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Stability analysis of passive cooling systems for nuclear spent fuel pool

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Abstract

Passive cooling systems (PCSs) are engineering solutions to perform the function of heat transfer using the temperature difference between hot and cold sources to generate the driving force. These systems have increasing importance to nuclear power industry and are object of many studies since 1960s. One of the main concerns in PCSs is thermal-hydraulic stability. This work presents the results of a linear and a non-linear stability analysis of a single-phase natural circulation loop coupled to a nuclear spent fuel pool. The effect of the pool on the stability of the system is studied by linear and non-linear models. Results show that stability natural cooling loops are modified by the coupling with the pool. Moreover, the amount of water in the pool is non-monotonically related to the stability of the system.

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Notes

  1. The mean deviation is defined as the sum of the relative deviations point-to-point, which were computed as absolute difference between experiment \(\text{Re}_{exp}\) and model \(\text{Re}_{mod}\), divided by the experimental value, i.e., \(\text {mean deviation}=\mid \text{Re}_{exp}-\text{Re}_{mod}\mid /\text{Re}_{exp}\).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Rio de Janeiro State University - UERJ, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Norberto Mangiavacchi

  2. Eletrobras Eletronuclear, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Leon Lima & Lucio Ferrari

Authors
  1. Leon Lima
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  2. Norberto Mangiavacchi
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  3. Lucio Ferrari
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Correspondence to Leon Lima.

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Technical Editor: Francis HR Franca.

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Lima, L., Mangiavacchi, N. & Ferrari, L. Stability analysis of passive cooling systems for nuclear spent fuel pool. J Braz. Soc. Mech. Sci. Eng. 39, 1019–1031 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-016-0589-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40430-016-0589-4

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