzev, D. Borshchevskaiy, T. Tremba - National Academy of Sciences, Ukraine. 

M V. Sinkov, A.l. Zakidalsky, A.A. Chapor, T.U. Sinkova, P.I. Stukalenko -Inst, of Data Recording Problems, Ukraine. 

V. V. Koshovy, E. V. Krivin, I.M. Romanyshyn - Karpenko Physico-Mechanical Inst., Ukraine. 

V.A. Troitskij, E.A. Davidov - E.O. Eaton Electric Welding Inst., Ukraine. 

The computerised ultrasonic P-scan system (FORCE Institute, Denmark) has been in operation in Ukraine since 1992. Over this period rather extensive new technological experience has been accumulated of solving the complicated tasks of reliability of the constructions the design life of which is over. 

In 1991 a new independent state - Ukraine, appeared on the map of Europe. Before describing the state of affairs in non-destruetive testing (NDT) of items and eonstructions in our eountry, we would like briefly to present the industry of Ukraine and its potential. 

Ukraine has five nuclear power stations with fifteen reactors with a total power output of 13.6 thousand MW (13 reactors of WWR type and 2 reactors of RBMK type in the Chernobyl NFS). In addition there are 47 thermal power stations with a total power output of 32.4 thousand MW, 6 large hydraulic power stations on the Dnieper and 55 small stations on other rivers. 

In the coal-mining industry, more than 300 mines are operated in three coal-mining regions Ukraine produces only 5 5 million tons of its own oil, but the ramified network of oil pipelines supports the operation of 10 petroleum plants. The Ukrainian gas pipelines transport the Russian gas to Central and Western Europe. 

Altogether, the industry of Ukraine includes more than 10000 state and joint stock enterprises, and hundreds of private and collectively owned small and medium-sized businesses have been established over the last years, which operate in various industries. 

The first National Programme of NDT TD development in Ukraine was established by the initiative of US NDT TD. The programme demonstrated the significant scientific and technical potential of the scientists of Ukraine in the field of NDT TD. 

Later, US NDT TD set up the National Certification Committee of Ukraine on NDT, which had the aim of organising the personnel certification in keeping with EN 473, rendered assistance to State Standardisation Organisation of Ukraine in setting up the Technical Committee on Standardisation Technical Diagnostics and Non-Destructive Testing (TC-78), the aims of which are in tune with those of lSO/TC-135. 

One of the main aspects of US NDT TD activity is organising conferences, seminars, exhibitions and meetings of experts, conducting the leading European companies seminars in Ukraine. 

The seminars in Slavsk, exhibitions in Kiev and Dniperopetrovsk have already become traditional. The first Ukrainian Scientific-Technical Conference on Technical Diagnostics and Non-Destructive Testing in Ukraine was held in September 1994 in Dniepropetrovsk. More than 200 specialists participated in the Conference, an exhibition was held, and 80 presentations were made... 

In recent years, the three-level system of NDT experts certification, which corresponds to the EN 473, is being introduced m Ukraine The unified Rules of NDT Experts Certification will be introduced in the near future. This work is headed by the State Committee of Ukraine on Labour Safety), and with the aim of the most expedient transition to EN 473, the National Certification Committee of Ukraine on NDT was established by the initiative of US NDT TD. The Committee has the tasks of preparing the programs, procedures, questionnaires for carrying out the certification. It is a non-profit organisation which is in charge of the methodological issues of certification m the US NDT TD. 

Six certification centres are functioning in Ukraine at present in Kiev, Khar kov, Dmepropetrovsk, Zaporozhje, L vov and Ivano-Frankovsk The best known of them is the NDT Certification Centre at the E O.Paton Electric Welding Institute, which was the first one to receive, already in 1990, the licence of the USSR National Certification Committee for certification of the NDT experts. These certification centres have the right to grant levels I and II (according to EN 473), while level III can only be granted by the National Certification Committee. 

The first scientific-technical publications on NDT issues appeared in Ukraine already at the end of the 40-ties in Automatic iTh/iii g journal, in the subject collections on technical diagnostics and non-destructive testing. 

In 1986, the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine started publishing on a regular basis, the Technical Diagnostics and Prediction of Welded Metal Structures Fracture collection, which in 1989 was reorganised into the Technical Diagnostics and Non-Destructive Testing Journal. This journal is now issued 4 times a year and re-edited in Great Britain. 

The work on standardisation in Ukraine is led by the State Committee of Ukraine on Standardisation, Metrology and Certification (Gosstandardt), All the USSR standards (GOSTs) are valid in Ukraine, and several dozens of them were elaborated in the NDT field. 

For continuation of the work on standardisation in the field of NDT TD, Gosstandardt set up a Technical Committee on Standardisation Technical Diagnostics and Non-Destructive Testing (TC-78) This is a social organisation which unites the leading experts on TD NDT, and determines the priority areas of work, and qualified performers in the field of TD NDT Its main aim is unification of the standards of Ukraine with the European norms. 

Let us cite the main centre in Ukraine, where investigations and developments in the field of NDT are performed, and consider some of the main results of this work. 

The efforts of the experts from Pivdenny have made it possible for Ukraine to become firmly established in the first three of space powers (after USA and Russia). More than 400 earth satellites developed in Pivdenny have been in space In recent years experts have developed the unique camer-rockets Zenith and Cyclone, capable of taking 4 and 14 tons into orbit, respectively. No other carrier-rockets of this type exist anywhere in the world, so they were selected for the international project Sea Start and Globalstar The NDT experts from Pivdenny have made a great contribution to these development, as practically all the parts and components of the carrier-rockets are subjected to thorough control. 

Unfortunately, the main European companies which are working in the NDT field, do not show any activity in promoting in the Ukrainian market the high-technology NDT equipment for upgrading the NDT practices We welcome those who are starting to work in Ukraine, as our industry requires the advanced NDT technologies and equipment. 

In conclusion it should be noted that Ukraine has considerable scientific and engineering potential for further development of the NDT TD methods, their more extensive introduction into production. 

Chair of Molecular and Applied Biophysics, Kharkov State University, Svobody Sq. 4, Kharkov 310077, Ukraine... 

Biophysics Division, Institute of Radiophysics and Electronics, Nat. Acad. Sci. of Ukraine, Akad. Proskura Str. 12, Kharkov 310085, Ukraine... 

Decomposition of Zircon. Zircon sand is inert and refractory. Therefore the first extractive step is to convert the zirconium and hafnium portions into active forms amenable to the subsequent processing scheme. For the production of hafnium, this is done in the United States by carbochlorination as shown in Figure 1. In the Ukraine, fluorosiUcate fusion is used. Caustic fusion is the usual starting procedure for the production of aqueous zirconium chemicals, which usually does not involve hafnium separation. Other methods of decomposing zircon such as plasma dissociation or lime fusions are used for production of some grades of zirconium oxide. 

Fluorozirconate Crystallization. Repeated dissolution and fractional crystallization of potassium hexafluorozirconate was the method first used to separate hafnium and zirconium (15), potassium fluorohafnate solubility being higher. This process is used in the Prinieprovsky Chemical Plant in Dnieprodzerzhinsk, Ukraine, to produce hafnium-free zirconium. Hafnium-enriched (about 6%) zirconium hydrous oxide is precipitated from the first-stage mother Hquors, and redissolved in acid to feed ion-exchange columns to obtain pure hafnium (10). 

Total hafnium available worldwide from nuclear zirconium production is estimated to be 130 metric tons annually. The annual usage, in all forms, is about 85 t. The balance is held in inventory in stable intermediate form such as oxide by the producers Teledyne Wah. Chang (Albany, Oregon) and Western Zirconium in the United States Ce2us in France Prinieprovsky Chemical Plant in Ukraine and Chepetsky Mechanical Plant in Russia (crystal bar). 

Other countries that have large iron ore deposits include Brazil (Carajas and Quaddlatero Ferrifero deposits), AustraUa (Pilbara deposits), Ukraine (Krivi Rog deposit), Russia (Kursk deposit), Venezuela (Cerro BoHvar deposit), India (Bihar-Orissa, Hospet, Kudremukh, and Goa deposits). South Africa (Sishen and Thabazimbi deposits), and Sweden (Kimna, Svappavaara, and Malmberget deposits). A Hst of world iron ore production and reserves in 1992 by country is shown in Table 3. 

Annual world iron ore production has hovered around 9 to 9.75 x 10 t since the mid-1980s. International trade of iron ore peaked in 1980 at 4.24 X 10 t otherwise it has remained fairly steady in the range of3.6to4x 10 t/yr per year since the mid-1980s. The main exporting countries are Brazil, AustraUa, India, Canada, South Africa, Russia, Ukraine, and Venezuela. 

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