Westinghouse Makes 1,000th Additive Manufactured Part for Fuel System

Westinghouse Electric Co. has reached a milestone by manufacturing its 1,000th fuel flow plate using additive manufacturing (AM). It represents an industry achievement as Westinghouse Electric's first safety-related AM components to enter serial production.

The AM flow plates are installed in VVER-440 fuel assemblies, enabling a redesign of the assemblies’ bottom part to enable better performance, the company says.

“This achievement showcases the development of additive manufacturing from prototyping to full-scale production, generating tangible value for our customers,” says Lou Martínez Sancho, Westinghouse chief technology officer and executive vice president, R&D and Innovation. “This marks another Westinghouse pioneering achievement in AM Technology holding the commitment to strengthen safety, efficiency, sustainability and energy security.”

This milestone helps continue Westinghouse’s work in deploying AM in the nuclear industry to achieve lead-time reductions and enable solutions for energy generation. In 2015, the company conducted a material irradiation study of AM nuclear components. In 2020, Westinghouse installed its first safety-related AM component, a Thimble Plugging Device, into an operating commercial reactor.

Sources: Press materials received from the company and additional information gleaned from the company’s website.