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Title: PTA-1: a computer program for analysis of pressure transients in hydraulic networks, including the effect of pipe plasticity

Abstract

The computer program PTA-1 performs pressure-transient analysis of large piping networks using the one-dimensional method of characteristics applied to a fluid-hammer formulation. The effect of elastic-plastic deformation of piping on pulse propagation is included in the computation. The program is particularly oriented toward the analysis of the effects of a sodium/water reaction on the intermediate heat-transport system of a liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor, but may be applied just as usefully to other pulse sources and other piping systems. PTA-1 is capable of treating complex piping networks and includes a variety of junction types. Pipe friction and nonlinear velocity terms are included in the formulation. The program requires a minimum of input-data preparation and is designed to be easily used and modified. This report contains the governing equations, program structure, input requirements, program listing, and other information for PTA-1.

Authors:
;
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE
OSTI Identifier:
7108401
Report Number(s):
ANL-76-64
DOE Contract Number:
W-31-109-ENG-38
Resource Type:
Technical Report
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS; 21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS; COMPUTER CODES; P CODES; LMFBR TYPE REACTORS; REACTOR COOLING SYSTEMS; PRESSURE GRADIENTS; DEFORMATION; HYDRAULICS; MATHEMATICAL MODELS; MOLTEN METAL-WATER REACTIONS; PIPES; PLASTICITY; BREEDER REACTORS; COOLING SYSTEMS; EPITHERMAL REACTORS; FAST REACTORS; FBR TYPE REACTORS; FLUID MECHANICS; LIQUID METAL COOLED REACTORS; MECHANICAL PROPERTIES; MECHANICS; REACTOR COMPONENTS; REACTORS; 220900* - Nuclear Reactor Technology- Reactor Safety; 210500 - Power Reactors, Breeding

Citation Formats

Youngdahl, C. K., and Kot, C. A. PTA-1: a computer program for analysis of pressure transients in hydraulic networks, including the effect of pipe plasticity. United States: N. p., 1976. Web. doi:10.2172/7108401.
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Youngdahl, C. K., & Kot, C. A. PTA-1: a computer program for analysis of pressure transients in hydraulic networks, including the effect of pipe plasticity. United States. doi:10.2172/7108401.
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Youngdahl, C. K., and Kot, C. A. Mon . "PTA-1: a computer program for analysis of pressure transients in hydraulic networks, including the effect of pipe plasticity". United States. doi:10.2172/7108401. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/7108401.
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@article{osti_7108401,
title = {PTA-1: a computer program for analysis of pressure transients in hydraulic networks, including the effect of pipe plasticity},
author = {Youngdahl, C. K. and Kot, C. A.},
abstractNote = {The computer program PTA-1 performs pressure-transient analysis of large piping networks using the one-dimensional method of characteristics applied to a fluid-hammer formulation. The effect of elastic-plastic deformation of piping on pulse propagation is included in the computation. The program is particularly oriented toward the analysis of the effects of a sodium/water reaction on the intermediate heat-transport system of a liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor, but may be applied just as usefully to other pulse sources and other piping systems. PTA-1 is capable of treating complex piping networks and includes a variety of junction types. Pipe friction and nonlinear velocity terms are included in the formulation. The program requires a minimum of input-data preparation and is designed to be easily used and modified. This report contains the governing equations, program structure, input requirements, program listing, and other information for PTA-1.},
doi = {10.2172/7108401},
journal = {},
number = ,
volume = ,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon Nov 01 00:00:00 EST 1976},
month = {Mon Nov 01 00:00:00 EST 1976}
}
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Technical Report:
View Technical Report (3.12 MB)
DOI:  10.2172/7108401
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  • ;
    Pressure pulses in the intermediate sodium system of a liquid-metal-cooled fast breeder reactor, such as may originate from a sodium/water reaction in a steam generator, are propagated through the complex sodium piping network to system components such as the pump and intermediate heat exchanger. To assess the effects of such pulses on continued reliable operation of these components and to contribute to system designs which result in the mitigation of these effects, Pressure Transient Analysis (PTA) computer codes are being developed for accurately computing the transmission of pressure pulses through a complicated fluid transport system, consisting of piping, fittings andmore » junctions, and components. PTA-1 provides an extension of the well-accepted and verified fluid hammer formulation for computing hydraulic transients in elastic or rigid piping systems to include plastic deformation effects. The accuracy of the modeling of pipe plasticity effects on transient propagation has been validated using results from two sets of Stanford Research Institute experiments. Validation of PTA-1 using the latter set of experiments is described briefly. The comparisons of PTA-1 computations with experiments show that (1) elastic-plastic deformation of LMFBR-type piping can have a significant qualitative and quantitative effect on pressure pulse propagation, even in simple systems; (2) classical fluid-hammer theory gives erroneous results when applied to situations where piping deforms plastically; and (3) the computational model incorporated in PTA-1 for predicting plastic deformation and its effect on transient propagation is accurate.« less

  • ; ;
    The PTA-1 code for computing pressure transients in piping networks includes a computational model to treat the significant effect of plastic deformation of the piping on pulse propagation. Stanford Research Institute has completed an experimental program on the response of piping systems to internal pressure pulses which plastically deform portions of the piping. This report makes extensive comparisons between PTA-1 computations and these experimental results. The excellent agreement obtained for both pressure histories and strain histories for all the experiments indicates that the PTA-1 computational model for pipe plasticity effects is accurate. The computation-experiment comparisons also permit a number ofmore » observations and conclusions to be made on other aspects of computational modeling of pressure transients, particularly with respect to pulse propagation around elbows.« less

  • The governing partial differential equations for one-dimensional, unsteady flows are reduced to a set of ordinary differential equations by the method of characteristics. The governing equations include the complete Navier- Stokes equation in which the viscous term is written in terms of the Darcy- Weisbach friction factor. By appropriate matching of the boundary conditions at the pipe junctions, the flow conditions following the sodium-water reaction can be determined for the entire network. The resulting characteristic and compatibility equations are written in finite differences. A computer program was written to solve the finite-difference equations together with various junction conditions in whichmore » a stepwise numerical-integration technique was used. The program uses the sodium-water-reaction dynamics model as developed by Zaker and Salmon for characterizing the source pressure. The computer code was applied to calculate the pressure-pulse propagation in the EBR-II secondary sodium network for an assumed water leak rate of 1 lb/sub m//sec at one end of the superheater. The same problem also was solved by the linear inviscid-analysis method of the converted NAHAMMER code. The comparison of the two results for zero initial velocity showed good agreement, indicating that the nonlinear and viscous effects are negligibly small. Nevertheless, an increased difference was observed between the two results as the magnitude of the velocity was increased. (11 references) (auth)« less

  • The ICECON computer code was developed to provide the post-blowdown pressure transient in a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) ice condenser containment during a Loss-of-Coolant Accident (LOCA) as required by Appendix K to 10 CFR 50 for ECCS analysis. The calculated containment pressure is used to determine the backpressure for flow from the primary system to the containment during the refill and reflood portions of the LOCA transient.

  • ; ;
    Computational methods for analyzing pressure transients in the intermediate heat transport system of a sodium-cooled breeder reactor are being developed at Argonne National Laboratory. Because these systems typically operate at low pressures, thin-walled piping is used. Consequently, the pressure pulses produced by a sodium/water reaction in a steam generator or a pipe break may plastically deform sections of the piping, and rarefaction waves, because of the low operating pressure, may produce cavitation in the system. Both these phenomena have a large effect on the pressure pulses traversing the pipe network and, consequently, on the transient loading on major components. Themore » computer program PTA-1, which includes the effect of plastic deformation of piping, and the computer program PTAC, which includes the effect of cavitation, have previously been validated using available experimental data. A new program, PTA-2, is being developed which combines the capabilities of PTA-1 and PTAC. Comparisons will be shown between PTA-2 predictions and the results of several experiments performed at Stanford Research Institute. In each of these experiments, a pressure pulse caused plastic deformation of a thin-walled pipe, producing a rarefaction wave which then produced a cavitated region in another pipe.« less