Measurements of gas-liquid two-phase flow dynamics using high-speed neutron imaging

Ito, Daisuke*; Odaira, Naoya*; Ito, Kei*; Saito, Yasushi*; Kurita, Keisuke; Iikura, Hiroshi

Journal of Physics; Conference Series, 2605, p.012024_1 - 012024_6, 2023/10

https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2605/1/012024

Gas-liquid two-phase flow appears in many heat-exchanging devices. To understand the phenomena in such devices, the two-phase flow dynamics should be clarified. In this study, high-speed neutron imaging is applied to the measurements of two-phase flow dynamics, and the accuracy of the void fraction measurement is investigated.

Development of tracer particles for thermal hydraulic experiment by neutron imaging

Saito, Yasushi*; Ito, Daisuke*; Odaira, Naoya*; Kurita, Keisuke; Iikura, Hiroshi

Journal of Physics; Conference Series, 2605, p.012028_1 - 012028_6, 2023/10

https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/2605/1/012028

To observe flow velocity distributions by Neutron Imaging, suitable tracer is necessary. The requirements are its density, its visibility, and its wettability (if applied to liquid metal). Gold cadmium tracers have been developed for the Pb-Bi two-phase flow, however, the visibility have not been verified depending on the particle size and the measurement system. As the candidates of tracer particles, Ag, Cd, Au-Cd, and Ag-Cd have been tested by varying its compositions and its diameters. Results show enough visibility if the particles size is larger than 1mm. In addition, Cd tracer particles were applied to the fluidized bed, where the bed materials are metallic particle made of stainless steel, with 1mm diameter. The diameter of Cd trace is about 1.5 mm. From the neutron imaging, the visibility of the tracers is enough to measure the velocity distributions in the fluidized bed.

Visualization of gas-liquid interfacial behavior in a narrow channel using high-speed neutron imaging

Ito, Daisuke*; Odaira, Naoya*; Ito, Kei*; Saito, Yasushi*; Kurita, Keisuke; Iikura, Hiroshi

Konsoryu, 37(1), p.73 - 78, 2023/03

https://doi.org/10.3811/jjmf.2023.007

Gas-liquid two-phase flow is a very complicated flow phenomenon that involves the interaction between gas and liquid phases. Recently, an accurate simulation technique of two-phase flow has been developed. However, the validation of the simulated results is insufficient due to less experimental data. It is especially difficult to measure interfacial behavior with significant spatiotemporal fluctuation. To understand such phenomena, measurement methods with high spatial and temporal resolutions are required. Neutron imaging is a powerful tool for two-phase flow visualization. In this study, two-phase flow in the narrow rectangular channel was visualized by high-speed neutron imaging.

Spatial distribution and preferred orientation of crystalline microstructure of lead-bismuth eutectic

Ito, Daisuke*; Sato, Hirotaka*; Odaira, Naoya*; Saito, Yasushi*; Parker, J. D.*; Shinohara, Takenao; Kai, Tetsuya; Oikawa, Kenichi

Journal of Nuclear Materials, 569, p.153921_1 - 153921_6, 2022/10

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jnucmat.2022.153921

Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors

Ohshima, Hiroyuki; Morishita, Masaki*; Aizawa, Kosuke; Ando, Masanori; Ashida, Takashi; Chikazawa, Yoshitaka; Doda, Norihiro; Enuma, Yasuhiro; Ezure, Toshiki; Fukano, Yoshitaka; et al.

Sodium-cooled Fast Reactors; JSME Series in Thermal and Nuclear Power Generation, Vol.3, 631 Pages, 2022/07

https://shop.elsevier.com/books/sodium-cooled-fast-reactors/morishita/978-0-12-824076-2

This book is a collection of the past experience of design, construction, and operation of two reactors, the latest knowledge and technology for SFR designs, and the future prospects of SFR development in Japan. It is intended to provide the perspective and the relevant knowledge to enable readers to become more familiar with SFR technology.

Measurement of liquid metal flows with electro-magnetic probe

Ariyoshi, Gen; Ito, Daisuke*; Ito, Kei*; Saito, Yasushi*

JPS Conference Proceedings (Internet), 33, p.011044_1 - 011044_6, 2021/03

https://doi.org/10.7566/JPSCP.33.011044

Neutron transmission spectrum of liquid lead bismuth eutectic

Oba, Yojiro; Ito, Daisuke*; Saito, Yasushi*; Onodera, Yohei*; Parker, J. D.*; Shinohara, Takenao; Oikawa, Kenichi

Materials Research Proceedings, Vol.15, p.160 - 164, 2020/02

https://doi.org/10.21741/9781644900574-25

Lead Bismuth eutectic (LBE) is a promising candidate of the coolant for accelerator driven system (ADS) and fast breeder reactor. Neutron transmission imaging is a powerful technique to investigate the LBE in flow channel. However, previous studies have focused on the analysis of the neutron transmission spectra due to Bragg diffraction (Bragg edge transmission) from the solid phase of the LBE. If the neutron transmission spectra due to the diffraction from a liquid phase can be observed, it is useful to study the behavior of the molten LBE in the flow channel. Therefore, the energy-resolved neutron transmission imaging measurements of the molten LBE was carried out. The observed neutron transmission spectra can be explained by those calculated from the scattering profiles of the molten LBE. This indicates that the structure of the molten LBE can be characterized and mapped using the neutron transmission imaging.

Two-phase flow structure in a particle bed packed in a confined channel

Ito, Daisuke*; Kurisaki, Tatsuya*; Ito, Kei*; Saito, Yasushi*; Imaizumi, Yuya; Matsuba, Kenichi; Kamiyama, Kenji

Proceedings of 18th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics (NURETH-18) (USB Flash Drive), p.6430 - 6439, 2019/08

In core disruptive accident of sodium-cooled fast reactor, cooling of residual fuel debris formed in the reactor core is one of important factors to achieve in-vessel retention of the fuel. To clarify the feasibility of the cooling which is called "in-place cooling", characteristics of gas-liquid two-phase flow in the debris bed must be well understood. Since the debris bed can be formed in a confined flow channel in the core, effect of the channel wall cannot be neglected. Thus, this study aims to clarify the effect of the wall on two-phase flow characteristics in the debris bed, which was simulated as a particle bed packed in a pipe. The pressure drop was measured and compared with results by previous models, and porosity and void fraction distributions were measured by X-ray radiography. Then, the pressure drop evaluation model was modified considering the wall effect, and the applicability of the models was discussed.

Visualization of phase distribution in lead-bismuth eutectic during one-dimensional solidification process

Ito, Daisuke*; Sato, Hirotaka*; Saito, Yasushi*; Parker, J. D.*; Shinohara, Takenao; Kai, Tetsuya

Journal of Visualization, 22(5), p.889 - 895, 2019/06

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12650-019-00572-7

Estimation of porosity and void fraction profiles in a packed bed of spheres using X-ray radiography

Ito, Daisuke*; Ito, Kei*; Saito, Yasushi*; Aoyagi, Mitsuhiro; Matsuba, Kenichi; Kamiyama, Kenji

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 334, p.90 - 95, 2018/08

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2018.05.003

Two-phase flow through porous media must be well understood to develop a severe accident analysis code not only for light water reactor but also sodium-cooled fast reactor. When a core disruptive accident occurs in sodium-cooled fast reactor, the fuel inside the core become melted and interacts with the coolant. As a result, gas-liquid two-phase flow will be formed in the debris bed, which may have porous nature depending on the cooling process. In such condition, the local porosity and its distribution are very important to characterize two-phase flow field in the porous media. In this study, X-ray radiography was applied to measure the local porosity in the packed bed of spheres. The radial profiles were estimated from the chordal profiles measured by the X-ray method and compared with the previous porosity model. In addition, the void fraction radial profiles were also obtained in air-water two-phase flow.