• 한국압력기기공학회 논문집
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• 제16권2호
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• pp.18-24
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• 2020

When a damage occurs in the nuclear fuel burning in the reactor, fission products that should be in the nuclear fuel rod are released into the reactor coolant. In this case, sipping test, a series of non-destructive inspection methods, are used to find leakage in nuclear fuel assemblies during the power plant overhaul period. In addition, the sipping test is also used to check the integrity of the spent fuel for moving to an intermediate dry storage, which is carried out as the first step of nuclear decommissioning, . In this paper, the principle and characteristics of the sipping test are described. The structure of the sipping inspection equipment is largely divided into a suction device that collects fissile material emitted from a damaged assembly and an analysis device that analyzes their nuclides. In order to make good use of the sipping technology, the radioactive level behavior of the primary system coolant and major damage mechanisms in the event of nuclear fuel damage are also introduced. This will be a reference for selecting an appropriate sipping method when dismantling a nuclear power plant in the future.

• 한국표면공학회지
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• 제56권1호
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• pp.84-93
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• 2023

The spent nuclear fuel is burned during the planned cycle in the plant and then generates elements such as actinide series, fission products, and plutonium with a long half-life. An 'interim storage' step is needed to manage the high radioactivity and heat emitted by nuclides until permanent-disposal. In the case of Korea, there is no space to dispose of high-level radioactive waste after use, so there is a need for a period of time using interim storage. Therefore, the intensity of neutrons and gamma-ray must be determined to ensure the integrity of spent nuclear fuel during interim storage. In particular, the most important thing in spent nuclear fuel is burnup evaluation, estimation of the source term of neutrons and gamma-ray is regarded as a reference measurement of the burnup evaluation. In this study, an analysis of spent nuclear fuel was conducted by setting up a virtual fuel burnup case based on CE16×16 fuel to check the total amount and spectrum of neutron, gamma radiation produced. The correlation between BU (burnup), IE (enrichment), and CT (cooling time) will be identified through spent nuclear fuel burnup calculation. In addition, the composition of nuclide inventory, actinide and fission products can be identified.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제52권5호
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• pp.1079-1092
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• 2020

A parametric study of several parameters relevant to design safety on the spent nuclear fuel (SNF) rod response under a drop accident is presented. In the view of the complexity of interactions between the independent safety-related parameters, a factorial design of experiment is employed as an efficient method to investigate the main effects and the interactions between them. A detailed single full-length fuel rod is used with consideration of post-irradiated fuel conditions under horizontal and vertical free-drops onto an unyielding surface using finite-element analysis. Critical drop heights and critical g-loads that yield the threshold plastic strain in the cladding are numerically estimated to evaluate the fuel rod structural resistance to impact load. The combinatory effects of four uncertain parameters (pellet-cladding interfacial bonding, material properties, spacer grid stiffness, rod internal pressure) and the interactions between them on the fuel rod response are investigated. The principal finding of this research showed that the effects of above-mentioned parameters on the load-carrying capacity of fuel rod are significantly different. This study could help to prioritize the importance of data in managing and studying the structural integrity of the SNF.

• 방사선산업학회지
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• 제18권2호
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• pp.133-140
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• 2024

The Korean 2^nd basic plan for management of high-level radioactive waste presented a plan to manage spent nuclear fuel through dry storage facilities in NPP on-site. For the construction and operation of the facility, it is necessary to develop the monitoring system of the integrity of spent nuclear fuel before operation. NUREG-1536 recommends that the theoretical cask array, typically in the 2×10 array, should account for shadowing effect among the dry storage casks. The objective of this study was to evaluate neutron flux accounting for shadowing effect among dry storage casks. The neutron release rate was evaluated using ORIGEN based on the design basis fuel condition. And the simulation of dry storage casks and evaluation of the shadowing effect were performed using MCNP. Shadowing effect of other dry storage casks was the highest at the center of the dry storage facility of the 2×10 array compared with the outside of the cask. The shadowing effect of neutron flux on the surface among the metal casks was approximately 18% at point 1, 23% at point 2, and 43% at point 3. For the concrete casks, the shadowing effect of neutron flux on the surface was approximately 46% at point 1, 51% at point 2, and 52% at point 3. This means that correction is necessary to monitor the integrity of spent nuclear fuel in each dry storage cask through evaluation of shadowing effect. The results of this study will be used for comparative analysis of neutron measurement data from spent nuclear fuels in dry storage cask. Additionally, the neutron flux evaluation procedure used in this study could be used as the basic data of safety assessment of dry storage cask and development of safety guide.

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 1998년도 춘계학술발표회논문집(1)
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• pp.719-724
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• 1998

A preliminary fuel channel analysis for 35% reactor inlet header (RIH) break in CANDU reactor loaded with the CANFLEX-RU fuel bundles has been performed. The predicted results are compared with those for the reactor compared with those for the reactor loaded with standard 37-element bundles. The maximum fuel centerline and sheath temperatures for the CANFLEX-RU bundle channel were lower by 338 and 122 $^{\circ}C$, respectively, than those for the standard bundle because of the Bower maximum linear power of the CANFLEX-RU bundle In spite of the 0.4 FPS higher power pulse of the CANFLEX-RU bundle case. Fuel integrity margin to fuel breakup for the CANFLEX-RU bundle is about 50 J/g higher than that for the standard bundle. The PT/CT contact for the CANFLEX-RU bundle occurred 2 s later than that for the standard bundle. The PT/CT contact temperature for the CANFLEX-RU bundle was 2 $^{\circ}C$ lower than that for the standard bundle. These provide the CANFLEX-RU bundle with the negligibly enhanced safety margin for the fuel channel integrity in CANDU 6 reactor, compared with the standard bundle.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제53권7호
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• pp.2268-2276
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• 2021

Spent nuclear fuel, which can degrade during long-term storage, must be transported intact in normal transport conditions. In this regard, many studies, including those involving Multi-Modal Transportation Test (MMTT) campaigns, have been conducted. In order to transport the spent fuel safely, a tie-down structure for supporting and transporting a cask containing the spent fuel is essential. To ensure its structural integrity, a method for finding an optimum conceptual design for the tie-down structure is presented. An optimized transportation test model of a tie-down structure for the KORAD-21 metal cask is derived based on the proposed optimization approach, and the transportation test model is manufactured by redesigning the optimized model to enable its producibility. The topology optimization approach presented in this paper can be used to obtain optimum conceptual designs of tie-down structures developed in the future.

• 한국압력기기공학회 논문집
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• 제17권2호
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• pp.65-74
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• 2021

This study aims to assess the effect of postulated seismic loads on the structural integrity of a spent nuclear fuel dry storage facility. Firstly, three-dimensional modal and response spectrum analyses were carried out. With regard to the latter analysis, the effect of incident angles against two horizontal and one vertical response spectra was also considered. Results showed that even though two critical locations were predicted at the longitudinal axis central part of upper flow path as well as the end discontinuity part of upper and lower flow paths connector, their maximum principal stress values were less than the tensile strength. Moreover, since the influence of vertical angle was 87% higher than that of horizontal angle in particular, which should be carefully handled to demonstrate integrity of the facility.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• 제55권12호
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• pp.4477-4490
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• 2023

Fuel locking mechanisms (FLMs) are essential in upward-flow research reactors to prevent accidental fuel separation from the core during reactor operation. This study presents a novel design concept for a remotely controlled plate-type nuclear fuel locking mechanism. By employing electromagnetic field analysis, we optimized the design of the electromagnet for fuel unlocking, allowing the FLM to adapt to various research reactor core designs, minimizing installation space, and reducing maintenance efforts. Computational flow analysis quantified the drag acting on the fuel assembly caused by coolant upflow. Subsequently, we performed finite element analysis and evaluated the structural integrity of the FLM based on the ASME boiler and pressure vessel (B&PV) code, considering design loads such as dead weight and flow drag. Our findings confirm that the new FLM design provides sufficient margins to withstand the specified loads. We fabricated a prototype comprising the driving part, a simplified moving part, and a dummy fuel assembly. Through basic operational tests on the assembled components, we verified that the manufactured products meet the performance requirements. This remote-controlled micro locking mechanism holds promise in enhancing the safety and efficiency of plate-type nuclear fuel operation in upflow research reactors.

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 2002년도 추계학술발표회요약집
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• pp.311-311
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• 2002

• 한국원자력학회:학술대회논문집
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• 한국원자력학회 2001년도 추계학술발표회요약집
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• pp.211-211
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• 2001