Drying tests conducted on Three Mile Island fuel canisters containing simulated debris

Conference · Sun Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1995

OSTI ID:231284

Palmer, A J

Drying tests were conducted on TMI-2 fuel canisters filled with simulated core debris. During these tests, canisters were dried by heating externally by a heating blanket while simultaneously purging the canisters` interior with hot, dry nitrogen. Canister drying was found to be dominated by moisture retention properties of a concrete filler material (LICON) used for geometry control. This material extends the drying process 10 days or more beyond what would be required were it not there. The LICON resides in a nonpurgeable chamber separate from the core debris, and because of this configuration, dew point measurements on the exhaust stream do not provide a good indication of the dew point in the canisters. If the canisters are not dried, but rather just dewatered, 140-240 lb of water (not including the LICON water of hydration) will remain in each canister, approximately 50-110 lb of which is pore water in the LICON and the remainder unbound water.

• Research Organization: Idaho National Engineering Lab., Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE, Washington, DC (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: AC07-94ID13223
• OSTI ID: 231284
• Report Number(s): INEL--95/00431; CONF-9606116--18; ON: DE96009021
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
CONTAINERS
CORIUM
DRYING
SIMULATION
THREE MILE ISLAND-2 REACTOR
WATER REMOVAL