Author index to volume 55

The behaviour of a typical chimney stack of a nuclear-power plant subjected to earthquake and impact loads is examined. The explicit integration procedure using convected coordinates is adopted to perform the transient analyses with large displacements and material nonlinearities of the concrete stack, of the impinging aircraft and of the soil. Thanks to the favourable effect of the partial separation of the base mat from the soil (lifting-off), the chimney does not collapse for realistic accelerations of the earthquake. Force-time relationships of the aircraft impinging on the chimney are developed. The impact of aircraft debris causes only local damage of the chimney. The direct impingement of an aircraft, however, may lead to partial collapse or total overturning of the chimney. The resulting motion, including the impact of the chimney on the reactor building, is studied. The response of the structure being hit and of the equipment located within will in many cases govern their design.     

Mutual pounding of adjacent structures during earthquakes

The seismic response of a structure which, in addition to earthquake loading, is subjected to the impact force resulting from pounding by an adjacent building, is determined. At first, simple models are used to examine the characteristics of the pounding phenomenon. The pounding structure is modelled as a nonlinear 1-DOF system and the neighbouring building is represented by an impact-spring-dashpot mechanism. Parametric studies, varying the structural parameters, are performed both for steady-state and transient excitions. Finally, the pounding of a typical reactor building by an adjacent auxialiary building during an earthquake is analysed using a simple 2-DOF system and a very detailed dynamic model. The stresses and in-structure response spectra are compared to those for the case in which no pounding occurs, as well as to the results obtained for aircraft impact. Different types of running devices which reduce the response of pounding are examined.     

Japanese perspectives and research on packaging,transport and storage of spent fuel

Abstract

The present paper gives an overview of Japanese experimental studies of dual-purpose metal casks. The studies included: cask drop without impact limiters, drop of a heavy weight onto a cask due to building collapse, burial of a cask in debris from building collapse, tipping over of a cask during an earthquake, long-term containment of metal gaskets and transportability of casks after long-term storage. Most of the studies employed full-scale casks for the experiments.     

Impact of probability risk assessment on containment

The structural reliability analysis of containments as contributing factors to risk analyses of nuclear power plants is presented. In this context probabilistic models for the occurrence and effects of potential internal loading conditions (i.e. LOCA) as well as external loads (i.e. earthquake and aircraft impact) have been developed and utilized within a reliability concept. The analysis is exemplified by application to a spherical containment structure located in an area of low seismicity.     

Some studies of the response of pre-stressed containments for PWR to earthquakes, gas cloud explosions and aircraft crash

A case is made for the use of simplified analytical models in the assessment of PWR containment structures. Examples of the use of such models are given which include aircraft impact, gas cloud explosion and earthquake analysis. It is concluded that simple models can be very useful for preliminary investigations in these fields, but a cautionary note regarding the introduction of errors is sounded. It is emphasized that the engineer must understand the importance of the simplifying assumptions before proceeding to draw general conclusions.     

高温气冷堆反应堆厂房外墙及蒸发器舱室抗飞机撞击数值分析

反应堆抗大飞机撞击是需要考虑的外部事件,对反应堆的安全评价非常重要。本文在耦合冲击动力学有限元模型的基础上,提出了双层平行墙体承受飞机撞击的等效模拟方法,研究了高温气冷堆（HTGR）较薄的方形蒸发器舱室抗商用飞机撞击能力。建立了反应堆厂房外墙受商用飞机撞击穿透评价标准,并进行了商用飞机撞击反应堆厂房外墙仿真计算,得到了飞机剩余动能曲线。飞机撞击蒸发器舱室的计算中,保守假设飞机穿过外墙后无质量损失,形态完好,以剩余速度撞击方形蒸发器舱室。评估表明,蒸发器舱室结构在撞击条件下的整体损伤微小,可为保护内部关键设备提供重要的屏障功能。      

Thermo-hydraulic instability of boiling natural circulation loop induced by flashing (analytical consideration)

An analytical study is presented on the thermo-hydraulic stability of a boiling natural circulation loop with a chimney at low pressure start-up. The effect of flashing induced by the pressure drop in the channel and the chimney due to gravity head on the instability is considered. A method to analyze linear stability is developed, in which a drift-flux model is used. The analytical result of a stability map agrees very well with the experimental one obtained in a previous report. Instability does not occur when the heater power is too low to generate voids in the chimney and only natural circulation of single phase can be induced. Instability tends to occur when boiling occurs only near the chimney exit due to flashing. This instability phenomenon has some similarities with density wave oscillation, such as the phase difference of temperature between the boiling region and non-boiling region, and the oscillation period which is near to the time required for fluid to pass through the chimney. However, there are also some differences from density wave oscillation, such as the boiling region is very short, and pressure fluctuation can affect void fraction fluctuation.     

飞机撞击下高温气冷堆乏燃料厂房损伤研究

本文针对典型高温气冷堆乏燃料厂房在双发商用飞机撞击载荷下的响应及结构完整性开展研究，并探讨结构特性对撞击损伤的影响。对乏燃料厂房及飞机分别建立有限元模型，通过弹体-目标相互作用分析模拟了飞机撞击过程，综合IAEA与NRC的评价准则对乏燃料厂房在飞机撞击下的损伤程度进行评估。数值结果表明：厂房上对应于机身及发动机的撞击位置发生可接受的局部损伤；乏燃料贮存井墙体对于提高构筑物抗飞机撞击能力有重要作用。此外，构筑物外形对损伤有很大影响，圆柱形壳体的抗飞机撞击能力显著强于方形厂房，是核电厂厂房设计的优化方向之一。     

An overview of major aspects of the aircraft impact problem

This paper identifies the major aspects of the aircraft impact problem and spotlights the most relevant topics for future investigations. The emphasis is on three main topics: modeling techniques, influence of non-linear behavior, and importance of damping in the dynamic structural response analyses for aircraft impact loading. Results are presented from brief studies involving response of linear and nonlinear simple systems to short-duration impulsive loadings of the aircraft impact type. For linear elastic cases, the transient and free vibration components are studied separately for systems with different natural periods. The influence of damping on floor response spectra is also studied both in the form of peak values as well as the corresponding frequency shifts. For nonlinear systems, ranges of required ductility ratios for a typical aircraft impact loading are compared against available ductility ratios for typical wall and slab panels. An extensive literature survey is carried out on several major topics pertinent to the aircraft impact problem, encompassing various disciplines of engineering. Results and discussions on the basis of this literature survey are presented for major topics.     

Structural analysis of aircraft impact on a nuclear powered ship

As part of a general safety analysis, the reliability against structural damage due to an aircraft crash on a nuclear powered ship is evaluated. This structural analysis is an aid in safety design. It is assumed that a Phantom military jet-fighter hits a nuclear powered ship. The total reaction force due to such an aircraft impact on a rigid barrier is specified in the guidelines of the Reaktor-Sicherheitskommission (German Safety Advisory Committee) for pressurized water reactors.This paper investigates the aircraft impact on the collision barrier at the side of the ship. The aircraft impact on top of the reactor hatchway is investigated by another analysis. It appears that the most unfavorable angle of impact is always normal to the surface of the collision barrier. Consequently, only normal impact will be considered here. For the specific case of an aircraft striking a nuclear powered ship, the following two effects are considered: Local penetration and dynamic response of the structure.The local penetration occurs at points where the engines or other rigid objects hit the structure. It is assumed that the aircraft engine is a rigid body projectile and the side wall of the ship is the target. The applied steel penetration formulae for projectiles were empirically derived for military applications, where both the projectile and the target are unlike those of an impact of an aircraft engine. For this reason it is expedient to calculate the upper and the lower limit values of the penetration depths. The results show that the highest penetration depth is less than the sum of all wall thicknesses of the collision barrier.The solution of the dynamic analysis is obtained by using the finite element method. The results are the eigenmodes, the eigenfrequencies, the displacements of the nodes, and the stresses in the applied plane stress elements. It is shown that the maximum stress which only appears in one element is on the same level as the yield stress of the St. 42 steel. The structural analysis shows that the collision barrier is a sufficient safeguard against the perforation of the engine and against the cracking of the structure as a result of the dynamic response to an aircraft impact.     

Seismic isolation in New Zealand

Bridges, buildings, and industrial equipment can be given increased protection from earthquake damage by limiting the earthquake attack through seismic isolation. A broad summary of the seismic responses of base-isolated structures is of considerable assistance for their preliminary design. Seismic isolation as already used in New Zealand consists of a flexible base or support combined with some form of energy-dissipating device, usually involving the hysteretic working of steel or lead. This paper presents examples of the New Zealand experience, where seismic isolation has been used for 42 bridges, 3 buildings, a tall chimney, and high-voltage capacitor banks.Additional seismic response factors, which may be important for nuclear power plants, are also discussed briefly.     

Predictions of inner-shell Coulomb ionization by heavy charged particles

Probabilities for K-, L-, and M-shell ionization by impinging protons are presented as functions of the impact parameter. The results are based on the straight-line version of the semiclassical approximation model. Values for total Coulomb ionization cross sections are given as well. A method for extension to other bare projectiles is indicated.     

Comparison of results of soil-structure interaction analyses based on time and frequency domain approaches with emphasis on treatment of damping

Comparison of results of soil-structure interaction analyses of the reactor building of a nuclear power plant using different analytical approaches and solution procedures is presented. The emphasis of the comparison was on the treatment of damping in these different approaches and procedures. An axisymmetric model of the reactor building was employed. The analyses were performed for the aircraft impact loadings. Two different locations were used for these loadings.The following four different sets of analyses were performed.

1. (1) Time-domain analysis using frequency-independent soil springs in conjunction with modal damping cut-off.

2. (2) Frequency-domain analysis using frequency-independent soil springs in conjunction with a complex modulus approach.

3. (3) Frequency-domain analysis using frequency-dependent soil-impedance coefficients in conjunction with a complex modulus approach.

4. (4) Frequency-domain analysis using frequency-dependent soil-impedance coefficients in conjunction with Rayleigh damping.

The frequency-independent soil springs were computed using the standard approach based on rigid base supported on an elastic layered half-space. The frequency-dependent soil impedance coefficients were computed in the form of a soil substructure matrix which included the uncoupled as well as the coupled terms. The computations were based on the use of a “flexible” base mat supported on a layered half-space. Unit dynamic loads, for each frequency, were applied to the layered half-space corresponding to each degree of freedom and the displacements were xomputed corresponding to all degrees of freedom. The compliance matrix so computed was inverted to obtain the impedance matrix for each frequency. The computations were repeated for all frequencies of interest for the aircraft impact loading.Floor response spectra were developed and compared at various floor elevations of the reactor building using the above four different sets of analyses. Conclusions were developed as a result of these comparisons.     

Soil-structure interaction with separation of base mat from soil (lifting-off)

In reactor buildings having a separate base mat and a shield-building (outer concrete shell) of large mass, large overturning moments are developed for severe earthquake loading. The standard linear elastic half-space theory is used in the soil-structure interaction model. For a circular base mat, if the overturning moment exceeds the product of the normal force (dead weight minus the effect of the vertical earthquake) and one-third of the radius, then tension will occur in part of the area of contact, assuming distribution of stress as in the static case. For a strip foundation the same arises if the eccentricity of the normal force exceeds a quarter of the total width. As tension is incompatible with the constitutive law of soils, the base mat will become partially separated from the underlying soil.Assuming that only normal stresses in compression and corresponding shear stresses (friction) can occur in the area of contact, a method of analyzing soil-structure interaction including partial lifting-off is derived, which otherwise is based on the elastic behaviour of the soil. A rigorous procedure to determine the nonlinear impedance function of a rigid plate of arbitrary shape, only in partial contact with the elastic half-space, is developed. Complex dynamic influence coefficients for displacements are used which can either be determined with the finite-element method or based on solutions of displacements on the surface of an elastic half-space at a certain distance from a rigid subdisk. Constant and variable stiffness methods of solving the non-linear equations of motion are explained which also determine the area of contact. Slipping of the entire mat or of a part thereof can also be taken into consideration.A simpler approximate method is discussed. For a given force and moment acting on the rigid plate, the area of contact is determined by iteration or based on quadratic programming techniques using the static influence coefficients for displacements. The complex-valued impedance function is estimated by substituting an equivalent circular plate for the actual area of contact. Transforming the equivalent lumped system to the centre of the plate, the non-linear stiffness and damping matrices of the soil are derived. Formulae are given for the partial lifting-off of a disk and a strip. The results of the numerical method are compared to rigorous solutions for full contact. As an example, the dynamic response of the reactor building of a 1000 Mw plant to earthquake motion is calculated using the rigorous and approximate methods. Parametric studies are carried out. The influence of the frequency on the impedance function and on the distribution of stress in the area of contact, which determines the beginning of lift-off, is discussed.     

Response of equipment in nuclear power plants to airplane crash

Nuclear power plants in Germany are to be designed against airplane crash. Two problems arise: first, the local problem of penetration as well as local destruction of the building and secondly the airplane induced vibrations of the whole building which cause loadings for secondary systems (equipment). This paper deals especially with the second problem. Floor response spectra due to airplane crash are presented for two different power plant buildings. The influence of various parameters (time history of excitation, direction and location of impact, mathematical model, soil, damping, etc.) are discussed. A comparison with the results of earthquake loading is given. Suggestions are made for developing suitable floor design spectra and using them to analyse multidegree-of-freedom systems. However, the paper gives only a partial answer to the questions arising because of some important restrictions which had to be made. Studies concerning these restrictions are still being conducted and will be presented in a separate paper.     

Classification of soft and hard impacts—Application to aircraft crash

Before modeling an aircraft crash on a shield building of a nuclear power plant, it is very important to understand the physical phenomena and the structural behavior associated with this kind of impact. In the scientific literature, aircraft crash is classified as a soft impact, or as an impact of deformable missile. Nevertheless the existing classifications are not precise enough to be able to predict “a priori” the structural response mode. The aim of this paper is to characterize very precisely what is a soft and a hard impact in the frame of aircraft crash on nuclear power plant.First the existing qualitative definition of soft and hard impact is quickly reviewed in order to introduce a new criterion to make a quantitative distinction between soft and hard impact.Then the experimental tests carried out during the last thirty years in the research field of aircraft crash are presented in the light of the new classification. The authors show that this characterization of soft and hard impacts has a real physical interest because it is linked to the failure mode for perforation: for soft impacts, perforation is the consequence of a shear plug breaking away and for hard impact it comes from local failure and projectile penetration. Moreover the boundary between soft and hard impact is the limit for the use of an impact force in an uncoupled computation of the impact.     

Large airplane crash on a nuclear plant: Design study against excessive shaking of components

The problem of the strong shaking of structures and of components in case of an aircraft impact is the subject of this study. This problem is solved in some designs by protecting the external Nuclear Island block (N.I.) by an external thick wall, capable to withstand the aircraft impact. This wall is connected to the rest of the N.I. by the common foundation slab only. The first part of this study consists of the evaluation of the order of magnitude of the vibration attenuation which can be obtained by this design scheme. Should the attenuation obtained be not sufficient for some parts of the internal structures, some additional design provision could be adopted. In order to solve this problem, a specific design solution is here suggested. It essentially consists in connecting critical parts of structures to the common foundation slab with restraints having an adequate degree of deformability, so that the transmission of high frequency impact forces from other parts of the whole structure is minimized. In a previous paper (Petrangeli, 2007), the structural protection of the reactor dome and of connected structures of a modern nuclear plant is dealt with. In the present paper, the protection of internal parts of the plant (the internal containment is chosen) in case of strong impact on lateral walls is studied. The indicative result of this study is that the enhancement of attenuation in the transmission of acceleration from the impact point to some representative point in the inner structure is of the order of 75. This result cannot be generalized, as it depends on many parameters of the structure and of the soil.     

Dynamic analysis for design criteria for underground nuclear reactor containments

This paper is based on i) the recent input of the authors for the Underground Containment Sub-section of the Seismic Task Group Report of the ASCE Committee for Nuclear Structures and Materials, and ii) parametric studies carried out by the first author on the principal underground concepts.The extensive work on aseismic design of above-ground reactors and recent studies on missile impact effects, aircraft impact, blast effects due to chemical explosions, reactor core melt-down and tornadoes indicate the advantages of underground siting with inherent general reduction to complexity of seismic amplification and benefits of structural and biological integrity. Other advantages are possibilities of urban siting, ecological considerations, reduced effects on the landscape, ability to design three-dimensionally, separation of component facilities, support capability to equipment, reduced power transmission costs, increased number of acceptable units and power capability from a single location, and reduction of decommissioning problems.In view of the limited actual experience in the structural design of underground containments (only four European reactors), the proposals are based on a) the transposition of applicable design specifications, constraints and criteria from existing surface nuclear power plants to underground, and b) the use of many years of experience in the structural design of large underground cavities and cavity complexes for other purposes such as mining, hydropower stations etc. All concept options are assumed to be similar in design criteria for structural competence to contain radioactivity and fuel heat and meet the functional, servicing, protective and aesthetic requirements. The choice of underground siting should be based on criteria developed from the sequential consideration of load-causing phenomena, concept and site characteristics. From the criteria, loads for a particular concept and site are then calculated and the design formulated.The state-of-the-art is presented and guidelines are outlined for 1) Load causing phenomena, 2) Underground siting concept considerations, 3) Siting factors and structural selection, 4) Structural types, 5) Analysis (including comparison of lumped parameter and finite element analysis), 6) Design procedures, and 7) Miscellaneous considerations (laboratory tests and field measurements, secondary equipment, faults, leakage of radioactivity, ground water control, environmental factors).Parametric studies are described for structural characteristics of the four principal underground concepts: a) Cut-and-cover in rock or soil, b) Unlined cavity in rock, c) Lined cavity in rock or soil, and d) Lined cavity in rock or soil with annular filling of soft material — with respect to shape, backfill material, cavity wall reinforcement, passive and active rock bolting, lining and annular filling. The response to a step pulse, representing a blast excitation applied horizontally, is studied. As the character, intensity, duration and frequency of earthquake and blast-induced ground motions are roughly similar, the results have practical value in studying earthquake effects.     

Local damage to reinforced concrete structures caused by impact of aircraft engine missiles Part 1. Test program, method and results

Structural damage induced by an aircraft crashing into a reinforced concrete structure includes local damage caused by the deformable engines, and global damage caused by the entire aircraft. Local damage to the target may consist of spalling of concrete from its front face together with missile penetration into it, scabbing of concrete from its rear face, and perforation of missile through it. Until now, local damage to concrete structures has been mainly evaluated by rigid missile impact tests. Past research work regarding local damage caused by impact of deformable missiles has been limited. This paper presents the results of a series of impact tests of small-, intermediate-, and full-scale engine models into reinforced concrete panels. The purpose of the tests was to determine the local damage to a reinforced concrete structure caused by the impact of a deformable aircraft engine.     

Analysis of nonclassically damped structures subjected to six correlated earthquake components

The paper describes a method for the calculation of structural response of nonclassically damped structures subjected to six correlated earthquake components. The rotational components of the inputs are related to the translational components. A methodology to obtain the maximum response of a nonclassically damped structure, which can possibly occur in an orientation of the structure with respect to the impinging seismic waves, is developed. The approach is suitable for its adoptation with seismic inputs defined in terms of response spectra or spectral density functions. The numerical results demonstrating the application of the approach are presented. It is observed that the effect of the rotational components on the calculated response can be significant.