Advanced Design Concepts for Pressurized Water Reactor and Boiling Water Reactor High-performance Annular Fuel Assemblies

Advanced Design Concepts for Pressurized Water Reactor and Boiling Water Reactor High-performance Annular Fuel Assemblies PDF Author: Tyler Shawn Ellis
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 183

Get Book Here

Book Description
Sobering electricity supply and demand projections, coupled with the current volatility of energy prices, have underscored the seriousness of the challenges which lay ahead for the utility industry. This research addresses the impending global need for electricity through the development of advanced annular fuel designs with both internal and external cooling which can achieve higher power densities and hence, higher electricity output from the same basic reactor vessel and containment. Therefore the objectives of this project are to determine the optimal geometrical design parameters of an annular fuel assembly for both PWRs and BWRs for the purpose of achieving maximum power density. It is theorized that utility companies can utilize this design through either retrofitting of their existing reactor facilities or incorporation of the fuel design into new plant concepts. For the case of annular fuel for PWRs, a high performance uranium nitride fuel assembly concept capable of achieving a 50% higher power density was successfully developed. It is shown that a 5% enriched UN annular-fuel assembly can operate at 150% power density for about 50 effective-full-power-days more than that of the nominal 17xl7 solid-fuel-pin assembly operating at 100% power density. Furthermore, neutronic simulation times of this assembly was reduced from approximately 2 days per simulation for a Monte Carlo based analysis to approximately 2 minutes for a deterministic based simulation via the development of an appropriate correction factor for the CASMO-4 neutron transport code. It was shown that a 25% increase in U238 number density for the un-poisoned pins and a 35% increase for the 10 weight percent gadolinium nitride poisoned pins produced the optimal plutonium tracking and infinite multiplication factor simulation.

Advanced Design Concepts for Pressurized Water Reactor and Boiling Water Reactor High-performance Annular Fuel Assemblies

Advanced Design Concepts for Pressurized Water Reactor and Boiling Water Reactor High-performance Annular Fuel Assemblies PDF Author: Tyler Shawn Ellis
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 183

Get Book Here

Book Description
Sobering electricity supply and demand projections, coupled with the current volatility of energy prices, have underscored the seriousness of the challenges which lay ahead for the utility industry. This research addresses the impending global need for electricity through the development of advanced annular fuel designs with both internal and external cooling which can achieve higher power densities and hence, higher electricity output from the same basic reactor vessel and containment. Therefore the objectives of this project are to determine the optimal geometrical design parameters of an annular fuel assembly for both PWRs and BWRs for the purpose of achieving maximum power density. It is theorized that utility companies can utilize this design through either retrofitting of their existing reactor facilities or incorporation of the fuel design into new plant concepts. For the case of annular fuel for PWRs, a high performance uranium nitride fuel assembly concept capable of achieving a 50% higher power density was successfully developed. It is shown that a 5% enriched UN annular-fuel assembly can operate at 150% power density for about 50 effective-full-power-days more than that of the nominal 17xl7 solid-fuel-pin assembly operating at 100% power density. Furthermore, neutronic simulation times of this assembly was reduced from approximately 2 days per simulation for a Monte Carlo based analysis to approximately 2 minutes for a deterministic based simulation via the development of an appropriate correction factor for the CASMO-4 neutron transport code. It was shown that a 25% increase in U238 number density for the un-poisoned pins and a 35% increase for the 10 weight percent gadolinium nitride poisoned pins produced the optimal plutonium tracking and infinite multiplication factor simulation.

Conceptual Design of an Annular-fueled Superheat Boiling Water Reactor

Conceptual Design of an Annular-fueled Superheat Boiling Water Reactor PDF Author: Yu-Chih Ko (Ph. D.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 362

Get Book Here

Book Description
The conceptual design of an annular-fueled superheat boiling water reactor (ASBWR) is outlined. The proposed design, ASBWR, combines the boiler and superheater regions into one fuel assembly. This ensures good neutron moderation throughout the reactor core. A single fuel design is used in the core. Each annular fuel element, or fuel tube, is cooled externally by boiling water and internally by steam. Fuel pellets are made of low enrichment U0 2, somewhat higher than the traditional BWR fuel enrichment. T91 and Inconel 718 are selected as candidates for the cladding material in view of their excellent physical properties and corrosion resistance. The fuel-cladding gap is filled with pressurized helium gas, like the existing lighter water reactor fuels. The ASBWR fuel assembly contains sixty annular fuel elements and one square water rod (occupying a space of four fuel elements) in an 8 by 8 square array. Annular separators and steam dryers are utilized and located above the core in the reactor vessel. Reactor internal pumps are used to adjust the core flow rate. Cruciform control rods are used to control the reactivity of the core, but more of them may be needed than a traditional BWR in view of the harder spectrum. The major design constraints have been identified and evaluated in this work. The ASBWR is found promising to achieve a power density of 50 kW/L and meet all the main safety requirements. This includes a limit on the minimum critical heat flux ratio, maximum fuel and cladding operating temperatures, and appropriate stability margin against density wave oscillations. At the expected superheated steam of 520 °C, the plant efficiency is above 40%, which is substantially greater than the efficiency of 33 to 35% that today's generation of LWRs can achieve. In addition to generating electricity, the ASBWR may also be useful for liquid fuel production or other applications that require high temperature superheated steam. The uncertainties about this design include the performance of cladding materials under irradiation, the attainment of desirable heat transfer ratio between the external and internal coolant channels throughout the fuel cycle, and the response to the traditional transients prescribed as design basis events.

Nuclear Power Reactor Designs

Nuclear Power Reactor Designs PDF Author: Jun Wang
Publisher: Elsevier
ISBN: 0323999468
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 465

Get Book Here

Book Description
Nuclear Power Reactor Designs: From History to Advances analyzes nuclear designs throughout history and explains how each of those has helped to shape and inform the nuclear reactor designs of today and the future. Focused on the structure, systems and relevant components of each reactor design, this book provides the readers with answers to key questions to help them understand the benefits of each design. Each reactor design is introduced, their origin defined, and the relevant research presented before an analysis of its successes, what was learned, and how research and technology advanced as a result are presented. Students, researchers and early career engineers will gain a solid understanding of how nuclear designs have evolved, and how they will continue to develop in the future. - Presents reactor designs through history to present day, focusing on key structures, systems and components - Provides readers with quick answers about various design principles and rationales - Includes new approaches such as the micro-reactor and small-modular reactors

American National Standard for Light Water Reactors Fuel Assembly Mechanical Design and Evaluation

American National Standard for Light Water Reactors Fuel Assembly Mechanical Design and Evaluation PDF Author: American National Standards Institute
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Light water reactors
Languages : en
Pages : 28

Get Book Here

Book Description


Prototype Boiling Water Reactor

Prototype Boiling Water Reactor PDF Author: J. M. Harrer
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Boiling water reactors
Languages : en
Pages : 84

Get Book Here

Book Description
Design of a nuclear power plant of 50-Mw(e) capacity which can be used to demonstrate advanced performance concepts for boiling water reactors is describe. Included are diagrams and data on core design, mechanical design, and heat transfer and fluid flow. Also included are sections containing information on physics, fuel cycle evaluation, and recommendations. Contains 26 references.

Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor Study

Advanced Pressurized Water Reactor Study PDF Author: U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. Division of Reactor Development
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Nuclear power plants
Languages : en
Pages : 510

Get Book Here

Book Description


Fuel Cycle Program - a Boiling Water Reactor Research and Development Program

Fuel Cycle Program - a Boiling Water Reactor Research and Development Program PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Boiling water reactors
Languages : en
Pages : 64

Get Book Here

Book Description


High Performance Light Water Reactor - Next Generation Nuclear Power

High Performance Light Water Reactor - Next Generation Nuclear Power PDF Author: Kai Fischer
Publisher: Sudwestdeutscher Verlag Fur Hochschulschriften AG
ISBN: 9783838111308
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 160

Get Book Here

Book Description
The High Performance Light Water Reactor (HPLWR) is a light water reactor with supercritical steam conditions which has been investigated within the 5th Framework Program of the European Commission. Due to the supercritical pressure of 25 MPa, water, used as moderator and as coolant, flows as a single phase through the core and can be directly fed to the turbine. Using the technology of coal fired power plants with supercritical steam conditions, the heat-up in the core is done in several steps to achieve the targeted high steam outlet temperature of 500 C without exceeding available cladding material limits. Based on a first design of a fuel assembly cluster for a HPLWR with a single pass core, the surrounding internals and the reactor pressure vessel are dimensioned for the first time, following the safety standards of the nuclear safety standards commission in Germany. Furthermore, this design is extended to the incorporation of core arrangements with two and three passes. The design of the internals and the RPV are verified using combined mechanical and thermal stress analyses and thermal-hydraulic analyses."

Innovative Fuel Designs for High Power Density Pressurized Water Reactor

Innovative Fuel Designs for High Power Density Pressurized Water Reactor PDF Author: Dandong Feng (Ph. D.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 259

Get Book Here

Book Description
(contd.) It is found that the main uncertainty for this design is associated with the heat split between the inner and outer channels due to differences in the thermal resistances in the two fuel-clad gaps. Annular fuel is found to be resistant to flow instabilities, such as Ledinegg instability and density wave oscillation due to high system pressure and one-phase flow along most of the hot channel length. Similar power density uprate is found possible for annular fuel in a hexagonal lattice. Large break loss of coolant accident (LBLOCA) for the reference Westinghouse 4-loop PWR utilizing annular fuel at 150% power is analyzed using RELAP, under conservative conditions. The blowdown peak cladding temperature (PCT) is found to be lower because of the low operating fuel temperature, but the flow rate from the safety injection system needs to be increased by 50% to remove the 50% higher decay heat. Loss of flow analysis also showed better performance of the annular fuel because of its low stored energy. The fuel design that best meets the desired thermal and mechanical features is the spiral cross-geometry rods. The dimensions of this type of fuel that can be applied in the reference core were defined. Thermal-hydraulic whole-core evaluations were conducted with cylindrical fuel rod simplification, and critical heat flux modification based on the heat flux lateral non-uniformity in the cross geometry. This geometry was found to have the potential to increase PWR power density by 50%. However, there are major uncertainties in the feasibility and costs of manufacturing this fuel.

High Power Density Development Project

High Power Density Development Project PDF Author: W. D. Fowler
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Boiling water reactors
Languages : en
Pages : 80

Get Book Here

Book Description