Waste Evaporator Accident Simulation Using RELAP5 Computer Code
An evaporator is used on liquid waste from processing facilities to reduce the volume of the waste through heating the waste and allowing some of the water to be separated from the waste through boiling. This separation process allows for more efficient processing and storage of liquid waste. Commonly, the liquid waste consists of an aqueous solution of chemicals that over time could induce corrosion, and in turn weaken the tubes in the steam tube bundle of the waste evaporator that are used to heat the waste. This chemically induced corrosion could escalate into a possible tube leakage and/or the severance of a tube(s) in the tube bundle. In this paper, analyses of a waste evaporator system for the processing of liquid waste containing corrosive chemicals are presented to assess the system response to this accident scenario. This accident scenario is evaluated since its consequences can propagate to a release of hazardous material to the outside environment. It is therefore important to ensure that the evaporator system component structural integrity is not compromised, i.e. the design pressure and temperature of the system is not exceeded during the accident transient. The computer code used for the accident simulation is RELAP5-MOD31. The accident scenario analyzed includes a double-ended guillotine break of a tube in the tube bundle of the evaporator. A mitigated scenario is presented to evaluate the excursion of the peak pressure and temperature in the various components of the evaporator system to assess whether the protective actions and controls available are adequate to ensure that the structural integrity of the evaporator system is maintained and that no atmospheric release occurs.
- Research Organization:
- Savannah River Site (SRS), Aiken, SC (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- US Department of Energy (US)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC09-96SR18500
- OSTI ID:
- 823467
- Report Number(s):
- WSRC-MS-2002-01018; TRN: US0401726
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Safety Analysis Working Group Workshop 2004, San Francisco, CA (US), 05/01/2004--05/06/2004; Other Information: PBD: 28 Apr 2004
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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