Deflagration analysis of the ITP facility utilizing the MELCOR/SR code
Under certain accident conditions, waste tanks in the In-Tank Processing (ITP) facility may contain significant concentrations of benzene and hydrogen. Because these gases are flammable, a safety analysis was required to demonstrate that the risk posed by the possible combustion of these gases is acceptable. In support of this analysis, the MELCOR/SR computer code was modified to simulate the combustion of benzene-hydrogen mixtures. MELCOR/SR was developed originally to analyze severe accidents that may occur in the SRS production reactors but many of its modules can be used also for non-reactor applications such as combustion and aerosol and radionuclide transport. The MELCOR/SR combustion model (package) was originally configured for the deflagration analysis of hydrogen-carbon monoxide mixtures. With minor changes to the coding in the combustion package subroutines, and the addition of benzene thermodynamic and transport properties to the input decks, MELCOR/SR was modified to analyze deflagrations in benzene-hydrogen gas mixtures. A MELCOR/SR model was created consisting of two control volumes connected by flow paths. One volume represents a type III waste tank; the other, the environment. The flow paths represent vents that open during the deflagration. Choked flow and radiative heat transfer from the hot gas to the cooling coils and tank walls are phenomonalogical aspects accounted for in the model. Results from MELCOR/SR compared favorably with results from two other codes: COMPACT, a code similar to MELCOR/SR used in the preliminary ITP analysis and DPAC, a code developed specifically to analyze deflagrations in SRS waste tanks. Peak pressures predicted by MELCOR/SR (and by DPAC) for realistic waste tank conditions do not exceed the pressure required to fail the primary line of the tank. ({approximately}23 psig)
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC09-89SR18035
- OSTI ID:
- 473991
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-RP-93-599; CONF-940602-24; ON: DE97060066; TRN: 97:010329
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 35. annual meeting of the American Nuclear Society, New Orleans, LA (United States), 11-16 Jun 1994; Other Information: PBD: Jul 1993
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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