Control Rod Withdrawal and Sodium Natural Circulation Tests Performed during the PHENIX End-of-Life Experiments

Closed for Proposals

Project Type

Coordinated Research Project

Project Code

I33012

CRP

1455

Approved Date

9 May 2008

Project Status

Closed

Start Date

15 July 2008

Expected End Date

14 July 2011

Completed Date

1 January 2013

Description

The CRP addresses end-of-life experiments to be performed before the final shut-down of the prototype fast breeder power reactor PHENIX. The CRP will improve the participants’ analytical capabilities in the various fields of research and design of sodium cooled fast reactors through data and codes verification and validation.

Objectives

To improve the CRP participants analytical capabilities in various fields of research and design of sodium-cooled fast reactors through code verification and validation, with particular emphasis on temperature and power distribution calculations and the analysis of sodium natural circulation phenomena.

Specific Objectives

Enhanced international team-building and technical cooperation in the area of fast reactors

Improved understanding of fast reactor neutronics and thermal hydraulics in safety relevant situations

Improved understanding of the methodology employed to simulate fast reactors (data and computer codes)

Improved verification and validation status of this methodology and the used numerical codes

Impact

The CRP contributed to improve the know-how on the power and reactivity control as well as some natural circulation phenomena occurring in a large sodium-cooled fast reactors, under transient and accident conditions. It was also very successful as far as the further verification, validation and qualification (V&V&Q) of the neutronic, safety and CFD numerical codes used by the CRP participants to assess performances and conduct safety analyses of innovative sodium-cooled fast reactors under development/design in their country.

Relevance

The outcomes of the CRP are of great importance for all the Member States with an active programme on fast reactors. As already stated, the CRP greatly contributed to improve the V&V&Q process of the most advanced nuclear codes used for the design and the safety analysis of innovative fast neutron systems under development/design worldwide.

CRP Publications

IAEA

TECDOC-1742

2014

Full reporting of the benchmark analyses on the Control Rod Withdrawal Tests performed during the PHENIX End-of-Life Experiments

http://www.dgdingfa.net/NuclearPower/Publications/2014/index.html