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U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Characteristics of severely damaged fuel from PBF tests and the TMI-2 accident

Conference ·
OSTI ID:5048816
As a result of the TMI-2 reactor accident, the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission initiated a research program to investigate phenomena associated with severe fuel damage accidents. This program is sponsored by several countries and includes in-pile and out-of-pile experiments, separate effects studies, and computer code development. The principal in-pile testing portion of the program includes four integral severe fuel damage (SFD) tests in the Power Burst Facility (PBF) at the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL). The INEL is also responsible for examining the damaged core in the Three Mile Island-Unit 2 (TMI-2) reactor, which offers the unique opportunity to directly compare the findings of an experimental program to those of an actual reactor accident. The principal core damage phenomena which can occur during a severe accident are discussed, and examples from the INEL research programs are used to illustrate the characteristics of these phenomena. The preliminary results of the programs are presented, and their impact on plant operability during severe accidents is discussed.
Research Organization:
EG and G Idaho, Inc., Idaho Falls (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
AC07-76ID01570
OSTI ID:
5048816
Report Number(s):
EGG-M-31786; CONF-860908-18; ON: TI87000467
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English