Benefits of Vertical and Horizontal Seismic Isolation for LMR (liquid Metal Reactor) Nuclear Reactor Units PDF Download

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Book Description
Seismic isolation has been shown to be able to reduce transmitted seismic force and lower response accelerations of a structure. When applied to nuclear reactors, it will minimize seismic influence on the reactor design and provide a design which is less site dependent. In liquid metal reactors where components are virtually at atmospheric pressure but under severe thermal conditions, thin-walled structures are generally used for primary systems. Thin-walled structures, however, have little inherent seismic resistance. The concept of seismic isolation therefore offers a viable and effective approach that permits the reactor structures to better withstand thermal and seismic loadings simultaneously. The majority of published work on seismic isolation deals with use of horizontal isolation system only. In this investigation, however, local vertical isolation is also provided for the primary system. Such local vertical isolation is found to result in significant benefits for major massive components, such as the reactor cover, designed to withstand vertical motions and loadings. Preliminary estimations on commodity savings of the primary system show that, with additional local vertical isolation, the savings could be twice that estimated for horizontal isolation only. The degree of effectiveness of vertical isolation depends on the diameter of the reactor vessel. As the reactor vessel diameter increases, the vertical seismic effects become more pronounced and vertical isolation can make a significant contribution.