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Mathematical modelling of nonlinear vibration and fretting wear of the nuclear fuel rods

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Abstract

The paper deals with modelling of nonlinear flexural vibration of nuclear fuel rod in hexagonal-type nuclear fuel assembly. The fuel rods are transversally linked to each other by spacer grid cells to inside the fuel assembly skeleton in several level spacings. The main components of the fuel rods are cladding in the form of thin-walled tubes of zirconium and fuel pellet columns incorporated in-tube with radial clearance. The flexural fuel rod vibration, caused by the fuel assembly support plate motion in the reactor core, can exhibit impulse contact forces between fuel rod components and possible loss of contact between the fuel rod cladding and some of spacer grid cells. Dynamic forces transmitted between fuel rods and spacer grid cells are used for calculation of expected lifetime period of nuclear fuel assembly in terms of fuel rod cladding abrasion. The presented method introduces the first known approach to mathematical modelling of fuel rod nonlinear vibration and fretting wear varying during reactor operation.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), project “NTIS" European Centre of Excellence, CZ.1.05/1.1.00/02.0090 within the research project ČEZ - Fuel cycle of NPP coordinated by NRI Řež plc.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of West Bohemia, Univerzitní 22, 306 14, Plzeň, Czech Republic

    Vladimír Zeman, Štěpán Dyk & Zdeněk Hlaváč

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  1. Vladimír Zeman
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  2. Štěpán Dyk
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  3. Zdeněk Hlaváč
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Correspondence to Štěpán Dyk.

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Zeman, V., Dyk, Š. & Hlaváč, Z. Mathematical modelling of nonlinear vibration and fretting wear of the nuclear fuel rods. Arch Appl Mech 86, 657–668 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00419-015-1053-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00419-015-1053-0

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