Acceptability of ASME Code Section III, Division 5, High Temperature Reactors

Issuing agencies

Abstract

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is issuing for public comment a draft regulatory guide (DG), DG-1380 (proposed Revision 2 to Regulatory Guide [RG] 1.87), "Acceptability of ASME Code Section III, Division 5, `High Temperature Reactors"' and accompanying draft NUREG-2245, "Technical Review of the 2017 Edition of ASME Section III, Division 5, `High Temperature Reactors,"' that documents the NRC staff's review of the 2017 Edition of ASME Section III, Division 5, certain portions of the 2019 Edition, and associated Code Cases N-861 and N-862. This DG describes an approach that is acceptable to the staff of the NRC to meet regulatory requirements for mechanical/ structural integrity of components that operate in elevated temperature environments and that are subject to time-dependent material properties and failure modes. It endorses, with conditions, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code (ASME Code) Section III, "Rules for Construction of Nuclear Facility Components," Division 5, "High Temperature Reactors." The draft NUREG provides the technical basis for DG-1380.