• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제56권3호
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• pp.873-879
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• 2024

A sodium-cooled fast reactor (SFR) core has a potential of prompt criticality due to a change of core material distribution during a severe accident, and the resultant energy release has been one of the safety issues of SFRs. In this study, the safety assessment of an unprotected loss-of-flow (ULOF) in a small SFR (SSFR) has been performed using the SIMMER-IV computer code, which couples the models of space- and time-dependent neutronics and multi-component, multi-field thermal hydraulics in three dimensions. The code, therefore, is applicable to the simulations of transient behaviors of extended disrupted core material motion and its reactivity effects during the transition phase (TP) of ULOF, including a potential of prompt-criticality power excursions driven by fuel compaction. Several conservative assumptions are used in the TP analysis by SIMMER-IV. It was found out that one of the important mechanisms that drives the reactivity-inserting fuel motion was sodium vapor pressure resulted from a fuel-coolant interaction (FCI), which itself was non-energetic local phenomenon. The uncertainties relating to FCI is also evaluated in much conservative way in the sensitivity analysis. From this study, the ULOF characteristics in an SSFR have been understood. Occurrence of recriticality events under conservative assumptions are plausible, but their energy releases are limited.

• 대한기계학회논문집B
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• 제34권12호
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• pp.1051-1060
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• 2010

고화 입자 크기의 관점에서 TROI 용융물-냉각수 반응 실험의 결과에 대한 물질 효과를 분석하였다. 고화 입자 크기를 분석하면 용융물-냉각수 반응에서 초기 조건, 혼합, 폭발을 기적으로 해석할 수 있다. 증기 폭발이 발생한 경우와 폭발이 발생하지 않는 경우의 고화 입자 크기를 분석한 결과 증기 폭발이 발생한 경우에는 미세 입자가 많고 비교적 큰 입자는 적은 것으로 나타났다. 또한, 혼합 과정에 대한 정보를 보존할 수 있는 증기 폭발이 발생하지 않은 용융물-냉각수 반응을 이용하여 용융물 입자 크기에 대한 물질 효과를 분석하였다. 증기 폭발이 잘 발생하는 용융물은 증기 폭발에 참여할 수 있는 큰 입자를 많이 포함하고 있었고, 증기 폭발이 잘 발생하지 않는 용융물은 증기 폭발보다는 냉각되기 쉬운 작은 입자 혹은 미세 입자를 많이 포함하고 있었다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권7호
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• pp.2454-2465
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• 2023

Film boiling may lead to burnout of the heating element. Even though burnout does not occur, the heating element is subject to deformation because it is not sufficiently strong to withstand external loads. In particular, the ballooning and rupture of a tube under film boiling are important phenomena in the field of nuclear reactor safety. If the tube-type cladding of nuclear fuel ruptures owing to high internal pressure and thermal load, radioactive materials inside the cladding are released to the coolant. Therefore, predicting the ballooning and rupture is important. This study presents numerical simulations to predict the ballooning behavior and rupture time of a horizontal tube at high internal pressure under saturated film boiling. To do so, a multi-step coupled simulation of conjugated film boiling heat transfer and ballooning using creep model is adopted. The numerical methods and models are validated against experimental values. Two different nonuniform heat flux distributions and four different internal pressures are considered. The three-step simulation is enough to obtain a convergent result. However, the single-step simulation also successfully predicts the rupture time. This is because the film boiling heat transfer characteristics are slightly affected by the tube geometry related to creep ballooning.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제41권5호
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• pp.603-616
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• 2009

The past two decades were mainly devoted to model validation and computer code verification against global corium experiments, code application to reactor situations, and investigation of the role of melt properties in steam explosion energetics. Corium data were essentially provided by JRC-Ispra in the FARO and KROTOS facilities and by KAERI in the TROI facility. Verification of code applicability to reactor situations was performed essentially in the frame of the international OECD/SERENA programme. The paper makes a synthesis of the findings made during the above-mentioned period and expresses a personal view of the author with respect to the progress made and expected for the resolution of the steam explosion issue for light water reactors.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제26권2호
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• pp.257-264
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• 1994

원자력발전소 중대사고시 용융된 노심과 잔류냉각수가 증기폭발을 일으켜 원자로 격납용기의 건전성을 위협할 수 있다. 본 연구에서는 증기폭발을 모사할 수 있는 실험 장치를 제작하고, 물과 프레온을 사용하여 증기폭발실험을 수행하였다. 이때 고속카메라를 사용하여 폭발현상을 관측하였고, 동압측정기와 압력분출관을 이용하여 생성되는 폭발압력과 기계적인 에너지를 계측하였다. 이를 토대로 증기폭발의 중요인자들(물의 온도, 물의 주입속도, 물의 주입 시간, 그리고 냉매의 깊이)에 대한 민감도 분석을 수행하였다. 그리고, 압력용기 바닥의 구조물이 용융/냉각재의 반응에 미치는 영향을 살펴보기위하여 실험용기 내부에 그리드를 설치하여 폭발실험을 실시하였다. 물/프레온의 폭발실험에서 계측된 기계적에너지를 이용한 에너지효율은 0.5∼l.6%인 것으로 계산되었다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제21권2호
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• pp.99-110
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• 1989

원자로 지논 농도의 최적 제어는 Linear Quadratic Regulator Problem이다. 지논 농도와 아이오다인 농도는 측정할 수 없기 때문에 최적 제어를 수행하기 위해서는 측정할 수 없는 상태 변수를 예측하는 것이 필요하다. 본 연구에서 사용된 예측방법은 Luenberger Observer를 기초로 했다. 원자로 상태 방정식은 빠른 상태 방정식(중성자 속, 핵연료 및 냉각재 온도)과 느린 상태 방정식(아이오다인, 지논)의 상호작용에 의해 Stiffness 문제가 발생되는데 이러한 시스템을 "Singularly Perturbed System"이라 한다. Stiffness문제를 해결하기 위해서 원 시스템을 느린 시스템과 빠른 시스템의 두 개의 모드로 나누는 Singular Perturbation Method를 사용한다. 예측기Observer를 이용한 원 시스템의 제어기는 느린 시스템과 빠른 시스템에 대한 분리된 예측기와 제어기의 설계에 의해 결정되어진다. 특히 원자로 상태 방정식에서는 빠른 모드는 빨리 사라지게 되므로 단지 느린 시스템에 대해서만 예측기를 설계하면 된다. 컴퓨터시뮬레이션을 통한 시험 결과는 원자로의 지논 진동은 Singular Perturbation Method와 예측기를 이용해서 거의 정확하게 효과적으로 짧은 시간내에 제어할 수 있음을 알았다.수 있음을 알았다.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제54권2호
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• pp.589-600
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• 2022

Investigations on the molten-pool sloshing behavior are of essential value for improving nuclear safety evaluation of Core Disruptive Accidents (CDA) that would be possibly encountered for Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors (SFR). This paper is aimed at synthesizing the knowledge from our recent studies on molten-pool sloshing behavior with solid particles conducted at the Sun Yat-sen University. To better visualize and clarify the mechanism and characteristics of sloshing induced by local Fuel-Coolant Interaction (FCI), experiments were performed with various parameters by injecting nitrogen gas into a 2-dimensional liquid pool with accumulated solid particles. It was confirmed that under different particle-bed conditions, three representative flow regimes (i.e. the bubble-impulsion dominant, transitional and bed-inertia dominant regimes) are identifiable. Aimed at predicting the regime transitions during sloshing process, a predictive empirical model along with a regime map was proposed on the basis of experiments using single-sized spherical solid particles, and then was extended for covering more complex particle conditions (e.g. non-spherical, mixed-sized and mixed-density spherical particle conditions). To obtain more comprehensive understandings and verify the applicability and reliability of the predictive model under more realistic conditions (e.g. large-scale 3-dimensional condition), further experimental and modeling studies are also being prepared under other more complicated actual conditions.