• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권7호
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• pp.2534-2546
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• 2023

Gas-cooled space reactor, which adopts He-Xe gas mixture as working fluid, is a better choice for megawatt power generation. In this paper, thermal-hydraulic characteristics of He-Xe gas mixture in 2×2 rod bundle wrapped with helical wires is numerically investigated. The velocity, pressure and temperature distribution of the coolant are obtained and analyzed. The results show that the existence of helical wires forms the vortexes and changes the velocity and temperature distribution. Hot spots are found at the contact corners between helical wires and fuel rods. The highest temperature of the hot spots reach 1600K, while the mainstream temperature is less than 400K. The helical wire structure increases the friction pressure drop by 20%-50%. The effect extent varies with the pitch and the number of helical wires. The helical wire structure leads to the reduction of Nusselt number. Comparing thermal-hydraulic performance ratios (THPR) of different structures, the THPR values are all less than 1. It means that gas-cooled space reactor adopting helical wires could not strengthen the core heat removal performance. This work provides the thermal-hydraulic design basis for He-Xe gas cooled space nuclear reactor.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제52권3호
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• pp.508-519
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• 2020

During transients or accidents, the reactor core is uncovered, and droplets entrained above the quench front collides with the uncovered fuel rod surface. Droplet impact cooling can reduce the peak cladding temperature. Besides zirconium-based cladding, versatile accidental tolerant fuel (ATF) claddings, including FeCrAl, have been proposed to increase the accident coping time. In order to investigate the effect of surface properties on droplet impact cooling of cladding surfaces, the droplet impact phenomena are photographed on the FeCrAl and zircaloy-4 (Zr-4) surfaces under different conditions. On the oxidized FeCrAl surface, the Leidenfrost phenomenon is not observed even when the surface temperature is as high as 550 ℃ with We > 30. Comparison of the impact behaviors observed on different materials shows that nucleate and transition boiling is more intensive on surfaces with larger thermal conductivity. The Leidenfrost point temperature (LPT) decreases with the solid thermal effusivity (${\sqrt{k{\rho}C_p}}$). However, the CHF temperature is relatively insensitive to the surface oxidation and Weber number. Droplet spreading diameter is analyzed quantitatively in the film boiling stage. Based on the energy balance a correlation is proposed for droplet maximum spreading factor. A mechanistic model is also developed for the LPT based on homogeneous nucleation theory.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제36권6호
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• pp.528-539
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• 2004

It is essential in commercial reactors that the safety limits imposed on the fuel pellets and fuel clad barriers, such as the linear power density (LPD) and the departure from nucleate boiling ratio (DNBR), are not violated during reactor operations. In order to accurately monitor the safety limits of current reactor states, a detailed three-dimensional (3D) core power distribution should be estimated from the in-core detector signals. In this paper, we propose a calculation methodology for detailed 3D core power distribution, using in-core detector signals and core monitoring constants such as the 3D Coupling Coefficients (3DCC), node power fraction, and pin-to-node factors. Also, the calculation method for several core safety parameters is introduced. The core monitoring constants for the real core state are promptly provided by the core design code and on-line MASTER (Multi-purpose Analyzer for Static and Transient Effects of Reactors), coupled with the core monitoring program. through the plant computer, core state variables, which include reactor thermal power, control rod bank position, boron concentration, inlet moderator temperature, and flow rate, are supplied as input data for MASTER. MASTER performs the core calculation based on the neutron balance equation and generates several core monitoring constants corresponding to the real core state in addition to the expected core power distribution. The accuracy of the developed method is verified through a comparison with the current CECOR method. Because in all the verification calculation cases the proposed method shows a more conservative value than the best estimated value and a less conservative one than the current CECOR and COLSS methods, it is also confirmed that this method secures a greater operating margin through the simulation of the YGN-3 Cycle-1 core from the viewpoint of the power peaking factor for the LPD and the pseudo hot pin axial power distribution for the DNBR calculation.

• 한국방사성폐기물학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국방사성폐기물학회 2017년도 추계학술논문요약집
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• pp.73-73
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• 2017

Pyroprocessing at KAERI (Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute) consists of pretreatment, electroreduction, electrorefining and electrowinning. SFR (Sodium Fast Reactor) fuel is prepared from the electrowinning process which is composed of LCC (Liquid Cadmium Process) and Cd distillation et al. LCC is an electrochemical process to obtain actinides from spent fuel. In order to recover actinides inert anodes such as carbon material are used, where chlorine gas ($Cl_2$) evolves on the surface of the carbon material. And, stainless steel (SUS) crucible should be installed in large-scale electrowinning system. Therefore, the effect of chlorine on the SUS material needs to be studied. LiCl-KCl-$UCl_3$-$NdCl_3$-$CeCl_3$-$LaCl_3$-$YCl_3$ salt was contained in 2 kinds of electrolytic crucible having an inner diameter of 5cm, made of an insulated alumina and an SUS, respectively. And, three kinds of electrodes such as cathode, anode, reference were used for the electrochemical experiments. Both solid tungsten (W) and LCC were used as cathodes. Cd of 45 g as the cathode material was contained in alumina crucibles for the deposition experiments, where the crucible has an inner diameter of 3 cm. Glassy carbon rod with the diameter of 0.3 cm was employed as an anode, where shroud was not used for the anode. A pyrex tube containing LiCl-KCl-1mol% AgCl and silver (Ag) wire having a diameter of 0.1cm was used as a reference electrode. Electrodeposition experiments were conducted at $500^{\circ}C$ at the current densities of $50{\sim}100mA/cm^2$. In conclusion, Fe ions were produced in the salt during the electrodeposition by the reaction of chlorine evolved from the anode and Fe of the SUS crucible and thereby LCC system using SUS crucible showed very low current efficiencies compared with the system using the insulated alumina crucible. Anode shroud needs to be installed around the glassy carbon not to influence surrounding SUS material.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제5권1호
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• pp.79-84
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• 2007

처분장에서 지하수로 쉽게 유출될 수 있는 방사성 핵종들의 양을 예측하기 위하여 국내 PWR 사용후핵연료 팰렛들의 갭(gap) 및 입계에 있는 용해성 원소들의 재고량을 측정하였다. 연소도가 $45{\sim}66$ GWD/MTU를 갖는 연료봉에서 얻은 펠렛들에서 세슘의 갭 재고량이 $0.85{\sim}1.7%$M로 나타났으며, 이는 핵분열 생성기체 유출률의 $1/6{\sim}1/3$에 해당하였다. 그러나 핵분열 생성기체 유출 률이 1%이하인 연료봉에서 취한 40 GWD/MTU이하의 연소도를 갖는 펠렛들의 경우, 세슘의 갭 재고량들을 핵분열 생성기체 유출률과 연관시키기는 곤란하였다. 갭 및 입계내 스트론튬의 재고량은 동일 연료봉내 펠렛에서는 크게 다르지 않았으며, 요오드의 갭 재고량은 핵분열 생성기체 유출률보다 작거나 유사한 값을 갖는 것으로 평가되었다.

• 방사성폐기물학회지
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• 제17권1호
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• pp.37-46
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• 2019

사고저항성 핵연료의 일환으로 $UO_2$ 입자가 세라믹 셀 벽으로 둘러싸인 미세구조를 갖는 세라믹 미소셀 $UO_2$ 소결체를 개발 중이다. 이는 핵분열생성물들을 $UO_2$ 펠렛 내에 포집하여 펠렛 외부로의 방출을 저감함으로써 봉내압 상승을 완화하고 응력부식균열 발생률을 낮춘다. 생성량이나 방사능 측면에서 위험한 핵분열생성물 중 하나로 여겨지는 세슘은 세라믹 미소셀소결체 내에서 셀 물질과 화학반응 하여 포집될 수 있다. 따라서, 세슘 포집능은 해당 화학반응의 열역학적, 속도론적 특성에 의해 결정된다. 역으로, 미소셀 소결체의 조성설계 시 해당 반응에 대한 열역학적 예측이 필수적이다. 본 연구는 세라믹 현재 개발 중인 여러 미소셀 조성(Si-Ti-O, Si-Cr-O, Si-Al-O)에 대해 세슘의 포집능을 평가하는 열역학적 계산을 다룬다. 계산에 앞서 먼저 HSC Chemistry를 이용해 세슘과 셀 물질의 물리/화학적 상태를 정의한 후, LWR 정상운전 모사환경에서 계산된 세슘포텐셜(${\Delta}G_{Cs}$)과 산소포텐셜(${\Delta}G_{O_2}$)에 근거하여 세슘포집 반응성을 평가하였다. 계산 결과에 근거하면, 세슘 포집반응은 상기 모든 조성에서 자발적일 것으로 예상되며 이로써 조성설계의 근거를 제시함과 동시에 세슘의 포집능을 평가하는 효과적인 방법을 제공한다.

• 에너지공학
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• 제5권2호
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• pp.146-152
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• 1996

열출력 108MW$_{th}$ 급의 소형 원자로심을 설계하였다. 설계 제한 조건으로 2년의 재장전 주기, 무붕산 운전, 저출력 밀도를 채택하였고, 핵연료의 설계는 울진 3 & 4호기의 핵연료집합체 사양을 그대로 채택하였다. 노심 출력준위 제어는 제어봉만으로 가능하도록 하였으며, CASMO-3와 KINS-3를 통해 설계된 초기노심이 주기길이, 첨두계수, 감속재 온도계수, 출력계수 등의 설계 한계치를 만족하는지 확인하였다. 설계 결과, 한국형 표준원전 핵연료집합체를 장전하는 유조선급의 선박용 소형원자로를 무붕산 운전 조건으로 설계 가능함을 알 수 있었다. 단 가연성 독봉을 축방향으로 농축도를 달리하여 장전할 필요가 있으며, 독봉과 제어봉을 설계 한계까지 사용하여야 함을 알았다. 충분한 정지 반응도를 얻기위해 3개의 제어봉군 이외에 추가적인 정지제어봉군이 노심 외곽에 배치되는 안이 제기되었다.

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 1997년도 춘계학술발표회논문집(1)
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• pp.184-189
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• 1997

A prompt fission gas release model incorporating the resistance to gas flow in the gap was developed and the effects of gap resistance and failure location on prompt fission gas release from the cladding breach were assessed. The process of prompt fission gas release from the plenum and gap into the coolant was modeled in accordance with three major phenomena: (1) transient gas flow in the gap, (2) the growth of the fission gas bubble while it is still attached to the breach, and (3) the detachment of the fission gas bubble from the breach and mixing with the coolant. The cumulative mass release fraction by the present model was calculated for the case of Young-Gwang 3 & 4 nuclear fuel rod as a typical example. The results showed that the release behavior of prompt fission gas with time was different from the frictionless model which has frequently been used in a simplified approach, and that the location of cladding failure was another key factor for the prompt fission gas release process due to the resistance in the gap.

• 대한기계학회:학술대회논문집
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• 대한기계학회 2007년도 춘계학술대회A
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• pp.1803-1806
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• 2007

The General roles of a spacer grid(SG) are providing a lateral and vertical support for fuel rods, promoting a mixing of coolant and keeping guide tubes straight so as not to impede a control rod insertion under any normal or accidental conditions. To evaluate the impact characteristics of a SG such as impact velocity, critical buckling strength and duration time, a few types of impact tests for SGs have been conducted. In a previous study, a new welding method, a through-welding method, was proposed to increase critical buckling strength of a SG without any design change or material change and was verified by impact tests with $7{\times}7$ partial SG specimens.In this paper, the effect of through-welding method in case of a $16{\times}16$ full-size SG is investigated by pendulum impact tests with $16{\times}16$ SG specimens. And the increase of critical buckling strength for full-size SGs is measured by comparison with impact results of spot-welded and through-welded SGs.

• International Journal of Safety
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• 제3권1호
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• pp.53-58
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• 2004

SMART-P is a promising advanced small and medium category nuclear power reactor. It is an integral type reactor with a sensible mixture of new innovative design features and proven technologies aimed at achieving a highly enhanced safety and improved economics. The enhancement of the safety and reliability is realized by incorporating inherent safety improving features and reliable passive safety systems. The improvement in the economics is achieved through a system simplification, and component modularization. Preliminary safety analyses on selected limiting accidents confirm that the inherent safety improving design characteristics and the safety system of SMART-P ensure the reactor's safety. SMART-P is an advanced integral pressurized water reactor. The purpose of this study is for the safety analysis of the steam generator module pipe break for the SMART-P. The integrity of the fuel rod is the major criteria of this analysis. As a result of this analysis, the safety of the RCS and the secondary system is guaranteed against the module pipe break of a steam generator of the SMART-P.