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Sample records for passive core cooling

  1. Unlimited cooling capacity of the passive-type emergency core cooling system of the MARS reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bandini, G.; Caira, M.; Naviglio, A.; Sorabella, L.

    1995-01-01

    The MARS nuclear plant is equipped with a 600 MWth PWR type nuclear steam supply system, with completely innovative engineered core safeguards. The most relevant innovative safety system of this plant is its Emergency Core Cooling System, which is completely passive (with only one non static component). The Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) of the MARS reactor is natural-circulation, passive-type, and its intervention follows a core flow decrease, whatever was the cause. The operation of the system is based on a cascade of three fluid systems, functionally interfacing through heat exchangers; the first fluid system is connected to the reactor vessel and the last one includes an atmospheric-pressure condenser, cooled by external air. The infinite thermal capacity of the final heat sink provides the system an unlimited autonomy. The capability and operability of the system are based on its integrity and on the integrity of the primary coolant boundary (both of them are permanently enclosed in a pressurized containment; 100% redundancy is also foreseen) and on the operation of only one non static component (a check valve), with 400% redundancy. In the paper, all main thermal hydraulic transients occurring as a consequence of postulated accidents are analysed, to verify the capability of the passive-type ECCS to intervene always in time, without causing undue conditions of reduced coolability of the core (DNB, etc.), and to verify its capability to guarantee a long-term (indefinite) coolability of the core without the need of any external intervention. (author)

  2. Post-accident cooling capacity analysis of the AP1000 passive spent fuel pool cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Su Xia

    2013-01-01

    The passive design is used in AP1000 spent fuel pool cooling system. The decay heat of the spent fuel is removed by heating-boiling method, and makeup water is provided passively and continuously to ensure the safety of the spent fuel. Based on the analysis of the post-accident cooling capacity of the spent fuel cooling system, it is found that post-accident first 72-hour cooling under normal refueling condition and emergency full-core offload condition can be maintained by passive makeup from safety water source; 56 hours have to be waited under full core refueling condition to ensure the safety of the core and the spent fuel pool. Long-term cooling could be conducted through reserved safety interface. Makeup measure is available after accident and limited operation is needed. Makeup under control could maintain the spent fuel at sub-critical condition. Compared with traditional spent fuel pool cooling system design, the AP1000 design respond more effectively to LOCA accidents. (authors)

  3. NPR and ANSI Containment Study Using Passive Cooling Techniques

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shin, J. J.; Iotti, R. C.; Wright, R. F.

    1993-01-01

    Passive containment cooling study of NPR (New Production Reactor) and ANSI (Advanced Neutron Source) following postulated loss of coolant accident with a coincident station blackout due to total loss of all alternating current power are studied analytically and experimentally. All the reactor and containment cooling under this condition would rely on the passive cooling system which removes reactor decay heat and provides emergency core and containment cooling. Containment passive emergency core and containment cooling. Containment passive cooling for this study takes place in the annulus between containment steel shell and concrete shield building by natural convection air flow and concrete shield building by natural convection air flow and thermal radiation. Various heat transfer coefficients inside annular air space were investigated by running the modified Contempt code Contempt-Npr. In order to verify proper heat transfer coefficient, temperature, heat flux and velocity profiles were measured inside annular air space of the test facility which is a 24 foot (7.3m) high, steam heated inner cylinder of three foot (.91m) diameter and five and halt foot (1.7m) diameter outer cylinder. Comparison of Contempt-Npr and WGOTHIC was done for reduced scale Npr. It is concluded that Npr and ANSI containments can be passively cooled with air alone without extended cooling surfaces or passive water spray

  4. Application of a steam injector for passive emergency core cooling during a station blackout

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Heinze, D.; Behnke, L.; Schulenberg, T.

    2012-01-01

    One of the basic protection targets of reactor safety is the safe heat removal during normal operation but also following shut-down. Since the reactor accident in Fukushima an optimization of the plant robustness in case of beyond-design accident is performed. Special attention is given to the increase of time available for starting appropriate measures for emergency core cooling in case of a station blackout. The state-of the art in engineering and research is presented. Investigations on the applicability of a steam injector for passive emergency core cooling during a station blackout in BWR-type reactors have progressed, experiments on dynamic behavior of the injector are described. A precise design with respect to the thermal hydraulic boundary conditions has been performed.

  5. Passive cooling containment study

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shin, J.J.; Iotti, R.C.; Wright, R.F.

    1993-01-01

    Pressure and temperature transients of nuclear reactor containment following postulated loss of coolant accident with a coincident station blackout due to total loss of all alternating current power are studied analytically and experimentally for the full scale NPR (New Production Reactor). All the reactor and containment cooling under this condition would rely on the passive cooling system which removes reactor decay heat and provides emergency core and containment cooling. Containment passive cooling for this study takes place in the annulus between containment steel shell and concrete shield building by natural convection air flow and thermal radiation. Various heat transfer coefficients inside annular air space were investigated by running the modified CONTEMPT code CONTEMPT-NPR. In order to verify proper heat transfer coefficient, temperature, heat flux, and velocity profiles were measured inside annular air space of the test facility which is a 24 foot (7.3m) high, steam heated inner cylinder of three foot (.91m) diameter and five and half foot (1.7m) diameter outer cylinder. Comparison of CONTEMPT-NPR and WGOTHIC was done for reduced scale NPR

  6. Comparative Experiments to Assess the Effects of Accumulator Nitrogen Injection on Passive Core Cooling During Small Break LOCA

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Li Yuquan

    2017-02-01

    Full Text Available The accumulator is a passive safety injection device for emergency core cooling systems. As an important safety feature for providing a high-speed injection flow to the core by compressed nitrogen gas pressure during a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA, the accumulator injects its precharged nitrogen into the system after its coolant has been emptied. Attention has been drawn to the possible negative effects caused by such a nitrogen injection in passive safety nuclear power plants. Although some experimental work on the nitrogen injection has been done, there have been no comparative tests in which the effects on the system responses and the core safety have been clearly assessed. In this study, a new thermal hydraulic integral test facility—the advanced core-cooling mechanism experiment (ACME—was designed and constructed to support the CAP1400 safety review. The ACME test facility was used to study the nitrogen injection effects on the system responses to the small break loss-of-coolant accident LOCA (SBLOCA transient. Two comparison test groups—a 2-inch cold leg break and a double-ended direct-vessel-injection (DEDVI line break—were conducted. Each group consists of a nitrogen injection test and a nitrogen isolation comparison test with the same break conditions. To assess the nitrogen injection effects, the experimental data that are representative of the system responses and the core safety were compared and analyzed. The results of the comparison show that the effects of nitrogen injection on system responses and core safety are significantly different between the 2-inch and DEDVI breaks. The mechanisms of the different effects on the transient were also investigated. The amount of nitrogen injected, along with its heat absorption, was likewise evaluated in order to assess its effect on the system depressurization process. The results of the comparison and analyses in this study are important for recognizing and understanding the

  7. Comparative experiments to assess the effects of accumulator nitrogen injection on passive core cooling during small break LOCA

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Li, YuQuan; Hao, Botao; Zhong, Jia; Wan Nam [State Nuclear Power Technology R and D Center, South Park, Beijing Future Science and Technology City, Beijing (China)

    2017-02-15

    The accumulator is a passive safety injection device for emergency core cooling systems. As an important safety feature for providing a high-speed injection flow to the core by compressed nitrogen gas pressure during a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA), the accumulator injects its precharged nitrogen into the system after its coolant has been emptied. Attention has been drawn to the possible negative effects caused by such a nitrogen injection in passive safety nuclear power plants. Although some experimental work on the nitrogen injection has been done, there have been no comparative tests in which the effects on the system responses and the core safety have been clearly assessed. In this study, a new thermal hydraulic integral test facility—the advanced core-cooling mechanism experiment (ACME)—was designed and constructed to support the CAP1400 safety review. The ACME test facility was used to study the nitrogen injection effects on the system responses to the small break loss-of-coolant accident LOCA (SBLOCA) transient. Two comparison test groups—a 2-inch cold leg break and a double-ended direct-vessel-injection (DEDVI) line break—were conducted. Each group consists of a nitrogen injection test and a nitrogen isolation comparison test with the same break conditions. To assess the nitrogen injection effects, the experimental data that are representative of the system responses and the core safety were compared and analyzed. The results of the comparison show that the effects of nitrogen injection on system responses and core safety are significantly different between the 2-inch and DEDVI breaks. The mechanisms of the different effects on the transient were also investigated. The amount of nitrogen injected, along with its heat absorption, was likewise evaluated in order to assess its effect on the system depressurization process. The results of the comparison and analyses in this study are important for recognizing and understanding the potential negative

  8. Performance Evaluation of the Concept of Hybrid Heat Pipe as Passive In-core Cooling Systems for Advanced Nuclear Power Plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jeong, Yeong Shin; Kim, Kyung Mo; Kim, In Guk; Bang, In Cheol

    2015-01-01

    As an arising issue for inherent safety of nuclear power plant, the concept of hybrid heat pipe as passive in-core cooling systems was introduced. Hybrid heat pipe has unique features that it is inserted in core directly to remove decay heat from nuclear fuel without any changes of structures of existing facilities of nuclear power plant, substituting conventional control rod. Hybrid heat pipe consists of metal cladding, working fluid, wick structure, and neutron absorber. Same with working principle of the heat pipe, heat is transported by phase change of working fluid inside metal cask. Figure 1 shows the systematic design of the hybrid heat pipe cooling system. In this study, the concept of a hybrid heat pipe was introduced as a Passive IN-core Cooling Systems (PINCs) and demonstrated for internal design features of heat pipe containing neutron absorber. Using a commercial CFD code, single hybrid heat pipe model was analyzed to evaluate thermal performance in designated operating condition. Also, 1-dimensional reactor transient analysis was done by calculating temperature change of the coolant inside reactor pressure vessel using MATLAB. As a passive decay heat removal device, hybrid heat pipe was suggested with a concept of combination of heat pipe and control rod. Hybrid heat pipe has distinct feature that it can be a unique solution to cool the reactor when depressurization process is impossible so that refueling water cannot be injected into RPV by conventional ECCS. It contains neutron absorber material inside heat pipe, so it can stop the reactor and at the same time, remove decay heat in core. For evaluating the concept of hybrid heat pipe, its thermal performance was analyzed using CFD and one-dimensional transient analysis. From single hybrid heat pipe simulation, the hybrid heat pipe can transport heat from the core inside to outside about 18.20 kW, and total thermal resistance of hybrid heat pipe is 0.015 .deg. C/W. Due to unique features of long heat

  9. Analysis of passive moderator cooling system of Candu-6A reactor at emergency condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Umar, Efrizon; Subki, M. Hadid; Vecchiarelli, Jack

    2001-01-01

    Analysis of passive moderator cooling system subject to in-core LOCA with no emergency core cooling injection has been done. In this study, the new model of passive moderator system has been tested for emergency conditions and CATHENA code Mod-3.5b/Rev1 is used to calculate some parameters of this passive moderator cooling system. This result of simulation show that the proposed moderator cooling system have given satisfactory result, especially for the case with 0.7 m riser diameter and the number of heat exchanger tubes 8100. For PEWS tank containing 3000 m3 of light water initially at 30 0C and a 3641 m2 moderator heat exchanger, the average long-term heat removed rate balances the moderator heat load and the flow through the passive moderator loop remains stable for over 72 hours with no saturated boiling in the calandria and flow instabilities do not develop during long-term period

  10. Reactor core and passive safety systems descriptions of a next generation pressure tube reactor - mechanical aspects

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yetisir, M.; Gaudet, M.; Rhodes, D.; Hamilton, H.; Pencer, J. [Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Chalk River, ON (Canada)

    2014-07-01

    Canada has been developing a channel-type supercritical water-cooled nuclear reactor concept, often called the Canadian SCWR. The objective of this reactor concept is to meet the technology goals of the Generation IV International Forum (GIF) for the next generation nuclear reactor development, which include enhanced safety features (inherent safe operation and deploying passive safety features), improved resource utilization, sustainable fuel cycle, and greater proliferation resistance than Generation III nuclear reactors. The Canadian SCWR core concept consists of a high-pressure inlet plenum, a separate low-pressure heavy water moderator contained in a calandria vessel, and 336 pressure tubes surrounded by the moderator. The reactor uses supercritical water as a coolant, and a direct steam power cycle to generate electricity. The reactor concept incorporates advanced safety features such as passive core cooling, long-term decay heat rejection to the environment and fuel melt prevention via passive moderator cooling. These features significantly reduce core damage frequency relative to existing nuclear reactors. This paper presents a description of the design concepts for the Canadian SCWR core, reactor building layout and the plant layout. Passive safety concepts are also described that address containment and core cooling following a loss-of coolant accident, as well as long term reactor heat removal at station blackout conditions. (author)

  11. Availability analysis of the AP600 passive core cooling system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Syarip, M [National Atomic Energy Research Agency, Yogyakarta (Indonesia); Subki, I R [BATAN Head Office, Jakarta (Indonesia); Canton, M H [Westinghouse Electric Corp. (United States)

    1996-12-01

    The reliability analysis of the AP600 Passive Core Cooling System (PXS) has been done. The fault tree analysis method was used for the quantitative analysis. The PXS can be grouped to several sub-systems i.e.: Reactor Coolant System (RCS) Injection Subsystem, Emergency Core Decay Heat Removal Subsystem, and Containment Sump pH Control Subsystem. The quantitative analysis results indicates that the system unavailability is highly dependent on the valves configuration of the Automatic Depressurization System (ADS). If the ADS valves is arranged in Option-1, the system unavailability is 2.347E-03, this means that the yearly contribution to plant down time can be estimated to be about 20.56 hours per year. Whereas, by using Option-2 of fourth stage ADS valves, the system unavailability is reduced to be 9.877E-04 or 8.65 hours per year and this value is consistent with the allocated goal value (8.0 hours per year). The ADS contributes 66.89% to the system unavailability if it is arranged in Option-1, and will reduced to be about 21.21% if its fourth stages are arranged in Option-2. If the ADS is not included as a subsystem of the PXS (relocate to RCS as a subsystem of RCS), then the PXS unavailability will be reduced to about 7.784E-04 or 6.82 hours per year; this is less then the allocated goal value. The major contributors to the system unavailability are mostly dominated by Stage-4 ADS valves (air piston operated valves and squib valves), inservice testing valves of ADS (solenoid operated valves), solenoid valves of Nitrogen Supply to Accumulator, and Passive Residual Heat Removal actuation valves (air operated valves). It is recommended that those valves be analyzed more detail to gain the improvement in its reliability. It is also recommended that the fourth stage of ADS valves should be arranged according to Option-2, i.e. one 10-inch normally open motor operated gate valve in series with one 10-inch normally closed squib valve. (author). 13 refs, 3 figs, 3 tabs.

  12. Gravity driven emergency core cooling experiments with the PACTEL facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Munther, R.; Kalli, H.; Kouhia, J.

    1996-01-01

    PACTEL (Parallel Channel Test Loop) is an experimental out-of-pile facility designed to simulated the major components and system behaviour of a commercial Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) during different postulated LOCAs and transients. The reference reactor to the PACTEL facility is Loviisa type WWER-440. The recently made modifications enable experiments to be conducted also on the passive core cooling. In these experiments the passive core cooling system consisted of one core makeup tank (CMT) and pressure balancing lines from the pressurizer and from a cold leg connected to the top of the CMT in order to maintain the tank in pressure equilibrium with the primary system during ECC injection. The line from the pressurizer to the core makeup tank was normally open. The ECC flow was provided from the CMT located at a higher elevation than the main part of the primary system. A total number of nine experiments have been performed by now. 4 refs, 7 figs, 3 tabs

  13. Gravity driven emergency core cooling experiments with the PACTEL facility

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Munther, R; Kalli, H [University of Technology, Lappeenranta (Finland); Kouhia, J [Technical Research Centre of Finland, Lappeenranta (Finland)

    1996-12-01

    PACTEL (Parallel Channel Test Loop) is an experimental out-of-pile facility designed to simulated the major components and system behaviour of a commercial Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) during different postulated LOCAs and transients. The reference reactor to the PACTEL facility is Loviisa type WWER-440. The recently made modifications enable experiments to be conducted also on the passive core cooling. In these experiments the passive core cooling system consisted of one core makeup tank (CMT) and pressure balancing lines from the pressurizer and from a cold leg connected to the top of the CMT in order to maintain the tank in pressure equilibrium with the primary system during ECC injection. The line from the pressurizer to the core makeup tank was normally open. The ECC flow was provided from the CMT located at a higher elevation than the main part of the primary system. A total number of nine experiments have been performed by now. 4 refs, 7 figs, 3 tabs.

  14. Passive safety features in current and future water cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1990-11-01

    Better understanding of the passive safety systems and components in current and future water-cooled reactors may enhance the safety of present reactors, to the extend passive features are backfitted. This better understanding should also improve the safety of future reactors, which can incorporate more of these features. Passive safety systems and components may help to prevent accidents, core damage, or release radionuclides to the environment. The Technical Committee Meeting which was hosted by the USSR State Committee for Utilization of Nuclear Energy was attended by about 80 experts from 16 IAEA Member States and the NEA-OECD. A total of 21 papers were presented during the meeting. The objective of the meeting was to review and discuss passive safety systems and features of current and future water cooled reactor designs and to exchange information in this area of activity. A separate abstract was prepared for each of the 21 papers published in this proceedings. Refs, figs and tabs

  15. Comparison of advanced mid-sized reactors regarding passive features, core damage frequencies and core melt retention features

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wider, H.

    2005-01-01

    New Light Water Reactors, whose regular safety systems are complemented by passive safety systems, are ready for the market. The special aspect of passive safety features is their actuation and functioning independent of the operator. They add significantly to reduce the core damage frequency (CDF) since the operator continues to play its independent role in actuating the regular safety devices based on modern instrumentation and control (I and C). The latter also has passive features regarding the prevention of accidents. Two reactors with significant passive features that are presently offered on the market are the AP1000 PWR and the SWR 1000 BWR. Their passive features are compared and also their core damage frequencies (CDF). The latter are also compared with those of a VVER-1000. A further discussion about the two passive plants concerns their mitigating features for severe accidents. Regarding core-melt retention both rely on in-vessel cooling of the melt. The new VVER-1000 reactor, on the other hand features a validated ex-vessel concept. (author)

  16. Concept Design of a Gravity Core Cooling Tank as a Passive Residual Heat Removal System for a Research Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Kwonyeong; Chi, Daeyoung; Kim, Seong Hoon; Seo, Kyoungwoo; Yoon, Juhyeon

    2014-01-01

    A core downward flow is considered to use a plate type fuel because it is benefit to install the fuel in the core. If a flow inversion from a downward to upward flow in the core by a natural circulation is introduced within a high heat flux region of residual heat, the fuel fails instantly due to zero flow. Therefore, the core downward flow should be sufficiently maintained until the residual heat is in a low heat flux region. In a small power research reactor, inertia generated by a flywheel of the PCP can maintain a downward flow shortly and resolve the problem of a flow inversion. However, a high power research reactor more than 10 MW should have an additional method to have a longer downward flow until a low heat flux. Usually, other research reactors have selected an active residual heat removal system as a safety class. But, an active safety system is difficult to design and expensive to construct. A Gravity Core Cooling Tank (GCCT) beside the reactor pool with a Residual Heat Removal Pipe connecting two pools was developed and designed preliminarily as a passive residual heat removal system for an open-pool type research reactor. It is very simple to design and cheap to construct. Additionally, a non-safety, but active residual heat removal system is applied with the GCCT. It is a Pool Water Cooling and Purification System. It can improve the usability of the research reactor by removing the thermal waves, and purify the reactor pool, the Primary Cooling System, and the GCCT. Moreover, it can reduce the pool top radiation level

  17. Passive decay heat removal by sump cooling after core meltdown

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.; Mueller, U.

    1996-01-01

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase and two-phase natural circulation flow. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The above results are applied to the SUCO program that is performed at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. The SUCO program is a three-step series of scaled model experiments investigating the possibility of a sump cooling concept for future light water reactors. The sump cooling concept is based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens AG. The article gives first measurement results of the 1:20 linearly scaled plane two-dimensional SUCOS-2D test facility. The experimental results of the model geometry are transformed to prototype conditions

  18. Passive cooling in modern nuclear reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rouai, N. M.

    1998-01-01

    This paper presents some recent experimental results performed with the aim of understanding the mechanism of passive cooling. The AP 600 passive containment cooling system is simulated by an electrically heated vertical pipe, which is cooled by a naturally induced air flow and by a water film descending under gravity. The results demonstrate that although the presence of the water film improved the heat transfer significantly, the mode of heat transfer was very dependent on the experimental parameters. Preheating the water improved both film stability and overall cooling performance

  19. Numerical simulation of passive heat removal under severe core meltdown scenario in a sodium cooled fast reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    David, Dijo K.; Mangarjuna Rao, P., E-mail: pmr@igcar.gov.in; Nashine, B.K.; Selvaraj, P.; Chellapandi, P.

    2015-09-15

    Highlights: • PAHR in SFR under large core relocation to in-vessel core catcher is numerically analyzed. • A 1-D thermal conduction model and a 2-D axisymmetric CFD model are developed for turbulent natural convection phenomenon. • The side pool (cold pool) was found out to be instrumental in storing heat and dissipating it to the heat sink. • Single tray type in-vessel core catcher is found to be thermally effective under one-fourth core relocation. - Abstract: A sequence of highly unlikely events leading to significant meltdown of the Sodium cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) core can cause the failure of reactor vessel if the molten fuel debris settles at the bottom of the reactor main vessel. To prevent this, pool type SFRs are usually provided with an in-vessel core catcher above the bottom wall of the main vessel. The core catcher should collect, retain and passively cool these debris by facilitating decay heat removal by natural convection. In the present work, the heat removal capability of the existing single tray core catcher design has been evaluated numerically by analyzing the transient development of natural convection loops inside SFR pool. A 1-D heat diffusion model and a simplified 2-D axi-symmetric CFD model are developed for the same. Maximum temperature of the core catcher plate evaluated for different core meltdown scenarios using these models showed that there is much higher heat removal potential for single tray in-vessel SFR core catcher compared to the design basis case of melting of 7 subassemblies under total instantaneous blockage of a subassembly. The study also revealed that the side pool of cold sodium plays a significant role in decay heat removal. The maximum debris bed temperature attained during the initial hours of PAHR does not depend much on when the Decay Heat Exchanger (DHX) gets operational, and it substantiates the inherent safety of the system. The present study paves the way for better understanding of the thermal

  20. Passive cooling during transport of asphyxiated term newborns

    Science.gov (United States)

    O’Reilly, Deirdre; Labrecque, Michelle; O’Melia, Michael; Bacic, Janine; Hansen, Anne; Soul, Janet S

    2014-01-01

    Objective To evaluate the efficacy and safety of passive cooling during transport of asphyxiated newborns. Study Design Retrospective medical record review of newborns with perinatal asphyxia transported for hypothermia between July 2007 and June 2010. Results Forty-three newborns were transported, 27 of whom were passively cooled. Twenty (74%) passively cooled newborns arrived with axillary temperature between 32.5 and 34.5 °C. One newborn (4%) arrived with a subtherapeutic temperature, and 6 (22%) had temperatures >34.5 °C. Time from birth to hypothermia was significantly shorter among passively cooled newborns compared with newborns not cooled (215 vs. 327 minutes, pencephalopathy results in significantly earlier achievement of effective therapeutic hypothermia without significant adverse events. PMID:23154670

  1. Meltdown reactor core cooling facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Matsuoka, Tsuyoshi.

    1992-01-01

    The meltdown reactor core cooling facility comprises a meltdown reactor core cooling tank, a cooling water storage tank situates at a position higher than the meltdown reactor core cooling tank, an upper pipeline connecting the upper portions of the both of the tanks and a lower pipeline connecting the lower portions of them. Upon occurrence of reactor core meltdown, a high temperature meltdown reactor core is dropped on the cooling tank to partially melt the tank and form a hole, from which cooling water is flown out. Since the water source of the cooling water is the cooling water storage tank, a great amount of cooling water is further dropped and supplied and the reactor core is submerged and cooled by natural convection for a long period of time. Further, when the lump of the meltdown reactor core is small and the perforated hole of the meltdown reactor cooling tank is small, cooling water is boiled by the high temperature lump intruding into the meltdown reactor core cooling tank and blown out from the upper pipeline to the cooling water storage tank to supply cooling water from the lower pipeline to the meltdown reactor core cooling tank. Since it is constituted only with simple static facilities, the facility can be simplified to attain improvement of reliability. (N.H.)

  2. Active and passive cooling methods for dwellings

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Oropeza-Perez, Ivan; Østergaard, Poul Alberg

    2018-01-01

    In this document a review of three active as well as ten passive cooling methods suitable for residential buildings is carried out. The review firstly addresses how the various technologies cool the space according to the terms of the building heat balance, under what technical conditions...... ventilation, controlled ventilation, roof coating and eco-evaporative cooling are the most suitable passive methods for an extensive use in this country....

  3. Plants for passive cooling. A preliminary investigation of the use of plants for passive cooling in temperate humid climates

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Spirn, A W; Santos, A N; Johnson, D A; Harder, L B; Rios, M W

    1981-04-01

    The potential of vegetation for cooling small, detached residential and commercial structures in temperate, humid climates is discussed. The results of the research are documented, a critical review of the literature is given, and a brief review of energy transfer processes is presented. A checklist of design objectives for passive cooling, a demonstration of design applications, and a palette of selected plant species suitable for passive cooling are included.

  4. Diversified emergency core cooling in CANDU with a passive moderator heat rejection system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Spinks, N [AECL Research, Chalk River Labs., Chalk River, ON (Canada)

    1996-12-01

    A passive moderator heat rejection system is being developed for CANDU reactors which, combined with a conventional emergency-coolant injection system, provides the diversity to reduce core-melt frequency to order 10{sup -7} per unit-year. This is similar to the approach used in the design of contemporary CANDU shutdown systems which leads to a frequency of order 10{sup -8} per unit-year for events leading to loss of shutdown. Testing of a full height 1/60 power-and-volume-scaled loop has demonstrated the feasibility of the passive system for removal of moderator heat during normal operation and during accidents. With the frequency of core-melt reduced, by these measures, to order 10{sup -7} per unit year, no need should exist for further mitigation. (author). 3 refs, 2 figs.

  5. Passive low energy cooling of buildings

    CERN Document Server

    Givoni, Baruch

    1994-01-01

    A practical sourcebook for building designers, providing comprehensive discussion of the impact of basic architectural choices on cooling efficiency, including the layout and orientation of the structure, window size and shading, exterior color, and even the use of plantings around the site. All major varieties of passive cooling systems are presented, with extensive analysis of performance in different types of buildings and in different climates: ventilation; radiant cooling; evaporative cooling; soil cooling; and cooling of outdoor spaces.

  6. Investigations on passive containment cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.; Cheng, X.; Neitzel, H.J.; Erbacher, F.J.; Hofmann, F.

    1997-01-01

    The composite containment design for advanced LWRs that has been examined under the PASCO project is a promising design concept for purely passive decay heat removal after a severe accident. The passive cooling processes applied are natural convection and radiative heat transfer. Heat transfer through the latter process removes at an emission coefficient of 0.9 about 50% of the total heat removed via the steel containment, and thus is an essential factor. The heat transferring surfaces must have a high emission coefficient. The sump cooling concept examined under the SUCO project achieves a steady, natural convection-driven flow from the heat source to the heat sink. (orig./CB) [de

  7. Experimental and numerical simulation of passive decay heat removal by sump cooling after core melt down

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.; Mueller, U.

    1997-01-01

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of passive decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase natural circulation. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The results are applied to the SUCO program that experimentally and numerically investigates the possibility of a sump cooling concept for future light water reactors. The sump cooling concept is based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens AG. The article gives results of temperature and velocity measurements in the 1:20 linearly scaled SUCOS-2D test facility. The experiments are backed up by numerical calculations using the commercial software Fluent. Finally, using the similarity analysis from above, the experimental results of the model geometry are scaled-up to the conditions in the prototype, allowing a statement with regard to the feasibility of the sump cooling concept. (author)

  8. Experimental and numerical simulation of passive decay heat removal by sump cooling after core melt down

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knebel, J.U.; Mueller, U. [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe - Technik und Umwelt Inst. fuer Angewandte Thermo- und Fluiddynamik (IATF), Karlsruhe (Germany)

    1997-12-31

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of passive decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase natural circulation. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The results are applied to the SUCO program that experimentally and numerically investigates the possibility of a sump cooling concept for future light water reactors. The sump cooling concept is based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens AG. The article gives results of temperature and velocity measurements in the 1:20 linearly scaled SUCOS-2D test facility. The experiments are backed up by numerical calculations using the commercial software Fluent. Finally, using the similarity analysis from above, the experimental results of the model geometry are scaled-up to the conditions in the prototype, allowing a statement with regard to the feasibility of the sump cooling concept. (author)

  9. Isolated core vs. superficial cooling effects on virtual maze navigation.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Payne, Jennifer; Cheung, Stephen S

    2007-07-01

    Cold impairs cognitive performance and is a common occurrence in many survival situations. Altered behavior patterns due to impaired navigation abilities in cold environments are potential problems in lost-person situations. We investigated the separate effects of low core temperature and superficial cooling on a spatially demanding virtual navigation task. There were 12 healthy men who were passively cooled via 15 degrees C water immersion to a core temperature of 36.0 degrees C, then transferred to a warm (40 degrees C) water bath to eliminate superficial shivering while completing a series of 20 virtual computer mazes. In a control condition, subjects rested in a thermoneutral (approximately 35 degrees C) bath for a time-matched period before being transferred to a warm bath for testing. Superficial cooling and distraction were achieved by whole-body immersion in 35 degree water for a time-matched period, followed by lower leg immersion in 10 degree C water for the duration of the navigational tests. Mean completion time and mean error scores for the mazes were not significantly different (p > 0.05) across the core cooling (16.59 +/- 11.54 s, 0.91 +/- 1.86 errors), control (15.40 +/- 8.85 s, 0.82 +/- 1.76 errors), and superficial cooling (15.19 +/- 7.80 s, 0.77 +/- 1.40 errors) conditions. Separately reducing core temperature or increasing cold sensation in the lower extremities did not influence performance on virtual computer mazes, suggesting that navigation is more resistive to cooling than other, simpler cognitive tasks. Further research is warranted to explore navigational ability at progressively lower core and skin temperatures, and in different populations.

  10. Passive cooling systems in power reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aharon, J.; Harrari, R.; Weiss, Y.; Barnea, Y.; Katz, M.; Szanto, M.

    1996-01-01

    This paper reviews several R and D activities associated with the subject of passive cooling systems, conducted by the N.R.C.Negev thermohydraulic group. A short introduction considering different types of thermosyphons and their applications is followed by a detailed description of the experimental work, its results and conclusions. An ongoing research project is focused on the evaluation of the external dry air passive containment cooling system (PCCS) in the AP-600 (Westinghouse advanced pressurized water reactor). In this context some preliminary theoretical results and planned experimental research are for the fature described

  11. Core cooling system for reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kondo, Ryoichi; Amada, Tatsuo.

    1976-01-01

    Purpose: To improve the function of residual heat dissipation from the reactor core in case of emergency by providing a secondary cooling system flow channel, through which fluid having been subjected to heat exchange with the fluid flowing in a primary cooling system flow channel flows, with a core residual heat removal system in parallel with a main cooling system provided with a steam generator. Constitution: Heat generated in the core during normal reactor operation is transferred from a primary cooling system flow channel to a secondary cooling system flow channel through a main heat exchanger and then transferred through a steam generator to a water-steam system flow channel. In the event if removal of heat from the core by the main cooling system becomes impossible due to such cause as breakage of the duct line of the primary cooling system flow channel or a trouble in a primary cooling system pump, a flow control valve is opened, and steam generator inlet and outlet valves are closed, thus increasing the flow rate in the core residual heat removal system. Thereafter, a blower is started to cause dissipation of the core residual heat from the flow channel of a system for heat dissipation to atmosphere. (Seki, T.)

  12. Courtyard as a Passive Cooling Strategy in Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Markus Bulus

    2017-01-01

    Full Text Available One of the most significant current discussions in the built environment, architectural practice, theory, and procedures is “Passive Design”. It is becoming very difficult to ignore the issues of passive architectural design strategies in buildings. Recent studies emphasized the need for passive architectural design strategies and the application of the courtyard as a passive design strategy for cooling in buildings. Also, that the courtyard is very suitable in almost all building typologies in all the climatic zones due to its passive tendencies for cooling. Its cooling potentials can be achieved only when design requirements are not ignored. The courtyard has social, cultural, religious, and environmental benefits. Despite its abundant advantages, research effort towards courtyard design requirements is very scarce. Therefore, the main objective of this study is to investigate the design of central courtyard as a passive cooling strategy for improving indoor thermal comfort in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM Buildings. Courtyard design requirement such as the courtyard configurations, orientation, and natural features in courtyard buildings in UTM were investigated. Besides the design variants, courtyard usage in such buildings was also examined. The methodology of this study involved the developing of a checklist based on literature for the field survey. Forty-six (46 courtyards in thirty-two (32 buildings in UTM were surveyed, and the statistical description method was used to interpret and analyzed the data. The Results of this quantitative study shows that UTM central courtyards buildings were designed based on a cautious consideration to orientation and configurations to enhance their effective passive cooling potentials, however, only two courtyards had water pools. The study concluded that courtyards in UTM buildings are creatively designed but future experimental studies to appraise their thermal performances is required, and

  13. Experiment of IEA-R1 reactor core cooling by air convection after pool water loss accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torres, Walmir Maximo; Baptista Filho, Benedito Dias

    2000-01-01

    This paper presents a study of a Emergency Core Cooling to be applied to the IEA-R1 reactor. This system must have the characteristics of passive action, with water spraying over the core, and feeding by gravity from elevated reservoirs. In the evaluation, this system must demonstrate that when the reservoirs are emptied, the core cooling must assure to be fulfilled by air natural convection. This work presents the results of temperature distribution in a test section with plates electrically heated simulation the heat generation conditions on the most heated reactor element

  14. Passive containment cooling water distribution device

    Science.gov (United States)

    Conway, Lawrence E.; Fanto, Susan V.

    1994-01-01

    A passive containment cooling system for a nuclear reactor containment vessel. Disclosed is a cooling water distribution system for introducing cooling water by gravity uniformly over the outer surface of a steel containment vessel using a series of radial guide elements and cascading weir boxes to collect and then distribute the cooling water into a series of distribution areas through a plurality of cascading weirs. The cooling water is then uniformly distributed over the curved surface by a plurality of weir notches in the face plate of the weir box.

  15. Core melt retention and cooling concept of the ERP

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Weisshaeupl, H [SIEMENS/KWU, Erlangen (Germany); Yvon, M [Nuclear Power International, Paris (France)

    1996-12-01

    For the French/German European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR) mitigative measures to cope with the event of a severe accident with core melt down are considered already at the design stage. Following the course of a postulated severe accident with reactor pressure vessel melt through one of the most important features of a future design must be to stabilize and cool the melt within the containment by dedicated measures. This measures should - as far as possible - be passive. One very promising solution for core melt retention seems to be a large enough spreading of the melt on a high temperature resistant protection layer with water cooling from above. This is the favorite concept for the EPR. In dealing with the retention of a molten core outside of the RPV several ``steps`` from leaving the RPV to finally stabilize the melt have to gone through. These steps are: collection of the melt; transfer of the melt; distribution of the melt; confining; cooling and stabilization. The technical features for the EPR solution of a large spreading of the melt are: Dedicated spreading chamber outside the reactor pit (area about 150 m{sup 2}); high temperature resistant protection layers (e.g. Zirconia bricks) at the bottom and part of the lateral structures (thus avoiding melt concrete interaction); reactor pit and spreading compartment are connected via a discharge channel which has a slope to the spreading area and is closed by a steel plate, which will resist the core melt for a certain time in order to allow a collection of the melt; the spreading compartments is connected with the In-Containment Refuelling Water Storage Tank (IRWST) with pipes for water flooding after spreading. These pipes are closed and will only be opened by the hot melt itself. It is shown how the course of the different steps mentioned above is processed and how each of these steps is automatically and passively achieved. (Abstract Truncated)

  16. Passive afterheat removal in the HTGR with the liner cooling system as a heat sink

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rehm, W.; Jahn, W.; Verfondern, K.

    1984-09-01

    The report deals with the transients of temperature and system pressure and the fission product behaviour in the primary circuit of an HTGR during passive afterheat removal, where the liner cooling system of the PCRV serves as a heat sink. The analysis has been made for the PNP-500-reactor representing nuclear plants with medium thermal power. The investigations show that the liner cooling system is able to control a core heatup. High temperature loads are encountered in the upper core region. In the case of a reactor under pressure the fuel elements and the primary circuit remain intact as the first and second barriers for fission products. In the case of a depressurized primary circuit the liner cooling system also keeps the PCRV at normal operating temperatures. The effects of a core heatup on component damage and release of fission products are thus limited. (orig.) [de

  17. Passive cooling of a fixed bed nuclear reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Petry, V.J.; Bortoli, A.L. de; Sefidwash, F.

    2005-01-01

    Small nuclear reactors without the need for on-site refuelling have greater simplicity, better compliance with passive safety systems, and are more adequate for countries with small electric grids and limited investment capabilities. Here the passive cooling characteristic of the fixed bed nuclear reactor (FBNR), that is being developed under the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Coordinated Research Project, is studied. A mathematical model is developed to calculate the temperature distribution in the fuel chamber of the reactor. The results demonstrate the passive cooling of this nuclear reactor concept. (authors)

  18. Evaluation of a Design Concept for the Combined Air-water Passive Cooling PAFS+

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bae, Sung Won; Kwon, Taesoon

    2014-01-01

    The APR+ system provides the Passive Auxiliary Feed-water System (PAFS) for the passive cooling capability. However, the current design requirement for working time for the PAFS is about 8 hours only. Thus, current working time of PAFS can not meet the required 72 hours cooling capability for the long term SBO situation. To meet the 72 hours cooling, the pool capacity should be almost 3∼4 times larger than that of current water cooling tank. In order to continue the PAFS operation for 72 hours, a new passive air-water combined cooling system is proposed. This paper provides the feasibility study on the combined passive air-water cooling system. Figure 1 and 2 show the conceptual difference of the PAFS and combined passive air-water cooling system, respectively. Simple performance evaluation of the passive air cooling heat exchanger has been conducted by the MARS calculation. For the postulated FLB scenario, 4800 heat exchanger tubes and 5 m/s air velocity are not sufficient to sustain the PCCT pool level for 72 hour cooling. Further works on the system design and performance enhancing plan are required to fulfill the 72 hours long term passive cooling

  19. Thermohydraulic modeling of the dry air passive containment cooling system process in the Westinghouse AP-600 ALWR

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Harari, R; Weis, Y; Barnea, Y [Israel Atomic Energy Commission, Beersheba (Israel). Nuclear Research Center-Negev

    1996-12-01

    Following postulated events of a LOCA, the passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) uses dry air to transfer the residual heat by natural circulation. The air flow path, designed between the steel reactor containment hot shell and the concrete shield building, creates an open thermosyphon. The purpose of this inherently safe process is to assure the long term steady-state cooling of the nuclear core after an emergency shutdown (authors).

  20. Emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kato, Ken.

    1989-01-01

    In PWR type reactors, a cooling water spray portion of emergency core cooling pipelines incorporated into pipelines on high temperature side is protruded to the inside of an upper plenum. Upon rupture of primary pipelines, pressure in a pressure vessel is abruptly reduced to generate a great amount of steams in the reactor core, which are discharged at a high flow rate into the primary pipelines on high temperature side. However, since the inside of the upper plenum has a larger area and the steam flow is slow, as compared with that of the pipelines on the high temperature side, ECCS water can surely be supplied into the reactor core to promote the re-flooding of the reactor core and effectively cool the reactor. Since the nuclear reactor can effectively be cooled to enable the promotion of pressure reduction and effective supply of coolants during the period of pressure reduction upon LOCA, the capacity of the pressure accumulation vessel can be decreased. Further, the re-flooding time for the reactor is shortened to provide an effect contributing to the improvement of the safety and the reduction of the cost. (N.H.)

  1. The PANDA tests for the SWR 1000 passive containment cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dreier, J.; Aubert, C.; Huggenberger, M.; Strassberger, H.J.; Yadigaroglu, G.

    1999-01-01

    Since 1992, Siemens has been developing the SWR 1000, a new boiling water reactor with passive safety features. This development has been performed in close co-operation with the German nuclear utilities and with support from various European partners. Within the European Union sponsored project 'BWR R+D Cluster for Innovative Passive Safety Systems' and a bilateral contract between Siemens and the Paul Scherrer Institute, the passive containment cooling system of the SWR 1000 design has been investigated in the large-scale PANDA test facility at the Paul Scherrer Institute. A series of six tests were performed to simulate transients selected to cover a range of failure assumptions and accident severity, including core heat up and hydrogen generation. The results graphically demonstrate the self regulating character of the passive heat removal systems and their effectiveness, even under severe load, in limiting the containment pressurisation. Some tentative conclusions for the SWR 1000 are drawn, to be established by detailed analyses of the data, to support models and codes for application to plant transients. (author)

  2. The PANDA tests for the SWR 1000 passive containment cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dreier, J.; Aubert, C.; Huggenberger, M.; Strassberger, H.J.; Meseth, J.; Yadigaroglu, G.

    1999-01-01

    Since 1992, Siemens has been developing the SWR 1000, a new boiling water reactor with passive safety features. This development has been performed in close co-operation with the German nuclear utilities and with support from various European partners. Within the European Union sponsored project 'BWR R and D Cluster for Innovative Passive Safety Systems' and a bilateral contract between Siemens and the Paul Scherrer Institute, the passive containment cooling system of the SWR 1000 design has been investigated in the large-scale PANDA test facility at the Paul Scherrer Institute. A series of six tests were performed to simulate transients selected to cover a range of failure assumptions and accident severity, including core heat up and hydrogen generation. The results graphically demonstrate the self regulating character of the passive heat removal systems and their effectiveness, even under severe load, in limiting the containment pressurisation. Some tentative conclusions for the SWR1000 are drawn, to be established by detailed analyses of the data, to support models and codes for application to plant transients. (author)

  3. Passive and low energy cooling techniques for the Czech Republic

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lain, M.; Hensen, J.L.M.; Santamouris, M.

    2005-01-01

    This paper deals with the applicability of passive and low energy cooling technologies in the Czech Republic. The work includes climate analysis as well as buildings and systems analysis in order to estimate the potential of passive and low energy cooling technologies. The latter is based on case

  4. Optimized thin film coatings for passive radiative cooling applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naghshine, Babak B.; Saboonchi, Ahmad

    2018-03-01

    Passive radiative cooling is a very interesting method, which lays on low atmospheric downward radiation within 8-13 μm waveband at dry climates. Various thin film multilayer structures have been investigated in numerous experimental studies, in order to find better coatings to exploit the full potential of this method. However, theoretical works are handful and limited. In this paper, the Simulated Annealing and Genetic Algorithm are used to optimize a thin film multilayer structure for passive radiative cooling applications. Spectral radiative properties are calculated through the matrix formulation. Considering a wide range of materials, 30 high-potential convective shields are suggested. According to the calculations, cooling can be possible even under direct sunlight, using the introduced shields. Moreover, a few water-soluble materials are studied for the first time and the results show that, a KBr substrate coated by a thin CaF2 or polyethylene film can is very close to an ideal coating for passive radiative cooling at night.

  5. Preliminary Study of Applying Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Containment Passive Cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ko, A Reum; Lee, Jeong Ik; Yoon, Ho Joon

    2016-01-01

    Most of Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) containments use fan cooler systems and containment spray systems. However, the importance of passive safety system has increased after the Fukushima accident. As the main passive safety system, Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS), which utilizes natural phenomena to remove the heat released from the reactor, is suggested in the advanced pressurized water reactor (APWR). To increase the efficiency of passive cooling, additional passive containment cooling method using Phase Change Material (PCM) is suggested in this paper. For containment using PCMs, there are many advantages. Phase Change Material (PCM) is proposed as an additional passive containment cooling method to increase the efficiency of passive cooling in this paper. To apply proper PCMs to containment, commercially available PCMs were screened while reviewing thermophysical properties data and suggested selection criteria. A sensitivity study was also carried out to identify the effect of potential installation location of PCM using the CAP code. The pressure of containment in most cases showed slightly higher than that of the initial case. For the temperature of steam and water and humidity, similar results with the initial case were showed in most cases

  6. Preliminary Study of Applying Phase Change Materials (PCM) for Containment Passive Cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ko, A Reum; Lee, Jeong Ik [KAIST, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Yoon, Ho Joon [KUSTAR, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates)

    2016-05-15

    Most of Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) containments use fan cooler systems and containment spray systems. However, the importance of passive safety system has increased after the Fukushima accident. As the main passive safety system, Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS), which utilizes natural phenomena to remove the heat released from the reactor, is suggested in the advanced pressurized water reactor (APWR). To increase the efficiency of passive cooling, additional passive containment cooling method using Phase Change Material (PCM) is suggested in this paper. For containment using PCMs, there are many advantages. Phase Change Material (PCM) is proposed as an additional passive containment cooling method to increase the efficiency of passive cooling in this paper. To apply proper PCMs to containment, commercially available PCMs were screened while reviewing thermophysical properties data and suggested selection criteria. A sensitivity study was also carried out to identify the effect of potential installation location of PCM using the CAP code. The pressure of containment in most cases showed slightly higher than that of the initial case. For the temperature of steam and water and humidity, similar results with the initial case were showed in most cases.

  7. Transient Performance of Air-cooled Condensing Heat Exchanger in Long-term Passive Cooling System during Decay Heat Load

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Myoung Jun; Lee, Hee Joon [Kookmin University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Moon, Joo Hyung; Bae, Youngmin; Kim, Young-In [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-05-15

    In the event of a 'loss of coolant accident'(LOCA) and a non-LOCA, the secondary passive cooling system would be activated to cool the steam in a condensing heat exchanger that is immersed in an emergency cooldown tank (ECT). Currently, the capacities of these ECTs are designed to be sufficient to remove the sensible and residual heat from the reactor coolant system for 72 hours after the occurrence of an accident. After the operation of a conventional passive cooling system for an extended period, however, the water level falls as a result of the evaporation from the ECT, as steam is emitted from the open top of the tank. Therefore, the tank should be refilled regularly from an auxiliary water supply system when the system is used for more than 72 hours. Otherwise, the system would fail to dissipate heat from the condensing heat exchanger due to the loss of the cooling water. Ultimately, the functionality of the passive cooling system would be seriously compromised. As a passive means of overcoming the water depletion in the tank, Kim et al. applied for a Korean patent covering the concept of a long-term passive cooling system for an ECT even after 72 hours. This study presents transient performance of ECT with installing air-cooled condensing heat exchanger under decay heat load. The cooling capacity of an air-cooled condensing heat exchanger was evaluated to determine its practicality.

  8. Development and testing of passive autocatalytic recombiners cooled by heat pipes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Granzow, Christoph

    2012-01-01

    A severe accident in a nuclear power plant (NPP) can lead to core damage in conjunction with the release of large amounts of hydrogen. As hydrogen mitigation measure, passive autocatalytic recombiners (PARs) are used in today's pressurized water reactors. PARs recombine hydrogen and oxygen contained in the air to steam. The heat from this exothermic reaction causes the catalyst and its surroundings to heat up. If parts of the PAR heat up above the ignition temperature of the gas mixture, a spontaneous deflagration or detonation can occur. The aim of this work is the prevention of such high temperatures by means of passive cooling of the catalyst with heat pipes. Heat pipes are completely passive heat exchanger with a very high effective thermal conductivity. For a deeper understanding of the reaction kinetics at lower temperatures, single catalytic coated heat pipes are studied in a flow reactor. The development of a modular small-scale PAR model is then based on a test series with cooled catalyst sheets. Finally, the PAR model is tested inside a pressure vessel under boundary conditions similar to a real NPP. The experiments show, that the temperatures of the cooled catalytic sheets stay significantly below the temperature of the uncooled sheets and below the ignition temperature of the gas mixture under any set boundary conditions, although no significant reduction of the conversion efficiency can be observed. As a last point, a mathematical model of the reaction kinetics of the recombination process as well as a model of the fluid dynamic and thermohydraulic processes in a heat pipe are developed with the data obtained from the experiments.

  9. Reactor core cooling device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kobayashi, Masahiro.

    1986-01-01

    Purpose: To safely and effectively cool down the reactor core after it has been shut down but is still hot due to after-heat. Constitution: Since the coolant extraction nozzle is situated at a location higher than the coolant injection nozzle, the coolant sprayed from the nozzle, is free from sucking immediately from the extraction nozzle and is therefore used effectively to cool the reactor core. As all the portions from the top to the bottom of the reactor are cooled simultaneously, the efficiency of the reactor cooling process is increased. Since the coolant extraction nozzle can be installed at a point considerably higher than the coolant injection nozzle, the distance from the coolant surface to the point of the coolant extraction nozzle can be made large, preventing cavitation near the coolant extraction nozzle. Therefore, without increasing the capacity of the heat exchanger, the reactor can be cooled down after a shutdown safely and efficiently. (Kawakami, Y.)

  10. Passive cooling of condensate chambers as retrofitting measure in boiling water reactors; Passive Kuehlung der Kondensationskammern in Siedewasserreaktoren als Nachruestmassnahme

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Freis, Daniel; Nachtrodt, Frederik; Sporn, Michael; Tietsch, Wolfgang; Sassen, Felix [Westinghouse Electric Germany GmbH, Mannheim (Germany)

    2012-11-01

    Westinghouse Electric Germany GmbH has developed a concept for passive cooling of condensate chambers of BWR-type reactors. Due to its compactness the system is feasible as retrofitting measure. The passive condensate chamber cooling system is based on a cooling module with ascending and down pipe that are connected with the evaporation condenser to form a cooling circuit. Based on the consequent use of high-effective heat transport mechanisms, as boiling, condensation without non-condensable gases and mass transport a high cooling performance and compact construction is possible. The system is completely passive and completely diverse to existing active cooling systems. In the frame of a true-scale experiment the significant cooling performance was demonstrated. RELAP5 calculations confirmed the functionality of the cooling module.

  11. Core catcher cooling for a gas-cooled fast breeder

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dalle Donne, M.; Dorner, S.; Schretzmann, K.

    1976-01-01

    Water, molten salts, and liquid metals are under discussion as coolants for the core catcher of a gas-cooled fast breeder. The authors state that there is still no technically mature method of cooling a core melt. However, the investigations carried out so far suggest that there is a solution to this problem. (RW/AK) [de

  12. Emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ando, Masaki.

    1987-01-01

    Purpose: To actuate an automatic pressure down system (ADS) and a low pressure emergency core cooling system (ECCS) upon water level reduction of a nuclear reactor other than loss of coolant accidents (LOCA). Constitution: ADS in a BWR type reactor is disposed for reducing the pressure in a reactor container thereby enabling coolant injection from a low pressure ECCS upon LOCA. That is, ADS has been actuated by AND signal for a reactor water level low signal and a dry well pressure high signal. In the present invention, ADS can be actuated further also by AND signal of the reactor water level low signal, the high pressure ECCS and not-operation signal of reactor isolation cooling system. In such an emergency core cooling system thus constituted, ADS operates in the same manner as usual upon LOCA and, further, ADS is operated also upon loss of feedwater accident in the reactor pressure vessel in the case where there is a necessity for actuating the low pressure ECCS, although other high pressure ECCS and reactor isolation cooling system are not operated. Accordingly, it is possible to improve the reliability upon reactor core accident and mitigate the operator burden. (Horiuchi, T.)

  13. Heat Transfer Modes and their Coefficients for a Passive Containment Cooling System of PWR using a Multi-Pod Heat Pipe

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nam, Gyeongho; Park, Junseok; Kim, Sangnyung [Kyung Hee Univ., Yongin (Korea, Republic of)

    2013-05-15

    If a reactor core is damaged due to a disaster such as happened at TEPCO's Fukushima nuclear power plant, the inevitable rise of super-heated steam that could potentially convert to hydrogen resulting from unimpeded temperature and pressure rises will threaten the integrity of the containment structure. To prevent this, safety and regulatory standards typically specify that the gas vent and external cooling systems be designed to maintain containment up to the level C limit for 24 hours and integrity for 48 hours after any damage to the core. Furthermore, it is recommended that the installation of the exhaust penetration unit have a minimum diameter of 3ft. However, installation of such cooling measures or penetration units is burdensome in terms of operational and maintenance costs not to mention the need to ensure a fleet of fire trucks to be on standby as well as the need to ensure a plentiful supply of water for cooling and a filtration system to clean the water. Therefore, the development of a reliable passive cooling system will be economically advantageous because the extra cost burdens of the external system can be omitted. The Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) using a multi-pod heat pipe proposed in this study satisfies these conditions.

  14. Experimental Study of Hydraulic Control Rod Drive Mechanism for Passive IN-core Cooling System of Nuclear Power Plant

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, In Guk; Kim, Kyung Mo; Jeong, Yeong Shin; Bang, In Cheol [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-05-15

    CAREM 25 (27 MWe safety systems using hydraulic control rod drives (CRD) studied critical issues that were rod drops with interrupted flow [3]. Hydraulic control rod drive suggested fast shutdown condition using a large gap between piston and cylinder in order to fast drop of neutron absorbing rods. A Passive IN-core Cooling system (PINCs) was suggested for safety enhancement of pressurized water reactors (PWR), small modular reactor (SMR), sodium fast reactor (SFR) in UNIST. PINCs consist of hydraulic control rod drive mechanism (Hydraulic CRDM) and hybrid control rod assembly with heat pipe combined with control rod. The schematic diagram of the hydraulic CRDM for PINCs is shown in Fig. 1. The experimental results show the steady state and transient behavior of the upper cylinder at a low pressure and low temperature. The influence of the working fluid temperature and cylinder mass are investigated. Finally, the heat removal between evaporator section and condenser section is compared with or without the hybrid control rod. Heat removal test of the hybrid heat pipe with hydraulic CRDM system showed the heat transfer coefficient of the bundle hybrid control rod and its effect on evaporator pool. The preliminary test both hydraulic CRDM and heat removal system was conducted, which showed the possibility of the in-core hydraulic drive system for application of PINCs.

  15. Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) of the Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) for a Westinghouse type 312, three loop pressurized water reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shopsky, W.E.

    1977-01-01

    The Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) is a Safeguards System designed to cool the core in the unlikely event of a Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA) in the primary reactor coolant system as well as to provide additional shutdown capability following a steam break accident. The system is designed for a high reliability of providing emergency coolant and shutdown reactivity to the core for all anticipated occurrences of such accidents. The ECCS by performing its intended function assures that fuel and clad damage is minimized during accident conditions thus reducing release of fission products from the fuel. The ECCS is designed to perform its function despite sustaining a single failure by the judicious use of equipment and flow path redundancy within and outside the containment structure. By the use of an analytic tool, a Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA), it is shown that the ECCS is in compliance with the Single Failure Criterion established for active failures of fluid systems during short and long term cooling of the reactor core following a LOCA or steam break accident. An analysis was also performed with regards to passive failure of ECCS components during long-term cooling of the core following an accident. The design of the ECCS was verified as being able to tolerate a single passive failure during long-term cooling of the reactor core following an accident. The FMEA conducted qualitatively demonstrates the reliability of the ECCS (concerning active components) to perform its intended safety function

  16. Emergency core cooling device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suzaki, Kiyoshi; Inoue, Akihiro.

    1979-01-01

    Purpose: To improve core cooling effect by making the operation region for a plurality of water injection pumps more broader. Constitution: An emergency reactor core cooling device actuated upon failure of recycling pipe ways is adapted to be fed with cooling water through a thermal sleeve by way of a plurality of water injection pump from pool water in a condensate storage tank and a pressure suppression chamber as water feed source. Exhaust pipes and suction pipes of each of the pumps are connected by way of switching valves and the valves are switched so that the pumps are set to a series operation if the pressure in the pressure vessel is high and the pumps are set to a parallel operation if the pressure in the pressure vessel is low. (Furukawa, Y.)

  17. Concepts for passive heat removal and filtration systems under core meltdown conditions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wilhelm, J.G.; Neitzel, H.-J.

    1993-01-01

    The objective of the new containment concept being developed by KfK is the complete passive enclosure of a power reactor after a core meltdown accident by means of a solid containment structure and passive removal of the decay heat. This is to be accomplished by cooling the containment walls with ambient air, with thermoconvection as the driving force. The concept of the containment is described. Data are given of the heat removal and the requirements for filtration of the exhaust air, which is contaminated due to the leak rate assumed for the inner containment. The concept for the filter system is described. Various solutions for reduction of the large volumetric flow to be filtered are discussed. 3 refs., 8 figs

  18. Thermal Analysis of MIRIS Space Observation Camera for Verification of Passive Cooling

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Duk-Hang Lee

    2012-09-01

    Full Text Available We conducted thermal analyses and cooling tests of the space observation camera (SOC of the multi-purpose infrared imaging system (MIRIS to verify passive cooling. The thermal analyses were conducted with NX 7.0 TMG for two cases of attitude of the MIRIS: for the worst hot case and normal case. Through the thermal analyses of the flight model, it was found that even in the worst case the telescope could be cooled to less than 206°K. This is similar to the results of the passive cooling test (~200.2°K. For the normal attitude case of the analysis, on the other hand, the SOC telescope was cooled to about 160°K in 10 days. Based on the results of these analyses and the test, it was determined that the telescope of the MIRIS SOC could be successfully cooled to below 200°K with passive cooling. The SOC is, therefore, expected to have optimal performance under cooled conditions in orbit.

  19. Passive safety system of a super fast reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sutanto, E-mail: sutanto@fuji.waseda.jp [Cooperative Major in Nuclear Energy, Waseda University, Tokyo (Japan); Polytechnic Institute of Nuclear Technology—National Nuclear Energy Agency, Yogyakarta (Indonesia); Oka, Yoshiaki [The University of Tokyo, Tokyo (Japan)

    2015-08-15

    Highlights: • Passive safety system of a Super FR is proposed. • Total loss of feedwater flow and large LOCA are analyzed. • The criteria of MCST and core pressure are satisfied. - Abstract: Passive safety systems of a Super Fast Reactor are studied. The passive safety systems consist of isolation condenser (IC), automatic depressurization system (ADS), core make-up tank (CMT), gravity driven cooling system (GDCS), and passive containment cooling system (PCCS). Two accidents of total loss of feedwater flow and 100% cold-leg break large LOCA are analyzed by using the passive systems and the criteria of maximum cladding surface temperature (MCST) and maximum core pressure are satisfied. The isolation condenser can be used for mitigation of the accident of total loss of feedwater flow at both supercritical and subcritical pressures. The ADS is used for depressurization leading to a loss of coolant during line switching to operation of the isolation condenser at subcritical pressure. Use of CMT during line switching recovers the lost coolant. In case of large LOCA, GDCS can be used for core reflooding. Coolant vaporization in the core released to containment through the break is condensed by passive containment cooling system. The condensate flows to the GDCS pool by gravity force. The maximum cladding surface temperature (MCST) of the accident satisfies the criterion.

  20. The development of emergency core cooling systems in the PWR, BWR, and HWR Candu type of nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mursid Djokolelono.

    1976-01-01

    Emergency core cooling systems in the PWR, BWR, and HWR-Candu type of nuclear power plant are reviewed. In PWR and BWR the emergency cooling can be catagorized as active high pressure, active low pressure, and a passive one. The PWR uses components of the shutdown cooling system: whereas the BWR uses components of pressure suppression contaiment. HWR Candu also uses the shutdown cooling system similar to the PWR except some details coming out from moderator coolant separation and expensive cost of heavy water. (author)

  1. Effect of a patent foramen ovale in humans on thermal responses to passive cooling and heating.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Davis, James T; Hay, Madeline W; Hardin, Alyssa M; White, Matthew D; Lovering, Andrew T

    2017-12-01

    Humans with a patent foramen ovale (PFO) have a higher esophageal temperature (T esoph ) than humans without a PFO (PFO-). Thus the presence of a PFO might also be associated with differences in thermal responsiveness to passive cooling and heating such as shivering and hyperpnea, respectively. The purpose of this study was to determine whether thermal responses to passive cooling and heating are different between PFO- subjects and subjects with a PFO (PFO+). We hypothesized that compared with PFO- subjects PFO+ subjects would cool down more rapidly and heat up slower and that PFO+ subjects who experienced thermal hyperpnea would have a blunted increase in ventilation. Twenty-seven men (13 PFO+) completed two trials separated by >48 h: 1 ) 60 min of cold water immersion (19.5 ± 0.9°C) and 2 ) 30 min of hot water immersion (40.5 ± 0.2°C). PFO+ subjects had a higher T esoph before and during cold water and hot water immersion ( P heating. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Patent foramen ovale (PFO) is found in ~25-40% of the population. The presence of a PFO appears to be associated with a greater core body temperature and blunted ventilatory responses during passive heating. The reason for this blunted ventilatory response to passive heating is unknown but may suggest differences in thermal sensitivity in PFO+ subjects compared with PFO- subjects. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

  2. Passive residual energy utilization system in thermal cycles on water-cooled power reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Placco, Guilherme M.; Guimaraes, Lamartine N.F.; Santos, Rubens S. dos

    2013-01-01

    This work presents a concept of a residual energy utilization in nuclear plants thermal cycles. After taking notice of the causes of the Fukushima nuclear plant accident, an idea arose to adapt a passive thermal circuit as part of the ECCS (Emergency Core Cooling System). One of the research topics of IEAv (Institute for Advanced Studies), as part of the heat conversion of a space nuclear power system is a passive multi fluid turbine. One of the main characteristics of this device is its passive capability of staying inert and be brought to power at moments notice. During the first experiments and testing of this passive device, it became clear that any small amount of gas flow would generate power. Given that in the first stages of the Fukushima accident and even during the whole event there was plenty availability of steam flow that would be the proper condition to make the proposed system to work. This system starts in case of failure of the ECCS, including loss of site power, loss of diesel generators and loss of the battery power. This system does not requires electricity to run and will work with bleed steam. It will generate enough power to supply the plant safety system avoiding overheating of the reactor core produced by the decay heat. This passive system uses a modified Tesla type turbine. With the tests conducted until now, it is possible to ensure that the operation of this new turbine in a thermal cycle is very satisfactory and it performs as expected. (author)

  3. Passive Cooling of Body Armor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Holtz, Ronald; Matic, Peter; Mott, David

    2013-03-01

    Warfighter performance can be adversely affected by heat load and weight of equipment. Current tactical vest designs are good insulators and lack ventilation, thus do not provide effective management of metabolic heat generated. NRL has undertaken a systematic study of tactical vest thermal management, leading to physics-based strategies that provide improved cooling without undesirable consequences such as added weight, added electrical power requirements, or compromised protection. The approach is based on evaporative cooling of sweat produced by the wearer of the vest, in an air flow provided by ambient wind or ambulatory motion of the wearer. Using an approach including thermodynamic analysis, computational fluid dynamics modeling, air flow measurements of model ventilated vest architectures, and studies of the influence of fabric aerodynamic drag characteristics, materials and geometry were identified that optimize passive cooling of tactical vests. Specific architectural features of the vest design allow for optimal ventilation patterns, and selection of fabrics for vest construction optimize evaporation rates while reducing air flow resistance. Cooling rates consistent with the theoretical and modeling predictions were verified experimentally for 3D mockups.

  4. Passive cooling system for nuclear reactor containment structure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gou, Perng-Fei; Wade, Gentry E.

    1989-01-01

    A passive cooling system for the contaminant structure of a nuclear reactor plant providing protection against overpressure within the containment attributable to inadvertent leakage or rupture of the system components. The cooling system utilizes natural convection for transferring heat imbalances and enables the discharge of irradiation free thermal energy to the atmosphere for heat disposal from the system.

  5. An evaluation of designed passive Core Makeup Tank (CMT) for China pressurized reactor (CPR1000)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Mingjun; Tian, Wenxi; Qiu, Suizheng; Su, Guanghui; Zhang, Yapei

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: ► Only PRHRS is not sufficient to maintain reactor safety in case of SGTR accident. ► The Core Makeup Tank (CMT) is designed for CPR1000. ► Joint operation of PRHRS and CMT can keep reactor safety during the SGTR transient. ► CMT is a vital supplement for CPR1000 passive safety system design. - Abstract: Emergency Passive Safety System (EPSS) is an innovative design to improve reliability of nuclear power plants. In this work, the EPSS consists of secondary passive residual heat removal system (PRHRS) and the reactor Core Makeup Tank (CMT) system. The PRHRS, which has been studied in our previous paper, can effectively remove the core residual heat and passively improve the inherent safety by passive methods. The designed CMT, representing the safety improvement for CPR1000, is used to inject cool boron-containing water into the primary system during the loss of coolant accident. In this study, the behaviors of EPSS and transient characteristics of the primary loop system during the Steam Generator Tube Rupture (SGTR) accident are investigated using the nuclear reactor thermal hydraulic code RELAP5/MOD3.4. The results show that the designed CMT can protect the reactor primary loop from boiling and maintain primary loop coolant in single phase state. Both PRHRS and CMT operation ensures reactor safety during the SGTR accident. Results reported in this paper show that the designed CMT is a further safety improvement for CPR1000

  6. Impairment of Heat Transfer in the Passive Cooling System due to Mixed Convection

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chae Myeong Seon; Chung, Bum Jin [Kyunghee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Jong Hwan [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-05-15

    In the passive cooling devices, the buoyant flows are induced. However the local Nusselt number of natural convective flow can be partly impaired due to the development of the mixed convective flows. This paper discusses impairment of heat transfer in the passive cooling system in relation to the development of mixed convection. The present work describes the preliminary plan to explore the phenomena experimentally. This paper is to discuss and make the plan to experiment the impairment of heat transfer in the passive cooling system due to mixed convection. In the sufficiently high passive cooling devices, the natural convection flow behavior can be mixed convection. The local Nusselt number distribution exhibits the non-monotonic behavior as axial position, since the buoyancy-aided with mixed convection was appeared. This is the part of the experimental work.

  7. Passive cooling of control rod drive mechanisms

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hankinson, M.F.; Schwirian, R.E.

    1992-01-01

    A method and apparatus are provided for passively cooling the control rod drive mechanisms (CRDMs) in the reactor vessel of a nuclear power plant. Passive cooling is achieved by dispersing a plurality of chimneys within the CRDM array in positions where a control rod is not required. The chimneys induce convective air currents which cause ambient air from within the containment to flow over the CRDM coils. The air heated by the coils is guided into inlets in the chimneys by baffles. The chimney is insulated and extends through the seismic support platform and missile shield disposed above the closure head. A collar of adjustable height mates with plate elements formed at the distal end of the CRDM pressure housings by an interlocking arrangement so that the seismic support platform provides lateral restraint for the chimneys. (Author)

  8. Passive safety systems and natural circulation in water cooled nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2009-11-01

    Nuclear power produces 15% of the world's electricity. Many countries are planning to either introduce nuclear energy or expand their nuclear generating capacity. Design organizations are incorporating both proven means and new approaches for reducing the capital costs of their advanced designs. In the future most new nuclear plants will be of evolutionary design, often pursuing economies of scale. In the longer term, innovative designs could help to promote a new era of nuclear power. Since the mid-1980s it has been recognized that the application of passive safety systems (i.e. those whose operation takes advantage of natural forces such as convection and gravity), can contribute to simplification and potentially improve economics of new nuclear power plant designs. The IAEA Conference on The Safety of Nuclear Power: Strategy for the Future, which was convened in 1991, noted that for new plants 'the use of passive safety features is a desirable method of achieving simplification and increasing the reliability of the performance of essential safety functions, and should be used wherever appropriate'. Some new designs also utilize natural circulation as a means to remove core power during normal operation. The use of passive systems can eliminate the costs associated with the installation, maintenance, and operation of active systems that require multiple pumps with independent and redundant electric power supplies. However, considering the weak driving forces of passive systems based on natural circulation, careful design and analysis methods must be employed to ensure that the systems perform their intended functions. To support the development of advanced water cooled reactor designs with passive systems, investigations of natural circulation are conducted in several IAEA Member States with advanced reactor development programmes. To foster international collaboration on the enabling technology of passive systems that utilize natural circulation, the IAEA

  9. Balancing passive and active systems for evolutionary water cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fil, N.S.; Allen, P.J.; Kirmse, R.E.; Kurihara, M.; Oh, S.J.; Sinha, R.K.

    1999-01-01

    Advanced concepts of the water-cooled reactors are intended to improve safety, economics and public perception of nuclear power. The potential inclusion of new passive means in addition or instead of traditional active systems is being considered by nuclear plant designers to reach these goals. With respect to plant safety, application of the passive means is mainly intended to simplify the safety systems and to improve their reliability, to mitigate the effect of human errors and equipment malfunction. However, some clear drawbacks and the limited experience and testing of passive systems may raise additional questions that have to be addressed in the design process for each advanced reactor. Therefore the plant designer should find a reasonable balance of active and passive means to effectively use their advantages and compensate their drawbacks. Some considerations that have to be taken into account when balancing active/passive means in advanced water-cooled reactors are discussed in this paper. (author)

  10. Passive systems for light water reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Adinolfi, R.; Noviello, L.

    1990-01-01

    The paper reviews the most original concepts that have been considered in Italy for the back-fitting of the nuclear power plants in order to reduce the probability and the importance of the release to the environment in case of a core melt. With reference either to BWR or PWR, passive concepts have been considered for back-fitting in the following areas: pump seals damage prevention and ECCS passive operation; reactor passive depressurization; molten reactor core passive cooling; metal containment passive water cooling through a water tank located at high level; containment isolation improvement through a sealing system; containment leaks control and limitation of environmental release. In addition some considerations will be made on the protection against external events introduced from the beginning on the PUN design either on building and equipment lay-out either on structure design. (author). 5 figs

  11. Warming rays in cluster cool cores

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colafrancesco, S.; Marchegiani, P.

    2008-06-01

    Context: Cosmic rays are confined in the atmospheres of galaxy clusters and, therefore, they can play a crucial role in the heating of their cool cores. Aims: We discuss here the thermal and non-thermal features of a model of cosmic ray heating of cluster cores that can provide a solution to the cooling-flow problems. To this aim, we generalize a model originally proposed by Colafrancesco, Dar & DeRujula (2004) and we show that our model predicts specific correlations between the thermal and non-thermal properties of galaxy clusters and enables various observational tests. Methods: The model reproduces the observed temperature distribution in clusters by using an energy balance condition in which the X-ray energy emitted by clusters is supplied, in a quasi-steady state, by the hadronic cosmic rays, which act as “warming rays” (WRs). The temperature profile of the intracluster (IC) gas is strictly correlated with the pressure distribution of the WRs and, consequently, with the non-thermal emission (radio, hard X-ray and gamma-ray) induced by the interaction of the WRs with the IC gas and the IC magnetic field. Results: The temperature distribution of the IC gas in both cool-core and non cool-core clusters is successfully predicted from the measured IC plasma density distribution. Under this contraint, the WR model is also able to reproduce the thermal and non-thermal pressure distribution in clusters, as well as their radial entropy distribution, as shown by the analysis of three clusters studied in detail: Perseus, A2199 and Hydra. The WR model provides other observable features of galaxy clusters: a correlation of the pressure ratio (WRs to thermal IC gas) with the inner cluster temperature (P_WR/P_th) ˜ (kT_inner)-2/3, a correlation of the gamma-ray luminosity with the inner cluster temperature Lγ ˜ (kT_inner)4/3, a substantial number of cool-core clusters observable with the GLAST-LAT experiment, a surface brightness of radio halos in cool-core clusters

  12. Numerical Study on the Cooling Characteristics of a Passive-Type PEMFC Stack

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Jae Hyuk; Kim, Bo Sung; Lee, Yong Taek; Kim, Yong Chan

    2010-01-01

    In a passive-type PEMFC stack, axial fans operate to supply both oxidant and coolant to cathode side of the stack. It is possible to make a simple system because the passive-type PEMFC stack does not require additional cooling equipment. However, the performance of a cooling system in which water is used as a coolant is better than that of the air-cooling system. To ensure system reliability, it is essential to make cooling system effective by adopting an optimal stack design. In this study, a numerical investigation has been carried out to identify an optimum cooling strategy. Various channel configurations were applied to the test section. The passive-type PEMFC was tested by varying airflow rate distribution at the cathode side and external heat transfer coefficient of the stack. The best cooling performance was achieved when a channel with thick ribs was used, and the overheating at the center of the stack was reduced when a case in which airflow was concentrated at the middle of the stack was used

  13. Feasibility test of the concept of long-term passive cooling system of emergency cooldown tank

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Myoung Jun; Moon, Joo Hyung; Bae, Youngmin; Kim, Young In; Lee, Hee Joon

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • The concept of long-term passive cooling system of emergency cooldown tank (ECT). • Existing natural circulation of steam from ECT and measurement of its condensing flow. • Evaluation of cooling capacity and heat transfer of air-cooled condensing heat exchanger. - Abstract: When a passive cooling system is activated in the accident of a nuclear reactor, the water in the emergency cooldown tank of that system will eventually be fully depleted by evaporation. If, however, the evaporating water could be returned to the tank through an air-cooled condensing heat exchanger mounted on top of the tank, the passive cooling system could provide cooling for an extended period. This feasibility of new concept of long-term passive cooling with an emergency cooldown tank was tested by performing an energy balance test with a scaled-down experimental setup. As a result, it was determined that a naturally circulating steam flow can be used to refill the tank. For an air-cooled heat exchanger, the cooling capacity and air-side natural convective heat transfer coefficient were obtained to be 37% of the heat load and between 9 and 10.2 W/m 2 /K depending on the heat load, respectively. Moreover, it was clearly verified that the water level in the emergency cooldown tank could be maintained over the long-term operation of the passive cooling system

  14. AGN Heating in Simulated Cool-core Clusters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Li, Yuan; Ruszkowski, Mateusz [Department of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 1085 S. University Avenue, Ann Arbor, MI 48109 (United States); Bryan, Greg L., E-mail: yuanlium@umich.edu [Department of Astronomy, Columbia University, Pupin Physics Laboratories, New York, NY 10027 (United States)

    2017-10-01

    We analyze heating and cooling processes in an idealized simulation of a cool-core cluster, where momentum-driven AGN feedback balances radiative cooling in a time-averaged sense. We find that, on average, energy dissipation via shock waves is almost an order of magnitude higher than via turbulence. Most of the shock waves in the simulation are very weak shocks with Mach numbers smaller than 1.5, but the stronger shocks, although rare, dissipate energy more effectively. We find that shock dissipation is a steep function of radius, with most of the energy dissipated within 30 kpc, more spatially concentrated than radiative cooling loss. However, adiabatic processes and mixing (of post-shock materials and the surrounding gas) are able to redistribute the heat throughout the core. A considerable fraction of the AGN energy also escapes the core region. The cluster goes through cycles of AGN outbursts accompanied by periods of enhanced precipitation and star formation, over gigayear timescales. The cluster core is under-heated at the end of each cycle, but over-heated at the peak of the AGN outburst. During the heating-dominant phase, turbulent dissipation alone is often able to balance radiative cooling at every radius but, when this is occurs, shock waves inevitably dissipate even more energy. Our simulation explains why some clusters, such as Abell 2029, are cooling dominated, while in some other clusters, such as Perseus, various heating mechanisms including shock heating, turbulent dissipation and bubble mixing can all individually balance cooling, and together, over-heat the core.

  15. AP1000 passive core cooling system pre-operational tests procedure definition and simulation by means of Relap5 Mod. 3.3 computer code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lioce, D.; Asztalos, M.; Alemberti, A.; Barucca, L.; Frogheri, M.; Saiu, G.

    2012-01-01

    Highlights: ► Two AP1000 Core Make-up Tanks pre-operational tests procedures have been defined. ► The two tests have been simulated by means of the Relap5 computer code. ► Results show the tests can be successfully performed with the selected procedures. - Abstract: The AP1000 ® plant is an advanced Pressurized Water Reactor designed and developed by Westinghouse Electric Company which relies on passive safety systems for core cooling, containment isolation and containment cooling, and maintenance of main control room emergency habitability. The AP1000 design obtained the Design Certification by NRC in January 2006, as Appendix D of 10 CFR Part 52, and it is being built in two locations in China. The AP1000 plant will be the first commercial nuclear power plant to rely on completely passive safety systems for core cooling and its licensing process requires the proper operation of these systems to be demonstrated through some pre-operational tests to be conducted on the real plant. The overall objective of the test program is to demonstrate that the plant has been constructed as designed, that the systems perform consistently with the plant design, and that activities culminating in operation at full licensed power including initial fuel load, initial criticality, and power increase to full load are performed in a controlled and safe manner. Within this framework, Westinghouse Electric Company and its partner Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. have strictly collaborated, being Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. in charge of the simulation of some pre-operational tests and supporting Westinghouse in the definition of tests procedures. This paper summarizes the work performed at Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. in collaboration with Westinghouse Electric Company for the Core Makeup Tank (CMT) tests, i.e. the CMTs hot recirculation test and the CMTs draindown test. The test procedure for the two selected tests has been defined and, in order to perform the pre-operational tests simulations, a

  16. AP1000 passive core cooling system pre-operational tests procedure definition and simulation by means of Relap5 Mod. 3.3 computer code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lioce, D., E-mail: donato.lioce@aen.ansaldo.it [Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A., Corso F. M. Perrone 25, 16161, Genova (Italy); Asztalos, M., E-mail: asztalmj@westinghouse.com [Westinghouse Electric Company, Cranberry Twp, PA 16066 (United States); Alemberti, A., E-mail: alessandro.alemberti@aen.ansaldo.it [Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A., Corso F. M. Perrone 25, 16161, Genova (Italy); Barucca, L. [Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A., Corso F. M. Perrone 25, 16161, Genova (Italy); Frogheri, M., E-mail: monicalinda.frogheri@aen.ansaldo.it [Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A., Corso F. M. Perrone 25, 16161, Genova (Italy); Saiu, G., E-mail: gianfranco.saiu@aen.ansaldo.it [Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A., Corso F. M. Perrone 25, 16161, Genova (Italy)

    2012-09-15

    Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Two AP1000 Core Make-up Tanks pre-operational tests procedures have been defined. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The two tests have been simulated by means of the Relap5 computer code. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Results show the tests can be successfully performed with the selected procedures. - Abstract: The AP1000{sup Registered-Sign} plant is an advanced Pressurized Water Reactor designed and developed by Westinghouse Electric Company which relies on passive safety systems for core cooling, containment isolation and containment cooling, and maintenance of main control room emergency habitability. The AP1000 design obtained the Design Certification by NRC in January 2006, as Appendix D of 10 CFR Part 52, and it is being built in two locations in China. The AP1000 plant will be the first commercial nuclear power plant to rely on completely passive safety systems for core cooling and its licensing process requires the proper operation of these systems to be demonstrated through some pre-operational tests to be conducted on the real plant. The overall objective of the test program is to demonstrate that the plant has been constructed as designed, that the systems perform consistently with the plant design, and that activities culminating in operation at full licensed power including initial fuel load, initial criticality, and power increase to full load are performed in a controlled and safe manner. Within this framework, Westinghouse Electric Company and its partner Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. have strictly collaborated, being Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. in charge of the simulation of some pre-operational tests and supporting Westinghouse in the definition of tests procedures. This paper summarizes the work performed at Ansaldo Nucleare S.p.A. in collaboration with Westinghouse Electric Company for the Core Makeup Tank (CMT) tests, i.e. the CMTs hot recirculation test and the CMTs draindown test. The test procedure for the two

  17. Evaluation of conceptual Heat Exchanger Design for passive containment cooling system of SMART

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Min-Ki; Hong, Soon Joon [FNC Tech., Yongin (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Young In; Kim, Seok [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    PCCS(Passive containment cooling system) is the passive safety system which ultimately removes the reactor decay heat. Cooling performance of the air-cooled type and water-circulation cooling type of PCCS were analyzed using CAP version 2.21. The analysis results show the water-circulation cooling PCCS is more effective in lowering the peak pressure and temperature in the containment building. However, the air-cooled PCCS is more effective to the long-term cooling. From this study, the efficiency evaluation results for the two PCCS designs are obtained. These results may be applied in the PCCS design improvement. Moreover, these results will be used as a reference for the later PCCS design and analysis.

  18. Condensation heat transfer with noncondensable gas for passive containment cooling of nuclear reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Leonardi, Tauna [Schlumberger, 14910 Airline Rd., Rosharon, TX 77583 (United States)]. E-mail: Tleonardi@slb.com; Ishii, Mamoru [School of Nuclear Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907 (United States)]. E-mail: Ishii@ecn.purdue.edu

    2006-09-15

    Noncondensable gases that come from the containment and the interaction of cladding and steam during a severe accident deteriorate a passive containment cooling system's performance by degrading the heat transfer capabilities of the condensers in passive containment cooling systems. This work contributes to the area of modeling condensation heat transfer with noncondensable gases in integral facilities. Previously existing correlations and models are for the through-flow of the mixture of steam and the noncondensable gases and this may not be applicable to passive containment cooling systems where there is no clear passage for the steam to escape. This work presents a condensation heat transfer model for the downward cocurrent flow of a steam/air mixture through a condenser tube, taking into account the atypical characteristics of the passive containment cooling system. An empirical model is developed that depends on the inlet conditions, including the mixture Reynolds number and noncondensable gas concentration.

  19. A passive decay heat removal system for LWRs based on air cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mochizuki, Hiroyasu, E-mail: mochizki@u-fukui.ac.jp [Research Institute of Nuclear Engineering, University of Fukui, 1-2-4 Kanawa-cho, Tsuruga, Fukui 914-0055 (Japan); Yano, Takahiro [Graduate School of Engineering, University of Fukui, 1-2-4 Kanawa-cho, Tsuruga, Fukui 914-0055 (Japan)

    2015-05-15

    Highlights: • A passive decay heat removal system for LWRs is discussed. • An air cooler model which condenses steam is developed. • The decay heat can be removed by air coolers with forced convection. • The dimensions of the air cooler are proposed. - Abstract: The present paper describes the capability of an air cooling system (ACS) to remove decay heat from a core of LWR such as an advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR) and a pressurized water reactor (PWR). The motivation of the present research is the Fukushima severe accident (SA) on 11 March 2011. Since emergency cooling systems using electricity were not available due to station blackout (SBO) and malfunctions, many engineers might understand that water cooling was not completely reliable. Therefore, a passive decay heat removal (DHR) system would be proposed in order to prevent such an SA under the conditions of an SBO event. The plant behaviors during the SBO are calculated using the system code NETFLOW++ for the ABWR and PWR with the ACS. Two types of air coolers (ACs) are applied for the ABWR, i.e., a steam condensing air cooler (SCAC) of which intake for heat transfer tubes is provided in the steam region, and single-phase type of which intake is provided in the water region. The DHR characteristics are calculated under the conditions of the forced air circulation and also the natural air convection. As a result of the calculations, the decay heat can be removed safely by the reasonably sized ACS when heat transfer tubes are cooled with the forced air circulation. The heat removal rate per one finned heat transfer tube is evaluated as a function of air flow rate. The heat removal rate increases as a function of the air flow rate.

  20. Feasibility study on emergency passive habitability systems of SPWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Obata, H.; Tabata, H.; Urakami, M.; Naito, T.

    2000-01-01

    The major characteristic of the Simplified Pressurized Water Reactor (SPWR) is that safety systems for the emergency core cooling and the core decay heat removal functions are achieved by passive equipment. The AP600 developed in the U.S adopts passive emergency habitability system for the main control room (MCR) and the electrical equipment rooms (EER) by using the concrete of the structures as a heat sink. For the SPWR, alternative natural circulation cooling systems have been investigated: for MCR cooling, a cold water reservoir is used as heat sink; for EER cooling, outside air is instead employed. The distribution of the air-velocity and temperature in those rooms were calculated by using a three-dimensional thermal fluid analysis code. The authors verified the conceptual feasibility of these systems as the emergency passive habitability systems in the SPWR. (author)

  1. Passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation - Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Artmann, N.; Manz, H. [Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA), Duebendorf (Switzerland); Heiselberg, P. [Aalborg University, Aalborg (Denmark)

    2008-07-01

    Due to an overall trend towards an increasing cooling energy demand in buildings in many European countries over the last few decades, passive cooling by night-time ventilation is seen as a promising concept. However, because of uncertainties in thermal comfort predictions, architects and engineers are still hesitant to apply passive cooling techniques. As night-time ventilation is highly dependent on climatic conditions, a method for quantifying the climatic cooling potential was developed and the impact of climate warming was investigated. Although a clear temperature decrease was found, significant potential will remain, especially if night-time ventilation is applied in combination with other cooling methods. Building energy simulations showed that the performance of night-time ventilation is also affected by the heat transfer at internal room surfaces, as the cooling effect is very limited due to heat transfer coefficients below about 4 W/m{sup 2}K. Heat transfer during night-time ventilation in case of mixing and displacement ventilation was investigated in a full scale test room at Aalborg University. In the experiments the temperature efficiency of the ventilation was determined. Based on the previous results a method for estimating the potential for cooling by night-time ventilation at an early stage of design was developed. (author)

  2. A 3.55 keV line from DM →a→γ: predictions for cool-core and non-cool-core clusters

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Conlon, Joseph P.; Powell, Andrew J. [Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, University of Oxford, 1 Keble Road, Oxford, OX1 3NP (United Kingdom)

    2015-01-13

    We further study a scenario in which a 3.55 keV X-ray line arises from decay of dark matter to an axion-like particle (ALP), that subsequently converts to a photon in astrophysical magnetic fields. We perform numerical simulations of Gaussian random magnetic fields with radial scaling of the magnetic field magnitude with the electron density, for both cool-core 'Perseus' and non-cool-core 'Coma' electron density profiles. Using these, we quantitatively study the resulting signal strength and morphology for cool-core and non-cool-core clusters. Our study includes the effects of fields of view that cover only the central part of the cluster, the effects of offset pointings on the radial decline of signal strength and the effects of dividing clusters into annuli. We find good agreement with current data and make predictions for future analyses and observations.

  3. Core cooling systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hoeppner, G.

    1980-01-01

    The reactor cooling system transports the heat liberated in the reactor core to the component - heat exchanger, steam generator or turbine - where the energy is removed. This basic task can be performed with a variety of coolants circulating in appropriately designed cooling systems. The choice of any one system is governed by principles of economics and natural policies, the design is determined by the laws of nuclear physics, thermal-hydraulics and by the requirement of reliability and public safety. PWR- and BWR- reactors today generate the bulk of nuclear energy. Their primary cooling systems are discussed under the following aspects: 1. General design, nuclear physics constraints, energy transfer, hydraulics, thermodynamics. 2. Design and performance under conditions of steady state and mild transients; control systems. 3. Design and performance under conditions of severe transients and loss of coolant accidents; safety systems. (orig./RW)

  4. STAR FORMATION EFFICIENCY IN THE COOL CORES OF GALAXY CLUSTERS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    McDonald, Michael; Veilleux, Sylvain; Mushotzky, Richard; Reynolds, Christopher; Rupke, David S. N.

    2011-01-01

    We have assembled a sample of high spatial resolution far-UV (Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys/Solar Blind Channel) and Hα (Maryland-Magellan Tunable Filter) imaging for 15 cool core galaxy clusters. These data provide a detailed view of the thin, extended filaments in the cores of these clusters. Based on the ratio of the far-UV to Hα luminosity, the UV spectral energy distribution, and the far-UV and Hα morphology, we conclude that the warm, ionized gas in the cluster cores is photoionized by massive, young stars in all but a few (A1991, A2052, A2580) systems. We show that the extended filaments, when considered separately, appear to be star forming in the majority of cases, while the nuclei tend to have slightly lower far-UV luminosity for a given Hα luminosity, suggesting a harder ionization source or higher extinction. We observe a slight offset in the UV/Hα ratio from the expected value for continuous star formation which can be modeled by assuming intrinsic extinction by modest amounts of dust (E(B - V) ∼ 0.2) or a top-heavy initial mass function in the extended filaments. The measured star formation rates vary from ∼0.05 M sun yr -1 in the nuclei of non-cooling systems, consistent with passive, red ellipticals, to ∼5 M sun yr -1 in systems with complex, extended, optical filaments. Comparing the estimates of the star formation rate based on UV, Hα, and infrared luminosities to the spectroscopically determined X-ray cooling rate suggests a star formation efficiency of 14 +18 -8 %. This value represents the time-averaged fraction, by mass, of gas cooling out of the intracluster medium, which turns into stars and agrees well with the global fraction of baryons in stars required by simulations to reproduce the stellar mass function for galaxies. This result provides a new constraint on the efficiency of star formation in accreting systems.

  5. WGOTHIC analysis of AP1000 passive containment cooling water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ye Cheng; Wang Yong; Zheng Mingguang; Wang Guodong; Zhang Di; Ni Chenxiao; Wang Minglu

    2013-01-01

    The WGOTHIC code was used to analyze the influence of the containment cooling water inventory to containment safety for different cases. The results show that if passive containment cooling system fails, the pressure in containment is beyond design limit after 1000 s; if cooling water can't be supplied after 72 h, the pressure in containment is beyond design limit after 0.9 d; if cooling water can't be supplied after 19.6 d, the pressure in containment is beyond design limit but less than the breakdown pressure; if cooling water is supplied for 30 d, the air cooling can remove the decay heat without any aid. It is a reference for making emergency plan and improving containment design. (authors)

  6. Use of a temperature-initiated passive cooling system (TIPACS) for the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor cavity cooling system (RCCS)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Forsberg, C.W.; Conklin, J.; Reich, W.J.

    1994-04-01

    A new type of passive cooling system has been invented (Forsberg 1993): the Temperature-Initiated Passive Cooling System (TIPACS). The characteristics of the TIPACS potentially match requirements for an improved reactor-cavity-cooling system (RCCS) for the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR). This report is an initial evaluation of the TIPACS for the MHTGR with a Rankines (steam) power conversion cycle. Limited evaluations were made of applying the TIPACS to MHTGRs with reactor pressure vessel temperatures up to 450 C. These temperatures may occur in designs of Brayton cycle (gas turbine) and process heat MHTGRs. The report is structured as follows. Section 2 describes the containment cooling issues associated with the MHTGR and the requirements for such a cooling system. Section 3 describes TIPACS in nonmathematical terms. Section 4 describes TIPACS's heat-removal capabilities. Section 5 analyzes the operation of the temperature-control mechanism that determines under what conditions the TIPACS rejects heat to the environment. Section 6 addresses other design and operational issues. Section 7 identifies uncertainties, and Section 8 provides conclusions. The appendixes provide the detailed data and models used in the analysis

  7. Use of a temperature-initiated passive cooling system (TIPACS) for the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor cavity cooling system (RCCS)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Forsberg, C.W.; Conklin, J.; Reich, W.J.

    1994-04-01

    A new type of passive cooling system has been invented (Forsberg 1993): the Temperature-Initiated Passive Cooling System (TIPACS). The characteristics of the TIPACS potentially match requirements for an improved reactor-cavity-cooling system (RCCS) for the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR). This report is an initial evaluation of the TIPACS for the MHTGR with a Rankines (steam) power conversion cycle. Limited evaluations were made of applying the TIPACS to MHTGRs with reactor pressure vessel temperatures up to 450 C. These temperatures may occur in designs of Brayton cycle (gas turbine) and process heat MHTGRs. The report is structured as follows. Section 2 describes the containment cooling issues associated with the MHTGR and the requirements for such a cooling system. Section 3 describes TIPACS in nonmathematical terms. Section 4 describes TIPACS`s heat-removal capabilities. Section 5 analyzes the operation of the temperature-control mechanism that determines under what conditions the TIPACS rejects heat to the environment. Section 6 addresses other design and operational issues. Section 7 identifies uncertainties, and Section 8 provides conclusions. The appendixes provide the detailed data and models used in the analysis.

  8. Passive cooling application in the north of Morocco

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ahachad, M.; Draoui, A.; Belarbi, R.; Allard, F.

    2006-01-01

    According to the inter-professional union of the poultry farm sector in Morocco, the heat stress, during the last summer, has led to ones of heavy losses estimated of about ten million Euros at producers. In this paper the measures which could be used to reduce the fatal effect of heat stress phenomenon are presented. This is achieved by modeling and simulation of a typical poultry house in the north of Morocco. A case study was realized to show the influence of each parameter on the behaviour of the building. The most influential parameters are: ventilation shape, orientation, number of the occupants...etc. The evaporative cooling systems models were linked to thermal building software, TRNSYS, and the assessment of poultry house equipped with passive cooling systems will be presented. The simulations show that the heat stress phenomenon could be avoided. The experimental study of the poultry house equipped with a passive cooling system shows a decrease of temperature of the internal air from 5 to 9 degree centigrade, and an amelioration of quality of production, which is translated by an important decrease of mortality number and an increase of poultry weight.(Author)

  9. Passive cooling system for liquid metal cooled nuclear reactors with backup coolant flow path

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hunsbedt, A.; Boardman, C.E.

    1993-01-01

    A dual passive cooling system for liquid metal cooled nuclear fission reactors is described, comprising the combination of: a reactor vessel for containing a pool of liquid metal coolant with a core of heat generating fissionable fuel substantially submerged therein, a side wall of the reactor vessel forming an innermost first partition; a containment vessel substantially surrounding the reactor vessel in spaced apart relation having a side wall forming a second partition; a first baffle cylinder substantially encircling the containment vessel in spaced apart relation having an encircling wall forming a third partition; a guard vessel substantially surrounding the containment vessel and first baffle cylinder in spaced apart relation having a side wall forming a forth partition; a sliding seal at the top of the guard vessel edge to isolate the dual cooling system air streams; a second baffle cylinder substantially encircling the guard vessel in spaced part relationship having an encircling wan forming a fifth partition; a concrete silo substantially surrounding the guard vessel and the second baffle cylinder in spaced apart relation providing a sixth partition; a first fluid coolant circulating flow course open to the ambient atmosphere for circulating air coolant comprising at lent one down comer duct having an opening to the atmosphere in an upper area thereof and making fluid communication with the space between the guard vessel and the first baffle cylinder and at least one riser duct having an opening to the atmosphere in the upper area thereof and making fluid communication with the space between the first baffle cylinder and the containment vessel whereby cooling fluid air can flow from the atmosphere down through the down comer duct and space between the forth and third partitions and up through the space between the third and second partition and the riser duct then out into the atmosphere; and a second fluid coolant circulating flow

  10. Climatic potential for passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation in Europe

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Artmann, N.; Manz, H.; Heiselberg, P.

    2007-01-01

    Due to an overall trend towards less heating and more cooling demands in buildings in many European countries over the last few decades, passive cooling by night-time ventilation is seen as a promising technique, particularly for commercial buildings in the moderate or cold climates of Central, Eastern and Northern Europe. The basic concept involves cooling the building structure overnight in order to provide a heat sink that is available during the occupancy period. In this study, the potential for passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation was evaluated by analysing climatic data, without considering any building-specific parameters. An approach for calculating degree-hours based on a variable building temperature - within a standardized range of thermal comfort - is presented and applied to climatic data of 259 stations all over Europe. The results show a high potential for night-time ventilative cooling over the whole of Northern Europe and still significant potential in Central, Eastern and even some regions of Southern Europe. However, due to the inherent stochastic properties of weather patterns, a series of warmer nights can occur at some locations, where passive cooling by night-time ventilation alone might not be sufficient to guarantee thermal comfort

  11. The development of the thermohydraulic analysis code for the passive containment cooling system: PCCSAC

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Jianyu; Zhang Shenru; Min Yuanyou

    1994-01-01

    To estimate the performance of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) of the AC-600 nuclear power plant, the PCCSAC code is developed currently by the jointed efforts between Tsinghua University and NPIC. Different features on the passive behavior of the system and the main components of the containment are considered in the code which is needed by the further AC-600 R and D Program. With a brief description of the AC-600 passive containment cooling system and components, the main thermohydraulic models and numerical scheme used in the PCCSAC code are introduced and the selected results of the verification and the prediction for the performance of the AC-600 passive containment cooling system under LOCA and a steam line break accident are presented to preliminarily demonstrate the applicability and reliability of the PCCSAC model. The current PCCSAC model is conservative and a further 2-D PCCSAC version is under consideration in addition to provide the database for models from some tests associated with the components and systems unique to AC-600 nuclear power plant to meet the requirement of the more realistic modelization for the AC-600 passive containment cooling system. (author)

  12. Emergency reactor core cooling facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoshikawa, Kazuhiro; Kinoshita, Shoichiro; Iwata, Yasutaka.

    1996-01-01

    The present invention provides an emergency reactor core cooling device for a BWR type nuclear power plant. Namely, D/S pit (gas/water separator storage pool) water is used as a water source for the emergency reactor core cooling facility upon occurrence of loss of coolant accidents (LOCA) by introducing the D/S pit water to the emergency reactor core cooling (ECCS) pump. As a result, the function as the ECCS facility can be eliminated from the function of the condensate storage tank which has been used as the ECCS facility. If the function is unnecessary, the level of quality control and that of earthquake resistance of the condensate storage tank can be lowered to a level of ordinary facilities to provide an effect of reducing the cost. On the other hand, since the D/S pit as the alternative water source is usually a facility at high quality control level and earthquake resistant level, there is no problem. The quality of the water in the D/S pit can be maintained constant by elevating pressure of the D/S pit water by a suppression pool cleanup (SPCU) pump to pass it through a filtration desalter thereby purifying the D/S pit water during the plant operation. (I.S.)

  13. Emergency reactor core cooling facility

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Yoshikawa, Kazuhiro; Kinoshita, Shoichiro; Iwata, Yasutaka

    1996-11-01

    The present invention provides an emergency reactor core cooling device for a BWR type nuclear power plant. Namely, D/S pit (gas/water separator storage pool) water is used as a water source for the emergency reactor core cooling facility upon occurrence of loss of coolant accidents (LOCA) by introducing the D/S pit water to the emergency reactor core cooling (ECCS) pump. As a result, the function as the ECCS facility can be eliminated from the function of the condensate storage tank which has been used as the ECCS facility. If the function is unnecessary, the level of quality control and that of earthquake resistance of the condensate storage tank can be lowered to a level of ordinary facilities to provide an effect of reducing the cost. On the other hand, since the D/S pit as the alternative water source is usually a facility at high quality control level and earthquake resistant level, there is no problem. The quality of the water in the D/S pit can be maintained constant by elevating pressure of the D/S pit water by a suppression pool cleanup (SPCU) pump to pass it through a filtration desalter thereby purifying the D/S pit water during the plant operation. (I.S.)

  14. Natural circulating passive cooling system for nuclear reactor containment structure

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gou, Perng-Fei; Wade, Gentry E.

    1990-01-01

    A passive cooling system for the contaminant structure of a nuclear reactor plant providing protection against overpressure within the containment attributable to inadvertent leakage or rupture of the system components. The cooling system utilizes natural convection for transferring heat imbalances and enables the discharge of irradiation free thermal energy to the atmosphere for heat disposal from the system.

  15. Passive Cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Artmann, Nikolai; Manz, Heinrich; Heiselberg, Per

    coefficients below about 4 W/m2K. Heat transfer during night-time ventilation in case of mixing and displacement ventilation was investigated in a full scale test room at Aalborg University. In the experiments the temperature efficiency of the ventilation was determined. Based on the previous re-sults a method...... are still hesitant to apply passive cooling techniques. As night-time ventilation is highly dependent on climatic conditions, a method for quantifying the climatic cooling potential was developed and the impact of climate warming was investigated. Although a clear decrease was found, significant potential...... will remain, especially if night-time ventilation is applied in combination with other cooling methods. Building energy simulations showed that the performance of night-time ventilation is also affected by the heat transfer at internal room surfaces, as the cooling effect is very limited for heat transfer...

  16. Design and analysis of new prestressed concrete containment and its passive cooling system for nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tan Xiaoshi; Li Xiaowei; Li Xiaotian; He Shuyan

    2014-01-01

    A new nuclear power plant prestressed concrete containment and its passive cooling system design were proposed for CAP1700 nuclear power plant as an example. The thermal-hydraulic calculation method for the new passive containment cooling system of CAP1700 was introduced and the operating parameters in accident condition were obtained. The result shows that the design of passive containment cooling system for CAP1700 is feasible and can meet the cooling demand in accident condition. Reservoir capacity of tank has a big margin and can be further optimized by calculation. (authors)

  17. A comparative design study of PB-BI cooled reactor cores with forced and natural convection cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Mizuno, Tomoyasu; Enuma, Yasuhiro; Tanji, Mikio

    2003-01-01

    A comparative core design study is performed on Pb-Bi cooled reactors with forced and natural convection (FC and NC) cooling. Major interests of the study are core performance and core safety features. The designed core concepts with nitride fuel achieve reasonable breeding capability. The results of unprotected event analyses such as UTOP and ULOF show that both of concepts have possible features to withstand unprotected events due to negative reactivity feedback by Doppler effect, control rod drive line expansion, etc. These results lead to a conclusion that both of concepts have possible capability as one of future promising core concepts. A FC cooling core concept has more advantage if fuel recycle viewpoint is emphasized. (author)

  18. Study on the Application of Cool Paintings for the Passive Cooling of Existing Buildings in Mediterranean Climates

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    V. Costanzo

    2013-01-01

    Full Text Available Building roofs play a very important role in the energy balance of buildings, especially in summer, when they are hit by a rather high solar irradiance. Depending on the type of finishing layer, roofs can absorb a great amount of heat and reach quite high temperatures on their outermost surface, which determines significant room overheating. However, the use of highly reflectivecool materials can help to maintain low outer surface temperatures; this practice may improve indoor thermal comfort and reduce the cooling energy need during the hot season. This technology is currently well known and widely used in the USA, whilereceiving increasing attention in Europe. In order to investigate the effectiveness of cool roofs as a passive strategy for passive cooling in moderately hot climates, this paper presents the numerical results of a case study based on the dynamic thermal analysis of an existing office building in Catania (southern Italy, Mediterranean area. The results show how the application of a cool paint on the roof can enhance the thermal comfort of the occupants by reducing the operative temperatures of the rooms and to reduce the overall energy needs of the building for space heating and cooling.

  19. Investigations on passive containment cooling; Untersuchungen zur passiven Containmentkuehlung

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knebel, J.U.; Cheng, X.; Neitzel, H.J.; Erbacher, F.J. [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe GmbH Technik und Umwelt (Germany). Inst. fuer Angewandte Thermo- und Fluiddynamik; Hofmann, F. [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe GmbH Technik und Umwelt (Germany). Projekt Nukleare Sicherheitsforschung

    1997-12-31

    The composite containment design for advanced LWRs that has been examined under the PASCO project is a promising design concept for purely passive decay heat removal after a severe accident. The passive cooling processes applied are natural convection and radiative heat transfer. Heat transfer through the latter process removes at an emission coefficient of 0.9 about 50% of the total heat removed via the steel containment, and thus is an essential factor. The heat transferring surfaces must have a high emission coefficient. The sump cooling concept examined under the SUCO project achieves a steady, natural convection-driven flow from the heat source to the heat sink. (orig./CB) [Deutsch] Das im PASCO Programm untersuchte Verbundcontainment fuer zukuenftige Leichtwasserreaktoren ist ein erfolgversprechendes rein passives System zur Nachwaermeabfuhr nach einem schweren Stoerfall. Die passiven Mechanismen der Waermeuebertragung sind Naturkonvektion und Waermestrahlung. Die durch Waermestrahlung uebertragene Waerme betraegt fuer einen Emissionskoeffizienten von 0.9 etwa 50% der insgesamt ueber das Stahl-Containment abgefuehrten Waerme und ist somit von entscheidender Bedeutung fuer die Nachwaermeabfuhr. Fuer die waermeuebertragenden Oberflaechen ist ein hoher Emissionkoeffizient erforderlich. Das im SUCO Programm untersuchte Sumpfkuehlkonzept realisiert eine stabile Naturkonvektionsstroemung zwischen Waermequelle und Waermesenke. (orig./DG)

  20. Heat removal capability of core-catcher with inclined cooling channels

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Suzuki, Y.; Tahara, M.; Kurita, T.; Hamazaki, R.; Morooka, S.

    2009-01-01

    A core-catcher is one of the mitigation systems that provide functions of molten corium cooling and stabilization during a severe accident. Toshiba has been developing a compact core-catcher to be placed at the lower drywell floor in the containment vessel for the next generation BWR as well as near term ABWR. This paper presents the evaluation of heat removal capability of the core-catcher with inclined cooling channels, our verification status and plan. The heat removal capability of the core-catcher is analyzed by using the newly developed two-phase flow analysis code which incorporates drift flux parameters for inclined channels and the CHF correlation obtained from SULTAN tests. Effects of geometrical parameters such as the inclination and the gap size of the cooling channel on the heat removal capability are also evaluated. These results show that the core-catcher has sufficient capability to cool the molten corium during a severe accident. Based on the analysis, it has been shown that the core-catcher has an efficient capability of heat removal to cool the molten corium. (author)

  1. GOTHIC code evaluation of alternative passive containment cooling features

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gavrilas, M.; Todreas, E.N.; Driscoll, M.J.

    1996-01-01

    Reliance on passive cooling has become an important objective in containment design. Several reactor concepts have been set forth, which are equipped with entirely passively cooled containments. However, the problems that have to be overcome in rejecting the entire heat generated by a severe accident in a high-rating reactor (i.e. one with a rating greater than 1200 MW e ) have been found to be substantial and without obvious solutions. The GOTHIC code was verified and modified for containment cooling applications; optimal mesh sizes, computational time steps and applicable heat transfer correlations were examined. The effect of the break location on circulation patterns that develop inside the containment was also evaluated. The GOTHIC code was then employed to assess the effectiveness of several original heat rejection features that make it possible to cool high-rating containments. Two containment concepts were evaluated: one for a 1200 MW e new pressure tube light-water reactor, and one for a 1300 MW e pressurized-water reactor. The effectiveness of various containment configurations that include specific pressure-limiting features has been predicted. The best-performance configurations-worst-case-accident scenarios that were examined yielded peak pressures of less than 0.30 MPa for the 1200 MW e pressure tube light-water reactor, and less than 0.45 MPa for the 1300 MW e pressurized-water reactor. (orig.)

  2. Complete indium-free CW 200W passively cooled high power diode laser array using double-side cooling technology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wang, Jingwei; Zhu, Pengfei; Liu, Hui; Liang, Xuejie; Wu, Dihai; Liu, Yalong; Yu, Dongshan; Zah, Chung-en; Liu, Xingsheng

    2017-02-01

    High power diode lasers have been widely used in many fields. To meet the requirements of high power and high reliability, passively cooled single bar CS-packaged diode lasers must be robust to withstand thermal fatigue and operate long lifetime. In this work, a novel complete indium-free double-side cooling technology has been applied to package passively cooled high power diode lasers. Thermal behavior of hard solder CS-package diode lasers with different packaging structures was simulated and analyzed. Based on these results, the device structure and packaging process of double-side cooled CS-packaged diode lasers were optimized. A series of CW 200W 940nm high power diode lasers were developed and fabricated using hard solder bonding technology. The performance of the CW 200W 940nm high power diode lasers, such as output power, spectrum, thermal resistance, near field, far field, smile, lifetime, etc., is characterized and analyzed.

  3. Emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arai, Kenji; Oikawa, Hirohide.

    1990-01-01

    The device according to this invention can ensure cooling water required for emerency core cooling upon emergence such as abnormally, for example, loss of coolant accident, without using dynamic equipments such as a centrifugal pump or large-scaled tank. The device comprises a pressure accumulation tank containing a high pressure nitrogen gas and cooling water inside, a condensate storage tank, a pressure suppression pool and a jet stream pump. In this device there are disposed a pipeline for guiding cooling water in the pressure accumulation tank as a jetting water to a jetting stream pump, a pipeline for guiding cooling water stored in the condensate storage tank and the pressure suppression pool as pumped water to the jetting pump and, further, a pipeline for guiding the discharged water from the jet stream pump which is a mixed stream of pumped water and jetting water into the reactor pressure vessel. In this constitution, a sufficient amount of water ranging from relatively high pressure to low pressure can be supplied into the reactor pressure vessel, without increasing the size of the pressure accumulation tank. (I.S.)

  4. Efficiency of Passive Utilization of Ground “Cold” in Adaptive Geothermal Heat Pump Heating and Cooling Systems (AGHCS

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Vasilyev G.P.

    2016-01-01

    Full Text Available This article deals with estimating a potential and efficiency of utilization of passive ground “cold” for cooling buildings in climatic conditions of Moscow (Russia. The article presents results of numerical analysis to assess the efficiency of reducing peak cooling loads of the building equipped with AGHCS, through the utilization of natural cold of wells for passive cooling and cold storage in summer at night (off-peak time with its subsequent consumption in the day time, both in passive mode, and with heat pumps. The conclusions of the article set out the basic principles of passive cooling in the design of AGHCS.

  5. Fundamental research on the cooling characteristic of passive containment cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kawakubo, M.; Kikura, H.; Aritomi, M.; Inaba, N.; Yamauchi, T.

    2004-01-01

    The objective of this experimental study is to clarify the heat transfer characteristics of the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) with vertical heat transfer tubes for investigating the influence of non-condensable gas on condensation. Furthermore, hence we obtained new experimental correlation formula to calculate the transients in system temperature and pressure using the simulation program of the PCCS. The research was carried out using a forced circulation experimental loop, which simulates atmosphere inside PCCS with vertical heat transfer tubes if a loss of coolant accident (LOCA) occurs. The experimental facility consists of cooling water supply systems, an orifice flowmeter, and a tank equipped with the heat transfer pipe inside. Cooling water at a constant temperature is injected to the test part of heat transfer pipe vertically installed in the tank by forced circulation. At that time, the temperature of the cooling water between inlet and outlet of the pipe was measured to calculate the overall heat transfer coefficient between the cooling water and atmosphere in the tank. Thus, the heat transfer coefficient between heat transfer surface and the atmosphere in the tank considering the influence of the non-condensable gas was clarified. An important finding of this study is that the amount of condensation in the steamy atmosphere including non-condensable gas depends on the cooling water Reynolds number, especially the concentration of non-condensable gas that has great influence on the amount of condensation. (authors)

  6. Determining passive cooling limits in CPV using an analytical thermal model

    Science.gov (United States)

    Gualdi, Federico; Arenas, Osvaldo; Vossier, Alexis; Dollet, Alain; Aimez, Vincent; Arès, Richard

    2013-09-01

    We propose an original thermal analytical model aiming to predict the practical limits of passive cooling systems for high concentration photovoltaic modules. The analytical model is described and validated by comparison with a commercial 3D finite element model. The limiting performances of flat plate cooling systems in natural convection are then derived and discussed.

  7. Passive ventilation systems with heat recovery and night cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hviid, Christian Anker; Svendsen, Svend

    2008-01-01

    with little energy consumption and with satisfying indoor climate. The concept is based on using passive measures like stack and wind driven ventilation, effective night cooling and low pressure loss heat recovery using two fluid coupled water-to-air heat exchangers developed at the Technical University......In building design the requirements for energy consumption for ventilation, heating and cooling and the requirements for increasingly better indoor climate are two opposing factors. This paper presents the schematic layout and simulation results of an innovative multifunc-tional ventilation concept...... of Denmark. Through building integration in high performance offices the system is optimized to incorporate multiple functions like heating, cooling and ventilation, thus saving the expenses of separate cooling and heating systems. The simulation results are derived using the state-of-the-art building...

  8. Passive radiative cooling below ambient air temperature under direct sunlight.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Raman, Aaswath P; Anoma, Marc Abou; Zhu, Linxiao; Rephaeli, Eden; Fan, Shanhui

    2014-11-27

    Cooling is a significant end-use of energy globally and a major driver of peak electricity demand. Air conditioning, for example, accounts for nearly fifteen per cent of the primary energy used by buildings in the United States. A passive cooling strategy that cools without any electricity input could therefore have a significant impact on global energy consumption. To achieve cooling one needs to be able to reach and maintain a temperature below that of the ambient air. At night, passive cooling below ambient air temperature has been demonstrated using a technique known as radiative cooling, in which a device exposed to the sky is used to radiate heat to outer space through a transparency window in the atmosphere between 8 and 13 micrometres. Peak cooling demand, however, occurs during the daytime. Daytime radiative cooling to a temperature below ambient of a surface under direct sunlight has not been achieved because sky access during the day results in heating of the radiative cooler by the Sun. Here, we experimentally demonstrate radiative cooling to nearly 5 degrees Celsius below the ambient air temperature under direct sunlight. Using a thermal photonic approach, we introduce an integrated photonic solar reflector and thermal emitter consisting of seven layers of HfO2 and SiO2 that reflects 97 per cent of incident sunlight while emitting strongly and selectively in the atmospheric transparency window. When exposed to direct sunlight exceeding 850 watts per square metre on a rooftop, the photonic radiative cooler cools to 4.9 degrees Celsius below ambient air temperature, and has a cooling power of 40.1 watts per square metre at ambient air temperature. These results demonstrate that a tailored, photonic approach can fundamentally enable new technological possibilities for energy efficiency. Further, the cold darkness of the Universe can be used as a renewable thermodynamic resource, even during the hottest hours of the day.

  9. Passive Two-Phase Cooling of Automotive Power Electronics: Preprint

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Moreno, G.; Jeffers, J. R.; Narumanchi, S.; Bennion, K.

    2014-08-01

    Experiments were conducted to evaluate the use of a passive two-phase cooling strategy as a means of cooling automotive power electronics. The proposed cooling approach utilizes an indirect cooling configuration to alleviate some reliability concerns and to allow the use of conventional power modules. An inverter-scale proof-of-concept cooling system was fabricated, and tests were conducted using the refrigerants hydrofluoroolefin HFO-1234yf and hydrofluorocarbon HFC-245fa. Results demonstrated that the system can dissipate at least 3.5 kW of heat with 250 cm3 of HFC-245fa. An advanced evaporator design that incorporates features to improve performance and reduce size was conceived. Simulation results indicate its thermal resistance can be 37% to 48% lower than automotive dual side cooled power modules. Tests were also conducted to measure the thermal performance of two air-cooled condensers--plain and rifled finned tube designs. The results combined with some analysis were then used to estimate the required condenser size per operating conditions and maximum allowable system (i.e., vapor and liquid) temperatures.

  10. Experimental and numerical simulation of passive decay heat removal by sump cooling after cool melt down

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.; Kuhn, D.; Mueller, U.

    1997-01-01

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of passive decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase and two-phase natural circulation. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The above results are applied to the SUCO program that is performed at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. The SUCO program is a three-step series of scaled model experiments investigating the possibility of a sump cooling concept for future light water reactors. The sump cooling concept is based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens AG. The article gives results of temperature and velocity measurements in the 1:20 linearly scaled SUCOS-2D test facility. The experiments are backed up by numerical calculations using the commercial software package Fluent. Finally, using the similarity analysis from above, the experimental results of the model geometry are scaled-up to the conditions in the prototype, allowing a first statement with regard to the feasibility of the sump cooling concept. 11 refs., 9 figs., 3 tabs

  11. Operation method and operation control device for emergency core cooling system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kinoshita, Shoichiro; Takahashi, Toshiyuki; Fujii, Tadashi [Hitachi Ltd., Tokyo (Japan); Mizutani, Akira

    1996-05-07

    The present invention provides a method of reducing continuous load capacity of an emergency cooling system of a BWR type reactor and a device reducing a rated capacity of an emergency power source facility. Namely, the emergency core cooling system comprises a first cooling system having a plurality of power source systems based on a plurality of emergency power sources and a second cooling system having a remaining heat removing function. In this case, when the first cooling system is operated the manual starting under a predetermined condition that an external power source loss event should occur, a power source division different from the first cooling system shares the operation to operate the secondary cooling system simultaneously. Further, the first cooling system is constituted as a high pressure reactor core water injection system and the second cooling system is constituted as a remaining heat removing system. With such a constitution, a high pressure reactor core water injection system for manual starting and a remaining heat removing system of different power source division can be operated simultaneously before automatic operation of the emergency core cooling system upon loss of external power source of a nuclear power plant. (I.S.)

  12. Preliminary Analysis on Heat Removal Capacity of Passive Air-Water Combined Cooling Heat Exchanger Using MARS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Seung-Sin; Jeon, Seong-Su; Hong, Soon-Joon; Bae, Sung-Won; Kwon, Tae-Soon

    2015-01-01

    Current design requirement for working time of PAFS heat exchanger is about 8 hours. Thus, it is not satisfied with the required cooling capability for the long term SBO(Station Black-Out) situation that is required to over 72 hours cooling. Therefore PAFS is needed to change of design for 72 hours cooling. In order to acquirement of long terms cooling using PAFS, heat exchanger tube has to be submerged in water tank for long time. However, water in the tank is evaporated by transferred heat from heat exchanger tubes, so water level is gradually lowered as time goes on. The heat removal capacity of air cooling heat exchanger is core parameter that is used for decision of applicability on passive air-water combined cooling system using PAFS in long term cooling. In this study, the development of MARS input model and plant accident analysis are performed for the prediction of the heat removal capacity of air cooling heat exchanger. From analysis result, it is known that inflow air velocity is the decisive factor of the heat removal capacity and predicted air velocity is lower than required air velocity. But present heat transfer model and predicted air velocity have uncertainty. So, if changed design of PAFS that has over 4.6 kW heat removal capacity in each tube, this type heat exchanger can be applied to long term cooling of the nuclear power plant

  13. Passive cooling of standalone flat PV module with cotton wick structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chandrasekar, M.; Suresh, S.; Senthilkumar, T.; Ganesh karthikeyan, M.

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • A simple passive cooling system is developed for standalone flat PV modules. • 30% Reduction in module temperature is observed with developed cooling system. • 15.61% Increase in output power of PV module is found with developed cooling system. • Module efficiency is increased by 1.4% with cooling arrangement. • Lower thermal degradation due to narrow range of temperature characteristics. - Abstract: In common, PV module converts only 4–17% of the incoming solar radiation into electricity. Thus more than 50% of the incident solar energy is converted as heat and the temperature of PV module is increased. The increase in module temperature in turn decreases the electrical yield and efficiency of the module with a permanent structural damage of the module due to prolonged period of thermal stress (also known as thermal degradation of the module). An effective way of improving efficiency and reducing the rate of thermal degradation of a PV module is to reduce the operating temperature of PV module. This can be achieved by cooling the PV module during operation. Hence in the present work, a simple passive cooling system with cotton wick structures is developed for standalone flat PV modules. The thermal and electrical performance of flat PV module with cooling system consisting of cotton wick structures in combination with water, Al 2 O 3 /water nanofluid and CuO/water nanofluid are investigated experimentally. The experimental results are also compared with the thermal and electrical performance of flat PV module without cooling system

  14. Testing Numerical Models of Cool Core Galaxy Cluster Formation with X-Ray Observations

    Science.gov (United States)

    Henning, Jason W.; Gantner, Brennan; Burns, Jack O.; Hallman, Eric J.

    2009-12-01

    Using archival Chandra and ROSAT data along with numerical simulations, we compare the properties of cool core and non-cool core galaxy clusters, paying particular attention to the region beyond the cluster cores. With the use of single and double β-models, we demonstrate a statistically significant difference in the slopes of observed cluster surface brightness profiles while the cluster cores remain indistinguishable between the two cluster types. Additionally, through the use of hardness ratio profiles, we find evidence suggesting cool core clusters are cooler beyond their cores than non-cool core clusters of comparable mass and temperature, both in observed and simulated clusters. The similarities between real and simulated clusters supports a model presented in earlier work by the authors describing differing merger histories between cool core and non-cool core clusters. Discrepancies between real and simulated clusters will inform upcoming numerical models and simulations as to new ways to incorporate feedback in these systems.

  15. Power maximization method for land-transportable fully passive lead–bismuth cooled small modular reactor systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Cho, Jaehyun, E-mail: chojh@kaeri.re.kr [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, 1405 Daedeok-daero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-353 (Korea, Republic of); Shin, Yong-Hoon; Hwang, Il Soon [Seoul National University, Sillim-dong, Gwanak-gu, Seoul 151-742 (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-08-15

    Highlights: • The power maximization method for LBE natural circulation cooled SMRs was developed. • The two powers in view of neutronics and thermal-hydraulics were considered. • The limitations for designing of LBE natural circulation cooled SMRs were summarized. • The necessary conditions for safety shutdown in accidents were developed. • The maximized power in the case study is 206 MW thermal. - Abstract: Although current pressurized water reactors (PWRs) have significantly contributed to global energy supply, PWR technology has not been considered a trustworthy energy solution owing to its problems of spent nuclear fuels (SNFs), nuclear safety, and nuclear economy. In order to overcome these problems, a lead–bismuth eutectic (LBE) fully passive cooling small modular reactor (SMR) system is suggested. This technology can not only provide the solution for the problems of SNFs through the transmutation feature of the LBE coolant, but also strengthen safety and economy through the concept of natural circulation cooling SMRs. It is necessary to maximize the advantages, namely safety and economy, of this type of nuclear power plants for broader applications in the future. Accordingly, the objective of this study is to maximize the reactor core power while satisfying the limitations of shipping size, materials endurance, and criticality of a long-burning core as well as safety under beyond design basis events. To achieve these objectives, the design limitations of natural circulating LBE-cooling SMRs are derived. Then, the power maximization method is developed based on obtaining the design limitations. The results of this study are expected to contribute to the effectiveness of the reactor design stage by providing insights to designers, as well as by formulating methods for the power maximization of other types of SMRs.

  16. Activities of passive cooling applications and simulation of innovative nuclear power plant design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aglar, F.; Tanrykut, A.

    2002-01-01

    This paper gives a general insight on activities of the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority (TAEA) concerning passive cooling applications and simulation of innovative nuclear power plant design. The condensation mode of heat transfer plays an important role for the passive heat removal application in advanced water-cooled reactor systems. But it is well understood that the presence of noncondesable (NC) gases can greatly inhibit the condensation process due to the build up of NC gas concentration at the liquid/gas interface. The isolation condenser of passive containment cooling system of the simplified boiling water reactors is a typical application area of in-tube condensation in the presence of NC. The test matrix of the experimental investigation undertaken at the METU-CTF test facility (Middle East Technical University, Ankara) covers the range of parameters; Pn (system pressure) : 2-6 bar, Rev (vapor Reynolds number): 45,000-94,000, and Xi (air mass fraction): 0-52%. This experimental study is supplemented by a theoretical investigation concerning the effect of mixture flow rate on film turbulence and air mass diffusion concepts. Recently, TAEA participated to an international standard problem (OECD ISP-42) which covers a set of simulation of PANDA test facility (Paul Scherrer Institut-Switzerland) for six different phases including different natural circulation modes. The concept of condensation in the presence of air plays an important role for performance of heat exchangers, designed for passive containment cooling, which in turn affect the natural circulation behaviour in PANDA systems. (author)

  17. A study of the passive cooling potential in simulated building in Latvian climate conditions

    Science.gov (United States)

    Prozuments, A.; Vanags, I.; Borodinecs, A.; Millers, R.; Tumanova, K.

    2017-10-01

    In this paper authors point out that overheating in buildings during summer season is a major problem in moderate and cold climates, not only in warm climate zones. Mostly caused by solar heat gains, especially in buildings with large glazed areas overheating is a common problem in recently constructed low-energy buildings. At the same time, comfort demands are increasing. While heating loads can be decreased by improving the insulation of the building envelope, cooling loads are also affecting total energy demand. Passive cooling solutions allow reduction of heat gains, and thus reducing the cooling loads. There is a significant night cooling potential with low temperatures at night during summer in moderate and cold climates. Night cooling is based on cooling of buildings thermal mass during the night and heat accumulation during the day. This approach allows to provide thermal comfort, reducing cooling loads during the day. Authors investigate thermal comfort requirements and causes for discomfort. Passive cooling methods are described. The simulation modeling is carried out to analyze impact of constructions and building orientation on energy consumption for cooling using the IDA-ICE software. Main criteria for simulation analysis are energy consumption for cooling and thermal comfort.

  18. Emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abe, Nobuaki.

    1993-01-01

    A reactor comprises a static emergency reactor core cooling system having an automatic depressurization system and a gravitationally dropping type water injection system and a container cooling system by an isolation condenser. A depressurization pipeline of the automatic depressurization system connected to a reactor pressure vessel branches in the midway. The branched depressurizing pipelines are extended into an upper dry well and a lower dry well, in which depressurization valves are disposed at the top end portions of the pipelines respectively. If loss-of-coolant accidents should occur, the depressurization valve of the automatic depressurization system is actuated by lowering of water level in the pressure vessel. This causes nitrogen gases in the upper and the lower dry wells to transfer together with discharged steams effectively to a suppression pool passing through a bent tube. Accordingly, the gravitationally dropping type water injection system can be actuated faster. Further, subsequent cooling for the reactor vessel can be ensured sufficiently by the isolation condenser. (I.N.)

  19. Design and transient analyses of passive emergency feedwater system of CPR1000. Part 1. Air cooling condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhang Yapei; Qiu Suizheng; Su Guanghui; Tian Wenxi; Cao Jianhua; Lu Donghua; Fu Xiangang

    2011-01-01

    The steam generator secondary passive emergency feedwater system is a new design for traditional generation Ⅱ + reactor CPR1000. The passive emergency feedwater system is designed to supply water to the SG shell side and improve the safety and reliability of CPR1000 by completely or partially replacing traditional emergency water cooling system in the event of the feed line break (FLB) or loss of heat sink accident. The passive emergency feedwater system consists of steam generator (SG), heat exchanger (HX), air cooling tower, emergency makeup tank (EMT), and corresponding pipes and valves for air cooling condition. In order to improve the safety and reliability of CPR1000, the model of the primary loop system and the passive emergency feedwater system was developed to investigate residual heat removal capability of the passive emergency feedwater system and the transient characteristics of the primary loop system affected by the passive emergency feedwater system using RELAP5/MOD3.4. The transient characteristics of the primary loop system and the passive emergency feedwater system were calculated in the event of feed line break accident. Sensitivity studies of the passive emergency feedwater system were also conducted to investigate the response of the primary loop and the passive emergency feedwater system on the main parameters of the passive emergency feedwater system. The passive emergency feedwater system could supply water to the SG shell side from the EMT successfully. The calculation results showed that the passive emergency feedwater system could take away the decay heat from the primary loop effectively for air cooling condition, and that the single-phase and two-phase natural circulations were established in the primary loop and passive emergency feedwater system loop, respectively. (author)

  20. ABWR2. Innovative passive containment cooling system for the innovative ABWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Takashi; Matsumoto, Keiji

    2015-01-01

    iB1350 stands for an innovative, intelligent and inexpensive BWR 1350. The iB1350 uses innovative passive containment cooling system (iPCCS). The iPCCS is a part of the in-containment filtered venting system (IFVS). The vent pipe is submerged in the IFVS tank in the outer well (OW) of the Mark W containment. The conventional PCCS has a suction pipe only from the dry well (DW). On the contrary, the iPCCS has two suction pipes. One is normally opened to the wet well (WW) and another normally closed to the DW. The suction pipe in the conventional design cannot be connected to the WW because the PCCS vent pipe is connected to the WW. A PCCS functions using differential pressure between two nodes to discharge noncondensable gases in a PCCS heat exchanger (Hx). A suction pipe and a vent pipe must be connected to different nodes to use differential pressure. Therefore, the conventional PCCS never can cool the S/P. Although the S/P is the in-containment heat sink, heat up of the S/P is the most unfavorable for the conventional PCCS. In order to use the PCCS the conventional design must discharge steam directly into the DW instead of the S/P. Therefore, the conventional PCCS must open depressurization valves (DPV) at a SBO if the isolation condenser (IC) fails. On the contrary, the iPCCS can cool the S/P directly using the suction pipe connected to the WW and without DPV. Instead of DPV the iB1350 has modulating valves (MV) of which discharge lines are submerged in the S/P. Even if the IC fails at a SBO, the iB1350 can cool the core using the severe accident feedwater system (SAFWS), the SRV or the MV, and the iPCCS. The SAFWS makes up the core. The decay heat is carried by steam to the S/P through the SRV or the MV. The S/P works as in-containment heat sink. Once the S/P starts boiling the iPCCS automatically initiates cooling of the steam from the S/P. In the case of a core melt accident, a certain amount of FP is released into the S/P and heats up the S/P. Once the S

  1. Experimental research progress on passive safety systems of Chinese advanced PWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiao Zejun; Zhuo Wenbin; Zheng Hua; Chen Bingde; Zong Guifang; Jia Dounan

    2003-01-01

    TMI and Chernobyl accidents, having pronounced impact on nuclear industries, triggered the governments as well as interested institutions to devote much attention to the safety of nuclear power plant and public's requirements on nuclear power plant safety were also going to be stricter and stricter. It is obvious that safety level of an ordinary light water reactor is no longer satisfactory to these requirements. Recently, the safety authorities have recommended the implementation of passive system to improve the safety of nuclear reactors. Passive safety system is one of the main differences between Chinese advanced PWR and other conventional PWR. The working principle of passive safety system is to utilize the gravity, natural convection (natural circulation) and stored energy to implement the system's safety function. Reactors with passive safety systems are not only safer, but also more economical. The passive safety system of Chinese advanced PWR is composed of three independent systems, i.e. passive containment cooling system, passive residual heat removal system and passive core makeup tank injection system. This paper is a summary of experimental research progress on passive containment cooling system, passive residual heat removal system and passive core makeup tank injection system

  2. A passive emergency heat sink for water-cooled reactors with particular application to CANDU reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spinks, N.J.

    1996-01-01

    Water in an overhead pool can serve as a general-purpose passive emergency heat sink for water-cooled reactors. It can be used for containment cooling, for emergency depressurization of the heat transport-system, or to receive any other emergency heat, such as that from the CANDU moderator. The passive emergency water system provides in-containment depressurization of steam generators and no other provision is needed for supply of low-pressure emergency water to the steam generators. For containment cooling, the pool supplies water to the tube side of elevated tube banks inside containment. The elevation with respect to the reactor heat source maximizes heat transport, by natural convection, of hot containment gases. This effective heat transport combines with the large heat-transfer coefficients of tube banks, to reduce containment overpressure during accidents. Cooled air from the tube banks is directed past the break in the heat-transport system, to facilitate removal of hydrogen using passive catalytic recombiners. (author)

  3. Numerical Study on the Design Concept of an Air-Cooled Condensation Heat Exchanger in a Long-term Passive Cooling System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Myoung Jun; Moon, Joo Hyung; Bae, Youngmin; Kim, Young In; Park, Hyun Sik; Lee, Hee Joon

    2016-01-01

    SMART is the only licensed SMR in the world since the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) issued officially the Standard Design Approval (SDA) on 4 July 2012. Recently, the pre-project engineering (PPE) was officially launched for the construction of SMART and developing human resources capability. Both KAERI and King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A. CARE) will conduct a three-year preliminary study to review the feasibility of building SMART and to prepare for its commercialization. SMART is equipped with passive cooling systems in order to enhance the safety of the reactor. The PRHRS (Passive Residual Heat Removal System) is the major passive safety system, which is actuated after an accident to remove the residual heat and the sensible heat from the RCS (Reactor Coolant System) through the steam generators (SGs) until the safe shutdown condition is reached. In this study, condensing heat transfer correlations in TSCON were validated using experimental data. It was shown that most of the condensation correlation gave satisfactory predictions of the cooling capacity of an-air cooled condensation heat exchanger

  4. Numerical Study on the Design Concept of an Air-Cooled Condensation Heat Exchanger in a Long-term Passive Cooling System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Myoung Jun; Moon, Joo Hyung; Bae, Youngmin; Kim, Young In; Park, Hyun Sik [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Hee Joon [Kookmin University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    SMART is the only licensed SMR in the world since the Nuclear Safety and Security Commission (NSSC) issued officially the Standard Design Approval (SDA) on 4 July 2012. Recently, the pre-project engineering (PPE) was officially launched for the construction of SMART and developing human resources capability. Both KAERI and King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A. CARE) will conduct a three-year preliminary study to review the feasibility of building SMART and to prepare for its commercialization. SMART is equipped with passive cooling systems in order to enhance the safety of the reactor. The PRHRS (Passive Residual Heat Removal System) is the major passive safety system, which is actuated after an accident to remove the residual heat and the sensible heat from the RCS (Reactor Coolant System) through the steam generators (SGs) until the safe shutdown condition is reached. In this study, condensing heat transfer correlations in TSCON were validated using experimental data. It was shown that most of the condensation correlation gave satisfactory predictions of the cooling capacity of an-air cooled condensation heat exchanger.

  5. Experimental analysis of ex-vessel core catcher cooling system performance for EU-APR1400 during severe accident

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Song, K. W.; Park, H. S.; Revankar, S. T. [POSTECH, Pohang (Korea, Republic of); Kim, H. Y. [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    In the coolant channel which has a unique design and large scale flow paths, natural circulation is passively activated by buoyancy driven force. Since two-phase flow behavior in a large scale channel is different from that in a small scale channel, the two-phase flow affecting the cooling capability is difficult to be predicted in the large channel. Therefore, cooling experiment in the core catcher coolant path is necessary. Cooling Experiment - Passive Ex-vessel corium retaining and Cooling System(CE-PECS) is constructed in full scale(in height and width) slice of half prototype. It actually simulates steam-water flow in the coolant channel for different decay heat condition of the corium. In this study, thermal power considering of total amount of decay heat 190 kW which corresponds to 40MW of thermal power in the prototype is loaded on the top wall of the CE-PECS coolant channel. Natural circulation flow rate and pressure drops at the two-phase region are measured in various power level. Temperatures of heater block and working fluid in various position along the flow path enable to calculate heat fluxes and heat transfer coefficients distribution. These results are used for evaluating heat removal capability of core catcher facility. Two-phase natural circulation experiment is carried out in CE-PECS facility. Based on the prototypic condition, 190 kW of total power is supplied to the top of the coolant path. Uniform distribution of heat load on the downward facing heater bock produces -300 kW/m2 at 100 % power ratio. Although the experiment should consider the heat loss and heat flux uniformity, several noticeable conclusions have been made as followings; 1. Mass flow rate and two-phase pressure drop are measured in various power conditions. 2. Slightly inclined top wall at the downstream of the channel shows better heat exchange performance than horizontal top wall because enhanced convection due to the increase of void fraction improves local cooling. This

  6. Investigation of Condensation Heat Transfer Correlation of Heat Exchanger Design in Secondary Passive Cooling System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ju, Yun Jae; Lee, Hee Joon [Kookmin Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Kang, Hanok; Lee, Taeho; Park, Cheontae [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2013-12-15

    Recently, condensation heat exchangers have been studied for applications to the passive cooling systems of nuclear plants. To design vertical-type condensation heat exchangers in secondary passive cooling systems, TSCON (Thermal Sizing of CONdenser), a thermal sizing program for a condensation heat exchanger, was developed at KAERI (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute). In this study, the existing condensation heat transfer correlation of TSCON was evaluated using 1,157 collected experimental data points from the heat exchanger of a secondary passive cooling system for the case of pure steam condensation. The investigation showed that the Shah correlation, published in 2009, provided the most satisfactory results for the heat transfer coefficient with a mean absolute error of 34.8%. It is suggested that the Shah correlation is appropriate for designing a condensation heat exchanger in TSCON.

  7. COMMIX analysis of AP-600 Passive Containment Cooling System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang, J.F.C.; Chien, T.H.; Ding, J.; Sun, J.G.; Sha, W.T.

    1992-01-01

    COMMIX modeling and basic concepts that relate components, i.e., containment, water film cooling, and natural draft air flow systems. of the AP-600 Passive Containment Cooling System are discussed. The critical safety issues during a postulated accident have been identified as (1) maintaining the liquid film outside the steel containment vessel, (2) ensuring the natural convection in the air annulus. and (3) quantifying both heat and mass transfer accurately for the system. The lack of appropriate heat and mass transfer models in the present analysis is addressed. and additional assessment and validation of the proposed models is proposed

  8. Two types of a passive safety containment for a near future BWR with active and passive safety systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Takashi; Akinaga, Makoto; Kojima, Yoshihiro

    2009-01-01

    The paper presents two types of a passive safety containment for a near future BWR. They are named Mark S and Mark X containment. One of their common merits is very low peak pressure at severe accidents without venting the containment atmosphere to the environment. The PCV pressure can be moderated within the design pressure. Another merit is the capability to submerge the PCV and the RPV above the core level. The third merit is robustness against external events such as a large commercial airplane crash. Both the containments have a passive cooling core catcher that has radial cooling channels. The Mark S containment is made of reinforced concrete and applicable to a large power BWR up to 1830 MWe. The Mark X containment has the steel secondary containment and can be cooled by natural circulation of outside air. It can accommodate a medium power BWR up to 1380 MWe. In both cases the plants have active and passive safety systems constituting in-depth hybrid safety (IDHS). The IDHS provides not only hardware diversity between active and passive safety systems but also more importantly diversity of the ultimate heat sinks between the atmosphere and the sea water. Although the plant concept discussed in the paper uses well-established technology, plant performance including economy is innovatively and evolutionally improved. Nothing is new in the hardware but everything is new in the performance.

  9. Two types of a passive safety containment for a near future BWR with active and passive safety systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sato, Takashi [Toshiba Corporation, IEC, Gen-SS, 8, Shinsugita-ho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama (Japan)], E-mail: takashi44.sato@glb.toshiba.co.jp; Akinaga, Makoto; Kojima, Yoshihiro [Toshiba Corporation, IEC, Gen-SS, 8, Shinsugita-ho, Isogo-ku, Yokohama (Japan)

    2009-09-15

    The paper presents two types of a passive safety containment for a near future BWR. They are named Mark S and Mark X containment. One of their common merits is very low peak pressure at severe accidents without venting the containment atmosphere to the environment. The PCV pressure can be moderated within the design pressure. Another merit is the capability to submerge the PCV and the RPV above the core level. The third merit is robustness against external events such as a large commercial airplane crash. Both the containments have a passive cooling core catcher that has radial cooling channels. The Mark S containment is made of reinforced concrete and applicable to a large power BWR up to 1830 MWe. The Mark X containment has the steel secondary containment and can be cooled by natural circulation of outside air. It can accommodate a medium power BWR up to 1380 MWe. In both cases the plants have active and passive safety systems constituting in-depth hybrid safety (IDHS). The IDHS provides not only hardware diversity between active and passive safety systems but also more importantly diversity of the ultimate heat sinks between the atmosphere and the sea water. Although the plant concept discussed in the paper uses well-established technology, plant performance including economy is innovatively and evolutionally improved. Nothing is new in the hardware but everything is new in the performance.

  10. Controlling indoor climate. Passive cooling of residential buildings in hot-humid climates in China

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Zhiwu, Wang

    1996-10-01

    Overheating is a paramount problem in residential buildings in hot and humid climates in China during summer. This study aims to deal with the overheating problem and the problem of poor air quality in dwellings. The main objective is to improve indoor thermal conditions by passive cooling approaches, climatisation techniques in buildings without auxiliary cooling from air conditioning equipment. This thesis focuses on the study of cross-ventilation in apartments, which is one of the most effective ways of natural cooling in a hot humid climate, but is also one of the least understood parts in controlling indoor climate. The Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) technique is used, which is a new approach, since cross-ventilation studies have been conventionally made by wind tunnel tests. The validations of the CFD technique are examined by a comparison between wind tunnel tests and computer simulations. The factors influencing indoor air movement are investigated for a single room. Cross-ventilation in two apartments is studied, and the air change efficiency in a Chinese kitchen is calculated with CFD techniques. The thermal performance of ventilated roofs, a simple and widely used type of roof in the region, is specially addressed by means of a full-scale measurement, wind tunnel tests and computer simulations. An integrated study of passive cooling approaches and factors affecting indoor thermal comfort is carried out through a case study in a southern Chinese city, Guangzhou. This thesis demonstrates that passive cooling measure have a high potential in significantly improving indoor thermal conditions during summer. This study also gives discussions and conclusions on the evaluation of indoor thermal environment; effects influencing cross-ventilation in apartments; design guidelines for ventilated roofs and an integrated study of passive cooling. 111 refs, 83 figs, 65 tabs

  11. James Webb Space Telescope Core 2 Test - Cryogenic Thermal Balance Test of the Observatorys Core Area Thermal Control Hardware

    Science.gov (United States)

    Cleveland, Paul; Parrish, Keith; Thomson, Shaun; Marsh, James; Comber, Brian

    2016-01-01

    The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), successor to the Hubble Space Telescope, will be the largest astronomical telescope ever sent into space. To observe the very first light of the early universe, JWST requires a large deployed 6.5-meter primary mirror cryogenically cooled to less than 50 Kelvin. Three scientific instruments are further cooled via a large radiator system to less than 40 Kelvin. A fourth scientific instrument is cooled to less than 7 Kelvin using a combination pulse-tube Joule-Thomson mechanical cooler. Passive cryogenic cooling enables the large scale of the telescope which must be highly folded for launch on an Ariane 5 launch vehicle and deployed once on orbit during its journey to the second Earth-Sun Lagrange point. Passive cooling of the observatory is enabled by the deployment of a large tennis court sized five layer Sunshield combined with the use of a network of high efficiency radiators. A high purity aluminum heat strap system connects the three instrument's detector systems to the radiator systems to dissipate less than a single watt of parasitic and instrument dissipated heat. JWST's large scale features, while enabling passive cooling, also prevent the typical flight configuration fully-deployed thermal balance test that is the keystone of most space missions' thermal verification plans. This paper describes the JWST Core 2 Test, which is a cryogenic thermal balance test of a full size, high fidelity engineering model of the Observatory's 'Core' area thermal control hardware. The 'Core' area is the key mechanical and cryogenic interface area between all Observatory elements. The 'Core' area thermal control hardware allows for temperature transition of 300K to approximately 50 K by attenuating heat from the room temperature IEC (instrument electronics) and the Spacecraft Bus. Since the flight hardware is not available for test, the Core 2 test uses high fidelity and flight-like reproductions.

  12. A study of passive safety conditions for fast reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shimizu, Akinao

    1991-01-01

    A study has been made for passive safety conditions of fast reactor cores. Objective of the study is to develop a concept of a core with passive safety as well as a simple safety philosophy. A simple safety philosophy, which is wore easy to explain to the public, is needed to enhance the public acceptance for nuclear reactors. The present paper describes a conceptual plan of the study including the definition of the problem a method of approach and identification of tasks to be solved

  13. Design Requirements of an Advanced HANARO Reactor Core Cooling System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Yong Chul; Ryu, Jeong Soo

    2007-12-01

    An advanced HANARO Reactor (AHR) is an open-tank-type and generates thermal power of 20 MW and is under conceptual design phase for developing it. The thermal power is including a core fission heat, a temporary stored fuel heat in the pool, a pump heat and a neutron reflecting heat in the reflector vessel of the reactor. In order to remove the heat load, the reactor core cooling system is composed of a primary cooling system, a primary cooling water purification system and a reflector cooling system. The primary cooling system must remove the heat load including the core fission heat, the temporary stored fuel heat in the pool and the pump heat. The purification system must maintain the quality of the primary cooling water. And the reflector cooling system must remove the neutron reflecting heat in the reflector vessel of the reactor and maintain the quality of the reflector. In this study, the design requirement of each system has been carried out using a design methodology of the HANARO within a permissible range of safety. And those requirements are written by english intend to use design data for exporting the research reactor

  14. A passive cooling system proposal for multifunction and high-power displays

    Science.gov (United States)

    Tari, Ilker

    2013-03-01

    Flat panel displays are conventionally cooled by internal natural convection, which constrains the possible rate of heat transfer from the panel. On one hand, during the last few years, the power consumption and the related cooling requirement for 1080p displays have decreased mostly due to energy savings by the switch to LED backlighting and more efficient electronics. However, on the other hand, the required cooling rate recently started to increase with new directions in the industry such as 3D displays, and ultra-high-resolution displays (recent 4K announcements and planned introduction of 8K). In addition to these trends in display technology itself, there is also a trend to integrate consumer entertainment products into displays with the ultimate goal of designing a multifunction device replacing the TV, the media player, the PC, the game console and the sound system. Considering the increasing power requirement for higher fidelity in video processing, these multifunction devices tend to generate very high heat fluxes, which are impossible to dissipate with internal natural convection. In order to overcome this obstacle, instead of active cooling with forced convection that comes with drawbacks of noise, additional power consumption, and reduced reliability, a passive cooling system relying on external natural convection and radiation is proposed here. The proposed cooling system consists of a heat spreader flat heat pipe and aluminum plate-finned heat sink with anodized surfaces. For this system, the possible maximum heat dissipation rates from the standard size panels (in 26-70 inch range) are estimated by using our recently obtained heat transfer correlations for the natural convection from aluminum plate-finned heat sinks together with the surface-to-surface radiation. With the use of the proposed passive cooling system, the possibility of dissipating very high heat rates is demonstrated, hinting a promising green alternative to active cooling.

  15. Core Seismic Tests for a Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Koo, Gyeong Hoi; Lee, J. H

    2007-01-15

    This report describes the results of the comparison of the core seismic responses between the test and the analysis for the reduced core mock-up of a sodium-cooled fast reactor to verify the FAMD (Fluid Added Mass and Damping) code and SAC-CORE (Seismic Analysis Code for CORE) code, which implement the application algorithm of a consistent fluid added mass matrix including the coupling terms. It was verified that the narrow fluid gaps between the duct assemblies significantly affect the dynamic characteristics of the core duct assemblies and it becomes stronger as a number of duct increases within a certain level. As conclusion, from the comparison of the results between the tests and the analyses, it is verified that the FAMD code and the SAC-CORE code can give an accurate prediction of a complex core seismic behavior of the sodium-cooled fast reactor.

  16. A Simple Fully Passive Safety Option for SMART SBLOCA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Won Jae

    2012-01-01

    SMART reactor, an integral pressurized water reactor (iPWR), is developed by KAERI and now under standard design licensing review. Integral reactor design of the SMART has small diameter penetrations below 2 inches at upper parts of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and the core is located at very lower part. Amount of reactor coolant inventory is around 0.55tons/MWth during normal operations, which is seven times more than that of conventional PWRs. Such intrinsic safety features of the SMART can provide prolonged core cooling during a small-break loss-of-coolant accident (SBLOCA). As an engineered safety feature for SBLOCA, electrically two-train and mechanically four-train active safety injection (SI) systems are provided to refill the RPV, whose safety been proven through safety analysis and experiments. In addition, four-train passive residual heat removal systems (PRHRSs) are provided to remove core decay heat by natural circulation in the secondary side of steam generators during transient and accident conditions. After Fukushima disaster, a passive safety of nuclear power plants has become more emphasized than conventional active safety, even though there are still debates whether it can really insure the realistic safety. Passive safety is defined such that the core safety is ensured for 72 hours after accidents without any active safety systems and operator actions. In light of this, a simple fully passive safety option for SBLOCA is proposed: low-pressure safety injection tanks (SITs) and heat pipes submerged in the PRHRS emergency coolant tanks (ECTs). Post-LOCA long-term cooling after 72 hours is provided by sump recirculation using shutdown cooling system. Realistic analysis method using MARS3.1 is used to derive fully passive safety option, and then to screen design and operating parameters and to demonstrate the safety performance of SITs. SI line break is selected as a reference SBLOCA scenario

  17. Passive cooling applications for nuclear power plants using pulsating steam-water heat pipes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Aparna, J.; Chandraker, D.K.

    2015-01-01

    Gen IV reactors incorporate passive principles in their system design as an important safety philosophy. Passive safety systems use inherent physical phenomena for delivering the desired safe action without any external inputs or intrusion. The accidents in Fukushima have renewed the focus on passive self-manageable systems capable of unattended operation, for long hours even in extended station blackout (SBO) and severe accident conditions. Generally, advanced reactors use water or atmospheric air as their ultimate heat sink and employ passive principles in design for enhanced safety. This paper would be discussing the experimental results on pulsating steam water heat-pipe devices and their applications in passive cooling. (author)

  18. Development and testing of passive autocatalytic recombiners cooled by heat pipes; Entwicklung und Erprobung mittels Heatpipe gekuehlter katalytischer Rekombinatoren

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Granzow, Christoph

    2012-11-26

    A severe accident in a nuclear power plant (NPP) can lead to core damage in conjunction with the release of large amounts of hydrogen. As hydrogen mitigation measure, passive autocatalytic recombiners (PARs) are used in today's pressurized water reactors. PARs recombine hydrogen and oxygen contained in the air to steam. The heat from this exothermic reaction causes the catalyst and its surroundings to heat up. If parts of the PAR heat up above the ignition temperature of the gas mixture, a spontaneous deflagration or detonation can occur. The aim of this work is the prevention of such high temperatures by means of passive cooling of the catalyst with heat pipes. Heat pipes are completely passive heat exchanger with a very high effective thermal conductivity. For a deeper understanding of the reaction kinetics at lower temperatures, single catalytic coated heat pipes are studied in a flow reactor. The development of a modular small-scale PAR model is then based on a test series with cooled catalyst sheets. Finally, the PAR model is tested inside a pressure vessel under boundary conditions similar to a real NPP. The experiments show, that the temperatures of the cooled catalytic sheets stay significantly below the temperature of the uncooled sheets and below the ignition temperature of the gas mixture under any set boundary conditions, although no significant reduction of the conversion efficiency can be observed. As a last point, a mathematical model of the reaction kinetics of the recombination process as well as a model of the fluid dynamic and thermohydraulic processes in a heat pipe are developed with the data obtained from the experiments.

  19. 78 FR 64027 - Preoperational Testing of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for Pressurized-Water Reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-10-25

    ... comments were received. A companion guide, DG-1277, ``Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2011-0129] Preoperational Testing of Emergency Core Cooling... (RG), 1.79, ``Preoperational Testing of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for Pressurized-Water Reactors...

  20. A lab-based study of subground passive cooling system for indoor temperature control

    Science.gov (United States)

    Chok, Mun-Hong; Chan, Chee-Ming

    2017-11-01

    Passive cooling is an alternative cooling technique which helps to reduce high energy consumption. Respectively, dredged marine soil (DMS) is either being dumped or disposed as waste materials. Dredging works had resulted high labor cost, therefore reuse DMS as to fill it along the coastal area. In this study, DMS chosen to examine the effectiveness of passive cooling system by model tests. Soil characterization were carried out according to BS1377: Part 2: 1990. Model were made into scale of 3 cm to 1 m. Heat exchange unit consists of three pipe designs namely, parallel, ramp and spiral. Preliminary tests including flow rate test and soil sample selection were done to select the best heat exchange unit to carry out the model test. Model test is classified into 2 conditions, day and night, each condition consists of 4 configurations which the temperature results are determined. The result shows that window left open and fan switched on (WO/FO) recorded the most effective cooling effects, from 29 °C to 27 °C with drop of 6.9 %.

  1. Reactor core cooling device for nuclear power plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tsuda, Masahiko.

    1992-01-01

    The present invention concerns a reactor core cooling facility upon rupture of pipelines in a BWR type nuclear power plant. That is, when rupture of pipelines should occur in the reactor container, an releasing safety valve operates instantly and then a depressurization valve operates to depressurize the inside of a reactor pressure vessel. Further, an injection valve of cooling water injection pipelines is opened and cooling water is injected to cool the reactor core from the time when the pressure is lowered to a level capable of injecting water to the pressure vessel by the static water head of a pool water as a water source. Further, steams released from the pressure vessel and steams in the pressure vessel are condensed in a high pressure/low pressure emergency condensation device and the inside of the reactor container is depressurized and cooled. When the reactor is isolated, since the steams in the pressure vessel are condensed in the state that the steam supply valve and the return valve of a steam supply pipelines are opened and a vent valve is closed, the reactor can be maintained safely. (I.S.)

  2. Method of injecting cooling water in emergency core cooling system (ECCS) of PWR type reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sobajima, Makoto; Adachi, Michihiro; Tasaka, Kanji; Suzuki, Mitsuhiro.

    1979-01-01

    Purpose: To provide a cooling water injection method in an ECCS, which can perform effective cooling of the reactor core. Method: In a method of injecting cooling water in an ECCS as a countermeasure against a rupture accident of a pwr type reactor, cooling water in the first pressure storage injection system is injected into the upper plenum of the reactor pressure vessel at a set pressure of from 50 to 90 atg. and a set temperature of from 80 to 200 0 C, cooling water in the second pressure storage injection system is injected into the lower plenum of the reactor pressure vessel at a pressure of from 25 to 60 atg. which is lower than the set pressure and a temperature less than 60 0 C, and further in combination with these procedures, cooling water of less than 60 0 C is injected into a high-temperature side piping, in the high-pressure injection system of upstroke of 100 atg. by means of a pump and the low-pressure injection system of upstroke of 20 atg. also by means of a pump, thereby cooling the reactor core. (Aizawa, K.)

  3. An experimental investigation of natural circulated air flow in the passive containment cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ryu, S.H.; Oh, S.M.; Park, G.C.

    2004-01-01

    The objective of this study is to investigate the effects of air inlet position and external conditions on the natural circulated air flow rate in a passive containment cooling system of the advanced passive reactor. Experiments have been performed with 1/36 scaled segment type passive containment test facility. The air velocities and temperatures are measured through the air flow path. Also, the experimental results are compared with numerical calculations and show good agreement. (author)

  4. Scaling for Mixed Convection Heat Transfer in Passive Containments and Experiment Design

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang, Shengfei; Yu, Yu; Lv, Xuefeng; Niu, Fenglei; Yan, Xiuping

    2012-01-01

    Most of the advanced nuclear reactor design utilizes passive systems to remove heat from the core by natural circulation. The passive systems will be widely used in generation III pressurized water reactor. One of the typical passive systems is passive containment cooling system (PCCS), which is a passive condenser system designed to remove heat from the containment for long term cooling after a postulated reactor accident. In order to establish empirical correlations and develop simulation models, a scaling analysis is performed in designing an experiment for the prototype PCCS. This paper presents a scaling method and the design of the experimental facility. The key dimensionless parameters governing the dominant processes are given at last

  5. Core test reactor shield cooling system analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Larson, E.M.; Elliott, R.D.

    1971-01-01

    System requirements for cooling the shield within the vacuum vessel for the core test reactor are analyzed. The total heat to be removed by the coolant system is less than 22,700 Btu/hr, with an additional 4600 Btu/hr to be removed by the 2-inch thick steel plate below the shield. The maximum temperature of the concrete in the shield can be kept below 200 0 F if the shield plug walls are kept below 160 0 F. The walls of the two ''donut'' shaped shield segments, which are cooled by the water from the shield and vessel cooling system, should operate below 95 0 F. The walls of the center plug, which are cooled with nitrogen, should operate below 100 0 F. (U.S.)

  6. A passive emergency heat sink for water cooled reactors with particular application to CANDU reg-sign reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Spinks, N.J.

    1996-01-01

    Water in an overhead pool can serve as a general-purpose passive emergency heat sink for water-cooled reactors. It can be used for containment cooling, for emergency depressurization of the heat transport-system, or to receive any other emergency heat, such as that from the CANDU reg-sign moderator. The passive emergency water system provides in-containment depressurization of steam generators and no other provision is needed for supply of low-pressure emergency water to the steam generators. For containment cooling, the pool supplies water to the tube side of elevated tube banks inside containment. The elevation with respect to the reactor heat source maximizes heat transport, by natural convection, of hot containment gases. This effective heat transport combines with the large heat-transfer coefficients of tube banks, to reduce containment overpressure during accidents. Cooled air from the tube banks is directed past the break in the heat-transport system, to facilitate removal of hydrogen using passive catalytic recombiners

  7. Passive cryogenic cooling of electrooptics with a heat pipe/radiator.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nelson, B E; Goldstein, G A

    1974-09-01

    The current status of the heat pipe is discussed with particular emphasis on applications to cryogenic thermal control. The competitive nature of the passive heat pipe/radiator system is demonstrated through a comparative study with other candidate systems for a 1-yr mission. The mission involves cooling a spaceborne experiment to 100 K while it dissipates 10 W.

  8. Conceptual core designs for a 1200 MWe sodium cooled fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Joo, H. K.; Lee, K. B.; Yoo, J. W.; Kim, Y. I.

    2008-01-01

    The conceptual core design for a 1200 MWe sodium cooled fast reactor is being developed under the framework of the Gen-IV SFR development program. To this end, three core concepts have been tested during the development of a core concept: a core with an enrichment split fuel, a core with a single-enrichment fuel with a region-wise varying clad thickness, and a core with a single-enrichment fuel with non-fuel rods. In order to optimize a conceptual core configuration which satisfies the design targets, a sensitivity study of the core design parameters has been performed. Two core concepts, the core with an enrichment-split fuel and the core with a single-enrichment fuel with a region-wise varying clad thickness, have been proposed as the candidates of the conceptual core for a 1200 MWe sodium cooled fast reactor. The detailed core neutronic, fuel behavior, thermal, and safety analyses will be performed for the proposed candidate core concepts to finalize the core design concept. (authors)

  9. Testing the Large-scale Environments of Cool-core and Non-cool-core Clusters with Clustering Bias

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Medezinski, Elinor; Battaglia, Nicholas; Cen, Renyue; Gaspari, Massimo; Strauss, Michael A.; Spergel, David N. [Department of Astrophysical Sciences, 4 Ivy Lane, Princeton, NJ 08544 (United States); Coupon, Jean, E-mail: elinorm@astro.princeton.edu [Department of Astronomy, University of Geneva, ch. dEcogia 16, CH-1290 Versoix (Switzerland)

    2017-02-10

    There are well-observed differences between cool-core (CC) and non-cool-core (NCC) clusters, but the origin of this distinction is still largely unknown. Competing theories can be divided into internal (inside-out), in which internal physical processes transform or maintain the NCC phase, and external (outside-in), in which the cluster type is determined by its initial conditions, which in turn leads to different formation histories (i.e., assembly bias). We propose a new method that uses the relative assembly bias of CC to NCC clusters, as determined via the two-point cluster-galaxy cross-correlation function (CCF), to test whether formation history plays a role in determining their nature. We apply our method to 48 ACCEPT clusters, which have well resolved central entropies, and cross-correlate with the SDSS-III/BOSS LOWZ galaxy catalog. We find that the relative bias of NCC over CC clusters is b = 1.42 ± 0.35 (1.6 σ different from unity). Our measurement is limited by the small number of clusters with core entropy information within the BOSS footprint, 14 CC and 34 NCC clusters. Future compilations of X-ray cluster samples, combined with deep all-sky redshift surveys, will be able to better constrain the relative assembly bias of CC and NCC clusters and determine the origin of the bimodality.

  10. Testing the Large-scale Environments of Cool-core and Non-cool-core Clusters with Clustering Bias

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Medezinski, Elinor; Battaglia, Nicholas; Cen, Renyue; Gaspari, Massimo; Strauss, Michael A.; Spergel, David N.; Coupon, Jean

    2017-01-01

    There are well-observed differences between cool-core (CC) and non-cool-core (NCC) clusters, but the origin of this distinction is still largely unknown. Competing theories can be divided into internal (inside-out), in which internal physical processes transform or maintain the NCC phase, and external (outside-in), in which the cluster type is determined by its initial conditions, which in turn leads to different formation histories (i.e., assembly bias). We propose a new method that uses the relative assembly bias of CC to NCC clusters, as determined via the two-point cluster-galaxy cross-correlation function (CCF), to test whether formation history plays a role in determining their nature. We apply our method to 48 ACCEPT clusters, which have well resolved central entropies, and cross-correlate with the SDSS-III/BOSS LOWZ galaxy catalog. We find that the relative bias of NCC over CC clusters is b = 1.42 ± 0.35 (1.6 σ different from unity). Our measurement is limited by the small number of clusters with core entropy information within the BOSS footprint, 14 CC and 34 NCC clusters. Future compilations of X-ray cluster samples, combined with deep all-sky redshift surveys, will be able to better constrain the relative assembly bias of CC and NCC clusters and determine the origin of the bimodality.

  11. Spitzer mid-infrared spectra of cool-core galaxy clusters

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    de Messières, G.E.; O'Connell, R.W.; McNamara, B.R.; Donahue, M.; Nulsen, P.E.J.; Voit, G.M.; Wise, M.W.; Smith, B.; Higdon, J.; Higdon, S.; Bastian, N.

    2010-01-01

    We have obtained mid-infrared spectra of nine cool-core galaxy clusters with the Infrared Spectrograph aboard the Spitzer Space Telescope. X-ray, ultraviolet and optical observations have demonstrated that each of these clusters hosts a cooling flow which seems to be fueling vigorous star formation

  12. Status of the full scale component testing of the KERENA TM emergency condenser and Containment Cooling Condenser

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leyer, S.; Maisberger, F.; Herbst, V.; Doll, M.; Wich, M.; Wagner, T.

    2010-01-01

    KERENA TM (SWR1000) is an innovative boiling water reactor concept with passive safety systems. In order to verify the functionality of the passive components required for the transient and accident management, the test facility INKA (Integral-Versuchstand Karlstein) is build in Karlstein (Germany). The key elements of the KERENA TM passive safety concept -the Emergency Condenser, the Containment Cooling Condenser, the Passive Core Flooding System and the Passive Pressure Pulse Transmitter - will be tested at INKA. The Emergency Condenser system transfers heat from the reactor pressure vessel to the core flooding pools of the containment. The heat introduced into the containment during accidents will be transferred to the main heat sink for passive accident management (Shielding/Storage Pool) via the Containment Cooling Condensers. Therefore both systems are part of the passive cooling chain connecting the heat source RPV (Reactor Pressure Vessel) with the heat sink. At the INKA test facility both condensers are tested in full scale setup, in order to determine the heat transfer capacity as function of the main input parameters. For the EC these are the RPV pressure, the RPV water level, the containment pressure and the water temperature of the flooding pools. For the Containment Cooling Condenser the heat transfer capacity is a function of the containment pressure, the water temperature of the Shielding/Storage Pool and the fraction of non -condensable gases in the containment. The status of the test program and the available test data will be presented. An outlook of the future test of the passive core flooding system and the integral system test including also the passive pressure pulse transmitter will be given. (authors)

  13. LOCA analysis of SCWR-M with passive safety system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Liu, X.J., E-mail: xiaojingliu@sjtu.edu.cn [School of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dong Chuan Road, Shanghai 200240 (China); Fu, S.W. [Navy University of Engineering, Wuhan, Hubei (China); Xu, Z.H. [Shanghai Nuclear Engineering Research and Design Institute, Shanghai (China); Yang, Y.H. [School of Nuclear Science and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, 800 Dong Chuan Road, Shanghai 200240 (China); Cheng, X. [Institute of Fusion and Nuclear Technology, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Kaiserstr. 12, 76131 Karlsruhe (Germany)

    2013-06-15

    Highlights: • Application of the ATHLET-SC code to the trans-critical analysis for SCWR. • Development of a passive safety system for SCWR-M. • Analysis of hot/cold leg LOCA behaviour with different break size. • Introduction of some mitigation measures for SCWR-M -- Abstract: A new SCWR conceptual design (mixed spectrum supercritical water cooled reactor: SCWR-M) is proposed by Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU). R and D activities covering core design, safety system design and code development of SCWR-M are launched at SJTU. Safety system design and analysis is one of the key tasks during the development of SCWR-M. Considering the current advanced reactor design, a new passive safety system for SCWR-M including isolation cooling system (ICS), accumulator injection system (ACC), gravity driven cooling system (GDCS) and automatic depressurization system (ADS) is proposed. Based on the modified and preliminarily assessed system code ATHLET-SC, loss of coolant accident (LOCA) analysis for hot and cold leg is performed in this paper. Three different break sizes are analyzed to clarify the hot and cold LOCA characteristics of the SCWR-M. The influence of the break location and break size on the safety performance of SCWR-M is also concluded. Several measures to induce the core coolant flow and to mitigate core heating up are also discussed. The results achieved so far demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed passive safety system to keep the SCWR-M core at safety condition during loss of coolant accident.

  14. Evaluation of advanced cooling therapy's esophageal cooling device for core temperature control.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Naiman, Melissa; Shanley, Patrick; Garrett, Frank; Kulstad, Erik

    2016-05-01

    Managing core temperature is critical to patient outcomes in a wide range of clinical scenarios. Previous devices designed to perform temperature management required a trade-off between invasiveness and temperature modulation efficiency. The Esophageal Cooling Device, made by Advanced Cooling Therapy (Chicago, IL), was developed to optimize warming and cooling efficiency through an easy and low risk procedure that leverages heat transfer through convection and conduction. Clinical data from cardiac arrest, fever, and critical burn patients indicate that the Esophageal Cooling Device performs very well both in terms of temperature modulation (cooling rates of approximately 1.3°C/hour, warming of up to 0.5°C/hour) and maintaining temperature stability (variation around goal temperature ± 0.3°C). Physicians have reported that device performance is comparable to the performance of intravascular temperature management techniques and superior to the performance of surface devices, while avoiding the downsides associated with both.

  15. Optimal design of passive containment cooling system for innovative PWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, Huiun; Lee, Sang Won; Kim, Hangon

    2017-01-01

    Using the Generation of Thermal-Hydraulic Information for Containments (GOTHIC) code, thermal-hydraulic phenomena that occur inside the containment have been investigated, along with the preliminary design of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) of an innovative pressurized water reactor (PWR). A GOTHIC containment model was constructed with reference to the design data of the Advanced Power Reactor 1400, and report related PCCS. The effects of the design parameters were evaluated for passive containment cooling tank (PCCT) geometry, PCCS heat exchanger (PCCX) location, and surface area. The analyzed results, obtained using the single PCCT, showed that repressurization and reheating phenomena had occurred. To resolve these problems, a coupled PCCT concept was suggested and was found to continually decrease the containment pressure and temperature without repressurization and reheating. If the installation level of the PCCX is higher than that of the PCCT, it may affect the PCCS performance. Additionally, it was confirmed that various means of increasing the external surface area of the PCCX, such as fins, could help improve the energy removal performance of the PCCS. To improve the PCCS design and investigate its performance, further studies are needed

  16. Optimal design of passive containment cooling system for innovative PWR

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Huiun Ha

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available Using the Generation of Thermal-Hydraulic Information for Containments (GOTHIC code, thermal-hydraulic phenomena that occur inside the containment have been investigated, along with the preliminary design of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS of an innovative pressurized water reactor (PWR. A GOTHIC containment model was constructed with reference to the design data of the Advanced Power Reactor 1400, and report related PCCS. The effects of the design parameters were evaluated for passive containment cooling tank (PCCT geometry, PCCS heat exchanger (PCCX location, and surface area. The analyzed results, obtained using the single PCCT, showed that repressurization and reheating phenomena had occurred. To resolve these problems, a coupled PCCT concept was suggested and was found to continually decrease the containment pressure and temperature without repressurization and reheating. If the installation level of the PCCX is higher than that of the PCCT, it may affect the PCCS performance. Additionally, it was confirmed that various means of increasing the external surface area of the PCCX, such as fins, could help improve the energy removal performance of the PCCS. To improve the PCCS design and investigate its performance, further studies are needed.

  17. Optimal design of passive containment cooling system for innovative PWR

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ha, Huiun; Lee, Sang Won; Kim, Hangon [Central Research Institute, Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power, Ltd., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2017-08-15

    Using the Generation of Thermal-Hydraulic Information for Containments (GOTHIC) code, thermal-hydraulic phenomena that occur inside the containment have been investigated, along with the preliminary design of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) of an innovative pressurized water reactor (PWR). A GOTHIC containment model was constructed with reference to the design data of the Advanced Power Reactor 1400, and report related PCCS. The effects of the design parameters were evaluated for passive containment cooling tank (PCCT) geometry, PCCS heat exchanger (PCCX) location, and surface area. The analyzed results, obtained using the single PCCT, showed that repressurization and reheating phenomena had occurred. To resolve these problems, a coupled PCCT concept was suggested and was found to continually decrease the containment pressure and temperature without repressurization and reheating. If the installation level of the PCCX is higher than that of the PCCT, it may affect the PCCS performance. Additionally, it was confirmed that various means of increasing the external surface area of the PCCX, such as fins, could help improve the energy removal performance of the PCCS. To improve the PCCS design and investigate its performance, further studies are needed.

  18. Passive Decay Heat Removal System Options for S-CO2 Cooled Micro Modular Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moon, Jangsik; Jeong, Yong Hoon; Lee, Jeong Ik

    2014-01-01

    To achieve modularization of whole reactor system, Micro Modular Reactor (MMR) which has been being developed in KAIST took S-CO 2 Brayton power cycle. The S-CO 2 power cycle is suitable for SMR due to high cycle efficiency, simple layout, small turbine and small heat exchanger. These characteristics of S-CO 2 power cycle enable modular reactor system and make reduced system size. The reduced size and modular system motived MMR to have mobility by large trailer. Due to minimized on-site construction by modular system, MMR can be deployed in any electricity demand, even in isolated area. To achieve the objective, fully passive safety systems of MMR were designed to have high reliability when any offsite power is unavailable. In this research, the basic concept about MMR and Passive Decay Heat Removal (PDHR) system options for MMR are presented. LOCA, LOFA, LOHS and SBO are considered as DBAs of MMR. To cope with the DBAs, passive decay heat removal system is designed. Water cooled PDHR system shows simple layout, but has CCF with reactor systems and cannot cover all DBAs. On the other hand, air cooled PDHR system with two-phase closed thermosyphon shows high reliability due to minimized CCF and is able to cope with all DBAs. Therefore, the PDHR system of MMR will follows the air-cooled PDHR system and the air cooled system will be explored

  19. Passive ventilation systems with heat recovery and night cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hviid, Christian Anker; Svendsen, Svend

    2008-01-01

    with little energy consumption and with satisfying indoor climate. The concept is based on using passive measures like stack and wind driven ventilation, effective night cooling and low pressure loss heat recovery using two fluid coupled water-to-air heat exchangers developed at the Technical University...... simulation program ESP-r to model the heat and air flows and the results show the feasibility of the proposed ventilation concept in terms of low energy consumption and good indoor climate....

  20. SBO simulations for Integrated Passive Safety System (IPSS) using MARS

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Sang Ho; Jeong, Sung Yeop; Chang, Soon Heung

    2012-01-01

    The current nuclear power plants have lots of active safety systems with some passive safety systems. The safety of current and future nuclear power plants can be enhanced by the application of additional passive safety systems for the ultimate safety. It is helpful to install the passive safety systems on current nuclear power plants without the design change for the licensibility. For solving the problem about the system complexity shown in the Fukushima accidents, the current nuclear power plants are needed to be enhanced by an additional integrated and simplified system. As a previous research, the integrated passive safety system (IPSS) was proposed to solve the safety issues related with the decay heat removal, containment integrity and radiation release. It could be operated by natural phenomena like gravity, natural circulation and pressure difference without AC power. The five main functions of IPSS are: (a) Passive decay heat removal, (b) Passive emergency core cooling, (c) Passive containment cooling, (d) Passive in vessel retention and ex-vessel cooling, and (e) Filtered venting and pressure control. The purpose of this research is to analyze the performances of each function by using MARS code. The simulated accident scenarios were station black out (SBO) and the additional accidents accompanied by SBO

  1. Simulation of Two-Phase Natural Circulation Loop for Core Cather Cooling Using Air Water

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Revankar, S. T.; Huang, S. F.; Song, K. W.; Rhee, B. W.; Park, R. J.; Song, J. H.

    2012-01-01

    A closed loop natural circulation system employs thermally induced density gradients in single phase or two-phase liquid form to induce circulation of the working fluid thereby obviating the need for any mechanical moving parts such as pumps and pump controls. This increases the reliability and safety of the cooling system and reduces installation, operation and maintenance costs. That is the reason natural circulation cooling has been considered in advanced reactor core cooling and in engineered safety systems. Natural circulation cooling has been proposed to remove reactor decay heat by external vessel cooling for in-vessel core retention during sever accident scenario. Recently in APR1400 reactor core catcher design natural circulation cooling is proposed to stabilize and cool the corium ejected from the reactor vessel following core melt and breach of reactor vessel. The natural circulation flow is similar to external vessel cooling where water flows through an inclined narrow gap below hot surface and is heated to produce boiling. The two-phase natural circulation enables cooling of the corium pool collected on core catcher. Due to importance of this problem this paper focuses simulation of the two-phase natural circulation through inclined gap using air-water system. Scaling criteria for air-water loop are derived that enable simulation of the flow regimes and natural circulation flow rates in such systems using air-water system

  2. A passive decay-heat removal system for an ABWR based on air cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Mochizuki, Hiroyasu, E-mail: mochizki@u-fukui.ac.jp [Research Institute of Nuclear Engineering, University of Fukui, 1-2-4 Kanawa-cho, Tsuruga, Fukui 914-0055 (Japan); Yano, Takahiro [School of Engineering, University of Fukui, 1-2-4 Kanawa-cho, Tsuruga, Fukui 914-0055 (Japan)

    2017-01-15

    Highlights: • A passive decay heat removal system for an ABWR is discussed using combined system of the reactor and an air cooler. • Effect of number of pass of the finned heat transfer tubes on heat removal is investigated. • The decay heat can be removed by air coolers with natural convection. • Two types of air cooler are evaluated, i.e., steam condensing and water cooling types. • Measures how to improve the heat removal rate and to make compact air cooler are discussed. - Abstract: This paper describes the capability of an air cooling system (ACS) operated under natural convection conditions to remove decay heat from the core of an Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR). The motivation of the present research is the Fukushima Severe Accident (SA). The plant suffered damages due to the tsunami and entered a state of Station Blackout (SBO) during which seawater cooling was not available. To prevent this kind of situation, we proposed a passive decay heat removal system (DHRS) in the previous study. The plant behavior during the SBO was calculated using the system code NETFLOW++ assuming an ABWR with the ACS. However, decay heat removal under an air natural convection was difficult. In the present study, a countermeasure to increase heat removal rate is proposed and plant transients with the ACS are calculated under natural convection conditions. The key issue is decreasing pressure drop over the tube banks in order to increase air flow rate. The results of the calculations indicate that the decay heat can be removed by the air natural convection after safety relief valves are actuated many times during a day. Duct height and heat transfer tube arrangement of the AC are discussed in order to design a compact and efficient AC for the natural convection mode. As a result, a 4-pass heat transfer tubes with 2-row staggered arrangement is the candidate of the AC for the DHRS under the air natural convection conditions. The heat removal rate is re-evaluated as

  3. RBMK-1500 accident management for loss of long-term core cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Uspuras, E.; Kaliatka, A.

    2001-01-01

    Results of the Level 1 probabilistic safety assessment of the Ignalina NPP has shown that in topography of the risk, transients dominate above the accidents with LOCAs and failure of the core long-term cooling are the main factors to frequency of the core damage. Previous analyses have shown, that after initial event, as a rule, the reactivity control, as well as short-term and intermediate cooling are provided. However, the acceptance criteria of the long-term cooling are not always carried out. It means that from this point of view the most dangerous accident scenarios are the scenarios related to loss of the core long-term cooling. On the other hand, the transition to the core condition due to loss of the long-term cooling specifies potential opportunities for the management of the accident consequences. Hence, accident management for the mitigation of the accident consequences should be considered and developed. The most likely initiating event, which probably leads to the loss of long term cooling accident, is station blackout. The station blackout is the loss of normal electrical power supply for local needs with an additional failure on start-up of all diesel generators. In the case of loss of electrical power supply MCPs, the circulating pumps of the service water system and MFWPs are switched-off. At the same time, TCV of both turbines are closed. Failure of diesel generators leads to the non-operability of the ECCS long-term cooling subsystem. It means the impossibility to feed MCC by water. The analysis of the station blackout for Ignalina NPP was performed using RELAP5 code. (author)

  4. Fundamental design bases for independent core cooling in Swedish nuclear power reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jelinek, Tomas

    2015-01-01

    New regulations on design and construction of nuclear power plants came into force in 2005. The need of an independent core cooling system and if the regulations should include such a requirement was discussed. The Swedish Radiation Safety authority (SSM) decided to not include such a requirement because of open questions about the water balance and started to investigate the consequences of an independent core cooling system. The investigation is now finished and SSM is also looking at the lessons learned from the accident in Fukushima 2011. One of the most important measures in the Swedish national action plan is the implementation of an independent core cooling function for all Swedish power plants. SSM has investigated the basic design criteria for such a function where some important questions are the level of defence in depth and the acceptance criteria. There is also a question about independence between the levels of defence in depth that SSM have included in the criteria. Another issue that has to be taken into account is the complexity of the system and the need of automation where independence and simplicity are very strong criteria. In the beginning of 2014 a memorandum was finalized regarding fundamental design bases for independent core cooling in Swedish nuclear power reactors. A decision based on this memorandum with an implementation plan will be made in the first half of 2014. Sweden is also investigating the possibility to have armed personnel on site, which is not allowed currently. The result from the investigation will have impact on the possibility to use mobile equipment and the level of protection of permanent equipment. In this paper, SSM will present the memorandum for design bases for independent core cooling in Swedish nuclear power reactors that was finalized in March 20147 that also describe SSM's position regarding independence and automation of the independent core cooling function. This memorandum describes the Swedish

  5. Lead-cooled flexible conversion ratio fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nikiforova, Anna; Hejzlar, Pavel; Todreas, Neil E.

    2009-01-01

    Lead-cooled reactor systems capable of accepting either zero or unity conversion ratio cores depending on the need to burn actinides or operate in a sustained cycle are presented. This flexible conversion ratio reactor is a pool-type 2400 MWt reactor coupled to four 600 MWt supercritical CO 2 (S-CO 2 ) power conversion system (PCS) trains through intermediate heat exchangers. The cores which achieve a power density of 112 kW/l adopt transuranic metallic fuel and reactivity feedbacks to achieve inherent shutdown in anticipated transients without scram, and lead coolant in a pool vessel arrangement. Decay heat removal is accomplished using a reactor vessel auxiliary cooling system (RVACS) complemented by a passive secondary auxiliary cooling system (PSACS). The transient simulation of station blackout (SBO) using the RELAP5-3D/ATHENA code shows that inherent shutdown without scram can be accommodated within the cladding temperature limit by the enhanced RVACS and a minimum (two) number of PSACS trains. The design of the passive safety systems also prevents coolant freezing in case all four of the PSACS trains are in operation. Both cores are also shown able to accommodate unprotected loss of flow (ULOF) and unprotected transient overpower (UTOP) accidents using the S-CO 2 PCS.

  6. Design and analysis of a new passive residual heat removal system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lv, Xing [Key Subject Laboratory of Nuclear Safety and Simulation Technology, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Peng, Minjun, E-mail: heupmj@163.com [Key Subject Laboratory of Nuclear Safety and Simulation Technology, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China); Yuan, Xiao [Guangxi Fangchenggang Nuclear Power Co., Ltd (China); Xia, Genglei [Key Subject Laboratory of Nuclear Safety and Simulation Technology, Harbin Engineering University, Harbin, Heilongjiang 150001 (China)

    2016-07-15

    Highlights: • An air cooling passive residual heat removal System (PRHRs) is designed. • Using RELAP5/MOD3.4 code to analyze the operation characteristics of the PRHRs. • Noncondensable gas is used to simulate the hydrodynamic behavior in the air cooling tower. • The natural circulations could respectively establish in the primary circuit and the PRHRs circuit. • The PRHRs could remove the residual heat effectively. - Abstract: The inherent safety functions will mitigate the consequences of the accidents, and it can be accomplished through the passive safety systems which employed in the typical pressurized water reactor (PWR). In this paper, a new passive residual heat removal system (PRHRS) is designed for a typical nuclear power plant. PRHRS consists of a steam generator (SG), a cooling tank with two groups of cooling pipes, an air-cooling heat exchanger (AHX), an air-cooling tower, corresponding pipes and valves. The cooling tank which works as an intermediate buffer device is used to transfer the core decay heat to the AHX, and then the core decay heat will be removed to the atmosphere finally. The RELAP5/MOD3.4 code is used to analyze the operation characteristics of PRHRS and the primary loop system. It shows PRHRS could remove the decay heat from the primary loop effectively, and the natural circulations can be established in the primary circuit and the PRHRS circuit respectively. Furthermore, the sensitivity study has also been done to research the effect of various factors on the heat removal capacity.

  7. The first high resolution image of coronal gas in a starbursting cool core cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    Johnson, Sean

    2017-08-01

    Galaxy clusters represent a unique laboratory for directly observing gas cooling and feedback due to their high masses and correspondingly high gas densities and temperatures. Cooling of X-ray gas observed in 1/3 of clusters, known as cool-core clusters, should fuel star formation at prodigious rates, but such high levels of star formation are rarely observed. Feedback from active galactic nuclei (AGN) is a leading explanation for the lack of star formation in most cool clusters, and AGN power is sufficient to offset gas cooling on average. Nevertheless, some cool core clusters exhibit massive starbursts indicating that our understanding of cooling and feedback is incomplete. Observations of 10^5 K coronal gas in cool core clusters through OVI emission offers a sensitive means of testing our understanding of cooling and feedback because OVI emission is a dominant coolant and sensitive tracer of shocked gas. Recently, Hayes et al. 2016 demonstrated that synthetic narrow-band imaging of OVI emission is possible through subtraction of long-pass filters with the ACS+SBC for targets at z=0.23-0.29. Here, we propose to use this exciting new technique to directly image coronal OVI emitting gas at high resolution in Abell 1835, a prototypical starbursting cool-core cluster at z=0.252. Abell 1835 hosts a strong cooling core, massive starburst, radio AGN, and at z=0.252, it offers a unique opportunity to directly image OVI at hi-res in the UV with ACS+SBC. With just 15 orbits of ACS+SBC imaging, the proposed observations will complete the existing rich multi-wavelength dataset available for Abell 1835 to provide new insights into cooling and feedback in clusters.

  8. Effects of face/head and whole body cooling during passive heat stress on human somatosensory processing.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Nakata, Hiroki; Namba, Mari; Kakigi, Ryusuke; Shibasaki, Manabu

    2017-06-01

    We herein investigated the effects of face/head and whole body cooling during passive heat stress on human somatosensory processing recorded by somatosensory-evoked potentials (SEPs) at C4' and Fz electrodes. Fourteen healthy subjects received a median nerve stimulation at the left wrist. SEPs were recorded at normothermic baseline (Rest), when esophageal temperature had increased by ~1.2°C (heat stress: HS) during passive heating, face/head cooling during passive heating (face/head cooling: FHC), and after HS (whole body cooling: WBC). The latencies and amplitudes of P14, N20, P25, N35, P45, and N60 at C4' and P14, N18, P22, and N30 at Fz were evaluated. Latency indicated speed of the subcortical and cortical somatosensory processing, while amplitude reflected the strength of neural activity. Blood flow in the internal and common carotid arteries (ICA and CCA, respectively) and psychological comfort were recorded in each session. Increases in esophageal temperature due to HS significantly decreased the amplitude of N60, psychological comfort, and ICA blood flow in the HS session, and also shortened the latencies of SEPs (all, P body temperature. Copyright © 2017 the American Physiological Society.

  9. Emergency core cooling system in BWR type reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takizawa, Yoji

    1981-01-01

    Purpose: To rapidly recover the water level in the reactor upon occurrence of slight leakages in the reactor coolant pressure boundary, by promoting the depressurization in the reactor to thereby rapidly increase the high pressure core spray flow rate. Constitution: Upon occurrence of reactor water level reduction, a reactor isolation cooling system and a high pressure core spray system are actuated to start the injection of coolants into a reactor pressure vessel. In this case, if the isolation cooling system is failed to decrease the flow rate in a return pipeway, flow rate indicators show a lower value as compared with a predetermined value. The control device detects it and further confirms the rotation of a high pressure spray pump to open a valve. By the above operation, coolants pumped by the high pressure spray pump is flown by way of a communication pipeway to the return pipeway and sprayed from the top of the pressure vessel. This allows the vapors on the water surface in the pressure vessel to be cooled rapidly and increases the depressurization effects. (Horiuchi, T.)

  10. Evaluation of long-term post-accident core cooling of Three Mile Island Unit 2

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1979-04-15

    On the basis of current understanding of the accident scenario and available data, the staff reports here on its evaluation of the condition of the core and the core flow resistance as it might affect ability to cool the core by natural circulation. The natural circulation cooling capability of TMI-2 for the estimated core flow resistance and a variety of other conditions is evaluated and a comparison of the Base Case and off-nominal plant configurations is presented. The potential for and effects of natural convection core cooling are addressed, and the staff recommendations for reactor performance acceptance criteria upon initiation of natural convection are presented.

  11. Using passive cooling strategies to improve thermal performance and reduce energy consumption of residential buildings in U.A.E. buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Hanan M. Taleb

    2014-06-01

    Full Text Available Passive design responds to local climate and site conditions in order to maximise the comfort and health of building users while minimising energy use. The key to designing a passive building is to take best advantage of the local climate. Passive cooling refers to any technologies or design features adopted to reduce the temperature of buildings without the need for power consumption. Consequently, the aim of this study is to test the usefulness of applying selected passive cooling strategies to improve thermal performance and to reduce energy consumption of residential buildings in hot arid climate settings, namely Dubai, United Arab Emirates. One case building was selected and eight passive cooling strategies were applied. Energy simulation software – namely IES – was used to assess the performance of the building. Solar shading performance was also assessed using Sun Cast Analysis, as a part of the IES software. Energy reduction was achieved due to both the harnessing of natural ventilation and the minimising of heat gain in line with applying good shading devices alongside the use of double glazing. Additionally, green roofing proved its potential by acting as an effective roof insulation. The study revealed several significant findings including that the total annual energy consumption of a residential building in Dubai may be reduced by up to 23.6% when a building uses passive cooling strategies.

  12. Final report-passive safety optimization in liquid sodium-cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cahalana, J. E.; Hahn, D.

    2007-01-01

    This report summarizes the results of a three-year collaboration between Argonne National Laboratory (ANL) and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) to identify and quantify the performance of innovative design features in metallic-fueled, sodium-cooled fast reactor designs. The objective of the work was to establish the reliability and safety margin enhancements provided by design innovations offering significant potential for construction, maintenance, and operating cost reductions. The project goal was accomplished with a combination of advanced model development (Task 1), analysis of innovative design and safety features (Tasks 2 and 3), and planning of key safety experiments (Task 4). Task 1--Computational Methods for Analysis of Passive Safety Design Features: An advanced three-dimensional subassembly thermal-hydraulic model was developed jointly and implemented in ANL and KAERI computer codes. The objective of the model development effort was to provide a high-accuracy capability to predict fuel, cladding, coolant, and structural temperatures in reactor fuel subassemblies, and thereby reduce the uncertainties associated with lower fidelity models previously used for safety and design analysis. The project included model formulation, implementation, and verification by application to available reactor tests performed at EBR-II. Task 2--Comparative Analysis and Evaluation of Innovative Design Features: Integrated safety assessments of innovative liquid metal reactor designs were performed to quantify the performance of inherent safety features. The objective of the analysis effort was to identify the potential safety margin enhancements possible in a sodium-cooled, metal-fueled reactor design by use of passive safety mechanisms to mitigate low-probability accident consequences. The project included baseline analyses using state-of-the-art computational models and advanced analyses using the new model developed in Task 1. Task 3--Safety

  13. 78 FR 63516 - Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for New Boiling-Water Reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    2013-10-24

    ... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0134] Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling....79.1, ``Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for New Boiling-Water Reactors.'' This... emergency core cooling systems (ECCSs) for boiling- water reactors (BWRs) whose licenses are issued after...

  14. Potential for passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation in present and future climates in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Artmann, Nikolai; Manz, Heinrich; Heiselberg, Per

    2006-01-01

    Given the general shift in recent decades towards a lower heating and higher cooling demand for buildings in many European countries, passive cooling by night-time ventilation has come to be seen as a promising option, particularly in the moderate or cold climates of Central, Eastern and Northern...... Europe. The basic concept involves cooling the building structure overnight in order to provide a heat sink that is available during the occupancy period. In this study, the potential for the passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation is evaluated by analysing climatic data, irrespective...... of any building-specific parameters. An approach for calculating degree-hours based on a variable building temperature - within a standardized range of thermal comfort - is presented and applied to climatic data from 259 stations throughout Europe. The results show a very high potential for night...

  15. Assessment of the effect of nitrogen gas on passive containment cooling system performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, Huiun; Suh, Jungsoo

    2016-01-01

    As a part of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) of Innovative PWR development project, we have been investigating the effect of the nitrogen gas released from safety injection tank (SIT) on PCCS performance. With the design characteristics of APR1400 and conceptual design of PCCS, we developed a GOTHIC model of the APR1400 containment with PCCS. The calculation model is described herein, and representative results from the calculation are presented as well. The results of the present work will be used for the design of PCCS. APR1400 GOTHIC model was developed for assessment on the effect of SIT nitrogen gas on passive containment cooling system performance. Calculation results confirmed that influence of nitrogen gas release is negligible; however, further studies should be performed to confirm effect of non-condensable gas on the final performance of PCCS. These insights are important for developing the PCCS of Innovative PWR

  16. Assessment of the effect of nitrogen gas on passive containment cooling system performance

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ha, Huiun; Suh, Jungsoo [KHNP CRI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-10-15

    As a part of the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) of Innovative PWR development project, we have been investigating the effect of the nitrogen gas released from safety injection tank (SIT) on PCCS performance. With the design characteristics of APR1400 and conceptual design of PCCS, we developed a GOTHIC model of the APR1400 containment with PCCS. The calculation model is described herein, and representative results from the calculation are presented as well. The results of the present work will be used for the design of PCCS. APR1400 GOTHIC model was developed for assessment on the effect of SIT nitrogen gas on passive containment cooling system performance. Calculation results confirmed that influence of nitrogen gas release is negligible; however, further studies should be performed to confirm effect of non-condensable gas on the final performance of PCCS. These insights are important for developing the PCCS of Innovative PWR.

  17. 77 FR 36014 - Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for Boiling-Water Reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    2012-06-15

    ... NUCLEAR REGULATORY COMMISSION [NRC-2012-0134] Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling... for public comment draft regulatory guide (DG), DG-1277, ``Initial Test Program of Emergency Core..., entitled, ``Initial Test Program of Emergency Core Cooling Systems for Boiling-Water Reactors,'' is...

  18. Natural convection cooling of LEU cores for Pakistan research reactor-1

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Khan, L.A.; Bokhari, I.H.; Akhtar, K.M.

    1991-08-01

    The first high power and equilibrium LEU cores of PARR-1 have been analysed to assess the maximum operating power based on natural convection cooling, need for forced cooling to remove the decay heat and to estimate safety margins that commensurate with the predetermined power limit. Computer code NATCON and standard correlations have been used for the analysis. The parameters studied includes coolant velocity, temperature distribution in the core, heat fluxes at onset of nucleate boiling, pulsed boiling and burnup. (author)

  19. Thermal-hydraulic evaluation study of the effectiveness of emergency core cooling system for light water reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sobajima, Makoto

    1985-08-01

    In order to evaluate the core cooling capability of the emergeny core cooling system, which is a safety guard system of light water reactors for a loss-of-coolant accident, a variety of large scale test were performed. Through the results, many phenomena were investigated and the predictabity of analytical codes were examined. The tests conducted were a single-vessel blowdown test, emergency core cooling test in a PWR simulation facility, spray cooling test for a BWR, large scale reflood test and a separate effect test on countercurrent flow. These test results were examined to clarify thermal-hydraulic phenomena and the effect of various test parameters and were utilized to improve predictability of the analytical codes. Some models for flow behavior in the upper core were also developed. By evaluating the effectiveness of various emergency core cooling system configurations, more effective cooling system than the current one was proposed and demonstrated. (author)

  20. Natural Circulation Phenomena and Modelling for Advanced Water Cooled Reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2012-03-01

    The role of natural circulation in advanced water cooled reactor design has been extended with the adoption of passive safety systems. Some designs utilize natural circulation to remove core heat during normal operation. Most passive safety systems used in evolutionary and innovative water cooled reactor designs are driven by natural circulation. The use of passive systems based on natural circulation can eliminate the costs associated with the installation, maintenance and operation of active systems that require multiple pumps with independent and redundant electric power supplies. However, considering the weak driving forces of passive systems based on natural circulation, careful design and analysis methods must be employed to ensure that the systems perform their intended functions. Several IAEA Member States with advanced reactor development programmes are actively conducting investigations of natural circulation to support the development of advanced water cooled reactor designs with passive safety systems. To foster international collaboration on the enabling technology of passive systems that utilize natural circulation, in 2004 the IAEA initiated a coordinated research project (CRP) on Natural Circulation Phenomena, Modelling and Reliability of Passive Systems that Utilize Natural Circulation. Three reports were published within the framework of this CRP. The first report (IAEA-TECDOC-1474) contains the material developed for the first IAEA training course on natural circulation in water cooled nuclear power plants. The second report (IAEA-TECDOC-1624) describes passive safety systems in a wide range of advanced water cooled nuclear power plant designs, with the goal of gaining insights into system design, operation and reliability. This third, and last, report summarizes the research studies completed by participating institutes during the CRP period.

  1. Application of heat pipes in nuclear reactors for passive heat removal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Haque, Z.; Yetisir, M., E-mail: haquez@aecl.ca [Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada)

    2013-07-01

    This paper introduces a number of potential heat pipe applications in passive (i.e., not requiring external power) nuclear reactor heat removal. Heat pipes are particularly suitable for small reactors as the demand for heat removal is significantly less than commercial nuclear power plants, and passive and reliable heat removal is required. The use of heat pipes has been proposed in many small reactor designs for passive heat removal from the reactor core. This paper presents the application of heat pipes in AECL's Nuclear Battery design, a small reactor concept developed by AECL. Other potential applications of heat pipes include transferring excess heat from containment to the atmosphere by integrating low-temperature heat pipes into the containment building (to ensure long-term cooling following a station blackout), and passively cooling spent fuel bays. (author)

  2. Core of a liquid-cooled nuclear reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wright, J.R.; McFall, A.

    1975-01-01

    The core of a liquid-cooled nuclear reactor, e.g. of a sodium-cooled fast reactor, is protected in such a way that the recoil wave resulting from loss of coolant in a cooling channel and caused by released gas is limited to a coolant inlet chamber of this cooling channel. The channels essentially consist of the coolant inlet chamber and a fuel chamber - with a fission gas storage plenum - through which the coolant flows. Between the two chambers, a locking device within a tube is provided offering a much larger flow resistance to the backflow of gas or coolant than in flow direction. The locking device may be a hydraulic countertorque control system, e.g. a valvular line. Other locking devices have got radially helical vanes running around an annular flow space. Furthermore, the locking device may consist of a number of needles running parallel to each other and forming a circular grid. Though it can be expanded by the forward flow - the needles are spreading - , it acts as a solid barrier for backflows. (TK) [de

  3. Study on diverse passive decay heat removal approach

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Qian; Si Shengyi

    2012-01-01

    One of the most important principles for nuclear safety is the decay heat removal in accidents. Passive decay heat removal systems are extremely helpful to enhance the safety. In currently design of many advanced nuclear reactors, kinds of passive systems are proposed or developed, such as the passive residual heat removal system, passive injection system, passive containment cooling system. These systems provide entire passive heat removal paths from core to ultimate heat sink. Various kinds of passive systems for decay heat removal are summarized; their common features or differences on heat removal paths and design principle are analyzed. It is found that, these passive decay heat removal paths are similarly common on and connected by several basic heat transfer modes and steps. By the combinations or connections of basic modes and steps, new passive decay heat removal approach or diverse system can be proposed. (authors)

  4. observer-based diagnostics and monitoring of vibrations in nuclear reactor core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Siry, S.A K.

    2007-01-01

    analysis and diagnostics of vibration in industrial systems play a significant rule to prevent severe severe damages . drive shaft vibration is a complicated phenomenon composed of two independent forms of vibrations, translational and torsional. translational vibration measurements in case of the reactor core cooling system are introduced. the system under study consists of the three phase induction motor, flywheel, centrifugal pump, and two coupling between motor-flywheel, and flywheel-pump. this system structure is considered to be one where the blades are pegged into the discs fitting into the shafts. a non-linear model to simulate vibration in the reactor core cooling system will be introduced. simulation results of an operating reactor core cooling system using the actual parameters will be presented to validate the accuracy and reliability of the proposed analytical method the accuracy in analyzing the results depends on the system model. the shortcomings of the conventional model will be avoided through the use of that accurate nonlinear model which improve the simulation of the reactor core cooling system

  5. Passive heat removal in CANDU

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hart, R.S.

    1997-01-01

    CANDU has a tradition of incorporating passive systems and passive components whenever they are shown to offer performance that is equal to or better than that of active systems, and to be economic. Examples include the two independent shutdown systems that employ gravity and stored energy respectively, the dousing subsystem of the CANDU 6 containment system, and the ability of the moderator to cool the fuel in the event that all coolant is lost from the fuel channels. CANDU 9 continues this tradition, incorporating a reserve water system (RWS) that increases the inventory of water in the reactor building and profiles a passive source of makeup water and/or heat sinks to various key process systems. The key component of the CANDU 9 reserve water system is a large (2500 cubic metres) water tank located at a high elevation in the reactor building. The reserve water system, while incorporating the recovery system functions, and the non-dousing functions of the dousing tank in CANDU 6, embraces other key systems to significantly extend the passive makeup/heat sink capability. The capabilities of the reserve water system include makeup to the steam generators secondary side if all other sources of water are lost; makeup to the heat transport system in the event of a leak in excess of the D 2 O makeup system capability; makeup to the moderator in the event of a moderator leak when the moderator heat sink is required; makeup to the emergency core cooling (ECC) system to assure NPSH to the ECC pumps during a loss of coolant accident (LOCA), and provision of a passive heat sink for the shield cooling system. Other passive designs are now being developed by AECL. These will be incorporated in future CANDU plants when their performance has been fully proven. This paper reviews the passive heat removal systems and features of current CANDU plants and the CANDU 9, and briefly reviews some of the passive heat removal concepts now being developed. (author)

  6. Climatic potential for passive cooling of buildings by night-time ventilation in Europe

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Artmann, Nikolai; Manz, H.; Heiselberg, Per

    2006-01-01

    Due to an overall trend towards less heating and more cooling demands in buildings in many European countries over the last few decades, passive cooling by night-time ventilation is seen as a promising technique, particularly for commercial buildings in the moderate or cold climates of Central......, without considering any building-specific parameters. An approach for calculating degree-hours based on a variable building temperature - within a standardized range of thermal comfort - is presented and applied to climatic data of 259 stations all over Europe. The results show a high potential for night...

  7. Provision of reliable core cooling in vessel-type boiling reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alferov, N.S.; Balunov, B.F.; Davydov, S.A.

    1987-01-01

    Methods for providing reliable core cooling in vessel-type boiling reactors with natural circulation for heat supply are analysed. The solution of this problem is reduced to satisfaction of two conditions such as: water confinement over the reactor core necessary in case of an accident and confinement of sufficient coolant flow rate through the bottom cross section of fuel assemblies for some time. The reliable fuel element cooling under conditions of a maximum credible accident (brittle failure of a reactor vessel) is shown to be provided practically in any accident, using the safety vessel in combination with the application of means of standard operation and minimal composition and capacity of ECCS

  8. Preliminary safety evaluation for CSR1000 with passive safety system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wu, Pan; Gou, Junli; Shan, Jianqiang; Zhang, Bo; Li, Xiang

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The basic information of a Chinese SCWR concept CSR1000 is introduced. • An innovative passive safety system is proposed for CSR1000. • 6 Transients and 3 accidents are analysed with system code SCTRAN. • The passive safety systems greatly mitigate the consequences of these incidents. • The inherent safety of CSR1000 is enhanced. - Abstract: This paper describes the preliminary safety analysis of the Chinese Supercritical water cooled Reactor (CSR1000), which is proposed by Nuclear Power Institute of China (NPIC). The two-pass core design applied to CSR1000 decreases the fuel cladding temperature and flattens the power distribution of the core at normal operation condition. Each fuel assembly is made up of four sub-assemblies with downward-flow water rods, which is favorable to the core cooling during abnormal conditions due to the large water inventory of the water rods. Additionally, a passive safety system is proposed for CSR1000 to increase the safety reliability at abnormal conditions. In this paper, accidents of “pump seizure”, “loss of coolant flow accidents (LOFA)”, “core depressurization”, as well as some typical transients are analysed with code SCTRAN, which is a one-dimensional safety analysis code for SCWRs. The results indicate that the maximum cladding surface temperatures (MCST), which is the most important safety criterion, of the both passes in the mentioned incidents are all below the safety criterion by a large margin. The sensitivity analyses of the delay time of RCPs trip in “loss of offsite power” and the delay time of RMT actuation in “loss of coolant flowrate” were also included in this paper. The analyses have shown that the core design of CSR1000 is feasible and the proposed passive safety system is capable of mitigating the consequences of the selected abnormalities

  9. A study on passive containment cooling condensers in SBWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuran, S.; Soekmen; C. N.

    2001-01-01

    The passive containment cooling condensers (PCCC) are the crucial part of several new reactor designs, like European Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR) and the SBWR. In a hypothetical accident, the pressurised steam non-condensable mixture from drywell is condensed in PCCCs, and condensate is returned to reactor vessel while non-condensable is vented through wet well. In this study, in order to examine the performance of PCCCs, condensation with presence of noncondensable is investigated. Condensation with different noncondensable types and conditions is studied on a PCCC model, which is developed by using RELAP5 Mod3.2 computer code

  10. Warming by immersion or exercise affects initial cooling rate during subsequent cold water immersion.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Scott, Chris G; Ducharme, Michel B; Haman, François; Kenny, Glen P

    2004-11-01

    We examined the effect of prior heating, by exercise and warm-water immersion, on core cooling rates in individuals rendered mildly hypothermic by immersion in cold water. There were seven male subjects who were randomly assigned to one of three groups: 1) seated rest for 15 min (control); 2) cycling ergometry for 15 min at 70% Vo2 peak (active warming); or 3) immersion in a circulated bath at 40 degrees C to an esophageal temperature (Tes) similar to that at the end of exercise (passive warming). Subjects were then immersed in 7 degrees C water to a Tes of 34.5 degrees C. Initial Tes cooling rates (initial approximately 6 min cooling) differed significantly among the treatment conditions (0.074 +/- 0.045, 0.129 +/- 0.076, and 0.348 +/- 0.117 degrees C x min(-1) for control, active, and passive warming conditions, respectively); however, secondary cooling rates (rates following initial approximately 6 min cooling to the end of immersion) were not different between treatments (average of 0.102 +/- 0.085 degrees C x min(-1)). Overall Tes cooling rates during the full immersion period differed significantly and were 0.067 +/- 0.047, 0.085 +/- 0.045, and 0.209 +/- 0.131 degrees C x min(-1) for control, active, and passive warming, respectively. These results suggest that prior warming by both active and, to a greater extent, passive warming, may predispose a person to greater heat loss and to experience a larger decline in core temperature when subsequently exposed to cold water. Thus, functional time and possibly survival time could be reduced when cold water immersion is preceded by whole-body passive warming, and to a lesser degree by active warming.

  11. Advanced phase change materials and systems for solar passive heating and cooling of residential buildings

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Salyer, I.O.; Sircar, A.K.; Dantiki, S.

    1988-01-01

    During the last three years under the sponsorship of the DOE Solar Passive Division, the University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) has investigated four phase change material (PCM) systems for utility in thermal energy storage for solar passive heating and cooling applications. From this research on the basis of cost, performance, containment, and environmental acceptability, we have selected as our current and most promising series of candidate phase change materials, C-15 to C-24 linear crystalline alkyl hydrocarbons. The major part of the research during this contract period was directed toward the following three objectives. Find, test, and develop low-cost effective phase change materials (PCM) that melt and freeze sharply in the comfort temperature range of 73--77{degree}F for use in solar passive heating and cooling of buildings. Define practical materials and processes for fire retarding plasterboard/PCM building products. Develop cost-effective methods for incorporating PCM into building construction materials (concrete, plasterboard, etc.) which will lead to the commercial manufacture and sale of PCM-containing products resulting in significant energy conservation.

  12. Trends vs. reactor size of passive reactivity shutdown and control performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wade, D.C.; Fujita, E.K.

    1987-01-01

    For LMR concepts, the goal of passive reactivity shutdown has been approached in the US by designing the reactors for favorable relationships among the power, power/flow, and inlet temperature coefficients of reactivity, for high internal conversion ratio (yielding small burnup control swing), and for a primary pump coastdown time appropriately matched to the delayed neutron hold back of power decay upon negative reactivity input. The use of sodium bonded metallic fuel pins has facilitated the achievement of the massive shutdown design goals as a consequence of their high thermal conductivity and high effective heavy metal density. Alternately, core designs based on derated oxide pins may be able to achieve the passive shutdown features at the cost of larger core volume and increased initial fissile inventory. For LMR concepts, the passive decay heat removal goal of inherent safety has been approached in US designs by use of pool layouts, larger surface to volume ratio of the reactor vessel with natural draft air cooling of the vessel surface, elevations and redans which promote natural circulation through the core, and thermal mass of the pool contents sufficient to absorb that initial transient decay heat which exceeds the natural draft air cooling capacity. This paper describes current US ''inherently safe'' reactor design

  13. Corrosion control when using passively treated abandoned mine drainage as alternative makeup water for cooling systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hsieh, Ming-Kai; Chien, Shih-Hsiang; Li, Heng; Monnell, Jason D; Dzombak, David A; Vidic, Radisav D

    2011-09-01

    Passively treated abandoned mine drainage (AMD) is a promising alternative to fresh water as power plant cooling water system makeup water in mining regions where such water is abundant. Passive treatment and reuse of AMD can avoid the contamination of surface water caused by discharge of abandoned mine water, which typically is acidic and contains high concentrations of metals, especially iron. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of reusing passively treated AMD in cooling systems with respect to corrosion control through laboratory experiments and pilot-scale field testing. The results showed that, with the addition of the inhibitor mixture orthophosphate and tolyltriazole, mild steel and copper corrosion rates were reduced to acceptable levels (< 0.127 mm/y and < 0.0076 mm/y, respectively). Aluminum had pitting corrosion problems in every condition tested, while cupronickel showed that, even in the absence of any inhibitor and in the presence of the biocide monochloramine, its corrosion rate was still very low (0.018 mm/y).

  14. BWR Passive Containment Cooling System by condensation-driven natural circulation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vierow, K.M.; Townsend, H.E.; Fitch, J.R.; Andersen, J.G.M.; Alamgir, M.; Schrock, V.E.

    1991-01-01

    A method of long-term decay heat removal which is safe, reliable, and passive has been incorporated into the design of the Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (SBWR). The primary functions of the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) are to remove heat and maintain the containment pressure below allowable levels following a LOCA. A key component of the PCCS is the PCC condenser unit (PCC). By natural circulation, a steam-nitrogen mixture flows into the PCC heat exchanger, condensate drains to the reactor pressure vessel (RPV), and noncondensables are vented to the suppression chamber (S/C). This analysis focuses on three significant thermal-hydraulic phenomena which occur in the system. Specifically, steam condensation in the presence of a noncondensable, the PCC noncondensable venting and the natural circulation are discussed. Results of TRACG simulations are presented which show that the PCCS performs its intended functions. (author)

  15. Study of passive residual heat removal system of a modular small PWR reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Araujo, Nathália N.; Su, Jian

    2017-01-01

    This paper presents a study on the passive residual heat removal system (PRHRS) of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) of 75MW. More advanced nuclear reactors, such as generation III + and IV, have passive safety systems that automatically go into action in order to prevent accidents. The purpose of the PRHRS is to transfer the decay heat from the reactor's nuclear fuel, keeping the core cooled after the plant has shut down. It starts operating in the event of fall of power supply to the nuclear station, or in the event of an unavailability of the steam generator water supply system. Removal of decay heat from the core of the reactor is accomplished by the flow of the primary refrigerant by natural circulation through heat exchangers located in a pool filled with water located above the core. The natural circulation is caused by the density gradient between the reactor core and the pool. A thermal and comparative analysis of the PRHRS was performed consisting of the resolution of the mass conservation equations, amount of movement and energy and using incompressible fluid approximations with the Boussinesq approximation. Calculations were performed with the aid of Mathematica software. A design of the heat exchanger and the cooling water tank was done so that the core of the reactor remained cooled for 72 hours using only the PRHRS

  16. Natural circulation and stratification in the various passive safety systems of the SWR 1000

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Meseth, J.

    2002-01-01

    In some of the passive safety systems of Siemens' SWR 1000 boiling water reactor (i.e. the emergency condensers and containment cooling condensers), natural circulation is the main effect on both the primary and secondary sides by which optimum system efficiency is achieved. Other passive safety systems of the SWR 1000 require natural circulation on the secondary side only (condensation of steam discharged by the safety and relief valves; cooling of the Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV) by flooding from the outside in case of core melt), while still other systems require stratification to be effective (i.e. the passive pressure pulse transmitters and steam-driven scram tanks). Complex natural circulation and stratification can take place simultaneously if fluids with different densities are enclosed in a single volume (in a core melt accident, for example, the nitrogen, steam and hydrogen in the containment). Related problems and the solutions thereto planned for the SWR 1000 are reported from the designer's viewpoint. (author)

  17. Benchmark for Neutronic Analysis of Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor Cores with Various Fuel Types and Core Sizes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Stauff, N.E.; Kim, T.K.; Taiwo, T.A.; Buiron, L.; Rimpault, G.; Brun, E.; Lee, Y.K.; Pataki, I.; Kereszturi, A.; Tota, A.; Parisi, C.; Fridman, E.; Guilliard, N.; Kugo, T.; Sugino, K.; Uematsu, M.M.; Ponomarev, A.; Messaoudi, N.; Lin Tan, R.; Kozlowski, T.; Bernnat, W.; Blanchet, D.; Brun, E.; Buiron, L.; Fridman, E.; Guilliard, N.; Kereszturi, A.; Kim, T.K.; Kozlowski, T.; Kugo, T.; Lee, Y.K.; Lin Tan, R.; Messaoudi, N.; Parisi, C.; Pataki, I.; Ponomarev, A.; Rimpault, G.; Stauff, N.E.; Sugino, K.; Taiwo, T.A.; Tota, A.; Uematsu, M.M.; Monti, S.; Yamaji, A.; Nakahara, Y.; Gulliford, J.

    2016-01-01

    One of the foremost Generation IV International Forum (GIF) objectives is to design nuclear reactor cores that can passively avoid damage of the reactor when control rods fail to scram in response to postulated accident initiators (e.g. inadvertent reactivity insertion or loss of coolant flow). The analysis of such unprotected transients depends primarily on the physical properties of the fuel and the reactivity feedback coefficients of the core. Within the activities of the Working Party on Scientific Issues of Reactor Systems (WPRS), the Sodium Fast Reactor core Feed-back and Transient response (SFR-FT) Task Force was proposed to evaluate core performance characteristics of several Generation IV Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) concepts. A set of four numerical benchmark cases was initially developed with different core sizes and fuel types in order to perform neutronic characterisation, evaluation of the feedback coefficients and transient calculations. Two 'large' SFR core designs were proposed by CEA: those generate 3 600 MW(th) and employ oxide and carbide fuel technologies. Two 'medium' SFR core designs proposed by ANL complete the set. These medium SFR cores generate 1 000 MW(th) and employ oxide and metallic fuel technologies. The present report summarises the results obtained by the WPRS for the neutronic characterisation benchmark exercise proposed. The benchmark definition is detailed in Chapter 2. Eleven institutions contributed to this benchmark: Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Commissariat a l'energie atomique et aux energies alternatives (CEA of Cadarache), Commissariat a l'energie atomique et aux energies alternatives (CEA of Saclay), Centre for Energy Research (CER-EK), Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), Helmholtz Zentrum Dresden Rossendorf (HZDR), Institute of Nuclear Technology and Energy Systems (IKE), Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT

  18. A concept of passive safety pressurized water reactor system with inherent matching nature of core heat generation and heat removal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Murao, Yoshio; Araya, Fumimasa; Iwamura, Takamichi; Okumura, Keisuke

    1995-01-01

    The reduction of manpower in operation and maintenance by simplification of the system are essential to improve the safety and the economy of future light water reactors. At the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI), a concept of a simplified passive safety reactor system JPSR was developed for this purpose and in the concept minimization of developing work and conservation of scale-up capability in design were considered. The inherent matching nature of core heat generation and heat removal rate is introduced by the core with high reactivity coefficient for moderator density and low reactivity coefficient for fuel temperature (Doppler effect) and once-through steam generators (SGs). This nature makes the nuclear steam supply system physically-slave for the steam and energy conversion system by controlling feed water mass flow rate. The nature can be obtained by eliminating chemical shim and adopting in-vessel control rod drive mechanism (CRDM) units and a low power density core. In order to simplify the system, a large pressurizer, canned pumps, passive residual heat removal systems with air coolers as a final heat sink and passive coolant injection system are adopted and the functions of volume and boron concentration control and seal water supply are eliminated from the chemical and volume control system (CVCS). The emergency diesel generators and auxiliary component cooling system of 'safety class' for transferring heat to sea water as a final heat sink in emergency are also eliminated. All of systems are built in the containment except for the air coolers of the passive residual heat removal system. The analysis of the system revealed that the primary coolant expansion in 100% load reduction in 60 s can be mitigated in the pressurizer without actuating the pressure relief valves and the pressure in 50% load change in 30 s does not exceed the maximum allowable pressure in accidental conditions in regardless of pressure regulation. (author)

  19. Passive containment cooling system performance in the simplified boiling water reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shiralkar, B.S.; Gamble, R.E.; Yadigaroglu, G.

    1997-01-01

    The Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (SBWR) incorporates a passive system for decay heat removal from the containment in the event of a postulated Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA). Decay heat is removed by condensation of the steam discharged from the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) in three condensers which comprise the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS). These condensers are designed to carry the heat load while transporting a mixture of steam and noncondensible gas (primarily nitrogen) from the drywell to the suppression chamber. This paper describes the expected LOCA response of the SBWR with respect to the PCCS performance, based on analysis and test results. The results confirm that the PCCS has excess capacity for decay heat removal and that overall system performance is very robust. 12 refs., 8 figs

  20. Reactor-core isolation cooling system with dedicated generator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nazareno, E.V.; Dillmann, C.W.

    1992-01-01

    This patent describes a nuclear reactor complex. It comprises a dual-phase nuclear reactor; a main turbine for converting phase-conversion energy stored by vapor into mechanical energy for driving a generator; a main generator for converting the mechanical energy into electricity; a fluid reservoir external to the reactor; a reactor core isolation cooling system with several components at least some of which require electrical power. It also comprises an auxiliary pump for pumping fluid from the reservoir into the reactor pressure vessel; an auxiliary turbine for driving the pump; control means for regulating the rotation rate of the auxiliary turbine; cooling means for cooling the control means; and an auxiliary generator coupled to the auxiliary turbine for providing at least a portion of the electrical power required by the components during a blackout condition

  1. Performance of the prism reactor's passive decay heat removal system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Magee, P.M.; Hunsbedt, A.

    1989-01-01

    The PRISM modular reactor concept has a totally passive safety-grade decay heat removal system referred to as the Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (RVACS) that rejects heat from the reactor by radiation and natural convection of air. The system is inherently reliable and is not subject to the failure modes commonly associated with active cooling systems. The thermal performance of RVACS exceeds requirements and significant thermal margins exist. RVACS has been shown to perform its function under many postulated accident conditions. The PRISM power plant is equipped with three methods for shutdown: condenser cooling in conjunction with intermediate sodium and steam generator systems, and auxiliary cooling system (ACS) which removes heat from the steam generator by natural convection of air and transport of heat from the core by natural convection in the primary and intermediate systems, and a safety- grade reactor vessel auxiliary cooling system (RVACS) which removes heat passively from the reactor containment vessel by natural convection of air. The combination of one active and two passive systems provides a highly reliable and economical shutdown heat removal system. This paper provides a summary of the RVACS thermal performance for expected operating conditions and postulated accident events. The supporting experimental work, which substantiates the performance predictions, is also summarized

  2. A concept of JAERI passive safety light water reactor system (JPSR)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Murao, Y.; Araya, F.; Iwamura, T. [Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, Tokai-mura (Japan)

    1995-09-01

    The Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) proposed a passive safety reactor system concept, JPSR, which was developed for reducing manpower in operation and maintenance and influence of human errors on reactor safety. In the concept the system was extremely simplified. The inherent matching nature of core generation and heat removal rate within a small volume change of the primary coolant is introduced by eliminating chemical shim and adopting in-vessel control rod drive mechanism units, a low power density core and once-through steam generators. In order to simplify the system, a large pressurizer, canned pumps, passive engineered-safety-features-system (residual heat removal system and coolant injection system) are adopted and the total system can be significantly simplified. The residual heat removal system is completely passively actuated in non-LOCAs and is also used for depressurization of the primary coolant system to actuate accumulators in small break LOCAs and reactor shutdown cooling system in normal operation. All of systems for nuclear steam supply system are built in the containment except for the air coolers as a the final heat sink of the passive residual heat removal system. Accordingly the reliability of the safety system and the normal operation system is improved, since most of residual heat removal system is always working and a heat sink for normal operation system is {open_quotes}safety class{close_quotes}. In the passive coolant injection system, depressurization of the primary cooling system by residual heat removal system initiates injection from accumulators designed for the MS-600 in medium pressure and initiates injection from the gravity driven coolant injection pool at low pressure. Analysis with RETRAN-02/MOD3 code demonstrated the capability of passive load-following, self-power-controllability, cooling and depressurization.

  3. Study of risk reduction by improving operation of reactor core isolation cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Watanabe, Yamato; Tazai, Ayuko; Yamagishi, Shohei; Muramatsu, Ken; Muta, Hitoshi

    2014-01-01

    The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant fell into a station blackout (SBO) due to the earthquake and tsunami in which most of the core cooling systems were disabled. In the units 2 and 3, water injection to the core was performed only by water injection system with turbine driven pumps. In particular, it is inferred from observed plant parameters that the reactor core isolation cooling system (RCIC) continued its operation much longer than it was originally expected (8 hours). Since the preparation of safety measures did not work, the reactor core damaged. With a view to reduce risk of station blackout events in a BWR by accident management, this study investigated the efficacy of operation procedures that takes advantage of RCIC which can be operated with only equipment inside reactor building and does not require an AC power source. The efficacy was assessed in this study by two steps. The first step is a thermal hydraulic analysis with the RETRAN3D code to estimate the potential extension of duration of core cooling by RCIC and the second step is the estimation of time required for recovery of off-site power from experiences at nuclear power stations under the 3.11 earthquake. This study showed that it is possible to implement more reliable measures for accident termination and to greatly reduce the risk of SBO by the installation of accident management measures with use of RCIC for extension of core cooling under SBO conditions. (author)

  4. Emergency core cooling systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kubokoya, Takashi; Okataku, Yasukuni.

    1984-01-01

    Purpose: To maintain the fuel soundness upon loss of primary coolant accidents in a pressure tube type nuclear reactor by injecting cooling heavy water at an early stage, to suppress the temperature of fuel cans at a lower level. Constitution: When a thermometer detects the temperature rise and a pressure gauge detects that the pressure for the primary coolants is reduced slightly from that in the normal operation upon loss of coolant accidents in the vicinity of the primary coolant circuit, heavy water is caused to flow in the heavy water feed pipeway by a controller. This enables to inject the heavy water into the reactor core in a short time upon loss of the primary coolant accidents to suppress the temperature rise in the fuel can thereby maintain the fuel soundness. (Moriyama, K.)

  5. Core design studies on various forms of coolants and fuel materials. 2. Studies on liquid heavy metal and gas cooled cores, small cores and evaluation of 4-type cores

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hayashi, Hideyuki; Sakashita, Yoshiyuki; Naganuma, Masayuki; Takaki, Naoyuki; Mizuno, Tomoyasu; Ikegami, Tetsuo

    2001-01-01

    Alternative concepts to sodium cooled fast reactors, such as heavy metal liquid cooled reactors and gas cooled fast reactors were studied in Phase-1 of the feasibility studies, aiming at simplification of the system, high thermal efficiency and enhancing safety. Fuel and core specifications and nuclear characteristics were surveyed to meet the targets for commercialization of fast reactor cycle. Nuclear characteristics of small fast reactor cores were also surveyed from the perspective of the possibility of multi-purpose use and dispersed power stations. The key points of the design study for each concept in Phase-2 were summarized from the aspect of the screening of the candidates for FR commercialization. (author)

  6. Inherent Safety Features and Passive Prevention Approaches for Pb/Bi-cooled Accelerator-Driven Systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Carlsson, Johan

    2003-03-01

    This thesis is devoted to the investigation of passive safety and inherent features of subcritical nuclear transmutation systems - accelerator-driven systems. The general objective of this research has been to improve the safety performance and avoid elevated coolant temperatures in worst-case scenarios like unprotected loss-of-flow accidents, loss-of-heat-sink accidents, and a combination of both these accident initiators. The specific topics covered are emergency decay heat removal by reactor vessel auxiliary cooling systems, beam shut-off by a melt-rupture disc, safety aspects from locating heat-exchangers in the riser of a pool-type reactor system, and reduction of pressure resistance in the primary circuit by employing bypass routes. The initial part of the research was focused on reactor vessel auxiliary cooling systems. It was shown that an 80 MW{sub th} Pb/Bi-cooled accelerator-driven system of 8 m height and 6 m diameter vessel can be well cooled in the case of loss-of-flow accidents in which the accelerator proton beam is not switched off. After a loss-of-heat-sink accident the proton beam has to be interrupted within 40 minutes in order to avoid fast creep of the vessel. If a melt-rupture disc is included in the wall of the beam pipe, which breaks at 150 K above the normal core outlet temperature, the grace period until the beam has to be shut off is increased to 6 hours. For the same vessel geometry, but an operating power of 250 MW{sub th} the structural materials can still avoid fast creep in case the proton beam is shut off immediately. If beam shut-off is delayed, additional cooling methods are needed to increase the heat removal. Investigations were made on the filling of the gap between the guard and the reactor vessel with liquid metal coolant and using water spray cooling on the guard vessel surface. The second part of the thesis presents examinations regarding an accelerator-driven system also cooled with Pb/Bi but with heat-exchangers located

  7. Inherent Safety Features and Passive Prevention Approaches for Pb/Bi-cooled Accelerator-Driven Systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Carlsson, Johan

    2003-03-01

    This thesis is devoted to the investigation of passive safety and inherent features of subcritical nuclear transmutation systems - accelerator-driven systems. The general objective of this research has been to improve the safety performance and avoid elevated coolant temperatures in worst-case scenarios like unprotected loss-of-flow accidents, loss-of-heat-sink accidents, and a combination of both these accident initiators. The specific topics covered are emergency decay heat removal by reactor vessel auxiliary cooling systems, beam shut-off by a melt-rupture disc, safety aspects from locating heat-exchangers in the riser of a pool-type reactor system, and reduction of pressure resistance in the primary circuit by employing bypass routes. The initial part of the research was focused on reactor vessel auxiliary cooling systems. It was shown that an 80 MW th Pb/Bi-cooled accelerator-driven system of 8 m height and 6 m diameter vessel can be well cooled in the case of loss-of-flow accidents in which the accelerator proton beam is not switched off. After a loss-of-heat-sink accident the proton beam has to be interrupted within 40 minutes in order to avoid fast creep of the vessel. If a melt-rupture disc is included in the wall of the beam pipe, which breaks at 150 K above the normal core outlet temperature, the grace period until the beam has to be shut off is increased to 6 hours. For the same vessel geometry, but an operating power of 250 MW th the structural materials can still avoid fast creep in case the proton beam is shut off immediately. If beam shut-off is delayed, additional cooling methods are needed to increase the heat removal. Investigations were made on the filling of the gap between the guard and the reactor vessel with liquid metal coolant and using water spray cooling on the guard vessel surface. The second part of the thesis presents examinations regarding an accelerator-driven system also cooled with Pb/Bi but with heat-exchangers located in the

  8. A Massive, Cooling-Flow-Induced Starburst in the Core of a Highly Luminous Galaxy Cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    McDonald, M.; Bayliss, M.; Benson, B. A.; Foley, R. J.; Ruel, J.; Sullivan, P.; Veilleux, S.; Aird, K. A.; Ashby, M. L. N.; Bautz, M.; hide

    2012-01-01

    In the cores of some galaxy clusters the hot intracluster plasma is dense enough that it should cool radiatively in the cluster s lifetime, leading to continuous "cooling flows" of gas sinking towards the cluster center, yet no such cooling flow has been observed. The low observed star formation rates and cool gas masses for these "cool core" clusters suggest that much of the cooling must be offset by astrophysical feedback to prevent the formation of a runaway cooling flow. Here we report X-ray, optical, and infrared observations of the galaxy cluster SPT-CLJ2344-4243 at z = 0.596. These observations reveal an exceptionally luminous (L(sub 2-10 keV) = 8.2 10(exp 45) erg/s) galaxy cluster which hosts an extremely strong cooling flow (M(sub cool) = 3820 +/- 530 Stellar Mass/yr). Further, the central galaxy in this cluster appears to be experiencing a massive starburst (740 +/- 160 Stellar Mass/ yr), which suggests that the feedback source responsible for preventing runaway cooling in nearby cool core clusters may not yet be fully established in SPT-CLJ2344-4243. This large star formation rate implies that a significant fraction of the stars in the central galaxy of this cluster may form via accretion of the intracluster medium, rather than the current picture of central galaxies assembling entirely via mergers.

  9. Study on diverse passive decay heat removal approach and principle

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lin Qian; Si Shengyi

    2012-01-01

    Decay heat removal in post-accident is one of the most important aspects concerned in the reactor safety analysis. Passive decay heat removal approach is used to enhance nuclear safety. In advanced reactors, decay heat is removed by multiple passive heat removal paths through core to ultimate heat sink by passive residual heat removal system, passive injection system, passive containment cooling system and so on. Various passive decay heat removal approaches are summarized in this paper, the common features and differences of their heat removal paths are analyzed, and the design principle of passive systems for decay heat removal is discussed. It is found that. these decay heat removal paths is combined by some basic heat transfer processes, by the combination of these basic processes, diverse passive decay heat removal approach or system design scheme can be drawn. (authors)

  10. Simulation to support passive and low energy cooling system design in the Czech Republic

    NARCIS (Netherlands)

    Lain, M.; Bartak, M.; Drkal, F.; Hensen, J.L.M.

    2005-01-01

    This paper deals with the passive and low energy cooling technologies in the Czech Republic. The role of computer simulation in low energy building design and optimization is discussed. The work includes buildings and systems analysis as well as climate analysis in order to estimate the potential of

  11. Reliability assessment of Passive Containment Cooling System of an Advanced Reactor using APSRA methodology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kumar, Mukesh, E-mail: mukeshd@barc.gov.in [Reactor Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Chakravarty, Aranyak [School of Nuclear Studies and Application, Jadavpur University, Kolkata 700032 (India); Nayak, A.K. [Reactor Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Prasad, Hari; Gopika, V. [Reactor Safety Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India)

    2014-10-15

    Highlights: • The paper deals with the reliability assessment of Passive Containment Cooling System of Advanced Heavy Water Reactor. • Assessment of Passive System ReliAbility (APSRA) methodology is used for reliability assessment. • Performance assessment of the PCCS is initially performed during a postulated design basis LOCA. • The parameters affecting the system performance are then identified and considered for further analysis. • The failure probabilities of the various components are assessed through a classical PSA treatment using generic data. - Abstract: Passive Systems are increasingly playing a prominent role in the advanced nuclear reactor systems and are being utilised in normal operations as well as safety systems of the reactors following an accident. The Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) is one of the several passive safety features in an Advanced Reactor (AHWR). In this paper, the APSRA methodology has been employed for reliability evaluation of the PCCS of AHWR. Performance assessment of the PCCS is initially performed during a postulated design basis LOCA using the best-estimate code RELAP5/Mod 3.2. The parameters affecting the system performance are then identified and considered for further analysis. Based on some pre-determined failure criterion, the failure surface for the system is predicted using the best-estimate code taking into account the deviations of the identified parameters from their nominal states as well as the model uncertainties inherent to the best estimate code. Root diagnosis is then carried out to determine the various failure causes, which occurs mainly due to malfunctioning of mechanical components. The failure probabilities of the various components are assessed through a classical PSA treatment using generic data. The reliability of the PCCS is then evaluated from the probability of availability of these components.

  12. Reliability assessment of Passive Containment Cooling System of an Advanced Reactor using APSRA methodology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, Mukesh; Chakravarty, Aranyak; Nayak, A.K.; Prasad, Hari; Gopika, V.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The paper deals with the reliability assessment of Passive Containment Cooling System of Advanced Heavy Water Reactor. • Assessment of Passive System ReliAbility (APSRA) methodology is used for reliability assessment. • Performance assessment of the PCCS is initially performed during a postulated design basis LOCA. • The parameters affecting the system performance are then identified and considered for further analysis. • The failure probabilities of the various components are assessed through a classical PSA treatment using generic data. - Abstract: Passive Systems are increasingly playing a prominent role in the advanced nuclear reactor systems and are being utilised in normal operations as well as safety systems of the reactors following an accident. The Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) is one of the several passive safety features in an Advanced Reactor (AHWR). In this paper, the APSRA methodology has been employed for reliability evaluation of the PCCS of AHWR. Performance assessment of the PCCS is initially performed during a postulated design basis LOCA using the best-estimate code RELAP5/Mod 3.2. The parameters affecting the system performance are then identified and considered for further analysis. Based on some pre-determined failure criterion, the failure surface for the system is predicted using the best-estimate code taking into account the deviations of the identified parameters from their nominal states as well as the model uncertainties inherent to the best estimate code. Root diagnosis is then carried out to determine the various failure causes, which occurs mainly due to malfunctioning of mechanical components. The failure probabilities of the various components are assessed through a classical PSA treatment using generic data. The reliability of the PCCS is then evaluated from the probability of availability of these components

  13. Update Knowledge Base for Long-term Core Cooling Reliability

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Agrell, Maria; Sandervag, Oddbjoern; Amri, Abdallah; ); Bang, Young S.; Blomart, Philippe; Broecker, Annette; Pointner, Winfried; Ganzmann, Ingo; Lenogue, Bruno; Guzonas, David; Herer, Christophe; Mattei, Jean-Marie; Tricottet, Matthieu; Masaoka, Hideaki; Soltesz, Vojtech; Tarkiainen, Seppo; Ui, Atsushi; Villalba, Cristina; Zigler, Gilbert

    2013-11-01

    This revision of the Knowledge Base for Emergency Core Cooling System Recirculation Reliability (NEA/CSNI/R (95)11) describes the current status (late 2012) of the knowledge base on emergency core cooling system (ECCS) and containment spray system (CSS) suction strainer performance and long-term cooling in operating power reactors. New reactors, such as the AP1000, EPR and APR1400 that are under construction in some Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) member countries, are not addressed in detail in this revision. The containment sump (also known as the emergency or recirculation sump in pressurized water reactors (PWRs) and pressurized heavy water reactors (PHWRs) or the suppression pools or wet wells in boiling water reactors (BWRs)) and associated ECCS strainers are parts of the ECCS in both reactor types. All nuclear power plants (NPPs) are required to have an ECCS that is capable of mitigating a design basis accident (DBA). The containment sump collects reactor coolant, ECCS injection water, and containment spray solutions, if applicable, after a loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA). The sump serves as the water source to support long-term recirculation for residual heat removal, emergency core cooling, and containment atmosphere clean-up. This water source, the related pump suction inlets, and the piping between the source and inlets are important safety-related components. In addition, if fibrous material is deposited at the fuel element spacers, core cooling can be endangered. The performance of ECCS/CSS strainers was recognized many years ago as an important regulatory and safety issue. One of the primary concerns is the potential for debris generated by a jet of high-pressure coolant during a LOCA to clog the strainer and obstruct core cooling. The issue was considered resolved for all reactor types in the mid-1990s and the OECD/NEA/CSNI published report NEA/CSNI/R(95)11 in 1996 to document the state of knowledge of ECCS performance

  14. Neutron spectrum effects on TRU recycling in Pb-Bi cooled fast reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Yong Nam; Kim, Jong Kyung; Park, Won Seok

    2003-01-01

    This study is intended to evaluate the dependency of TRU recycling characteristics on the neutron spectrum shift in a Pb-Bi cooled core. Considering two Pb-Bi cooled cores with the soft and the hard spectrum, respectively, various characteristics of the recycled core are carefully examined and compared with each other. Assuming very simplified fuel cycle management with the homogeneous and single region fuel loading, the burnup calculations are performed until the recycled core reached to the (quasi-) equilibrium state. The mechanism of TRU recycling toward the equilibrium is analyzed in terms of burnup reactivity and the isotopic compositions of TRU fuel. In the comparative analyses, the difference in the recycling behavior between the two cores is clarified. In addition, the basic safety characteristics of the recycled core are also discussed in terms of the Doppler coefficient, the coolant loss reactivity coefficient, and the effective delayed neutron fraction

  15. Design of integrated passive safety system (IPSS) for ultimate passive safety of nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang, Soon Heung; Kim, Sang Ho; Choi, Jae Young

    2013-01-01

    Highlights: • We newly propose the design concept of integrated passive safety system (IPSS). • It has five safety functions for decay heat removal and severe accident mitigation. • Simulations for IPSS show that core melt does not occur in accidents with SBO. • IPSS can achieve the passive in-vessel retention and ex-vessel cooling strategy. • The applicability of IPSS is high due to the installation outside the containment. -- Abstract: The design concept of integrated passive safety system (IPSS) which can perform various passive safety functions is proposed in this paper. It has the various functions of passive decay heat removal system, passive safety injection system, passive containment cooling system, passive in-vessel retention and cavity flooding system, and filtered venting system with containment pressure control. The objectives of this paper are to propose the conceptual design of an IPSS and to estimate the design characters of the IPSS with accident simulations using MARS code. Some functions of the IPSS are newly proposed and the other functions are reviewed with the integration of the functions. Consequently, all of the functions are modified and integrated for simplicity of the design in preparation for beyond design based accidents (BDBAs) focused on a station black out (SBO). The simulation results with the IPSS show that the decay heat can be sufficiently removed in accidents that occur with a SBO. Also, the molten core can be retained in a vessel via the passive in-vessel retention strategy of the IPSS. The actual application potential of the IPSS is high, as numerous strong design characters are evaluated. The installation of the IPSS into the original design of a nuclear power plant requires minimal design change using the current penetrations of the containment. The functions are integrated in one or two large tanks outside the containment. Furthermore, the operation time of the IPSS can be increased by refilling coolant from the

  16. Decay Heat Removal in GEN IV Gas-Cooled Fast Reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lap-Yan, C.; Wie, T. Y. C.

    2009-01-01

    The safety goal of the current designs of advanced high-temperature thermal gas-cooled reactors (HTRs) is that no core meltdown would occur in a depressurization event with a combination of concurrent safety system failures. This study focused on the analysis of passive decay heat removal (DHR) in a GEN IV direct-cycle gas-cooled fast reactor (GFR) which is based on the technology developments of the HTRs. Given the different criteria and design characteristics of the GFR, an approach different from that taken for the HTRs for passive DHR would have to be explored. Different design options based on maintaining core flow were evaluated by performing transient analysis of a depressurization accident using the system code RELAP5-3D. The study also reviewed the conceptual design of autonomous systems for shutdown decay heat removal and recommends that future work in this area should be focused on the potential for Brayton cycle DHRs.

  17. Analysis of loss of coolant accident and emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Abe, Kiyoharu; Kobayashi, Kenji; Hayata, Kunihisa; Tasaka, Kanji; Shiba, Masayoshi

    1977-01-01

    In this paper, the analysis for the performance evaluation of emergency core cooling system is described, which is the safety protection device to the loss of coolant accidents due to the break of primary cooling pipings of light water reactors. In the LOCA analysis for the performance evaluation of ECCS, it must be shown that a reactor core keeps the form which can be cooled with the ECCS in case of LOCA, and the overheat of the core can be prevented. Namely, the shattering of fuel cladding tubes is never to occur, and for the purpose, the maximum temperature of Zircaloy 2 or 4 cladding tubes must be limited to 1200 deg C, and the relative thickness of oxide film must be below 15%. The calculation for determining the temperature of cladding tubes in case of the LOCA in BWRs and PWRs is explained. First, the primary cooling system, the ECCS and the related installations of BWRs and PWRs are outlined. The code systems for LOCA/ECCS analysis are divid ed into several steps, such as blowdown process, reflooding process and heatup calculation. The examples of the sensitivity analysis of the codes are shown. The LOCA experiments carried out so far in Japan and foreign countries and the LOCA analysis of a BWR with RELAP-4J code are described. The guidance for the performance evaluation of ECCS was established in 1975 by the Reactor Safety Deliberation Committee in Japan, and the contents are quoted. (Kako, I.)

  18. Passive safety features for next generation CANDU power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Natalizio, A.; Hart, R.S.; Lipsett, J.J.; Soedijono, P.; Dick, J.E.

    1989-01-01

    CANDU offers an evolutionary approach to simpler and safer reactors. The CANDU 3, an advanced CANDU, currently in the detailed design stage, offers significant improvements in the areas of safety, design simplicity, constructibility, operability, maintainability, schedule and cost. These are being accomplished by retaining all of the well known CANDU benefits, and by relying on the use of proven components and technologies. A major safety benefit of CANDU is the moderator system which is separate from the coolant. The presence of a cold moderator reduces the consequences arising from a LOCA or loss of heat sink event. In existing CANDU plants even the severe accident - LOCA with failure of the emergency core cooling system - is a design basis event. Further advances toward a simpler and more passively safe reactor will be made using the same evolutionary approach. Building on the strength of the moderator system to mitigate against severe accidents, a passive moderator cooling system, depending only on the law of gravity to perform its function, will be the next step of development. AECL is currently investigating a number of other features that could be incorporated in future evolutionary CANDU designs to enhance protection against accidents, and to limit off-site consequences to an acceptable level, for even the worst event. The additional features being investigated include passive decay heat removal from the heat transport system, a simpler emergency core cooling system and a containment pressure suppression/venting capability for beyond design basis events. Central to these passive decay heat removal schemes is the availability of a short-term heat sink to provide a decay heat removal capability of at least three days, without any station services. Preliminary results from these investigations confirm the feasibility of these schemes. (author)

  19. Development of small, fast reactor core designs using lead-based coolant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cahalan, J. E.; Hill, R. N.; Khalil, H. S.; Wade, D. C.

    1999-01-01

    A variety of small (100 MWe) fast reactor core designs are developed, these include compact configurations, long-lived (15-year fuel lifetime) cores, and derated, natural circulation designs. Trade studies are described which identify key core design issues for lead-based coolant systems. Performance parameters and reactivity feedback coefficients are compared for lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) and sodium-cooled cores of consistent design. The results of these studies indicate that the superior neutron reflection capability of lead alloys reduces the enrichment and burnup swing compared to conventional sodium-cooled systems; however, the discharge fluence is significantly increased. The size requirement for long-lived systems is constrained by reactivity loss considerations, not fuel burnup or fluence limits. The derated lead-alloy cooled natural circulation cores require a core volume roughly eight times greater than conventional compact systems. In general, reactivity coefficients important for passive safety performance are less favorable for the larger, derated configurations

  20. Effect of passive cooling strategies on overheating in low energy residential buildings for Danish climate

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Simone, Angela; Avantaggiato, Marta; de Carli, Michele

    2014-01-01

    creating not negligible thermal discomfort. In the present work the effect of passive strategies, such as solar shading and natural night-time ventilation, are evaluated through computer simulations. The analyses are performed for 1½-storey single-family house in Copenhagen’s climate. The main result......Climate changes have progressively produced an increase of outdoors temperature resulting in tangible warmer summers even in cold climate regions. An increased interest for passive cooling strategies is rising in order to overcome the newly low energy buildings’ overheating issue. The growing level...

  1. THE GROWTH OF COOL CORES AND EVOLUTION OF COOLING PROPERTIES IN A SAMPLE OF 83 GALAXY CLUSTERS AT 0.3 < z < 1.2 SELECTED FROM THE SPT-SZ SURVEY

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    McDonald, M.; Bautz, M. W. [Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States); Benson, B. A.; Bleem, L. E.; Carlstrom, J. E.; Chang, C. L.; Crawford, T. M.; Crites, A. T. [Kavli Institute for Cosmological Physics, University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637 (United States); Vikhlinin, A.; Stalder, B.; Ashby, M. L. N.; Bayliss, M. [Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States); De Haan, T. [Department of Physics, McGill University, 3600 Rue University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2T8 (Canada); Lin, H. W. [Caddo Parish Magnet High School, Shrevport, LA 71101 (United States); Aird, K. A. [University of Chicago, 5640 South Ellis Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637 (United States); Bocquet, S.; Desai, S. [Department of Physics, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet, Scheinerstr. 1, D-81679 Muenchen (Germany); Brodwin, M. [Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri, 5110 Rockhill Road, Kansas City, MO 64110 (United States); Cho, H. M. [NIST Quantum Devices Group, 325 Broadway Mailcode 817.03, Boulder, CO 80305 (United States); Clocchiatti, A., E-mail: mcdonald@space.mit.edu [Departamento de Astronomia y Astrosifica, Pontificia Universidad Catolica (Chile); and others

    2013-09-01

    We present first results on the cooling properties derived from Chandra X-ray observations of 83 high-redshift (0.3 < z < 1.2) massive galaxy clusters selected by their Sunyaev-Zel'dovich signature in the South Pole Telescope data. We measure each cluster's central cooling time, central entropy, and mass deposition rate, and compare these properties to those for local cluster samples. We find no significant evolution from z {approx} 0 to z {approx} 1 in the distribution of these properties, suggesting that cooling in cluster cores is stable over long periods of time. We also find that the average cool core entropy profile in the inner {approx}100 kpc has not changed dramatically since z {approx} 1, implying that feedback must be providing nearly constant energy injection to maintain the observed ''entropy floor'' at {approx}10 keV cm{sup 2}. While the cooling properties appear roughly constant over long periods of time, we observe strong evolution in the gas density profile, with the normalized central density ({rho}{sub g,0}/{rho}{sub crit}) increasing by an order of magnitude from z {approx} 1 to z {approx} 0. When using metrics defined by the inner surface brightness profile of clusters, we find an apparent lack of classical, cuspy, cool-core clusters at z > 0.75, consistent with earlier reports for clusters at z > 0.5 using similar definitions. Our measurements indicate that cool cores have been steadily growing over the 8 Gyr spanned by our sample, consistent with a constant, {approx}150 M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1} cooling flow that is unable to cool below entropies of 10 keV cm{sup 2} and, instead, accumulates in the cluster center. We estimate that cool cores began to assemble in these massive systems at z{sub cool}=1.0{sup +1.0}{sub -0.2}, which represents the first constraints on the onset of cooling in galaxy cluster cores. At high redshift (z {approx}> 0.75), galaxy clusters may be classified as ''cooling flows

  2. CMT scaling analysis and distortion evaluation in passive integral test facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Deng Chengcheng; Qin Benke; Wang Han; Chang Huajian

    2013-01-01

    Core makeup tank (CMT) is the crucial device of AP1000 passive core cooling system, and reasonable scaling analysis of CMT plays a key role in the design of passive integral test facilities. H2TS method was used to perform scaling analysis for both circulating mode and draining mode of CMT. And then, the similarity criteria for CMT important processes were applied in the CMT scaling design of the ACME (advanced core-cooling mechanism experiment) facility now being built in China. Furthermore, the scaling distortion results of CMT characteristic Ⅱ groups of ACME were calculated. At last, the reason of scaling distortion was analyzed and the distortion evaluation was conducted for ACME facility. The dominant processes of CMT circulating mode can be adequately simulated in the ACME facility, but the steam condensation process during CMT draining is not well preserved because the excessive CMT mass leads to more energy to be absorbed by cold metal. However, comprehensive analysis indicates that the ACME facility with high-pressure simulation scheme is able to properly represent CMT's important phenomena and processes of prototype nuclear plant. (authors)

  3. Analysis and Modeling of Heat Generation in Overcharged Li-Ion Battery with Passive Cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Coman, Paul Tiberiu; Veje, Christian

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents a dynamic model for simulating the heat generation in Lithium batteries and an investigation of the heat transfer as well as the capacity of Phase Change Materials (PCM’s) to store energy inside a battery cell module when the battery is overcharged. The study is performed......-cooled and passively cooled using a PCM, respectively. As expected, the results show that for high currents, the heat generation and implicitly the temperature increases. However, using a PCM the temperature increase is found to be limited allowing the battery to be overcharged to a certain degree. It is found...

  4. STEADY-STATE HEAT REJECTION RATES FOR A COAXIAL BOREHOLE HEAT EXCHANGER DURING PASSIVE AND ACTIVE COOLING DETERMINED WITH THE NOVEL STEP THERMAL RESPONSE TEST METHOD

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Marija Macenić

    2018-01-01

    Full Text Available At three locations in Zagreb, classical and extended thermal response test (TRT was conducted on installed coaxial heat exchangers. With classic TR test, thermogeological properties of the ground and thermal resistance of the borehole were determined at each location. It is seen that thermal conductivity of the ground varies, due to difference in geological profile of the sites. In addition, experimental research of steady-state thermal response step test (SSTRST was carried out to determine heat rejection rates for passive and active cooling in steady state regime. Results showed that heat rejection rate is only between 8-11 W/m, which indicates that coaxial system is not suitable for passive cooling demands. Furthermore, the heat pump in passive cooling mode uses additional plate heat exchanger where there is additional temperature drop of working fluid by approximately 1,5 °C. Therefore, steady-state rejection rate for passive cooling is even lower for a real case project. Coaxial heat exchanger should be always designed for an active cooling regime with an operation of a heat pump compressor in a classical vapour compression refrigeration cycle.

  5. Advanced Small-Safe Long-Life Lead Cooled Reactor Cores for Future Nuclear Energy

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Jin Hyeong; Hong, Ser Gi [Kyung Hee University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

    2014-10-15

    One of the reasons for use of the lead or lead-bismuth alloy coolants is the high boiling temperature that avoids the possibility of coolant voiding. Also, these coolants are compatible with air, steam, and water. Therefore, intermediate coolant loop is not required as in the sodium cooled reactors 3. Lead is considered to be more attractive coolant than lead-bismuth alloy because of its higher availability, lower price, and much lower amount of polonium activity by factor of 104 relatively to lead. On the other hand, lead has higher melting temperature of 601K than that of lead-bismuth (398K), which narrows the operating temperature range and also leads to the possibility of freezing and blockage in fresh cores. Neutronically, the lead and lead-bismuth have very similar characteristics to each other. The lead-alloy coolants have lower moderating power and higher scattering without increasing moderation for neutrons below 0.5MeV, which reduces the leakage of the neutrons through the core and provides an excellent reflecting capability for neutrons. Due to the above features of lead or lead-alloy coolants, there have been lots of studies on the small lead cooled core designs. In this paper, small-safe long-life lead cooled reactor cores having high discharge burnup are designed and neutronically analyzed.. The cores considered in this work rates 110MWt (36.7MWe). In this work, the long-life with high discharge burnup was achieved by using thorium or depleted uranium blanket loaded in the central region of the core. Also, we considered a reference core having no blanket for the comparison. This paper provides the detailed neutronic analyses for these small long-life cores and the detailed analyses of the reactivity coefficients and the composition changes in blankets. The results of the core design and analyses show that our small long-life cores can be operated without refueling over their long-lives longer than 45EFPYs (Effective Full Power Year). In this work

  6. Comparative economic performance of selected passive solar heating and cooling technologies

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rutter, W.

    1981-05-01

    The economic performance of selected passive solar heating and cooling technologies which incorporate energy storage is assessed by using a set of uniform assumptions and methodologies. Where data are available, a given system is assessed at more than one geographical location. Results are obtained in the form of both payback period and net present value for residential applications, and in terms of net present value only for industrial/commercial uses. Results indicate that ventilated trombe walls, solar roof ponds, and certain night effect/floor storage strategies are cost effective, but night effect/rock bed cooling is not. Results also show that, although direct gain out-performs trombe walls in most parts of the country, both direct gain and trombe walls usually produce a net savings in the residential sector. Generally, however, tax regulations result in net economic loss for direct gain and trombe walls used to heat industrial and commercial buildings.

  7. Heat Transfer Characteristics of SiC-coated Heat Pipe for Passive Decay Heat Removal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Kyung Mo; Kim, In Guk; Jeong, Yeong Shin; Bang, In Cheol

    2014-01-01

    The main concern with the Fukushima accident was the failure of active and passive core cooling systems. The main function of existing passive decay heat removal systems is feeding additional coolant to the reactor core. Thus, an established emergency core cooling system (ECCS) cannot operate properly because of impossible depressurization under the station blackout (SBO) condition. Therefore, a new concept for passive decay heat removal system is required. In this study, an innovative hybrid control rod concept is considered for passive in-core decay heat removal that differs from the existing direct vessel injection core cooling system and passive auxiliary feedwater system (PAFS). The heat transfer between the evaporator and condenser sections occurs by phase change of the working fluid and capillary action induced by wick structures installed on the inner wall of the heat pipe. In this study, a hybrid control rod is developed to take the roles of both neutron absorption and heat removal by combining the functions of a heat pipe and control rod. Previous studies on enhancing the heat removal capacity of heat pipes used nanofluids, self-rewetting fluids, various wick structures and condensers. Many studies have examined the thermal performances of heat pipes using various nanofluids. They concluded that the enhanced thermal performance of the heat pipe using nanofluids is due to nanoparticle deposition on the wick structures. Thus, the wick structure of heat pipes has been modified by nanoparticle deposition to enhance the heat removal capacity. However, previous studies used relatively small heat pipes and narrow ranges of heat loads. The environment of a nuclear reactor is very specific, and the decay heat produced by fission products after shutdown is relatively large. Thus, this study tested a large-scale heat pipe over a wide range of power. The concept of a hybrid heat pipe for an advanced in-core decay heat removal system was introduced for complete

  8. Heat Transfer Characteristics of SiC-coated Heat Pipe for Passive Decay Heat Removal

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Kyung Mo; Kim, In Guk; Jeong, Yeong Shin; Bang, In Cheol [Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of)

    2014-10-15

    The main concern with the Fukushima accident was the failure of active and passive core cooling systems. The main function of existing passive decay heat removal systems is feeding additional coolant to the reactor core. Thus, an established emergency core cooling system (ECCS) cannot operate properly because of impossible depressurization under the station blackout (SBO) condition. Therefore, a new concept for passive decay heat removal system is required. In this study, an innovative hybrid control rod concept is considered for passive in-core decay heat removal that differs from the existing direct vessel injection core cooling system and passive auxiliary feedwater system (PAFS). The heat transfer between the evaporator and condenser sections occurs by phase change of the working fluid and capillary action induced by wick structures installed on the inner wall of the heat pipe. In this study, a hybrid control rod is developed to take the roles of both neutron absorption and heat removal by combining the functions of a heat pipe and control rod. Previous studies on enhancing the heat removal capacity of heat pipes used nanofluids, self-rewetting fluids, various wick structures and condensers. Many studies have examined the thermal performances of heat pipes using various nanofluids. They concluded that the enhanced thermal performance of the heat pipe using nanofluids is due to nanoparticle deposition on the wick structures. Thus, the wick structure of heat pipes has been modified by nanoparticle deposition to enhance the heat removal capacity. However, previous studies used relatively small heat pipes and narrow ranges of heat loads. The environment of a nuclear reactor is very specific, and the decay heat produced by fission products after shutdown is relatively large. Thus, this study tested a large-scale heat pipe over a wide range of power. The concept of a hybrid heat pipe for an advanced in-core decay heat removal system was introduced for complete

  9. Cool colored coating and phase change materials as complementary cooling strategies for building cooling load reduction in tropics

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lei, Jiawei; Kumarasamy, Karthikeyan; Zingre, Kishor T.; Yang, Jinglei; Wan, Man Pun; Yang, En-Hua

    2017-01-01

    Highlights: • Cool colored coating and PCM are two complementary passive cooling strategies. • A PCM cool colored coating system is developed. • The coating reduces cooling energy by 8.5% and is effective yearly in tropical Singapore. - Abstract: Cool colored coating and phase change materials (PCM) are two passive cooling strategies often used separately in many studies and applications. This paper investigated the integration of cool colored coating and PCM for building cooling through experimental and numerical studies. Results showed that cool colored coating and PCM are two complementary passive cooling strategies that could be used concurrently in tropical climate where cool colored coating in the form of paint serves as the “first protection” to reflect solar radiation and a thin layer of PCM forms the “second protection” to absorb the conductive heat that cannot be handled by cool paint. Unlike other climate zones where PCM is only seasonally effective and cool paint is only beneficial during summer, the application of the proposed PCM cool colored coating in building envelope could be effective throughout the entire year with a monthly cooling energy saving ranging from 5 to 12% due to the uniform climatic condition all year round in tropical Singapore.

  10. Hybrid heat pipe based passive cooling device for spent nuclear fuel dry storage cask

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jeong, Yeong Shin; Bang, In Cheol

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Hybrid heat pipe was presented as a passive cooling device for dry storage cask of SNF. • A method to utilize waste heat from spent fuel was suggested using hybrid heat pipe. • CFD analysis was performed to evaluate the thermal performance of hybrid heat pipe. • Hybrid heat pipe can increase safety margin and storage capacity of the dry storage cask. - Abstract: Conventional dry storage facilities for spent nuclear fuel (SNF) were designed to remove decay heat through the natural convection of air, but this method has limited cooling capacity and a possible re-criticality accident in case of flooding. To enhance the safety and capacity of dry storage cask of SNF, hybrid heat pipe-based passive cooling device was suggested. Heat pipe is an excellent passive heat transfer device using the principles of both conduction and phase change of the working fluid. The heat pipe containing neutron absorber material, the so-called hybrid heat pipe, is expected to prevent the re-criticality accidents of SNF and to increase the safety margin during interim and long term storage period. Moreover, a hybrid heat pipe with thermoelectric module, a Stirling engine and a phase change material tank can be used for utilization of the waste heat as heat-transfer medium. Located at the guide tube or instrumentation tube, hybrid heat pipe can remove decay heat from inside the sealed metal cask to outside, decreasing fuel rod temperature. In this paper, a 2-step analysis was performed using computational fluid dynamics code to evaluate the heat and fluid flow inside a cask, which consisted of a single spent fuel assembly simulation and a full-scope dry cask simulation. For a normal dry storage cask, the maximum fuel temperature is 290.0 °C. With hybrid heat pipe cooling, the temperature decreased to 261.6 °C with application of one hybrid heat pipe per assembly, and to 195.1 °C with the application of five hybrid heat pipes per assembly. Therefore, a dry

  11. Application of a bistable convection loop to LMFBR [liquid metal fast breeder reactor] emergency core cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anand, G.; Christensen, R.N.

    1990-01-01

    The concept of passive safety features for nuclear reactors has been developed in recent years and has gained wide acceptance. A literature survey of current reactors with passive features indicates that these reactors have some passive features but still do not fully meet the design objectives. Consider a current liquid-metal reactor design like PRISM. During normal operation, liquid sodium enters the reactor at ∼395 degree C and exits at ∼550 degree C. In the event of loss of secondary cooling with or without scram, the primary coolant (liquid sodium) initially acts as a heat sink and its temperature increases. For events without scram, the negative reactivity induced by the increase in temperature shuts the reactor down. When the average temperature of the sodium reaches ∼600 to 650 degree C, it overflows from the reactor vessel, activating the auxiliary cooling system. The auxiliary cooling system uses natural circulation of air around the reactor guard vessel. An alternative to the current design incorporates a bistable convection loop (BCL). The incorporation of the BCL concept remarkably improves the safety of the nuclear reactors. Application of the BCL concept to liquid-metal fast breeder reactors is described in this paper

  12. Evaluation of the gravity-injection capability for core cooling after a loss-of-SDC event

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Seul, Kwang Won; Bang, Young Seok; Kim, Hho Jung

    1999-01-01

    In order to evaluate the gravity-drain capability to maintain core cooling after a loss-of-shutdown-cooling event during shutdown operation, the plant conditions of the Young Gwang Units 3 and 4 were reviewed. The six cases of possible gravity-drain paths using the water of the refueling water storage tank (RWST) were identified and the thermal hydraulic analyses were performed using RELAP5/MOD3.2 code. The core cooling capability was dependent on the gravity-drain paths and the drain rate. In the cases with the injection path and opening on the different leg side, the system was well depressurized after gravity-injection and the core boiling was successfully prevented for a long-term transient. However, in the cases with the injection path and opening on the cold leg side, the core coolant continued boiling although the system pressure remains atmospheric after gravity-injection because the cold water injected from the RWST was bypassed the core region. In the cases with the higher pressurizer opening than the RWST water level, the system was also pressurized by the water-hold in the pressurizer and the core was uncovered because the gravity-injection from the RWST stopped due to the high system pressure. In addition, from the sensitivity study on the gravity-injection flow rates, it was found that about 54 kg/s of RWST drain rate was required to maintain the core cooling. Those analysis results would provide useful information to operators coping with the event

  13. Role of passive valves & devices in poison injection system of advanced heavy water reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sapra, M.K.; Kundu, S.; Vijayan, P.K.; Vaze, K.K.; Sinha, R.K.

    2014-01-01

    The Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) is a 300 MWe pressure tube type boiling light water (H 2 O) cooled, heavy water (D 2 O) moderated reactor. The reactor design is based on well-proven water reactor technologies and incorporates a number of passive safety features such as natural circulation core cooling; direct in-bundle injection of light water coolant during a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) from Advanced Accumulators and Gravity Driven Water Pool by passive means; Passive Decay Heat Removal using Isolation Condensers, Passive Containment Cooling System and Passive Containment Isolation System. In addition to above, there is another passive safety system named as Passive Poison Injection System (PPIS) which is capable of shutting down the reactor for a prolonged time. It is an additional safety system in AHWR to fulfill the shutdown function in the event of failure of wired shutdown systems i.e. primary and secondary shut down systems of the reactor. When demanded, PPIS injects the liquid poison into the moderator by passive means using passive valves and devices. On increase of main heat transport (MHT) system pressure beyond a predetermined value, a set of rupture disks burst, which in-turn actuate the passive valve. The opening of passive valve initiates inrush of high pressure helium gas into poison tanks to push the poison into the moderator system, thereby shutting down the reactor. This paper primarily deals with design and development of Passive Poison Injection System (PPIS) and its passive valves & devices. Recently, a prototype DN 65 size Poison Injection Passive Valve (PIPV) has been developed for AHWR usage and tested rigorously under simulated conditions. The paper will highlight the role of passive valves & devices in PPIS of AHWR. The design concept and test results of passive valves along with rupture disk performance will also be covered. (author)

  14. The research activities on in-tube condensation in the presence of noncondensables for passive cooling applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Tanrikut, A [Turkish Atomic Energy Authority, Ankara (Turkey)

    1996-12-01

    The introduction of nuclear power becomes an attractive solution to the problem of increasing demand for electricity power capacity in Turkey. Thus, Turkey is willing to follow the technological development trends in advanced reactor systems and to participate in joint research studies. The primary objectives of the passive design features are to simplify the design, which assures the minimized demand on operator, and to improve plant safety. To accomplish these features the operating principles of passive safety systems should be well understood by an experimental validation program. Such a validation program is also important for the assessment of advanced computer codes which are currently used for design and licensing procedures. The condensation mode of heat transfer plays an important role for the passive heat removal applications in the current nuclear power plants (e.g. decay heat removal via steam generators in case of loss of heat removal system) and advanced water-cooled reactor systems. But is well established that the presence of noncondensable gases can greatly inhibit the condensation process due to the build-up of noncondensable gas concentration at the liquid/gas interface. The isolation condenser of passive containment cooling system of the simplified boiling water reactors is a typical application area of in-tube condensation in the presence of noncondensable. This paper describes the research activities at the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority concerning condensation in the presence of air, as a noncondensable gas. (author). 9 refs, 6 figs.

  15. The research activities on in-tube condensation in the presence of noncondensables for passive cooling applications

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tanrikut, A.

    1996-01-01

    The introduction of nuclear power becomes an attractive solution to the problem of increasing demand for electricity power capacity in Turkey. Thus, Turkey is willing to follow the technological development trends in advanced reactor systems and to participate in joint research studies. The primary objectives of the passive design features are to simplify the design, which assures the minimized demand on operator, and to improve plant safety. To accomplish these features the operating principles of passive safety systems should be well understood by an experimental validation program. Such a validation program is also important for the assessment of advanced computer codes which are currently used for design and licensing procedures. The condensation mode of heat transfer plays an important role for the passive heat removal applications in the current nuclear power plants (e.g. decay heat removal via steam generators in case of loss of heat removal system) and advanced water-cooled reactor systems. But is well established that the presence of noncondensable gases can greatly inhibit the condensation process due to the build-up of noncondensable gas concentration at the liquid/gas interface. The isolation condenser of passive containment cooling system of the simplified boiling water reactors is a typical application area of in-tube condensation in the presence of noncondensable. This paper describes the research activities at the Turkish Atomic Energy Authority concerning condensation in the presence of air, as a noncondensable gas. (author). 9 refs, 6 figs

  16. Technical feasibility and reliability of passive safety systems of AC600

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Niu, W.; Zeng, X.

    1996-01-01

    The first step conceptual design of the 600 MWe advanced PWR (AC-600) has been finished by the Nuclear Power Institute of China. Experiments on the passive system of AC-600 are being carried out, and are expected to be completed next year. The main research emphases of AC-600 conceptual design include the advanced core, the passive safety system and simplification. The design objective of AC-600 is that the safety, reliability, maintainability, operation cost and construction period are all improved upon compared to those of PWR plant. One of important means to achieve the objective is using a passive system, which has the following functions whenever its operation is required: providing the reactor core with enough coolant when others fail to make up the lost coolant; reactor residual heat removal; cooling and reducing pressure in the containment and preventing radioactive substances from being released into the environment after occurrence of accident (e.g. LOCA). The system should meet the single failure criterion, and keep operating when a single active component or passive component breaks down during the first 72 hour period after occurrence of accident, or in the long period following the 72 hour period. The passive safety system of AC-600 is composed of the primary safety injection system, the secondary emergency core residual heat removal system and the containment cooling system. The design of the system follows some relevant rules and criteria used by current PWR plant. The system has the ability to bear single failure, two complete separate subsystems are considered, each designed for 100% working capacity. Normal operation is separate from safety operation and avoids cross coupling and interference between systems, improves the reliability of components, and makes it easy to maintain, inspect and test the system. The paper discusses the technical feasibility and reliability of the passive safety system of AC-600, and some issues and test plans are also

  17. Technical feasibility and reliability of passive safety systems of AC600

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Niu, W; Zeng, X [Nuclear Power Inst. of China, Chendu (China)

    1996-12-01

    The first step conceptual design of the 600 MWe advanced PWR (AC-600) has been finished. Experiments on the passive system of AC-600 are being carried out, and are expected to be completed next year. The main research emphases of AC-600 conceptual design include the advanced core, the passive safety system and simplification. The design objective of AC-600 is that the safety, reliability, maintainability, operation cost and construction period are all improved upon compared to those of PWR plant. One of important means to achieve the objective is using a passive system, which has the following functions whenever its operation is required: providing the reactor core with enough coolant when others fail to make up the lost coolant; reactor residual heat removal; cooling and reducing pressure in the containment and preventing radioactive substances from being released into the environment after occurrence of accident (e.g. LOCA). The system should meet the single failure criterion, and keep operating when a single active component or passive component breaks down during the first 72 hour period after occurrence of accident, or in the long period following the 72 hour period. The passive safety system of AC-600 is composed of the primary safety injection system, the secondary emergency core residual heat removal system and the containment cooling system. The design of the system follows some relevant rules and criteria used by current PWR plant. The system has the ability to bear single failure, two complete separate subsystems are considered, each designed for 100% working capacity. Normal operation is separate from safety operation and avoids cross coupling and interference between systems, improves the reliability of components, and makes it easy to maintain, inspect and test the system. The paper discusses the technical feasibility and reliability of the passive safety system of AC-600, and some issues and test plans are also involved. (author). 3 figs, 1 tab.

  18. Nano-PCMs for passive electronic cooling applications

    Science.gov (United States)

    Colla, L.; Fedele, L.; Mancin, S.; Buonomo, B.; Ercole, D.; Manca, O.

    2015-11-01

    The present work aims at investigating a new challenging use of oxide (TiO2, Al2O3, etc.) nanoparticles to enhance the thermal properties: thermal conductivity, specific heat, and latent heat of pure paraffin waxes to obtain a new class of Phase Change Materials (PCMs), the so-called nano-PCMs. The nano-PCMs were obtained by seeding different amounts of oxide nanoparticles in a paraffin wax having a melting temperature of 45°C. The thermophysical properties such as latent heat and thermal conductivity were then measured to understand the effects of the nanoparticles on the thermal properties of both the solid and liquid PCM. Finally, a numerical comparison between the use of the pure paraffin wax and the nano-PCM in a typical electronics passive cooling device was implemented. Numerical simulations were carried out using the Ansys-Fluent 15.0 code. Results in terms of solid and liquid phase temperatures, melting time and junction temperature were reported. Moreover, a comparison with experimental results was also performed.

  19. Design and development of innovative passive valves for Nuclear Power Plant applications

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sapra, M.K., E-mail: sapramk@barc.gov.in; Kundu, S.; Pal, A.K.; Vijayan, P.K.; Vaze, K.K.; Sinha, R.K.

    2015-05-15

    Highlights: • Passive valves are self-acting valves requiring no external energy to function. • These valves have been developed for Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) of India. • Passive valves are core components of passive safety systems of the reactor. • Accumulator Isolation Passive Valve (AIPV) has been developed and tested for ECSS. • AIPV provided passive isolation and flow regulation in ECCS of Integral Test Loop. - Abstract: The recent Fukushima accident has resulted in an increased need for passive safety systems in upcoming advanced reactors. In order to enhance the global contribution and acceptability of nuclear energy, proven evidence is required to show that it is not only green but also safe, in case of extreme natural events. To achieve and establish this fact, we need to design, demonstrate and incorporate reliable ‘passive safety systems’ in our advanced reactor designs. In Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs), the use of passive safety systems such as accumulators, condensing and evaporative heat exchangers and gravity driven cooling systems provide enhanced safety and reliability. In addition, they eliminate the huge costs associated with the installation, maintenance and operation of active safety systems that require multiple pumps with independent and redundant electric power supplies. As a result, passive safety systems are preferred for numerous advanced reactor concepts. In current NPPs, passive safety systems which are not participating in day to day operation, are kept isolated, and require a signal and external energy source to open the valve. It is proposed to replace these valves by passive components and devices such as self-acting valves, rupture disks, etc. Some of these innovative passive valves, which do not require external power, have been recently designed, developed and tested at rated conditions. These valves are proposed to be used for various passive safety systems of an upcoming Nuclear Power Plant being designed

  20. Emergency core cooling systems in CANDU nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1981-12-01

    This report contains the responses by the Advisory Committee on Nuclear Safety to three questions posed by the Atomic Energy Control Board concerning the need for Emergency Core Cooling Systems (ECCS) in CANDU nuclear power plants, the effectiveness requirement for such systems, and the extent to which experimental evidence should be available to demonstrate compliance with effectiveness standards

  1. Experimental investigation of a two-phase closed thermosyphon assembly for passive containment cooling system

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nam, Kyung Ho [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Sang Nyung [Kyunghee Univ., Gyeonggi-do (Korea, Republic of)

    2017-06-15

    After the Fukushima accident, increasing interest has been raised in passive safety systems that maintain the integrity of the containment building. To improve the reliability and safety of nuclear power plants, long-term passive cooling concepts have been developed for advanced reactors. In a previous study, the proposed design was based on an ordinary cylindrical Two-Phase Closed Thermosyphon (TPCT). The exact assembly size and number of TPCTs should be elaborated upon through accurate calculations based on experiments. While the ultimate goal is to propose an effective MPHP design for the PCCS and experimentally verify its performance, a TPCT assembly that was manufactured based on the conceptual design in this paper was tested.

  2. Shivering heat production and body fat protect the core from cooling during body immersion, but not during head submersion: a structural equation model.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pretorius, Thea; Lix, Lisa; Giesbrecht, Gordon

    2011-03-01

    Previous studies showed that core cooling rates are similar when only the head or only the body is cooled. Structural equation modeling was used on data from two cold water studies involving body-only, or whole body (including head) cooling. Exposure of both the body and head increased core cooling, while only body cooling elicited shivering. Body fat attenuates shivering and core cooling. It is postulated that this protection occurs mainly during body cooling where fat acts as insulation against cold. This explains why head cooling increases surface heat loss with only 11% while increasing core cooling by 39%. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. GOTHIC Simulation of Passive Containment Cooling System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, Huiun; Kim, Hangon

    2013-01-01

    The performance of this system depends on the condensation of steam moving downward inside externally cooled vertical tubes. AES-2006: During a DBA, heat is removed by internally cooled vertical tubes, which are located in containment. We are currently developing the conceptual design of Innovative PWR, which is will be equipped with various passive safety features, including PCCS. We have plan to use internal heat exchanger (HX) type PCCS with concrete containment. In this case, the elevation of HXs is important to ensure the heat removal during accidents. In general, steam is lighter than air mixture in containment. So, steam may be collected at the upper side of containment. It means that higher elevation of HXs, larger heat removal efficiency of those. So, the aim of the present paper is to give preliminary study on variation of heat removal performance according to elevation of HXs. With reference to the design specification of the current reactors including APR+, we had determined conceptual design of PCCS. Using it, we developed a GOTHIC model of the APR1400 containment was adopted PCCS. This calculation model is described herein and representative results of calculation are presented. APR 1400 GOTHIC model was developed for PCCS performance calculation and sensitivity test according to installation elevation of PCCXs. Calculation results confirm that PCCS is working properly. It is found that the difference due to the installation elevation of PCCXs is insignificant at this preliminary analysis, however, further studies should be performed to confirm final performance of PCCS according to the installation elevation. These insights are important for developing the PCCS of Innovative PWR

  4. GOTHIC Simulation of Passive Containment Cooling System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ha, Huiun; Kim, Hangon [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. Ltd., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2013-05-15

    The performance of this system depends on the condensation of steam moving downward inside externally cooled vertical tubes. AES-2006: During a DBA, heat is removed by internally cooled vertical tubes, which are located in containment. We are currently developing the conceptual design of Innovative PWR, which is will be equipped with various passive safety features, including PCCS. We have plan to use internal heat exchanger (HX) type PCCS with concrete containment. In this case, the elevation of HXs is important to ensure the heat removal during accidents. In general, steam is lighter than air mixture in containment. So, steam may be collected at the upper side of containment. It means that higher elevation of HXs, larger heat removal efficiency of those. So, the aim of the present paper is to give preliminary study on variation of heat removal performance according to elevation of HXs. With reference to the design specification of the current reactors including APR+, we had determined conceptual design of PCCS. Using it, we developed a GOTHIC model of the APR1400 containment was adopted PCCS. This calculation model is described herein and representative results of calculation are presented. APR 1400 GOTHIC model was developed for PCCS performance calculation and sensitivity test according to installation elevation of PCCXs. Calculation results confirm that PCCS is working properly. It is found that the difference due to the installation elevation of PCCXs is insignificant at this preliminary analysis, however, further studies should be performed to confirm final performance of PCCS according to the installation elevation. These insights are important for developing the PCCS of Innovative PWR.

  5. Integral effect test and code analysis on the cooling performance of the PAFS (passive auxiliary feedwater system) during an FLB (feedwater line break) accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bae, Byoung-Uhn; Kim, Seok; Park, Yu-Sun; Kang, Kyoung-Ho

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • This study focuses on the experimental validation of the operational performance of the PAFS (passive auxiliary feedwater system). • A transient simulation of the FLB (feedwater line break) in the integral effect test facility, ATLAS-PAFS, was performed to investigate thermal hydraulic behavior during the PAFS actuation. • The test result confirmed that the APR+ has the capability of coping with the FLB scenario by adopting the PAFS and proper set-points for its operation. • The experimental result was utilized to evaluate the prediction capability of a thermal hydraulic system analysis code, MARS-KS. - Abstract: APR+ (Advanced Power Reactor Plus), which is a GEN-III+ nuclear power plant developed in Korea, adopts PAFS (passive auxiliary feedwater system) as an advanced safety feature. The PAFS can completely replace an active auxiliary feedwater system by cooling down the secondary side of steam generators with a natural convection mechanism. This study focuses on experimental and analytical investigation for cooling and operational performance of the PAFS during an FLB (feedwater line break) transient with an integral effect test facility, ATLAS-PAFS. To realistically simulate the FLB accident of the APR+, the three-level scaling methodology was taken into account to design the test facility and determine the test condition. From the test result, the PAFS was actuated to successfully cool down the decay heat of the reactor core by the condensation heat transfer at the PCHX (passive condensation heat exchanger), and thus it could be confirmed that the APR+ has the capability of coping with a FLB scenario by adopting the PAFS and proper set-points for its operation. This integral effect test data were used to evaluate the prediction capability of a thermal hydraulic system analysis code, MARS-KS. The code analysis result proved that it could reasonably predict the FLB transient including the actuation of the PAFS and the natural convection

  6. Core design of a high breeding fast reactor cooled by supercritical pressure light water

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Someya, Takayuki, E-mail: russell@ruri.waseda.jp; Yamaji, Akifumi

    2016-01-15

    Highlights: • Core design concept of supercritical light water cooled fast breeding reactor is developed. • Compound system doubling time (CSDT) is applied for considering an appropriate target of breeding performance. • Breeding performance is improved by reducing fuel rod diameter of the seed assembly. • Core pressure loss is reduced by enlarging the coolant channel area of the seed assembly. - Abstract: A high breeding fast reactor core concept, cooled by supercritical pressure light water has been developed with fully-coupled neutronics and thermal-hydraulics core calculations, which takes into account the influence of core pressure loss to the core neutronics characteristics. Design target of the breeding performance has been determined to be compound system doubling time (CSDT) of less than 50 years, by referring to the relationship of energy consumption and economic growth rate of advanced countries such as the G7 member countries. Based on the past design study of supercritical water cooled fast breeder reactor (Super FBR) with the concept of tightly packed fuel assembly (TPFA), further improvement of breeding performance and reduction of core pressure loss are investigated by considering different fuel rod diameters and coolant channel geometries. The sensitivities of CSDT and the core pressure loss with respect to major core design parameters have been clarified. The developed Super FBR design concept achieves fissile plutonium surviving ratio (FPSR) of 1.028, compound system doubling time (CSDT) of 38 years and pressure loss of 1.02 MPa with positive density reactivity (negative void reactivity). The short CSDT indicates high breeding performance, which may enable installation of the reactors at a rate comparable to energy growth rate of developed countries such as G7 member countries.

  7. Data acquisition and analysis of passive solar cooling effects by storage of out door air in the middle of the night; Shin'ya gaiki chikurei ni yoru shizen reibo koka no jissoku to kaiseki

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Inagaki, H.; Kasutani, A. [Komazawa Womens Junior College, Tokyo (Japan); Koizumi, H.

    1998-12-05

    Passive cooling by storing coolness of out door air in the middle of the night in rock bed is realized by air type solar system without any additional equipment. The advantage of the passive cooling is confirmed with measuring performance of the passive cooling effect of air type solar system equipped in our Komazawa Womens Junior College last year. (author)

  8. Westinghouse-GOTHIC comparisons to AP600 passive containment cooling tests

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kennedy, M.D.; Woodcock, J.; Gresham, J.A.

    1994-01-01

    Westinghouse-GOTHIC is a thermal-hydraulics code well suited to analyzing passively cooled containments which depend on heat removal primarily through the containment shell. The code includes boundary layer heat and mass transfer correlations. A liquid film convective energy transport model has been added to the Westinghouse-GOTHIC code to account for the sensible heat change of the applied exterior water. The objective of this paper is to compare the code's predictions of the AP600 large scale test facility with and without the liquid film convective energy transport model. The predicted vessel pressure and integrated heat rate with and without the film convective energy transport model will be compared to the measured data. (author)

  9. Proposal for a advanced PWR core with adequate characteristics for passive safety concept

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Perrotta, Jose Augusto

    1999-01-01

    This work presents a discussion upon the suitable from an advanced PWR core, classified by the EPRI as 'Passive PWR' (advanced reactor with passive safety concept to power plants with less than 600 MW electrical power). The discussion upon the type of core is based on nuclear fuel engineering concepts. Discussion is made on type of fuel materials, structural materials, geometric shapes and manufacturing process that are suitable to produce fuel assemblies which give good performance for this type of reactors. The analysis is guided by the EPRI requirements for Advanced Light Water Reactor (ALWR). By means of comparison, the analysis were done to Angra 1 (old type of 600 MWe PWR class), and the design of the Westinghouse Advanced PWR-AP600. It was verified as a conclusion of this work that the modern PWR fuels are suitable for advanced PWR's Nevertheless, this work presents a technical alternative to this kind of fuel, still using UO 2 as fuel, but changing its cylindrical form of pellets and pin type fuel element to plane shape pallets and plate type fuel element. This is not a novelty fuel, since it was used in the 50's at Shippingport Reactor and as an advanced version by CEA of France in the 70's. In this work it is proposed a new mechanical assembly design for this fuel, which can give adequate safety and operational performance to the core of a 'Passive PWR'. (author)

  10. Unprotected Accident Analyses of the 1200MWe GEN-IV Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor Using the SSC-K Code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwon, Young Min; Lee, Kwi Lim; Ha, Kwi Seok; Jeong, Hae Yong; Chang, Won Pyo; Seok, Su Dong; Lee, Yong Bum

    2010-02-01

    A conceptual design of an advanced breakeven sodium-cooled fast reactor (G4SFR) has recently been developed by KAERI under the national nuclear R and D plan. The G4SFR is a 1,200MWe metal-fueled pool-type sodium-cooled fast reactor adopting advanced safety design features. The G4SFR development plan focuses on particular technology development efforts to effectively meet the goals of the Generation-IV (GEN-IV) nuclear system such as efficient utilization of resources, economic competitiveness, a high standard of safety, and enhanced proliferation resistance. To enhance the safety of G4SFR, advanced design features of metal-fueled core, simple and large sodium-inventory primary heat transport system, and passive safety decay heat removal system are included in the reactor design. To evaluate potential safety characteristics of such advanced design features, the plant responses and safety margins were investigated using the system transient code SSC-K for three unprotected accidents of UTOP, ULOF, and ULOHS. It was shown that the G4SFR design has inherent and passive safety characteristics and is accommodating the selected ATWS events. The inherent safety mechanism of the reactor design makes the core shutdown with sufficient margin and passive removal of decay heat with matching the core power to heat sink by passive self-regulation. The self-regulation of power without scram is mainly due to the inherent negative reactivity feedback in conjunction with the large thermal inertia of the primary heat transport system and the passive decay heat removal. Such favorable inherent and passive safety behaviors of G4SFR are expected to virtually exclude the probability of severe accidents with potential for core damage

  11. Nuclear reactor core support incorporating also a cooling fluid flow system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pennell, W.E.

    1975-01-01

    A description is given of a core bearing plate with several modular intake units having cooling fluid intake openings on their lower extensions, and on their upper ends located above the bearing plate, at least one fuel assembly which is thus in communication with the area under the bearing plate through the modular intake unit. The means for introducing the cooling fluid into the reactor vessel area are located under the bearing plate. The lower ends of the modular intake have ribs arranged essentially on a plane and join together with openings provided between the seals, in such a manner that the ribs form a barrier. The cooling fluid intake openings are located above this barrier, so that the cooling fluid is compelled to cross it before penetrating into the modular intake units [fr

  12. Design of a PWR emergency core cooling simulator loop

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Melo, C.A. de.

    1982-12-01

    The preliminary design of a PWR Emergency Core Cooling Simulator Loop for investigations of the phenomena involved in a postulated Loss-of-Coolant Accident, during the Reflooding Phase, is presented. The functions of each component of the loop, the design methods and calculations, the specification of the instrumentation, the system operation sequence, the materials list and a cost assessment are included. (Author) [pt

  13. Studies on the behaviour of a passive containment cooling system for the Indian advanced heavy water reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Maheshwari, N.K.; Saha, D.; Chandraker, D.K.; Kakodkar, A.; Venkat Raj, V.

    2001-01-01

    A passive containment cooling system has been proposed for the advanced heavy water reactor being designed in India. This is to provide long term cooling for the reactor containment following a loss of coolant accident. The system removes energy released into the containment through immersed condensers kept in a pool of water. An important aspect of immersed condenser's working is the potential degradation of immersed condenser's performance due to the presence of noncondensable gases. An experimental programme to investigate the passive containment cooling system behaviour and performance has been undertaken in a phased manner. In the first phase, system response tests were conducted on a small scale model to understand the phenomena involved. Tests were conducted with constant energy input rate and with varying energy input rate simulating decay heat. With constant energy input rate, pressures in volume V 1 and V 2 reached almost steady value. With varying energy input rate V 1 pressure dropped below the pressure in V 2 . The system could efficiently purge air from V 1 to V 2 . The paper deals with the details of the tests conducted and the results obtained. (orig.) [de

  14. Detailed evaluation of two phase natural circulation flow in the cooling channel of the ex-vessel core catcher for EU-APR1400

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Park, Rae-Joon, E-mail: rjpark@kaeri.re.kr; Ha, Kwang-Soon; Rhee, Bo-Wook; Kim, Hwan Yeol

    2016-03-15

    Highlights: • Ex-vessel core catcher of PECS is installed in EU-APR1400. • CE-PECS has been conducted to test a cooling capability of the PECS. • Two phase flow in CE-PECS and PECS was analyzed using RELAP5/MOD3. • RELAP5 results are very similar to the CE-PECS data. • The super-step design is suitable for steam injection into the downcomer in PECS. - Abstract: The ex-vessel core catcher of the PECS (Passive Ex-vessel corium retaining and Cooling System) is installed to retain and cool down the corium in the reactor cavity of the EU (European Union)-APR (Advanced Power Reactor) 1400. A verification experiment on the cooling capability of the PECS has been conducted in the CE (Cooling Experiment)-PECS. Simulations of a two-phase natural circulation flow using the RELAP5/MOD3 computer code in the CE-PECS and PECS have been conducted to predict the two-phase flow characteristics, to determine the natural circulation mass flow rate in the cooling channel, and to evaluate the scaling in the experimental design of the CE-PECS. Particularly from a comparative study of the prototype PECS and the scaled test facility of the CE-PECS, the orifice loss coefficient in the CE-PECS was found to be 6 to maintain the coolant circulation mass flux, which is approximately 273.1 kg/m{sup 2} s. The RELAP5 results on the coolant circulation mass flow rate are very similar to the CE-PECS experimental results. An increase in the coolant injection temperature and the heat flux lead to an increase in the coolant circulation mass flow rate. In the base case simulation, a lot of vapor was injected into the downcomer, which leads to an instability of the two-phase natural circulation flow. A super-step design at a downcomer inlet is suitable to prevent vapor injection into the downcomer piping.

  15. Detailed evaluation of two phase natural circulation flow in the cooling channel of the ex-vessel core catcher for EU-APR1400

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Rae-Joon; Ha, Kwang-Soon; Rhee, Bo-Wook; Kim, Hwan Yeol

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • Ex-vessel core catcher of PECS is installed in EU-APR1400. • CE-PECS has been conducted to test a cooling capability of the PECS. • Two phase flow in CE-PECS and PECS was analyzed using RELAP5/MOD3. • RELAP5 results are very similar to the CE-PECS data. • The super-step design is suitable for steam injection into the downcomer in PECS. - Abstract: The ex-vessel core catcher of the PECS (Passive Ex-vessel corium retaining and Cooling System) is installed to retain and cool down the corium in the reactor cavity of the EU (European Union)-APR (Advanced Power Reactor) 1400. A verification experiment on the cooling capability of the PECS has been conducted in the CE (Cooling Experiment)-PECS. Simulations of a two-phase natural circulation flow using the RELAP5/MOD3 computer code in the CE-PECS and PECS have been conducted to predict the two-phase flow characteristics, to determine the natural circulation mass flow rate in the cooling channel, and to evaluate the scaling in the experimental design of the CE-PECS. Particularly from a comparative study of the prototype PECS and the scaled test facility of the CE-PECS, the orifice loss coefficient in the CE-PECS was found to be 6 to maintain the coolant circulation mass flux, which is approximately 273.1 kg/m"2 s. The RELAP5 results on the coolant circulation mass flow rate are very similar to the CE-PECS experimental results. An increase in the coolant injection temperature and the heat flux lead to an increase in the coolant circulation mass flow rate. In the base case simulation, a lot of vapor was injected into the downcomer, which leads to an instability of the two-phase natural circulation flow. A super-step design at a downcomer inlet is suitable to prevent vapor injection into the downcomer piping.

  16. Investigations on sump cooling after core melt down

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Knebel, J.U. [Forschungeszentrum Karlsruhe - Technik und Umwelt Institut fuer Angewandte Thermo- und Fluiddynamik, Karlsruhe (Germany)

    1995-09-01

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase and two-phase natural circulation flow. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The above results are applied to the SUCO program that is performed at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. The SUCO program is a three-step series of scaled model experiments investigating the possibility of an optional sump cooling concept for the European Pressurized Water Reactor EPR. This concept is entirely based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens dimensional SUCOS-2D test facility. The experimental results of the model geometry are transformed to prototypic conditions.

  17. Investigations on sump cooling after core melt down

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.

    1995-01-01

    This article presents the basic physical phenomena and scaling criteria of decay heat removal from a large coolant pool by single-phase and two-phase natural circulation flow. The physical significance of the dimensionless similarity groups derived is evaluated. The above results are applied to the SUCO program that is performed at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. The SUCO program is a three-step series of scaled model experiments investigating the possibility of an optional sump cooling concept for the European Pressurized Water Reactor EPR. This concept is entirely based on passive safety features within the containment. The work is supported by the German utilities and the Siemens dimensional SUCOS-2D test facility. The experimental results of the model geometry are transformed to prototypic conditions

  18. First evidence of diffuse ultra-steep-spectrum radio emission surrounding the cool core of a cluster

    Science.gov (United States)

    Savini, F.; Bonafede, A.; Brüggen, M.; van Weeren, R.; Brunetti, G.; Intema, H.; Botteon, A.; Shimwell, T.; Wilber, A.; Rafferty, D.; Giacintucci, S.; Cassano, R.; Cuciti, V.; de Gasperin, F.; Röttgering, H.; Hoeft, M.; White, G.

    2018-05-01

    Diffuse synchrotron radio emission from cosmic-ray electrons is observed at the center of a number of galaxy clusters. These sources can be classified either as giant radio halos, which occur in merging clusters, or as mini halos, which are found only in cool-core clusters. In this paper, we present the first discovery of a cool-core cluster with an associated mini halo that also shows ultra-steep-spectrum emission extending well beyond the core that resembles radio halo emission. The large-scale component is discovered thanks to LOFAR observations at 144 MHz. We also analyse GMRT observations at 610 MHz to characterise the spectrum of the radio emission. An X-ray analysis reveals that the cluster is slightly disturbed, and we suggest that the steep-spectrum radio emission outside the core could be produced by a minor merger that powers electron re-acceleration without disrupting the cool core. This discovery suggests that, under particular circumstances, both a mini and giant halo could co-exist in a single cluster, opening new perspectives for particle acceleration mechanisms in galaxy clusters.

  19. CFD Analysis of Passive Autocatalytic Recombiner

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    B. Gera

    2011-01-01

    Full Text Available In water-cooled nuclear power reactors, significant quantities of hydrogen could be produced following a postulated loss-of-coolant accident (LOCA along with nonavailability of emergency core cooling system (ECCS. Passive autocatalytic recombiners (PAR are implemented in the containment of water-cooled power reactors to mitigate the risk of hydrogen combustion. In the presence of hydrogen with available oxygen, a catalytic reaction occurs spontaneously at the catalyst surfaces below conventional ignition concentration limits and temperature and even in presence of steam. Heat of reaction produces natural convection flow through the enclosure and promotes mixing in the containment. For the assessment of the PAR performance in terms of maximum temperature of catalyst surface and outlet hydrogen concentration an in-house 3D CFD model has been developed. The code has been used to study the mechanism of catalytic recombination and has been tested for two literature-quoted experiments.

  20. Passive radiative cooling of a HTS coil for attitude orbit control in micro-spacecraft

    Science.gov (United States)

    Inamori, Takaya; Ozaki, Naoya; Saisutjarit, Phongsatorn; Ohsaki, Hiroyuki

    2015-02-01

    This paper proposes a novel radiative cooling system for a high temperature superconducting (HTS) coil for an attitude orbit control system in nano- and micro-spacecraft missions. These days, nano-spacecraft (1-10 kg) and micro-spacecraft (10-100 kg) provide space access to a broader range of spacecraft developers and attract interest as space development applications. In planetary and high earth orbits, most previous standard-size spacecraft used thrusters for their attitude and orbit control, which are not available for nano- and micro-spacecraft missions because of the strict power consumption, space, and weight constraints. This paper considers orbit and attitude control methods that use a superconducting coil, which interacts with on-orbit space plasmas and creates a propulsion force. Because these spacecraft cannot use an active cooling system for the superconducting coil because of their mass and power consumption constraints, this paper proposes the utilization of a passive radiative cooling system, in which the superconducting coil is thermally connected to the 3 K cosmic background radiation of deep space, insulated from the heat generation using magnetic holders, and shielded from the sun. With this proposed cooling system, the HTS coil is cooled to 60 K in interplanetary orbits. Because the system does not use refrigerators for its cooling system, the spacecraft can achieve an HTS coil with low power consumption, small mass, and low cost.

  1. Safeguarding of emergency core cooling in case of loss-of-coolant accidents with insulation material release

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Pointner, W.; Broecker, A.

    2012-01-01

    The report on safeguarding of emergency core cooling in case of loss-of-coolant accidents with insulation material release covers the following issues: assessment of the relevant status for PWR, evaluation of the national and international (USA, Canada, France) status, actualization of recommendations, transferability from PWR to BWR. Generic studies on the core cooling capability in case of insulation material release in BWR-type reactors were evaluated.

  2. Study on core radius minimization for long life Pb-Bi cooled CANDLE burnup scheme based fast reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Afifah, Maryam, E-mail: maryam.afifah210692@gmail.com; Su’ud, Zaki [Nuclear Research Group, FMIPA, Bandung Institute of Technology Jl. Ganesha 10, Bandung 40132 (Indonesia); Miura, Ryosuke; Takaki, Naoyuki [Department of Nuclear Safety Engineering, Tokyo City University 1-28-1 Tamazutsumi, Setagaya, Tokyo 158-8557 (Japan); Sekimoto, H. [Emerritus Prof. of Research Laboratory for Nuclear Reactors, Tokyo Inst. of Technology (Japan)

    2015-09-30

    Fast Breeder Reactor had been interested to be developed over the world because it inexhaustible source energy, one of those is CANDLE reactor which is have strategy in burn-up scheme, need not control roads for control burn-up, have a constant core characteristics during energy production and don’t need fuel shuffling. The calculation was made by basic reactor analysis which use Sodium coolant geometry core parameter as a reference core to study on minimum core reactor radius of CANDLE for long life Pb-Bi cooled, also want to perform pure coolant effect comparison between LBE and sodium in a same geometry design. The result show that the minimum core radius of Lead Bismuth cooled CANDLE is 100 cm and 500 MWth thermal output. Lead-Bismuth coolant for CANDLE reactor enable to reduce much reactor size and have a better void coefficient than Sodium cooled as the most coolant for FBR, then we will have a good point in safety analysis.

  3. Rhapsody-G simulations I: the cool cores, hot gas and stellar content of massive galaxy clusters

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hahn, Oliver; Martizzi, Davide; Wu, Hao-Yi

    2017-01-01

    We present the rhapsody-g suite of cosmological hydrodynamic zoom simulations of 10 massive galaxy clusters at the M vir ~10 15 M ⊙ scale. These simulations include cooling and subresolution models for star formation and stellar and supermassive black hole feedback. The sample is selected to capture the whole gamut of assembly histories that produce clusters of similar final mass. We present an overview of the successes and shortcomings of such simulations in reproducing both the stellar properties of galaxies as well as properties of the hot plasma in clusters. In our simulations, a long-lived cool-core/non-cool-core dichotomy arises naturally, and the emergence of non-cool cores is related to low angular momentum major mergers. Nevertheless, the cool-core clusters exhibit a low central entropy compared to observations, which cannot be alleviated by thermal active galactic nuclei feedback. For cluster scaling relations, we find that the simulations match well the M 500 –Y 500 scaling of Planck Sunyaev–Zeldovich clusters but deviate somewhat from the observed X-ray luminosity and temperature scaling relations in the sense of being slightly too bright and too cool at fixed mass, respectively. Stars are produced at an efficiency consistent with abundance-matching constraints and central galaxies have star formation rates consistent with recent observations. In conclusion, while our simulations thus match various key properties remarkably well, we conclude that the shortcomings strongly suggest an important role for non-thermal processes (through feedback or otherwise) or thermal conduction in shaping the intracluster medium.

  4. Demonstration of Passive Fuel Cell Thermal Management Technology

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burke, Kenneth A.; Jakupca, Ian; Colozza, Anthony; Wynne, Robert; Miller, Michael; Meyer, Al; Smith, William

    2012-01-01

    The NASA Glenn Research Center is developing advanced passive thermal management technology to reduce the mass and improve the reliability of space fuel cell systems for the NASA Exploration program. The passive thermal management system relies on heat conduction within highly thermally conductive cooling plates to move the heat from the central portion of the cell stack out to the edges of the fuel cell stack. Using the passive approach eliminates the need for a coolant pump and other cooling loop components within the fuel cell system which reduces mass and improves overall system reliability. Previous development demonstrated the performance of suitable highly thermally conductive cooling plates and integrated heat exchanger technology to collect the heat from the cooling plates (Ref. 1). The next step in the development of this passive thermal approach was the demonstration of the control of the heat removal process and the demonstration of the passive thermal control technology in actual fuel cell stacks. Tests were run with a simulated fuel cell stack passive thermal management system outfitted with passive cooling plates, an integrated heat exchanger and two types of cooling flow control valves. The tests were run to demonstrate the controllability of the passive thermal control approach. Finally, successful demonstrations of passive thermal control technology were conducted with fuel cell stacks from two fuel cell stack vendors.

  5. Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor Cores using Uranium-Free Metallic Fuels for Maximizing TRU Support Ratio

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    You, WuSeung; Hong, Ser Gi

    2014-01-01

    The depleted uranium plays important roles in the SFR burner cores because it substantially contributes to the inherent safety of the core through the negative Doppler coefficient and large delayed neutron. However, the use of depleted uranium as a diluent nuclide leads to a limited value of TRU support ratio due to the generation of TRUs through the breeding. In this paper, we designed sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) cores having uranium-free fuels 3,4 for maximization of TRU consumption rate. However, the uranium-free fuelled burner cores can be penalized by unacceptably small values of the Doppler coefficient and small delayed neutron fraction. In this work, metallic fuels of TRU-(W or Ni)-Zr are considered to improve the performances of the uranium-free cores. The objective of this work is to consistently compare the neutronic performances of uranium-free sodium cooled fast reactor cores having TRU-Zr metallic fuels added with Ni or W and also to clarify what are the problematic features to be resolved. In this paper, a consistent comparative study of 400MWe sodium cooled burner cores having uranium-based fuels and uranium-free fuels was done to analyze the relative core neutronic features. Also, we proposed a uranium-free metallic fuel based on Nickel. From the results, it is found that tungsten-based uranium-free metallic fuel gives large negative Doppler coefficient due to high resonance of tungsten isotopes but this core has large sodium void worth and small effective delayed neutron fraction while the nickel-based uranium-free metallic fuelled core has less negative Doppler coefficient but smaller sodium void worth and larger effective delayed neutron fraction than the tungsten-based one. On the other hand, the core having TRU-Zr has very high burnup reactivity swing which may be problematic in compensating it using control rods and the least negative Doppler coefficient

  6. Passive device for emergency core cooling of pressurized water reactors. Pasivno ustrojstvo za bezopasnost na vodo-voden atomen reaktor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sikora, D

    1984-02-28

    The device proposed ensures additional margin of reactor subcriticality in case of post-accident emergency core cooling (ECC), using concentrated solution of chemical absorber and hot water from the secondary circuit. It consists of: a) a differential cylinder with a differential piston in it, with a lid and a seal, connected to a pipeline for secondary coolant; b) a pipeline for the secondary coolant; c) a volume between the lid and the piston for the secondary coolant from the steam generator; d) a discharge pipeline with a check valve of seal type connecting the inner volume of the differential cylinder to the discharge line; and e) a pipeline from the high-pressure volume of the differential cylinder filled with concentrated chemical absorber solution, to one of the main circulation loops. The device permits ECC innovation of the operating non-standard nuclear power plants with PWR type reactors.

  7. Solid-Core, Gas-Cooled Reactor for Space and Surface Power

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    King, Jeffrey C.; El-Genk, Mohamed S.

    2006-01-01

    The solid-core, gas-cooled, Submersion-Subcritical Safe Space (S and 4) reactor is developed for future space power applications and avoidance of single point failures. The Mo-14%Re reactor core is loaded with uranium nitride fuel in enclosed cavities, cooled by He-30%Xe, and sized to provide 550 kWth for seven years of equivalent full power operation. The beryllium oxide reflector disassembles upon impact on water or soil. In addition to decreasing the reactor and shadow shield mass, Spectral Shift Absorber (SSA) materials added to the reactor core ensure that it remains subcritical in the worst-case submersion accident. With a 0.1 mm thick boron carbide coating on the outside surface of the core block and 0.25 mm thick iridium sleeves around the fuel stacks, the reflector outer diameter is 43.5 cm and the combined reactor and shadow shield mass is 935.1 kg. With 12.5 atom% gadolinium-155 added to the fuel, 2.0 mm diameter gadolinium-155 sesquioxide intersititial pins, and a 0.1 mm thick gadolinium-155 sesquioxide coating, the S and 4 reactor has a slightly smaller reflector outer diameter of 43.0 cm, and a total reactor and shield mass of 901.7 kg. With 8.0 atom% europium-151 added to the fuel, 2.0 mm diameter europium-151 sesquioxide interstitial pins, and a 0.1 mm thick europium-151 sesquioxide coating, the reflector's outer diameter and the total reactor and shield mass are further reduced to 41.5 cm and 869.2 kg, respectively

  8. The core design of ALFRED, a demonstrator for the European lead-cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Grasso, G.; Petrovich, C.; Mattioli, D.; Artioli, C.; Sciora, P.; Gugiu, D.; Bandini, G.; Bubelis, E.; Mikityuk, K.

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • The design for the lead fast reactor is conceived in a comprehensive approach. • Neutronic, thermal-hydraulic, and transient analyses show promising results. • The system is designed to withstand even design extension conditions accidents. • Activation products in lead, including polonium, are evaluated. - Abstract: The European Union has recently co-funded the LEADER (Lead-cooled European Advanced DEmonstration Reactor) project, in the frame of which the preliminary designs of an industrial size lead-cooled reactor (1500 MW th ) and of its demonstrator reactor (300 MW th ) were developed. The latter is called ALFRED (Advanced Lead-cooled Fast Reactor European Demonstrator) and its core, as designed and characterized in the project, is presented here. The core parameters have been fixed in a comprehensive approach taking into account the main technological constraints and goals of the system from the very beginning: the limiting temperature of the clad and of the fuel, the Pu enrichment, the achievement of a burn-up of 100 GWd/t, the respect of the integrity of the system even in design extension conditions (DEC). After the general core design has been fixed, it has been characterized from the neutronic point of view by two independent codes (MCNPX and ERANOS), whose results are compared. The power deposition and the reactivity coefficient calculations have been used respectively as input for the thermal-hydraulic analysis (TRACE, CFD and ANTEO codes) and for some preliminary transient calculations (RELAP, CATHARE and SIM-LFR codes). The results of the lead activation analysis are also presented (FISPACT code). Some issues of the core design are to be reviewed and improved, uncertainties are still to be evaluated, but the verifications performed so far confirm the promising safety features of the lead-cooled fast reactors

  9. The core design of ALFRED, a demonstrator for the European lead-cooled reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Grasso, G., E-mail: giacomo.grasso@enea.it [ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), via Martiri di Monte Sole, 4, 40129 Bologna (Italy); Petrovich, C., E-mail: carlo.petrovich@enea.it [ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), via Martiri di Monte Sole, 4, 40129 Bologna (Italy); Mattioli, D., E-mail: davide.mattioli@enea.it [ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), via Martiri di Monte Sole, 4, 40129 Bologna (Italy); Artioli, C., E-mail: carlo.artioli@enea.it [ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), via Martiri di Monte Sole, 4, 40129 Bologna (Italy); Sciora, P., E-mail: pierre.sciora@cea.fr [CEA (Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission), DEN, DER, 13108 St Paul lez Durance (France); Gugiu, D., E-mail: daniela.gugiu@nuclear.ro [RATEN-ICN (Institute for Nuclear Research), Cod 115400 Mioveni, Str. Campului, 1, Jud. Arges (Romania); Bandini, G., E-mail: giacomino.bandini@enea.it [ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), via Martiri di Monte Sole, 4, 40129 Bologna (Italy); Bubelis, E., E-mail: evaldas.bubelis@kit.edu [KIT (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology), Institute for Neutron Physics and Reactor Technology, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); Mikityuk, K., E-mail: konstantin.mikityuk@psi.ch [PSI (Paul Scherrer Institute), OHSA/D11, 5232 Villigen PSI (Switzerland)

    2014-10-15

    Highlights: • The design for the lead fast reactor is conceived in a comprehensive approach. • Neutronic, thermal-hydraulic, and transient analyses show promising results. • The system is designed to withstand even design extension conditions accidents. • Activation products in lead, including polonium, are evaluated. - Abstract: The European Union has recently co-funded the LEADER (Lead-cooled European Advanced DEmonstration Reactor) project, in the frame of which the preliminary designs of an industrial size lead-cooled reactor (1500 MW{sub th}) and of its demonstrator reactor (300 MW{sub th}) were developed. The latter is called ALFRED (Advanced Lead-cooled Fast Reactor European Demonstrator) and its core, as designed and characterized in the project, is presented here. The core parameters have been fixed in a comprehensive approach taking into account the main technological constraints and goals of the system from the very beginning: the limiting temperature of the clad and of the fuel, the Pu enrichment, the achievement of a burn-up of 100 GWd/t, the respect of the integrity of the system even in design extension conditions (DEC). After the general core design has been fixed, it has been characterized from the neutronic point of view by two independent codes (MCNPX and ERANOS), whose results are compared. The power deposition and the reactivity coefficient calculations have been used respectively as input for the thermal-hydraulic analysis (TRACE, CFD and ANTEO codes) and for some preliminary transient calculations (RELAP, CATHARE and SIM-LFR codes). The results of the lead activation analysis are also presented (FISPACT code). Some issues of the core design are to be reviewed and improved, uncertainties are still to be evaluated, but the verifications performed so far confirm the promising safety features of the lead-cooled fast reactors.

  10. Aseismic study of high temperature gas-cooled reactor core with block-type fuel, 3

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikushima, Takeshi; Honma, Toshiaki.

    1985-01-01

    A two-dimensional horizontal seismic experiment with single axis and simultaneous two-axes excitations was performed to obtain the core seismic design data on the block-type high temperature gas-cooled reactor. Effects of excitation directions and core side support stiffness on characteristics of core displacements and reaction forces of support were revealed. The values of the side reaction forces are the largest in the excitation of flat-to-flat of hexagonal block. Preload from the core periphery to the core center are effective to decrease core displacements and side reaction forces. (author)

  11. Study on Heat Transfer Characteristics of One Side Heated Vertical Channel Applied as Vessel Cooling System

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kuriyama, Shinji; Takeda, Tetsuaki; Funatani, Shumpei

    2014-01-01

    The inherent properties of the Very-High-Temperature Reactor facilitate the design of the VHTR with high degree of passive safe performances, compared to other type of reactors. However; it is still not clear if the VHTR can maintain a passive safe function during the severe accident, or what would be a design criterion to guarantee the VHTR with the high degree of passive safe performances during the accidents. In the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) which is a next generation nuclear reactor system, ceramics and graphite are used as a fuel coating material and a core structural material, respectively. Even if the depressurization accident occurs and the reactor power goes up instantly, the temperature of the core will change slowly. This is because the thermal capacity of the core is so large. Therefore, the VHTR system can passively remove the decay heat of the core by natural convection and radiation from the surface of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV). This study is to develop the passive cooling system for the VHTR using the vertical channel inserting porous materials. The objective of this study is to investigate heat transfer characteristics of natural convection of a one-side heated vertical channel inserting the porous materials with high porosity. In order to obtain the heat transfer and fluid flow characteristics of a vertical channel inserting porous material, we have also carried out a numerical analysis using the commercial CFD code. From the analytical results obtained in the natural convection cooling, an amount of removed heat enhanced inserting the copper wire. It was found that an amount of removed heat inserting the copper wire (porosity = 0.9972) was about 10% higher than that without the copper wire. This paper describes a thermal performance of the one-side heated vertical channel inserting copper wire with high porosity. (author)

  12. Shivering heat production and core cooling during head-in and head-out immersion in 17 degrees C water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pretorius, Thea; Cahill, Farrell; Kocay, Sheila; Giesbrecht, Gordon G

    2008-05-01

    Many cold-water scenarios cause the head to be partially or fully immersed (e.g., ship wreck survival, scuba diving, cold-water adventure swim racing, cold-water drowning, etc.). However, the specific effects of head cold exposure are minimally understood. This study isolated the effect of whole-head submersion in cold water on surface heat loss and body core cooling when the protective shivering mechanism was intact. Eight healthy men were studied in 17 degrees C water under four conditions: the body was either insulated or exposed, with the head either out of the water or completely submersed under the water within each insulated/exposed subcondition. Submersion of the head (7% of the body surface area) in the body-exposed condition increased total heat loss by 11% (P < 0.05). After 45 min, head-submersion increased core cooling by 343% in the body-insulated subcondition (head-out: 0.13 +/- 0.2 degree C, head-in: 0.47 +/- 0.3 degree C; P < 0.05) and by 56% in the body-exposed subcondition (head-out: 0.40 +/- 0.3 degree C and head-in: 0.73 +/- 0.6 degree C; P < 0.05). In both body-exposed and body-insulated subconditions, head submersion increased the rate of core cooling disproportionally more than the relative increase in total heat loss. This exaggerated core-cooling effect is consistent with a head cooling induced reduction of the thermal core, which could be stimulated by cooling of thermosensitive and/or trigeminal receptors in the scalp, neck, and face. These cooling effects of head submersion are not prevented by shivering heat production.

  13. Passive shut-down of ITER plasma by Be evaporation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Amano, Tsuneo.

    1996-02-01

    In an accident event where the cooling system of first wall of the ITER fails, the first wall temperature continues to rise as long as the ignited state of the core plasma persists. In this paper, a passive shut-down scheme of the ITER from this accident by evaporated Be from the first wall is examined. It is shown the estimated Be influx 5 10 24 /sec is sufficient to quench the ignition. (author)

  14. The effect of lower body cooling on the changes in three core temperature indices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Basset, F A; Cahill, F; Handrigan, G; DuCharme, M B; Cheung, S S

    2011-01-01

    Rectal (T re ), ear canal (T ear ) and esophageal (T es ) temperatures have been used in the literature as core temperature indices in humans. The aim of the study was to investigate if localized lower body cooling would have a different effect on each of these measurements. We hypothesized that prolonged lower body surface cooling will result in a localized cooling effect for the rectal temperature not reflected in the other core measurement sites. Twelve participants (mean ± SD; 26.8 ± 6.0 years; 82.6 ± 13.9 kg; 179 ± 10 cm, BSA = 2.00 ± 0.21 m 2 ) attended one experimental session consisting of sitting on a rubberized raft floor surface suspended in 5 °C water in a thermoneutral air environment (∼21.5 ± 0.5 °C). Experimental conditions were (a) a baseline phase during which participants were seated for 15 min in an upright position on an insulated pad (1.408 K . m 2 . W −1 ); (b) a cooling phase during which participants were exposed to the cooling surface for 2 h, and (c) an insulation phase during which the baseline condition was repeated for 1 h. Temperature data were collected at 1 Hz, reduced to 1 min averages, and transformed from absolute values to a change in temperature from baseline (15 min average). Metabolic data were collected breath-by-breath and integrated over the same temperature epoch. Within the baseline phase no significant change was found between the three indices of core temperature. By the end of the cooling phase, T re was significantly lower (Δ = −1.0 ± 0.4 °C) from baseline values than from T ear (Δ = −0.3 ± 0.3 °C) and T es (Δ = −0.1 ± 0.3 °C). T re continued to decrease during the insulation phase from Δ −1.0 ± 0.4 °C to as low as Δ −1.4 ± 0.5 °C. By the end of the insulation phase T re had slightly risen back to Δ −1.3 ± 0.4 °C but remained significantly different from baseline values and from the other two core measures. Metabolic data showed no variation throughout the experiment. In

  15. Coupled analysis of passive safety injection and containment filtered venting for passive decay heat removal - 15140

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, S.H.; Ham, J.H.; Jeong, Y.H.; Chang, S.H.

    2015-01-01

    Lots of interests for the safety of nuclear power plants have risen these days. The safety has to be continuously reviewed and enhanced in nuclear power plants currently operating as well as those designed and constructed in future. After the Fukushima accidents, many additional safety systems which can be applied to nuclear power plants in operation have been proposed. Those include alternating power source such as movable diesel generators and DC batteries in non-safety grade. Also, emergency preparedness for the prevention of a core damage accident was proposed to cope with the extended-SBO (station blackout) by using fire protection systems. In order to prevent the release of radioactive materials, safety systems for preserving the integrity of containment were proposed in two views of cooling and venting containment. Two approaches are effective for mitigating a severe accident. The design concept installing big water tanks besides containment at high level was proposed for various safety functions. One of the functions in the system is to inject the coolant from the elevated tank into a reactor vessel in the case of loss of coolant accident. When the pressure in reactor coolant system is sufficiently low, the coolant can be injected by gravity. If not, the depressurization in reactor vessel would be needed considering the containment pressure. Containment cooling in conventional pressurized water reactors is dependent on containment cooling pumps and sprays. Additional containment cooling systems cannot be simply and easily applied in the current nuclear power plants without major modifications. Therefore, for the operation of passive safety injection system, containment filtered venting system can be adopted for the depressurization of containment. In the design and operation of the passive safety injection system and the containment filtered venting system, main operating points related with open and close pressures in the filtered venting system were

  16. TRAC analysis of passive containment cooling system performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arai, Kenji; Kataoka, Kazuyoshi; Nagasaka, Hideo

    1993-01-01

    A passive containment cooling system (PCCS) is a promising concept to improve the reliability of decay heat removal during an accident. Toshiba has carried out analytical studies for PCCS development in addition to experimental studies, using a best estimate thermal hydraulic computer code TRAC. In order to establish an analytical model for the PCCS performance analysis, it is necessary for the analytical model to be qualified against experimental results and thoroughly address the phenomena important for PCCS performance analysis. In this paper, the TRAC qualification for PCCS application is reported. A TRAC model has been verified against a drain line break simulation test conducted at the PCCS integral test facility, GIRAFFE. The result shows that the TRAC model can accurately predict the major system response and the PCCS performance in the drain line break test. In addition, the results of several sensitivity analyses, showing various points concerning the modeling in the PCCS performance analysis, have been reported. The analyses have been carried out for the SBWR and the analytical points are closely related to important phenomena which can affect PCCS performance

  17. Implementation of new core cooling monitoring system for light water reactors - BCCM (Becker Core Cooling Monitor)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Coville, Patrick; Eliasson, Bengt; Stromqvist, Erik; Ward, Olav; Fox, Georges; Ashjian, D. T.

    1998-01-01

    Core cooling monitors are key instruments to protect reactors from large accidents due to loss of coolant. Sensors presented here are based on resistance thermometry. Temperature dependent resistance is powered by relatively high and constant current. Value of this resistance depends on thermal exchange with coolant and when water is no more surrounding the sensors a large increase of temperature is immediately generated. The same instrument can be operated with low current and will measure the local temperature up to 1260 o C in case of loss of coolant accident. Sensors are manufactured with very few components and materials already qualified for long term exposure to boiling or pressurized water reactors environment. Prototypes have been evaluated in a test loop up to 160 bars and in the Barsebaeck-1 reactor. Industrial sensors are now in operation in reactor Oskarshamn 2. (author)

  18. Expansion-matched passively cooled heatsinks with low thermal resistance for high-power diode laser bars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Leers, Michael; Scholz, Christian; Boucke, Konstantin; Poprawe, Reinhart

    2006-02-01

    The lifetime of high-power diode lasers, which are cooled by standard copper heatsinks, is limited. The reasons are the aging of the indium solder normally employed as well as the mechanical stress caused by the mismatch between the copper heatsink (16 - 17ppm/K) and the GaAs diode laser bars (6 - 7.5 ppm/K). For micro - channel heatsinks corrosion and erosion of the micro channels limit the lifetime additionally. The different thermal behavior and the resulting stress cannot be compensated totally by the solder. Expansion matched heatsink materials like tungsten-copper or aluminum nitride reduce this stress. A further possible solution is a combination of copper and molybdenum layers, but all these materials have a high thermal resistance in common. For high-power electronic or low cost medical applications novel materials like copper/carbon compound, compound diamond or high-conductivity ceramics were developed during recent years. Based on these novel materials, passively cooled heatsinks are designed, and thermal and mechanical simulations are performed to check their properties. The expansion of the heatsink and the induced mechanical stress between laser bar and heatsink are the main tasks for the simulations. A comparison of the simulation with experimental results for different material combinations illustrates the advantages and disadvantages of the different approaches. Together with the boundary conditions the ideal applications for packaging with these materials are defined. The goal of the development of passively-cooled expansion-matched heatsinks has to be a long-term reliability of several 10.000h and a thermal resistance below 1 K/W.

  19. Passive solar technology

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Watson, D

    1981-04-01

    The present status of passive solar technology is summarized, including passive solar heating, cooling and daylighting. The key roles of the passive solar system designer and of innovation in the building industry are described. After definitions of passive design and a summary of passive design principles are given, performance and costs of passive solar technology are discussed. Passive energy design concepts or methods are then considered in the context of the overall process by which building decisions are made to achieve the integration of new techniques into conventional design. (LEW).

  20. Experimental and design experience with passive safety features of liquid metal reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lucoff, D.M.; Waltar, A.E.; Sackett, J.I.; Salvatores, M.; Aizawa, K.

    1992-10-01

    Liquid metal cooled reactors (LMRs) have already been demonstrated to be robust machines. Many reactor designers now believe that it is possible to include in this technology sufficient passive safety that LMRs would be able to survive loss of flow, loss of heat sink, and transient overpower events, even if the plant protective system fails completely and do so without damage to the core. Early whole-core testing in Rapsodie, EBR-II. and FFTF indicate such designs may be possible. The operational safety testing program in EBR-II is demonstrating benign response of the reactor to a full range of controls failures. But additional testing is needed if transient core structural response under major accident conditions is to be properly understood. The proposed international Phase IIB passive safety tests in FFTF, being designed with a particular emphasis on providing, data to understand core bowing extremes, and further tests planned in EBR-11 with processed IFR fuel should provide a substantial and unique database for validating the computer codes being used to simulate postulated accident conditions

  1. Engineering review of the core support structure of the Gas Cooled Fast Breeder Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1978-09-01

    The review of the core support structure of the gas cooled fast breeder reactor (GCFR) covered such areas as the design criteria, the design and analysis of the concepts, the development plan, and the projected manufacturing costs. Recommendations are provided to establish a basis for future work on the GCFR core support structure

  2. Development of Wind Operated Passive Evaporative Cooling Structures for Storage of Tomatoes

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M. O. Sunmonu

    2016-08-01

    Full Text Available A Wind operated passive evaporative cooler was developed. Two cooling chambers were made with clay container (cylindrical and square shapes. These two containers were separately inserted inside bigger clay pot inter- spaced with clay soil of 7 cm (to form pot-in-pot and wall-in wall with the outside structure wrapped with jute sack. The soil and the jute sacks were wetted with salt solution. Five blades were constructed inside the cooling chambers with aluminium material which were connected with a shaft to a vane located on a wooden cover outside the cooling chamber. The vanes (made of aluminium were to be powered by the wind which in turn rotates the blades inside the cooling chamber. The total volume of 40500cm3 and storage capacity of 31500cm3 were recorded for the square structures while total volume of 31792.5cm3 and storage capacity of 24727.5cm3 were recorded for the cylindrical structures. During the test period, the average temperatures of 27.07oC, 27.09oC and 33.6oC were obtained for the pot-in-pot (cylindrical, wall-in-wall (square and the ambient respectively. The average relative humidity of 92.27%, 91.99% and 69.41% were obtained for the pot-in-pot (cylindrical, wall-in-wall (square and the ambient respectively. The average minimum and maximum wind speed recorded for the month of October was 2.5m/s and 2.6m/s respectively

  3. Active (air-cooled) vs. passive (phase change material) thermal management of high power lithium-ion packs: Limitation of temperature rise and uniformity of temperature distribution

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sabbah, Rami; Kizilel, R.; Selman, J.R.; Al-Hallaj, S. [Center for Electrochemical Science and Engineering, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 10 W. 33rd Street, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States)

    2008-08-01

    The effectiveness of passive cooling by phase change materials (PCM) is compared with that of active (forced air) cooling. Numerical simulations were performed at different discharge rates, operating temperatures and ambient temperatures of a compact Li-ion battery pack suitable for plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) propulsion. The results were also compared with experimental results. The PCM cooling mode uses a micro-composite graphite-PCM matrix surrounding the array of cells, while the active cooling mode uses air blown through the gaps between the cells in the same array. The results show that at stressful conditions, i.e. at high discharge rates and at high operating or ambient temperatures (for example 40-45 C), air-cooling is not a proper thermal management system to keep the temperature of the cell in the desirable operating range without expending significant fan power. On the other hand, the passive cooling system is able to meet the operating range requirements under these same stressful conditions without the need for additional fan power. (author)

  4. Active (air-cooled) vs. passive (phase change material) thermal management of high power lithium-ion packs: Limitation of temperature rise and uniformity of temperature distribution

    Science.gov (United States)

    Sabbah, Rami; Kizilel, R.; Selman, J. R.; Al-Hallaj, S.

    The effectiveness of passive cooling by phase change materials (PCM) is compared with that of active (forced air) cooling. Numerical simulations were performed at different discharge rates, operating temperatures and ambient temperatures of a compact Li-ion battery pack suitable for plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) propulsion. The results were also compared with experimental results. The PCM cooling mode uses a micro-composite graphite-PCM matrix surrounding the array of cells, while the active cooling mode uses air blown through the gaps between the cells in the same array. The results show that at stressful conditions, i.e. at high discharge rates and at high operating or ambient temperatures (for example 40-45 °C), air-cooling is not a proper thermal management system to keep the temperature of the cell in the desirable operating range without expending significant fan power. On the other hand, the passive cooling system is able to meet the operating range requirements under these same stressful conditions without the need for additional fan power.

  5. Application of reliability-centered maintenance to boiling water reactor emergency core cooling systems fault-tree analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi, Y.A.; Feltus, M.A.

    1995-01-01

    Reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) methods are applied to boiling water reactor plant-specific emergency core cooling system probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) fault trees. The RCM is a technique that is system function-based, for improving a preventive maintenance (PM) program, which is applied on a component basis. Many PM programs are based on time-directed maintenance tasks, while RCM methods focus on component condition-directed maintenance tasks. Stroke time test data for motor-operated valves (MOVs) are used to address three aspects concerning RCM: (a) to determine if MOV stroke time testing was useful as a condition-directed PM task; (b) to determine and compare the plant-specific MOV failure data from a broad RCM philosophy time period compared with a PM period and, also, compared with generic industry MOV failure data; and (c) to determine the effects and impact of the plant-specific MOV failure data on core damage frequency (CDF) and system unavailabilities for these emergency systems. The MOV stroke time test data from four emergency core cooling systems [i.e., high-pressure coolant injection (HPCI), reactor core isolation cooling (RCIC), low-pressure core spray (LPCS), and residual heat removal/low-pressure coolant injection (RHR/LPCI)] were gathered from Philadelphia Electric Company's Peach Bottom Atomic Power Station Units 2 and 3 between 1980 and 1992. The analyses showed that MOV stroke time testing was not a predictor for eminent failure and should be considered as a go/no-go test. The failure data from the broad RCM philosophy showed an improvement compared with the PM-period failure rates in the emergency core cooling system MOVs. Also, the plant-specific MOV failure rates for both maintenance philosophies were shown to be lower than the generic industry estimates

  6. Passive decay heat removal by natural air convection after severe accidents

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Erbacher, F.J.; Neitzel, H.J. [Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe Institut fur Angewandte Thermo- und Fluiddynamik, Karlsruhe (Germany); Cheng, X. [Technische Universitaet Karlsruhe Institut fur Stroemungslehre und Stroemungsmaschinen, Karlsruhe (Germany)

    1995-09-01

    The composite containment proposed by the Research Center Karlsruhe and the Technical University Karlsruhe is to cope with severe accidents. It pursues the goal to restrict the consequences of core meltdown accidents to the reactor plant. One essential of this new containment concept is its potential to remove the decay heat by natural air convection and thermal radiation in a passive way. To investigate the coolability of such a passive cooling system and the physical phenomena involved, experimental investigations are carried out at the PASCO test facility. Additionally, numerical calculations are performed by using different codes. A satisfying agreement between experimental data and numerical results is obtained.

  7. Emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Akira; Kobayashi, Masahide.

    1983-01-01

    Purpose: To enable a stable operation of an emergency core cooling system by preventing the system from the automatic stopping at an abnormally high level of the reactor water during its operation. Constitution: A pump flow rate signal and a reactor water level signal are used and, when the reactor water level is increased to a predetermined level, the pump flow rate is controlled by the reactor water level signal instead of the flow rate signal. Specifically, when the reactor water level is gradually increased by the water injection from the pump and exceeds a setting signal for the water level, the water level deviation signal acts as a demand signal for the decrease in the flow rate of the pump and the output signal from the water level controller is also decreased depending on the control constant. At a certain point, the output signal from the water level controller becomes smaller than the output signal from the flow rate controller. Thus, the output signal from the water level controller is outputted as the output signal for the lower level preference device. In this way, the reactor water level and the pump flow rate can be controlled within a range not exceeding the predetermined pump flow rate. (Horiuchi, T.)

  8. Regulatory Considerations for the Long Term Cooling Safe Shutdown Requirements of the Passive Residual Heat Removal Systems in Advanced Reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sim, S. K.; Bae, S. H.; Kim, Y. S.; Hwang, Min Jeong; Bang, Young Seok; Hwang, Taesuk

    2016-01-01

    USNRC approved safe shutdown at 215.6 .deg. C for a safe and long term cooling state for the redundant passive RHRSs by SECY-94-084. USNRC issued COLA(Combined Construction and Operating License) for the Levy County NP Unit-1/2 for the AP1000 passive RHRSs in 2014. Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power(KHNP) is developing APR+ and adopted Passive Auxiliary Feedwater System(PAFS) as a new passive RHRS design. Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety(KINS) has been developing regulatory guides for the advanced safety design features of the advanced ALWRs which has plan to construct in near future in Korea[5]. Safety and regulatory issues as well as the safe shut down requirements of the passive RHRS are discussed and considerations in developing regulatory guides for the passive RHRS are presented herein. Passive RHRSs have been introduced as new safety design features for the advanced reactors under development in Korea. These passive RHRSs have potential advantages over existing active RHRS, however, their functions are limited due to inherent ability of passive heat removal processes. It is high time to evaluate the performance of the passive PRHRs and develop regulatory guides for the safety as well as the performance analyses of the passive RHRS

  9. Post-implementation review of inadequate core cooling instrumentation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Anderson, J.L.; Anderson, R.L.; Hagen, E.W.; Morelock, T.C.; Huang, T.L.; Phillips, L.E.

    1988-01-01

    Studies of Three Mile Island (TMI) accident identified the need for additional instrumentation to detect inadequate core cooling (ICC) in nuclear power plants. Industry studies by plant owners and reactor vendors supported the conclusion that improvements were needed to help operators diagnose the approach to or existence of ICC and to provide more complete information for operator control of safety injection, flow to minimize the consequences of such an accident. In 1980, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) required further studies by the industry and described ICC instrumentation design requirements that included human factors and environmental considerations. On December 10, 1982, NRC issued to Babcock and Wilcox (BandW) licensees' orders for Modification of License and transmitted to all pressurized water reactor (PWR) licensees Generic Letter 82-28 to inform them of the revised NRC requirements. The instrumentation requirements for detection of ICC include upgraded subcooling margin monitors (SMMs), upgraded core exit thermocouples (CETs), and installation of a reactor coolant inventory tracking system (RCITS)

  10. Aspects of unconventional cores for large sodium cooled power reactors; evaluation of a literature survey

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kiefhaber, E.

    1978-10-01

    The report gives an overview of a literature study on the application of unconventional cores for sodium cooled fast reactors. Different types of unconventional cores (heterogeneous cores, pancake cores, moderated cores and others) are compared with conventional cores, which are characterized by a cylindrical geometry with two or three fissile zones surrounded by an axial and a radial blanket. The main parameters of interest in this comparison are the neutronic parameters sodium void and Doppler effect, the breeding properties and the steel damage. Consequences for the core safety and the overall plant design are also mentioned

  11. A design method to isothermalize the core of high-temperature gas-cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Takano, M.; Sawa, K.

    1987-01-01

    A practical design method is developed to isothermalize the core of block-type high-temperature gas-cooled reactors (HTGRs). Isothermalization plays an important role in increasing the design margin on fuel temperature. In this method, the fuel enrichment and the size and boron content of the burnable poison rod are determined over the core blockwise so that the axially exponential and radially flat power distribution are kept from the beginning to the end of core life. The method enables conventional HTGRs to raise the outlet gas temperature without increasing the maximum fuel temperature

  12. Study on the Behaviors of a Conceptual Passive Containment Cooling System

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Jianjun Wang

    2014-01-01

    Full Text Available The containment is an ultimate and important barrier to mitigate the consequences after the release of mass and energy during such scenarios as loss of coolant accident (LOCA or main steam line break (MSLB. In this investigation, a passive containment cooling system (PCCS concept is proposed for a large dry concrete containment. The system is composed of series of heat exchangers, long connecting pipes with relatively large diameter, valves, and a water tank, which is located at the top of the system and serves as the final heat sink. The performance of the system is numerically studied in detail under different conditions. In addition, the influences of condensation heat transfer conditions and containment environment temperature conditions are also studied on the behaviors of the system. The results reveal that four distinct operating stages could be experienced as follows: startup stage, single phase quasisteady stage, flashing speed-up transient stage, and flashing dominated quasisteady operating stage. Furthermore, the mechanisms of system behaviors are thus analyzed. Moreover, the feasibility of the system is also discussed to meet the design purpose for the containment integrity requirement. Considering the passive feature and the compactness of the system, the proposed PCCS is promising for the advanced integral type reactor.

  13. Analysis and prevention of water hammer for the emergency core cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zhao Jun

    2008-01-01

    Emergency core cooling system (ECCS) is an engineered safety feature of nuclear power plant. If the water hammer happens during ECCS injection, the piping system may be broken. It will cause loss of ECC system and affect the safety of reactor core. Based on the functions and characteristics of ECCS and the theory of water hammer, the paper analyzed the potential risk of water hammer in ECCS in Qinshan III, and proposed modifications to prevent the water-hammer damage during ECCS injection. (authors)

  14. Operation and Licensing of Mixed Cores in Water Cooled Reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2013-11-01

    Nuclear fuel is a highly complex material that is subject to continuous development and is produced by a range of manufacturers. During operation of a nuclear power plant, the nuclear fuel is subject to extreme conditions of temperature, corroding environment and irradiation, and many different designs of fuel have been manufactured with differing fuel materials, cladding materials and assembly structure to ensure these conditions. The core of an operating power plant can contain hundreds of fuel assemblies, and where there is more than a single design of a fuel assembly in the core, whether through a change of fuel vendor, introduction of an improved design or for some other reason, the core is described as a mixed core. The task of ensuring that the different assembly types do not interact in a harmful manner, causing, for example, differing flow resistance resulting in under cooling, is an important part of ensuring nuclear safety. This report has compiled the latest information on the operational experience of mixed cores and the tools and techniques that are used to analyse the core operation and demonstrate that there are no safety related problems with its operation. This publication is a result of a technical meeting in 2011 and a series of consultants meetings

  15. Theory of semiconductor laser cooling

    Science.gov (United States)

    Rupper, Greg

    Recently laser cooling of semiconductors has received renewed attention, with the hope that a semiconductor cooler might be able to achieve cryogenic temperatures. In order to study semiconductor laser cooling at cryogenic temperatures, it is crucial that the theory include both the effects of excitons and the electron-hole plasma. In this dissertation, I present a theoretical analysis of laser cooling of bulk GaAs based on a microscopic many-particle theory of absorption and luminescence of a partially ionized electron-hole plasma. This theory has been analyzed from a temperature 10K to 500K. It is shown that at high temperatures (above 300K), cooling can be modeled using older models with a few parameter changes. Below 200K, band filling effects dominate over Auger recombination. Below 30K excitonic effects are essential for laser cooling. In all cases, excitonic effects make cooling easier then predicted by a free carrier model. The initial cooling model is based on the assumption of a homogeneous undoped semiconductor. This model has been systematically modified to include effects that are present in real laser cooling experiments. The following modifications have been performed. (1) Propagation and polariton effects have been included. (2) The effect of p-doping has been included. (n-doping can be modeled in a similar fashion.) (3) In experiments, a passivation layer is required to minimize non-radiative recombination. The passivation results in a npn heterostructure. The effect of the npn heterostructure on cooling has been analyzed. (4) The effect of a Gaussian pump beam was analyzed and (5) Some of the parameters in the cooling model have a large uncertainty. The effect of modifying these parameters has been analyzed. Most of the extensions to the original theory have only had a modest effect on the overall results. However we find that the current passivation technique may not be sufficient to allow cooling. The passivation technique currently used appears

  16. Reassessment of debris ingestion effects on emergency core cooling-system pump performance

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sciacca, F.W.; Rao, D.V.

    2004-01-01

    A study sponsored by the United States (US) Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) was performed to reassess the effects of ingesting loss of coolant accident (LOCA) generated materials into emergency core cooling system (ECCS) pumps and the subsequent impact of this debris on the pumps' ability to provide long-term cooling to the reactor core. ECCS intake systems have been designed to screen out large post-LOCA debris materials. However, small-sized debris can penetrate these intake strainers or screens and reach critical pump components. Prior NRC-sponsored evaluations of possible debris and gas ingestion into ECCS pumps and attendant impacts on pump performance were performed in the early 1980's. The earlier study focused primarily on pressurised water reactor (PWR) ECCS pumps. This issue was revisited both to factor in our improved knowledge of LOCA generated debris and to address specifically both boiling water reactor (BWR) and PWR ECCS pumps. This study discusses the potential effects of ingested debris on pump seals, bearing assemblies, cyclone debris separators, and seal cooling water subsystems. This assessment included both near-term (less than one hour) and long-term (greater than one hour) effects introduced by the postulated LOCA. The work reported herein was performed during 1996-1997. (authors)

  17. Tarp-Assisted Cooling as a Method of Whole-Body Cooling in Hyperthermic Individuals.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hosokawa, Yuri; Adams, William M; Belval, Luke N; Vandermark, Lesley W; Casa, Douglas J

    2017-03-01

    We investigated the efficacy of tarp-assisted cooling as a body cooling modality. Participants exercised on a motorized treadmill in hot conditions (ambient temperature 39.5°C [103.1°F], SD 3.1°C [5.58°F]; relative humidity 38.1% [SD 6.7%]) until they reached exercise-induced hyperthermia. After exercise, participants were cooled with either partial immersion using a tarp-assisted cooling method (water temperature 9.20°C [48.56°F], SD 2.81°C [5.06°F]) or passive cooling in a climatic chamber. There were no differences in exercise duration (mean difference=0.10 minutes; 95% CI -5.98 to 6.17 minutes or end exercise rectal temperature (mean difference=0.10°C [0.18°F]; 95% CI -0.05°C to 0.25°C [-0.09°F to 0.45°F] between tarp-assisted cooling (48.47 minutes [SD 8.27 minutes]; rectal temperature 39.73°C [103.51°F], SD 0.27°C [0.49°F]) and passive cooling (48.37 minutes [SD 7.10 minutes]; 39.63°C [103.33°F], SD 0.40°C [0.72°F]). Cooling time to rectal temperature 38.25°C (100.85°F) was significantly faster in tarp-assisted cooling (10.30 minutes [SD 1.33 minutes]) than passive cooling (42.78 [SD 5.87 minutes]). Cooling rates for tarp-assisted cooling and passive cooling were 0.17°C/min (0.31°F/min), SD 0.07°C/min (0.13°F/min) and 0.04°C/min (0.07°F/min), SD 0.01°C/min (0.02°F/min), respectively (mean difference=0.13°C [0.23°F]; 95% CI 0.09°C to 0.17°C [0.16°F to 0.31°F]. No sex differences were observed in tarp-assisted cooling rates (men 0.17°C/min [0.31°F/min], SD 0.07°C/min [0.13°F/min]; women 0.16°C/min [0.29°F/min], SD 0.07°C/min [0.13°F/min]; mean difference=0.02°C/min [0.04°F/min]; 95% CI -0.06°C/min to 0.10°C/min [-0.11°F/min to 0.18°F/min]). Women (0.04°C/min [0.07°F/min], SD 0.01°C/min [0.02°F/min]) had greater cooling rates than men (0.03°C/min [0.05°F/min], SD 0.01°C/min [0.02°F/min]) in passive cooling, with negligible clinical effect (mean difference=0.01°C/min [0.02°F/min]; 95% CI 0.001

  18. Safety significance of ATR passive safety response attributes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Atkinson, S.A.

    1990-01-01

    The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory was designed with some passive safety response attributes which contribute to the safety of the facility. The three passive safety attributes being evaluated in the paper are: 1) In-core and in-vessel natural convection cooling, 2) a passive heat sink capability of the ATR primary coolant system (PCS) for the transfer of decay power from the uninsulated piping to the confinement, and 3) gravity feed of emergency coolant makeup. The safety significance of the ATR passive safety response attributes is that the reactor can passively respond to most transients, given a reactor scram, to provide adequate decay power removal and a significant time for operator action should the normal active heat removal systems and their backup systems both fail. The ATR Interim Level 1 Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) models and results were used to evaluate the significance to ATR fuel damage frequency (or probability) of the above three passive response attributes. The results of the evaluation indicate that the first attribute is a major safety characteristic of the ATR. The second attribute has a noticeable but only minor safety significance. The third attribute has no significant influence on the ATR firewater injection system (emergency coolant system)

  19. Modification and application of water film model in COCOSYS for PWR's passive containment cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Xi; Cheng, Xu

    2014-01-01

    Highlights: • Water film model in COCOSYS has been modified by considering film breakup. • Shear stress on film surface created by countercurrent flow has been considered. • Formation and development of rivulets have been taken into account. • Modified model has been applied for passive containment cooling system. • The modified water film model has optimized the simulation results. - Abstract: In this paper the physical model describing water film behaviors in German containment code system COCOSYS has been modified by taking into consideration the film breakup and subsequent phenomena as well as the effect of film interfacial shear stress created by countercurrent air flow. The modified model has extended its capability to predict particular water film behaviors including breakup at a critical film thickness based on minimum total energy criterion, the formation of rivulets according to total energy equilibrium as well as subsequent performance of rivulets according to several assumptions and observations from experiments. Furthermore, the modification considers also the change of velocity distribution on the cross section of film/rivulets due to shear stress. Based on the geometry of AP1000 and Generic Containment, simulations predicting containment pressure variation during accidents with operation of passive containment cooling system have been carried out. With the new model, considerably larger peak pressures are observed by comparing with those predicted with original water film model within a certain range of water film flow rate. Sensitivity analyses also point out that contact angle between water rivulets and steel substrate plays a significant role in the film cooling

  20. Passive containment cooling system with drywell pressure regulation for boiling water reactor

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hill, P.R.

    1994-12-27

    A boiling water reactor is described having a regulating valve for placing the wetwell in flow communication with an intake duct of the passive containment cooling system. This subsystem can be adjusted to maintain the drywell pressure at (or slightly below or above) wetwell pressure after the initial reactor blowdown transient is over. This addition to the PCCS design has the benefit of eliminating or minimizing steam leakage from the drywell to the wetwell in the longer-term post-LOCA time period and also minimizes the temperature difference between drywell and wetwell. This in turn reduces the rate of long-term pressure buildup of the containment, thereby extending the time to reach the design pressure limit. 4 figures.

  1. Investigation of steel passivation in inhibited cooling waters by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Gusmano, G.; Montesperelli, G.; Traversa, E.

    1992-01-01

    The corrosion of mild steel, which is one of the main problems in industrial cooling equipments, is greatly influenced by total alkalinity, pH and oxygen concentration. The low concentration of oxygen present in natural waters and the low solubility of CaCO 3 greatly affect the passivation mechanism, hindering the growth of a compact and protective film. The all-organic inhibitors, which have the property of supersaturating waters with CaCO 3 , overcome this problem. In this paper the electrical characteristics of the protective film formed by this kind of inhibitors in the presence of different levels of carbonatic alkalinity and at different pH values is studied by Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy

  2. Analysis and Modeling of Heat Generation in Overcharged Li-Ion Battery with Passive Cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Coman, Paul Tiberiu; Veje, Christian

    2013-01-01

    This paper presents a dynamic model for simulating the heat generation in Lithium batteries and an investigation of the heat transfer as well as the capacity of Phase Change Materials (PCM’s) to store energy inside a battery cell module when the battery is overcharged. The study is performed...... by coupling a one-dimensional model of the electrochemical processes with a two-dimensional model for the heat transfer in a cross section of a battery pack. The heat generation and subsequent temperature rise is analyzed for different charging currents for the two cases where the cell is air......-cooled and passively cooled using a PCM, respectively. As expected, the results show that for high currents, the heat generation and implicitly the temperature increases. However, using a PCM the temperature increase is found to be limited allowing the battery to be overcharged to a certain degree. It is found...

  3. Full scaled tests of the KERENA trademark containment cooling condenser at the INKA test facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leyer, Stephan; Maisberger, Fabian; Lineva, Natalia; Wagner, Thomas; Doll, Mathias; Herbst, Vasilli; Wich, Michael

    2010-01-01

    KERENA trademark is a medium-capacity boiling water reactor. It combines passive safety systems with active safety equipment of service-proven design. The passive systems utilize basic laws of physics, such as gravity and natural convection, enabling them to function without any power supply or actuation by instrumentation and control (I and C) equipment. They are designed to bring the plant to a safe and stable condition without the aid of active systems. Furthermore, the passive safety features partially replace the active systems, which reduces costs significantly and provides a safe, reliable and economically competitive plant design. At the new test facility at Karlstein called INKA (Integral Test Stand Karlstein), the key components of the KERENA trademark passive safety concept - the Emergency Condenser (EC), the Containment Cooling Condenser (CCC) and the passive core flooding system (PCFS) - are presently under full-scale testing,. Integral system tests will also be performed to show how the passive safety systems interact under various anticipated accident conditions and to demonstrate the ability of the passive systems to bring the plant to a safe and stable condition without the aid of active systems or actuation by I and C signals. The passive pressure pulse transmitter (PPPT) will be included in these integral tests. In this report the experimental setup and the first test results with the full scaled Containment Cooling Condenser will be described. (orig.)

  4. Investigation of vessel exterior air cooling for a HLMC reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sienicki, J. J.; Spencer, B. W.

    2000-01-01

    The Secure Transportable Autonomous Reactor (STAR) concept under development at Argonne National Laboratory provides a small (300 MWt) reactor module for steam supply that incorporates design features to attain proliferation resistance, heightened passive safety, and improved cost competitiveness through extreme simplification. Examples are the achievement of 100%+ natural circulation heat removal from the low power density/low pressure drop ultra-long lifetime core and utilization of lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) coolant enabling elimination of main coolant pumps as well as the need for an intermediate heat transport circuit. It is required to provide a passive means of removing decay heat and effecting reactor cooldown in the event that the normal steam generator heat sink, including its normal shutdown heat removal mode, is postulated to be unavailable. In the present approach, denoted as the Reactor Exterior Cooling System (RECS), passive decay heat removal is provided by cooling the outside of the containment/guard vessel with air. RECS is similar to the Reactor Vessel Auxiliary Cooling System (RVACS) incorporated into the PRISM design. However, to enhance the heat removal, RECS incorporates fins on the containment vessel exterior to enhance heat transfer to air as well as removable steel venetian conductors that provide a conduction heat transfer path across the reactor vessel-containment vessel gap to enhance heat transfer between the vessels. The objective of the present work is to investigate the effectiveness of air cooling in removing heat from the vessel and limiting the coolant temperature increase following a sudden complete loss of the steam generator heat sink

  5. Westinghouse-Gothic comparisons with passive containment cooling tests using a one-to-ten-scale test facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kennedy, M.D.; Woodcock, J.; Wright, R.F.; Gresham, J.A.

    1996-01-01

    The Heavy Water Reactor Facility is equipped with a passive cooling system to provide long-term decay heat removal during postulated beyond-design-basis accidents. The passive containment cooling system (PCCS) consists of an annular space between the steel containment vessel and the concrete shield building and optimized inlet and chimney designs. The design, analysis, and regulatory acceptance of a plant with PCCS requires an understanding of the external convective and radiative heat transfer phenomena, as well as the internal distributions of noncondensable gases. The internal distribution of noncondensable gases has a strong effect on the resistance to condensation heat transfer and therefore affects the wall temperature distribution applied to the external channel. To evaluate these phenomena, a test facility having a scale of approximately one to ten, known as the large-scale test, was constructed, and several series of tests were performed. Test results have been used to validate the Westinghouse-GOTHIC (WGOTHIC) computer code. A comparison of WGOTHIC predictions and test results has been completed. This paper shows that mixed-convection models applied to the interior and exterior surfaces as well as a heat and mass transfer analogy for internal condensation provides good comparison to test results. An axial distribution of noncondensables within the test vessel is also predicted

  6. Thermoelectric self-cooling for power electronics: Increasing the cooling power

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Martinez, Alvaro; Astrain, David; Aranguren, Patricia

    2016-01-01

    Thermoelectric self-cooling was firstly conceived to increase, without electricity consumption, the cooling power of passive cooling systems. This paper studies the combination of heat pipe exchangers and thermoelectric self-cooling, and demonstrates its applicability to the cooling of power electronics. Experimental tests indicate that source-to-ambient thermal resistance reduces by around 30% when thermoelectric self-cooling system is installed, compared to that of the heat pipe exchanger under natural convection. Neither additional electric power nor cooling fluids are required. This thermal resistance reaches 0.346 K/W for a heat flux of 24.1 kW/m"2, being one order of magnitude lower than that obtained in previous designs. In addition, the system adapts to the cooling demand, reducing this thermal resistance for increasing heat. Simulation tests have indicated that simple system modifications allow relevant improvements in the cooling power. Replacement of a thermoelectric module with a thermal bridge leads to 33.54 kW/m"2 of top cooling power. Likewise, thermoelectric modules with shorter legs and higher number of pairs lead to a top cooling power of 44.17 kW/m"2. These results demonstrate the applicability of thermoelectric self-cooling to power electronics. - Highlights: • Cooling power of passive systems increased. • No electric power consumption. • Applicable for the cooling of power electronics. • Up to 44.17 kW/m"2 of cooling power, one order of magnitude higher. • Source-to-ambient thermal resistance reduces by 30%.

  7. Utilization of control rod drive (CRD) system for long term core cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huerta B, A.

    1991-01-01

    In this paper we consider an application of Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) to risk management. Foreseeable risk management strategies to prevent core damage are constrained by the availability of first line systems as well as support systems. The actual trend in the evaluation of risk management options can be performed in a number of ways. An example is the identification of back-up systems which could be used to perform the same safety functions. In this work we deal with the evaluation of the feasibility, for BWR's, to use the Control Rod Drive system to maintain an adequate reactor core long term cooling in some accident sequences. This preliminary evaluation is carried out as a part of the Internal Events Analysis for Laguna Verde Nuclear Power Plant (LVNPP) that is currently under way by the Mexican Nuclear Regulatory Body. This analysis addresses the evaluation and incorporation of all the systems, including the safety related and the back-up non safety related systems, that are available for the operator in order to prevent core damage. As a part of this analysis the containment venting capability is also evaluated as a back-up of the containment heat removal function. This will prevent the primary containment overpressurization and loss of certain core cooling systems. A selection of accident sequences in which the Control Rod Drive system could be used to mitigate the accident and prevent core damage are discussed. A personal computer transient analysis code is used to carry out thermohydraulic simulations in order to evaluate the Control Rod Drive system performance, the corresponding results are presented. Finally, some preliminary conclusions are drawn. (author). 9 refs, 5 figs

  8. SWR 1000 severe accident control through in-vessel melt retention by external RPV cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kolev, N.I. [Framatome Advanced Nuclear Power, NDSI, Erlangen (Germany)

    2001-07-01

    Framatome Advanced Nuclear Power is being designing a new generation NPP with boiling water reactor SWR1000. Besides of various of modern passive and active safety features the system is also designed for controlling of a postulated severe accident with extreme low probability of occurrence. This work presents the rationales behind the decision to select the external cooling as a safety management strategy during severe accident. Bounding scenery are analyzed regarding the core melting, melt-water interaction during relocation of the melt from the core region into the lower head and the external coolability of the lower head. The conclusion is reached that the external cooling for the SWR1000 is a valuable strategy for accident management during postulated severe accidents. (authors)

  9. SWR 1000 severe accident control through in-vessel melt retention by external RPV cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kolev, N.I.

    2001-01-01

    Framatome Advanced Nuclear Power is being designing a new generation NPP with boiling water reactor SWR1000. Besides of various of modern passive and active safety features the system is also designed for controlling of a postulated severe accident with extreme low probability of occurrence. This work presents the rationales behind the decision to select the external cooling as a safety management strategy during severe accident. Bounding scenery are analyzed regarding the core melting, melt-water interaction during relocation of the melt from the core region into the lower head and the external coolability of the lower head. The conclusion is reached that the external cooling for the SWR1000 is a valuable strategy for accident management during postulated severe accidents. (authors)

  10. Advances in passive cooling design and performance analysis

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Woodcock, J.

    1994-01-01

    The Third International Conference on Containment Design and Operation continues the trend of rapidly extending the state of the art in containment methodology, joining other conferences, OECD-sponsored International Standard Problem exercises, and vendor licensing submittals. Methodology developed for use on plants with passive features is under increasing scrutiny for advanced designs, since the passive features are often the only deviation from existing operating base of the past 30 years of commercial nuclear power. This session, 'Containment Passive Safety Systems Design and Operation,' offers papers on a wide range of topics, with authors from six organizations from around the world, dealing with general passive containments, Westinghouse AP600, large (>1400 MWe) passive plants, and the AECL advanced CANDU reactor. This level and variety of participation underscores the high interest and accelerated methods development associated with advanced passive containment heat removal. The papers presented in this session demonstrate that significant contributions are being made to the advancement of technology necessary for building a new generation of safer, more economical nuclear plants. (author)

  11. MORECA: A computer code for simulating modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor core heatup accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ball, S.J.

    1991-10-01

    The design features of the modular high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (MHTGR) have the potential to make it essentially invulnerable to damage from postulated core heatup accidents. This report describes the ORNL MORECA code, which was developed for analyzing postulated long-term core heatup scenarios for which active cooling systems used to remove afterheat following the accidents can be assumed to the unavailable. Simulations of long-term loss-of-forced-convection accidents, both with and without depressurization of the primary coolant, have shown that maximum core temperatures stay below the point at which any significant fuel failures and fission product releases are expected. Sensitivity studies also have been done to determine the effects of errors in the predictions due both to uncertainties in the modeling and to the assumptions about operational parameters. MORECA models the US Department of Energy reference design of a standard MHTGR

  12. Emergency core cooling system for LMFBR type reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tamano, Toyomi; Fukutomi, Shigeki.

    1980-01-01

    Purpose: To enable elimination of decay heat in an LMFBR type reactor by securing natural cycling force in any state and securing reactor core cooling capacity even when both an external power supply and an emergency power supply are failed in emergency case. Method: Heat insulating material portion for surrounding a descent tube of a steam drum provided at high position for obtaining necessary flow rate for flowing resistance is removed from heat transmitting surface of a recycling type steam generator to provide a heat sink. That is, when both an external power supply and an emergency power supply are failed in emergency, the heat insulator at part of a steam generator recycling loop is removed to produce natural cycling force between it and the heat transmitting portion of the steam generator as a heat source for the heat sink so as to secure the flow rate of the recycling loop. When the power supply is failed in emergency, the heat removing capacity of the steam generator is secured so as to remove the decay heat produced in the reactor core. (Yoshihara, H.)

  13. Annular core liquid-salt cooled reactor with multiple fuel and blanket zones

    Science.gov (United States)

    Peterson, Per F.

    2013-05-14

    A liquid fluoride salt cooled, high temperature reactor having a reactor vessel with a pebble-bed reactor core. The reactor core comprises a pebble injection inlet located at a bottom end of the reactor core and a pebble defueling outlet located at a top end of the reactor core, an inner reflector, outer reflector, and an annular pebble-bed region disposed in between the inner reflector and outer reflector. The annular pebble-bed region comprises an annular channel configured for receiving pebble fuel at the pebble injection inlet, the pebble fuel comprising a combination of seed and blanket pebbles having a density lower than the coolant such that the pebbles have positive buoyancy and migrate upward in said annular pebble-bed region toward the defueling outlet. The annular pebble-bed region comprises alternating radial layers of seed pebbles and blanket pebbles.

  14. Numerical investigation of passive heat removal system via steam generator in VVER 1200

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dinh Anh Tuan; Duong Thanh Tung; Tran Chi Thanh; Nguyen Van Thai

    2015-01-01

    Passive heat removal system (PHRS) via Steam Generator is an important part in VVER design. In case of Design Basic Accidents such as blackout, failure of feed water supply to steam generator or coolant leakage with failure of emergency core cooling at high pressure. PHRS is designed to remove the residual heat from reactor core through steam generator to heat exchanger which is placed outside reactor vessel. In order to evaluate the passive system, a numerical investigation using a CFD code is performed. However, PHRS has complex geometry for using CFD simulation. Thus, RELAP5 is applied to provide the wall heat flux of tube in the heat exchanger tank. The natural convection in the heat exchanger tank is investigated in this report. Numerical results show temperature and velocity distribution in the heat exchanger tank are calculated with different wall heat flux corresponding to various transient conditions. The calculated results contribute to the capacity analysis of passive heat removal system and giving valuable information for safe operation of VVER 1200. (author)

  15. Analysis of the AP600 core makeup tank experiments using the NOTRUMP code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cunningham, J.C.; Haberstroh, R.C.; Hochreiter, L.E.; Jaroszewicz, J.

    1995-01-01

    The AP600 design utilizes passive methods to perform core and containment cooling functions for a postulated loss of coolant. The core makeup tank (CMT) is an important feature of the AP600 passive safety system. The NOTRUMP code has been compared to the 300-series core makeup tank experiments. It has been observed that the code will capture the correct thermal-hydraulic behavior observed in the experiments. The correlations used for wall film condensation and convective heat transfer to the heated CMT liquid appear to be appropriate for these applications. The code will predict the rapid condensation and mixing thermal-hydraulic behavior observed in the 300-series tests. The NOTRUMP predictions can be noding-dependent since the condensation is extremely dependent on the amount of cold CMT liquid that mixes with the incoming steam flow

  16. CFD modeling and thermal-hydraulic analysis for the passive decay heat removal of a sodium-cooled fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hung, T.C.; Dhir, V.K.; Chang, J.C.; Wang, S.K.

    2011-01-01

    Research highlights: → The COOLOD/N2 and PARET/ANL codes were used for a steady-state thermal-hydraulic and safety analysis of the 2 MW TRIGA MARK II reactor located at the Nuclear Studies Center of Maamora (CENM), Morocco. → The main objective of this study is to ensure the safety margins of different safety related parameters by steady-state calculations at full power level (2 MW). → The most important conclusion is that all obtained values of DNBR, fuel center and surface temperature, cladding surface temperature and coolant temperature across the hottest channel are largely far to compromise safety of the reactor. - Abstract: In this study, a pool-typed design similar to sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) of the fourth generation reactors has been modeled using CFD simulations to investigate the characteristics of a passive mechanism of Shutdown Heat Removal System (SHRS). The main aim is to refine the reactor pool design in terms of temperature safety margin of the sodium pool. Thus, an appropriate protection mechanism is maintained in order to ensure the safety and integrity of the reactor system during a shutdown mode without using any active heat removal system. The impacts on the pool temperature are evaluated based on the following considerations: (1) the aspect ratio of pool diameter to depth, (2) the values of thermal emissivity of the surface materials of reactor and guard vessels, and (3) innerpool liner and core periphery structures. The computational results show that an optimal pool design in geometry can reduce the maximum pool temperature down to ∼551 o C which is substantially lower than ∼627 o C as calculated for the reference case. It is also concluded that the passive Reactor Air Cooling System (RACS) is effective in removing decay heat after shutdown. Furthermore, thermal radiation from the surface of the reactor vessel is found to be important; and thus, the selection of the vessel surface materials with a high emissivity would be a

  17. Thermohydraulics in a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor primary loop during early phases of unrestricted core-heatup accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kroeger, P.G.; Colman, J.; Hsu, C.J.

    1983-01-01

    In High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactor (HTGR) siting considerations, the Unrestricted Core Heatup Accidents (UCHA) are considered as accidents of highest consequence, corresponding to core meltdown accidents in light water reactors. Initiation of such accidents can be, for instance, due to station blackout, resulting in scram and loss of all main loop forced circulation, with none of the core auxiliary cooling system loops being started. The result is a slow but continuing core heatup, extending over days. During the initial phases of such UCHA scenarios, the primary loop remains pressurized, with the system pressure slowly increasing until the relief valve setpoint is reached. The major objectives of the work described here were to determine times to depressurization as well as approximate loop component temperatures up to depressurization

  18. Safety analysis of RSG-GAS Silicide core using one line cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Endiah-Puji-Hastuti

    2003-01-01

    In the frame of minimizing the operation-cost, operation mode using one line cooling system is being evaluated. Maximum reactor has been determined and to continuing this program, steady state and transient analysis were done. The analysis was done by means of a core thermal hydraulic code, COOLOD-N, and PARET. The codes solves core thermal hydraulic equation at steady state conditions and transient, respectively. By using silicide core data and coast down flow rate as the input, thermal hydraulics parameters such as fuel cladding and fuel meat temperatures as well as safety margin against flow instability were calculated. Imposing the safety criteria to the results of steady state and transient analysis, maximum permissible power for this operation was obtained as much as 17.1 MW

  19. Optimization of a Point Focus Concentration Photovoltaic System with Passive Cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chenlo, F.

    2015-01-01

    The objective of this work is modeling the temperature of photovoltaic (PV) solar cells operating in concentration systems with circular geometry and coupled to a heat sink plate for passive cooling. The proposed thermal behavior model analyses the temperature surface distribution of both PV solar cell and heat sink plate as function of light concentration. The model also allows analyzing the influence of other parameters such as uniform and non-uniform variation of the heat sink plate thickness or variation of the thermal transmission coefficient. The optimal range of the concentration factor is studied using simple models for the PV solar cell efficiency and Fresnel lens concentrator performance together with a function of costs applied to medium concentration silicon crystalline PV cells and high efficiency and high concentration multi-junction PV cells. Finally, experimental main parameters and its procedures measurement for concentration systems are presented. Modeling results show that the use of a high conductivity disk thermally coupled between the rear side of the cell and the cooling plate reduces the working cell temperature. Results also indicates that use of a light redirecting prism by total internal reflection of sunlight, reduces optical losses due to concentrator defects and chromatic aberration and increases the angle tracking error acceptance without having to increase the area of the PV solar cell

  20. Potential of indirect evaporative passive cooling with embedded tubes in a humid tropical climate : applications in a typical hot humid climate

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Garcia Chavez, J.R. [Univ. Autonoma Metropolitana-Azcapotzalco, Mexico City (Mexico). Dept. de Medio Ambiente, Laboratorio de Investigaciones en Arquitectura Bioclimatica; Givoni, B. [California Univ., Los Angeles, CA (United States); BGU, Beer Sheva (Israel); Viveros, O. [Cristobal Colon Univ., Veracruz (Mexico)

    2009-07-01

    The use of passive cooling techniques in buildings in hot and humid regions can reduce energy consumption while increasing thermal comfort for occupants. A study was conducted in the City of Veracruz, Mexico to investigate the performance of tubes embedded in the roof of the Gulf Meteorological Prevision Centre. Two identical insulated experimental cells were used, one serving as the control and the other one as the test unit, where the technique of embedded tubes in the roof was implemented and investigated during a typical overheating season. Results showed that this indirect evaporative cooling system is an effective strategy to reduce indoor temperatures without increasing the indoor humidity in buildings. The indoor maximum temperature was lowered by 2.72 K in the experimental test cell relative to the control unit. In addition, the resulting reduction of radiant temperatures in the test unit improved the thermal comfort of the occupants. It is expected that the implementation of this passive cooling technique will eventually contribute to reduced energy consumption and less use of air-conditioning systems in buildings, and thereby prevent emission of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. 9 refs., 1 tab., 6 figs.

  1. Thermohydraulics in a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor prestressed-concrete reactor vessel during unrestricted core-heatup accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kroeger, P.G.; Colman, J.; Araj, K.

    1983-01-01

    The hypothetical accident considered for siting considerations in High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactors (HTGR) is the so called Unrestricted Core Heatup Accident (UCHA), in which all forced circulation is lost at initiation, and none of the auxillary cooling loops can be started. The result is a gradual slow core heatup, extending over days. Whether the liner cooling system (LCS) operates during this time is of crucial importance. If it does not, the resulting concrete decomposition of the prestressed concrete reactor vessel (PCRV) will ultimately cause containment building (CB) failure after about 6 to 10 days. The primary objective of the work described here was to establish for such accident conditions the core temperatures and approximate fuel failure rates, to check for potential thermal barrier failures, and to follow the PCRV concrete temperatures, as well as PCRV gas releases from concrete decomposition. The work was done for the General Atomic Corporation Base Line Zero reactor of 2240 MW(t). Most results apply at least qualitatively also to other large HTGR steam cycle designs

  2. Comparison of Core Performance with Various Oxide fuels on Sodium Cooled Fast Reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Choi, Jin Ha; Kim, Myung Hyun [Kyung Hee University, Yongin (Korea, Republic of)

    2016-05-15

    The system is called Prototype GenIV Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (PGSFR). Ultimate goal of PGSFR is test for capability of TRU transmutation. Purpose of this study is test for evaluation of in-core performance and TRU transmutation performance by applying various oxide fuel loaded TRU. Fuel type of reference core is changed to uranium-based oxide fuel. Oxide fuel has a lot of experience through fuel fabrication and reactor operation. This study performed by compared and analyzed a core performance of various oxide fuels. (U,Pu)O{sub 2} and (U,TRU)O{sub 2} which various oxide fuel types are selected as extreme case for comparison with core performance and transmutation capability of TRU isotopes. Thorium-based fuel is known that it has good performance for burner reactor due to low proliferation characteristic. To check the performance of TRU incineration for comparison with uranium-based fuel on prototype SFR, Thorium-based fuel, (Th,U)O{sub 2}, (Th,Pu)O{sub 2} and (Th,TRU)O{sub 2}, is selected. Calculations of core performance for various oxide fuel are performed using the fast calculation tool, TRANSX / DANTSTS / REBUS-3. In this study, comparison of core performance and transmutation performance is conducted with various fuel types in a sodium-cooled fast reactor. Mixed oxide fuel with TRU can produce the energy with small amount of fissile material. However, the TRU fuel is confirmed to bring a potential decline of the safety parameters. In case of (Th,U)O2 fuel, the flux level in thermal neutron region becomes lower because of higher capture cross-section of Th-232 than U-238. However, Th-232 has difficulty in converting to TRU isotopes. Therefore, the TRU consumption mass is relatively high in mixed oxide fuel with thorium and TRU.

  3. Comparison of Core Performance with Various Oxide fuels on Sodium Cooled Fast Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi, Jin Ha; Kim, Myung Hyun

    2016-01-01

    The system is called Prototype GenIV Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (PGSFR). Ultimate goal of PGSFR is test for capability of TRU transmutation. Purpose of this study is test for evaluation of in-core performance and TRU transmutation performance by applying various oxide fuel loaded TRU. Fuel type of reference core is changed to uranium-based oxide fuel. Oxide fuel has a lot of experience through fuel fabrication and reactor operation. This study performed by compared and analyzed a core performance of various oxide fuels. (U,Pu)O_2 and (U,TRU)O_2 which various oxide fuel types are selected as extreme case for comparison with core performance and transmutation capability of TRU isotopes. Thorium-based fuel is known that it has good performance for burner reactor due to low proliferation characteristic. To check the performance of TRU incineration for comparison with uranium-based fuel on prototype SFR, Thorium-based fuel, (Th,U)O_2, (Th,Pu)O_2 and (Th,TRU)O_2, is selected. Calculations of core performance for various oxide fuel are performed using the fast calculation tool, TRANSX / DANTSTS / REBUS-3. In this study, comparison of core performance and transmutation performance is conducted with various fuel types in a sodium-cooled fast reactor. Mixed oxide fuel with TRU can produce the energy with small amount of fissile material. However, the TRU fuel is confirmed to bring a potential decline of the safety parameters. In case of (Th,U)O2 fuel, the flux level in thermal neutron region becomes lower because of higher capture cross-section of Th-232 than U-238. However, Th-232 has difficulty in converting to TRU isotopes. Therefore, the TRU consumption mass is relatively high in mixed oxide fuel with thorium and TRU.

  4. The investigation of Passive Accident Mitigation Scheme for advanced PWR NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Shi, Er-bing; Fang, Cheng-yue; Wang, Chang; Xia, Geng-lei; Zhao, Cui-na

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • We put forward a new PAMS and analyze its operation characteristics under SBO. • We conduct comparative analysis between PAMS and Traditional Secondary Side PHRS. • The PAMS could cope with SBO accident and maintain the plant in safe conditions. • PAMS could decrease heat removal capacity of PHRS. • PAMS has advantage in reducing cooling rate and PCCT temperature rising amplitude. - Abstract: To enhance inherent safety features of nuclear power plant, the advanced pressurized water reactors implement a series of passive safety systems. This paper puts forward and designs a new Passive Accident Mitigation Scheme (PAMS) to remove residual heat, which consists of two parts: the first part is Passive Auxiliary Feedwater System (PAFS), and the other part is Passive Heat Removal System (PHRS). This paper takes the Westinghouse-designed Advanced Passive PWR (AP1000) as research object and analyzes the operation characteristics of PAMS to cope with the Station Blackout Accident (SBO) by using RELAP5 code. Moreover, the comparative analysis is also conducted between PAMS and Traditional Secondary Circuit PHRS to derive the advantages of PAMS. The results show that the designed scheme can remove core residual heat significantly and maintain the plant in safe conditions; the first part of PAMS would stop after 120 min and the second part has to come into use simultaneously; the low pressurizer (PZR) pressure signal would be generated 109 min later caused by coolant volume shrinkage, which would actuate the Passive Safety Injection System (PSIS) to recovery the water level of pressurizer; the flow instability phenomenon would occur and last 21 min after the PHRS start-up; according to the comparative analysis, the coolant average temperature gradient and the Passive Condensate Cooling Tank (PCCT) water temperature rising amplitude of PAMS are lower than those of Traditional Secondary Circuit PHRS

  5. Applied reliability assessment for the passive safety systems of nuclear power plants (NPPs) using system dynamics (SD)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Yun Il; Woo, Tae Ho

    2018-01-01

    The passive system by the free-fall is investigated in the accident of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The complex algorithm of the system dynamics (SD) modeling is done in the passive cooling system. The nuclear passive system by free-fall is successfully modeled for the loss of coolant accident (LOCA). Conventional passive system of gravity or natural circulation is working only when the piping systems is in the good condition. The external coolant supply system is introduced in the case of the piping system failure. The water is poured into the reactor through the guiding piping or tube. If the explosion happens, the coolants could be showering into the reactor core and its building. New kind of passive system is expected successfully in the on-site black out where the drone could be operated by battery or engine.

  6. Emergency reactor cooling device

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arakawa, Ken.

    1993-01-01

    An emergency nuclear reactor cooling device comprises a water reservoir, emergency core cooling water pipelines having one end connected to a water feeding sparger, fire extinguishing facility pipelines, cooling water pressurizing pumps, a diesel driving machine for driving the pumps and a battery. In a water reservoir, cooling water is stored by an amount required for cooling the reactor upon emergency and for fire extinguishing, and fire extinguishing facility pipelines connecting the water reservoir and the fire extinguishing facility are in communication with the emergency core cooling water pipelines connected to the water feeding sparger by system connection pipelines. Pumps are operated by a diesel power generator to introduce cooling water from the reservoir to the emergency core cooling water pipelines. Then, even in a case where AC electric power source is entirely lost and the emergency core cooling system can not be used, the diesel driving machine is operated using an exclusive battery, thereby enabling to inject cooling water from the water reservoir to a reactor pressure vessel and a reactor container by the diesel drive pump. (N.H.)

  7. Conceptual design of passive containment cooling system with air holdup tanks of improved APR+

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jeon, Byong Guk; Cheon No, Hee

    2014-01-01

    In Korea, after the successful validation of passive auxiliary feedwater system (PAFS), a passive containment cooling system (PCCS) gets attention for future development. We suggested PCCS design based on APR+, an advanced PWR developed in Korea, and performed scoping analysis. On the extension of the simple scoping analysis, MARS simulation is performed to incorporate the behavior of water pool outside the containment as well as steam-air mixture inside the containment. Through the simulation we demonstrated the effectiveness of the air holdup tank (AHT). Also we investigated the effect of the models of heat transfer coefficients between steam-air mixture side and water side, and flow instability inside HX tubes. The presence of AHT enables us to reduce the number of required HX tubes more than half through an increase in the heat transfer coefficients due to the reduction of air fraction in the containment. Finally flow instability was observed and mitigated by putting orifice plates at the inlet of tubes, increasing height of return nozzle, and increasing a tube angle. (authors)

  8. Transient simulation of ALWR passive safety systems using RELAP5/MOD2

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Elias, E.; Nekhamkin, Y.; Arshavski, I.

    2004-01-01

    Numerical simulation is presented of some passive safety systems currently incorporated in the design of the next generation advanced light water reactors (ALWRs). The performance and effectiveness of ex-core natural convection cooling and the concept of gravity driven water injection at high pressure are investigated using the RELAP5/MOD2 thermal-hydraulic code. The study identifies areas that should be investigated more fully in future experimental programs related to hypothetical large and small LOCA in ALWRs. (author)

  9. Assessment of passive safety system of a Small Modular Reactor (SMR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Butt, Hassan Nawaz; Ilyas, Muhammad; Ahmad, Masroor; Aydogan, Fatih

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • The MASLWR test facility has been modeled in RELAP5-SCDAP. The model is validated by comparing the simulation results with the experimental data. • Results obtained from various transients show that high pressure vent and sump recirculation lines provide natural circulation flow path for long term cooling of core. • New scenarios are considered in which the effect of vent and sump recirculation valves failure has been investigated. • It is found from the results that continuous loss of inventory occurs due to lack of recirculation. • It is concluded that the high pressure vent valves in the MASLWR safety system require more redundancy. - Abstract: Innovative SMRs are designed with enhanced safety features based on lessons learnt from past experience of plant operation. Reliance on natural circulation and addition of passive safety systems made them inherently safe and simple in design. It is required to study reliability assessment of passive safety systems during postulated transients prior to their deployment on commercial scale. Test facilities and best estimate system codes are playing significant role in assessment of passive safety systems as well as in design, certification and evaluation of these innovative types of reactors. RELAP5 code is widely used for thermal-hydraulic analysis of nuclear reactors. In this work, the passive safety systems of Multi-Application Small Light Water (MASLWR) have been assessed. The complete loop of the MASLWR test facility has been modeled in RELAP5-SCDAP Mod 4.0. The RELAP5 model is validated by comparing the simulation results with the experimental data. Results obtained for various transients show that high pressure vent and sump recirculation lines provide natural circulation flow path for long term cooling of core to avoid core heat up. Some of the components of passive safety system of MASLWR still rely on active power. Therefore, it was necessary to investigate their performance under failure

  10. Invariant methods for an ensemble-based sensitivity analysis of a passive containment cooling system of an AP1000 nuclear power plant

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Di Maio, Francesco; Nicola, Giancarlo; Borgonovo, Emanuele; Zio, Enrico

    2016-01-01

    Sensitivity Analysis (SA) is performed to gain fundamental insights on a system behavior that is usually reproduced by a model and to identify the most relevant input variables whose variations affect the system model functional response. For the reliability analysis of passive safety systems of Nuclear Power Plants (NPPs), models are Best Estimate (BE) Thermal Hydraulic (TH) codes, that predict the system functional response in normal and accidental conditions and, in this paper, an ensemble of three alternative invariant SA methods is innovatively set up for a SA on the TH code input variables. The ensemble aggregates the input variables raking orders provided by Pearson correlation ratio, Delta method and Beta method. The capability of the ensemble is shown on a BE–TH code of the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) of an Advanced Pressurized water reactor AP1000, during a Loss Of Coolant Accident (LOCA), whose output probability density function (pdf) is approximated by a Finite Mixture Model (FMM), on the basis of a limited number of simulations. - Highlights: • We perform the reliability analysis of a passive safety system of Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). • We use a Thermal Hydraulic (TH) code for predicting the NPP response to accidents. • We propose an ensemble of Invariant Methods for the sensitivity analysis of the TH code • The ensemble aggregates the rankings of Pearson correlation, Delta and Beta methods. • The approach is tested on a Passive Containment Cooling System of an AP1000 NPP.

  11. SBWR design update: Passively safe, nuclear power generation for the twenty first century

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Upton, H.A.; Torbeck, J.E.; Billig, P.F.; Duncan, J.D.; Herzog, M.

    1996-01-01

    This paper describes the current state of design, development and testing of a new generation of Boiling Water Reactors, the SBWR. The SBWR is a plant that will be significantly simpler to build, operate and maintain compared to operating plants. In this paper, the design and performance of the reference 670 MWe SBWR is summarized, the economics of SBWR power generation is addressed and the current developments in component testing and integrated system testing are given. This paper specifically discusses the current innovations and key reference design features of the SBWR including the RPV, depressurization system, pressure suppression system, flammability control system (based on passive autocatalytic recombiners), gravity driven cooling system, the passive containment cooling system, isolation condenser system and other unique engineered safety features that rely on gravity or stored energy to ensure core cooling, decay heat removal, and ATWS mitigation. The component and integrated system development testing summarized includes key results of recently concluded PANTHERS condenser tests conducted at SIET in Italy, GIRAFFE non-condensable gas testing by Toshiba in Japan, and the ongoing testing at the PANDA facility at PSI in Switzerland

  12. Overview of gas cooled reactors' applications with CATHARE

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Genevieve Geffraye; Fabrice Bentivoglio; Anne Messie; Alain Ruby; Manuel Saez; Nicolas Tauveron; Ola Widlund

    2005-01-01

    Full text of publication follows: For about four years, CEA has launched feasibility studies of future nuclear advanced systems in a consistent series of Gas Cooled Reactors (GCR) ranging from thermal reactors, as the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) for the mid term, to fast reactors (GFR) for the long term. Thermal hydraulic performances are a key issue for the core design, the evaluation of the thermal stresses on the structures and the decay heat removal systems. This analysis requires a 1D code able to simulate the whole reactor, including the core, the vessel, the piping and the components (turbine, compressors, heat exchangers). CATHARE is the reference code developed and extensively validated in collaboration between CEA, EDF, IRSN and FRAMATOME-ANP for the French Pressurized Water Reactors. CATHARE has the capabilities to model a Gas Cooled Reactor using standard 0D and 1D modules with some adaptations to treat the specificities of the GCR designs. In this paper, the different adaptations are presented and discussed. The direct coupling of a Gas Cooled Reactor with a closed gas-turbine cycle leads to a specific dynamic plant behaviour and a specific turbomachinery module has been developed. The thermal reactors' core consists of hexagonal graphite blocks with an annular-fueled region surrounded by reflectors and a special attention is paid on the thermal modeling of such a core leading to a quasi-2D thermal description. First designs of the VHTR are proposed and are based on an indirect cycle concept with a primary circuit, cooled by helium, and containing the core and a circulator. The core power is transmitted to the secondary circuit via an intermediate heat exchanger (IHX). The secondary circuit contains a turbine and a compressor coupled on a single shaft. It uses a mixture of helium and nitrogen, in order to benefit from both the favourable thermal properties of helium for the heat exchanger, and from existing experience of turbomachines using

  13. Safety aspects of forced flow cooldown transients in modular high temperature gas-cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kroeger, P.G.

    1992-01-01

    During some of the design basis accidents in Modular High Temperature Gas Cooled Reactors (MHTGRs) the main Heat Transport System (HTS) and the Shutdown Cooling System (SCS), are assumed to have failed. Decay heat is then removed by the passive Reactor Cavity Cooling System (RCCS) only. If either forced flow cooling system becomes available during such a transient, its restart could significantly reduce the down-time. This paper uses the THATCH code to examine whether such restart, during a period of elevated core temperatures, can be accomplished within safe limits for fuel and metal component temperatures. If the reactor is scrammed, either system can apparently be restarted at any time, without exceeding any safe limits. However, under unscrammed conditions a restart of forced cooling can lead to recriticality, with fuel and metal temperatures significantly exceeding the safety limits

  14. Experimental evaluation of passive cooling using phase change materials (PCM) for reducing overheating in public building

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ahmed, Abdullahi; Mateo-Garcia, Monica; McGough, Danny; Caratella, Kassim; Ure, Zafer

    2018-02-01

    Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ) is essential for the health and productivity of building users. The risk of overheating in buildings is increasing due to increased density of occupancy of people and heat emitting equipment, increase in ambient temperature due to manifestation of climate change or changes in urban micro-climate. One of the solutions to building overheating is to inject some exposed thermal mass into the interior of the building. There are many different types of thermal storage materials which typically includes sensible heat storage materials such as concrete, bricks, rocks etc. It is very difficult to increase the thermal mass of existing buildings using these sensible heat storage materials. Alternative to these, there are latent heat storage materials called Phase Change Materials (PCM), which have high thermal storage capacity per unit volume of materials making them easy to implement within retrofit project. The use of Passive Cooling Thermal Energy Storage (TES) systems in the form of PCM PlusICE Solutions has been investigated in occupied spaces to improve indoor environmental quality. The work has been carried out using experimental set-up in existing spaces and monitored through the summer the months. The rooms have been monitored using wireless temperature and humidity sensors. There appears to be significant improvement in indoor temperature of up to 5°K in the room with the PCM compared to the monitored control spaces. The success of PCM for passive cooling is strongly dependent on the ventilation strategy employed in the spaces. The use of night time cooling to purge the stored thermal energy is essential for improved efficacy of the systems to reduce overheating in the spaces. The investigation is carried within the EU funded RESEEPEE project.

  15. THE RELATION BETWEEN COOL CLUSTER CORES AND HERSCHEL-DETECTED STAR FORMATION IN BRIGHTEST CLUSTER GALAXIES

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rawle, T. D.; Egami, E.; Rex, M.; Fiedler, A.; Haines, C. P.; Pereira, M. J.; Portouw, J.; Walth, G. [Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, 933 N. Cherry Ave., Tucson, AZ 85721 (United States); Edge, A. C. [Institute for Computational Cosmology, Durham University, South Road, Durham DH1 3LE (United Kingdom); Smith, G. P. [School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT (United Kingdom); Altieri, B.; Valtchanov, I. [Herschel Science Centre, ESAC, ESA, P.O. Box 78, Villanueva de la Canada, 28691 Madrid (Spain); Perez-Gonzalez, P. G. [Departamento de Astrofisica, Facultad de CC. Fisicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); Van der Werf, P. P. [Sterrewacht Leiden, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9513, 2300 RA, Leiden (Netherlands); Zemcov, M., E-mail: trawle@as.arizona.edu [Department of Physics, Mathematics and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125 (United States)

    2012-03-01

    We present far-infrared (FIR) analysis of 68 brightest cluster galaxies (BCGs) at 0.08 < z < 1.0. Deriving total infrared luminosities directly from Spitzer and Herschel photometry spanning the peak of the dust component (24-500 {mu}m), we calculate the obscured star formation rate (SFR). 22{sup +6.2}{sub -5.3}% of the BCGs are detected in the far-infrared, with SFR = 1-150 M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}. The infrared luminosity is highly correlated with cluster X-ray gas cooling times for cool-core clusters (gas cooling time <1 Gyr), strongly suggesting that the star formation in these BCGs is influenced by the cluster-scale cooling process. The occurrence of the molecular gas tracing H{alpha} emission is also correlated with obscured star formation. For all but the most luminous BCGs (L{sub TIR} > 2 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 11} L{sub Sun }), only a small ({approx}<0.4 mag) reddening correction is required for SFR(H{alpha}) to agree with SFR{sub FIR}. The relatively low H{alpha} extinction (dust obscuration), compared to values reported for the general star-forming population, lends further weight to an alternate (external) origin for the cold gas. Finally, we use a stacking analysis of non-cool-core clusters to show that the majority of the fuel for star formation in the FIR-bright BCGs is unlikely to originate from normal stellar mass loss.

  16. PWR passive plant heat removal assessment: Joint EPRI-CRIEPI advanced LWR studies

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1991-03-01

    An independent assessment of the capabilities of the PWR passive plant heat removal systems was performed, covering the Passive Residual Heat Removal (PRHR) System, the Passive Safety Injection System (PSIS) and the Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) used in a 600 MWe passive plant (e.g., AP600). Additional effort included a review of the test programs which support the design and analysis of the systems, an assessment of the licensability of the plant with regard to heat removal adequacy, and an evaluation of the use of the passive systems with a larger plant. The major conclusions are as follows. The PRHR can remove core decay heat, prevents the pressurizer from filling with water for a loss-of-feedwater transient, and provides safety-grade means for maintaining the reactor coolant system in a safe shutdown condition for the case where the non-safety residual heat removal system becomes unavailable. The PSIS is effective in maintaining the core covered with water for loss-of-coolant accident pipe breaks to eight inches. The PCCS has sufficient heat removal capability to maintain the containment pressure within acceptable limits. The tests performed and planned are adequate to confirm the feasibility of the passive heat removal system designs and to provide a database for verification of the analytical techniques used for the plant evaluations. Each heat removal system can perform in accordance with Regulatory requirements, with the exception that the PRHR system is unable to achieve the required cold shutdown temperature of 200 F within the required 36-hour period. The passive heat removal systems to be used for the 600 MWe plant could be scaled up to a 900 MWe passive plant in a straightforward manner and only minimal, additional confirmatory testing would be required. Sections have been indexed separately for inclusion on the data base

  17. Performance behavior of the passive containment cooling system of a natural circulation BWR during postulated accident condition

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumar, Mukesh; Nayak, A.K.; Jain, Vikas; Vijayan, P.K.; Saha, D.; Sinha, R.K.

    2011-01-01

    Passive systems are playing prominent role in the development of innovative nuclear reactor systems due to their simplicity, enhanced safety, reliability and economy. These systems are being considered for normal operation as well as accidental conditions of reactor following a postulated accident scenario to preclude the scenarios arising out of failure of active systems as well as to minimize the operator intervention. Indian innovative reactor AHWR being designed for thorium utilization employs various passive safety concepts. As containment is the ultimate barrier to the release of radioactivity, passive concepts are being employed in BWRs for minimize peak containment pressure in the containment during a postulated accident condition like LOCA. The concept of passive containment cooling system (PCCS) in the AHWR comprises of inclined tube heat exchangers located underneath an elevated pool that removes the heat from the steam-air atmosphere of containment following a LOCA by natural circulation of water inside the tubes. The steam condenses on the external surface of tubes of PCCS in addition to the wall of the containment which in turn depressurizes the containment. This paper deals with the performance assessment of PCCS of AHWR during a postulated design basis LOCA by using the best estimate code RELAP5/Mod3.2. (author)

  18. Feasibility study of applying the passive safety system concept to fusion–fission hybrid reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yu, Zhang-cheng; Xie, Heng

    2014-01-01

    The fusion–fission hybrid reactor can produce energy, breed nuclear fuel, and handle the nuclear waste, etc., with the fusion neutron source striking the subcritical blanket. The passive safety system consists of passive residual heat removal system, passive safety injection system and automatic depressurization system was adopted into the fusion–fission hybrid reactor in this paper. Modeling and nodalization of primary loop, partial secondary loop and passive core cooling system for the fusion–fission hybrid reactor using relap5 were conducted and small break LOCA on cold leg was analyzed. The results of key transient parameters indicated that the actuation of passive safety system could mitigate the accidental consequence of the 4-inch cold leg small break LOCA on cold leg in the early time effectively. It is feasible to apply the passive safety system concept to fusion–fission hybrid reactor. The minimum collapsed liquid level had great increase if doubling the volume of CMTs to increase its coolant injection and had no increase if doubling the volume of ACCs

  19. Development of Passive Fuel Cell Thermal Management Heat Exchanger

    Science.gov (United States)

    Burke, Kenneth A.; Jakupca, Ian J.; Colozza, Anthony J.

    2010-01-01

    The NASA Glenn Research Center is developing advanced passive thermal management technology to reduce the mass and improve the reliability of space fuel cell systems for the NASA Exploration program. The passive thermal management system relies on heat conduction within highly thermally conductive cooling plates to move the heat from the central portion of the cell stack out to the edges of the fuel cell stack. Using the passive approach eliminates the need for a coolant pump and other cooling loop components within the fuel cell system which reduces mass and improves overall system reliability. Previous development demonstrated the performance of suitable highly thermally conductive cooling plates that could conduct the heat, provide a sufficiently uniform temperature heat sink for each cell of the fuel cell stack, and be substantially lighter than the conventional thermal management approach. Tests were run with different materials to evaluate the design approach to a heat exchanger that could interface with the edges of the passive cooling plates. Measurements were made during fuel cell operation to determine the temperature of individual cooling plates and also to determine the temperature uniformity from one cooling plate to another.

  20. Sodium-cooled fast reactor core designs for transmutation of MHR spent fuel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hong, S. G.; Kim, Y. H.; Venneri, F.

    2010-01-01

    In this paper, the core design analyses of sodium cooled fast reactors (SFR) are performed for the effective transmutation of the DB (Deep Burn)-MHR (Modular Helium Reactor). In this concept, the spent fuels of DB-MHR are transmuted in SFRs with a closed fuel cycle after TRUs from LWR are first incinerated in a DB-MHR. We introduced two different type SFR core designs for this purpose, and evaluated their core performance parameters including the safety-related parameters. In particular, the cores are designed to have lower transmutation rate relatively to our previous work so as to make the fuel characteristics more feasible. The first type cores which consist of two enrichment regions are typical homogeneous annular cores and they rate 900 MWt power. On the other hand, the second type cores which consist of a central non-fuel region and a single enrichment fuel region rate relatively higher power of 1500 MWt. For these cores, the moderator rods (YH 1.8 ) are used to achieve less positive sodium void worth and the more negative Doppler coefficient because the loading of DB-MHR spent fuel leads to the degradation of these safety parameters. The analysis results show that these cores have low sodium void worth and negative reactivity coefficients except for the one related with the coolant expansion but the coolant expansion reactivity coefficient is within the typical range of the typical SFR cores. (authors)

  1. Study of passive residual heat removal system of a modular small PWR reactor; Estudo do sistema passivo de remoção de calor residual de um reator PWR pequeno modular

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Araujo, Nathália N., E-mail: nathalianunes@poli.ufrj.br [Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), RJ (Brazil). Departamento de Engenharia Nuclear; Faccini, José L.H., E-mail: faccini@ien.gov.br [Instituto de Engenharia Nuclear (IEN/CNEN-RJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil); Su, Jian, E-mail: sujian@lasme.coppe.ufrj.br [Coordenacao de Pos-Graduacao e Pesquisa de Engenharia (COPPE/UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Programa de Engenharia Nuclear

    2017-07-01

    This paper presents a study on the passive residual heat removal system (PRHRS) of a small modular nuclear reactor (SMR) of 75MW. More advanced nuclear reactors, such as generation III + and IV, have passive safety systems that automatically go into action in order to prevent accidents. The purpose of the PRHRS is to transfer the decay heat from the reactor's nuclear fuel, keeping the core cooled after the plant has shut down. It starts operating in the event of fall of power supply to the nuclear station, or in the event of an unavailability of the steam generator water supply system. Removal of decay heat from the core of the reactor is accomplished by the flow of the primary refrigerant by natural circulation through heat exchangers located in a pool filled with water located above the core. The natural circulation is caused by the density gradient between the reactor core and the pool. A thermal and comparative analysis of the PRHRS was performed consisting of the resolution of the mass conservation equations, amount of movement and energy and using incompressible fluid approximations with the Boussinesq approximation. Calculations were performed with the aid of Mathematica software. A design of the heat exchanger and the cooling water tank was done so that the core of the reactor remained cooled for 72 hours using only the PRHRS.

  2. Analysis of expediency to set regulators of high-pressure emergency core cooling system of WWER 1000 (B-320)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Skalozubov, V.I.; Komarov, Yu.A.; Tikhonova, G.G.; Nikiforov, S.N.; Bogodist, V.V.; Fol'tov, I.M.; Khadzh Faradzhallakh Dabbakh, A.

    2011-01-01

    The work shows that setting regulative valves in high-pressure emergency core cooling system of WWER 1000/B-320 can be effective only involving the additional tuning to account traverse speed of operating elements of regulator and configuration of the systems providing cooling of primary loop.

  3. New Sodium Cooled Long-Life Cores with Axially Multi-Driver Regions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hyun, Hae Ri; Hong, Ser Gi

    2014-01-01

    In this concept of long-life core (they are sometimes called B-B (Breed and Burn)), tall blanket is placed above the relatively short driver fuel. In the initial stage of burning, the power by fission is mostly generated in the driver region and it moves into the blanket region. The power and flux distributions that are highly peaked in the axial direction propagates slowly from the driver into the blanket region. This concept of long-life core fully utilizes the breeding of blanket in the fast spectra and it can achieve very high burnup of fuel. In this work, we introduce new sodium cooled longlife cores rating 600MWe (1800MWt). In these cores, the driver regions are heterogeneously placed into blanket region so as to achieve stabilized and less peaked axial power distribution as depletion proceeds. At present, our study is focused on only two axial driver regions but this concept can be easily extended onto the multi-driver region concept. The cores designed in this paper have two axial driver regions so as to have stabilized and less peaked axial power distributions as depletion proceeds. The results of the core design and analyses show that the cores have very long-lives longer than -49EFPYs and high discharge burnup higher than 200GWD/kg. Additionally, we considered a long-life core having no blanket. As expected, it was shown that these cores have stabilized and less peaked axial power distribution as the fuel depletes. However, the study shows that the cores having two driver regions still show high initial peaking of the axial power distributions and the core can be optimized by changing the driver fuel height

  4. Experimental study on heat pipe heat removal capacity for passive cooling of spent fuel pool

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Xiong, Zhenqin; Wang, Minglu; Gu, Hanyang; Ye, Cheng

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • A passively cooling SFP heat pipe with an 8.2 m high evaporator was tested. • Heat removed by the heat pipe is in the range of 3.1–16.8 kW. • The heat transfer coefficient of the evaporator is 214–414 W/m 2 /K. • The heat pipe performance is sensitive to the hot water temperature. - Abstract: A loop-type heat pipe system uses natural flow with no electrically driven components. Therefore, such a system was proposed to passively cool spent fuel pools during accidents to improve nuclear power station safety especially for station blackouts such as those in Fukushima. The heat pipe used for a spent fuel pool is large due to the spent fuel pool size. An experimental heat pipe test loop was developed to estimate its heat removal capacity from the spent fuel pool during an accident. The 7.6 m high evaporator is heated by hot water flowing vertically down in an assistant tube with a 207-mm inner diameter. R134a was used as the potential heat pipe working fluid. The liquid R134a level was 3.6 m. The tests were performed for water velocities from 0.7 to 2.1 × 10 −2 m/s with water temperatures from 50 to 90 °C and air velocities from 0.5 m/s to 2.5 m/s. The results indicate significant heat is removed by the heat pipe under conditions that may occur in the spent fuel pool

  5. Emergency cooling method and system for gas-cooled nuclear reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kumpf, H.

    1982-01-01

    For emergency cooling of gas-cooled fast breeder reactors (GSB), which have a core consisting of a fission zone and a breeding zone, water is sprayed out of nozzles on to the core from above in the case of an incident. The water which is not treated with boron is taken out of a reservoir in the form of a storage tank in such a maximum quantity that the cooling water gathering in the space below the core rises at most up to the lower edge of the fission zone. (orig./GL) [de

  6. Passive safety testing at the Fast Flux Test Facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lucoff, D.M.

    1989-01-01

    During 1986, the Fast Flux Test Facility (FFTF) conducted several tests designed to improve the understanding of the passive safety characteristics of an oxide-fueled liquid-metal reactor (LMR). Static and dynamic tests were performed over a broad range of power, flow, and temperature conditions that extended beyond those for normal operation. Key results of these tests are presented. Stable operation at low power with natural circulation cooling was demonstrated. A passive safety enhancement feature, the gas expansion module (GEM) was developed specifically to offset the large amount of cooldown reactivity that needs to be controlled in an oxide-fueled LMR undergoing an unprotected loss-of-flow accident. Nine GEMs were built and successfully tested in FFTF. With the reactor at 50% power (200 MW (thermal)), the main coolant pumps were turned off and the normal control rod scram response was inhibited. The GEMs and inherent core reactivity feedback mechanisms took the core subcritical with a modest peak coolant temperature transient that reached 85 degrees C above the pretransient value and always maintained a >400 degrees C margin to the sodium boiling point (910 degrees C)

  7. Core catcher concepts future PWR-Plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Alsmeyer, H.; Werle, H.

    1994-01-01

    Light water reactors of the next generation should have still greater passive safety, even in the most serious accidents. This includes the long term safe inclusion of the core inventory in the case of core meltdown accidents. The three concepts for cooling the liquefied core outside the reactor pressure vessel examined by KfK should remove the post-shutdown heat by direct contact of the melt with water. The geometric distribution of the melt increases its surface area, so that favourable conditions for heat removal from the poorly thermally-conducting melt are created and complete quick solidification occurs. The experiments examine both the relocation and distribution mechanisms of the melt and the reactions occurring when water enters. As strong interaction is possible on direct contact of the melt with water, an important aim is experimental determination and limitation of any resulting mechanical stresses. (orig./HP) [de

  8. Passive safety systems for decay heat removal of MRX

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ochiai, M; Iida, H; Hoshi, T [Japan Atomic Energy Research Inst., Ibaraki (Japan). Nuclear Ship System Lab.

    1996-12-01

    The MRX (marine Reactor X) is an advanced marine reactor, its design has been studied in Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute. It is characterized by four features, integral type PWR, in-vessel type control rod drive mechanisms, water-filled containment vessel and passive decay heat removal system. A water-filled containment vessel is of great advantage since it ensures compactness of a reactor plant by realizing compact radiation shielding. The containment vessel also yields passive safety of MRX in the event of a LOCA by passively maintaining core flooding without any emergency water injection. Natural circulation of water in the vessels (reactor and containment vessels) is one of key factors of passive decay heat removal systems of MRX, since decay heat is transferred from fuel rods to atmosphere by natural circulation of the primary water, water in the containment vessel and thermal medium in heat pipe system for the containment vessel water cooling in case of long terms cooling after a LOCA as well as after reactor scram. Thus, the ideal of water-filled containment vessel is considered to be very profitable and significant in safety and economical point of view. This idea is, however, not so familiar for a conventional nuclear system, so experimental and analytical efforts are carried out for evaluation of hydrothermal behaviours in the reactor pressure vessel and in the containment vessel in the event of a LOCA. The results show the effectiveness of the new design concept. Additional work will also be conducted to investigate the practical maintenance of instruments in the containment vessel. (author). 4 refs, 9 figs, 2 tabs.

  9. Cooling system of the core of a nuclear reactor while it is being stopped or normally operating

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tilliette, Z.

    1986-01-01

    The present invention proposes a cooling system with intermediate gas flow which ensures the reactor core cooling when the primary pumps are stopped either directly by means of main heat-exchange circuits ensuring normally the reactor operation, or by means of separated loops, these ones being able so to operate in an autonomous way for they produce their own electricity needs and also an excedent which is added to the power plant production. The cooling circuit and the heat exchanger are described in detail [fr

  10. Overview of the TITAN-II reversed-field pinch aqueous fusion power core design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wong, C.P.C.; Creedon, R.L.; Grotz, S.; Cheng, E.T.; Sharafat, S.; Cooke, P.I.H.

    1988-03-01

    TITAN-II is a compact, high power density Reversed-Field Pinch fusion power reactor design based on the aqueous lithium solution fusion power core concept. The selected breeding and structural materials are LiNO/sub 3/ and 9-C low activation ferritic steel, respectively. TITAN-II is a viable alternative to the TITAN-I lithium self-cooled design for the Reversed-Field Pinch reactor to operate at a neutron wall loading of 18 MWm/sup 2/. Submerging the complete fusion power core and the primary loop in a large pool of cool water will minimize the probability of radioactivity release. Since the protection of the large pool integrity is the only requirement for the protection of the public, TITAN-II is a passive safety assurance design. 13 refs., 3 figs., 1 tab.

  11. Overview of the TITAN-II reversed-field pinch aqueous fusion power core design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Wong, C.P.C.; Creedon, R.L.; Cheng, E.T. (General Atomic Co., San Diego, CA (USA)); Grotz, S.P.; Sharafat, S.; Cooke, P.I.H. (California Univ., Los Angeles (USA). Dept. of Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering; California Univ., Los Angeles, CA (USA). Inst. for Plasma and Fusion Research); TITAN Research Group

    1989-04-01

    TITAN-II is a compact, high-power-density Reversed-Field Pinch fusion power reactor design based on the aqueous lithium solution fusion power core concept. The selected breeding and structural materials are LiNO/sub 3/ and 9-C low activation ferritic steel, respectively. TITAN-II is a viable alternative to the TITAN-I lithium self-cooled design for the Reversed-Field Pinch reactor to operate at a neutron wall loading of 18 MW/m/sup 2/. Submerging the complete fusion power core and the primary loop in a large pool of cool water will minimize the probability of radioactivity release. Since the protection of the large pool integrity is the only requirement for the protection of the public, TITAN-II is a level 2 of passive safety assurance design. (orig.).

  12. A safety design approach for sodium cooled fast reactor core toward commercialization in Japan

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kubo, Shigenobu

    2012-01-01

    JAEA’s safety approach for SFR core design is based on defence‐in‐depth concept, which includes DBAs and DECs (prevention and mitigation): • The reactor core is designed to have inherent reactivity feedback characteristics with negative power coefficient. • Operation temperature range is set sufficiently below the coolant boiling temperature so as to avoid coolant boiling against anticipated operational occurrences and DBAs. • If the plant state deviates from operational states, the safe reactor shutdown is achieved by automatic insertion of control rods. 2 active reactor shutdown systems are provided. • Failure of active reactor shutdown is assumed in a design extension condition . Passive shutdown capability is provided by SASS under such condition. • As a design extension condition, core disruptive accident is assumed. In order to prevent severe mechanical energy release which might cause containment function failure, core sodium void worth is limited below 6 dollars and molten fuel discharge capability is utilized by FAIDUS. (author)

  13. Laser-cooled atoms inside a hollow-core photonic-crystal fiber

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Bajcsy, Michal; Hofferberth, S.; Peyronel, Thibault

    2011-01-01

    We describe the loading of laser-cooled rubidium atoms into a single-mode hollow-core photonic-crystal fiber. Inside the fiber, the atoms are confined by a far-detuned optical trap and probed by a weak resonant beam. We describe different loading methods and compare their trade-offs in terms...... of implementation complexity and atom-loading efficiency. The most efficient procedure results in loading of ∼30,000 rubidium atoms, which creates a medium with an optical depth of ∼180 inside the fiber. Compared to our earlier study this represents a sixfold increase in the maximum achieved optical depth...

  14. Power distribution monitoring system in the boiling water cooled reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Leshchenko, Yu.I.; Sadulin, V.P.; Semidotskij, I.I.

    1987-01-01

    Consideration is being given to the system of physical power distribution monitoring, used during several years in the VK-50 tank type boiling water cooled reactor. Experiments were conducted to measure the ratios of detector prompt and activation currents, coefficients of detector relative sensitivity with respect to neutrons and effective cross sections of 103 Rh interaction with thermal and epithermal neutrons. Mobile self-powered detectors (SPD) with rhodium emitters are used as the power distribution detectors in the considered system. All detectors move simultaneously with constant rate in channels, located in fuel assembly central tubes, when conducting the measurements. It is concluded on the basis of analyzing the obtained data, that investigated system with calibrated SPD enables to monitor the absolute power distribution in fuel assemblies under conditions of boiling water cooled reactor and is independent of thermal engineering measurements conducted by in core instruments

  15. System Design of a Supercritical CO_2 cooled Micro Modular Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Seong Gu; Cho, Seongkuk; Yu, Hwanyeal; Kim, Yonghee; Jeong, Yong Hoon; Lee, Jeong Ik

    2014-01-01

    Small modular reactor (SMR) systems that have advantages of little initial capital cost and small restriction on construction site are being developed by many research organizations around the world. Existing SMR concepts have the same objective: to achieve compact size and a long life core. Most of small modular reactors have much smaller size than the large nuclear power plant. However, existing SMR concepts are not fully modularized. This paper suggests a complete modular reactor with an innovative concept for reactor cooling by using a supercritical carbon dioxide. The authors propose the supercritical CO_2 Brayton cycle (S-CO_2 cycle) as a power conversion system to achieve small volume of power conversion unit (PCU) and to contain the reactor core and PCU in one vessel. A conceptual design of the proposed small modular reactor was developed, which is named as KAIST Micro Modular Reactor (MMR). The supercritical CO_2 Brayton cycle for the S-CO_2 cooled reactor core was optimized and the size of turbomachinery and heat exchanger were estimated preliminary. The nuclear fuel composed with UN was proposed and the core lifetime was obtained from a burnup versus reactivity calculation. Furthermore, a system layout with fully passive safety systems for both normal operation and emergency operation was proposed. (author)

  16. Graphites and composites irradiations for gas cooled reactor core structures

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Van der Laan, J.G.; Vreeling, J.A.; Buckthorpe, D.E.; Reed, J.

    2008-01-01

    Full text of publication follows. Material investigations are undertaken as part of the European Commission 6. Framework Programme for helium-cooled fission reactors under development like HTR, VHTR, GCFR. The work comprises a range of activities, from (pre-)qualification to screening of newly designed materials. The High Flux Reactor at Petten is the main test bed for the irradiation test programmes of the HTRM/M1, RAPHAEL and ExtreMat Integrated Projects. These projects are supported by the European Commission 5. and 6. Framework Programmes. To a large extent they form the European contribution to the Generation-IV International Forum. NRG is also performing a Materials Test Reactor project to support British Energy in preparing extended operation of their Advanced Gas-cooled Reactors (AGR). Irradiations of commercial and developmental graphite grades for HTR core structures are undertaken in the range of 650 to 950 deg C, with a view to get data on physical and mechanical properties that enable engineering design. Various C- and SiC-based composite materials are considered for support structures or specific components like control rods. Irradiation test matrices are chosen to cover commercial materials, and to provide insight on the behaviour of various fibre and matrix types, and the effects of architecture and manufacturing process. The programme is connected with modelling activities to support data trending, and improve understanding of the material behaviour and micro-structural evolution. The irradiation programme involves products from a large variety of industrial and research partners, and there is strong interaction with other high technology areas with extreme environments like space, electronics and fusion. The project on AGR core structures graphite focuses on the effects of high dose neutron irradiation and simultaneous radiolytic oxidation in a range of 350 to 450 deg C. It is aimed to provide data on graphite properties into the parameter space

  17. Emergency cooling system for a gas-cooled nuclear reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cook, R.K.; Burylo, P.S.

    1975-01-01

    The site of the gas-cooled reactor with direct-circuit gas turbine is preferably the sea coast. An emergency cooling system with safety valve and emergency feed-water addition is designed which affects at least a part of the reactor core coolant after leaving the core. The emergency cooling system includes a water emergency cooling circuit with heat exchanger for the core coolant. The safety valve releases water or steam from the emergency coolant circuit when a certain temperature is exceeded; this is, however, replaced by the emergency feed-water. If the gas turbine exhibits a high and low pressure turbine stage, which are flowed through by coolant one behind another, a part of the coolant can be removed in front of each part turbine by two valves and be added to the haet exchanger. (RW/LH) [de

  18. Conceptual core design study for Japan sodium-cooled fast reactor: Review of sodium void reactivity worth evaluation

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohki, Shigeo

    2012-01-01

    The conceptual core design study for a large-scale Japan sodium-cooled fast reactor (JSFR) have been carried out in the framework of the FaCT project. The reference “High-internal conversion” core can satisfy the requirements for enhanced safety, as well as achieving economic competitiveness. In order to increase the design reliability, more rigorous uncertainty evaluation is important. Development of the verification and validation methodology of the core neutronic design method is currently underway. (author)

  19. The Role of Cerenkov Radiation in the Pressure Balance of Cool Core Clusters of Galaxies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Lieu, Richard [Department of Physics, University of Alabama, Huntsville, AL 35899 (United States)

    2017-03-20

    Despite the substantial progress made recently in understanding the role of AGN feedback and associated non-thermal effects, the precise mechanism that prevents the core of some clusters of galaxies from collapsing catastrophically by radiative cooling remains unidentified. In this Letter, we demonstrate that the evolution of a cluster's cooling core, in terms of its density, temperature, and magnetic field strength, inevitably enables the plasma electrons there to quickly become Cerenkov loss dominated, with emission at the radio frequency of ≲350 Hz, and with a rate considerably exceeding free–free continuum and line emission. However, the same does not apply to the plasmas at the cluster's outskirts, which lacks such radiation. Owing to its low frequency, the radiation cannot escape, but because over the relevant scale size of a Cerenkov wavelength the energy of an electron in the gas cannot follow the Boltzmann distribution to the requisite precision to ensure reabsorption always occurs faster than stimulated emission, the emitting gas cools before it reheats. This leaves behind the radiation itself, trapped by the overlying reflective plasma, yet providing enough pressure to maintain quasi-hydrostatic equilibrium. The mass condensation then happens by Rayleigh–Taylor instability, at a rate determined by the outermost radius where Cerenkov radiation can occur. In this way, it is possible to estimate the rate at ≈2 M {sub ⊙} year{sup −1}, consistent with observational inference. Thus, the process appears to provide a natural solution to the longstanding problem of “cooling flow” in clusters; at least it offers another line of defense against cooling and collapse should gas heating by AGN feedback be inadequate in some clusters.

  20. Minor actinide transmutation in a board type sodium cooled breed and burn reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zheng, Meiyin; Tian, Wenxi; Zhang, Dalin; Qiu, Suizheng; Su, Guanghui

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • A 1250 MWt board type sodium cooled breed and burn reactor core is further designed. • MCNP–ORIGEN coupled code MCORE is applied to perform neutronics and depletion calculation. • Transmutation efficiency and neutronic safety parameters are compared under different MA weight fraction. - Abstract: In this paper, a board type sodium cooled breed and burn reactor core is further designed and applied to perform minor actinide (MA) transmutation. MA is homogeneously loaded in all the fuel sub-assemblies with a weight fraction of 2.0 wt.%, 4.0 wt.%, 6.0 wt.%, 8.0 wt.%, 10.0 wt.% and 12.0 wt.%, respectively. The transmutation efficiency, transmutation amount, power density distribution, neutron fluence distribution and neutronic safety parameters, such as reactivity, Doppler feedback, void worth and delayed neutron fraction, are compared under different MA weight fraction. Neutronics and depletion calculations are performed based on the self-developed MCNP–ORIGEN coupled code with the ENDF/B-VII data library. In the breed and burn reactor core, a number of breeding sub-assemblies are arranged in the inner core in a board type way (scatter load) to breed, and a number of absorbing sub-assemblies are arranged in the inner side of the outer core to absorb neutrons and reduce power density in this area. All the fuel sub-assemblies (ignition and breeding sub-assemblies) are shuffled from outside in. The core reached asymptotically steady state after about 22 years, and the average and maximum discharged burn-up were about 17.0% and 35.3%, respectively. The transmutation amount increased linearly with the MA weight fraction, while the transmutation rate parabolically varied with the MA weight fraction. Power density in ignition sub-assembly positions increased with the MA weight fraction, while decreased in breeding sub-assembly positions. Neutron fluence decreased with the increase of MA weight fraction. Generally speaking, the core reactivity and void

  1. Preliminary design of a borax internal core-catcher for a gas cooled fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Dalle Donne, M.; Dorner, S.; Schumacher, G.

    1976-09-01

    Preliminary thermal calculations show that a core-catcher appears to be feasible, which is able to cope with the complete meltdown of the core and blankets of a 1,000 MWe GCFR. This core-catcher is based on borax (Na 2 B 4 O 7 ) as dissolving material of the oxide fuel and of the fission products occuring in oxide form. The borax is contained in steel boxes forming a 2.1 meter thick slab on the base of the reactor cavity inside the prestressed concrete reactor vessel, just underneath the reactor core. The fission products are dispersed in the pool formed by the liquid borax. The heat power density in the pool is conveniently reduced and the resulting heat fluxes at the borders of the pool can be safely carried away through the PCRV liner and its water cooling system. (orig.) [de

  2. Two or three decades of passive directions

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Cook, J.

    1995-01-01

    This paper presents an overview of the direction of passive solar architecture. The topics of the paper include design temperatures for buildings, active vs passive, fuel vs philosophy, engineering vs architecture, the thermal scale: heating vs cooling, fuel subsidies, divergent practices, sustainability, lighting, health, the place of passive technology

  3. Advanced simulations of energy demand and indoor climate of passive ventilation systems with heat recovery and night cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Hviid, Christian Anker; Svendsen, Svend

    with little energy consumption and with satisfying indoor climate. The concept is based on using passive measures like stack and wind driven ventilation, effective night cooling and low pressure loss heat recovery using two fluid coupled water-to-air heat exchangers developed at the Technical University...... simulation program ESP-r to model the heat and air flows and the results show the feasibility of the proposed ventilation concept in terms of low energy consumption and good indoor climate....

  4. Calculation of the neutron noise induced by periodic deformations of a large sodium-cooled fast reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Zylbersztejn, F.; Tran, H.N.; Pazsit, I.; Filliatre, P.; Jammes, C.

    2014-01-01

    The subject of this paper is the calculation of the neutron noise induced by small-amplitude stationary radial variations of the core size (core expansion/compaction, also called core flowering) of a large sodium-cooled fast reactor. The calculations were performed on a realistic model of the European Sodium Fast Reactor (ESFR) core with a thermal output of 3600 MW(thermal), using a multigroup neutron noise simulator. The multigroup cross sections and their fluctuations that represent the core geometry changes for the neutron noise calculations were generated by the code ERANOS. The space and energy dependences of the noise source represented by the core expansion/compaction and the induced neutron noise are calculated and discussed. (authors)

  5. Feasibility of maintaining natural convection mode core cooling in research reactor power upgrades

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, J.J.; Belhadj, M.; Aldemir, T.; Christensen, R.N.

    1987-01-01

    Two operational concerns for natural convection coooled research reactors using plate type fuels are: 1) pool top 16 N activity (PTNA), and 2) nucleate boiling in core channels. The feasibility assessment of a power upgrade while maintaining natural convection mode core cooling requires addressing these operational concerns. Previous studies have shown that: a) The conventional technique for reducing PTNA by plume dispersion may not be effective in a large power upgrade of research reactors with small pools. b) Currently used correlations to predict onset of nucleate boiling (ONB) in thin, rectangular core channels are not valid for low-velocity, upward flows such as encountered in natural convection cooling. The PTNA depends on the velocity distribution in the reactor pool. COMMIX-1A code is used to determine the three-dimensional velocity fields in The Ohio State University Research Reactor (OSURR) pool as a function of varying design conditions, following a power upgrade to 500 kW with LEU fuel. It is shown that a sufficiently deep stagnant water layer can be created below the pool top by properly choosing the disperser flow rate. The ONB heat flux is experimentally determined for channel gaps and upward flow velocities in the range 2mm-4mm and 3-16 cm/sec., respectively. Two alternatives to plume dispersion for reducing PTNA and a new correlation to determine the ONB heat flux in thin, rectangular channels under low-velocity, upward flow conditions are proposed. (Author)

  6. Simulation and transient analyses of a complete passive heat removal system in a downward cooling pool-type material testing reactor against a complete station blackout and long-term natural convection mode using the RELAP5/3.2 code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hedayat, Afshin [Reactor and Nuclear Safety School, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute (NSTRI), Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

    2017-08-15

    In this paper, a complete station blackout (SBO) or complete loss of electrical power supplies is simulated and analyzed in a downward cooling 5-MW pool-type Material Testing Reactor (MTR). The scenario is traced in the absence of active cooling systems and operators. The code nodalization is successfully benchmarked against experimental data of the reactor's operating parameters. The passive heat removal system includes downward water cooling after pump breakdown by the force of gravity (where the coolant streams down to the unfilled portion of the holdup tank), safety flapper opening, flow reversal from a downward to an upward cooling direction, and then the upward free convection heat removal throughout the flapper safety valve, lower plenum, and fuel assemblies. Both short-term and long-term natural core cooling conditions are simulated and investigated using the RELAP5 code. Short-term analyses focus on the safety flapper valve operation and flow reversal mode. Long-term analyses include simulation of both complete SBO and long-term operation of the free convection mode. Results are promising for pool-type MTRs because this allows operators to investigate RELAP code abilities for MTR thermal–hydraulic simulations without any oscillation; moreover, the Tehran Research Reactor is conservatively safe against the complete SBO and long-term free convection operation.

  7. Simulation and transient analyses of a complete passive heat removal system in a downward cooling pool-type material testing reactor against a complete station blackout and long-term natural convection mode using the RELAP5/3.2 code

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Afshin Hedayat

    2017-08-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, a complete station blackout (SBO or complete loss of electrical power supplies is simulated and analyzed in a downward cooling 5-MW pool-type Material Testing Reactor (MTR. The scenario is traced in the absence of active cooling systems and operators. The code nodalization is successfully benchmarked against experimental data of the reactor's operating parameters. The passive heat removal system includes downward water cooling after pump breakdown by the force of gravity (where the coolant streams down to the unfilled portion of the holdup tank, safety flapper opening, flow reversal from a downward to an upward cooling direction, and then the upward free convection heat removal throughout the flapper safety valve, lower plenum, and fuel assemblies. Both short-term and long-term natural core cooling conditions are simulated and investigated using the RELAP5 code. Short-term analyses focus on the safety flapper valve operation and flow reversal mode. Long-term analyses include simulation of both complete SBO and long-term operation of the free convection mode. Results are promising for pool-type MTRs because this allows operators to investigate RELAP code abilities for MTR thermal–hydraulic simulations without any oscillation; moreover, the Tehran Research Reactor is conservatively safe against the complete SBO and long-term free convection operation.

  8. CFD simulations of moderator flow inside Calandria of the Passive Moderator Cooling System of an advanced reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Pal, Eshita [Homi Bhabha National Institute, Anushaktinagar, Mumbai 400 094 (India); Kumar, Mukesh [Reactor Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India); Joshi, Jyeshtharaj B., E-mail: jbjoshi@gmail.com [Homi Bhabha National Institute, Anushaktinagar, Mumbai 400 094 (India); Department of Chemical Engineering, Institute of Chemical Technology, Matunga, Mumbai 400019 India (India); Nayak, Arun K. [Reactor Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India); Vijayan, Pallippattu K., E-mail: vijayanp@barc.gov.in [Reactor Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay, Mumbai 400 085 (India)

    2015-10-15

    Highlights: • CFD simulations in the Calandria of an advanced reactor under natural circulation. • Under natural convection, majority of the flow recirculates within the Calandria. • Maximum temperature is located at the top and center of the fuel channel matrix. • During SBO, temperature inside Calandria is stratified. - Abstract: Passive systems are being examined for the future Advanced Nuclear Reactor designs. One of such concepts is the Passive Moderator Cooling System (PMCS), which is designed to remove heat from the moderator in the Calandria vessel passively in case of an extended Station Black Out condition. The heated heavy-water moderator (due to heat transferred from the Main Heat Transport System (MHTS) and thermalization of neutrons and gamma from radioactive decay of fuel) rises upward due to buoyancy, gets cooled down in a heat exchanger and returns back to Calandria, completing a natural circulation loop. The natural circulation should provide sufficient cooling to prevent the increase of moderator temperature and pressure beyond safe limits. In an earlier study, a full-scale 1D transient simulation was performed for the reactor including the MHTS and the PMCS, in the event of a station blackout scenario (Kumar et al., 2013). The results indicate that the systems remain within the safe limits for 7 days. However, the flow inside a geometry like Calandria is quite complex due to its large size and inner complexities of dense fuel channel matrix, which was simplified as a 1D pipe flow in the aforesaid analysis. In the current work, CFD simulations are performed to study the temperature distributions and flow distribution of moderator inside the Calandria vessel using a three-dimensional CFD code, OpenFoam 2.2.0. First, a set of steady state simulation was carried out for a band of inlet mass flow rates, which gives the minimum mass flow rate required for removing the maximum heat load, by virtue of prediction of hot spots inside the Calandria

  9. Core debris cooling with flooded vessel or core-catcher. Heat exchange coefficients under natural convection

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rouge, S.; Seiler, J.M.

    1994-09-01

    External cooling by natural water circulation is necessary for molten core retention in LWR lower head or in a core-catcher. Considering the expected heat flux levels (between 0.2 to 1.5 MW/m 2 ) film boiling should be avoided. This rises the question of the knowledge of the level of the critical heat flux for the considered geometries and flow paths. The document proposes a state of the art of the research in this field. Mainly small scale experiments have been performed in a very recent past. These experiments are not sufficient to extrapolate to large scale reactor structures. Limited large scale experimental results exist. These results together with some theoretical investigations show that external cooling by natural water circulation may be considered as a reasonable objective of severe accident R and D. Recently (in fact since the beginning of 1994) new results are available from large scale experiments (CYBL, ULPU 2000, SULTAN). These results indicate that CHF larger than 1 MW/m 2 can be obtained under natural water circulation conditions. In this report, emphasis is given to the pursuit of finding predictive models for the critical heat flux in large, naturally convective channels with thick walls. This theoretical understanding is important for the capability to extrapolate to different situations (various geometries, flow paths....). The outcome of this research should be the ability to calculate Boundary Layer Boiling situations (2D), channelling boiling situations (1D) and related CHF conditions. However, a more straightforward approach can be used for the analysis of specific designs. Today there are already some CHF data available for hemispherical geometry and these data can be used before a mechanistic understanding is achieved

  10. Reducing overheating risk using ventilative cooling

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Heiselberg, Per Kvols

    2014-01-01

    The current trend towards nearly-zero energy buildings has led to an increased risk of overheating throughout the year. Use of the cooling potential of outdoor air can be an energy efficient passive solution to this.......The current trend towards nearly-zero energy buildings has led to an increased risk of overheating throughout the year. Use of the cooling potential of outdoor air can be an energy efficient passive solution to this....

  11. Core Design and Deployment Strategy of Heavy Water Cooled Sustainable Thorium Reactor

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Naoyuki Takaki

    2012-08-01

    Full Text Available Our previous studies on water cooled thorium breeder reactor based on matured pressurized water reactor (PWR plant technology concluded that reduced moderated core by arranging fuel pins in a triangular tight lattice array and using heavy water as coolant is appropriate for achieving better breeding performance and higher burn-up simultaneously [1–6]. One optimum core that produces 3.5 GW thermal energy using Th-233U oxide fuel shows a breeding ratio of 1.07 and averaged burn-up of about 80 GWd/t with long cycle length of 1300 days. The moderator to fuel volume ratio is 0.6 and required enrichment of 233U for the fresh fuel is about 7%. The coolant reactivity coefficient is negative during all cycles despite it being a large scale breeder reactor. In order to introduce this sustainable thorium reactor, three-step deployment scenario, with intermediate transition phase between current light water reactor (LWR phase and future sustainer phase, is proposed. Both in transition phase and sustainer phase, almost the same core design can be applicable only by changing fissile materials mixed with thorium from plutonium to 233U with slight modification in the fuel assembly design. Assuming total capacity of 60 GWe in current LWR phase and reprocessing capacity of 800 ton/y with further extensions to 1600 ton/y, all LWRs will be replaced by heavy water cooled thorium reactors within about one century then thorium reactors will be kept operational owing to its potential to sustain fissile fuels while reprocessing all spent fuels until exhaustion of massive thorium resource.

  12. Quantitative dynamic reliability evaluation of AP1000 passive safety systems by using FMEA and GO-FLOW methodology

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hashim Muhammad; Yoshikawa, Hidekazu; Matsuoka, Takeshi; Yang Ming

    2014-01-01

    The passive safety systems utilized in advanced pressurized water reactor (PWR) design such as AP1000 should be more reliable than that of active safety systems of conventional PWR by less possible opportunities of hardware failures and human errors (less human intervention). The objectives of present study are to evaluate the dynamic reliability of AP1000 plant in order to check the effectiveness of passive safety systems by comparing the reliability-related issues with that of active safety systems in the event of the big accidents. How should the dynamic reliability of passive safety systems properly evaluated? And then what will be the comparison of reliability results of AP1000 passive safety systems with the active safety systems of conventional PWR. For this purpose, a single loop model of AP1000 passive core cooling system (PXS) and passive containment cooling system (PCCS) are assumed separately for quantitative reliability evaluation. The transient behaviors of these passive safety systems are taken under the large break loss-of-coolant accident in the cold leg. The analysis is made by utilizing the qualitative method failure mode and effect analysis in order to identify the potential failure mode and success-oriented reliability analysis tool called GO-FLOW for quantitative reliability evaluation. The GO-FLOW analysis has been conducted separately for PXS and PCCS systems under the same accident. The analysis results show that reliability of AP1000 passive safety systems (PXS and PCCS) is increased due to redundancies and diversity of passive safety subsystems and components, and four stages automatic depressurization system is the key subsystem for successful actuation of PXS and PCCS system. The reliability results of PCCS system of AP1000 are more reliable than that of the containment spray system of conventional PWR. And also GO-FLOW method can be utilized for reliability evaluation of passive safety systems. (author)

  13. Radiative Cooling: Principles, Progress, and Potentials

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hossain, Md. Muntasir

    2016-01-01

    The recent progress on radiative cooling reveals its potential for applications in highly efficient passive cooling. This approach utilizes the maximized emission of infrared thermal radiation through the atmospheric window for releasing heat and minimized absorption of incoming atmospheric radiation. These simultaneous processes can lead to a device temperature substantially below the ambient temperature. Although the application of radiative cooling for nighttime cooling was demonstrated a few decades ago, significant cooling under direct sunlight has been achieved only recently, indicating its potential as a practical passive cooler during the day. In this article, the basic principles of radiative cooling and its performance characteristics for nonradiative contributions, solar radiation, and atmospheric conditions are discussed. The recent advancements over the traditional approaches and their material and structural characteristics are outlined. The key characteristics of the thermal radiators and solar reflectors of the current state‐of‐the‐art radiative coolers are evaluated and their benchmarks are remarked for the peak cooling ability. The scopes for further improvements on radiative cooling efficiency for optimized device characteristics are also theoretically estimated. PMID:27812478

  14. Gas cooled reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kojima, Masayuki.

    1985-01-01

    Purpose: To enable direct cooling of reactor cores thereby improving the cooling efficiency upon accidents. Constitution: A plurality sets of heat exchange pipe groups are disposed around the reactor core, which are connected by way of communication pipes with a feedwater recycling device comprising gas/liquid separation device, recycling pump, feedwater pump and emergency water tank. Upon occurrence of loss of primary coolants accidents, the heat exchange pipe groups directly absorb the heat from the reactor core through radiation and convection. Although the water in the heat exchange pipe groups are boiled to evaporate if the forcive circulation is interrupted by the loss of electric power source, water in the emergency tank is supplied due to the head to the heat exchange pipe groups to continue the cooling. Furthermore, since the heat exchange pipe groups surround the entire circumference of the reactor core, cooling is carried out uniformly without resulting deformation or stresses due to the thermal imbalance. (Sekiya, K.)

  15. Study of the mechanisms for the emergency cooling of the core of the Radioisotope Producing Reator (RPR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lacerda, F.C.

    1987-01-01

    The mechanisms for the emergency cooling of the core of the Radioisotope Producing Reactor (R.P.R.) are studied, in particular the thermal-hydraulic behaviour of the coolant after reactor shut-down. The coolant operates bd convection, and flows downward through the core passing into beel-shaped plenum that encloses the core and proceeding across the primary cooling loop. When the reactor is shut-down, the coolant flow undergoes a transient period until the steady state of natural convection is reached, after which the coolant flows upwards from the lower plenum. A plocking valve will be installed at the exit of the lower plenum, which will automatically shut in case of an accident that will involve the loss of flow in the primary circuit. The present work aims at evaluating the contribution of natural convection by natural recirculation in the core when the blocking valve is close, and via the external coolant circuit when the blocking valve is open. In particular, we study the natural self-regulating mechanisms of extraction of the heat generated by the fission product after reactor shut-down. (author) [pt

  16. A passive decay heat removal strategy of the integrated passive safety system (IPSS) for SBO combined with LOCA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kim, Sang Ho; Chang, Soon Heung; Choi, Yu Jung; Jeong, Yong Hoon

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • A new PDHR strategy is proposed to cope with SBO-combined accidents. • The concept of integrated passive safety system (IPSS) is used in this strategy. • This strategy performs the functions of passive safety injection and SG gravity injection. • LOCAs in SBO are classified by the pressures in reactor coolant system for passive functions. • The strategy can be integrated with EOP and SAMG as a complementary strategy for ensuring safety. - Abstract: An integrated passive safety system (IPSS), to be achieved by the use of a large water tank placed at high elevation outside the containment, was proposed to achieve various passive functions. These include decay heat removal, safety injection, containment cooling, in-vessel retention through external reactor vessel cooling, and containment filtered venting. The purpose of the passive decay heat removal (PDHR) strategy using the IPSS is to cope with SBO and SBO-combined accidents under the assumption that existing engineered safety features have failed. In this paper, a PDHR strategy was developed based on the design and accident management strategy of Korean representative PWR, the OPR1000. The functions of a steam generator gravity injection and a passive safety injection system in the IPSS with safety depressurization systems were included in the PDHR strategy. Because the inadvertent opening of pressurizer valves and seal water leakage from RCPs could cause a loss of coolant in an SBO, LOCAs during a SBO were simulated to verify the performance of the strategy. The failure of active safety injection in LOCAs could also be covered by this strategy. Although LOCAs have generally been categorized according to their equivalent break diameters, the RCS pressure is used to classify the LOCAs during SBOs. The criteria values for categorization were determined from the proposed systems, which could maintain a reactor in a safe state by removing the decay heat for the SBO coping time of 8 h. The

  17. A passive decay heat removal strategy of the integrated passive safety system (IPSS) for SBO combined with LOCA

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Sang Ho [Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291, Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141 (Korea, Republic of); Chang, Soon Heung [Handong Global University, 558, Handong-ro, Buk-gu, Pohang Gyeongbuk 37554 (Korea, Republic of); Choi, Yu Jung [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co.—Central Research Institute, 70, 1312-gil, Yuseong-daero, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34101 (Korea, Republic of); Jeong, Yong Hoon, E-mail: jeongyh@kaist.ac.kr [Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, 291, Daehak-ro, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 34141 (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-12-15

    Highlights: • A new PDHR strategy is proposed to cope with SBO-combined accidents. • The concept of integrated passive safety system (IPSS) is used in this strategy. • This strategy performs the functions of passive safety injection and SG gravity injection. • LOCAs in SBO are classified by the pressures in reactor coolant system for passive functions. • The strategy can be integrated with EOP and SAMG as a complementary strategy for ensuring safety. - Abstract: An integrated passive safety system (IPSS), to be achieved by the use of a large water tank placed at high elevation outside the containment, was proposed to achieve various passive functions. These include decay heat removal, safety injection, containment cooling, in-vessel retention through external reactor vessel cooling, and containment filtered venting. The purpose of the passive decay heat removal (PDHR) strategy using the IPSS is to cope with SBO and SBO-combined accidents under the assumption that existing engineered safety features have failed. In this paper, a PDHR strategy was developed based on the design and accident management strategy of Korean representative PWR, the OPR1000. The functions of a steam generator gravity injection and a passive safety injection system in the IPSS with safety depressurization systems were included in the PDHR strategy. Because the inadvertent opening of pressurizer valves and seal water leakage from RCPs could cause a loss of coolant in an SBO, LOCAs during a SBO were simulated to verify the performance of the strategy. The failure of active safety injection in LOCAs could also be covered by this strategy. Although LOCAs have generally been categorized according to their equivalent break diameters, the RCS pressure is used to classify the LOCAs during SBOs. The criteria values for categorization were determined from the proposed systems, which could maintain a reactor in a safe state by removing the decay heat for the SBO coping time of 8 h. The

  18. Cooling water distribution system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Orr, Richard

    1994-01-01

    A passive containment cooling system for a nuclear reactor containment vessel. Disclosed is a cooling water distribution system for introducing cooling water by gravity uniformly over the outer surface of a steel containment vessel using an interconnected series of radial guide elements, a plurality of circumferential collector elements and collector boxes to collect and feed the cooling water into distribution channels extending along the curved surface of the steel containment vessel. The cooling water is uniformly distributed over the curved surface by a plurality of weirs in the distribution channels.

  19. Reactor core of light water-cooled reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Miwa, Jun-ichi; Aoyama, Motoo; Mochida, Takaaki.

    1996-01-01

    In a reactor core of a light water cooled reactor, the center of the fuel rods or moderating rods situated at the outermost circumference among control rods or moderating rods are connected to divide a lattice region into an inner fuel region and an outer moderator region. In this case, the area ratio of the moderating region to the fuel region is determined to greater than 0.81 for every cross section of the fuel region. The moderating region at the outer side is increased relative to the fuel rod region at the inner side while keeping the lattice pitch of the fuel assembly constant, thereby suppressing the increase of an absolute value of a void reactivity coefficient which tends to be caused when using MOX fuels as a fuel material, by utilizing neutron moderation due to a large quantity of coolants at the outer side of the fuel region. The void reactivity coefficient can be made substantially equal with that of uranium fuel assembly without greatly reducing a plutonium loading amount or without greatly increasing linear power density. (N.H.)

  20. Core cooling and thermal responses during whole-head, facial, and dorsal immersion in 17 degrees C water.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Pretorius, Thea; Gagnon, Dominique D; Giesbrecht, Gordon G

    2010-10-01

    This study isolated the effects of dorsal, facial, and whole-head immersion in 17 degrees C water on peripheral vasoconstriction and the rate of body core cooling. Seven male subjects were studied in thermoneutral air (approximately 28 degrees C). On 3 separate days, they lay prone or supine on a bed with their heads inserted through the side of an adjustable immersion tank. Following 10 min of baseline measurements, the water level was raised such that the water immersed the dorsum, face, or whole head, with the immersion period lasting 60 min. During the first 30 min, the core (esophageal) cooling rate increased from dorsum (0.29 ± 0.2 degrees C h-1) to face (0.47 ± 0.1 degrees C h-1) to whole head (0.69 ± 0.2 degrees C h(-1)) (p whole-head immersion (114 ± 52% h(-1)) than in either facial (51 ± 47% h-1) or dorsal (41 ± 55% h(-1)) immersion (p whole-head (120.5 ± 13 kJ), facial (86.8 ± 17 kJ), and dorsal (46.0 ± 11 kJ) immersion (p whole head elicited a higher rate of vasoconstriction, the face did not elicit more vasoconstriction than the dorsum. Rather, the progressive increase in core cooling from dorsal to facial to whole-head immersion simply correlates with increased heat loss.

  1. Safety significance of ATR [Advanced Test Reactor] passive safety response attributes

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Atkinson, S.A.

    1989-01-01

    The Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory was designed with some passive safety response attributes which contribute to the safety posture of the facility. The three passive safety attributes being evaluated in the paper are: (1) In-core and in-vessel natural convection cooling, (2) a passive heat sink capability of the ATR primary coolant system (PCS) for the transfer of decay power from the uninsulated piping to the confinement, and (3) gravity feed of emergency coolant makeup. The safety significance of the ATR passive safety response attributes is that the reactor can passively respond for most transients, given a reactor scram, to provide adequate decay power removal and a significant time for operator action should the normal active heat removal systems and their backup systems both fail. The ATR Interim Level 1 Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) model ands results were used to evaluate the significance to ATR fuel damage frequency (or probability) of the above three passive response attributes. The results of the evaluation indicate that the first attribute is a major safety characteristic of the ATR. The second attribute has a noticeable but only minor safety significance. The third attribute has no significant influence on the ATR Level 1 PRA because of the diversity and redundancy of the ATR firewater injection system (emergency coolant system). 8 refs., 4 figs., 1 tab

  2. AC-600 passive containment cooling system performance research

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Jia Baoshan; Yu Jiyang; Shi Junying

    1997-01-01

    a code named PCCSAC which is able to predict both the evaporating film on the outside surface of the vessel and the condensed film on its inside is developed successfully. It is a special software tool to analyze the passive containment cooling system (PCCS) performance in the design of AC-600. The author includes the establishment of physical models, selection of numerical methods, debugging and verification of the code and application of the code in the AC-600 PCCS. In physical models, the fundamental conservation equations about various areas and heat conduction equations are established. In order to make the equations to meet the closed form of solution, a lot of structure formulae are complemented. After repeated selection and demonstration of the numerical methods, the backward difference method Gear which is generally used for stiff problem is chosen for the solution of ordinary differential equations derived from the physical models. The results of standard example calculated by the PCCSAC code and the COMMIX code which is used to analyze westinghouse AP-600 are same in the main. The reliability and validity are verified from the calculations. The PCCSAC code is applied in the calculations of two important LOCA used in the containment safety analyses. The sensitivity of main parameters in the system based on LOCA are studied. All the results are reasonable and in agreement with the theoretical analyses. It can be concluded that the PCCSAC code is able to be used for the analyses of AC-600 PCCS performance

  3. Spontaneous stabilization of HTGRs without reactor scram and core cooling—Safety demonstration tests using the HTTR: Loss of reactivity control and core cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Takamatsu, Kuniyoshi, E-mail: takamatsu.kuniyoshi@jaea.go.jp; Yan, Xing L.; Nakagawa, Shigeaki; Sakaba, Nariaki; Kunitomi, Kazuhiko

    2014-05-01

    It is well known that a High-Temperature Gas-cooled Reactor (HTGR) has superior safety characteristics; for example, an HTGR has a self-control system that uses only physical phenomena against various accidents. Moreover, the large heat capacity and low power density of the core result in very slow temperature transients. Therefore, an HTGR serves inherently safety features against loss of core cooling accidents such as the Tokyo Electric Power Co., Inc. (TEPCO)’s Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (NPS) disaster. Herein we would like to demonstrate the inherent safety features using the High-Temperature Engineering Test Reactor (HTTR). The HTTR is the first HTGR in Japan with a thermal power of 30 MW and a maximum reactor outlet coolant temperature of 950 °C; it was built at the Oarai Research and Development Center of Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA). In this study, an all-gas-circulator trip test was analyzed as a loss of forced cooling (LOFC) test with an initial reactor power of 9 MW to demonstrate LOFC accidents. The analytical results indicate that reactor power decreases from 9 MW to 0 MW owing to the negative reactivity feedback effect of the core, even if the reactor shutdown system is not activated. The total reactivity decreases for 2–3 h and then gradually increases in proportion to xenon reactivity; therefore, the HTTR achieves recritical after an elapsed time of 6–7 h, which is different from the elapsed time at reactor power peak occurrence. After the reactor power peak occurs, the total reactivity oscillates several times because of the negative reactivity feedback effect and gradually decreases to zero. Moreover, the new conclusions are as follows: the greater the amount of residual heat removed from the reactor core, the larger the stable reactor power after recriticality owing to the heat balance of the reactor system. The minimum reactor power and the reactor power peak occurrence are affected by the neutron source. The greater the

  4. Thermohydraulic characteristics analysis of natural convective cooling mode on the steady state condition of upgraded JRR-3 core, using COOLOD-N code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kaminaga, Masanori; Watanabe, Shukichi; Ando, Hiroei; Sudo, Yukio; Ikawa, Hiromasa.

    1987-03-01

    This report describes the results of the steady state thermohydraulic analysis of upgraded JRR-3 core under natural convective cooling mode, using COOLOD-N code. In the code, function to calculate flow-rate under natural convective cooling mode, and a heat transfer package have been newly added to the COOLOD code which has been developed in JAERI. And this report describes outline of the COOLOD-N code. The results of analysis show that the thermohydraulics of upgraded JRR-3 core, under natural convective cooling mode have enough margine to ONB temperature, DNB heat flux and occurance of blisters in fuel meats, which are design criterion of upgraded JRR-3. (author)

  5. Thermal-hydraulic modeling needs for passive reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kelly, J.M. [Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States)

    1997-07-01

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received an application for design certification from the Westinghouse Electric Corporation for an Advanced Light Water Reactor design known as the AP600. As part of the design certification process, the USNRC uses its thermal-hydraulic system analysis codes to independently audit the vendor calculations. The focus of this effort has been the small break LOCA transients that rely upon the passive safety features of the design to depressurize the primary system sufficiently so that gravity driven injection can provide a stable source for long term cooling. Of course, large break LOCAs have also been considered, but as the involved phenomena do not appear to be appreciably different from those of current plants, they were not discussed in this paper. Although the SBLOCA scenario does not appear to threaten core coolability - indeed, heatup is not even expected to occur - there have been concerns as to the performance of the passive safety systems. For example, the passive systems drive flows with small heads, consequently requiring more precision in the analysis compared to active systems methods for passive plants as compared to current plants with active systems. For the analysis of SBLOCAs and operating transients, the USNRC uses the RELAP5 thermal-hydraulic system analysis code. To assure the applicability of RELAP5 to the analysis of these transients for the AP600 design, a four year long program of code development and assessment has been undertaken.

  6. Thermal-hydraulic modeling needs for passive reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kelly, J.M.

    1997-01-01

    The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has received an application for design certification from the Westinghouse Electric Corporation for an Advanced Light Water Reactor design known as the AP600. As part of the design certification process, the USNRC uses its thermal-hydraulic system analysis codes to independently audit the vendor calculations. The focus of this effort has been the small break LOCA transients that rely upon the passive safety features of the design to depressurize the primary system sufficiently so that gravity driven injection can provide a stable source for long term cooling. Of course, large break LOCAs have also been considered, but as the involved phenomena do not appear to be appreciably different from those of current plants, they were not discussed in this paper. Although the SBLOCA scenario does not appear to threaten core coolability - indeed, heatup is not even expected to occur - there have been concerns as to the performance of the passive safety systems. For example, the passive systems drive flows with small heads, consequently requiring more precision in the analysis compared to active systems methods for passive plants as compared to current plants with active systems. For the analysis of SBLOCAs and operating transients, the USNRC uses the RELAP5 thermal-hydraulic system analysis code. To assure the applicability of RELAP5 to the analysis of these transients for the AP600 design, a four year long program of code development and assessment has been undertaken

  7. Study on plant concept for gas cooled fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moribe, Takeshi; Kubo, Shigenobu; Saigusa, Toshiie; Konomura, Mamoru

    2003-05-01

    In 'Feasibility Study on Commercialized Fast Reactor Cycle System', technological options including various coolant (sodium, heavy metal, gas, water, etc.), fuel type (MOX, metal, nitride) and output power are considered and classified, and commercialized FBR that have economical cost equal to LWR are pursued. In conceptual study on gas cooled FBR in FY 2002, to identify the prospect of the technical materialization of the helium cooled FBR using coated particle fuel which is an attractive concept extracted in the year of FY2001, the preliminary conceptual design of the core and entire plant was performed. This report summarizes the results of the plant design study in FY2002. The results of study is as follows. 1) For the passive core shutdown equipment, the curie point magnet type self-actuated device was selected and the device concept was set up. 2) For the reactor block, the concept of the core supporting structure, insulators and liners was set up. For the material of the heat resistant structure, SiC was selected as a candidate. 3) For the seismic design of the plant, it was identified that a design concept with three-dimensional base isolation could be feasible taking the severe seismic condition into account. 4) For the core catcher, an estimation of possible event sequences under severe core damage condition was made. A core catcher concept which may suit the estimation was proposed. 5) The construction cost was roughly estimated based on the amount of materials and its dependency on the plant output power was evaluated. The value for a small sized plant exceeds the target construction cost about 20%. (author)

  8. Melt cooling by bottom flooding. The COMET core-catcher concept

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Foit, Jerzy Jan; Alsmeyer, Hans; Tromm, Walter; Buerger, Manfred; Journeau, Christophe

    2009-01-01

    The COMET concept has been developed to cool an ex-vessel corium melt in case of a hypothetical severe accident leading to vessel melt-through. After erosion of a sacrificial concrete layer the melt is passively flooded by bottom injection of coolant water. The open porosities and large surface that are generated during melt solidification form a porous permeable structure that is permanently filled with the evaporating water and thus allows an efficient short-term as well as long-term removal of the decay heat. The advantages of this concept are the fast cool-down and complete solidification of the melt within less than one hour typically. This stops further release of fission products from the corium. A drawback may be the fast release of steam during the quenching process. Several experimental series have been performed by FZK (Germany) to test and optimise the functionality of the different variants of the COMET concept. Thermite generated melts of iron and aluminium oxide were used. The large scale COMET-H test series with sustained inductive heating includes nine experiments performed with an array of water injection channels embedded in a sacrificial concrete layer. Variation of the water inlet pressure and melt height showed that melts up to 50 cm height can be safely cooled with an overpressure of the coolant water of 0.2 bar. The CometPC concept is based on cooling by flooding the melt from the bottom through layers of porous, water filled concrete. The third variant of the COMET design, CometPCA, uses a layer of porous, water filled concrete CometPCA from which flow channels protrude into the layer of sacrificial concrete. This modified concept combines the advantages of the original COMET concept with flow channels and the high resistance of a water-filled porous concrete layer against downward melt attack. Four large scale CometPCA experiments (FZK, Germany) have demonstrated an efficient cooling of melts up to 50 cm height using the recommended water

  9. Core catcher for nuclear reactor core meltdown containment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Driscoll, M.J.; Bowman, F.L.

    1978-01-01

    A bed of graphite particles is placed beneath a nuclear reactor core outside the pressure vessel but within the containment building to catch the core debris in the event of failure of the emergency core cooling system. Spray cooling of the debris and graphite particles together with draining and flooding of coolant fluid of the graphite bed is provided to prevent debris slump-through to the bottom of the bed

  10. Passive safety design characteristics of the KALIMER-600 burner reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kwon, Young-Min; Jeong, Hae-Yong; Cho, Chung-Ho; Ha, Ki-Seok; Kim, Sang-Ji

    2009-01-01

    The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) has recently studied several burner core designs for a transuranics (TRU) transmutation based on the breakeven core geometry of KALIMER-600. The KALIMER-600 is a net electrical rating of 600MWe, sodium-cooled, metallic-fueled, pool-type reactor. For the burner core concept selected for the present analysis, the smearing fractions of the fuel rods in three fuel zones are changed while maintaining the cladding outer diameter and cladding thickness. The resulting fuel slug smearing fractions of the inner, middle, and outer core zones are 36%, 40%, and 48%, respectively. The TRU conversion ratio is 0.57 and the TRU enrichment of the driver fuel is set to 30.0 w/o because of the current practical limitation of the U-TRU-10%Zr metal fuel database. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the safety performance characteristics provided by the passive safety design features in the KALIMER-600 burner reactor by using a system-wide safety analysis code. The present scoping analysis focuses on an assessment of the enhanced safety design features that provide passive and self-regulating responses to transient conditions and an evaluation of the safety margin during unprotected overpower, unprotected loss of flow, and unprotected loss of heat sink events. The analysis results show that the KALIMER-600 burner reactor provides larger safety margins with respect to the sodium boiling, fuel rod integrity, and structural integrity. The overall inherent safety can be enhanced by accounting for the reactivity feedback mechanisms in the design process. (author)

  11. Conceptual design of a passively safe thorium breeder Pebble Bed Reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wols, F.J.; Kloosterman, J.L.; Lathouwers, D.; Hagen, T.H.J.J. van der

    2015-01-01

    Highlights: • This work proposes three possible designs for a thorium Pebble Bed Reactor. • A high-conversion PBR (CR > 0.96), passively safe and within practical constraints. • A thorium breeder PBR (220 cm core) in practical regime, but not passively safe. • A passively safe breeder, requiring higher fuel reprocessing and recycling rates. - Abstract: More sustainable nuclear power generation might be achieved by combining the passive safety and high temperature applications of the Pebble Bed Reactor (PBR) design with the resource availability and favourable waste characteristics of the thorium fuel cycle. It has already been known that breeding can be achieved with the thorium fuel cycle inside a Pebble Bed Reactor if reprocessing is performed. This is also demonstrated in this work for a cylindrical core with a central driver zone, with 3 g heavy metal pebbles for enhanced fission, surrounded by a breeder zone containing 30 g thorium pebbles, for enhanced conversion. The main question of the present work is whether it is also possible to combine passive safety and breeding, within a practical operating regime, inside a thorium Pebble Bed Reactor. Therefore, the influence of several fuel design, core design and operational parameters upon the conversion ratio and passive safety is evaluated. A Depressurized Loss of Forced Cooling (DLOFC) is considered the worst safety scenario that can occur within a PBR. So, the response to a DLOFC with and without scram is evaluated for several breeder PBR designs using a coupled DALTON/THERMIX code scheme. With scram it is purely a heat transfer problem (THERMIX) demonstrating the decay heat removal capability of the design. In case control rods cannot be inserted, the temperature feedback of the core should also be able to counterbalance the reactivity insertion by the decaying xenon without fuel temperatures exceeding 1600 °C. Results show that high conversion ratios (CR > 0.96) and passive safety can be combined in

  12. Conceptual design study for the enhanced gas cooled reactor (EGCR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Nakano, M.; Sadahiro, D.; Ozaki, H.; Bryant, S.D.; Cheyne, A.; Gilroy, J.E.; Hulme, G.; Lennox, T.A.; Sunderland, R.E.; Beaumont, H.M.; Kida, M.; Nomura, M.

    2001-01-01

    The preliminary concept of the carbon dioxide cooled fast reactor EGCR has been studied as a Generation IV system. EGCR with MOX fuel has a very good core performance, a breeding ratio over 1.2, a long operating cycle of 24 months, and a high burnup of 150 GWd/t. The plant system is based on the successful AGR experience but provides 3600 MWth. Enhanced passive safety features are provided and a debris tray included. Preliminary costing studies show that EGCR can be competitive to LWRs and can be constructed on a similar schedule. This EGCR concept also shows development potential. (author)

  13. Proof-of-Concept Testing of the Passive Cooling System (T-CLIP™) for Solar Thermal Applications at an Elevated Temperature

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Seung Jun [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Quintana, Donald L. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Vigil, Gabrielle M. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Perraglio, Martin Juan [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Farley, Cory Wayne [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Tafoya, Jose I. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology; Martinez, Adam L. [Los Alamos National Lab. (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States). Applied Engineering and Technology

    2015-11-30

    The Applied Engineering and Technology-1 group (AET-1) at Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) conducted the proof-of-concept tests of SolarSPOT LLC’s solar thermal Temperature- Clipper, or T-CLIP™ under controlled thermal conditions using a thermal conditioning unit (TCU) and a custom made environmental chamber. The passive T-CLIP™ is a plumbing apparatus that attaches to a solar thermal collector to limit working fluid temperature and to prevent overheating, since overheating may lead to various accident scenarios. The goal of the current research was to evaluate the ability of the T-CLIP™ to control the working fluid temperature by using its passive cooling mechanism (i.e. thermosiphon, or natural circulation) in a small-scale solar thermal system. The assembled environmental chamber that is thermally controlled with the TCU allows one to simulate the various possible weather conditions, which the solar system will encounter. The performance of the T-CLIP™ was tested at two different target temperatures: 1) room temperature (70 °F) and 2) an elevated temperature (130 °F). The current test campaign demonstrated that the T-CLIP™ was able to prevent overheating by thermosiphon induced cooling in a small-scale solar thermal system. This is an important safety feature in situations where the pump is turned off due to malfunction or power outages.

  14. Severe accident mitigation and core melt retention in the European pressurized reactor (EPR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fischer, Manfred

    2003-01-01

    For the mitigation of severe accidents, the FPR has adopted and improved the defense-in-depth approaches of its predecessors, the French 'N4' and the German 'Konvoi' PWR's. Beyond these evolutionary changes, it includes a new, 4-th level of defense aimed at limiting the consequences of a postulated severe accident with core melting. This involves a strengthening of the confinement function and the avoidance of large early releases, by the prevention of scenarios and events with potentially high loads on the containment, incl. RPV failure at high pressure. The remaining low-pressure accidents are mitigated by dedicated design measures. The paper gives an overview and of the measures for H 2 -mitigation and steam explosion and focuses on a detailed description of the precautions and design measures for the stabilization and long-term cooling of the molten core. In the EPR the latter is achieved by melt spreading into a large outside-cooled crucible lateral to the pit, which is passively flooded and cooled with water from the IRWST. The separation of functions between pit and spreading room not only isolates the core catcher from the various loads during RPV failure, but also avoids any risks related to an unintended initiation of flooding during power operation. A stable state of the melt is reached after a few hours. Complete solidification is achieved within days. The core catcher can optionally be cooled actively by the CHRS, which avoids further steaming into the containment and establishes ambient pressure conditions in the long term. (author)

  15. Mapping the particle acceleration in the cool core of the galaxy cluster RX J1720.1+2638

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Giacintucci, S.; Markevitch, M.; Brunetti, G.; Venturi, T.; ZuHone, J. A.; Mazzotta, P.; Bourdin, H.

    2014-01-01

    We present new deep, high-resolution radio images of the diffuse minihalo in the cool core of the galaxy cluster RX J1720.1+2638. The images have been obtained with the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope at 317, 617, and 1280 MHz and with the Very Large Array at 1.5, 4.9, and 8.4 GHz, with angular resolutions ranging from 1'' to 10''. This represents the best radio spectral and imaging data set for any minihalo. Most of the radio flux of the minihalo arises from a bright central component with a maximum radius of ∼80 kpc. A fainter tail of emission extends out from the central component to form a spiral-shaped structure with a length of ∼230 kpc, seen at frequencies 1.5 GHz and below. We find indication of a possible steepening of the total radio spectrum of the minihalo at high frequencies. Furthermore, a spectral index image shows that the spectrum of the diffuse emission steepens with increasing distance along the tail. A striking spatial correlation is observed between the minihalo emission and two cold fronts visible in the Chandra X-ray image of this cool core. These cold fronts confine the minihalo, as also seen in numerical simulations of minihalo formation by sloshing-induced turbulence. All these observations favor the hypothesis that the radio-emitting electrons in cluster cool cores are produced by turbulent re-acceleration.

  16. Surrogates based multi-criteria predesign methodology of Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor cores – Application to CFV-like cores

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Fabbris, Olivier [CEA DEN/DER/SESI, 13108 Saint-Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Dardour, Saied, E-mail: saied.dardour@cea.fr [CEA DEN/DER/SESI, 13108 Saint-Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Blaise, Patrick [CEA DEN/DER/SPEX, 13108 Saint-Paul-Lez-Durance (France); Ferrasse, Jean-Henry [Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, ECM, M2P2 UMR 7340, 13451 Marseille (France); Saez, Manuel [CEA DEN/DER/SESI, 13108 Saint-Paul-Lez-Durance (France)

    2016-08-15

    Highlights: • We developed an ERANOS calculation scheme to evaluate the neutronics of CFV cores. • We used this scheme to simulate a number if cores within a predefined study space. • Simulation results were used to build surrogate models describing CFV neutronics. • These models were used to carry on global sensitivity analyses. • The methodology helped identify the most important core design parameters. - Abstract: The Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) core predesign process is commonly realized on the basis of expert advices and local parametric studies. As such, in-deep knowledge of physical phenomena avoids an important number of expensive simulations. However, the study space is explored only partially. To ease the computational burden metamodels, or surrogate models, can be used, to quickly evaluate the performances of a wide set of different cores, individually defined by a set of parameters (pellet diameter, fissile height…), in the study space. This paper presents the development of a simplified neutronics ERANOS reference core calculation scheme that is then implemented in the construction of the Design of Experiment (DOE) database. The surrogate models for SFR CFV-like cores performances are developed, biases and uncertainties are quantified against the CFV-v1 version. Global Sensitivity Analysis also allowed highlighting antagonist performances for the design and to propose two alternative core configurations. A broadened application of the method with an optimization of a CFV-like core is also detailed. The Pareto front of the seven selected performance parameters has been studied using eleven surrogate models, based on Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The optimization demonstrates that the CFV-v1, designed using Best Estimate codes, under given performance constraints, is Pareto optimal: no other configuration is highlighted from the Multi-Objective Optimization (MOO) study. Further MOO analysis, including a specific study on impact of new

  17. Surrogates based multi-criteria predesign methodology of Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor cores – Application to CFV-like cores

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fabbris, Olivier; Dardour, Saied; Blaise, Patrick; Ferrasse, Jean-Henry; Saez, Manuel

    2016-01-01

    Highlights: • We developed an ERANOS calculation scheme to evaluate the neutronics of CFV cores. • We used this scheme to simulate a number if cores within a predefined study space. • Simulation results were used to build surrogate models describing CFV neutronics. • These models were used to carry on global sensitivity analyses. • The methodology helped identify the most important core design parameters. - Abstract: The Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) core predesign process is commonly realized on the basis of expert advices and local parametric studies. As such, in-deep knowledge of physical phenomena avoids an important number of expensive simulations. However, the study space is explored only partially. To ease the computational burden metamodels, or surrogate models, can be used, to quickly evaluate the performances of a wide set of different cores, individually defined by a set of parameters (pellet diameter, fissile height…), in the study space. This paper presents the development of a simplified neutronics ERANOS reference core calculation scheme that is then implemented in the construction of the Design of Experiment (DOE) database. The surrogate models for SFR CFV-like cores performances are developed, biases and uncertainties are quantified against the CFV-v1 version. Global Sensitivity Analysis also allowed highlighting antagonist performances for the design and to propose two alternative core configurations. A broadened application of the method with an optimization of a CFV-like core is also detailed. The Pareto front of the seven selected performance parameters has been studied using eleven surrogate models, based on Artificial Neural Network (ANN). The optimization demonstrates that the CFV-v1, designed using Best Estimate codes, under given performance constraints, is Pareto optimal: no other configuration is highlighted from the Multi-Objective Optimization (MOO) study. Further MOO analysis, including a specific study on impact of new

  18. Direct-contact condensation regime map for core makeup tank of passive reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Sang Il; No, Hee Cheon

    1998-01-01

    The condensation regime map in the core makeup tank of passive reactors is experimentally investigated. The condensation regimes identified through the experiments are divided into three distinct ones: sonic jet, subsonic jet, and steam cavity. The steam cavity regime is a unique regime of downward injection with the present geometry not previously observed in other experiments. The condensation regime map is constructed using Froude number and Jacob number. It turns out that the buoyancy force has a large influence on the regime transition because the regime map using the Froude number better fits data with different geometries than other dimensionless parameters. Simple correlations for the regime boundaries are proposed using the Froude number and the Jacob number

  19. Safety analysis of increase in heat removal from reactor coolant system with inadvertent operation of passive residual heat removal at no load conditions

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Shao, Ge; Cao, Xuewu [School of Mechanical and Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai (China)

    2015-06-15

    The advanced passive pressurized water reactor (PWR) is being constructed in China and the passive residual heat removal (PRHR) system was designed to remove the decay heat. During accident scenarios with increase of heat removal from the primary coolant system, the actuation of the PRHR will enhance the cooldown of the primary coolant system. There is a risk of power excursion during the cooldown of the primary coolant system. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the thermal hydraulic behavior of the reactor coolant system (RCS) at this condition. The advanced passive PWR model, including major components in the RCS, is built by SCDAP/RELAP5 code. The thermal hydraulic behavior of the core is studied for two typical accident sequences with PRHR actuation to investigate the core cooling capability with conservative assumptions, a main steam line break (MSLB) event and inadvertent opening of a steam generator (SG) safety valve event. The results show that the core is ultimately shut down by the boric acid solution delivered by Core Makeup Tank (CMT) injections. The effects of CMT boric acid concentration and the activation delay time on accident consequences are analyzed for MSLB, which shows that there is no consequential damage to the fuel or reactor coolant system in the selected conditions.

  20. Flow distribution experimental study on the emergency core cooling system of the IEA-R1m - IPEN-CNEN/SP - Brazil

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Torres, Walmir Maximo; Baptista Filho, Benedito Dias; Ting, Daniel Kao Sun

    1999-01-01

    This paper presents a brief description of Emergency Core Cooling System designed by the IEA-R1m Reactor and the experimental results of flow distribution over the core. Several parameters were evaluated, such as: relative position of spray header to the reactor core; type and quantity of spray nozzles; spray nozzles position on spray header; and total spray flow. The main conclusions are presented. (author)

  1. Two-phase flow experiments in emergency core cooling feed through the hot leg for developing numerical models

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Staebler, T.; Meyer, L.; Schulenberg, T.; Laurien, E.

    2006-01-01

    When a leakage, a 'loss-of-coolant accident', occurs in a light water reactor, the emergency cooling system is able to supply large amounts of coolant to ensure residual heat removal. This supply can be routed through a special emergency cooling pipe, the 'scoop', into the horizontal section of the main coolant pipe, the 'hot leg'. At the same time, hot steam from the superheated, partly voided core flows against the coolant. This gives rise to a two-phase flow in the opposite direction. A factor of primary interest in this situation is whether the coolant supplied by the emergency cooling system will reach the reactor core. The research project is being conducted in order to compute the rate of water supply by numerical methods. The WENKA test facility has been designed and built at the Karlsruhe Research Center to verify numerical calculations. It can be used to study the fluid dynamics phenomena expected to arise in emergency coolant feeding into the hot leg; the necessary local data can be determined experimentally. An extensive database for validating the numerical calculations is then available to complete the experimental work. (orig.)

  2. A Feasibility Study on Core Cooling of Reduced-Moderation PWR for the Large Break LOCA

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hiroyuki Yoshida; Akira Ohnuki; Hajime Akimoto

    2002-01-01

    A design study of a reduced-moderation water reactor (RMWR) with tight lattice core is being carried out at the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute (JAERI) as one candidate for future reactors. The concept is developed to achieve a conversion ratio greater than unity using the tight lattice core (volume ratio of moderator to fuel is around 0.5 and the gap spacing between the fuel rods is remarkably narrower than in a reactor currently operated). Under such tight configuration, the core thermal margin becomes smaller and should be evaluated in a normal operation and also during the reflood phase in a large break loss-of-coolant accident (LBLOCA) for PWR type reactors. In this study, we have performed a feasibility evaluation on core cooling of reduced moderation PWR for the LBLOCA (200% break). The evaluation was performed for the primary system after the break by the REFLA/TRAC code. The core thermal output of the reduced moderation PWR is 2900 MWt, the gap between adjacent fuel rods is 1 mm, and heavy water is used as the moderator and coolant. The present design adopts seed fuel assemblies (MOX fuel) and several blanket fuel assemblies. In the blanket fuel assemblies, power density is lower than that of the seed fuel assemblies. Then, we set a channel box to each fuel assembly in order to adjust the flow rate in each assembly, because the possibility that the coolant boils in the seed fuel assemblies is very high. The pressure vessel diameter is bigger in comparison with a current PWR and core height is smaller than the current one. The current 4-loop PWR system is used, and, however, to fit into the bigger pressure vessel volume (about 1.5 times), we set up the capacity of the accumulator (1.5 times of the current PWR). Although the maximum clad temperature reached at about 1200 K in the position of 0.6 m from the lower core support plate, it is sufficiently lower than the design criteria of the current PWR (1500 K). The core cooling of the reduced moderation

  3. Development of core hot spot evaluation method for decay heat removal by natural circulation under transient conditions in sodium-cooled fast reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ohshima, Hiroyuki; Doda, Norihiro; Kamide, Hideki; Watanabe, Osamu; Ohkubo, Yoshiyuki

    2010-01-01

    Toward the commercialization of fast reactors, a design study of Japan Sodium-cooled Fast Reactor (JSFR) is being performed. In this design study, the adoption of decay heat removal system operated by fully natural circulation is being examined from viewpoints of economic competitiveness and passive safety. This paper describes a new evaluation method of core hot spot under transient conditions from forced to natural circulation operations that is necessary for confirming feasibility of the fully natural circulation decay heat removal system. The new method consists of three analysis steps in order to include effects of thermal hydraulic phenomena particular to the natural circulation decay heat removal, e.g., flow redistribution in fuel assemblies caused by buoyancy force, and therefore it enables more rational hot spot evaluation rather than conventional ones. This method was applied to a hot spot evaluation of loss-of-external-power event and the result was compared with those by conventional 1D and detailed 3D simulations. It was confirmed that the proposed method can estimate the hot spot with reasonable degree of conservativeness. (author)

  4. Safety and core design of large liquid-metal cooled fast breeder reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Qvist, Staffan Alexander

    In light of the scientific evidence for changes in the climate caused by greenhouse-gas emissions from human activities, the world is in ever more desperate need of new, inexhaustible, safe and clean primary energy sources. A viable solution to this problem is the widespread adoption of nuclear breeder reactor technology. Innovative breeder reactor concepts using liquid-metal coolants such as sodium or lead will be able to utilize the waste produced by the current light water reactor fuel cycle to power the entire world for several centuries to come. Breed & burn (B&B) type fast reactor cores can unlock the energy potential of readily available fertile material such as depleted uranium without the need for chemical reprocessing. Using B&B technology, nuclear waste generation, uranium mining needs and proliferation concerns can be greatly reduced, and after a transitional period, enrichment facilities may no longer be needed. In this dissertation, new passively operating safety systems for fast reactors cores are presented. New analysis and optimization methods for B&B core design have been developed, along with a comprehensive computer code that couples neutronics, thermal-hydraulics and structural mechanics and enables a completely automated and optimized fast reactor core design process. In addition, an experiment that expands the knowledge-base of corrosion issues of lead-based coolants in nuclear reactors was designed and built. The motivation behind the work presented in this thesis is to help facilitate the widespread adoption of safe and efficient fast reactor technology.

  5. Cooling device for reactor container

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Arai, Kenji.

    1996-01-01

    Upon assembling a static container cooling system to an emergency reactor core cooling system using dynamic pumps in a power plant, the present invention provides a cooling device of lowered center of gravity and having a good cooling effect by lowering the position of a cooling water pool of the static container cooling system. Namely, the emergency reactor core cooling system injects water to the inside of a pressure vessel using emergency cooling water stored in a suppression pool as at least one water source upon loss of reactor coolant accident. In addition, a cooling water pool incorporating a heat exchanger is disposed at the circumference of the suppression pool at the outside of the container. A dry well and the heat exchanger are connected by way of steam supply pipes, and the heat exchanger is connected with the suppression pool by way of a gas exhaustion pipe and a condensate returning pipeline. With such a constitution, the position of the heat exchanger is made higher than an ordinary water level of the suppression pool. As a result, the emergency cooling water of the suppression pool water is injected to the pressure vessel by the operation of the reactor cooling pumps upon loss of coolant accident to cool the reactor core. (I.S.)

  6. Improvement in understanding of natural circulation phenomena in water cooled nuclear power plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Choi, Jong-Ho; Cleveland, John; Aksan, Nusret

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: ► Phenomena influencing natural circulation in passive systems. ► Behaviour in large pools of liquid. ► Effect of non-condensable gas on condensation heat transfer. ► Behaviour of containment emergency systems. ► Natural circulation flow and pressure drop in various geometries. - Abstract: The IAEA has organized a coordinated research project (CRP) on “Natural Circulation Phenomena, Modelling, and Reliability of Passive Systems That Utilize Natural Circulation.” Specific objectives of CRP were to (i) establish the status of knowledge: reactor start-up and operation, passive system initiation and operation, flow stability, 3-D effects, and scaling laws, (ii) investigate phenomena influencing reliability of passive natural circulation systems, (iii) review experimental databases for the phenomena, (iv) examine the ability of computer codes to predict natural circulation and related phenomena, and (v) apply methodologies for examining the reliability of passive systems. Sixteen institutes from 13 IAEA Member States have participated in this CRP. Twenty reference advanced water cooled reactor designs including evolutionary and innovative designs were selected to examine the use of natural circulation and passive systems in their designs. Twelve phenomena influencing natural circulation were identified and characterized: (1) behaviour in large pools of liquid, (2) effect of non-condensable gases on condensation heat transfer, (3) condensation on the containment structures, (4) behaviour of containment emergency systems, (5) thermo-fluid dynamics and pressure drops in various geometrical configurations, (6) natural circulation in closed loop, (7) steam liquid interaction, (8) gravity driven cooling and accumulator behaviour, (9) liquid temperature stratification, (10) behaviour of emergency heat exchangers and isolation condensers, (11) stratification and mixing of boron, and (12) core make-up tank behaviour. This paper summarizes the

  7. Gas-cooled Fast Reactor (GFR) fuel and In-Core Fuel Management

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Weaver, K.D.; Sterbentz, J.; Meyer, M.; Lowden, R.; Hoffman, E.; Wei, T.Y.C.

    2004-01-01

    The Gas-Cooled Fast Reactor (GCFR) has been chosen as one of six candidates for development as a Generation IV nuclear reactor based on: its ability to fully utilize fuel resources; minimize or reduce its own (and other systems) actinide inventory; produce high efficiency electricity; and the possibility to utilize high temperature process heat. Current design approaches include a high temperature (2 850 C) helium cooled reactor using a direct Brayton cycle, and a moderate temperature (550 C - 650 C) helium or supercritical carbon dioxide (S-CO 2 ) cooled reactor using direct or indirect Brayton cycles. These design choices have thermal efficiencies that approach 45% to 50%, and have turbomachinery sizes that are much more compact compared to steam plants. However, there are challenges associated with the GCFR, which are the focus of current research. This includes safety system design for decay heat removal, development of high temperature/high fluence fuels and materials, and development of fuel cycle strategies. The work presented here focuses on the fuel and preliminary in-core fuel management, where advanced ceramic-ceramic (cercer) dispersion fuels are the main focus, and average burnups to 266 M Wd/kg appear achievable for the reference Si C/(U,TRU)C block/plate fuel. Solid solution (pellet) fuel in composite ceramic clad (Si C/Si C) is also being considered, but remains as a backup due to cladding fabrication challenges, and high centerline temperatures in the fuel. (Author)

  8. Evaluation of Active Cooling Systems for Non-Residential Buildings

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    M.A. Othuman Mydin

    2014-05-01

    Full Text Available Cooling systems are an essential element in many facets of modern society including cars, computers and buildings. Cooling systems are usually divided into two types: passive and active. Passive cooling transfers heat without using any additional energy while active cooling is a type of heat transfer that uses powered devices such as fans or pumps. This paper will focus on one particular type of passive cooling: air-conditioning systems. An air-conditioning system is defined as controlled air movement, temperature, humidity and cleanliness of a building area. Air conditioning consists of cooling and heating. Therefore, the air-conditioning system should be able to add and remove heat from the area. An air-conditioning system is defined as a control or treatment of air in a confined space. The process that occurs is the air-conditioning system absorbs heat and dust while, at the same time, cleaning the air breathed into a closed space. The purpose of air-conditioning is to maintain a comfortable atmosphere for human life and to meet user requirements. In this paper, air-conditioning systems for non-residential buildings will be presented and discussed.

  9. Review of the SIMMER-II analyses of liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor core-disruptive accident fuel escape

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    DeVault, G.P.; Bell, C.R.

    1985-01-01

    Early fuel removal from the active core of a liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor undergoing a core-disruptive accident may reduce the potential for large energetics resulting from recriticalities. This paper presents a review of analyses with the SIMMER-II computer program of the effectiveness of possible fuel escape paths. Where possible, how SIMMER-II compares with or is validated against experiments that simulated the escape paths also is discussed

  10. Topology optimisation of passive coolers for light-emitting diode lamps

    DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

    Alexandersen, Joe

    2015-01-01

    This work applies topology optimisation to the design of passive coolers for light-emitting diode (LED) lamps. The heat sinks are cooled by the natural convection currents arising from the temperature difference between the LED lamp and the surrounding air. A large scale parallel computational....... The optimisation results show interesting features that are currently being incorporated into industrial designs for enhanced passive cooling abilities....

  11. Thermohydraulics of emergency core cooling in light water reactors

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1989-10-01

    This report, by a group of experts of the OECD-NEA Committee on the Safety of Nuclear Installations, reviews the current state-of-knowledge in the field of emergency core cooling (ECC) for design-basis, loss-of-coolant accidents (LOCA) and core uncover transients in pressurized- and boiling-water reactors. An overview of the LOCA scenarios and ECC phenomenology is provided for each type of reactor, together with a brief description of their ECC systems. Separate-effects and integral-test facilities, which contribute to understanding and assessing the phenomenology, are reviewed together with similarity and scaling compromises. All relevant LOCA phenomena are then brought together in the form of tables. Each phenomenon is weighted in terms of its importance to the course of a LOCA, and appraised for the adequacy of its data base and analytical modelling. This qualitative procedure focusses attention on the modelling requirements of dominant LOCA phenomena and the current capabilities of the two-fluid models in two-phase flows. This leads into the key issue with ECC: quantitative code assessment and the application of system codes to predict with a well defined uncertainty the behaviour of a nuclear power plant. This issue, the methodologies being developed for code assessment and the question of how good is good enough are discussed in detail. Some general conclusions and recommendations for future research activities are provided

  12. Self powered neutron detectors as in-core detectors for Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors

    Science.gov (United States)

    Verma, V.; Barbot, L.; Filliatre, P.; Hellesen, C.; Jammes, C.; Svärd, S. Jacobsson

    2017-07-01

    Neutron flux monitoring system forms an integral part of the design of a Generation IV sodium cooled fast reactor. Diverse possibilities of detector system installation must be studied for various locations in the reactor vessel in order to detect any perturbations in the core. Results from a previous paper indicated that it is possible to detect changes in neutron source distribution initiated by an inadvertent withdrawal of outer control rod with in-vessel fission chambers located azimuthally around the core. It is, however, not possible to follow inner control rod withdrawal and precisely know the location of the perturbation in the core. Hence the use of complimentary in-core detectors coupled with the peripheral fission chambers is proposed to enable robust core monitoring across the radial direction. In this paper, we assess the feasibility of using self-powered neutron detectors (SPNDs) as in-core detectors in fast reactors for detecting local changes in the power distribution when the reactor is operated at nominal power. We study the neutron and gamma contributions to the total output current of the detector modelled with Platinum as the emitter material. It is shown that this SPND placed in an SFR-like environment would give a sufficiently measurable prompt neutron induced current of the order of 600 nA/m. The corresponding induced current in the connecting cable is two orders of magnitude lower and can be neglected. This means that the SPND can follow in-core power fluctuations. This validates the operability of an SPND in an SFR-like environment.

  13. Neutronic design for a 100MWth Small modular natural circulation lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactors core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, C.; Chen, H.; Zhang, H.; Chen, Z.; Zeng, Q.

    2015-01-01

    Lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactor with good fuel proliferation and nuclear waste transmutation capability, as well as high security and economy, is a great potential for the development of fourth-generation nuclear energy systems. Small natural circulation reactor is an important technical route lead cooled fast reactors industrial applications, which has been chosen as one of the three reference technical for solution lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactors by GIF lead-cooled fast reactor steering committee. The School of Nuclear Science and Technology of USTC proposed a small 100MW th natural circulation lead cooled fast reactor concept called SNCLFR-100 based realistic technology. This article describes the SNCLFR-100 reactor of the overall technical program, core physics calculation and analysis. The results show that: SNCLFR-100 with good neutronic and safety performance and relevant design parameters meet the security requirements with feasibility. (author)

  14. Steady state flow evaluations for passive auxiliary feedwater system of APR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Jongha; Kim, Jaeyul; Seong, Hoje; Kang, Kyoungho

    2012-01-01

    This paper briefly introduces a methodology to evaluate steady state flow of APR+ Passive Auxiliary Feedwater System (PAFS). The PAFS is being developed as a safety grade passive system to completely replace the existing active Auxiliary Feedwater System (AFWS). Natural circulation cooling can be generally classified into the single-phase, two-phase, and boiling-condensation modes. The PAF is designed to be operated in a boiling-condensation natural circulation mode. The steady-state flow rate should be equal to the steady-state boiling/condensation rate determined by the steady-state energy and momentum balances in the PAFS. The determined steady-state flow rate can be used in the design optimization for the natural circulation loop of the PAFS through the steady-state momentum balance. Since the retarding force, which is to be balanced by the driving force in the natural circulation system design depends on the reliable evaluation of the success of a natural circulation system design depends on the reliable evaluation of the pressure loss coefficients. In PAFS, the core decay heat is released by natural circulation flow between the S G secondary side and the Passive Condensation Heat Exchanger (PCHX) that is immersed in the Passive Condensation Cooling Tank (PCCT). The PCCT is located on the top of Auxiliary building The driving force is determined by the difference between the S/G (heat Source) secondary water level and condensation liquid (heat sink) level. It will overcome retarding force at flowrate in the system, which is determined by vaporization and condensation of the steam which is generated at the S/G by the latent heat in system. In this study, the theoretical method to estimate the steady state flow rate in boiling-condensation natural circulation system is developed and compared with test results

  15. Thermal-hydraulic analysis of the OSURR pool for power upgrade with natural convection core cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ha, J.J.; Aldemir, T.

    1988-01-01

    Natural convection mode core cooling will be maintained in the LEU conversion/power upgrade of The Ohio State University Research Reactor (OSURR) to 250-500 kW. The pool water will be cooled by a water-glycol-air and a water-water heat exchanger. A plume disperser will be installed in the pool to minimize evaporation from the pool top and to maintain the dose rate due to N-16 activity within allowable levels. The minimization of the pool heat removal system operation costs necessitates maximizing the inlet temperature to the water-glycol-air heat exchanger. For the maximization process, the change in the pool temperature and velocity fields have to be investigated as a function of: location and orientation of the heat removal system components and the plume disperser in the pool; mass flow rate through the plume disperser. The velocity and temperature fields in the pool are determined using COMMIX-1A. The computational system model accounts for the presence of all the pool components (i.e. core, thermal column, beam ports, ion chamber, guide tubes, rabbit, neutron source etc.). The results show that: (1) Both the heat removal system inlet point and the plume disperser have to be located close to the top of the core. (2) Using a disperser system consisting of several pipes may be more feasible than a single unit. (3) For high disperser flow, the disperser jet has to be almost parallel to the top of the core to prevent flow reversal in coolant channels. (4) More than one disperser system may be necessary to create an inversion layer in the pool

  16. The use of segregated heat sink structures to achieve enhanced passive cooling for outdoor wireless devices

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    O'Flaherty, K; Punch, J

    2014-01-01

    Environmental standards which govern outdoor wireless equipment can stipulate stringent conditions: high solar loads (up to 1 kW/m 2 ), ambient temperatures as high as 55°C and negligible wind speeds (0 m/s). These challenges result in restrictions on power dissipation within a given envelope, due to the limited heat transfer rates achievable with passive cooling. This paper addresses an outdoor wireless device which features two segregated heat sink structures arranged vertically within a shielded chimney structure: a primary sink to cool temperature-sensitive components; and a secondary sink for high power devices. Enhanced convective cooling of the primary sink is achieved due to the increased mass flow within the chimney generated by the secondary sink. An unshielded heat sink was examined numerically, theoretically and experimentally, to verify the applicability of the methods employed. Nusselt numbers were compared for three cases: an unshielded heat sink; a sink located at the inlet of a shield; and a primary heat sink in a segregated structure. The heat sink, when placed at the inlet of a shield three times the length of the sink, augmented the Nusselt number by an average of 64% compared to the unshielded case. The Nusselt number of the primary was found to increase proportionally with the temperature of the secondary sink, and the optimum vertical spacing between the primary and secondary sinks was found to be close to zero, provided that conductive transfer between the sinks was suppressed.

  17. A fast converging CFD model for thermal hydraulic analysis of gas cooled reactor cores

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chen, Gary; Anghaie, Samim

    1999-01-01

    A computational fluid dynamics (CFD) approach to the solution of Navier-Stokes equations for the thermal and flow fields of gas cooled reactor cores is presented. An implicit-explicit MacCormack method based on finite volume discretization scheme, in conjunction with the Gauss-Seidel line iteration procedure is utilized to solve axisymmetric, thin-layer Navier-Stokes equations. This numerical method requires only the inversion of block bidiagonal systems rather than block tridiagonal systems, thus yielding savings in computer time and storage requirements. A two-layer algebraic eddy viscosity turbulence model is used in this study. The effects of turbulence are simulated in terms of the eddy viscosity coefficient, which is calculated for an inner and an outer region separately. An enthalpy-rebalancing scheme is implemented to allow the convergence solutions to be obtained with the application of a wall heat flux. The detailed computational analysis developed in this work is used to evaluate many different Nusselt number equations, property corrections, and axial distance corrections. The calculation based on this CFD model is compared with other published results. The good agreement indicates the usefulness of the presented model for the prediction of flow and temperature distributions for gas cooled reactor cores. (author)

  18. Toward Cooling Uniformity: Investigation of Spiral, Sweeping Holes, and Unconventional Cooling Paradigms

    Science.gov (United States)

    Shyam, Vikram; Thurman, Douglas R.; Poinsatte, Philip E.; Ameri, Ali A.; Culley, Dennis E.

    2018-01-01

    Surface infrared thermography, hotwire anemometry, and thermocouple surveys were performed on two new film cooling hole geometries: spiral/rifled holes and fluidic sweeping holes. Ways to quantify the efficacy of novel cooling holes that are asymmetric, not uniformly spaced or that show variation from hole to hole are presented. The spiral holes attempt to induce large-scale vorticity to the film cooling jet as it exits the hole to prevent the formation of the kidney shaped vortices commonly associated with film cooling jets. The fluidic sweeping hole uses a passive in-hole geometry to induce jet sweeping at frequencies that scale with blowing ratios. The spiral hole performance is compared to that of round holes with and without compound angles. The fluidic hole is of the diffusion class of holes and is therefore compared to a 777 hole and square holes. A patent-pending spiral hole design showed the highest potential of the nondiffusion type hole configurations. Velocity contours and flow temperature were acquired at discreet cross-sections of the downstream flow field. The passive fluidic sweeping hole shows the most uniform cooling distribution but suffers from low span-averaged effectiveness levels due to enhanced mixing. The data was taken at a Reynolds number of 11,000 based on hole diameter and freestream velocity. Infrared thermography was taken for blowing ratios of 1.0, 1.5, 2.0, and 2.5 at a density ratio of 1.05. The flow inside the fluidic sweeping hole was studied using 3D unsteady RANS. A section on ideas for future work is included that addresses issues of quantifying cooling uniformity and provides some ideas for changing the way we think about cooling such as changing the direction of cooling or coupling acoustic devices to cooling holes to regulate frequency.

  19. Boiling induced mixed convection in cooling loops

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Knebel, J.U.; Janssens-Maenhout, G.; Mueller, U.

    2000-01-01

    This article describes the SUCO program performed at the Forschungszentrum Karlsruhe. The SUCO program is a three-step series of scaled model experiments investigating the possibility of a sump cooling concept for future light water reactors. In case of a core melt accident, the sump cooling concept realises a decay heat removal system that is based on passive safety features within the containment. The article gives, first, results of the experiments in the 1:20 linearly scaled SUCOS-2D test facility. The experimental results are scaled-up to the conditions in the prototype, allowing a statement with regard to the feasibility of the sump cooling concept. Second, the real height SUCOT test facility with a volume and power scale of 1:356 that is aimed at investigating the mixed single-phase and two-phase natural circulation flow in the reactor sump, together with first measurement results, are discussed. Finally, a numerical approach to model the subcooled nucleate boiling phenomena in the test facility SUCOT is presented. Physical models describing interfacial mass, momentum and-heat transfer are developed and implemented in the commercial software package CFX4.1. The models are validated for an isothermal air-water bubbly flow experiment and a subcooled boiling experiment in vertical annular water flow. (author)

  20. Optimization of Storage Parameters of Selected Fruits in Passive ...

    African Journals Online (AJOL)

    This study was carried out to determine the optimum storage parameters of selected fruit using three sets of four types of passive evaporative cooling structures made of two different materials clay and aluminium. One set consisted of four separate cooling chambers. Two cooling chambers were made with aluminium ...

  1. Investigation of light gas effects on passive containment cooling system in ALWR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Paladino, D.; Auban, O.; Huggenberger, M.; Andreani, M.

    2003-01-01

    The large-scale thermal-hydraulic PANDA facility has been used for the last years for investigating passive decay-heat removal systems and related containment phenomena relevant for current and next generation of light water reactors. Passive Containment Cooling System (PCCS) systems operate by transferring heat from the containment to a water pool located outside the containment by steam condensation, and serve to mitigate long-term pressure build-up in the event of steam discharge from the primary circuit. As part of the 5 th Euratom framework program project TEMPEST, a new series of tests was performed in the PANDA facility to experimentally investigate the distribution of non-condensable gases inside the containment and their effect on the performance of PCCS of the European Simplified Boiling Water Reactor (ESBWR). The influence of light gas(hydrogen) on the PCCs performance is of special interest. Hydrogen release caused by the metalwater reaction in case of severe accident was simulated in PANDA by injecting helium into the lines feeding the break flow from the reactor pressure vessel to the Drywells. The paper combines the presentation of experimental results for a number of PANDA tests and the analysis performed using the GOTHIC code. As GOTHIC has 3-D modeling capabilities, gas distribution effects could be studied. The comparison of GOTHIC calculations (two pre-test and one post-test with the same model) with selected TEMPEST tests showed that the code is capable to predict well gas stratification in the drywell, while the system pressure increase due to the release of light gas is slightly overestimated. The analysis aiming to clarify the discordance between the GOTHIC simulation and the experimental results is included in this paper

  2. Emergency core cooling system sump chemical effects on strainer head loss

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Edwards, M.K.; Qiu, L.; Guzonas, D.A.

    2010-01-01

    Chemical precipitates formed in the recovery water following a Loss of Coolant Accident (LOCA) have the potential to increase head loss across the Emergency Core Cooling System (ECCS) strainer, and could lead to cavitation of the ECCS pumps, pump failure and loss of core cooling. AECL, as a strainer vendor and research organization, has been involved in the investigation of chemical effects on head loss for its CANDU® and Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) customers. The chemical constituents of the recovery sump water depend on the combination of chemistry control additives and the corrosion and dissolution products from metals, concrete, and insulation materials. Some of these dissolution and corrosion products (e.g., aluminum and calcium) may form significant quantities of precipitates. The presence of chemistry control additives such as sodium hydroxide, trisodium phosphate and boric acid can significantly influence the precipitates formed. While a number of compounds may be shown to be thermodynamically possible under the conditions assumed for precipitation, kinetic factors play a large role in the morphology of precipitates. Precipitation is also influenced by insulation debris, which can trap precipitates and act as nucleation sites for heterogeneous precipitation. This paper outlines the AECL approach to resolving the issue of chemical effects on ECCS strainer head loss, which included modeling, bench top testing and reduced-scale testing; the latter conducted using a temperature-controlled variable-flow closed-loop test rig that included an AECL Finned Strainer® test section equipped with a differential pressure transmitter. Models of corrosion product release and the effects of precipitates on head loss will also be presented. Finally, this paper discusses the precipitates found in test debris beds and presents a possible method for chemical effects head loss modeling. (author)

  3. The effects of aging on Boiling Water Reactor core isolation cooling system

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Lee, Bom Soon.

    1994-01-01

    A study was performed to assess the effects of aging on the Reactor Core Isolation Cooling system in commercial Boiling Water Reactors. This study is part of the Nuclear Plant Aging Research program sponsored by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The failure data, from national databases, as well as plant specific data were reviewed and analyzed to understand the effects of aging on the RCIC system. This analysis identified important components that should receive the highest priority in terms of aging management. The aging characterization provided information on the effects of aging on component failure frequency, failure modes, and failure causes

  4. Investigation of primary cooling water chemistry following the partial meltdown of Pu-Be neutron source in Tehran Research Reactor Core (TRR)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Aghoyeh, Reza Gholizadeh [School of Research and Development of Nuclear Reactors and Accelerators, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute (NSTRI), Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), P.O. Box: 14155-1339, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Khalafi, Hossein, E-mail: hkhalafi@aeoi.org.i [School of Research and Development of Nuclear Reactors and Accelerators, Nuclear Science and Technology Research Institute (NSTRI), Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), P.O. Box: 14155-1339, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

    2011-03-15

    Research highlights: Effect of Pu-Be neutron source meltdown in core on reactor water chemistry. Water chemistry of primary cooling before, during and after of above incident was compared. Training importance. Management of nuclear incident and accident. - Abstract: Effect of Pu-Be neutron source meltdown in core on reactor water chemistry was main aim of this study. Leaving the neutron source in the core after reactor power exceeds a few hundred Watts was the main reason for its partial meltdown. Water chemistry of primary cooling before, during and after of above incident was compared. Activity of some radio-nuclides such as Ba-140, La-140, I-131, I-132, Te-132 and Xe-135 increased. Other radio-nuclides such as Nd-147, Xe-133, Sr-91, I-133 and I-135 are also detected which were not existed before this incident.

  5. Design evaluation of emergency core cooling systems using Axiomatic Design

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Heo, Gyunyoung [Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Mechanical Engineering, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States)]. E-mail: gheo@mit.edu; Lee, Song Kyu [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Department of Nuclear and Quantum Engineering, 373-1 Guseong-dong, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

    2007-01-15

    In designing nuclear power plants (NPPs), the evaluation of safety is one of the important issues. As a measure for evaluating safety, this paper proposes a methodology to examine the design process of emergency core cooling systems (ECCSs) in NPPs using Axiomatic Design (AD). This is particularly important for identifying vulnerabilities and creating solutions. Korean Advanced Power Reactor 1400 MWe (APR1400) adopted the ECCS, which was improved to meet the stronger safety regulations than that of the current Optimized Power Reactor 1000 MWe (OPR1000). To improve the performance and safety of the ECCS, the various design strategies such as independency or redundancy were implemented, and their effectiveness was confirmed by calculating core damage frequency. We suggest an alternative viewpoint of evaluating the deployment of design strategies in terms of AD methodology. AD suggests two design principles and the visualization tools for organizing design process. The important benefit of AD is that it is capable of providing suitable priorities for deploying design strategies. The reverse engineering driven by AD has been able to show that the design process of the ECCS of APR1400 was improved in comparison to that of OPR1000 from the viewpoint of the coordination of design strategies.

  6. Solar hybrid cooling system for high-tech offices in subtropical climate - Radiant cooling by absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Fong, K.F.; Chow, T.T.; Lee, C.K.; Lin, Z.; Chan, L.S.

    2011-01-01

    Highlights: → A solar hybrid cooling system is proposed for high-tech offices in subtropical climate. → An integration of radiant cooling, absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification. → Year-round cooling and energy performances were evaluated through dynamic simulation. → Its annual primary energy consumption was lower than conventional system up to 36.5%. → The passive chilled beams were more energy-efficient than the active chilled beams. - Abstract: A solar hybrid cooling design is proposed for high cooling load demand in hot and humid climate. For the typical building cooling load, the system can handle the zone cooling load (mainly sensible) by radiant cooling with the chilled water from absorption refrigeration, while the ventilation load (largely latent) by desiccant dehumidification. This hybrid system utilizes solar energy for driving the absorption chiller and regenerating the desiccant wheel. Since a high chilled water temperature generated from the absorption chiller is not effective to handle the required latent load, desiccant dehumidification is therefore involved. It is an integration of radiant cooling, absorption refrigeration and desiccant dehumidification, which are powered up by solar energy. In this study, the application potential of the solar hybrid cooling system was evaluated for the high-tech offices in the subtropical climate through dynamic simulation. The high-tech offices are featured with relatively high internal sensible heat gains due to the intensive office electric equipment. The key performance indicators included the solar fraction and the primary energy consumption. Comparative study was also carried out for the solar hybrid cooling system using two common types of chilled ceilings, the passive chilled beams and active chilled beams. It was found that the solar hybrid cooling system was technically feasible for the applications of relatively higher cooling load demand. The annual primary energy

  7. WASA-BOSS. Development and application of Severe Accident Codes. Evaluation and optimization of accident management measures. Subproject D. Study on water film cooling for PWR's passive containment cooling system. Final report

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Huang, Xi

    2016-07-15

    In the present study, a new phenomenological model was developed, to describe the water film flow under conditions of a passive containment cooling system (PCCS). The new model takes two different flow regimes into consideration, i.e. continuous water film and rivulets. For water film flow, the traditional Nusselt's was modified, to consider orientation angle and surface sheer stress. The transition from water film to rivulet as well as the structure of the stable rivulet at its onset point was modeled by using the minimum energy principle (MEP) combined with conservation equations. In addition, two different contact angles, i.e. advancing angle and retreating angle, were applied to take the hysteresis effect into consideration. The models of individual processes were validated as far as possible based on experimental data selected from open literature and from collaboration partner as well. With the models a new program module was developed and implemented into the COCOSYS program. The extended COCOSYS program was applied to analyze the containment behavior of the European generic containment and the performance of the passive containment cooling system ofthe AP1000. The results indicate clearly the importance of the new model and provide information for the optimization of the PCCS of AP1000.

  8. WASA-BOSS. Development and application of Severe Accident Codes. Evaluation and optimization of accident management measures. Subproject D. Study on water film cooling for PWR's passive containment cooling system. Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang, Xi

    2016-07-01

    In the present study, a new phenomenological model was developed, to describe the water film flow under conditions of a passive containment cooling system (PCCS). The new model takes two different flow regimes into consideration, i.e. continuous water film and rivulets. For water film flow, the traditional Nusselt's was modified, to consider orientation angle and surface sheer stress. The transition from water film to rivulet as well as the structure of the stable rivulet at its onset point was modeled by using the minimum energy principle (MEP) combined with conservation equations. In addition, two different contact angles, i.e. advancing angle and retreating angle, were applied to take the hysteresis effect into consideration. The models of individual processes were validated as far as possible based on experimental data selected from open literature and from collaboration partner as well. With the models a new program module was developed and implemented into the COCOSYS program. The extended COCOSYS program was applied to analyze the containment behavior of the European generic containment and the performance of the passive containment cooling system ofthe AP1000. The results indicate clearly the importance of the new model and provide information for the optimization of the PCCS of AP1000.

  9. Core configuration of a gas-cooled reactor as a tritium production device for fusion reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Nakaya, H., E-mail: nakaya@nucl.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Department of Applied Quantum Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Fukuoka 8190395 (Japan); Matsuura, H.; Nakao, Y. [Department of Applied Quantum Physics and Nuclear Engineering, Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Fukuoka 8190395 (Japan); Shimakawa, S.; Goto, M.; Nakagawa, S. [Japan Atomic Energy Agency, 4002 Oarai, Ibaraki (Japan); Nishikawa, M. [Malaysia-Japan International Institute of Technology, UTM, Kuala Lumpur 54100 (Malaysia)

    2014-05-01

    The performance of a high-temperature gas-cooled reactor as a tritium production device is examined, assuming the compound LiAlO{sub 2} as the tritium-producing material. A gas turbine high-temperature reactor of 300 MWe nominal capacity (GTHTR300) is assumed as the calculation target, and using the continuous-energy Monte Carlo transport code MVP-BURN, burn-up simulations are carried out. To load sufficient Li into the core, LiAlO{sub 2} is loaded into the removable reflectors that surround the ring-shaped fuel blocks in addition to the burnable poison insertion holes. It is shown that module high-temperature gas-cooled reactors with a total thermal output power of 3 GW can produce almost 8 kg of tritium in a year.

  10. Enhanced Passive Cooling for Waterless-Power Production Technologies

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Rodriguez, Salvador B. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

    2016-06-14

    Recent advances in the literature and at SNL indicate the strong potential for passive, specialized surfaces to significantly enhance power production output. Our exploratory computational and experimental research indicates that fractal and swirl surfaces can help enable waterless-power production by increasing the amount of heat transfer and turbulence, when compared with conventional surfaces. Small modular reactors, advanced reactors, and non-nuclear plants (e.g., solar and coal) are ideally suited for sCO2 coolant loops. The sCO2 loop converts the thermal heat into electricity, while the specialized surfaces passively and securely reject the waste process heat in an environmentally benign manner. The resultant, integrated energy systems are highly suitable for small grids, rural areas, and arid regions.

  11. Advanced passive PWR AC-600: Development orientation of nuclear power reactors in China for the next century

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Huang Xueqing; Zhang Senru

    1999-01-01

    Based on Qinshan II Nuclear Power Plant that is designed and constructed by way of self-reliance, China has developed advanced passive PWR AC-600. The design concept of AC-600 not only takes the real situation of China into consideration, but also follows the developing trend of nuclear power in the world. The design of AC-600 has the following technical characteristics: Advanced reactor: 18-24 month fuel cycle, low neutron leakage, low power density of the core, no any penetration in the RPV below the level of the reactor coolant nozzles; Passive safety systems: passive emergency residual heat removal system, passive-active safety injection system, passive containment cooling system and main control room habitability system; System simplified and the number of components reduced; Digital I and C; Modular construction. AC-600 inherits the proven technology China has mastered and used in Qirtshan 11, and absorbs advanced international design concepts, but it also has a distinctive characteristic of bringing forth new ideas independently. It is suited to Chinese conditions and therefore is expected to become an orientation of nuclear power development by self-reliance in China for the next century. (author)

  12. Emergency cooling of presurized water reactor

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sykora, D.

    1981-01-01

    The method described of emergency core cooling in the pressurized water reactor is characterized by the fact that water is transported to the disturbed primary circuit or direct to the reactor by the action of the energy and mass of the steam and/or liquid phase of the secondary circuit coolant, which during emergency core cooling becomes an emergency cooling medium. (B.S.)

  13. EFFECT OF ACTIVE COOLING AND α-2 ADRENOCEPTOR ANTAGONISM ON CORE TEMPERATURE IN ANESTHETIZED BROWN BEARS (URSUS ARCTOS).

    Science.gov (United States)

    Ozeki, Larissa Mourad; Caulkett, Nigel; Stenhouse, Gordon; Arnemo, Jon M; Fahlman, Åsa

    2015-06-01

    Hyperthermia is a common complication during anesthesia of bears, and it can be life threatening. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of active cooling on core body temperature for treatment of hyperthermia in anesthetized brown bears (Ursus arctos). In addition, body temperature after reversal with atipamezole was also evaluated. Twenty-five adult and subadult brown bears were captured with a combination of zolazepam-tiletamine and xylazine or medetomidine. A core temperature capsule was inserted into the bears' stomach or 15 cm into their rectum or a combination of both. In six bears with gastric temperatures≥40.0°C, an active cooling protocol was performed, and the temperature change over 30 min was analyzed. The cooling protocol consisted of enemas with 2 L of water at approximately 5°C/100 kg of body weight every 10 min, 1 L of intravenous fluids at ambient temperature, water or snow on the paws or the inguinal area, intranasal oxygen supplementation, and removing the bear from direct sunlight or providing shade. Nine bears with body temperature>39.0°C that were not cooled served as control for the treated animals. Their body temperatures were recorded for 30 min, prior to administration of reversal. At the end of the anesthetic procedure, all bears received an intramuscular dose of atipamezole. In 10 bears, deep rectal temperature change over 30 min after administration of atipamezole was evaluated. The active cooling protocol used in hyperthermic bears significantly decreased their body temperatures within 10 min, and it produced a significantly greater decrease in their temperature than that recorded in the control group.

  14. Heat transfer analysis to investigate the core catcher plate assembly in SFR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Patil, Swapnil; Sharma, Anil Kumar; Velusamy, K.; Nashine, B.K.; Selvaraj, P.

    2015-01-01

    Severe accident scenario in Sodium Cooled Fast Reactor (SFR) is the major concern for public acceptance. After severe accident, the molten core continuously generates substantial decay heat. However, an in-vessel core catcher plate is provided to remove the decay heat passively. The numerical investigation of pool hydraulics phenomena in sodium pool of typical Indian SFR has been carried out. The debris may form a heap with different angle over the core catcher plate due to molten fuel density and interaction force. Therefore, the debris bed with different heap angle has been analyzed for steady and transient state conditions. The governing equation of fluid flow and heat transfer are solved by finite volume method based solver with the k-ε turbulent model. The time period Δ for which temperature is exceeding above safety limit with different debris heap angle have been established. (author)

  15. Design considerations and experimental observations for the TAMU air-cooled reactor cavity cooling system for the VHTR

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Sulaiman, S. A., E-mail: shamsulamri@tamu.edu; Dominguez-Ontiveros, E. E., E-mail: elvisdom@tamu.edu; Alhashimi, T., E-mail: jbudd123@tamu.edu; Budd, J. L., E-mail: dubaiboy@tamu.edu; Matos, M. D., E-mail: mailgoeshere@gmail.com; Hassan, Y. A., E-mail: yhasssan@tamu.edu [Department of Nuclear Engineering, Texas A and M University, College Station, TX, 77843-3133 (United States)

    2015-04-29

    The Reactor Cavity Cooling System (RCCS) is a promising passive decay heat removal system for the Very High Temperature Reactor (VHTR) to ensure reliability of the transfer of the core residual and decay heat to the environment under all off-normal circumstances. A small scale experimental test facility was constructed at Texas A and M University (TAMU) to study pertinent multifaceted thermal hydraulic phenomena in the air-cooled reactor cavity cooling system (RCCS) design based on the General Atomics (GA) concept for the Modular High Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR). The TAMU Air-Cooled Experimental Test Facility is ⅛ scale from the proposed GA-MHTGR design. Groundwork for experimental investigations focusing into the complex turbulence mixing flow behavior inside the upper plenum is currently underway. The following paper illustrates some of the chief design considerations used in construction of the experimental test facility, complete with an outline of the planned instrumentation and data acquisition methods. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) simulations were carried out to furnish some insights on the overall behavior of the air flow in the system. CFD simulations assisted the placement of the flow measurement sensors location. Preliminary experimental observations of experiments at 120oC inlet temperature suggested the presence of flow reversal for cases involving single active riser at both 5 m/s and 2.25 m/s, respectively and four active risers at 2.25 m/s. Flow reversal may lead to thermal stratification inside the upper plenum by means of steady state temperature measurements. A Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) experiment was carried out to furnish some insight on flow patterns and directions.

  16. Nuclear reactor with several cores

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Swars, H.

    1977-01-01

    Several sodium-cooled cores in separate vessels with removable closures are placed in a common reactor tank. Each individual vessel is protected against the consequences of an accident in the relevant core. Maintenance devices and inlet and outlet pipes for the coolant are also arranged within the reactor tank. The individual vessels are all enclosed by coolant in a way that in case of emergency cooling or refuelling each core can be continued to be cooled by means of the coolant loops of the other cores. (HP) [de

  17. Natural circulation in water cooled nuclear power plants: Phenomena, models, and methodology for system reliability assessments

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2005-11-01

    In recent years it has been recognized that the application of passive safety systems (i.e. those whose operation takes advantage of natural forces such as convection and gravity), can contribute to simplification and potentially to improved economics of new nuclear power plant designs. Further, the IAEA Conference on The Safety of Nuclear Power: Strategy for the Future which was convened in 1991 noted that for new plants 'the use of passive safety features is a desirable method of achieving simplification and increasing the reliability of the performance of essential safety functions, and should be used wherever appropriate'. Considering the weak driving forces of passive systems based on natural circulation, careful design and analysis methods must be employed to assure that the systems perform their intended functions. To support the development of advanced water cooled reactor designs with passive systems, investigations of natural circulation are an ongoing activity in several IAEA Member States. Some new designs also utilize natural circulation as a means to remove core power during normal operation. In response to the motivating factors discussed above, and to foster international collaboration on the enabling technology of passive systems that utilize natural circulation, an IAEA Coordinated Research Project (CRP) on Natural Circulation Phenomena, Modelling and Reliability of Passive Systems that Utilize Natural Circulation was started in early 2004. Building on the shared expertise within the CRP, this publication presents extensive information on natural circulation phenomena, models, predictive tools and experiments that currently support design and analyses of natural circulation systems and highlights areas where additional research is needed. Therefore, this publication serves both to provide a description of the present state of knowledge on natural circulation in water cooled nuclear power plants and to guide the planning and conduct of the CRP in

  18. Seismic response of high temperature gas-cooled reactor core with block-type fuel, (2)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ikushima, Takeshi; Honma, Toshiaki.

    1980-01-01

    For the aseismic design of a high temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) with block-type fuel, it is necessary to predict the motion and force of core columns and blocks. To reveal column vibration characteristics in three-dimensional space and impact response, column vibration tests were carried out with a scale model of a one-region section (seven columns) of the HTGR core. The results are as follows: (1) the column has a soft spring characteristic based on stacked blocks connected with loose pins, (2) the column has whirling phenomena, (3) the compression spring force simulating the gas pressure has the effect of raising the column resonance frequency, and (4) the vibration behavior of the stacked block column and impact response of the surrounding columns show agreement between experiment and analysis. (author)

  19. Study on the seismic verification test program on the experimental multi-purpose high-temperature gas cooled reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Taketani, K.; Aochi, T.; Yasuno, T.; Ikushima, T.; Shiraki, K.; Honma, T.; Kawamura, N.

    1978-01-01

    The paper describes a program of experimental research necessary for qualitative and quantitative determination of vibration characteristics and aseismic safety on structure of reactor core in the multipurpose high temperature gas-cooled experimental reactor (VHTR Experimental Reactor) by the Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute

  20. Heat transfer performance of heat pipe for passive cooling of spent fuel pool

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Wang Minglu; Xiong Zhengqin; Gu Hanyang; Ye Cheng; Cheng Xu

    2014-01-01

    A large-scale loop heat pipe has no electricity driven component and high efficiency of heat transfer. It can be used for the passive cooling of the SFP after SBO to improve the safety performance of nuclear power plants. In this paper, such a large-scale loop heat pipe is studied experimentally. The heat transfer rate, evaporator average heat transfer coefficient operating temperature, operating pressure and ammonia flow rate have been obtained with the water flow ranging from 0.007 m/s to 0.02 m/s outside the evaporator section, heating water temperature in the range of 50 to 90℃, air velocity outside the condensation section ranging from 0.5 to 2.5 m/s. It is found that the heat transfer rate reaches as high as 20.1 kW. Parametric analysis indicates that, the heat transfer rate and ammonia flow rate are influenced significantly by hot water inlet temperature and velocity, while beyond 1.5 m/s, the effect of air velocity outside the condensation section is minor. (authors)

  1. THR-TH: a high-temperature gas-cooled nuclear reactor core thermal hydraulics code

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Vondy, D.R.

    1984-07-01

    The ORNL version of PEBBLE, the (RZ) pebble bed thermal hydraulics code, has been extended for application to a prismatic gas cooled reactor core. The supplemental treatment is of one-dimensional coolant flow in up to a three-dimensional core description. Power density data from a neutronics and exposure calculation are used as the basic information for the thermal hydraulics calculation of heat removal. Two-dimensional neutronics results may be expanded for a three-dimensional hydraulics calculation. The geometric description for the hydraulics problem is the same as used by the neutronics code. A two-dimensional thermal cell model is used to predict temperatures in the fuel channel. The capability is available in the local BOLD VENTURE computation system for reactor core analysis with capability to account for the effect of temperature feedback by nuclear cross section correlation. Some enhancements have also been added to the original code to add pebble bed modeling flexibility and to generate useful auxiliary results. For example, an estimate is made of the distribution of fuel temperatures based on average and extreme conditions regularly calculated at a number of locations

  2. THR-TH: a high-temperature gas-cooled nuclear reactor core thermal hydraulics code

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Vondy, D.R.

    1984-07-01

    The ORNL version of PEBBLE, the (RZ) pebble bed thermal hydraulics code, has been extended for application to a prismatic gas cooled reactor core. The supplemental treatment is of one-dimensional coolant flow in up to a three-dimensional core description. Power density data from a neutronics and exposure calculation are used as the basic information for the thermal hydraulics calculation of heat removal. Two-dimensional neutronics results may be expanded for a three-dimensional hydraulics calculation. The geometric description for the hydraulics problem is the same as used by the neutronics code. A two-dimensional thermal cell model is used to predict temperatures in the fuel channel. The capability is available in the local BOLD VENTURE computation system for reactor core analysis with capability to account for the effect of temperature feedback by nuclear cross section correlation. Some enhancements have also been added to the original code to add pebble bed modeling flexibility and to generate useful auxiliary results. For example, an estimate is made of the distribution of fuel temperatures based on average and extreme conditions regularly calculated at a number of locations.

  3. Parametric Study on an Initial Cooling Performance in the KALIMER-600

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Han, Ji-Woong; Eoh, Jae-Hyuk; Lee, Tae-Ho; Kim, Seong-O

    2009-01-01

    Decay heat removal is very important in a nuclear power plant. The KALIMER-600, Korea Advanced Liquid MEtal Reactor, employs the PDRC(Passive Decay heat Removal Circuit) to remove the decay heat. DHX(Decay Heat eXchanger) in the PDRC of KALIMER-600 is disposed in the DHX support barrel located in the hot pool region. Each DHX support barrel has the lower end communicating with the cold pool such that the sodium free surface inside the barrel is maintained with the same level of the cold pool using the pumping head of the PHTS(Primary Heat Transport System) pumps. Consequently, DHX is not in direct contact with the cold pool sodium during a normal plant operation. Under transient conditions such as the loss of a normal heat sink accident, free surface outside the barrel rises up due to the expansion of the sodium induced by the core decay heat during the initial stage cooling. When it overflows into the cold pool through the DHX support barrel the heat removal via DHX is initiated and the second stage cooling begins. In order to secure the safety of a reactor until the activation of a second stage cooling by PDRC, it is very important to suppress the core temperature rising by an enhancement of the initial cooling performance. In this study the parametric investigations have been applied to reveal the effect of various design parameters on the initial cooling performance. The various design parameters such as coastdown flow, IHX(Intermediate Heat eXchanger) elevation, heat transfer via CCS (Cavity Cooling System) were considered. The numerical approaches based on a multidimensional analysis can be utilized as a useful tool to investigate overall transient behaviors within a pool. In this research the COMMIX-1AR/P code is utilized as a transient analysis tool in KALIMER-600 after a shut down. This study will provide the basic design information to improve the initial cooling performance in the KALIMER-600

  4. Research and development on reduced-moderation light water reactor with passive safety features (Contract research)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Iwamura, Takamichi; Okubo, Tsutomu; Akie, Hiroshi; Kugo, Teruhiko; Yonomoto, Taisuke; Kureta, Masatoshi; Ishikawa, Nobuyuki; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Araya, Fumimasa; Okajima, Shigeaki; Okumura, Keisuke; Suzuki, Motoe; Mineo, Hideaki; Nakatsuka, Toru

    2004-06-01

    relation to the cooling limit of the core, sufficient coolability of the core was confirmed by experiments. Investigating the effect of system pressure on the stability limits of flow dynamics, rational start-up procedure has been proposed. As for the effects of the flow channel gap, the effects on boiling heat transfer coefficient and friction multiplier of two-phase flow were clarified from the preliminary experiments. As for the stability analysis, the stability of RMWR core is confirmed through the time domain analysis. As the neutronics feasibility study, the calculation accuracy was evaluated using the critical experiments' data of simulative RMWR core. As the fuel safety, the fuel behavior of MOX fuel irradiated in RMWR in normal condition was confirmed using MOX fuel safety analysis code. As the fuel cycle study, the economical reprocessing technology was selected for RMWR fuel reprocessing. The feasibility of the RMWR with passive safety features has been confirmed by the present project. (author)

  5. Cooling of Accretion-Heated Neutron Stars

    Science.gov (United States)

    Wijnands, Rudy; Degenaar, Nathalie; Page, Dany

    2017-09-01

    We present a brief, observational review about the study of the cooling behaviour of accretion-heated neutron stars and the inferences about the neutron-star crust and core that have been obtained from these studies. Accretion of matter during outbursts can heat the crust out of thermal equilibrium with the core and after the accretion episodes are over, the crust will cool down until crust-core equilibrium is restored. We discuss the observed properties of the crust cooling sources and what has been learned about the physics of neutron-star crusts. We also briefly discuss those systems that have been observed long after their outbursts were over, i.e, during times when the crust and core are expected to be in thermal equilibrium. The surface temperature is then a direct probe for the core temperature. By comparing the expected temperatures based on estimates of the accretion history of the targets with the observed ones, the physics of neutron-star cores can be investigated. Finally, we discuss similar studies performed for strongly magnetized neutron stars in which the magnetic field might play an important role in the heating and cooling of the neutron stars.

  6. Passive safety features of low sodium void worth metal fueled cores in a bottom supported reactor vessel

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Chang, Y.I.; Marchaterre, J.F.; Wade, D.C.; Wigeland, R.A.; Kumaoka, Yoshio; Suzuki, Masao; Endo, Hiroshi; Nakagawa, Hiroshi

    1991-01-01

    A study has been performed on the passive safety features of low-sodium-void-worth metallic-fueled reactors with emphasis on using a bottom-supported reactor vessel design. The reactor core designs included self-sufficient types as well as actinide burners. The analyses covered the reactor response to the unprotected, i.e. unscrammed, transient overpower accident and the loss-of-flow accident. Results are given demonstrating the safety margins that were attained. 4 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs

  7. Real time thermal hydraulic model for high temperature gas-cooled reactor core

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sui Zhe; Sun Jun; Ma Yuanle; Zhang Ruipeng

    2013-01-01

    A real-time thermal hydraulic model of the reactor core was described and integrated into the simulation system for the high temperature gas-cooled pebble bed reactor nuclear power plant, which was developed in the vPower platform, a new simulation environment for nuclear and fossil power plants. In the thermal hydraulic model, the helium flow paths were established by the flow network tools in order to obtain the flow rates and pressure distributions. Meanwhile, the heat structures, representing all the solid heat transfer elements in the pebble bed, graphite reflectors and carbon bricks, were connected by the heat transfer network in order to solve the temperature distributions in the reactor core. The flow network and heat transfer network were coupled and calculated in real time. Two steady states (100% and 50% full power) and two transients (inlet temperature step and flow step) were tested that the quantitative comparisons of the steady results with design data and qualitative analysis of the transients showed the good applicability of the present thermal hydraulic model. (authors)

  8. Development of the containment transient analysis code for the passive reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hwang, Young Dong; Kim, Young In; Bae, Yoon Young; Chang, Moon Hi [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejon (Korea)

    1998-05-01

    This study was performed to develop the analysis tools for the passively cooled steel containment and to construct the integrated code system which can analyze a thermal hydraulic behavior of the containment and reactor system during a loss of coolant accident. The computer code CONTEMPT4/MOD5/PCCS was developed by incorporating the passive containment cooling models to the containment pressure and temperature transient analysis computer code CONTEMPT4/MOD5. The integrated reactor thermal hydraulic analysis code system for passive reactor was constructed by coupling the best estimate thermal hydraulic system analysis code RELAP5/MOD3 and CONTEMPT4/MOD5/PCCS through the process control method. In addition, to evaluate the applicability of the code the CONTEMPT4/MOD5/PCCS was applied to the SMART(System-Integrated Modular Advanced Reactor). The pressure and temperature transient following the small break LOCA of SMART was analysed by modeling the safeguard vessel using both the newly added passive containment cooling model and existing pool model. (author). 16 refs., 22 figs., 7 tabs.

  9. Advanced Core Design And Fuel Management For Pebble-Bed Reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hans D. Gougar; Abderrafi M. Ougouag; William K. Terry

    2004-10-01

    A method for designing and optimizing recirculating pebble-bed reactor cores is presented. At the heart of the method is a new reactor physics computer code, PEBBED, which accurately and efficiently computes the neutronic and material properties of the asymptotic (equilibrium) fuel cycle. This core state is shown to be unique for a given core geometry, power level, discharge burnup, and fuel circulation policy. Fuel circulation in the pebble-bed can be described in terms of a few well?defined parameters and expressed as a recirculation matrix. The implementation of a few heat?transfer relations suitable for high-temperature gas-cooled reactors allows for the rapid estimation of thermal properties critical for safe operation. Thus, modeling and design optimization of a given pebble-bed core can be performed quickly and efficiently via the manipulation of a limited number key parameters. Automation of the optimization process is achieved by manipulation of these parameters using a genetic algorithm. The end result is an economical, passively safe, proliferation-resistant nuclear power plant.

  10. Analysis of emergency core cooling capability of direct vessel vertical injection using CFX

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yoon, Sang H.; Yu, Yong H.; Suh, Kune Y.

    2003-01-01

    More reliable and efficient safety injection system is of utmost importance in the design of advanced reactors such as the APR1400 (Advanced Power Reactor 1400 MWe). In this work, a new idea is proposed to inject the Emergency Core Cooling (ECC) water utilizing a dedicated nozzle with a vertically downward elbow. The Direct Vessel Injection (DVI) system is located horizontally above the cold leg in the APR1400. However, the horizontal injection method may not always satisfy the ECC penetration requirement into the core on account of rather involved multidimensional thermal and hydraulic phenomena occurring in the annular reactor downcomer such as bypass, impingement, entrainment and sweepout, condensation oscillation, etc. Thus, a novel concept is called for from the reactor safety point of view. The Direct Vessel Vertical Injection (DVVI) system is one of these efforts to penetrate as much the ECC water through the downcomer into the core as is practically achievable. The DVVI system can increase the momentum of the downward flow, thus minimizing the effect of water impingement on the core barrel and the direct bypass though the break. To support the claim of increased downward momentum of flow in the DVVI system, computational fluid dynamics analyses were performed using CFX. The new concept of the DVVI system, which can certainly help increase the core thermal margin, is found to be more efficient than DVI. If the structural problem in the manufacturing process is properly solved, this concept can safely be applied in the advanced nuclear reactor design

  11. Experimental and numerical CHT-investigations of cooling structures formed by lost cores in cast housings for optimal heat transfer

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kohlstädt, S.; Vynnycky, M.; Gebauer-Teichmann, A.

    2018-05-01

    This paper investigates the cooling performance of six different lost core designs for automotive cast houses with regard to their cooling efficiency. For this purpose, the conjugate heat transfer (CHT) solver, chtMultiregion, of the freely available CFD-toolbox OpenFOAM in its implementation of version 2.3.1 is used. The turbulence contribution to the Navier-Stokes equations is accounted for by using the RANS Menter SST k - ω model. The results are validated for one of the geometries by comparing with experimental data. Of the six investigated cooling structures, the one that forces the fluid flow to change its direction the most produces the lowest temperatures on the surface of the cast housing. This good cooling performance comes at the price of the highest pressure loss in the cooling fluid and hence increased pump power. It is also found that the relationship between performance and pressure drop is by no means generally linear. Slight changes in the design can lead to a structure which cools almost as well, but at much decreased pressure loss. Regarding the absolute values, the simulations showed that the designed cooling structures are suitable for handling the cooling requirements in the particular applications and that the maximum temperature stays below the critical limits of the electronic components.

  12. Self powered neutron detectors as in-core detectors for Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Verma, V., E-mail: vasudha.verma@physics.uu.se [Division of Applied Nuclear Physics, Uppsala University, Box 516, SE-75120 Uppsala (Sweden); CEA, DEN, DER, Instrumentation Sensors and Dosimetry Laboratory, Cadarache, F-13108 St-Paul-lez-Durance (France); Barbot, L.; Filliatre, P. [CEA, DEN, DER, Instrumentation Sensors and Dosimetry Laboratory, Cadarache, F-13108 St-Paul-lez-Durance (France); Hellesen, C. [Division of Applied Nuclear Physics, Uppsala University, Box 516, SE-75120 Uppsala (Sweden); Jammes, C. [CEA, DEN, DER, Instrumentation Sensors and Dosimetry Laboratory, Cadarache, F-13108 St-Paul-lez-Durance (France); Svärd, S. Jacobsson [Division of Applied Nuclear Physics, Uppsala University, Box 516, SE-75120 Uppsala (Sweden)

    2017-07-11

    Neutron flux monitoring system forms an integral part of the design of a Generation IV sodium cooled fast reactor. Diverse possibilities of detector system installation must be studied for various locations in the reactor vessel in order to detect any perturbations in the core. Results from a previous paper indicated that it is possible to detect changes in neutron source distribution initiated by an inadvertent withdrawal of outer control rod with in-vessel fission chambers located azimuthally around the core. It is, however, not possible to follow inner control rod withdrawal and precisely know the location of the perturbation in the core. Hence the use of complimentary in-core detectors coupled with the peripheral fission chambers is proposed to enable robust core monitoring across the radial direction. In this paper, we assess the feasibility of using self-powered neutron detectors (SPNDs) as in-core detectors in fast reactors for detecting local changes in the power distribution when the reactor is operated at nominal power. We study the neutron and gamma contributions to the total output current of the detector modelled with Platinum as the emitter material. It is shown that this SPND placed in an SFR-like environment would give a sufficiently measurable prompt neutron induced current of the order of 600 nA/m. The corresponding induced current in the connecting cable is two orders of magnitude lower and can be neglected. This means that the SPND can follow in-core power fluctuations. This validates the operability of an SPND in an SFR-like environment. - Highlights: • Studied possibility of using SPNDs as in-core detectors in SFRs. • Study done to detect local power profile changes when reactor is at nominal power. • SPND with a Pt-emitter gives measurable prompt current of the order of 600 nA/m. • Dominant proportion of prompt response is maintained throughout the operation. • Detector signal gives dynamic information on the power fluctuations.

  13. Comparative study between single core model and detail core model of CFD modelling on reactor core cooling behaviour

    Science.gov (United States)

    Darmawan, R.

    2018-01-01

    Nuclear power industry is facing uncertainties since the occurrence of the unfortunate accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. The issue of nuclear power plant safety becomes the major hindrance in the planning of nuclear power program for new build countries. Thus, the understanding of the behaviour of reactor system is very important to ensure the continuous development and improvement on reactor safety. Throughout the development of nuclear reactor technology, investigation and analysis on reactor safety have gone through several phases. In the early days, analytical and experimental methods were employed. For the last four decades 1D system level codes were widely used. The continuous development of nuclear reactor technology has brought about more complex system and processes of nuclear reactor operation. More detailed dimensional simulation codes are needed to assess these new reactors. Recently, 2D and 3D system level codes such as CFD are being explored. This paper discusses a comparative study on two different approaches of CFD modelling on reactor core cooling behaviour.

  14. Analysis of the dynamic behaviour of the low-pressure emergency core cooling system tank at Paks NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1999-01-01

    The low pressure emergency core cooling system tanks (LP ECCS) at WWER-440/V213 units have unique worm-shaped geometry. Analytical and experimental investigations were performed to make an adequate basis for seismic assessment of the worm-shaped tank. The full scale dynamic tests results are presented in comparison with shaking table model experiments and analytical studies. (author)

  15. Analysis of the dynamic behaviour of the low pressure emergency core cooling system tank at Paks NPP

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Tamas, K.

    2001-01-01

    The low pressure emergency core cooling system tanks (LP ECCS) at WWER-440/V213 units have unique worm-shaped geometry. Analytical and experimental investigations were performed to make an adequate basis for seismic assessment of the worm-shaped tank. The full scale dynamic tests results are presented in comparison with shaking table model experiments and analytical studies. (author)

  16. An Advanced Sodium-Cooled Fast Reactor Core Concept Using Uranium-Free Metallic Fuels for Maximizing TRU Burning Rate

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Wuseong You

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available In this paper, we designed and analyzed advanced sodium-cooled fast reactor cores using uranium-free metallic fuels for maximizing burning rate of transuranics (TRU nuclides from PWR spent fuels. It is well known that the removal of fertile nuclides such as 238U from fuels in liquid metal cooled fast reactor leads to the degradation of important safety parameters such as the Doppler coefficient, coolant void worth, and delayed neutron fraction. To resolve the degradation of the Doppler coefficient, we considered adding resonant nuclides to the uranium-free metallic fuels. The analysis results showed that the cores using uranium-free fuels loaded with tungsten instead of uranium have a significantly lower burnup reactivity swing and more negative Doppler coefficients than the core using uranium-free fuels without resonant nuclides. In addition, we considered the use of axially central B4C absorber region and moderator rods to further improve safety parameters such as sodium void worth, burnup reactivity swing, and the Doppler coefficient. The results of the analysis showed that the final design core can consume ~353 kg per cycle and satisfies self-controllability under unprotected accidents. The fuel cycle analysis showed that the PWR–SFR coupling fuel cycle option drastically reduces the amount of waste going to repository and the SFR burner can consume the amount of TRUs discharged from 3.72 PWRs generating the same electricity.

  17. Neutronic design for a 100MW{sub th} Small modular natural circulation lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactors core

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Chen, C.; Chen, H.; Zhang, H.; Chen, Z.; Zeng, Q., E-mail: shchshch@ustc.edu.cn, E-mail: hlchen1@ustc.edu.cn, E-mail: kulah@mail.ustc.edu.cn, E-mail: zchen214@mail.ustc.edu.cn, E-mail: zengqin@ustc.edu.cn [Univ. of Science and Technology of China, School of Nuclear Science and Technology, Hefei, Anhui (China)

    2015-07-01

    Lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactor with good fuel proliferation and nuclear waste transmutation capability, as well as high security and economy, is a great potential for the development of fourth-generation nuclear energy systems. Small natural circulation reactor is an important technical route lead cooled fast reactors industrial applications, which has been chosen as one of the three reference technical for solution lead or lead-alloy cooled fast reactors by GIF lead-cooled fast reactor steering committee. The School of Nuclear Science and Technology of USTC proposed a small 100MW{sub th} natural circulation lead cooled fast reactor concept called SNCLFR-100 based realistic technology. This article describes the SNCLFR-100 reactor of the overall technical program, core physics calculation and analysis. The results show that: SNCLFR-100 with good neutronic and safety performance and relevant design parameters meet the security requirements with feasibility. (author)

  18. Probable variations of a passive safety containment for a 1700 MWe class PWR with passive safety systems

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sato, Takashi; Fujiki, Yasunobu; Oikawa, Hirohide; Ofstun, Richard P.

    2009-01-01

    The paper presents probable variations of a passive safety containment for a PWR. The passive safety containment is named Mark P containment tentatively. It is a pressure suppression type containment for a large scale PWR with a BWR type passive containment cooling system (PCCS). More than 3-day grace period can be achieved even for a 1700 MWe class large scale PWR owing to the PCCS. The containment is a reinforced concrete containment vessel (RCCV). The design pressure of the RCCV can be low owing to the suppression pool (S/P) and no prestressed tendon is necessary. It is a single barrier CV that can withstand a large airplane crash by itself. This simple configuration results in good economy and short construction term. The BWR type passive safety systems also include the Passive Cooling and Depressurization System (PCDS). The PCDS has 3-day grace period for the SBO induced by a giant earthquake and can practically eliminate the residual risk of a giant earthquake beyond the design basis earthquake of Ss. It also has a safety function to automatically depressurize the primary system at accidents such as SGTR and eliminate the need for operator actions. It is a large 1700 MWe passive safety PWR that has more than 3-day grace period for extremely severe natural disasters including a giant earthquake, a mega hurricane, tsunami and so on; no containment failure at a SA establishing a no evacuation plant; protection for a large airplane crash with the RCCV single barrier; good economy and short construction term. (author)

  19. Application of hepatitis B core particles produced by human primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PLC/342) propagated in nude mice to the determination of anti-HBc by passive hemagglutination.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Miyamoto, K; Itoh, Y; Tsuda, F; Matsui, T; Tanaka, T; Miyamoto, H; Naitoh, S; Imai, M; Usuda, S; Nakamura, T

    1986-05-22

    Human primary hepatocellular carcinoma (PLC/342), carried by nude mice, produces hepatitis B core particles as well as hepatitis B surface antigen particles. Core particles purified form PLC/342 tumors displayed epitopes of hepatitis B core antigen (HBcAg) but not epitopes of hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) on their surface, unlike core particles prepared from Dane particles, derived from plasma of asymptomatic carriers, that expressed epitopes of both HBcAg and HBeAg. Core particles obtained from PLC/342 tumors were applied to the determination of antibody to HBcAg (anti-HBc) by passive hemagglutination. The assay detected anti-HBc not only in individuals with persistent infection with hepatitis B virus and in those who had recovered from transient infection, but also in patients with acute type B hepatitis, indicating that it can detect anti-HBc of either IgG or IgM class. A liberal availability of core particles from tumors carried by nude mice, taken together with an easy applicability of the method, would make the passive hemagglutination for anti-HBc a valuable tool in clinical and epidemiological studies, especially in places where sophisticated methods are not feasible.

  20. Summary report of RAMONA investigations into passive decay heat removal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hoffmann, H.; Marten, K.; Weinberg, D.; Frey, H.H.; Rust, K.; Ieda, Y.; Kamide, H.; Ohshima, H.; Ohira, H.

    1995-07-01

    An important safety feature of an advanced sodium-cooled reactor (e.g. European Fast Reactor, EFR) is the passive decay heat removal. This passive concept is based on several direct reactor cooling systems operating independently from each other. Each of the systems consists of a sodium/sodium decay heat exchanger immersed in the primary vessel and connected via an intermediate sodium loop to a heat sink formed by a sodium/air heat exchanger installed in a stack with air inlet and outlet dampers. The decay heat is removed by natural convection on the sodium side and natural draft on the air side. To demonstrate the coolability of the pool-type primary system by buoyancy-driven natural circulation, tests were performed under steady-state and transient conditions in facilities of different scale and detail. All these investigations serve to understand the physical processes and to verify computer codes used to transfer the results to reactor conditions. RAMONA is the three-dimensional 1:20-scaled apparatus equipped with all active components. Water is used as simulant fluid for sodium. The maximum core power is 75 kW. The facility is equipped with about 250 thermocouples to register fluid temperatures. Velocities and mass flows are measured by Laser Doppler Anemometers and magneto-inductive flowmeters. Flow paths are visualized by tracers. The conclusion of the investigations is that the decay heat can be removed from the primary system by means of natural convection. Always flow paths develop, which ensure an effective cooling of all regions. This is even proved for extreme conditions, e.g. in case of delays of the decay heat exchanger startup, failures of several DHR chains, and a drop of the fluid level below the inlet windows of the IHXs and decay heat exchangers. (orig.) [de

  1. Reactor core design optimization of the 200 MWt Pb-Bi cooled fast reactor for hydrogen production

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bahrum, Epung Saepul; Su'ud, Zaki; Waris, Abdul; Fitriyani, Dian; Wahjoedi, Bambang Ari

    2008-01-01

    In this study reactor core geometrical optimization of 200 MWt Pb-Bi cooled long life fast reactor for hydrogen production has been conducted. The reactor life time is 20 years and the fuel type is UN-PuN. Geometrical core configurations considered in this study are balance, pancake and tall cylindrical cores. For the hydrogen production unit we adopt steam membrane reforming hydrogen gas production. The optimum operating temperature for the catalytic reaction is 540degC. Fast reactor design optimization calculation was run by using FI-ITB-CHI software package. The design criteria were restricted by the multiplication factor that should be less than 1.002, the average outlet coolant temperature 550degC and the maximum coolant outlet temperature less than 700degC. By taking into account of the hydrogen production as well as corrosion resulting from Pb-Bi, the balance cylindrical geometrical core design with diameter and height of the active core of 157 cm each, the inlet coolant temperature of 350degC and the coolant flow rate of 7000 kg/s were preferred as the best design parameters. (author)

  2. Russian Federation: Passive Safety Components for Lead-Cooled Reactor Facilities

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Sarkulov, M.K.

    2015-01-01

    There is a specific range of engineered features used traditionally in nuclear technology. As a rule, main reactivity control systems use conventional active actuators with solid-body control members and/or liquid systems with active injection of liquid absorber. Other operation principles are normally chosen for additional systems. Currently, the traditional approach to improving the reliability of a reactor facility suggests an increase in the number of safety components and systems which provide for mutual assurance or assist each other. There is a great variety of additional reactivity control members designed for the reactor facility control and shutdown, including hydrodynamic members in the form of rods (acting from the coolant flow); floating-type members (absorbers and displacers); storage-type and liquid members (used in separate channels); bulk members (pebble absorber); gas-based members (with a gas absorber); shape-memory members and others. Hydrodynamic systems were introduced at Beloyarsk NPP Units 1 and 2 and proposed for use in other facility designs, Gases and bulk materials have not been commonly accepted: the former because of the high cost of high-efficiency gaseous absorbers, and the latter because of the complecated monitoring of the bulk material position. It is rather difficult and not always necessary to use the same engineering approaches in new lead-cooled reactor facilities as in traditional ones. Similarly to the development of traditional safety systems, passive safety components (devices) shall be designed according to the essential requirements of the nuclear regulations of the Russian Federation

  3. Feasibility of passive heat removal systems

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Ashurko, Yu M [Institute of Physics and Power Engineering, Obninsk (Russian Federation)

    1996-12-01

    This paper presents a review of decay heat removal systems (DHRSs) used in liquid metal-cooled fast reactors (LMFRs). Advantages and the disadvantages of these DHRSs, extent of their passivity and prospects for their use in advanced fast reactor projects are analyzed. Methods of extending the limitations on the employment of individual systems, allowing enhancement in their effectiveness as safety systems and assuring their total passivity are described. (author). 10 refs, 10 figs.

  4. Improvement of Emergency Cooldown Tank in terms of long-term cooling

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Moon, Joo Hyung; Kim, Youngin; Kim, Keung Koo

    2014-01-01

    SMART received its Standard Design Approval(SDA) from Korea Government in 2012. After Fukushima accident, passively cooling system of nuclear reactor gets great attention and a consentience reached that at least 72 hours of grace time after an accident should be secured, during which a nuclear reactor remains in safe condition without any operator's intervention. To meet this requirement, SMART adapted passive cooling system such as passive residual heat removal system(PRHRS). It is composed of an emergency cooldown tank(ETC), a heat exchanger and a makeup tank. The ETC should be refilled periodically by auxiliary water supply system in order to use it beyond 72 hours. Otherwise the immersed heat exchanger would be exposed to the air, which would damage the function of PRHRS. To overcome this shortcoming, installation of an air-cooling heat exchanger at the top of the ETC is proposed as shown in Fig. 2. Here the top of the ETC is now closed. Evaporated steam is collected through the vertical duct and condensed through air-cooling heat exchanger. By natural circulation, water level of ETC can be maintained at steady state for a very long-term period. The purpose of the present study is to investigate the thermal sizing of air-cooling heat exchanger which extends the cooling period of ETC. Thermal sizing of air-cooling heat exchanger had been investigated by using several heat transfer correlations for natural convection of vertical tubes. Quantitative comparisons were made to find out how many tubes are required to remove the residual heat. This work would contribute to improve the current design of ETC and to extend the cooling period much longer than 72 hours, which will promote the passive safety function of SMART

  5. Cold-water immersion and iced-slush ingestion are effective at cooling firefighters following a simulated search and rescue task in a hot environment.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Walker, Anthony; Driller, Matthew; Brearley, Matt; Argus, Christos; Rattray, Ben

    2014-10-01

    Firefighters are exposed to hot environments, which results in elevated core temperatures. Rapidly reducing core temperatures will likely increase safety as firefighters are redeployed to subsequent operational tasks. This study investigated the effectiveness of cold-water immersion (CWI) and iced-slush ingestion (SLUSH) to cool firefighters post-incident. Seventy-four Australian firefighters (mean ± SD age: 38.9 ± 9.0 years) undertook a simulated search and rescue task in a heat chamber (105 ± 5 °C). Testing involved two 20-min work cycles separated by a 10-min rest period. Ambient temperature during recovery periods was 19.3 ± 2.7 °C. Participants were randomly assigned one of three 15-min cooling protocols: (i) CWI, 15 °C to umbilicus; (ii) SLUSH, 7 g·kg(-1) body weight; or (iii) seated rest (CONT). Core temperature and strength were measured pre- and postsimulation and directly after cooling. Mean temperatures for all groups reached 38.9 ± 0.9 °C at the conclusion of the second work task. Both CWI and SLUSH delivered cooling rates in excess of CONT (0.093 and 0.092 compared with 0.058 °C·min(-1)) and reduced temperatures to baseline measurements within the 15-min cooling period. Grip strength was not negatively impacted by either SLUSH or CONT. CWI and SLUSH provide evidence-based alternatives to passive recovery and forearm immersion protocols currently adopted by many fire services. To maximise the likelihood of adoption, we recommend SLUSH ingestion as a practical and effective cooling strategy for post-incident cooling of firefighters in temperate regions.

  6. Core-to-core uniformity improvement in multi-core fiber Bragg gratings

    Science.gov (United States)

    Lindley, Emma; Min, Seong-Sik; Leon-Saval, Sergio; Cvetojevic, Nick; Jovanovic, Nemanja; Bland-Hawthorn, Joss; Lawrence, Jon; Gris-Sanchez, Itandehui; Birks, Tim; Haynes, Roger; Haynes, Dionne

    2014-07-01

    Multi-core fiber Bragg gratings (MCFBGs) will be a valuable tool not only in communications but also various astronomical, sensing and industry applications. In this paper we address some of the technical challenges of fabricating effective multi-core gratings by simulating improvements to the writing method. These methods allow a system designed for inscribing single-core fibers to cope with MCFBG fabrication with only minor, passive changes to the writing process. Using a capillary tube that was polished on one side, the field entering the fiber was flattened which improved the coverage and uniformity of all cores.

  7. Architectural design of passive solar residential building

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ma Jing

    2015-01-01

    Full Text Available This paper studies thermal environment of closed balconies that commonly exist in residential buildings, and designs a passive solar residential building. The design optimizes the architectural details of the house and passive utilization of solar energy to provide auxiliary heating for house in winter and cooling in summer. This design might provide a more sufficient and reasonable modification for microclimate in the house.

  8. Evaluation on driving force of natural circulation in downcomer for passive residual heat removal system in JAERI passive safety reactor JPSR

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Kunii, Katsuhiko; Iwamura, Takamichi; Murao, Yoshio

    1997-01-01

    The driving-force of the natural circulation in the residual heat removal (RHR) system for the JPSR (JAERI Passive Safety Reactor) is given as a gravity force of the density difference between hotter coolant in core and upper plenum and cooler coolant in downcomer. The amount of density difference and time to achieve the enough density difference for the RHR system change directly dependent on the thermal fluid flow pattern in downcomer of annulus flow pass. The purposes of the present study are to investigate the possibilities of the followings by evaluating the three-dimensional thermal fluid flow in downcomer by numerical analysis using the STREAM code; 1) promotion of making the flow pattern uniform in downcomer by installing a baffle, 2) achievement of an enough driving-force of the natural circulation, 3) validity of one-point assumption, that is, complete mixing down-flow assumption for the three-dimensional thermal fluid flow in downcomer to evaluate the function of the passive RHR system. The following conclusions were obtained: (1) The effect of baffle on the thermal fluid flow and driving-force is little, (2) The driving-force required for natural circulation cooling can be obtained in wide range of inlet velocity even if the flow is multi-dimensional, (3) Both in initial transient stage and in steady-state, the one-point assumption can be applied to evaluate the driving-force of natural circulation in the passive RHR system. (author)

  9. Pre-Conceptual Design of a Fluoride-Salt-Cooled Small Modular Advanced High Temperature Reactor (SmAHTR)

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Greene, Sherrell R [ORNL; Gehin, Jess C [ORNL; Holcomb, David Eugene [ORNL; Carbajo, Juan J [ORNL; Ilas, Dan [ORNL; Cisneros, Anselmo T [ORNL; Varma, Venugopal Koikal [ORNL; Corwin, William R [ORNL; Wilson, Dane F [ORNL; Yoder Jr, Graydon L [ORNL; Qualls, A L [ORNL; Peretz, Fred J [ORNL; Flanagan, George F [ORNL; Clayton, Dwight A [ORNL; Bradley, Eric Craig [ORNL; Bell, Gary L [ORNL; Hunn, John D [ORNL; Pappano, Peter J [ORNL; Cetiner, Sacit M [ORNL

    2011-02-01

    This document presents the results of a study conducted at Oak Ridge National Laboratory during 2010 to explore the feasibility of small modular fluoride salt-cooled high temperature reactors (FHRs). A preliminary reactor system concept, SmATHR (for Small modular Advanced High Temperature Reactor) is described, along with an integrated high-temperature thermal energy storage or salt vault system. The SmAHTR is a 125 MWt, integral primary, liquid salt cooled, coated particle-graphite fueled, low-pressure system operating at 700 C. The system employs passive decay heat removal and two-out-of-three , 50% capacity, subsystem redundancy for critical functions. The reactor vessel is sufficiently small to be transportable on standard commercial tractor-trailer transport vehicles. Initial transient analyses indicated the transition from normal reactor operations to passive decay heat removal is accomplished in a manner that preserves robust safety margins at all times during the transient. Numerous trade studies and trade-space considerations are discussed, along with the resultant initial system concept. The current concept is not optimized. Work remains to more completely define the overall system with particular emphasis on refining the final fuel/core configuration, salt vault configuration, and integrated system dynamics and safety behavior.

  10. Specialists' meeting on gas-cooled reactor core and high temperature instrumentation, Windermere, UK, 15-17 June 1982. Summary report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1982-09-01

    The Specialists' Meeting on ''Gas-Cooled Reactor Core and High Temperature Instrumentation'' was held at the Beech Hill Hotel, Windermere in England on June 15-17 1982. The meeting was sponsored by the IAEA on the recommendation of the International Working Group on Gas Cooled Reactors and was hosted by the Windscale Nuclear Power Development Laboratories of the UKAEA. The meeting was attended by 43 participants from Belgium, France, Federal Republic of Germany, Japan, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the United States of America. The objective of the meeting was to provide a forum, both formal and informal, for the exchange and discussion of technical information relating to instrumentation being used or under development for the measurement of core parameters, neutron flux, temperature, coolant flow etc. in gas cooled reactors. The technical part of the meeting was divided into five subject sessions: (A) Temperature Measurement (B) Neutron Detection Instrumentation (C) HTR Instrumentation - General (D) Gas Analysis and Failed Fuel Detection (E) Coolant Mass Flow and Leak Detection. A total of twenty-five papers were presented by the participants on behalf of their organizations during the meeting. A programme of the meeting and list of participants are given in appendices to this report

  11. Modelling of thermohydraulic emergency core cooling phenomena

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Yadigaroglu, G.; Andreani, M.; Lewis, M.J.

    1990-10-01

    The codes used in the early seventies for safety analysis and licensing were based either on the homogeneous model of two-phase flow or on the so-called separate-flow models, which are mixture models accounting, however, for the difference in average velocity between the two phases. In both cases the behavior of the mixture is prescribed a priori as a function of local parameters such as the mass flux and the quality. The modern best-estimate codes used for analyzing LWR LOCA's and transients are often based on a two-fluid or 6-equation formulation of the conservation equations. In this case the conservation equations are written separately for each phase; the mixture is allowed to evolve on its own, governed by the interfacial exchanges of mass, momentum and energy between the phases. It is generally agreed that such relatively sophisticated 6-equation formulations of two-phase flow are necessary for the correct modelling of a number of phenomena and situations arising in LWR accidental situations. They are in particular indispensible for the analysis of stratified or countercurrent flows and of situations in which large departures from thermal and velocity equilibrium exist. This report will be devoted to a discussion of the need for, the capacity and the limitations of the two-phase flow models (with emphasis on the 6-equation formulations) in modelling these two-phase flow and heat transfer phenomena and/or different core cooling situations. 18 figs., 1 tab., 72 refs

  12. SBLOCA analysis to set-up the long term cooling plan for the SMART-P

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Bae, K. H.; Lee, G. H.; Lee, J.; Kim, H. C.; Zee, S. Q.

    2005-01-01

    SMART-P is a pilot plant of the SMART (System-integrated Modular Advanced ReacTor) producing a maximum thermal power of 65.5 MW. Different from the conventional loop type PWRs, the SMART-P contains the reactor coolant and the major primary circuit components, such as the core, two Main Coolant Pumps (MCPs), twelve SG cassettes, and the PZR in a single Reactor Pressure Vessel (RPV). Due to this integral arrangement of the primary system, only the small branch line break or leak through a component penetrating the RPV is postulated. Also, the reactor building spray system is not adopted in the SMART-P design. Thus, the energy released into the reactor building is removed by the condensation on the surface of the passive heat sinks and is transferred to the reactor building sump. After a Small Break Loss of Coolant Accident (SBLOCA), the Reactor Coolant System (RCS) pressure decreases rapidly. When the PZR pressure reaches the low-pressure reactor trip setpoint, the control rods drop into the core and decrease the core power rapidly. Simultaneously with the reactor trip, the MCPs start to coastdown, the main steam and feedwater isolation valves are closed, and the Passive Residual Heat Removal System (PRHRS) is connected to the secondary side of the SG. As the RCS pressure decreases to the safety injection actuation setpoint, a safety injection pump starts to deliver the cold coolant from the RWST to the RPV. Afterwards, the Safety Injection System (SIS) and PRHRS cool the RCS to the hot shutdown condition (200 .deg. C). When the RWST level reaches a low-level setpoint, Recirculation Actuation Signal (RAS) is generated, which transfers the suction of the SIS from the RWST to the reactor building sump. Long Term Cooling (LTC) operation after a SBLOCA is continued until the plant reaches a safe temperature level by using the SIS and PRHRS. In the SMART-P, the normal Shutdown Cooling System (SCS) is designed to cool the RCS from the hot shutdown condition (200 .deg. C

  13. The Design of Cooling System Model on The AP1000 Containment

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Daddy Setyawan; Yerri Noer Kartiko; Aryadi Suwono; Ari Darmawan Pasek; Nathanael P Tandian; Efrizon Umar

    2009-01-01

    The policy of national energy leads to the utilization of new energy as nuclear energy, and also contains some efforts to increase reactor safety and optimizing in the design of safety system component such as passive cooling system on reactor containment tank. Because of this, the assessment of safety level to passive safety system needs to be made. To increase the understanding it, the design of cooling system model on containment tank should be done to get safety level on cooling system in the AP1000 containment. To reach the similar model with reality and inexpensive cost, we should make assessment about similarity and dimensionless number. While the heat transfer of air natural circulation and water spray cooling system are a result of gravity approach, we can calculate Grashof modification number and Reynolds number respectively. By this approach, we have a factor of forty for laboratory model. From this model, we hope that we get characteristic correlation to heat transfer on the containment of AP1000 for both air natural circulation and water spray result from gravity. Finally, we can assess the safety level of passive cooling system on the AP1000 containment. (author)

  14. Unravelling the core microbiome of biofilms in cooling tower systems.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Di Gregorio, L; Tandoi, V; Congestri, R; Rossetti, S; Di Pippo, F

    2017-11-01

    In this study, next generation sequencing and catalyzed reporter deposition fluorescence in situ hybridization, combined with confocal microscopy, were used to provide insights into the biodiversity and structure of biofilms collected from four full-scale European cooling systems. Water samples were also analyzed to evaluate the impact of suspended microbes on biofilm formation. A common core microbiome, containing members of the families Sphingomonadaceae, Comamonadaceae and Hyphomicrobiaceae, was found in all four biofilms, despite the water of each coming from different sources (river and groundwater). This suggests that selection of the pioneer community was influenced by abiotic factors (temperature, pH) and tolerances to biocides. Members of the Sphingomonadaceae were assumed to play a key role in initial biofilm formation. Subsequent biofilm development was driven primarily by light availability, since biofilms were dominated by phototrophs in the two studied 'open' systems. Their interactions with other microbial populations then shaped the structure of the mature biofilm communities analyzed.

  15. Quench cooling of superheated debris beds in containment during LWR core meltdown accidents

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Ginsberg, T.; Chen, J.C.

    1984-01-01

    Light water reactor core meltdown accident sequence studies suggest that superheated debris beds may settle on the concrete floor beneath the reactor vessel. A model for the heat transfer processes during quench of superheated debris beds cooled by an overlying pool of water has been presented in a prior paper. This paper discusses the coolability of decay-heated debris beds from the standpoint of their transient quench characteristics. It is shown that even though a debris bed configuration may be coolable from the point of view of steady-state decay heat removal, the quench behavior from an initially elevated temperature may lead to bed melting prior to quench of the debris

  16. Edge morphology evolution of graphene domains during chemical vapor deposition cooling revealed through hydrogen etching.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Zhang, Haoran; Zhang, Yanhui; Zhang, Yaqian; Chen, Zhiying; Sui, Yanping; Ge, Xiaoming; Yu, Guanghui; Jin, Zhi; Liu, Xinyu

    2016-02-21

    During cooling, considerable changes such as wrinkle formation and edge passivation occur in graphene synthesized on the Cu substrate. Wrinkle formation is caused by the difference in the thermal expansion coefficients of graphene and its substrate. This work emphasizes the cooling-induced edge passivation. The graphene-edge passivation can limit the regrowth of graphene at the domain edge. Our work shows that silicon-containing particles tend to accumulate at the graphene edge, and the formation of these particles is related to cooling. Furthermore, a clear curvature can be observed at the graphene edge on the Cu substrate, indicating the sinking of the graphene edge into the Cu substrate. Both the sinking of the graphene edge and the accumulation of silicon-containing particles are responsible for edge passivation. In addition, two kinds of graphene edge morphologies are observed after etching, which were explained by different etching mechanisms that illustrate the changes of the graphene edge during cooling.

  17. Compact sodium cooled nuclear power plant with fast core (KNK II- Karlsruhe), Safety Report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1977-09-01

    After the operation of the KNK plant with a thermal core (KNK I), the installation of a fast core (KNK II) had been realized. The planning of the core and the necessary reconstruction work was done by INTERATOM. Owner and customer was the Nuclear Research Center Karlsruhe (KfK), while the operating company was the Kernkraftwerk-Betriebsgesellschaft mbH (KBG) Karlsruhe. The main goals of the KNK II project and its special experimental test program were to gather experience for the construction, the licensing and operation of future larger plants, to develop and to test fuel and absorber assemblies and to further develop the sodium technology and the associated components. The present safety report consists of three parts. Part 1 contains the description of the nuclear plant. Hereby, the reactor and its components, the handling facilities, the instrumentation with the plant protection, the design of the plant including the reactor core and the nominal operation processes are described. Part 2 contains the safety related investigation and measures. This concerns the reactivity accidents, local cooling perturbations, radiological consequences with the surveillance measures and the justification of the choice of structural materials. Part three finally is the appendix with the figures, showing the different buildings, the reactor and its components, the heat transfer systems and the different auxiliary facilities [de

  18. Cooling methods of station blackout scenario for LWR plants

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    NONE

    2013-08-15

    The objective of this study is to analyze the cooling method of station blackout scenario for both the BWR and PWR plants by RELAP5 code and to check the validity of the cooling method proposed by the utilities. In the BWR plant cooling scenario, the Reactor Core Isolation Cooling System (RCIC), which is operated with high pressure steam from the reactor, injects cooling water into the reactor to keep the core water level. The steam generated in the core is released into the suppression pool at containment vessel to condense. To restrict the containment vessel pressure rising, the ventilation from the wet-well is operated. The scenario is analyzed by RELAP5 code. In the PWR plant scenario, the primary pressure is decreased by the turbine-driven auxiliary feed water system operated with secondary side steam of the steam generators (SGs). And the core cooling is kept by the natural circulation flow at the primary loop. From the RELAP5 code analysis, it was shown that the primary system cooling was practicable by using the turbine-driven auxiliary feed water system. (author)

  19. Influence of heat treatment on microstructure and passivity of Cu ...

    Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

    200 ◦C for 20 h in salt bath and air cooled), B (heating up to 800 ◦C for 20 h and water ... chloride ions on passivity was associated with the formation of copper oxides/hydroxide and ... passive layer inhibits copper redeposition and/or preferen-.

  20. An alternative cooling system to enhance the safety of Li-ion battery packs

    Science.gov (United States)

    Kizilel, Riza; Sabbah, Rami; Selman, J. Robert; Al-Hallaj, Said

    A passive thermal management system is evaluated for high-power Li-ion packs under stressful or abusive conditions, and compared with a purely air-cooling mode under normal and abuse conditions. A compact and properly designed passive thermal management system utilizing phase change material (PCM) provides faster heat dissipation than active cooling during high pulse power discharges while preserving sufficiently uniform cell temperature to ensure the desirable cycle life for the pack. This study investigates how passive cooling with PCM contributes to preventing the propagation of thermal runaway in a single cell or adjacent cells due to a cell catastrophic failure. Its effectiveness is compared with that of active cooling by forced air flow or natural convection using the same compact module and pack configuration corresponding to the PCM matrix technology. The effects of nickel tabs and spacing between the cells were also studied.

  1. An alternative cooling system to enhance the safety of Li-ion battery packs

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kizilel, Riza; Sabbah, Rami [Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 10 W. 33rd Street, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); Selman, J. Robert [Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Illinois Institute of Technology, 10 W. 33rd Street, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); All Cell Technologies, LLC, IIT University Technology Park, 3440 S. Dearborn Street, Suite 117N, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States); Al-Hallaj, Said [All Cell Technologies, LLC, IIT University Technology Park, 3440 S. Dearborn Street, Suite 117N, Chicago, IL 60616 (United States)

    2009-12-01

    A passive thermal management system is evaluated for high-power Li-ion packs under stressful or abusive conditions, and compared with a purely air-cooling mode under normal and abuse conditions. A compact and properly designed passive thermal management system utilizing phase change material (PCM) provides faster heat dissipation than active cooling during high pulse power discharges while preserving sufficiently uniform cell temperature to ensure the desirable cycle life for the pack. This study investigates how passive cooling with PCM contributes to preventing the propagation of thermal runaway in a single cell or adjacent cells due to a cell catastrophic failure. Its effectiveness is compared with that of active cooling by forced air flow or natural convection using the same compact module and pack configuration corresponding to the PCM matrix technology. The effects of nickel tabs and spacing between the cells were also studied. (author)

  2. Thermal analysis and design of passive solar buildings

    CERN Document Server

    Athienitis, AK

    2013-01-01

    Passive solar design techniques are becoming increasingly important in building design. This design reference book takes the building engineer or physicist step-by-step through the thermal analysis and design of passive solar buildings. In particular it emphasises two important topics: the maximum utilization of available solar energy and thermal storage, and the sizing of an appropriate auxiliary heating/cooling system in conjunction with good thermal control.Thermal Analysis and Design of Passive Solar Buildings is an important contribution towards the optimization of buildings as systems th

  3. Safety aspects of the Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR)

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Silady, F.A.; Millunzi, A.C.

    1989-08-01

    The Modular High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor (MHTGR) is an advanced reactor concept under development through a cooperative program involving the US Government, the nuclear industry and the utilities. The design utilizes the basic high-temperature gas-cooled reactor (HTGR) features of ceramic fuel, helium coolant, and a graphite moderator. The qualitative top-level safety requirement is that the plant's operation not disturb the normal day-to-day activities of the public. The MHTGR safety response to events challenging the functions relied on to retain radionuclides within the coated fuel particles has been evaluated. A broad range of challenges to core heat removal have been examined which include a loss of helium pressure and a simultaneous loss of forced cooling of the core. The challenges to control of heat generation have considered not only the failure to insert the reactivity control systems, but the withdrawal of control rods. Finally, challenges to control chemical attack of the ceramic coated fuel have been considered, including catastrophic failure of the steam generator allowing water ingress or of the pressure vessels allowing air ingress. The plant's response to these extreme challenges is not dependent on operator action and the events considered encompass conceivable operator errors. In the same vein, reliance on radionuclide retention within the full particle and on passive features to perform a few key functions to maintain the fuel within acceptable conditions also reduced susceptibility to external events, site-specific events, and to acts of sabotage and terrorism. 4 refs., 14 figs., 1 tab

  4. An experimental study on natural draft-dry cooling tower as part of the passive system for the residual decay heat removal

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Caruso, G.; Fatone, M.; Naviglio, A.

    2007-01-01

    An experimental apparatus has been built in order to perform sensitivity analysis on the performance of a natural draft-dry cooling tower. This component plays an important role in the passive system for the residual heat decay removal foreseen in the MARS reactor and in the GCFR of the Generation IV reactors. The sensitivity analysis has investigated: 1) the heat exchanger arrangement; two different arrangements have been considered: a horizontal arrangement, in which a system of electrical heaters are placed at the inlet cross section of the tower, and a vertical arrangement, with the heaters distributed vertically around the circumference of the tower. 2) The shape of the cooling tower; by varying the angle of the shell inclination it is possible to obtain a different shape for the tower itself. An upper and a lower angle inclination were modified and by a calculation procedure eleven different configuration were selected. 3) The effect of cross wind on the tower performance. An equation-based procedure to design the dry-cooling tower is presented. In order to evaluate the influence of the shape and the heat exchanger arrangement on the performance of the cooling tower, a geometrical factor (FG) and a thermal factor (FT) are introduced. By analyzing the experimental results, engineering design relations are obtained to model the cooling tower performance. The comparison between the experimental heat transfer coefficient and the heat transfer coefficient obtained by the mathematical procedure shows that there is a good agreement. The obtained results show that it is possible to evaluate the shape and the heat exchanger arrangement to optimize the performance of the cooling tower either in wind-less condition either in presence of cross wind. (authors)

  5. To cool, but not too cool: that is the question--immersion cooling for hyperthermia.

    Science.gov (United States)

    Taylor, Nigel A S; Caldwell, Joanne N; Van den Heuvel, Anne M J; Patterson, Mark J

    2008-11-01

    Patient cooling time can impact upon the prognosis of heat illness. Although ice-cold-water immersion will rapidly extract heat, access to ice or cold water may be limited in hot climates. Indeed, some have concerns regarding the sudden cold-water immersion of hyperthermic individuals, whereas others believe that cutaneous vasoconstriction may reduce convective heat transfer from the core. It was hypothesized that warmer immersion temperatures, which induce less powerful vasoconstriction, may still facilitate rapid cooling in hyperthermic individuals. Eight males participated in three trials and were heated to an esophageal temperature of 39.5 degrees C by exercising in the heat (36 degrees C, 50% relative humidity) while wearing a water-perfusion garment (40 degrees C). Subjects were cooled using each of the following methods: air (20-22 degrees C), cold-water immersion (14 degrees C), and temperate-water immersion (26 degrees C). The time to reach an esophageal temperature of 37.5 degrees C averaged 22.81 min (air), 2.16 min (cold), and 2.91 min (temperate). Whereas each of the between-trial comparisons was statistically significant (P < 0.05), cooling in temperate water took only marginally longer than that in cold water, and one cannot imagine that the 45-s cooling time difference would have any meaningful physiological or clinical implications. It is assumed that this rapid heat loss was due to a less powerful peripheral vasoconstrictor response, with central heat being more rapidly transported to the skin surface for dissipation. Although the core-to-water thermal gradient was much smaller with temperate-water cooling, greater skin and deeper tissue blood flows would support a superior convective heat delivery. Thus, a sustained physiological mechanism (blood flow) appears to have countered a less powerful thermal gradient, resulting in clinically insignificant differences in heat extraction between the cold and temperate cooling trials.

  6. Passive decay heat removal from the core region

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Hichen, E.F.; Jaegers, H.

    2002-01-01

    The decay heat in commercial Light Water Reactors is commonly removed by active and redundant safety systems supported by emergency power. For advanced power plant designs passive safety systems using a natural circulation mode are proposed: several designs are discussed. New experimental data gained with the NOKO and PANDA facilities as well as operational data from the Dodewaard Nuclear Power Plant are presented and compared with new calculations by different codes. In summary, the effectiveness of these passive decay heat removal systems have been demonstrated: original geometries and materials and for the NOKO facility and the Dodewaard Reactor typical thermal-hydraulic inlet and boundary conditions have been used. With several codes a good agreement between calculations and experimental data was achieved. (author)

  7. Compendium of ECCS [Emergency Core Cooling Systems] research for realistic LOCA [loss-of-coolant accidents] analysis: Final report

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    1988-12-01

    In the United States, Emergency Core Cooling Systems (ECCS) are required for light water reactors (LWRs) to provide cooling of the reactor core in the event of a break or leak in the reactor piping or an inadvertent opening of a valve. These accidents are called loss-of-coolant accidents (LOCA), and they range from small leaks up to a postulated full break of the largest pipe in the reactor cooling system. Federal government regulations provide that LOCA analysis be performed to show that the ECCS will maintain fuel rod cladding temperatures, cladding oxidation, and hydrogen production within certain limits. The NRC and others have completed a large body of research which investigated fuel rod behavior and LOCA/ECCS performance. It is now possible to make a realistic estimate of the ECCS performance during a LOCA and to quantify the uncertainty of this calculation. The purpose of this report is to summarize this research and to serve as a general reference for the extensive research effort that has been performed. The report: (1) summarizes the understanding of LOCA phenomena in 1974; (2) reviews experimental and analytical programs developed to address the phenomena; (3) describes the best-estimate computer codes developed by the NRC; (4) discusses the salient technical aspects of the physical phenomena and our current understanding of them; (5) discusses probabilistic risk assessment results and perspectives, and (6) evaluates the impact of research results on the ECCS regulations. 736 refs., 412 figs., 66 tabs

  8. Experimental investigation of material chemical effects on emergency core cooling pump suction filter performance after loss of coolant accident

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Park, Jong Woon; Park, Byung Gi; Kim, Chang Hyun

    2009-01-01

    Integral tests of head loss through an emergency core cooling filter screen are conducted, simulating reactor building environmental conditions for 30 days after a loss of coolant accident. A test rig with five individual loops each of whose chamber is established to test chemical product formation and measure the head loss through a sample filter. The screen area at each chamber and the amounts of reactor building materials are scaled down according to specific plant condition. A series of tests have been performed to investigate the effects of calcium-silicate, reactor building spray, existence of calcium-silicate with tri-sodium phosphate (TSP), and composition of materials. The results showed that head loss across the chemical bed with even a small amount of calcium-silicate insulation instantaneously increased as soon as TSP was added to the test solution. Also, the head loss across the filter screen is strongly affected by spray duration and the head loss increase is rapid at the early stage, because of high dissolution and precipitation of aluminum and zinc. After passivation of aluminum and zinc by corrosion, the head loss increase is much slowed down and is mainly induced by materials such as calcium, silicon, and magnesium leached from NUKON TM and concrete. Furthermore, it is newly found that the spay buffer agent, tri-sodium phosphate, to form protective coating on the aluminum surface and reduce aluminum leaching is not effective for a large amount of aluminum and a long spray.

  9. Investigation of the falling water flow with evaporation for the passive containment cooling system and its scaling-down criteria

    Science.gov (United States)

    Li, Cheng; Li, Junming; Li, Le

    2018-02-01

    Falling water evaporation cooling could efficiently suppress the containment operation pressure during the nuclear accident, by continually removing the core decay heat to the atmospheric environment. In order to identify the process of large-scale falling water evaporation cooling, the water flow characteristics of falling film, film rupture and falling rivulet were deduced, on the basis of previous correlation studies. The influences of the contact angle, water temperature and water flow rates on water converge along the flow direction were then numerically obtained and results were compared with the data for AP1000 and CAP1400 nuclear power plants. By comparisons, it is concluded that the water coverage fraction of falling water could be enhanced by either reducing the surface contact angle or increasing the water temperature. The falling water flow with evaporation for AP1000 containment was then calculated and the feature of its water coverage fraction was analyzed. Finally, based on the phenomena identification of falling water flow for AP1000 containment evaporation cooling, the scaling-down is performed and the dimensionless criteria were obtained.

  10. Proceedings of the 18th national passive solar conference. Volume 18

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Burley, S.; Arden, M.E.

    1993-01-01

    The American Solar Energy Society conducts the National Solar Energy Conference as an annual forum for exchange of information about advances in solar energy technologies, programs, and concepts. The SOLAR 93 conference presented papers on the following topics: passive design tools; passive performance; building case studies; passive components, construction and glazing; daylighting; passive cooling; sustainability theory; sustainability projects; vernacular architecture; emerging architecture; and education. A total of forty-nine papers were indexed separately for the data base

  11. A passive solar heater-refrigerator

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    D'Isep, F.; Sertorio, L.

    1983-01-01

    In this paper it is studied the nonequilibrium thermodynamic steady-state behaviour of a model system representing a core surrounded by an envelope in which the envelope interacts with the solar radiation and with an external bath having a given temperature profile. The heat flow between core and envelope can be controlled by varying the thermal conductivity of their interface. It is shown that this system acts as a passive heat pump raising the core average temperature with respect to the average equilibrium value corresponding to a fixed value of the interface conductivity, at the same time flattening its oscillation in time. By changing the time dependence of the conductivity the system vice versa acts as a refrigerator. It is shown how the limits of this performance depend on the passive parameters such as surfaces, conductivities, heat capacities. The periodicity considered in this study is the daily cycle

  12. Performance limit of daytime radiative cooling in warm humid environment

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Takahiro Suichi

    2018-05-01

    Full Text Available Daytime radiative cooling potentially offers efficient passive cooling, but the performance is naturally limited by the environment, such as the ambient temperature and humidity. Here, we investigate the performance limit of daytime radiative cooling under warm and humid conditions in Okayama, Japan. A cooling device, consisting of alternating layers of SiO2 and poly(methyl methacrylate on an Al mirror, is fabricated and characterized to demonstrate a high reflectance for sunlight and a selective thermal radiation in the mid-infrared region. In the temperature measurement under the sunlight irradiation, the device shows 3.4 °C cooler than a bare Al mirror, but 2.8 °C warmer than the ambient of 35 °C. The corresponding numerical analyses reveal that the atmospheric window in λ = 16 ∼ 25 μm is closed due to a high humidity, thereby limiting the net emission power of the device. Our study on the humidity influence on the cooling performance provides a general guide line of how one can achieve practical passive cooling in a warm humid environment.

  13. Supplementary material on passive solar heating concepts. A compilation of published articles

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    None

    1979-05-01

    A compilation of published articles and reports dealing with passive solar energy concepts for heating and cooling buildings is presented. The following are included: fundamental of passive systems, applications and technical analysis, graphic tools, and information sources. (MHR)

  14. Heat Removal Performance of Hybrid Control Rod for Passive In-Core Cooling System

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Kim, Kyung Mo; Jeong, Yeong Shin; Kim, In Guk; Bang, In Cheol [UNIST, Ulsan (Korea, Republic of)

    2015-10-15

    The two-phase closed heat transfer device can be divided by thermosyphon heat pipe and capillary wicked heat pipe which uses gravitational force or capillary pumping pressure as a driving force of the convection of working fluid. If there is a temperature difference between reactor core and ultimate heat sink, the decay heat removal and reactor shutdown is possible at any accident conditions without external power sources. To apply the hybrid control rod to the commercial nuclear power plants, its modelling about various parameters is the most important work. Also, its unique geometry is coexistence of neutron absorber material and working fluid in a cladding material having annular vapor path. Although thermosyphon heat pipe (THP) or wicked heat pipe (WHP) shows high heat transfer coefficients for limited space, the maximum heat removal capacity is restricted by several phenomena due to their unique heat transfer mechanism. Validation of the existing correlations on the annular vapor path thermosyphon (ATHP) which has different wetted perimeter and heated diameter must be conducted. The effect of inner structure, and fill ratio of the working fluid on the thermal performance of heat pipe has not been investigated. As a first step of the development of hybrid heat pipe, the ATHP which contains neutron absorber in the concentric thermosyphon (CTHP) was prepared and the thermal performance of the annular thermosyphon was experimentally studied. The heat transfer characteristics and flooding limit of the annular vapor path thermosyphon was studied experimentally to model the performance of hybrid control rod. The following results were obtained: (1) The annular vapor path thermosyphon showed better evaporation heat transfer due to the enhanced convection between adiabatic and condenser section. (2) Effect of fill ratio on the heat transfer characteristics was negligible. (3) Existing correlations about flooding limit of thermosyphon could not reflect the annular vapor

  15. Passive-solar directional-radiating cooling system

    Science.gov (United States)

    Hull, J.R.; Schertz, W.W.

    1985-06-27

    A radiative cooling system for use with an ice-making system having a radiating surface aimed at the sky for radiating energy at one or more wavelength bands for which the atmosphere is transparent and a cover thermally isolated from the radiating surface and transparent at least to the selected wavelength or wavelengths, the thermal isolation reducing the formation of condensation on the radiating surface and/or cover and permitting the radiation to continue when the radiating surface is below the dewpoint of the atmosphere, and a housing supporting the radiating surface, cover and heat transfer means to an ice storage reservoir.

  16. Cooling methods of station blackout scenario for LWR plants

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    2012-01-01

    The objective of this study is to analyze the cooling method of station blackout scenario for both the BWR and PWR plants by RELAP5 code and to check the validity of the cooling method proposed by the utilities. In the BWR plant cooling scenario, the Reactor Core Isolation Cooling System (RCIC), which is operated with high pressure steam from the reactor, injects cooling water into the reactor to keep the core water level. The steam generated in the core is released into the suppression pool at containment vessel to condense. To restrict the containment vessel pressure rising, the ventilation from the wet-well is operated. The scenario is analyzed by RELAP5 and CONTEMPT-LT code. In the PWR plant scenario, the primary pressure is decreased by the turbine-driven auxiliary feed water system operated with secondary side steam of the steam generators (SGs). And the core cooling is kept by the natural circulation flow at the primary loop. The analytical method of un-uniform flow behavior among the SG U-tubes, which affects the natural circulation flow rate, is developed. (author)

  17. Investigating the Role of Shell Thickness and Field Cooling on Saturation Magnetization and Its Temperature Dependence in Fe3O4/γ-Fe2O3 Core/Shell Nanoparticles

    Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

    Ihab M. Obaidat

    2017-12-01

    Full Text Available Understanding saturation magnetization and its behavior with particle size and temperature are essential for medical applications such magnetic hyperthermia. We report the effect of shell thickness and field cooling on the saturation magnetization and its behavior with temperature in Fe3O4/γ-Fe2O3 core/shell nanoparticles of fixed core diameter (8 nm and several shell thicknesses. X-ray diffraction (XRD analysis and transmission electron microscopy (TEM, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM were used to investigate the phase and the morphology of the samples. Selected area electron diffraction (SAED confirmed the core/shell structure and phases. Using a SQUID (San Diego, CA, USA, magnetic measurements were conducted in the temperature range of 2 to 300 K both under zero field-cooling (ZFC and field-cooling (FC protocols at several field-cooling values. In the ZFC state, considerable enhancement of saturation magnetization was obtained with the increase of shell thickness. After field cooling, we observed a drastic enhancement of the saturation magnetization in one sample up to 120 emu/g (50% larger than the bulk value. In both the FC and ZFC states, considerable deviations from the original Bloch’s law were observed. These results are discussed and attributed to the existence of interface spin-glass clusters which are modified by the changes in the shell thickness and the field-cooling.

  18. Sodium cooled fast reactor

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Hokkyo, N; Inoue, K; Maeda, H

    1968-11-21

    In a sodium cooled fast neutron reactor, an ultrasonic generator is installed at a fuel assembly hold-down mechanism positioned above a blanket or fission gas reservoir located above the core. During operation of the reactor an ultrsonic wave of frequency 10/sup 3/ - 10/sup 4/ Hz is constantly transmitted to the core to resonantly inject the primary bubble with ultrasonic energy to thereby facilitate its growth. Hence, small bubbles grow gradually to prevent the sudden boiling of sodium if an accident occurs in the cooling system during operation of the reactor.

  19. AP1000{sup R} nuclear power plant safety overview for spent fuel cooling

    Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

    Gorgemans, J.; Mulhollem, L.; Glavin, J.; Pfister, A.; Conway, L.; Schulz, T.; Oriani, L.; Cummins, E.; Winters, J. [Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, 1000 Westinghouse Drive, Cranberry Township, PA 16066 (United States)

    2012-07-01

    The AP1000{sup R} plant is an 1100-MWe class pressurized water reactor with passive safety features and extensive plant simplifications that enhance construction, operation, maintenance, safety and costs. The AP1000 design uses passive features to mitigate design basis accidents. The passive safety systems are designed to function without safety-grade support systems such as AC power, component cooling water, service water or HVAC. Furthermore, these passive features 'fail safe' during a non-LOCA event such that DC power and instrumentation are not required. The AP1000 also has simple, active, defense-in-depth systems to support normal plant operations. These active systems provide the first level of defense against more probable events and they provide investment protection, reduce the demands on the passive features and support the probabilistic risk assessment. The AP1000 passive safety approach allows the plant to achieve and maintain safe shutdown in case of an accident for 72 hours without operator action, meeting the expectations provided in the U.S. Utility Requirement Document and the European Utility Requirements for passive plants. Limited operator actions are required to maintain safe conditions in the spent fuel pool via passive means. In line with the AP1000 approach to safety described above, the AP1000 plant design features multiple, diverse lines of defense to ensure spent fuel cooling can be maintained for design-basis events and beyond design-basis accidents. During normal and abnormal conditions, defense-in-depth and other systems provide highly reliable spent fuel pool cooling. They rely on off-site AC power or the on-site standby diesel generators. For unlikely design basis events with an extended loss of AC power (i.e., station blackout) or loss of heat sink or both, spent fuel cooling can still be provided indefinitely: - Passive systems, requiring minimal or no operator actions, are sufficient for at least 72 hours under all

  20. A scaling study of the natural circulation flow of the ex-vessel core catcher cooling system of a 1400MW PWR for designing a scale-down test facility

    International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

    Rhee, Bo. W.; Ha, K. S.; Park, R. J.; Song, J. H.

    2012-01-01

    A scaling study on the steady state natural circulation flow along the flow path of the ex-vessel core catcher cooling system of 1400MWe PWR is described. The scaling criteria for reproducing the same thermalhydraulic characteristics of the natural circulation flow as the prototype core catcher cooling system in the scale-down test facility is derived and the resulting natural circulation flow characteristics of the prototype and scale-down facility analyzed and compared. The purpose of this study is to apply the similarity law to the prototype EU-APR1400 core catcher cooling system and the model test facility of this prototype system and derive a relationship between the heating channel characteristics and the down-comer piping characteristics so as to determine the down-comer pipe size and the orifice size of the model test facility. As the geometry and the heating wall heat flux of the heating channel of the model test facility will be the same as those of the prototype core catcher cooling system except the width of the heating channel is reduced, the axial distribution of the coolant quality (or void fraction) is expected to resemble each other between the prototype and model facility. Thus using this fact, the down-comer piping design characteristics of the model facility can be determined from the relationship derived from the similarity law