At the construction site of Unit 3 of Egypt's first nuclear power plant in the city of El Dabaa (Matrouh), work has begun on reinforcing the foundation slab of the fresh nuclear fuel storage building (FNFS). The preceding stage included installation of a 100 mm concrete blinding layer and placement of a two-layer horizontal waterproofing system made of polymer membranes, providing protection of the structure against capillary rise of groundwater.
The fresh nuclear fuel storage facility is a critically important element of the nuclear infrastructure of the power unit with a VVER-1200 reactor. This specialized building with enhanced biological shielding will be used for acceptance of fuel assemblies from the supplier, their short-term storage under controlled conditions, and preparation for subsequent loading into the reactor core. The foundation structure is designed to withstand static and dynamic loads, taking into account the seismic requirements for the Mediterranean region.
The final stage of the zero cycle will be the placement of the "first concrete" — monolithic concreting of the foundation slab with a volume of more than 1,200 m3 using B30-class concrete mix with additives ensuring water impermeability of at least W8 and frost resistance of F150. The El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant, being built 320 km northwest of Cairo, will include four power units with a total capacity of 4,800 MW and will become the first nuclear power plant in Egypt's history.
Read more materials on the topic:
- The polar crane bridge weighing more than 220 tonnes has been delivered from Russia to the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant site
- Sibirskii Khimicheskii Kombinat has increased the capacity of a key compound in the nuclear fuel cycle
- Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant has restored power supply via the second high-voltage line
