Demolition of water tower
Status: ongoing
Durata: 2023-2024
The Garigliano nuclear power plant water tower was a cylindrical structure in reinforced concrete that, at 72 metres high, had always characterised the site's skyline. Reinforced by four buttresses of decreasing width, a toroid-shaped tank lied at the top of the tower and stored the plant's industrial water, with a capacity of 280 cubic metres.
The structure was replaced with a new water supply system which is being used for the ongoing decommissioning activities. This enabled the dismantling of the old water tower, starting with the tank at the top. These works were begun in October 2023. A diamond wire cutting demolition technique is adopted, requiring the use of a crane. The cutting is done from top to bottom with the progressive sectioning of the structure into reinforced concrete blocks weighing less than 10 tonnes each.
Although it is a conventional building, Sogin and its subsidiary Nucleco adopt the same criteria used in the nuclear sector for dismantling operations to ensure maximum safety, precision, reduction of generated noise and dust, and the absence of vibrations.
The water tower demolition work is expected to last a total four months (October 2023 - January 2024) and to produce about 1,900 tonnes of material, of which 1,700 tonnes of concrete and 200 tonnes of metal parts. This is part of the approximate 258,000 tonnes of material that will be generated by the dismantling of the Garigliano power plant and sent for recovery, i.e., 96% of the total amount produced by decommissioning activities.