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Contract Opportunity

The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) proposes to enter into a non-competitive indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity type contract with the Pennsylvania State University (PSU) for the project entitled, “Advanced Reflood Thermal-Hydraulics for Uncertainty Resolution (ARTHUR) Services”. The proposed period of performance for this contract is a five-year base period.

The statutory authority permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition is 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1 (b)(1), which provides for limiting competition in those situations where the services are available from only one responsible source and no other type of services will satisfy NRC’s requirements.

The designated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code is 541715, Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology), with a size standard of 1,000 employees.

The purpose of this project is to follow on contract 31310019D0004 and conduct more reflood tests with more various initial and boundary conditions particularly with low flows, build a new bundle test section that is capable of performing reflood tests at a high system pressure that emulates a BWR operating pressure, and construct a bundle using Accident Tolerant Fuel (ATF) in the event that industry submits a design review or licensing application using this technology that requires agency review.

To accomplish the above stated objectives for this project, the Contractor must have:

Principal Investigator (PI):

1. Must have detailed knowledge of two-phase flow and heat transfer theory (with advanced degree in Nuclear, Mechanical or Chemical engineering)


2. Must have experience in experimental technique and advanced instrumentation for multi-phase flow measurement skill


3. Must be knowledgeable in computer code model development and code validation and verification methods

Test Facility:

The NRC requirements require access to a specialized test facility with specific equipment and testing capabilities. The proposed Contractor has a dedicated test facility with unique power supply that can convert 1 Megawatt AC to 750 kw DC (12600 Amp 60 V DC) with extreme low ripple effect (0.05%). This facility also has a Data Acquisition System (DAS) ready to be connected to the present test section and proposed high pressure test bundle. The test section is highly instrumented, as there are over five hundred data channels. There are many narrow range differential pressure cells and extensive array of thermocouples. In addition, it has multiple traverse steam probes and a laser-illuminated camera system for droplet study. This data acquisition system is able to provide detailed data on temperature, steam flow rate, droplet size and distribution which are essential for developing a spacer grid model. This test facility cannot be easily relocated due to the special test shelter and enormous power supply shared with other test facilities on site. This test facility has the ability to be modified to provide a high-pressure environment and radiation shielding suitable for gamma ray experiments or swap to a different type of fuel rod for this proposed program.

This is not a request for competitive proposals. Request for copies of this solicitation will not be honored unless the respondent provides evidence showing their capability to perform the required services. Detailed capabilities must be submitted to Geoffrey Coleman, Contracting Officer via e-mail at Geoffrey.Coleman@nrc.gov no later than December 20, 2023 (i.e. 15 calendar days from the date this announcement was posted). Inquiries regarding this announcement may be made to Geoffrey Coleman, Contracting Officer, via e-mail at Geoffrey.Coleman@nrc.gov or Richard.Robinson@nrc.gov.

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