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Title: Convective cooling in a pool-type research reactor

Abstract

A reactor produces heat arising from fission reactions in the nuclear core. In the Missouri University of Science and Technology research reactor (MSTR), this heat is removed by natural convection where the coolant/moderator is demineralised water. Heat energy is transferred from the core into the coolant, and the heated water eventually evaporates from the open pool surface. A secondary cooling system was installed to actively remove excess heat arising from prolonged reactor operations. The nuclear core consists of uranium silicide aluminium dispersion fuel (U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}Al) in the form of rectangular plates. Gaps between the plates allow coolant to pass through and carry away heat. A study was carried out to map out heat flow as well as to predict the system’s performance via STAR-CCM+ simulation. The core was approximated as porous media with porosity of 0.7027. The reactor is rated 200kW and total heat density is approximately 1.07+E7 Wm{sup −3}. An MSTR model consisting of 20% of MSTR’s nuclear core in a third of the reactor pool was developed. At 35% pump capacity, the simulation results for the MSTR model showed that water is drawn out of the pool at a rate 1.28 kg s{sup −1} from the 4” pipe,more » and predicted pool surface temperature not exceeding 30°C.« less

Authors:
 [1];  [2]
  1. Malaysian Nuclear Agency, Industrial Technology Division, Blok 29T, Bangi 43200, Selangor (Malaysia)
  2. Missouri University of Science and Technology, Nuclear Engineering, 222 Fulton Hall 301 W.14th St., Rolla 64509 MO (United States)
Publication Date:
OSTI Identifier:
22494516
Resource Type:
Journal Article
Journal Name:
AIP Conference Proceedings
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 1704; Journal Issue: 1; Conference: iNuSTEC2015: International muclear science, technology and engineering conference 2015, Negeri Sembilan (Malaysia), 17-19 Aug 2015; Other Information: (c) 2016 AIP Publishing LLC; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0094-243X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; COOLANTS; HEAT; HEAT FLUX; MODERATORS; NATURAL CONVECTION; PERFORMANCE; RESEARCH REACTORS; SECONDARY COOLANT CIRCUITS; SIMULATION

Citation Formats

Sipaun, Susan, and Usman, Shoaib. Convective cooling in a pool-type research reactor. United States: N. p., 2016. Web. doi:10.1063/1.4940060.
Sipaun, Susan, & Usman, Shoaib. Convective cooling in a pool-type research reactor. United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4940060
Sipaun, Susan, and Usman, Shoaib. 2016. "Convective cooling in a pool-type research reactor". United States. https://doi.org/10.1063/1.4940060.
@article{osti_22494516,
title = {Convective cooling in a pool-type research reactor},
author = {Sipaun, Susan and Usman, Shoaib},
abstractNote = {A reactor produces heat arising from fission reactions in the nuclear core. In the Missouri University of Science and Technology research reactor (MSTR), this heat is removed by natural convection where the coolant/moderator is demineralised water. Heat energy is transferred from the core into the coolant, and the heated water eventually evaporates from the open pool surface. A secondary cooling system was installed to actively remove excess heat arising from prolonged reactor operations. The nuclear core consists of uranium silicide aluminium dispersion fuel (U{sub 3}Si{sub 2}Al) in the form of rectangular plates. Gaps between the plates allow coolant to pass through and carry away heat. A study was carried out to map out heat flow as well as to predict the system’s performance via STAR-CCM+ simulation. The core was approximated as porous media with porosity of 0.7027. The reactor is rated 200kW and total heat density is approximately 1.07+E7 Wm{sup −3}. An MSTR model consisting of 20% of MSTR’s nuclear core in a third of the reactor pool was developed. At 35% pump capacity, the simulation results for the MSTR model showed that water is drawn out of the pool at a rate 1.28 kg s{sup −1} from the 4” pipe, and predicted pool surface temperature not exceeding 30°C.},
doi = {10.1063/1.4940060},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22494516}, journal = {AIP Conference Proceedings},
issn = {0094-243X},
number = 1,
volume = 1704,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Jan 22 00:00:00 EST 2016},
month = {Fri Jan 22 00:00:00 EST 2016}
}