Assessment of a RELAP5 model for the IPR-R1 TRIGA research reactor

RELAP5 code was developed at the Idaho National Environmental and Engineering Laboratory and it is widely used for thermal hydraulic studies of commercial nuclear power plants and, currently, it has been also applied for thermal hydraulic analysis of nuclear research systems with good predictions. This work is a contribution to the assessment of RELAP5/3.3 code for research reactors analysis. It presents steady-state and transient calculation results performed using a RELAP5 model to simulate the IPR-R1 TRIGA research reactor conditions operating at 50 and 100 kW. The reactor is located at the Nuclear Technology Development Centre (CDTN), Brazil. The development and the assessment of a RELAP5 model for the IPR-R1 TRIGA are presented. Experimental data were considered in the process of code-to-data validation. The RELAP5 results were also compared with calculation performed using the STHIRP-1 (Research Reactors Thermal Hydraulic Simulation) code. The use of a cross flow model has been essential to improve results in the transient condition respect to preceding investigations.     

Sensitivity analysis to a RELAP5 nodalization developed for a typical TRIGA research reactor

The main aim of this work is to identify how much the code results are affected by the code user in the choice of, for example, the number of thermal hydraulic channels in a nuclear reactor nodalization. To perform this, two essential modifications were made on a previously validated nodalization for analysis of steady-state and forced recirculation off transient in the IPR-R1 TRIGA research reactor. Experimental data were taken as reference to compare the behavior of the reactor for two different types of modeling. The results highlight the necessity of sensitivity analysis to obtain the ideal modeling to simulate a specific system.     

Thermal power calibrations of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor by the calorimetric and the heat balance methods

Since the first nuclear reactor was built, a number of methodological variations have been evolved for the calibration of the reactor thermal power. Power monitoring of reactors is done by means of neutronic instruments, but its calibration is always done by thermal procedures. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of the thermal power calibration carried out on March 5th, 2009 in the IPR-R TRIGA reactor. It was used two procedures: the calorimetric and heat balance methods. The calorimetric procedure was done with the reactor operating at a constant power, with primary cooling system switched off. The rate of temperature rise of the water was recorded. The reactor power is calculated as a function of the temperature-rise rate and the system heat capacity constant. The heat balance procedure consists in the steady-state energy balance of the primary cooling loop of the reactor. For this balance, the inlet and outlet temperatures and the water flow in the primary cooling loop were measured. The heat transferred through the primary loop was added to the heat leakage from the reactor pool. The calorimetric method calibration presented a large uncertainty. The main source of error was the determination of the heat content of the system, due to a large uncertainty in the volume of the water in the system and a lack of homogenization of the water temperature. The heat balance calibration in the primary loop is the standard procedure for calibrating the power of the IPR-R1 TRIGA nuclear reactor.     

Thermal power calibrations of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor by the calorimetric and the heat balance methods

Since the first nuclear reactor was built, a number of methodological variations have been evolved for the calibration of the reactor thermal power. Power monitoring of reactors is done by means of neutronic instruments, but its calibration is always done by thermal procedures. The purpose of this paper is to present the results of the thermal power calibration carried out on March 5th, 2009 in the IPR-R TRIGA reactor. It was used two procedures: the calorimetric and heat balance methods. The calorimetric procedure was done with the reactor operating at a constant power, with primary cooling system switched off. The rate of temperature rise of the water was recorded. The reactor power is calculated as a function of the temperature-rise rate and the system heat capacity constant. The heat balance procedure consists in the steady-state energy balance of the primary cooling loop of the reactor. For this balance, the inlet and outlet temperatures and the water flow in the primary cooling loop were measured. The heat transferred through the primary loop was added to the heat leakage from the reactor pool. The calorimetric method calibration presented a large uncertainty. The main source of error was the determination of the heat content of the system, due to a large uncertainty in the volume of the water in the system and a lack of homogenization of the water temperature. The heat balance calibration in the primary loop is the standard procedure for calibrating the power of the IPR-R1 TRIGA nuclear reactor.     

Simplified numerical model for defining Ledinegg flow instability margins in MTR research reactor

Establishment of safety margins and the corresponding operating condition limits will ensure achievement of a safe operation of nuclear installations. For this purpose, several critical phenomena have been analyzed theoretically and experimentally and a great number of models and correlations are made available. Among these critical issues the well-known flow instability has been intensively investigated by several authors especially for nuclear power plants' (NPPs) operating conditions. However, limited published work is available for research reactor operation conditions. In general, the Whittle and Forgan correlation is widely used to define the margin to static flow instabilities in narrow parallel heated channels for research reactors.In the framework of verification and assessment of the capabilities of the RELAP5/Mod 3 system code to determine the onset of flow instability in research reactor conditions, a simple model based on steady-state equations adjusted with drift-flux correlations has been developed. The program is used to draw the pressure drop characteristic curves and to establish the conditions of the Ledinegg instability in a uniformly heated channel subject to constant outlet pressure. The model is assessed by using experimental data from a thermal hydraulic test loop by Siman-Tov and numerical results from RELAP5/Mod 3. The model presents acceptable estimation of the target mass flow that would induce flow instability and the latter could be then used to establish a conservative margin to the Ledinegg instability.     

MCNP5 modeling of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor for criticality calculation and reactivity determination

The IPR-R1 TRIGA is a research nuclear reactor managed and located at the Nuclear Technology Development Center (CDTN) a research institute of the Brazilian Nuclear Energy Commission (CNEN). It is mainly used to radioisotopes production, scientific experiments, training of nuclear engineers for research and nuclear power plant reactor operation, experiments with materials and minerals and neutron activation analysis. In this work, criticality calculation and reactivity changes are presented and discussed using two modelings of the IPR-R1 TRIGA in the MCNP5 code. The first model (Model 1) analyzes the criticality over the reactor. On the other hand, the second model (Model 2) includes the possibility of radial and axial neutron flux evaluation with different operation conditions. The calculated results are compared with experimental data in different situations. For the two models, the standard deviation and relative error presented values of around 4.9 × 10^?4. Both models present good agreement with respect to the experimental data. The goal is to validate the models that could be used to determine the neutron flux profiles to optimize the irradiation conditions, as well as to study reactivity insertion experiments and also to evaluate the fuel composition.     

Reactivity balance in the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor

Considering that the power of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor, located at the Nuclear Technology Development Center, Brazil, will be increased from 100 kW to 250 kW, some experiments were done in order to evaluate the magnitude of the reactivity effects associated with the reactor operation. The core excess of reactivity obtained was 1.99 $, and the shutdown margin was 1.33 $. The reactivity needed to operate the IPR-R1 reactor at 100 kW was 0.72 $, mainly due to the prompt negative temperature coefficient. A significant amount of reactivity is needed to overcome temperature and allow the reactor to operate at the higher power levels. The loss of reactivity due to xenon poisoning after 8 h of operation at 100 kW was around 0.20 $, and the highest reactivity loss value caused by a void inserted in the central thimble was 0.22 $. From the results obtained, it was possible to balance all the determined reactivity losses with the reactivity excess available in the reactor, considering the present and the future reactor power operation.     

RELAP5/3.2 assessment against low pressure onset of flow instability in parallel heated channels

Best Estimate computer codes have been, so far, developed for safety analysis of nuclear power plants and were extensively validated against a large set of separate effects and integral test facilities experimental data relevant to such kind of reactors. Their application to research reactors is not fully straightforward. Modelling problems generally emerge when applying existing models to low pressure and more particularly to subcooled flow boiling situations. The objective of the present work is to investigate the RELAP5/3.2 system code capabilities in predicting phenomena that could be encountered under abnormal research reactor’s operating conditions. For this purpose, the separate effect related to the static onset of flow instability is investigated. The cases considered herein are the flow excursion tests performed at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory thermal hydraulic test loop (THTL) as well as some representative Whittle and Forgan (W & F) experiments. The simulation results are presented and the capabilities of RELAP5/Mod 3.2 in predicting this critical phenomenon are discussed.     

Thermal hydraulic analysis of Syrian MNSR research reactor using RELAP5/Mod3.2 code

This paper presents the development and validation of a MNSR-RELAP5 model. MNSR is a 30 kW, light-water moderated and cooled, beryllium-reflected, tank in pool type research reactor. A RELAP5 model was set up to simulate the entire MNSR system. The model represents all reactor components of primary and secondary loops with the corresponding neutronic and thermal hydraulic characteristics. Under the MNSR operation conditions of natural circulation, normal operation, step reactivity transients and reactivity insertion accidents are simulated.     

CPR1000全厂断电事故瞬态特性分析

用RELAP5/MOD3.4程序对CPR1000压水堆一回路系统进行整体建模,分析全厂断电事故下一回路主要参数的瞬态热工水力特性,并将RELAP5模型计算结果与THEMIS程序的计算结果进行对比,二者符合得较好。计算结果表明：该模型可较准确地模拟CPR1000在事故下的热工水力特性。     

一体化压水堆强迫循环转自然循环过渡过程特性分析

针对一体化压水堆核动力装置,以核动力装置瞬态最佳估算程序RELAP5/MOD3为基础,采用两群三维时空中子动力学模型替代点堆模型,并建立三维空间内中子物理与热工水力的耦合模型,研制相应的计算程序。对一体化核动力装置强迫循环向自然循环转换过程进行仿真模拟。在过渡过程中,一体化压水堆核动力装置反应堆功率变化幅度较大,冷却剂流量的变化对一回路温度影响较大。     

Measurements of the isothermal, power and temperature reactivity coefficients of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor

The aim of this paper is to present the experimental results of the isothermal, power and temperature coefficients of reactivity of the IPR-R1 TRIGA reactor at the Nuclear Technology Development Center - CDTN in Brazil. The measured isothermal reactivity coefficient, in the temperature range measured, was −0.5 ¢/°C, and the reactivity measurements were performed at 10 W to eliminate nuclear heating. The reactor forced cooling system was turned off during the measurements. When the reactor is at zero power there is no sensible heat being released in the fuel, and the entire reactor core can be characterized by a single temperature. The power coefficient of reactivity obtained was approximately −0.63 ¢/kW, and the temperature reactivity coefficient of the reactor was −0.8 ¢/°C. It was noted that the rise in the coolant temperature has contributed only with a small fraction to the observed negative effect of the reactivity. The power defect, which is the change in reactivity taking place between zero power and full power (250 kW), was 1.6 $. Because of the prompt negative temperature coefficient, a significant amount of reactivity is needed to overcome temperature and allow the reactor to operate at the higher power levels in steady state.     

A neutronics–thermalhydraulics model for preliminary studies on TRADE dynamics

In the last few years the possible role of accelerator driver systems (ADS) for effective transmutation strategies with fully closed cycles has received increased attention due to their potential to improve the flexibility and safety characteristics of transmutation systems. The substantial difference between the neutron kinetics and dynamic behavior of ADS and conventional critical reactors has given rise to a wide international consensus on the need of an experimental program to improve their knowledge and to validate calculation methods. To this end the international cooperation TRADE proposed a sub-critical experiment based on the coupling of a TRIGA reactor in sub-critical core configuration with a proton accelerator (cyclotron) by means of a neutron spallation target. The experiment was initially conceived in the RC1-TRIGA reactor located at the ENEA Center of CASACCIA (Rome, Italy) to demonstrate the feasibility of the accelerator driven system (ADS) concept at a representative power. This article presents a preliminary study performed with the RELAP5/PARCS code on the dynamic behavior of such a system in order to demonstrate the code capability to support the design of the experiment and the safety analysis. The specific code version used joins the well known capability of RELAP5 to treat light water reactors with the potentiality of PARCS modified by ENEA to simulate the three-dimensional neutronics of sub-critical systems, i.e. to treat external neutron sources. PARCS modifications are preliminary assessed against a simple analytical solution of the sub-critical neutronics of the experiment based on the kinetics pseudo-potentials method. A quite detailed model for the coupled code is developed in order to realistically evaluate both the thermal feedback effects, the control rod action and the external source strength changes. A wide range of operational and accidental transients of the sub-critical reactor are simulated with the coupled model in order to obtain a first system response to a number of reactor elementary events at different subcriticality levels. The calculation results show a high qualitative agreement with the sub-critical system physical theory underlining how the numerical model developed could be a useful tool for the definition of the operational procedures and the investigation of accidental conditions; moreover the accidental transient trends highlight the inherent safety behavior of the TRIGA research reactors that makes them extremely suitable for the coupling of the different components with a quite simple licensing procedures.     

核电站工程模拟器中的RELAP5建模

文章涉及数值反应堆系统(DRS)组成部分之一的核电站热工水力模块的PELAP5建模方法。建模分为:RELAP5源程序的改造;利用原始RELAP5进行电厂的常规建模;利用改造后的RELAP5进行电厂的特殊建模。该电厂模型构造方法不仅可动态采集RELAP5模型节点上的参数,且可动态控制节点上的部分参数,满足核电站工程模拟器的要求。     

Analyses of the V1000CT-1 benchmark with the DYN3D/ATHLET and DYN3D/RELAP coupled code systems including a coolant mixing model validated against CFD calculations

Plant-measured data provided within the specification of the OECD/NEA VVER-1000 coolant transient benchmark (V1000CT) were used to validate the DYN3D/RELAP5 and DYN3D/ATHLET coupled code systems. Phase 1 of the benchmark (V1000CT-1) refers to the MCP (main coolant pump) switching on experiment conducted in the frame of the plant-commissioning activities at the Kozloduy NPP Unit 6 in Bulgaria. The experiment was started at the beginning of cycle (BOC) with average core expose of 30.7 effective full power days (EFPD), when the reactor power was at 27.5% of the nominal level and three out of four MCPs were operating. The transient is characterized by a rapid increase in the primary coolant flow through the core and, as a consequence, a decrease of the space-dependent core inlet temperature. Both DYN3D/RELAP5 and DYN3D/ATHLET analyses were based on the same reactor model, including identical MCP characteristics, boundary conditions, benchmark-specified nuclear data library and nearly identical nodalization schemes. For an adequate modelling of the redistribution of the coolant flow in the reactor pressure vessel during the transient a simplified mixing model for the DYN3D/ATHLET code was developed and validated against a computational fluid dynamics calculation.

The results of both coupled code calculations are in good agreement with the available experimental data. The discrepancies between experimental data and the results of both coupled code calculations do not exceed the accuracy of the measurement data. This concerns the initial steady-state data as well as the time histories during the transient. In addition to the validation of the coupled code systems against measured data, a code-to-code comparison between simulation results has been performed to evaluate relevant thermal hydraulic models of the system codes RELAP5 and ATHLET and to explain differences between the calculation results.     

Preliminary thermal hydraulic safety analysis of water-cooled ceramic breeder blanket for CFETR

The Chinese fusion engineering test reactor (CFETR) was expected to bridge from the international thermonuclear experimental reactor (ITER) to the demonstration fusion reactor (DEMO). The water-cooled ceramic breeder (WCCB) blanket is one of the blanket candidates for CFETR. In this paper, preliminary thermal hydraulic safety analyses have been carried out using the system safety analysis code RELAP5 originally developed for light water fission reactors. The pulse operation and three typical loss of coolant accidents (LOCAs), namely, in-vessel LOCA, in-box LOCA, and ex-vessel LOCA, were simulated based on steady-state initialization. Simulation results show that important thermal hydraulic parameters, such as pressure and temperature can meet the design criterion which preliminarily verifies the feasibility of the WCCB blanket from the safety point of view.     

Experimental validation of the thermal-hydraulic code SACATRI

A sub-channel analysis steady state thermal-hydraulic code (SACATRI) was developed for the Moroccan TRIGA MARK II research reactor. The main objective of the thermal-hydraulic study of the whole reactor core is to evaluate the main safety parameters of the reactor core, and to ensure that they are within the safety limits for any operating conditions. The thermal-hydraulic model used in SACATRI is based on four partial differential equations that describe the conservation of mass, energy and momentum. In order to assess the thermal-hydraulic mathematical model of SACATRI, the present paper focuses on the quantification of the physical model accuracy to judge if the code is capable to represent the thermal-hydraulic behaviour of the reactor core with sufficient accuracy. The methodology adopted is based on the comparison between responses from SACATRI computational model and experimentally measured responses performed on the IPR-R1 TRIGA research reactor. The results showed good agreement between SACATRI predictions and the experimental measurements where the discrepancies observed (simulation-experiment) are less than 6%.     

Calculation of the effective delayed neutron fraction and the prompt neutron lifetime with the indigenously modified CEBIS code: MCEBIS

The CEBIS code has been modified to enable the calcination of both the effective delayed neutron fraction and prompt neutron generation lifetime in any nuclear thermal reactor, especially reactor types such as TRIGA, SLOWPOKE, and MNSR. The new version, called MCEBIS, includes sonie special subroutines which will be called up as part of the input to calculate the above two dynamic parameters. In addition, some control flags have been added to recognize any important reactor components such as beryllium as a reflector or heavy water as moderator and pence calculate their photo-neutron fractions.

The MCEBIS code has been tested using two reactor models: TRIGA and MNSR. These models were developed mainly to verify the modified code. Each model represents a 1-D neutronics model of the reactor. Calculated results for the effective delayed neutron fraction and prompt neutron generation lifetime in both reactors have been compared with published data. Good agreement with published results has been established.