The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission allowed the restart of Hanul Unit 2, located in Uljin, North Gyeongsang.
The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission said on the 26th it allowed criticality for Hanul Unit 2, which has undergone a regular inspection since on the 20th of last month. Criticality refers to a state in which a chain reaction of nuclear fission is steadily maintained inside a reactor and the number of neutrons is in balance. When a reactor reaches criticality, it can be seen as a step toward entering power operation.
The regular inspection this time covers 95 items in total. The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission explained it completed inspections of 85 items that must be verified before reactor criticality and judged that criticality can be achieved safely as a result.
During the inspection, it was also confirmed whether the installation work of fire barriers, which Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) installed to enhance the fire resistance performance of safety-related cables, was appropriate. In addition, the installation status and hydrogen removal performance of the newly replaced passive autocatalytic recombiner (PAR) for design-basis accidents were checked.
The Nuclear Safety and Security Commission said it plans to continue verifying safety by conducting remaining tests, including a power ascension test, even after Hanul Unit 2 reaches criticality.