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How to arrest a core meltdown accident (doing nothing); Como detener un accidente con fusion de nucleo (sin hacer nada)

Abstract

In the eventual situation of a severe accident in a nuclear reactor, the molten core is able to relocate inside the pressure vessel. This may lead to the vessel failure, due to the thermal attack of the molten core (at approximation of 3000K) on the vessel steel wall. The vessel failure implies the failure of a very important barrier that contains the radioactive materials generated during the reactor operation, with a significant risk of producing high radiation doses both on operators and on the public. It is expected, for the new generation of nuclear reactors, that these will be required to withstand (by design) a core melt down accident, without the need for an immediate evacuation of the surrounding population. In this line, the use of a totally passive system is postulated, which fulfills the objective of containing the molten core inside the pressure vessel, at low temperature (approximation 1200K) precluding its failure. The conceptual design of a passive in-vessel core catcher is presented in this paper, built up of zinc, and designed for the CAREM-25 nuclear power plant. (author)
Authors:
Baron, Jorge H [1] 
  1. Autoridad Regulatoria Nuclear, Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Publication Date:
Jul 01, 2000
Product Type:
Conference
Report Number:
INIS-AR-C-066
Reference Number:
EDB-01:099852
Resource Relation:
Conference: AATN '99: 26. Annual meeting of the Argentine Association of Nuclear Technology (AANT), AATN '99: 26. Reunion anual de la Asociacion Argentina de Tecnologia Nuclear (AATN), San Carlos de Bariloche (Argentina), 9-12 Nov 1999; Other Information: 3 figs; PBD: 2000; Related Information: In: Technical memory 1999, Memoria tecnica 1999, 136 pages.
Subject:
21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS; CONTAINMENT; CORIUM; FAILURES; FEASIBILITY STUDIES; MITIGATION; NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS; PRESSURE VESSELS; PROGRESS REPORT; PWR TYPE REACTORS; RADIATION DOSES; REACTOR ACCIDENTS; REACTOR COOLING SYSTEMS; REACTOR CORES; REACTOR SAFETY; ZINC
OSTI ID:
20204659
Research Organizations:
Autoridad Regulatoria Nuclear, Buenos Aires (Argentina)
Country of Origin:
Argentina
Language:
Spanish
Other Identifying Numbers:
TRN: AR01C0076054428
Availability:
Available from INIS in electronic form
Submitting Site:
INIS
Size:
page(s) 397-404
Announcement Date:
Nov 15, 2001

Citation Formats

Baron, Jorge H. How to arrest a core meltdown accident (doing nothing); Como detener un accidente con fusion de nucleo (sin hacer nada). Argentina: N. p., 2000. Web.
Baron, Jorge H. How to arrest a core meltdown accident (doing nothing); Como detener un accidente con fusion de nucleo (sin hacer nada). Argentina.
Baron, Jorge H. 2000. "How to arrest a core meltdown accident (doing nothing); Como detener un accidente con fusion de nucleo (sin hacer nada)." Argentina.
@misc{etde_20204659,
title = {How to arrest a core meltdown accident (doing nothing); Como detener un accidente con fusion de nucleo (sin hacer nada)}
author = {Baron, Jorge H}
abstractNote = {In the eventual situation of a severe accident in a nuclear reactor, the molten core is able to relocate inside the pressure vessel. This may lead to the vessel failure, due to the thermal attack of the molten core (at approximation of 3000K) on the vessel steel wall. The vessel failure implies the failure of a very important barrier that contains the radioactive materials generated during the reactor operation, with a significant risk of producing high radiation doses both on operators and on the public. It is expected, for the new generation of nuclear reactors, that these will be required to withstand (by design) a core melt down accident, without the need for an immediate evacuation of the surrounding population. In this line, the use of a totally passive system is postulated, which fulfills the objective of containing the molten core inside the pressure vessel, at low temperature (approximation 1200K) precluding its failure. The conceptual design of a passive in-vessel core catcher is presented in this paper, built up of zinc, and designed for the CAREM-25 nuclear power plant. (author)}
place = {Argentina}
year = {2000}
month = {Jul}
}