The French codes RCC-M and RSE-M -- Design, construction and in-service inspection rules for the mechanical components of PWR nuclear islands: An overview and a comparison to the ASME codes

Abstract

The RCC-M, ``Regles de Conception et de Construction des Materiels Mecaniques des Ilots Nucleaires REP`` or, in English, ``Design and Construction Rules for the Mechanical Components of PWR Nuclear Islands`` and the RSE-M, ``Regles de Surveillance en Exploitation des Materiels Mecaniques des Ilots Nucleaires REP`` or, in English, ``In-Service Inspection Rules for the Mechanical Components of PWR Nuclear Islands`` gather all design, construction and operating practices relating to the mechanical components of French PWR nuclear islands. This paper is a presentation of these two codes. Throughout this presentation the specific aspects of the French approach will be underlined and will be compared to that of the ASME codes--mainly Section 3 and Section 11. The broad general technical scopes of the French codes are similar to those of the ASME codes. However, in some important areas of design, material specifications, procurement and manufacturing, the provisions of the RCC-M and RSE-M deviate from those of a strict mechanical Code and are more self-sustaining than those of ASME.