OREANDA-NEWS. June 09, 2010. At the NCCP Facility (Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant) equipped with the most advanced, high-productivity technology, the company applies a high-end technology of hot investment casting, including one of the most promising directions – casting with crystallization under pressure. The nominal manufacturing capacity of JSC NCCP Facility for precision casting of preforms is 200 tonnes of casting per annum.

Since the beginning of the project in 2007, the volume of investments in the Facility has amounted to more than 278 million roubles (7.23 million euro). Manufacturing products through precision casting provides the possibility to increase the competitiveness of the core production, manufactured in the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant which is manufacturing fuel assemblies for various types of nuclear reactors.

Utilization of such products reduces the labour intensity required for mechanical processing. It increases utilization rate of the fabric material, which consequently becomes reflected in the cost reduction of the fuel assemblies’ production and enhanced quality. Nowadays, parts of fuel assembly shells, heads and bottom nozzles are produced in this innovative way in the production facility,

According to the comments of the Facility foreman, Mr. Nikolai Chertov, the current task for his department is to achieve maximum production of fuels assemblies for the reactor VVER-440, and also preforms for the fuel assembly bottom nozzles for VVER-1000 fuel assemblies.

„Currently we are fine-tuning operation modes of the new equipment for required parameters,“ says Mr. Chertov. „This is the very point that determines the quality of the final products, although each stage is important.” At the first stage, the product range will be limited, but there is a plan to substantially increase its diversity.

The main purpose of the facility will be the production of preforms of the fuel assembly constituents, but the plant's production capacity allows implementation of orders also for third party companies. One of the specific features of the casting technology installed in the facility is the development of feed-head feeding system and control of the casting and crystallisation technology parameters within the ceramic mould, based on mathematical modelling conducted in the program LVMFlowCV.

The application of 3D modelling systems allows significant reduction of costs for technology developing, major reduction of time required for development and manufacturing of the product and a higher yield value.

It should be mentioned that JSC NCCP has a design and engineering department, equipped with the state-of-the-art designing instruments and technologies and also a modern engineering installation, which allows the company to carry out technological preparation of the manufacturing using its own resources; to produce press-moulds for product models, for the feed-head feeding system; to furnish manufacturing facilities with necessary accessories and instruments; and final treatment of parts as to achieve required characteristics, i. e. to provide the full fabrication cycle – from blueprint to the finished product.