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Uesawa, Shinichiro; Yamashita, Susumu; Sano, Yoshihiko*; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(6), p.523 - 541, 2025/06
Times Cited Count：0 Percentile：0.00(Nuclear Science & Technology)Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) has developed a numerical method with the JUPITER code with a porous medium model to calculate the thermal behavior in PCVs of 1F. In this study, we performed an experiment and numerical simulation of the natural convective heat transfer with the porous medium to validate JUPITER with the porous medium model. In comparison of the temperature and velocity distributions between the experiment and simulation, the temperature distribution in the simulation was in good agreement with the distribution in the experiment except the temperature near the top surface of the porous medium. The velocity distribution also agreed qualitatively with the experimental result. In addition, we also performed the numerical simulations with various effective thermal conductivity models to discuss the effect of the conductivity based on the internal structure of porous media on the natural convective heat transfer. The result indicated that the temperature distribution in the porous medium and the velocity distribution of the natural convection were significantly different for each model, and thus the conductivity of the fuel debris was one of the key parameters of in the thermal behavior analysis in 1F.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Nagatake, Taku; Yamashita, Susumu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(5), p.432 - 456, 2025/05
Times Cited Count：0 Percentile：0.00(Nuclear Science & Technology)We performed electrostatic simulations of a wire-mesh sensor (WMS) for a single spherical bubble and bubbly flow to clarify the accuracy of the WMS. The electrostatic simulation for the single bubble showed the electric current density distribution and the electric current path from the excited transmitter to receivers for various bubble locations. It indicated systematic errors based on the nonuniform current density distribution around the WMS. The electrostatic simulation for the bubbly flow calculated by the computational fluid dynamics code, JAEA Utility Program for Interdisciplinary Thermal-hydraulics Engineering and Research (JUPITER), indicated that the WMS had difficulty in quantitatively measuring the intermediate values of the instantaneous void fraction between 0 and 1 because they cannot be estimated by previous transformation methods from the WMS signal to the void fraction, such as linear approximation or Maxwell's equation, and have a significant deviation of the void fraction of 
0.2 for the WMS signal. However, the electrostatic simulation indicated that the time-averaged void fractions around the center of the flow channel can be estimated using linear approximation, and the time-averaged void fraction near the wall of the flow channel can be estimated using Maxwell's equation.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Konsoryu, 39(1), p.61 - 71, 2025/03
Bubble visualization using a high-speed video-camera has been used as a measurement technique of bubble diameters and velocities. However, the bubble detection was difficult under the condition of the high void fraction because the overlapping bubbles for the sight direction of the camera increased with the void fraction. Additionally, the visualization for a system with objects, such as rod bundle flow channels, becomes more difficult. In this study, we applied a deep learning-based bubble detection technique with Shifted Window Transformer to bubble images shoot from two directions to identify the bubble size, three-dimensional (3D) positions of bubbles, 3D bubble trajectories in the rod bundle flow channel. Furthermore, we used perfluoroalkoxy alkane tubes with almost the same reflection as water in the channel to visualize the bubbly flow in the whole of the flow channel. We confirmed that the detection technique can segment individual bubbles in overlapping bubbles and bubbles behind the rod. By using the detection results, we estimated the diameter and velocity of each bubble and cross-sectional void fraction.
Horiguchi, Naoki; Yoshida, Hiroyuki; Kaneko, Akiko*; Abe, Yutaka*
Physics of Fluids, 37(3), p.033333_1 - 033333_20, 2025/03
Times Cited Count：0 Percentile：0.00(Mechanics)In a severe accident, as molten fuel is assumed to behave as a wall-impinging jet in a shallow coolant pool, atomize and accumulate as fuel debris, it is important to reveal the atomization mechanisms of the wall-impinging jet. This study aimed to reveal the atomization mechanisms in the vortex-like flow of a wall-impinging jet in a shallow pool of a liquid-liquid system, focusing on droplet formation as an elementary process of atomization. To quantitatively investigate these mechanisms, we applied quantification methods to three-dimensional interfacial data obtained by a previous experimental study using three-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence with index matching. Detailed observations of the spreading behavior of droplets and vortex-like flow, along with quantitative estimations, found out that the vortex-like flow is the dominant source of droplets on the atomization. Further investigations into the forces acting on the vortex-like flow found out the formation and collapse processes of the vortex-like flow. The accelerations of the normal forces acting on the vortex-like flow can be represented by superficial centrifugal acceleration and gravitational acceleration. Our next analysis focused on investigating droplet formation as the elementary process of atomization. The results showed two droplet formation patterns: liquid-film breaking patterns, wherein droplets directly form from the liquid film, and the surfing pattern, wherein droplets form from interfacial waves on the liquid film. Subsequently, the droplet data were grouped using dimensionless numbers and compared with theoretical lines describing the different droplet formation mechanisms. This comparison revealed the mechanisms of droplet formation within the vortex-like flow.
Nakamura, Satoshi; Ishii, Sho*; Kato, Hitoshi*; Ban, Yasutoshi; Hiruta, Kenta; Yoshida, Takuya; Uehara, Hiroyuki; Obata, Hiroki; Kimura, Yasuhiko; Takano, Masahide
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 62(1), p.56 - 64, 2025/01
Times Cited Count：1 Percentile：57.00(Nuclear Science & Technology)A dissolution method for analyzing the elemental composition of fuel debris using the sodium peroxide (Na
O) fusion technique has been developed. Herein, two different types of simulated debris materials (such as solid solution of (Zr,RE)O and molten core-concrete interaction products (MCCI)) were taken. At various temperatures, these debris materials were subsequently fused with NaO in crucibles, which are made of different materials, such as Ni, AlO
, Fe, and Zr. Then, the fused samples are dissolved in nitric acid. Furthermore, the effects of the experimental conditions on the elemental composition analysis were evaluated using inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES), which suggested the use of a Ni crucible at 923 K as an optimum testing condition. The optimum testing condition was then applied to the demonstration tests with Three Mile Island unit-2 (TMI-2) debris in a shielded concrete cell, thereby achieving complete dissolution of the debris. The elemental composition of TMI-2 debris revealed by the proposed dissolution method has good reproducibility and has an insignificant contradiction in the mass balance of the sample. Therefore, this newly developed reproducible dissolution method can be effectively utilized in practical applications by dissolving fuel debris and estimating its elemental composition.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 61(11), p.1438 - 1452, 2024/11
Times Cited Count：0 Percentile：0.00(Nuclear Science & Technology)We developed a deep learning-based bubble detector with a Shifted window Transformer (Swin Transformer) to detect and segment individual bubbles among overlapping bubbles. To verify the performance of the detector, we calculated its average precision (AP) with different number of training images. The mask AP increased with the increase in the number of training images when there were less than 50 images but remained constant when there were more than 50 images. It was observed that the AP for the Swin Transformer and ResNet were almost the same when there were more than 50 images; however, when few training images were used, the AP of the Swin Transformer were higher than that of the ResNet. Furthermore, with regard to the increase in void fraction, the AP of the Swin Transformer showed a decrease similar to that in the case of the ResNet; however, for few training images, the AP of the Swin Transformer was higher than that of the ResNet in all void fractions. Moreover, we confirmed the detector trained with synthetic bubble images was able to segment overlapping bubbles and deformed bubbles in a bubbly flow experiment. Thus, we verified that the new bubble detector with Swin Transformer provided higher AP than the detector with ResNet for fewer training images.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yamashita, Susumu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of 13th Korea-Japan Symposium on Nuclear Thermal Hydraulics and Safety (NTHAS13) (Internet), 7 Pages, 2024/11
A conductance-typed wire-mesh sensor (WMS), utilizing the difference in conductivity between gas and liquid phases between the electrodes, is one of the practical measurement techniques of a cross-sectional void fraction distribution in a flow path. In this study, we performed two-phase computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and electrostatic simulations around a WMS for a single spherical bubble and bubbly flow to clarify the systematic error in the WMS. The results for the single bubble indicated that there were systematic errors based on the non-uniform current density distribution around the WMS. The correlation between instantaneous void fractions and WMS signals is not uniquely determined for positions of the single bubble moving across the WMS, even for the same bubble. Moreover, the correlation between the instantaneous void fractions and the WMS signals did not fit in a linear approximation and Maxwell's equation, which traditionally used transformation methods from the WMS signal to the void fraction. The results for the bubbly flow indicated that the WMS had difficulty in quantitative measurements of the instantaneous void fraction because the values had a significant deviation of the void fraction of approximately 0.2. On the other hand, time-averaged void fraction values had relatively small deviation. Thus, we concluded that the WMS, using existing transformation methods, can measure time-averaged void fractions, but it is difficult to measure quantitatively instantaneous void fractions.
Yuki, Kohei*; Horiguchi, Naoki; Yoshida, Hiroyuki; Yuki, Kazuhisa*
Proceedings of 31st International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE31) (Internet), 4 Pages, 2024/11
Fuel debris in the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station is cooled under immersion condition. However, in the event of an unexpected decrease in water level, coolant contacts high-temperature fuel debris having porous structure. In this event, although fuel debris needs to be cooled rapidly, thermal behavior at liquid-solid contact, such as capillary phenomenon, remains unclear. In this paper, as basic research, we evaluate droplet evaporation characteristics after contact with metal porous media with small pores less than 1 mm. In experiment, to obtain life time curve of a droplet, bronze or stainless steel porous media having 1, 40, or 100 
m pore diameter are utilized. Experimental results show that Leidenfrost phenomenon is suppressed on the porous surfaces because generated vapor can be discharged from the pores. Further, for bronze porous media, capillary phenomenon is observed as the temperature of the porous media increase because of generation of oxide film having fine structure. On the other hand, due to low wettability of stainless steel porous media, capillary phenomenon does not occur, and the droplet was not sucked and spread into pore. This indicates that rapid cooling by the capillary phenomenon can not be expected if fuel debris has the same characteristics as the stainless steel porous media.
Kamiya, Tomohiro; Nagatake, Taku; Ono, Ayako; Tada, Kenichi; Kondo, Ryoichi; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of 31st International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE31) (Internet), 7 Pages, 2024/11
We have developed the JAEA Advances Multi-Physics Analysis platform for Nuclear systems (JAMPAN) to realize high-fidelity neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulations. We will perform MVP/JUPITER coupling simulation for a single BWR fuel assembly in order to confirm that the neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling through JAMPAN is feasible. This presentation explains how to send and receive data between MVP and JUPITER through JAMPAN and simulation results.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Konsoryu Shimpojiumu 2024 Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 2 Pages, 2024/09
Bubble visualization using a high-speed video-camera has been used as measurement techniques of bubble diameters, interfacial area concentrations, and void fractions in dispersed bubbly flow. However, the bubble detection was difficult under the condition of the high void fraction because the overlapping bubbles for the sight direction of the camera increased with the increase in the void fraction. In this study, we developed the deep learning-based bubble detector with Shifted window Transformer (Swin Transformer) to overcome the issue. To verify the performance, we used the synthetic bubble images obtained by Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) and obtained average precisions (APs) for the number of the training dataset. The result showed that the AP was large enough for 50 datasets, and bubble detection was possible even with a small number of the training data. Additionally, we confirmed that the detector can detect and segment individual bubbles in overlapping bubbles obtained in the visualization experiments of pipe and bundle flows. By using the detection results, we estimated the interfacial area concentrations and void fractions. In comparison with commonly used relations, the results were in good agreement with the relations. Thus, the detector can measure not only bubble diameters but also interfacial area concentrations and void fractions.
Fukuda, Takanari; Yamashita, Susumu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of 14th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal-Hydraulics, Operation, and Safety (NTHOS-14) (Internet), 12 Pages, 2024/08
The VOF method is a type of CFDs that is most widely applied to multiphase flow analysis involving advective interfaces, and several interface-capturing schemes have been developed for an accurate advection of VOF values. However, the performance of these schemes has typically been evaluated only for limited numerical problems where velocity fields are spatially orderly and fixed in time. Few studies have been conducted to evaluate the performance of these schemes for more realistic and complex conditions, such as gas-liquid two-phase flows in nuclear reactors. Therefore, in this study, three-dimensional analysis of bubble flows has been conducted using the interface-capturing schemes of THINC and THINC/WLIC, which have been developed relatively recently. Evaluation is performed using more engineering indicators such as the number, volume, and trajectory of bubbles, which can influence the void fraction distribution in reactor cores. The results of these comparisons showed that the VOF value could be significantly diffused, leading to numerical brake-up and dissipation of the bubbles, with the influence of interface-capturing scheme.
Uesawa, Shinichiro; Ono, Ayako; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Dai-52-Kai Kashika Joho Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 2 Pages, 2024/07
In order to obtain 3D behavior of bubbles, visualization using high-speed video-cameras has been used to identify 3D positions of bubbles. However, it was difficult to apply the technique to bubbly flow with the high void fraction because overlapping bubbles for the sight direction of the camera increased with the increase in the void fraction. JAEA has developed the deep learning-based bubble detector with Shifted window Transformer (Swin Transformer) to overcome the issue for the overlapping bubbles. In this study, we applied the bubble detection technique to images of bubble swarms visualized from two directions other than the direction of main flow and visualized 3D behavior of dispersed bubbles. The result showed that individual bubbles in bubble swarms were detected, and bubble diameters and aspect ratios were measured. Additionally, we obtained 3D positions of bubbles and 3D bubble velocities by linking the bubble positions for the direction of main flow in both images.
Ono, Ayako; Sakashita, Hiroto*; Yamashita, Susumu; Suzuki, Takayuki*; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Mechanical Engineering Journal (Internet), 11(4), p.24-00188_1 - 24-00188_12, 2024/07
Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) is developing the evaluation method for a two-phase flow in the reactor core using simulation codes based on the Volume Of Fluid (VOF) method. JAEA started developing a Simplified Boiling Model (SBM) for the large-scale two-phase flow in the fuel assemblies. In the SBM, the motion and growth equations of the bubble are solved to obtain their diameter and time length at the detachment, of which size scale is within/around the calculation grid size of the numerical simulation. JUPITER calculates the bubble behavior with a scale of more than several m. In this study, the convection boiling on a vertical heating surface is simulated using the developed SBM. The comparison between the simulation and experimental results showed good reproducibility of the heat flux and velocity dependency on the passage period of the bubble.
Yamashita, Susumu; Kondo, Nao; Sugawara, Takanori; Monji, Hideaki*; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 61(6), p.740 - 761, 2024/06
Times Cited Count：0 Percentile：0.00(Nuclear Science & Technology)To confirm the validity of the thermal-hydraulics design tool based on the Ansys Fluent, we used a detailed computational fluid dynamics code named JAEA Utility Program for Interdisciplinary Thermal-hydraulics Engineering and Research (JUPITER) for the thermal-hydraulics around the beam window (BW) of the Accelerator-Driven System (ADS). The Fluent uses the Reynolds-Averaged Navier-Stokes (RANS) model and can quickly calculate the turbulent flow around the BW as a BW design tool. At first, we compared the results of JUPITER with the experimental results using a mock-up BW system in water to confirm the validity of JUPITER. As a result, we confirmed that numerical results are in good agreement with the experimental results. Thus, we showed that JUPITER could be used as a benchmark code. We also performed a benchmark simulation for the Fluent calculation using validated JUPITER to show the applicability of JUPITER as an alternative of experiments. As a result, the mean values around the BW agreed with each other, e.g., the mean velocity profile for stream and horizontal directions. Therefore, we confirmed that JUPITER showed a good performance in validating the thermal-hydraulics design tool as a fluid dynamics solver. Moreover, Fluent has enough accuracy as a thermal-hydraulics design tool for the ADS.
4 simulated fuel bundle for validation of thermal-hydraulics simulation codesOno, Ayako; Nagatake, Taku; Uesawa, Shinichiro; Shibata, Mitsuhiko; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of Specialist Workshop on Advanced Instrumentation and Measurement Techniques for Nuclear Reactor Thermal-Hydraulics and Severe Accidents (SWINTH-2024) (USB Flash Drive), 7 Pages, 2024/06
Japan Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) is developing a neutronics/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulation code for light-water reactors. Thermal-hydraulic simulation codes applied to the coupling code are expected to calculate the void fraction distribution in a rod bundle under operational conditions, which are necessary for neutron transport simulation, and need to be validated using void fraction distribution data in a rod bundle under high-temperature and high-pressure conditions. Therefore, we have conducted the measurement of the instantaneous void distribution in the 4 4 simulated fuel bundle using a developed wire mesh sensor, which is installed in the pressurized two-phase flow experimental loop of JAEA to obtain the data for code validation.
Ono, Ayako; Okamoto, Kaoru*; Makino, Yasushi*; Hosokawa, Shigeo*; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of Specialist Workshop on Advanced Instrumentation and Measurement Techniques for Nuclear Reactor Thermal-Hydraulics and Severe Accidents (SWINTH-2024) (USB Flash Drive), 13 Pages, 2024/06
JAEA has been developing an advanced neutronic/thermal-hydraulics coupling simulation system. In the coupling simulation system, the detailed thermal-hydraulics codes based on an interface-capturing method (JUPITER or TPFIT) will be adopted to simulate thermal-hydraulics behavior in a fuel bundle. The experimental data and findings relating to the gas-liquid two-phase flow in a fuel bundle are especially required to validate JUPITER/TPFIT. In this study, we therefore develop a measurement method by combining Laser-Doppler Velocimetry (LDV) and photodiodes, which can access to a small flow channel such as a subchannel of a fuel bundle. The developed measurement method is validated by comparison with the measument by a electrical conductance probe. Finally, we obtain experimental data on local flow structures and interactions between gas and liquid phases. The developed measurement method is actually applied to an air-water dispersed bubbly flow to confirm its capability.
Tada, Kenichi; Kondo, Ryoichi; Kamiya, Tomohiro; Nagatake, Taku; Ono, Ayako; Nagaya, Yasunobu; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of International Conference on Physics of Reactors (PHYSOR 2024) (Internet), p.1488 - 1497, 2024/04
JAEA has developed a new high-fidelity multi-physics platform JAMPAN for connecting single-physics codes such as a neutronics code and a thermal-hydraulics code. It consists of the HDF5 formatted data container and input and output data handler modules to generate the input file and read the output file of the single-physics code. Users can easily add or exchange the code by implementing input and output data handler modules for this code. The first target of JAMPAN is the coupling of neutronics and thermal-hydraulics calculations to provide reference results of core analysis codes. The current version of JAMPAN couples the neutronics code MVP and the thermal-hydraulics codes JUPITER, ACE-3D, and NASCA. Users can select the thermal-hydraulics code depending on the scale of problems to be solved, computational performance, and so on. This presentation explains the overview of JAMPAN and shows the results of the neutronics and thermal-hydraulics coupling calculation.
Kamiya, Tomohiro; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Proceedings of the Symposium on Shock Waves in Japan (Internet), 7 Pages, 2024/03
We developed a ghost fluid method satisfying conservation laws to simulate steam explosions that can occur at the accident of a nuclear power plant. In the developed method, a first-order approximation is applied to interface effect regions, and a high-order approximation is applied to bulk regions. In other words, the algorithm of the developed method is not consistent. Therefore, we modify the way of getting ghost fluids and propose a comprehensive algorithm that applies a high-order approximation to interface effect regions. In the presentation, we will report the outlines and results of the numerical tests of it.
Zhang, H.*; Umehara, Yutaro*; Yoshida, Hiroyuki; Mori, Shoji*
International Journal of Heat and Mass Transfer, 218, p.124750_1 - 124750_11, 2024/01
Times Cited Count：8 Percentile：75.43(Thermodynamics)Kamiya, Tomohiro; Yoshida, Hiroyuki
Dai-37-Kai Suchi Ryutai Rikigaku Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 8 Pages, 2023/12
We developed a sharp-interface method satisfying a conservation law for a compressible two-phase flow. In this presentation, the outline and numerical test results of the developed method in multi-dimension were reported. The ghost fluid method does not cause numerical diffusion at a gas-liquid interface because difference between gas and liquid phases is avoided. It cannot satisfy the conservation law because cells in which liquid and gas coexist are not prepared although in fact an interface crosses a cell. Hence, we developed the ghost fluid method satisfying a conservation law by preparing cells in which liquid and gas coexist by VOF method. Multi-dimensional basic equations are solved by a split method which is one of the geometric VOF methods. We solved an underwater explosion problem and confirmed that gas bubble expansion and compressible wave propagation which are observed in the steam explosion can be represented and developed method satisfies the conservation law.
