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

Thinning behavior of solid boron carbide immersed in molten stainless steel for core disruptive accident of sodium-cooled fast reactor

Emura, Yuki; Takai, Toshihide; Kikuchi, Shin; Kamiyama, Kenji; Yamano, Hidemasa; Yokoyama, Hiroki*; Sakamoto, Kan*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 61(7), p.911 - 920, 2024/07

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2023.2287109

Development of safety design technologies for sodium-cooled fast reactor coupled to thermal energy storage system with sodium-molten salt heat exchanger, 3; Reaction on sodium-nitrate molten salt

Kikuchi, Shin; Sato, Rika; Kondo, Toshiki; Umeda, Ryota; Yamano, Hidemasa

Dai-28-Kai Doryoku, Enerugi Gijutsu Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 4 Pages, 2024/06

no abstracts in English

Development of safety design technologies for sodium-cooled fast reactor coupled to thermal energy storage system with sodium-molten salt heat exchanger, 1; Overview and Consideration on tube failure

Yamano, Hidemasa; Takano, Kazuya; Kurisaka, Kenichi; Kikuchi, Shin; Kondo, Toshiki; Umeda, Ryota; Sato, Rika; Shirakura, Shota*

Dai-28-Kai Doryoku, Enerugi Gijutsu Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 5 Pages, 2024/06

This project studies investigation on safety design guideline and risk assessment technology for sodium-cooled fast reactor with the molten-salt heat storage system, development of evaluation method for heat transferring performance between sodium and molten-salt and improvement of the performance, and evaluation of chemical reaction characteristic between sodium and molten-salt and improvement of its safety. This paper describes the effect of sodium-molten salt heat transfer tube failure in addition to the project overview and progress.

Suggestions for energy storage best mix to achieve carbon neutrality, 2; Transformation to green society by zero-carbon energy

Kato, Yukitaka*; Yamano, Hidemasa

Dai-28-Kai Doryoku, Enerugi Gijutsu Shimpojiumu Koen Rombunshu (Internet), 5 Pages, 2024/06

The research committee of energy storage technologies toward carbon neutrality developed four suggestions: 1) Development of energy storage best mix, 2) Transformation to green society, 3) utilization of heat storage technologies, and 4) Development of energy storage strategy beyond 2050. This paper describes suggestion 2) Transformation to green society by zero-carbon energy, 3) further utilization of heat storage technologies in the industry and civil sectors, and 4) Development of energy storage strategy toward achievement of carbon negative emission beyond 2050.

Progress of sodium-cooled fast reactor developments in Japan taking into account total lifecycle, risk-informed approach, and sustainability

Kamide, Hideki; Asayama, Tai; Wakai, Takashi; Ezure, Toshiki; Uchibori, Akihiro; Kubo, Shigenobu; Takeuchi, Masayuki

Nuclear Engineering and Design, 421, p.113062_1 - 113062_10, 2024/05

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nucengdes.2024.113062

A sodium cooled fast reactor (SFR) is one of the most relevant and decarbonized energy supply system with higher sustainability on natural resources, footprint, and waste management. It was planned in a strategic roadmap of fast reactor decided by Inter-Ministerial Council for Nuclear Power Japan in 2022 to start a conceptual design of a demonstration reactor from 2024 with a background of accumulated knowledge and experiences of SFR development. For example, a design and lifecycle simulation/evaluation system named ARKADIA has been developed to accelerate such design works. It will enable to take into account plant lifecycle, e.g., operation and maintenance, to the plant design and optimize it based on simulations and knowledgebase. This paper shows research progresses of ARKADIA, safety design and evaluations, codes and standards, fuel cycle, and SFR development projects in Japan.

Thermophysical properties of molten (FeO)-(SiO) measured by aerodynamic levitation

Kondo, Toshiki; Toda, Taro*; Takeuchi, Junichi*; Kikuchi, Shin; Kargl, F.*; Muta, Hiroaki*; Oishi, Yuji*

High Temperatures-High Pressures, 52(3-4), p.307 - 321, 2023/06

https://doi.org/10.32908/hthp.v52.1405

In order to establish an evaluation method/numerical simulation for nuclear reactor safety under severe accidental conditions, it is necessary to obtain the physical properties, especially fluidity of the relevant molten materials at very high temperatures. In this study, thermophysical properties such as density and viscosity were obtained for (FeO)-(SiO), which is a representative composition in the early stage of severe accident. (FeO)-(SiO) is produced by the contact between the molten oxide of steel, which is the main component of the reactor, and SiO, which is the main component of concrete. As a result, the physical properties of the (FeO)-(SiO) mixture were almost the same as those of FeO obtained in previous studies, and it could be concluded that a small amount of SiO (about 5 mol.%) did not significantly affect the fluidity of FeO.

Thermophysical properties of molten FeO, (FeO)-(ZrO) and (FeO)-(UO)

Kondo, Toshiki; Toda, Taro*; Takeuchi, Junichi*; Kargl, F.*; Kikuchi, Shin; Muta, Hiroaki*; Oishi, Yuji*

Journal of Nuclear Science and Technology, 59(9), p.1139 - 1148, 2022/09

https://doi.org/10.1080/00223131.2022.2032445

no abstracts in English

French-Japanese experimental collaboration on fuel-coolant interactions in sodium-cooled fast reactors

Johnson, M.*; Delacroix, J.*; Journeau, C.*; Brayer, C.*; Clavier, R.*; Montazel, A.*; Pluyette, E.*; Matsuba, Kenichi; Emura, Yuki; Kamiyama, Kenji

Proceedings of International Conference on Fast Reactors and Related Fuel Cycles; Sustainable Clean Energy for the Future (FR22) (Internet), 8 Pages, 2022/04

Fuel-coolant interactions in the event of molten fuel discharge to the lower plenum of a sodium cooled fast reactor is under investigation as part of a French-Japanese experimental collaboration on severe accidents. The MELT facility enables the X-ray visualisation of the quenching of molten core material jets in sodium at kilogram-scale. The SERUA facility, currently under preparation, is presented for the investigation of boiling heat transfer at elevated melt-coolant interface temperatures. In this article, the status of the collaboration using these facilities is presented.

Prediction of RPV lower structure failure and core material relocation behavior with MPS method (Contract research)

Yoshikawa, Shinji; Yamaji, Akifumi*

JAEA-Research 2021-006, 52 Pages, 2021/09

JAEA-Research-2021-006.pdf:3.89MB

In Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station (referred to as "FDNPS" hereafter) unit2 and unit3, failure of the reactor pressure vessel (RPV) and relocation of some core materials (CRD piping elements and upper tie plate, etc.) to the pedestal region have been confirmed. In boiling water reactors (BWRs), complicated core support structures and control rod drive mechanisms are installed in the RPV lower head and its upper and lower regions, so that the relocation behavior of core materials to pedestal region is expected to be also complicated. The Moving Particle Semi-implicit (MPS) method is expected to be effective in overviewing the relocation behavior of core materials in complicated RPV lower structure of BWRs, because of its Lagrangian nature in tracking complex interfaces. In this study, for the purpose of RPV ablation analysis of FDNPS unit2 and unit3, rigid body model, parallelization method and improved calculation time step control method were developed in FY 2019 and improvement of pressure boundary condition treatment, stabilization of rigid body model, and calculation cost reduction of debris bed melting simulation were achieved in FY2020. These improvements enabled sensitivity analyses of melting, relocation and re-distribution behavior of deposited solid debris in RPV lower head on various cases, within practical calculation cost. As a result of the analyses of FDNPS unit2 and unit3, it was revealed that aspect (particles/ingots) and distribution (degree of stratification) of solidified debris in lower plenum have a great impact on the elapsed time of the following debris reheat and partial melting and on molten pool formation process, further influencing RPV lower head failure behavior and fuel debris discharging behavior.