Experiments of melt jet-breakup for agglomerated debris formation using a metallic melt

Iwasawa, Yuzuru; Sugiyama, Tomoyuki; Abe, Yutaka*

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 386, p.111575_1 - 111575_17, 2022/01

https://doi.org//10.1016/j.nucengdes.2021.111575

Thermophysical properties of austenitic stainless steel containing boron carbide in a solid state

Takai, Toshihide; Furukawa, Tomohiro; Yamano, Hidemasa

Mechanical Engineering Journal (Internet), 8(4), p.20-00540_1 - 20-00540_11, 2021/08

https://doi.org/10.1299/mej.20-00540

In a core disruptive accident scenario, boron carbide, which is used as a control rod material, may melt below the melting temperature of stainless steel owing to the eutectic reaction with them. The eutectic mixture produced is assumed to extensively relocate in the degraded core, and this behavior plays an important role in significantly reducing the neutronic reactivity. However, these behaviors have never been simulated in previous severe accident analysis. To contribute to the improvement of the core disruptive accident analysis code, the thermophysical properties of the eutectic mixture in the solid state were measured, and regression equations that show the temperature (and boron carbide concentration) dependence are created.

Evaluation of core material energy change during the in-vessel phase of Fukushima Daiichi Unit 3 based on observed pressure data utilizing GOTHIC code analysis

Sato, Ikken; Arai, Yuta*; Yoshikawa, Shinji

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 58(4), p.434 - 460, 2021/04

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2020.1862718

Restraint effect of coexisting nitrite ion in simulated high level liquid waste on releasing volatile ruthenium under boiling condition

Yoshida, Ryoichiro; Amano, Yuki; Yoshida, Naoki; Abe, Hitoshi

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 58(2), p.145 - 150, 2021/02

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2020.1825235

In the "evaporation and dryness due to the loss of cooling functions" which is one of the severe accidents at reprocessing plants in Japan, ruthenium (Ru) is possible to be released much more than other elements to the environment. This cause is considered that the volatile Ru compound can be released from high level liquid waste (HLLW) as gaseous compound in adding to the release by entrainment. It was expected that the release of the volatile Ru compound from the HLLW may be able to be restrained by coexisting nitrite ion because of its reduction power. To confirm the effect of nitrite ion on the release behavior of the volatile Ru compound, four experiments of heating the simulated HLLW (SHLLW) with setting the concentration of nitrite ion in the SHLLW as a parameter ware carried out. As a result, the release of the volatile Ru compound was seemed to be restrained by adding nitrite sodium as a source of nitrite ion under certain boiling condition. This result may contribute to improve source term analysis in the evaporation and dryness due to the loss of cooling functions.

Effect of nitrogen oxides on decomposition behavior of gaseous ruthenium tetroxide

Yoshida, Naoki; Amano, Yuki; Ono, Takuya; Yoshida, Ryoichiro; Abe, Hitoshi

JAEA-Research 2020-014, 33 Pages, 2020/12

JAEA-Research-2020-014.pdf:3.66MB

Considering the boiling and drying accident of high-level liquid waste in fuel reprocessing plant, Ruthenium (Ru) is an important element. It is because Ru would form volatile compounds such as ruthenium tetroxide (RuO) and could be released into the environment with other coexisting gasses such as nitric oxides (NOx) such as nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide (NO). To contribute to the safety evaluation of this accident, we experimentally evaluated the effect of NOx on the decomposition and chemical change behavior of the gaseous RuO (RuO(g)). As a result, the RuO(g) decomposed over time under the atmospheric gasses with NO or NO, however, the decomposition rate was slower than the results of experiments without NOx. These results showed that the NOx stabilized RuO(g).

Overview and outcomes of the OECD/NEA benchmark study of the accident at the Fukushima Daiichi NPS (BSAF) Phase 2; Results of severe accident analyses for Unit 1

Herranz, L. E.*; Pellegrini, M.*; Lind, T.*; Sonnenkalb, M.*; Godin-Jacqmin, L.*; Lpez, C.*; Dolganov, K.*; Cousin, F.*; Tamaki, Hitoshi; Kim, T. W.*; et al.

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 369, p.110849_1 - 110849_7, 2020/12

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2020.110849

Phase 2 of the OECD/NEA Project "Benchmark Study of the Accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (BSAF)" was established in mid-2015. The objectives have been similar to Phase 1 of the project but with an extended analysis period of 3 weeks, a major focus on FP behaviour and releases to the environment and the comparison to various data and results of backwards calculations of the source term. Nine organizations of six countries submitted results of their calculated severe accident scenarios for Unit 1 at the 1F site using different severe accident codes. This paper describes the findings of the comparison of the participants results for Unit1 against each other and against plant data, the evaluation of the accident progression and the final status inside the reactors. Special focus is on RPV status, melt release and FP behaviour and release. Unit specific aspects will be highlighted and points of consensus as well as remaining uncertainties and data needs will be summarised.

Dynamic PRA of flooding-initiated accident scenarios using THALES2-RAPID

Kubo, Kotaro; Zheng, X.; Tanaka, Yoichi; Tamaki, Hitoshi; Sugiyama, Tomoyuki; Jang, S.*; Takata, Takashi*; Yamaguchi, Akira*

Proceedings of 30th European Safety and Reliability Conference and 15th Probabilistic Safety Assessment and Management Conference (ESREL 2020 and PSAM-15) (Internet), p.2279 - 2286, 2020/11

https://www.rpsonline.com.sg/proceedings/esrel2020/pdf/4717.pdf

Probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) is one of the methods used to assess the risks associated with large and complex systems. When the risk of an external event is evaluated using conventional PRA, a particular limitation is the difficulty in considering the timing at which nuclear power plant structures, systems, and components fail. To overcome this limitation, we coupled thermal-hydraulic and external-event simulations using Risk Assessment with Plant Interactive Dynamics (RAPID). Internal flooding was chosen as the representative external event, and a pressurized water reactor plant model was used. Equations based on Bernoulli's theorem were applied to flooding propagation in the turbine building. In the analysis, uncertainties were taken into account, including the flow rate of the flood water source and the failure criteria for the mitigation systems. In terms of recovery action, isolation of the flood water source by the operator and drainage using a pump were modeled based on several assumptions. The results indicate that the isolation action became more effective when combined with drainage.

The Analysis for Ex-Vessel debris coolability of BWR

Matsumoto, Toshinori; Iwasawa, Yuzuru; Ajima, Kohei*; Sugiyama, Tomoyuki

Proceedings of Asian Symposium on Risk Assessment and Management 2020 (ASRAM 2020) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2020/11

The probability of ex-vessel debris coolability under the wet cavity strategy is analyzed. The first step is the uncertainty analyses by severe accident analysis code MELCOR to obtain the melt condition. Five uncertain parameters which are relating with the core degradation and transfer process were chosen. Input parameter sets were generated by LHS. The analyses were conducted and the conditions of the melt were obtained. The second step is the analyses for the behavior of melt under the water by JASMINE code. The probabilistic distribution of parameters are determined from the results of MELCOR analyses. Fifty-nine parameter sets were generated by LHS. The depth of water pool is set to be 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0 m. Debris height were compared with the criterion to judge the debris coolability. As the result, the success probability of debris cooling was obtained through the sequence of calculations. The technical difficulties of this evaluation method are also discussed.

Now is the time of fast reactor

Negishi, Hitoshi; Kamide, Hideki; Maeda, Seiichiro; Nakamura, Hirofumi; Abe, Tomoyuki

Nihon Genshiryoku Gakkai-Shi ATOMO, 62(8), p.438 - 441, 2020/08

https://doi.org/10.3327/jaesjb.62.8_438

Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor, Monju, was under decommission since April, 2018. It is the first time for Japan to make a sodium cooled reactor into decommission. It is significant work and will take 30 years. The Monju has provided wide spectrum and huge amount of findings and knowledge, e.g., design, R&D, manufacturing, construction, and operation up to 40% of full power over 50 years of development history. It is significant to utilize such findings and knowledge for the development and commercialization of a fast rector in Japan.

Development of ex-vessel phenomena analysis model for multi-scenario simulation system, spectra

Uchibori, Akihiro; Aoyagi, Mitsuhiro; Takata, Takashi; Ohshima, Hiroyuki

Proceedings of 2020 International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE 2020) (Internet), 7 Pages, 2020/08

https://doi.org/10.1115/ICONE2020-16818

The multi-scenario simulation system named SPECTRA has been developed for integrated analysis of in- and ex-vessel phenomena during a severe accident in sodium-cooled fast reactors. The base module computing ex-vessel compressible gas behavior by a lumped mass model and a sodium-concrete interaction module were verified through the basic analyses individually. A validity of the system including the base module and the individual physical module such as the sodium-concrete interaction module was confirmed through the analysis assuming sodium leakage from a reactor vessel and a primary cooling loop.