Impact of Zr metal and coking reactions on the fission product aerosol release during MCCI (Molten Core Concrete Interactions)
During a core meltdown accident in a light water reactor, molten core materials (corium) could leave the reactor vessel and interact with concrete. In this paper, the impact of the zirconium content of the corium pool and the coking reaction on the release of fission products during Molten Core Concrete Interactions (MCCI) are quantified using CORCON/MOD2 and VANESA computer codes. Detailed calculations show that the total aerosol generation is proportional to the zirconium content of the corium pool. Among the twelve fission product groups treated by the VANESA code, CsI, CsO/sub 2/ and Nb/sub 2/O/sub 5/ are completely released over the course of the core/concrete interaction, while an insignificant quantity of Mo, Ru and ZrO/sub 2/ are predicted to be released. The release of BaO, SrO and CeO/sub 2/ increase with increased Zr content, while the releases of Te and La/sub 2/O/sub 3/ are relatively unaffected by the Zr content of the corium pool. The impact of the coking reaction on the radiological releases is estimated to be significant; while the impact of the coking reaction on the aerosol production is insignificant.
- Research Organization:
- Brookhaven National Lab., Upton, NY (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC02-76CH00016
- OSTI ID:
- 6331206
- Report Number(s):
- BNL-NUREG-39637; CONF-870816-19; ON: DE87009142
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS
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ACCIDENTS
AEROSOLS
ALKALI METALS
BUILDING MATERIALS
CESIUM
COLLOIDS
COMPUTER CODES
CONCRETES
CORIUM
DISPERSIONS
ELEMENTS
FISSION PRODUCT RELEASE
FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTIONS
HALOGENS
IODINE
MATERIALS
MELTDOWN
METALS
NIOBIUM
NONMETALS
RADIOACTIVE AEROSOLS
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
REACTORS
SOLS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
WATER COOLED REACTORS
ZIRCONIUM