Belgium’s nuclear regulator has approved the restart of Tihange-2 nuclear power plant following a maintenance outage after concluding no new hydrogen flakes have appeared and the existing flakes had not increased in size.
The Federal Agency for Nuclear Control (Fanc) said in a statement that operator Engie Electrabel is required to regularly check that the situation has not changed since the flakes, or “hydrogen microbubbles”, were first discovered in the walls of the plant’s reactor pressure vessel in 2012.
Ultrasonic inspections showed there had been no evolution of the hydrogen flakes and no indications of new flaking, Fanc said.
Tihange-2 and Doel-3 were shut down in 2012 after the RPV flaws were discovered.
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