Plant Simulation System for Developing ABWR Automatic Power Regulator System

• Published in: Journal of nuclear science and technology Vol. 46; no. 1; pp. 41 - 48
• Main Authors: ISHII, Yoshihiko, FUSHIMI, Atsushi, ARITA, Setsuo, OCHI, Hitoshi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Tokyo Taylor & Francis Group 01.01.2009; Atomic Energy Society of Japan
• Subjects: ABWR; Applied sciences; critical; Energy; Energy. Thermal use of fuels; Exact sciences and technology; Fission nuclear power plants; generator; heat-up; Installations for energy generation and conversion: thermal and electrical energy; plant; real time; shutdown; simulator; start-up; transient; ABWR; Personal computer; simulator; critical; Neutron detectors; Unsteady state; Computation code; generator; Real time; Modeling; Nuclear reactor; Boiling water reactor; Shutdown; heat-up; transient; Dimensional analysis; Starting; plant; Automatic system; System simulation; Kinetics; start-up; Reactor core
• ISSN: 0022-3131; 1881-1248
• DOI: 10.1080/18811248.2007.9711505

We developed a plant simulation code system to design and verify an automatic power regulator (APR) system for an advanced boiling water reactor (ABWR). The point kinetic plant simulator AUTSIMU is an off-line and real-time online plant simulation code that can simulate the start-up process from a subcritical condition of cold water to a 100% rated power condition as well as the reactor shutdown process. The three-dimensional effect of neutron detector signals in the core was simulated by combining predetermined three-dimensional analysis and point kinetic analysis results. The AUTSIMU code was tested using ABWR start-up experimental data. The calculated results were in good agreement with the measured ones. Less than one minute was needed in the off-line mode to simulate a ten-hour transient with an ordinary personal computer. We confirmed that simple AUTSIMU models could effectively simulate ABWR start-up behaviors. The APR hardware was effectively verified in the online mode through factory tests before being shipped to the nuclear site.