Nuclear engineering for monitoring the thinning of the pipe wall of the Angra 1 power plant

Abstract

Large thermoelectric generation systems based on the Rankine cycle require monitoring of the thinning of the pipe wall caused by steam flow due to aging processes such as erosion and accelerated corrosion processes. Inspection difficulties are related to hostile environments (50 oC and 100% relative humidity) and spaces with complicated geometry, such as pipeline curves and their support structures. This work presents a monitoring program that integrates wall thickness inspections performed with a robotic system and Industry 4.0 technology to process the collected data and disseminate information throughout the organization. The robotic system is developed using “Digital Twin” technology, a very realistic virtual modeling scheme that allows interaction with the real world environment. They include equipment and all the steps to carry out the inspection process. The tube wall thickness monitoring system will be used at the Angra 1 nuclear power plant (Brazil).