• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.56 no.7
• /
• pp.2458-2473
• /
• 2024

The turbulent flow in reactor pressure vessel (RPV) of pressurized water reactor (PWR) is important for the flow rate distribution at core inlet. Thus, it is vital to study the turbulent flow phenomena in RPV. However, the complicated fluid channel consisted of inner structures of RPV will block or refract the laser sheet of particle image velocimetry (PIV). In this work, the matched index of refraction (MIR) of sodium iodide (NaI) solution and acrylic was applied to support optical path for flow field measurements by PIV in the 1/10th scaled-down RPV model. The experimental results show detailed velocity field at different locations inside the scaled-down RPV model. Some interesting phenomena are obtained, including the non-negligible counterflow at the corner of nozzle edge, the high downward flowing stream in downcomer, large vortices above vortex suppression plate in lower plenum. And the intensity of counterflow and the strength of vortices increase as inlet flow rate increasing. Finally, the case of asymmetry flow was also studied. The turbulent flow has different pattern compared with the case of symmetrical inlet flow rate, which may affect the uniformity of flow distribution at the core inlet.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.53 no.8
• /
• pp.2610-2615
• /
• 2021

The prediction of irradiation-induced transition temperature shift for RPV steels is an important method for long term operation of nuclear power plant. Based on the irradiation embrittlement data, an irradiation-induced transition temperature shift prediction model is developed with machine learning method XGBoost. Then the residual, standard deviation and predicted value vs. measured value analysis are conducted to analyze the accuracy of this model. At last, Cu content threshold and saturation values analysis, temperature dependence, Ni/Cu dependence and flux effect are given to verify the reliability. Those results show that the prediction model developed with XGBoost has high accuracy for predicting the irradiation embrittlement trend of RPV steel. The prediction results are consistent with the current understanding of RPV embrittlement mechanism.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.55 no.5
• /
• pp.1651-1664
• /
• 2023

It is very difficult to capture the multi-dimensional phenomena such as asymmetric flow and temperature distributions with the one-dimensional (1D) model, obviously, due to its inherent limitation. In order to overcome such a limitation of the 1D representation, many state-of-the-art system codes have equipped a three-dimensional (3D) component for multi-dimensional analysis capability. In this study, a standard multi-dimensional analysis model of APR1400 (Advanced Power Reactor 1400) has been developed using TRACE (TRAC/RELAP Advanced Computational Engine). The entire reactor pressure vessel (RPV) of APR1400 has been modeled using a single 3D component. The fuels in the reactor core have been described with detailed and coarse representations, respectively, to figure out the impact of the fuel description. Using both 3D RPV models, a comparative analysis has been performed postulating a double-ended guillotine break at a cold leg. Based on the results of comparative analysis, it is revealed that both models show no significant difference in general plant behavior and the model with coarse fuel model could be used for faster transient analysis without reactor kinetics coupling. The analysis indicates that the asymmetric temperature and flow distributions are captured during the transient, and such nonuniform distributions contribute to asymmetric quenching behaviors during blowdown and reflood phases. Such asymmetries are directly connected to the figure of merits in the LBLOCA analysis. Therefore, it is recommended to employ a multi-dimensional RPV model with a detailed fuel description for a realistic safety analysis with the consideration of the spatial configuration of the reactor core.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
• /
• v.5 no.6
• /
• pp.683-690
• /
• 1999

This paper deals with a fault-tolerant control method for robust control of RPV(Remotely Piloted Vehicle). To design the flight control system, the 6-DOF simulation program has been developed based on the dynamic model of RPV. A robust fault detection and diagnosis method proposed by Kwon et al. [8]-[10] is adopted to detect the actuator fault of RPV and to make the controller reconfiguration. The Hoo control method is applied to the flight control system. An integrated simulation for performance evaluation of the fault-tolerat\nt control system designed is performed via 6 DOF simulation and shows that the control system works even under the actuator fault.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.51 no.2
• /
• pp.501-509
• /
• 2019

In this paper a body-centered cubic(BCC) crystal plasticity model based on microscopic dislocation mechanism is introduced and numerically implemented. The model is coupled with irradiation effect via tracking dislocation loop evolution on each slip system. On the basis of the model, uniaxial tensile tests of unirradiated and irradiated RPV steel(take Chinese A508-3 as an example) at different temperatures are simulated, and the simulation results agree well with the experimental results. Furthermore, crystal plasticity damage is introduced into the model. Then the damage behavior before and after irradiation is studied using the model. The results indicate that the model is an effective tool to study the effect of irradiation and temperature on the mechanical properties and damage behavior.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.56 no.6
• /
• pp.2071-2078
• /
• 2024

The precipitation of solutes is a major cause of irradiation hardening and embrittlement limiting the service life of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) steels. Impurities play a significant role in the formation of precipitation in RPV materials. In this study, the effects of carbon on cluster formation and irradiation hardening were investigated in an RPV alloy Fe-1.35Mn-0.75Ni using C and Fe ions irradiation at 290 ℃. Nanoindentation results showed that C ion irradiation led to less hardening below 1.0 dpa, with hardening continuing to increase gradually at higher doses, while it was saturated under Fe ion irradiation. Atom probe tomography revealed a broad size distribution of Ni-Mn clusters under Fe ion irradiation, contrasting a narrower size distribution of small Ni-Mn clusters under C ion irradiation. Further analysis indicated the influence of carbon on the cluster formation, with solute-precipitated defects dominating under C ion irradiation but interstitial clusters dominating under Fe ion irradiation. Simulations suggested that carbon significantly affected solute nucleation, with defect clusters displaying smaller size and higher density as carbon concentration increased. The higher hardening at doses above 1.0 dpa was attributed to a substantial increase in the number density of defect clusters when carbon was present in the matrix.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.410-423
• /
• 2000

A two-dimensional numerical model is developed and applied to the LAVA-EXV tests performed at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) to investigate the external cooling effect on the thermal margin to failure of a reactor pressure vessel (RPV) during a severe accident. The computational program was written to predict the temperature profile of a two-dimensional spherical vessel segment accounting for the conjugate heat transfer mechanisms of conduction through the debris and the vessel, natural convection within the molten debris pool, and the possible ablation of the vessel wall in contact with the high temperature melt. Results of the sensitivity analysis and comparison with the LAVA-EXV test data indicated that the developed computational tool carries a high potential for simulating the thermal behavior of the RPV during a core melt relocation accident. It is concluded that the main factors affecting the RPV failure are the natural convection within the debris pool and the ablation of the metal vessel, The simplistic natural convection model adopted in the computational program partly made up for the absence of the mechanistic momentum consideration in this study. Uncertainties in the prediction will be reduced when the natural convection and ablation phenomena are more rigorously dealt with in the code, and if more accurate initial and time-dependent conditions are supplied from the test in terms of material composition and its associated thermophysical properties.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Automotive Engineers
• /
• v.10 no.6
• /
• pp.51-58
• /
• 2002

The RPV(Reaction Progress Variable) combustion model has been applied to numerically investigate the effects of Damkohler number on the superequilibrium concentration and flame structure in the nonpremixed turbulent flames. Computations are performed for the two turbulent jet flames of CO/H$_2$/N$_2$(40/30/30 volume percent) having the same jet Reynolds number of 16,700 but different nozzle diameters(4.58mm and 7.72mm). The detailed discussions have been made for the interaction between fluid dynamics and chemistry in the flame field.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.395-409
• /
• 2000

Parametric studies were performed to assess the sensitivity in determining the maximum in-vessel heat removal capability from the core material relocated into the lower plenum of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV）during a core melt accident. A fraction of the sensible heat can be removed during the molten jet delivery from the core to the lower plenum, while the remaining sensible heat and the decay heat can be transported by rather complex mechanisms of the counter-current flow limitation (CCFL) and the critical heat flux (CHF）through the irregular, hemispherical gap that may be formed between the freezing oxidic debris and the overheated metallic RPV wall. It is shown that under the pressurized condition of 10MPa with the sensible heat loss being 50% for the reactors considered in this study, i.e. TMI-2, KORI-2 like, YGN-3&4 like and KNGR like reactors, the heat removal through the gap cooling mechanism was capable of ensuring the RPV integrity as much as 30% to 40% of the total core mass was relocated to the lower plenum. The sensitivity analysis indicated that the cooling rate of debris coupled with the sensible heat loss was a significant factor The newly proposed heat removal capability map (HRCM) clearly displays the critical factors in estimating the maximum heat removal from the debris in the lower plenum. This map can be used as a first-principle engineering tool to assess the RPV thermal integrity during a core melt accident. The predictive model also provided ith a reasonable explanation for the non-failure of the test vessel in the LAVA experiments performed at the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI), which apparently indicated a cooling effect of water ingression through the debris-to-vessel gap and the intra-debris pores and crevices.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
• /
• v.26 no.11
• /
• pp.2399-2408
• /
• 2002

A prediction procedure has been developed to evaluate the microtructures and material properties of heat affected zone (HAZ) in pressure vessel steel weld, based on temperature analysis, thermodynamics calculation and reaction kinetics model. Temperature distributions in HAE are calculated by finite element method. The microstructures in HAZ are predicted by combining the temperature analysis results with the reaction kinetics model for austenite grain growth and austenite decomposition. Substituting the microstructure prediction results into the previous experimental relations, the mechanical material properties such as hardness, yielding strength and tensile strength are calculated. The prediction procedure is modified and verified by the comparison between the present results and the previous study results for the simulated HAZ in reactor pressure vessel (RPV) circurnferential weld. Finally, the microstructures and mechanical material properties are determined by applying the final procedure to real RPV circumferential weld and the local weak zone in HAZ is evaluated based on the application results.