New phase in the fight against frazil ice at the Golfech nuclear power plant

with the fitting of the diffuser, an essential pipeline element. 

Power production units require a constant supply of water for the operation and cooling of circuits. To ensure an ongoing supply of sufficient quantities of water and maintain the safety of a plant, the formation of frazil ice is to be avoided at all costs.

To prevent this risk, the Rennes and Bordeaux Regional Divisions laid a hot water supply system in the vicinity of the pumping station grids and the sections requiring protection. The diffuser, located at the mouth of the network, is the pipe section via which the hot water will be discharged in to the natural waterway.

To lay this part, mounted along a wall and partially immersed, the teams designed a metal support frame to offset the impossibility of using divers.

• The structure was manufactured and trial-assembled prior to galvanising at the Nuclear Agency depot in Savenay (Rennes RD).
• The kit was then transported to the Golfech plant
• Disks were pre-mounted on the diaphragm walls of the duct
• The part was assembled in a dedicated area about 500m from the mounting site
• The diffuser was raised and stowed, held in place by the frame, on a semi-trailer
• The part was transferred, in its mount position, along a towpath

This key phase of the Golfech frazil project was expertly executed by our 2 Regional Divisions, demonstrating once again the level of expertise and ingenuity SADE Group teams are capable of, especially when working in synergy.