INES was commissioned by Iberdrola to carry out the inspection, diagnosis and repair proposal of the outer sheet of the natural draft towers at the Cofrentes Nuclear Power Plant.

The request was motivated by the pathologies observed in the external reinforced concrete sheeting of both towers (cracking and loosening of the concrete, detachment of concrete fragments, spalling with visible reinforcement). These pathologies can condition the safety of the workers during the useful life of the Nuclear Power Plant and, therefore, Iberdrola requested defining the prior protection or repair measures recommended to guarantee the durability of the current sheets.

The objectives of the study being carried out can be summarized in:

• Discover and analyze the deterioration processes that are acting or have acted on the concrete sheet elements of the two towers and that are the cause of the observed durable damages.
• Study and quantify the effect of these processes on the concrete sheet elements and on their strength capacity.
• Define the current situation of the concrete sheet elements with the analyzed damages and their future condition according to their expected evolution.
• Define the most recommendable actions to guarantee the durability of the concrete sheet elements.