PRAISE-C. LWR Piping Reliability Assessment
- Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (United States)
PRAISE-C is a probabilistic fracture mechanics code used to estimate the probability of a double-ended guillotine break (DEGB) in light water reactor piping due to the growth of cracks at welded joints. Pipe failures are considered to occur as the result of crack-like defects either introduced during fabrication, or that initiate after plant operation has begun, and that escape detection during inspections. PRAISE was developed to estimate the influence of earthquakes on the probability of failure at a weld joint in the primary coolant system of a pressurized water reactor. An initial hydrostatic proof test, pre-service non-destructive inspection, and periodic in-service inspection can be simulated. PRAISE treats the inter-arrival times of operating transients, such as system heatup and cooldown, either as constant or exponentially distributed according to observed or postulated rates. Leak rate and leak detection models are also included. Earthquakes of varying intensity and arbitrary occurrence times can be modeled. PRAISE-C extends the capabilities of PRAISE-B to include a tearing instability failure criterion for carbon steels and an advanced probabilistic model of stress corrosion cracking in stainless steels (Type 304, Type 316NG nuclear grade) used for BWR reactor coolant piping. The stress corrosion model is semi-empirical in nature and is based on experimental and field data. The model considers crack initiation, including the number, time, and location of initiated cracks, in addition to the effect of stress corrosion on crack growth rates. Various phenomena are considered, including environment (i.e., coolant temperature, dissolved oxygen content, level of impurities), applied loads, residual stresses, material type, and degree of sensitization.
- Research Organization:
- Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Washington, DC (United States). Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research
- OSTI ID:
- 139081
- Report Number(s):
- ESTSC/NRC-000071C760000; NESC-1070
- Resource Relation:
- Other Information: DN: Memory must be preset to zero prior to execution. PRAISE-C calls the LLNL TV80LIB graphics routines FRAME, MAPARAM, MAPBOX, MAPS, PLOTE, SETCH, SETCHM, TRACE, and UX80ID; these routines are not included. Suitable alternatives must be provided to obtain graphical output.; PBD: 13 Jan 1992
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
Similar Records
Probability of failure in BWR reactor coolant piping: Volume 1, Summary report
Probability of pipe fracture in the primary coolant loop of a PWR plant. Volume 9: PRAISE computer code user's manual. Final report
Related Subjects
COMPUTERS
INFORMATION SCIENCE
MANAGEMENT
LAW
MISCELLANEOUS
22 NUCLEAR REACTOR TECHNOLOGY
21 NUCLEAR POWER REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
P CODES
SYSTEM FAILURE ANALYSIS
WELDED JOINTS
PROBABILITY
BWR TYPE REACTORS
EARTHQUAKES
REACTOR COOLING SYSTEMS
STAINLESS STEELS
CRACKS
MONTE CARLO METHOD
FRACTURE MECHANICS
STRESS CORROSION
PIPES
SEISMIC EVENTS
LOSS OF COOLANT
COMPUTER PROGRAM DOCUMENTATION