Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section has multiple issues. Please help improve the article or discuss these issues on the talk page.
|
| NRC Region Two (South) |
|---|
| Alabama |
| Bellefonte* Browns Ferry Farley |
| Florida |
| Crystal River 3 St. Lucie Turkey Point |
| Georgia |
| Hatch Vogtle |
| North Carolina |
| Brunswick McGuire Shearon Harris |
| South Carolina |
| Catawba Oconee H.B. Robinson Summer |
| Tennessee |
| Sequoyah Watts Bar |
| Virginia |
| North Anna Surry |
|
* unfinished |
|
|
Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station is a twin reactor nuclear power station located on a 3,300 acre (13 km²) site 2 miles east of Homestead, Florida, United States, next to Biscayne National Park located about 35 miles (56 kilometers) south of Miami, Florida near the southernmost edge of Miami-Dade County. It is home to a wildlife preservation, helping the population of the American crocodile.[1] Turkey Point has been the main contributing force to the reclassification of the American Crocodile from endangered to threatened.[2]
Turkey Point contains two Westinghouse pressurized water reactors, each supplying steam to one high pressure and two low pressure turbines with a power output rated at 760 MWe for each unit. It serves the entire southern portion of Florida.
In 1992, Turkey Point was directly hit by Hurricane Andrew, causing over $90 million (1992 dollars) in damage, mainly to a water tank and to a smokestack of one of the fossil-fueled units on-site. No damage was done to the plant's containment buildings.[3][4] The plant was built to withstand winds of up to 235 mph (378 km/h), greatly exceeding the maximum winds recorded by category 5 hurricanes.
Florida Power & Light, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation were investigating the discovery of a small hole drilled into a pipe that helps maintain pressure inside the reactor.[5] This incident took place during a refueling outage when the reactor was not powered, and was quickly identified during power-up testing. The 3/16" hole was drilled into a 3" stainless steel schedule 160 pipe that would hold 600-degree-Fahrenheit reactor coolant water at 2235 psi under normal operation.
In 2006, FPL informed the Nuclear Regulatory Commission that they planned to apply for new units to be built at Turkey Point. FPL filed an initial proposal for increased capacity with the Florida Public Service Commission in October, 2007.[6]
Contents |
[edit] Where does FPL get the water used in plant operations?
Water used in the Nuclear Reactors and most other plant systems is piped in from the Miami-Dade municipal water supply. The water is then purified at the plant to reduce mineral deposits that could otherwise reduce equipment efficiency. A separate supply of water that cools the turbine steam supply for reuse comes from a unique system of 36 interconnected canals. The canals act like a giant radiator to cool the water in a two-day, 168-mile journey before it is circulated back to the condenser for reuse. ubuibiokUbuibiok (talk) 09:22, 8 May 2008 (UTC)
[edit] 2008 Florida Power blackout
 |
It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled 2008 Florida Power blackout, accessible from a disambiguation page. (Discuss) |
On February 26, 2008, both reactors were shut down due to the loss of off-site power during a widespread power outage in South Florida currently affecting 700,000 customers . [7]
At least 2.5 million people were without power. The blackout was initially caused by an overheated voltage switch that soon caught fire in a power substation near the plant. The fire occurred at 1:08 pm which caused an automatic shutdown of the power plant. This led to a domino effect that caused outages as far north as Daytona Beach, Fl and Tampa, Fl. Power was restored by 4:30 pm. The reason this malfunction caused such widespread outages is still under investigation. [7]
Walt Disney World, Orlando International Airport, and Miami International Airport among the places affected by the outage [1]
[edit] References
- ^ "About Turkey Point". FPL.com. Florida Power & Light. Retrieved on 2007-07-25.
- ^ CBS News. Endangered Crocs Make A Comeback.
- ^ "NRC Information Notice 93-53: Effect of Hurricane Andrew on Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station and Lessons Learned". NRC.gov. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (July 20, 1993). Retrieved on 2007-07-25.
- ^ "NRC Information Notice 93-53, Supplement 1: Effect of Hurricane Andrew on Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station and Lessons Learned". NRC.gov. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (April 29, 1994). Retrieved on 2007-07-25.
- ^ "Small Hole in Pipe at Nuclear Plant", New York Times, April 2, 2006. Retrieved on 2007-07-25.
- ^ "FPL moves to add nuclear plants in S. Dade", Miami Herald, October 17, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-10-23.
- ^ a b "FPL Fla, Turkey Pt reactors shut due to power outage", Reuters, February 26, 2008. Retrieved on 2008-02-26.
[edit] External links
- Turkey Point Nuclear Generating Station is at coordinates Coordinates:
