Experimental studies on metallic fuel relocation in a pin bundle core structure of a sodium-cooled fast reactor
•Experiments dropping uranium into sodium filled pin bundle geometry were conducted.•Post-test radiographic images were used to confirm how the uranium was relocated.•Pressure drop was measured to evaluate the blockage of the sodium coolant channel.•The more formation of the eutectics could lead to...
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Published in | Nuclear engineering and design Vol. 365; p. 110719 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Amsterdam
Elsevier B.V
15.08.2020
Elsevier BV Elsevier |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | •Experiments dropping uranium into sodium filled pin bundle geometry were conducted.•Post-test radiographic images were used to confirm how the uranium was relocated.•Pressure drop was measured to evaluate the blockage of the sodium coolant channel.•The more formation of the eutectics could lead to more dispersion and less blockage.
Understanding the relocation behavior of metallic fuel in severe accident scenarios is one of the most important factors in the safety assessment of sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFRs). In the present study, the relocation behavior of uranium metallic fuel was investigated by conducting metallic fuel relocation experiments using 19-pin bundle test sections in the Argonne’s Metallic Uranium Safety Experiment (MUSE) facility. Post-test radiographic images were taken to characterize the uranium fuel relocation within the pin bundle test section. In addition, the pressure drop in the test sections was measured after the relocation experiments to evaluate the blockage of the sodium coolant channel. The pressure drop in the pin bundle test sections was also analytically calculated by varying the porosity and the pore size of the relocated fuel. The porosity and pore size of the relocated fuel in the pin bundle test sections were estimated by comparing those calculated pressure drop values with the measured pressure drop values from the pressure drop tests. The experimental results showed that the more formation of the eutectics could lead to more fuel dispersion and less blockage due to the lower freezing point of the eutectics. |
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Bibliography: | AC02-06CH11357 USDOE Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI) |
ISSN: | 0029-5493 1872-759X |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.nucengdes.2020.110719 |