Concrete pouring has been completed on the dome of the inner protection shell (IKK), which is one of the basic construction stages of the 1st Power Unit of the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant (NGS), and provides the sealing of the reactor building.
422 tons of reinforcement was used and more than 3200 m3 of concrete was poured to ensure maximum durability of the inner protection shell dome. Concrete has high fluidity, which allows the composition to become self-sealing and completely fill the space of the structure with its own weight, while maintaining the high water holding capacity, reliability, durability and homogeneity of the composition. With the completion of the concrete pouring, the upper point of the dome of the inner protection shell reached a height of 61.7 meters and the wall thickness reached 1.2 meters.
AKKUYU NUCLEAR INC. Regarding the completion of the works, General Manager Anastasia Zoteeva said: “A number of key stages are underway at the Akkuyu NPP construction site. I would like to thank each and every employee for their maximum sacrifice and high professionalism. Tight teamwork makes it possible to build all four power units at the same time. After the delivery of the first batch of nuclear fuel for the 1st Power Unit, we completed the concrete pouring process for the inner protection shell, which is one of the most important elements of the safety system of the nuclear power plant. In the future, before the construction of the 1st Power Unit is completed, we will have to complete the outer protection shell assembly and acceptance processes.”
High quality special concrete mix is used during the concrete pouring works at Akkuyu NPP. Properties such as temperature, settlement and density of the mixture are constantly checked. Each batch of concrete is subjected to a series of laboratory tests, including inspections at the factory and directly at the Akkuyu NPP construction site.
In the near future, it is envisaged that the ropes of the pretensioning system of the protection shell will be installed on the 1st Power Unit. The pre-tensioning system of the protection shell ensures the sealing of the reactor building and protects the power units from all kinds of extreme external effects such as earthquakes up to magnitude 9 and tsunamis, hurricanes and their combination.