Quality Assurance in the Removal and Transport of the Three Mile Island Unit 2 Core

EG&G Idaho, acting on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy, is cooperating with the owner of the Three Mile Island Unit 2 (TMI-2) plant, GPU Nuclear Corporation, in the removal and transport of the damaged TMI-2 core to the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory. Quality assurance (QA) played an important role in the removal and transport of the damaged TMI-2 core. Discussed are some of the important QA techniques utilized in the design, fabrication, acceptance, and use of the three different types of equipment: (a) the core boring machine, (b) the core debris canisters, and (c) the transport casks. Rather than a thorough discussion of the QA aspects of each task, the key applications of QA principles and methodology unique to each piece of equipment are presented. This approach is designed to effectively communicate the importance of “task teamwork” in QA.