Tube bundle removal method and apparatus.

摘要

A method and apparatus for removing of a tube bundle from an opened-top vertical cylindrical shell of a steam generator, on which a cask (37) is placed with a tube-bundle-lifting crane (48) at its upper end. The tube bundle (23) is lifted into the cask (37) after such bundle (23) has been separated from the generator's tubesheet, the cask (37) which consists of multiple longitudinal sections (39) interconnected by removable means is then lifted from the shell (3) to a nearby site, a lower portion of said tube bundle (23) is cut off for disposition within the lowermost longitudinal section of said cask (37), the remaining tube-bundle-containing cask sections (39) are lifted free of the lowermost cask section which is closed by a respective new bottom cover. The cutoff and lifting steps are repeated until the entire tube bundle is disposed in respective longitudinal sections of said cask, which are removed from the reactor containment with the cut tube bundle portions enclosed therein.