Study on thermal stratification in a compact reactor vessel; Effects of Richardson number and upper plenum geometries

Nakayama, Okatsu; Ogawa, Hiroshi*; Kimura, Nobuyuki; Hayashi, Kenji; Tobita, Akira; Kamide, Hideki 

Water experiment using an 1/10th scaled upper plenum model was carried out to investigate thermal stratification after a scram in a compact reactor, which has high velocity local flow in the upper plenum. The experiments showed that the rising speed of the stratification interface was dependent on Richardson number and the temperature gradient of the stratification interface was also influenced by the temperature difference and fluctuation. Furthermore, the temperature gradient could be reduced greatly by changing position of structure in the upper plenum.