Neutronics-thermal-hydraulics-coupled transient analysis for reactor power change in an inclined offshore floating boiling water reactor

福田 航大; 小原 徹*; 須山 賢也

Nuclear Technology, 211(5), p.963 - 973, 2025/05

https://doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2024.2368966

An application of the boiling water reactor (BWR) to an offshore floating nuclear power plant (OFNP) is discussed in Japan. The BWR-type OFNP has some challenges for practical use, although it has high economic efficiency because of downsizing and simplification. One challenge is understanding reactor kinetics under conditions specific to the marine environment. This study quantitatively clarifies the total and spatial changes in power when the BWR is inclined during regular operation. Therefore, the TRAC/RELAP Advanced Computational Engine (TRACE) and Purdue Advanced Reactor Core Simulator (PARCS) codes were used to perform a three-dimensional neutronics-thermal-hydraulics-coupled transient analysis. The calculation model is based on Peach Bottom II. This study clarifies the changing trend in total and local BWR power by inclination with simplified modeling and conditions. Reasons for such changes are discussed based on changes in several thermal-hydraulic parameters. The difference in BWR power against the inclinations is small. Thus, it was implied that the BWR-type OFNP is expected to have a stable power supply capability during natural disasters. Finally, requires further studies to support the obtained conclusions are discussed.

Deep learning-based bubble detection with Swin Transformer

上澤 伸一郎; 吉田 啓之

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 61(11), p.1438 - 1452, 2024/11

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2024.2348023

本研究では、重なり合う気泡の中から個々の気泡を検出・分割するために、Shifted window Transformer (Swin Transformer)を用いた深層学習ベースの気泡検出器を開発した。検出器の性能を検証するため、学習画像数を変えて平均適合率(AP)を計算した。APは、訓練画像の数が50枚以下の場合は、トレーニング画像の数の増加とともに増加したが、50枚を超える場合は一定であった。50枚以上ではSwin Transformerと一般的なCNNであるResNetのAPはほぼ同じであったが、学習画像が少ない場合はSwin TransformerのAPがResNetのAPを上回った。また、ボイド率が増加すると、Swin TransformerのAPはResNetの場合と同様の減少を示したものの、学習画像が少ない場合はSwin TransformerのAPが全てのボイド率においてResNetのAPを上回った。さらに、合成気泡画像で学習した検出器で、気泡流可視化実験の重なった気泡や変形気泡の検出が可能であることを確認した。このように、Swin Transformerを用いた新しい気泡検出器は、ResNetを用いた検出器よりも少ない学習画像で高いAPを得られることが確認された。

The OECD/NEA Working Group on the Analysis and Management of Accidents (WGAMA); Advances in codes and analyses to support safety demonstration of nuclear technology innovations

中村 秀夫; Bentaib, A.*; Herranz, L. E.*; Ruyer, P.*; Mascari, F.*; Jacquemain, D.*; Adorni, M.*

Proceedings of International Conference on Topical Issues in Nuclear Installation Safety; Strengthening Safety of Evolutionary and Innovative Reactor Designs (TIC 2022) (Internet), 10 Pages, 2022/10

The WGAMA activity achievements have been published as technical reports, becoming reference materials to discuss innovative methods, materials and technologies in the fields of thermal-hydraulics, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and severe accidents (SAs). The International Standard Problems (ISPs) and Benchmarks of computer codes have been supported by a huge amount of the databases for the code validation necessary for the reactor safety assessment with accuracy. The paper aims to review and summarize the recent WGAMA outcomes with focus on new advanced reactor applications including small modular reactors (SMRs). Particularly, discussed are applicability of major outcomes in the relevant subjects of passive system, modelling innovation in CFD, severe accident management (SAM) countermeasures, advanced measurement methods and instrumentation, and modelling robustness of safety analysis codes. Although large portions of the outcomes are considered applicable, design-specific subjects may need careful considerations when applied. The WGAMA efforts, experiences and achievements for the safety assessment of operating nuclear power plants including SA will be of great help for the continuous safety improvements required for the advanced reactors including SMRs.

再処理施設の高レベル廃液蒸発乾固事故でのNOの化学挙動を考慮したRuの移行挙動解析

吉田 一雄; 玉置 等史; 桧山 美奈*

JAEA-Research 2021-005, 25 Pages, 2021/08

JAEA-Research-2021-005.pdf:2.91MB

再処理施設の過酷事故の一つである高レベル放射性廃液貯槽の冷却機能喪失による蒸発乾固事故では、沸騰により廃液貯槽から発生する硝酸-水混合蒸気とともにルテニウム(Ru)の揮発性の化学種が放出される。このためリスク評価の観点からは、Ruの定量的な放出量の評価が重要な課題である。課題解決に向け当該施設での蒸気凝縮を伴う環境でのRuの移行挙動に係る小規模実験のデータ分析の結果から気液界面でのRuの物質移行係数の相関式を導出した。この相関式を用いて実規模の仮想的な再処理施設を対象に施設内でのRuの移行挙動の模擬を試行した。解析では、窒素酸化物の化学挙動を解析するSCHERNコードにこの相関式を組み込み、施設内の熱流動解析で得られた条件を境界条件としてRuの定量的な移行挙動を模擬し、その有効性を確認した。

熱流動とリスク評価,1; リスク評価における熱流動解析の役割

丸山 結; 吉田 一雄

日本原子力学会誌ATOMO, 63(7), p.517 - 522, 2021/07

https://doi.org/10.3327/jaesjb.63.7_517

確率論的リスク評価(PRA)は合理的かつ定量的にリスクを評価する強力な手法である。しかしながら、PRAを実践しつつ、得られた結果を分析し、様々な意思決定に活用する上では、多様な分野の専門的な知識や技術,経験を必要とする。原子力施設のリスク評価においては、シビアアクシデントに至る過程やその進展を評価することが不可欠であり、それらに強く関連する熱流動は、PRAにおける重要な専門分野の一つである。本稿では、軽水炉のレベル2PRAにおけるソースターム評価及び再処理施設のシビアアクシデント時ソースターム評価を中心に、リスク評価における熱流動解析の役割について概説する。

The Working group on the analysis and management of accidents (WGAMA); A Historical review of major contributions

Herranz, L. E.*; Jacquemain, D.*; Nitheanandan, T.*; Sandberg, N.*; Barr, F.*; Bechta, S.*; Choi, K.-Y.*; D'Auria, F.*; Lee, R.*; 中村 秀夫

Progress in Nuclear Energy, 127, p.103432_1 - 103432_14, 2020/09

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pnucene.2020.103432

WGAMA started on Dec. 31st 1999 to assess and strengthen the technical basis needed for the prevention, mitigation and management of potential accidents in NPP and to facilitate international convergence on safety issues and AM analyses and strategies. WGAMA addresses reactor thermal-hydraulics (Thys), in-vessel behavior of degraded cores, containment behavior and protection, and FP release, transport, deposition and retention, for both current and advanced reactors. This paper summarizes such WGAMA contributions in Thys, CFD and severe accidents, which include the Fukushima-Daiichi accident impacts on the WGAMA activities and their substantial outcomes. Around 50 technical reports have become reference in the related fields, which appear in References. Recommendations in these reports include further research, some of which have given rise to the joint projects conducted or underway within the OECD framework. Ongoing WGAMA activities are numerous and a number of them are to be launched in the near future, which are shortly mentioned too.

CFD analysis of the CIGMA experiments on the heated JET injection into containment vessel with external surface cooling

Hamdani, A.; 安部 諭; 石垣 将宏; 柴本 泰照; 与能本 泰介

Proceedings of 18th International Topical Meeting on Nuclear Reactor Thermal Hydraulics (NURETH-18) (USB Flash Drive), p.5463 - 5479, 2019/08

The present study introduces thermal mixing and stratification produced by heated air jet located at the bottom level of the containment vessel. The investigation was carried out experimentally and numerically in the large containment vessel called CIGMA (Containment InteGral effects Measurement Apparatus). The experiments were conducted with external surface cooling and various air jet inlet temperatures. The containment cooling was done by flooding the water on the external side of half-upper of a vessel. To identify their influence on the thermal mixing and stratification phenomena, the investigation focuses on mixing convection which occurred in the cooled region of a containment vessel. Temperature distribution and jet velocity were measured by thermocouple and Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) respectively. Numerical simulation was performed using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) code OpenFOAM to investigate the detail effects of external cooling on the fluid flow and thermal characteristics in the test vessel. CFD results showed a good agreement with experimental data on both temperature and velocity. Both temperature and velocity of hot air jet decayed rapidly downstream jet nozzle. Thermal stratification was observed by visualization of temperature contour maps over a cross-section in the containment vessel. Vigorous mixing was also noticed in the upper region of the containment vessel. Effect of external cooling on mixing and the thermal stratification were presented and discussed.

Thermal-hydraulic analysis of the LBE spallation target head in JAEA

Wan, T.; 大林 寛生; 佐々 敏信

Nuclear Technology, 205(1-2), p.188 - 199, 2019/01

https://doi.org/10.1080/00295450.2018.1478591

To perform basic research and development to realize future accelerator-driven systems, a lead-bismuth eutectic (LBE) alloy spallation target will be installed within the framework of the Japan Proton Accelerator Research Complex (J-PARC) project, Japan Atomic Energy Agency. The target will be bombarded by high-power pulsed proton beams (250 kW, 400 MeV, 25 Hz, and 0.5 ms in pulse duration). The Beam Window (BW) of the spallation target is critical because it should survive under severe conditions that occur, i.e., high temperature, high irradiation, intense stress, and various kinds of damage. Therefore, the target vessel should be carefully designed to obtain an adequate safety margin. Our previous research indicates that there is a stagnant flow region in the LBE at the BW tip due to the symmetric configuration of the target, which causes high temperature and concentration of stress on the BW. On the basis of our previous work, three types of upgraded target head designs are studied in the current research to reduce/move the stagnant flow region from the BW tip and to increase the target safety margin. Thermal-hydraulic analyses and structural analyses for the target head designs are carried out numerically under a steady-state condition. Results illustrate that the designs can almost eliminate the stagnant flow region in the LBE. As a consequence, the concentration of thermal stress on the BW is released and greatly decreased. The safety margin of the target is improved through this study.

Considerations on phenomena scaling for BEPU

中村 秀夫

Proceedings of ANS International Conference on Best Estimate Plus Uncertainties Methods (BEPU 2018) (USB Flash Drive), 8 Pages, 2018/00

軽水炉の安全評価にて、システム解析コードを用いて不確かさを考慮した最適評価解析(BEPU)を行うとき、本来目標である高温高圧で多様な形状を有する実機での伝熱流動条件下に生じる事故現象の精確な予測には依然として残されている課題がある。その中で、主に流路サイズと圧力(流体物性)に依存した現象のスケーリングが関与する課題の例を挙げ、Keynote講演での議論に資する。

Thermal-hydraulic analyses of the High-Temperature engineering Test Reactor for loss of forced cooling at 30% reactor power

高松 邦吉

Annals of Nuclear Energy, 106, p.71 - 83, 2017/08

http://doi.org/10.1016/j.anucene.2017.03.032

固有の安全性を持つ高温ガス炉である高温工学試験研究炉(HTTR)を用いて、強制冷却喪失(LOFC)事象を模擬した安全性実証試験を実施した。本論文では、冷却材流量が定格の45t/hから0t/hまで低下し、制御棒が炉心に挿入されず、原子炉出力制御系が作動しない条件における、原子炉出力9MWからの強制冷却喪失時の熱流動特性を示す。解析により、1次純化設備による強制対流の下降流は、燃料体内で発生した自然対流による上昇流を抑え込むが、原子炉出口冷却材温度に与える影響を除いて、炉内の熱流動特性に与える影響は小さいことを明らかにした。以上により、原子炉圧力容器内の3次元熱流動特性を定量的に示すことができた。