Standard Problems for CFD Validation for NGNP - Status Report
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is conducting research and development to support the resurgence of nuclear power in the United States for both electrical power generation and production of process heat required for industrial processes such as the manufacture of hydrogen for use as a fuel in automobiles. The project is called the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) Project, which is based on a Generation IV reactor concept called the very high temperature reactor (VHTR). The VHTR will be of the prismatic or pebble bed type; the former is considered herein. The VHTR will use helium as the coolant at temperatures ranging from 250°C to perhaps 1000°C. While computational fluid dynamics (CFD) has not previously been used for the safety analysis of nuclear reactors in the United States, it is being considered for existing and future reactors. It is fully recognized that CFD simulation codes will have to be validated for flow physics reasonably close to actual fluid dynamic conditions expected in normal operational and accident situations. The “Standard Problem” is an experimental data set that represents an important physical phenomenon or phenomena, whose selection is based on a phenomena identification and ranking table (PIRT) for the reactor in question. It will be necessary to build a database that contains a number of standard problems for use to validate CFD and systems analysis codes for the many physical problems that will need to be analyzed. The first two standard problems that have been developed for CFD validation consider flow in the lower plenum of the VHTR and bypass flow in the prismatic core. Both involve scaled models built from quartz and designed to be installed in the INL’s matched index of refraction (MIR) test facility. The MIR facility employs mineral oil as the working fluid at a constant temperature. At this temperature, the index of refraction of the mineral oil is the same as that of the quartz. This provides an advantage to the optics used for data gathering. Particle image velocimetry (PIV) is used to take the data. The first standard problem represents several flow physics expected to be present in the lower plenum of the prismatic VHTR. In the lower plenum, heated helium coolant in the form of jets issues downward into the plenum and is then forced to turn ninety degrees and flow toward the exit duct. The lower plenum is filled with cylindrical graphite posts that hold up the core. Figure S-1 provides a plan view of the lower plenum. The red circles represent support posts holding up columns of heated blocks. Grey circles represent support posts under columns of reflector blocks. Helium enters the lower plenum at the junctions of the hexagonal blocks.
- Research Organization:
- Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- DOE - NE
- DOE Contract Number:
- DE-AC07-05ID14517
- OSTI ID:
- 991881
- Report Number(s):
- INL/EXT-10-19119; TRN: US1007642
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS
ACCIDENTS
AUTOMOBILES
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
COOLANTS
FLUID MECHANICS
GRAPHITE
HELIUM
HYDROGEN
NUCLEAR POWER
OPTICS
PHYSICS
POWER GENERATION
PROCESS HEAT
QUARTZ
REACTORS
REFRACTIVE INDEX
SAFETY ANALYSIS
SYSTEMS ANALYSIS
VALIDATION
WORKING FLUIDS
CFD
Standard Problem
Validation
VHTR