I&C and Electrical Engineering
As part of its integrated NPP construction proposal, Rosatom creates unique comprehensive solutions in Instrumentation and Control (I&C), manufacturing and supply of electrical equipment, as well as design and construction of power grid facilities (Electrical Engineering). As the share of I&C and electrical equipment in the total cost of a nuclear power plant amounts to some 20%, the development of these areas is always in the focus of attention. Since 2016, this task has been assigned to Rusatom Automated Control Systems JSC (RASU JSC, Moscow, a company of Rosatom State Corporation). RASU JSC got the status of I&C Chief Designer for nuclear power plants of the Russian design.
Instrumentation and Control
A modern instrumentation and control system is a set of software and hardware tools (workstations and servers with the installed system software, as well as switches, time synchronization units, etc.) connected into a local area network with fiber-optic communication lines. Safety is Rosatom’s top priority. This is why instrumentation and control systems, in addition to performing numerous routine operations, are always on the alert to make sure that the nuclear power plant operates reliably and safely. Modern nuclear power plants with reactors of 3+ generation (e.g., Leningrad NPP-2, Novovoronezh NPP-2, Belarusian NPP) have well-developed, reliable, fully-functional and informative architectures of such systems.
Automated systems are based on the following principles: diversity, redundancy, independence, defense-in-depth, safety and security (nuclear, radiation and fire safety, information and computer security).
I&C has 3 control levels and 22 subsystems:
- upper level – includes operator control based on the collected data on the state of equipment;
- middle level – industrial logic controllers, a brain of the entire automated system;
- lower (field) level – transducers and sensors which monitor the process equipment.
The system is capable of independent and centralized collection of information, recording of various parameters, deep self-diagnostics, and data exchange via Ethernet (a shared communication bus), both internally and externally, with other software and hardware packages.
The system can sense any deviations in the plant behavior. Information on any smallest fault is immediately provided to operators for decision-making. Algorithms of the system can also initiate an automatic shutdown of various systems of the plant if necessary.
Every system important to NPP safety is redundant. In case of failure, it switches to back-up. In fact, a nuclear power plant has several safety trains, or redundancies, capable of doing the same job. One or more safety trains may be lost, but the system will keep on working for the assurance of NPP safety. In addition, the diversity principle is applied, meaning that the same hardware and software cannot be applied in different redundancies. It reduces to zero the probability of simultaneous occurrence of the same fault in different trains.
I&C is a comprehensive product consisting of multiple items of various equipment. They are provided by 22 companies of the Russian nuclear industry which produce instrumentation and control systems and electrical equipment: FSUE VNIIA named after N. Dukhov, FSUE RFNC-VNIIEF (including its branches – NIIIS named after Y. Sedakov and VEI), JSC UEMZ, FSUE PSZ, FSUE Elektrokhimpribor Integrated Plant, and others. As an integrator, RASU JSC ensures planning, coordination, and improvement of performance of its industrial partners.
In the I&C design, RASU JSC takes into account specific needs of the customers. We integrate individual functional subsystems into a single system with the necessary interfaces that will operate together throughout the entire NPP life cycle (including R&D, design, installation and commissioning supervision, maintenance and modernization). Reliability and safety of our solutions have been proven by years of failure-free operation. Six years of successful work in the industrial automation sector have resulted in start-up of more than six nuclear power units, including Rostov NPP Unit 4, Novovoronezh NPP-2 Units 5 and 6, Leningrad NPP-2 Units 1 and 2, Belarusian NPP Units 1 and 2. 80% of I&C equipment have been modernized at Kalinin NPP Unit 1. The current portfolio of RASU JSC includes over 30 nuclear power units.
Electrical Engineering
Another major business of RASU JSC involves the design, development and manufacturing of electrical equipment, automation of power grid facilities, utility connection, design and construction of substations and power lines, comprehensive in-service monitoring and diagnostics of electrical equipment.
We provide our customers with a wide range of comprehensive solutions for arrangement of power supply for remote and distributed facilities, with possible integration of renewable energy sources (including a generator – hydro power plant / wind power plant / diesel generator; inverter; energy accumulation unit; mobile and stationary substations; cluster digital substations). The solutions can be supplied in a set, or as individual items. For example, we supply mobile transformer substations (MTS) for infeed, conversion and distribution of 3-phase AC power.
MTS’s can be applied at grid facilities, in power supply systems for industrial enterprises, in oil and gas industry, in agriculture, utilities and railway transport, in any region, under any operating conditions (including remote territories without the centralized power supply). Modular transformer substations are available in a mobile design (MMS). This option can be used for the period of repair or reconstruction of existing substations, grid unloading during peak loads, and for emergency response (in case of floods, major fires, earthquakes). Such substations have a high degree of pre-fabrication (typical installation schemes ensure fast readiness) and small footprint. The remote monitoring and control function allows using such substations in the Smart Grid concept.
For international sales, RASU JSC performs the full cycle of qualification and certification of products and services delivered by companies of the Russian nuclear industry for compliance with requirements of the Russian and international regulations. One of the good examples of this work is the joint project of UEMZ and RASU JSC, in which we elaborated the design of low-voltage switchgear (Ural Switchgear, or USG series) for international sales.
Low-voltage switchgears are designed for operation in the auxiliary systems of power plants, including NPPs, and in electrical installations of various industrial sectors. They are used for infeed, sectioning and distribution of electric power, including control of drives of various actuators. In April 2019, ASEFA certification body (France) issued a certificate of conformity with standards of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) for USG low-voltage switchgear cabinets. These cabinets were also subject to seismic and vibration qualification tests held at IABG laboratory (Ottobrunn, Germany).
The certificates of conformity open up an opportunity to export this equipment not only for Russian overseas NPP construction projects (Paks NPP, Hungary, Hanhikivi-1 NPP, Finland, Akkuyu NPP, Turkey, etc.), but also for projects in other industrial sectors. Within the nearest several years, RASU JSC is expecting to supply over 12,000 LV SG cabinets for the total amount of over 20 bln rubles to overseas nuclear new build sites only.
Microelectronics
In spring 2021, a new entity, Rusatom Microelectronics JSC (RAM JSC) joined the I&C and Electrical Engineering Division. The business of the company involves the development of trusted electronic components to be applied in I&C equipment for nuclear and conventional power plants.
The new company mainly focuses on assurance of technological sovereignty and safety enhancement for nuclear facilities. Within the framework of Rosatom’s production program for development of domestic electronic components, RAM JSC is responsible for development of the relevant trusted elements and automation equipment based on them.
Other areas
Today, RASU JSC is developing a number of digital solutions which will be applied in the nuclear industry in the nearest future. Among them, there is a common digital energy platform, an in-house SCADA system, a platform for monitoring, diagnostics and predictive analysis of the state of equipment, 6 (10) kV network sectioning devices, wireless data communication tools, and other advanced solutions.
In 2021, RASU JSC presented a modular (cluster) digital substation, an important element of smart energy system of a nuclear power plant. It is equipped with a set of digital devices, terminals, relay protection and automation tools, and an I&C system for fault recording, energy accounting and quality control, telemetry systems.
To learn more, please visit the web-site of RASU JSC (www.rasu.ru).