Modelling the behaviour of a PWR core by a homogenization technique

✍ Scribed by E. Jacquelin; J.P. Lainé; C. Trollat; L. Jézéquel

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 1998
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 860 KB
• Volume: 155
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0045-7825
• DOI: 10.1016/s0045-7825(97)00136-9

✦ Synopsis

Nuclear safety requires proper dimensional design of the sensitive components. In particular, it is indispensable to determine the dynamic behaviour of a pressurized water reactor core during seismic excitation (major risk). But full core modelling calls for a very large number of degrees of freedom. This is why it is indispensable to perform homogenization of the fluid and structures: in other words, a homogeneous model dynamically equivalent to the core must be determined.

Once the equations governing the homogenized medium have been formulated, to solve them is necessary. By building suitable finite elements, it is possible to recreate the dynamics of the initial system. It is then possible to perform full core simulations.