Loss of pressurizer water level during station blackout
Station blackout is the loss of all alternating current (ac) power to both the essential and nonessential electrical buses in a nuclear power plant. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has proposed a requirement that all plants be capable of maintaining adequate core cooling during station blackout events lasting a specified duration. The NRC has also suggested acceptable specified durations of four or eight hours, depending on individual plant susceptibility to blackout events. In a pressurized water reactor (PWR), the occurrence of a station blackout event results in the functional loss of many plant components, including main feedwater, reactor coolant pumps, the emergency core cooling system, and pressurizer heaters and spray. Nevertheless, PWRs have the capability of removing decay heat for some period of time using steam-driven auxiliary feedwater pumps and the natural-circulation capability of the primary system. The purpose of this investigation is to determine the early response of a PWR to station blackout conditions. In particular, the effect of primary coolant shrinkage and inventory loss on pressurizer level is examined to gain insight into the operational and analytical issues associated with the proposed station blackout coping requirement.
- OSTI ID:
- 6818884
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-861102-
- Journal Information:
- Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; (United States), Journal Name: Trans. Am. Nucl. Soc.; (United States) Vol. 53; ISSN TANSA
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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220900* -- Nuclear Reactor Technology-- Reactor Safety
AC SYSTEMS
ACCIDENTS
AFTER-HEAT REMOVAL
BOILERS
COMPUTER CODES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
CONVECTION
COOLING SYSTEMS
ECCS
ENERGY SYSTEMS
ENERGY TRANSFER
ENGINEERED SAFETY SYSTEMS
FAILURES
FEEDWATER
FLUID FLOW
FLUID MECHANICS
HEAT TRANSFER
HYDRAULICS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
LOSS OF COOLANT
MASS TRANSFER
MECHANICS
NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
NATURAL CONVECTION
OUTAGES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POWER SYSTEMS
PRESSURIZERS
PRIMARY COOLANT CIRCUITS
PUMPS
PWR TYPE REACTORS
R CODES
REACTOR ACCIDENTS
REACTOR COMPONENTS
REACTOR COOLING SYSTEMS
REACTOR CORES
REACTOR PROTECTION SYSTEMS
REACTOR SAFETY
REACTORS
REMOVAL
SAFETY
SEALS
SIMULATION
STEAM GENERATORS
TWO-PHASE FLOW
US NRC
US ORGANIZATIONS
VAPOR GENERATORS
WATER
WATER COOLED REACTORS
WATER MODERATED REACTORS