Investigating eutectic behavior and material relocation in BC-stainless steel composites using the improved MPS method

Ahmed, Z.*; Wu, S.*; Sharma, A.*; Kumar, R.*; Yamano, Hidemasa; Pellegrini, M.*; Yokoyama, Ryo*; Okamoto, Koji*

International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 250, p.127343_1 - 127343_17, 2025/11

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijheatmasstransfer.2025.127343

Application of the GIF safety design criteria and safety design guidelines on passive reactor shutdown capability to next generation sodium-cooled fast reactor in Japan

Yamano, Hidemasa; Futagami, Satoshi; Sasa, Kyohei*; Nakamura, Hironori*; Tokizaki, Minako*; Kubota, Ryuzaburo*

Proceedings of 2025 International Congress on Advances in Nuclear Power Plants (ICAPP 2025) (Internet), 12 Pages, 2025/09

This study examined the application of safety design criteria (SDC) and safety design guideline (SDG) developed in the Generation-IV international forum on the passive reactor shutdown capability to sodium-cooled fast reactors (SFRs) recently designed in Japan.

Risk assessment methodology for heat transfer tube failure in a sodium-molten salt heat exchanger for sodium-cooled fast reactor coupled to molten salt thermal energy storage system

Takano, Kazuya; Kurisaka, Kenichi; Yamano, Hidemasa

Progress in Nuclear Science and Technology (Internet), 8, p.82 - 85, 2025/09

https://doi.org/10.15669/pnst.8.82

As part of the development of risk assessment technologies for sodium-cooled fast reactor coupled to thermal energy storage (TES) system with sodium-molten salt heat exchanger (HX), the database on the number of heat transfer tube failure in molten salt HX and the exposure time of concentrated solar power (CSP) system to molten salt was surveyed on the basis of reported practices of accidents in the existing CSP systems with the molten salt TES system. Using the database, a risk assessment methodology of the heat transfer tube failure frequency was also studied with a Bayesian estimation method to obtain a risk insight for improving the HX.

Characterization of relocated solidified eutectic melt of BC-stainless steel composite under severe reactor conditions

Ahmed, Z.*; Kumar, R.*; Yokoyama, Ryo*; Okamoto, Koji*; Pellegrini, M.*; Yamano, Hidemasa

Proceedings of 21st International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics (NURETH-21) (Internet), 15 Pages, 2025/08

Seismic fragility evaluation of a thin-walled vessel in a sodium-cooled fast reactor

Watakabe, Tomoyoshi; Yamano, Hidemasa; Futagami, Satoshi

Transactions of the 28th International Conference on Structural Mechanics in Reactor Technology (SMiRT28) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2025/08

The fragility evaluation method of the RV in the SFR has been developed for both failure mode buckling and fatigue. The past studies showed the fragility using the RV of a loop-type SFR: radius R / thickness t is about 100. Recently, Japan Atomic Energy Agency together with Japanese industrial partners has been conducting a pool-type SFR design. The fragility of the pool-type RV has never been evaluated by the proposed method, which is based on the fatigue failure mode instead of the buckling. To investigate the basic behaviour of the pool-type RV under excessive seismic loading, this report investigated the fragility by using a simple cylindrical model with a wall thickness close to the design of the pool-type RV: R/t is 200, as the first trial.

Density, surface tension, and viscosity of molten Ni-based superalloys using the maximum bubble pressure and oscillating crucible methods

Nishi, Tsuyoshi*; Matsumoto, Saori*; Yamano, Hidemasa; Hayashi, Kiichiro*; Endo, Rie*; Bell, M. R.*; Neubert, L.*; Volkova, O.*

Steel Research International, 96(5), p.2300766_1 - 2300766_6, 2025/05

https://doi.org/10.1002/srin.202300766

The density of Ni-based superalloys is measured using the maximum bubble pressure (MBP) method. The viscosity is evaluated using the oscillating crucible method. The surface tension is simultaneously measured using the MBP method.

Density of a molten stainless steel-BC alloy measured in the electrostatic levitation furnace onboard the international space station

Ishikawa, Takehiko*; Oda, Hirohisa*; Koyama, Chihiro*; Shimonishi, Rina*; Ikeuchi, Rumiko*; Paradis, P.-F.*; Okada, Jumpei*; Fukuyama, Hiroyuki*; Yamano, Hidemasa

International Journal of Microgravity Science and Application, 42(2), p.420202_1 - 420202_10, 2025/04

https://doi.org/10.15011/jasma.42.420202

Density, surface tension, and viscosity of liquid low-sulfur manganese-boron steel via maximum bubble pressure and oscillating crucible methods

Bell, M. R.*; Neubert, L.*; Sherstneva, A.*; Yamamoto, Taisei*; Nishi, Tsuyoshi*; Yamano, Hidemasa; Weinberg, M.*; Volkova, O.*

Steel Research International, p.2400252_1 - 2400252_10, 2025/00

https://doi.org/10.1002/srin.202400252

In this study, the thermophysical properties of low-sulfur manganese-boron steel with varying boron and sulfur contents at different temperatures are investigated.

First freezing experiments with a molten mixture of boron carbide and stainless steel in core disruptive accidents of sodium-cooled fast reactors

Emura, Yuki; Matsuba, Kenichi; Kikuchi, Shin; Yamano, Hidemasa

Proceedings of 13th Korea-Japan Symposium on Nuclear Thermal Hydraulics and Safety (NTHAS13) (Internet), 8 Pages, 2024/11

SIMMER-III and SIMMER-IV; Computer codes for LMFR core disruptive accident analysis

Kondo, Satoru; Tobita, Yoshiharu*; Morita, Koji*; Kamiyama, Kenji; Yamano, Hidemasa; Suzuki, Toru*; Tagami, Hirotaka; Sogabe, Joji; Ishida, Shinya

JAEA-Research 2024-008, 235 Pages, 2024/10

JAEA-Research-2024-008.pdf:4.77MB

The SIMMER-III and SIMMER-IV computer codes, developed at the Japan Atomic Energy Agency are the codes with two- and three-dimensional, multi-field, multi-component fluid-dynamics models, coupled with a space- and time-dependent neutron kinetics model. The codes have been used widely for simulating complex phenomena during core-disruptive accidents in liquid-metal fast reactors. Advanced features of the codes in comparison with the former codes include: stable and robust fluid-dynamics algorithm with up to 8 velocity fields, improved representation of structures and multi-phase flow topology, comprehensive treatment of complex heat and mass transfer processes, accurate analytic equations of state, a stable and efficient neutron flux shape solution method and decay heat model. This report describes the models and methods of SIMMER-III and SIMMER-IV. For those individual models, the details of which have been reported elsewhere, only the outlines of the models are presented. The reports of code verification and validation have been already published.