Qualification of a full plant nodalization for the prediction of the core exit temperature through a scaling methodology

Abstract

System codes and their necessary power plant nodalizations are an essential step in thermal hydraulic safety analysis. In order to assess the safety of a particular power plant, in addition to the validation and verification of the code, the nodalization of the system needs to be qualified. Since most existing experimental data come from scaled-down facilities, any qualification process must therefore address scale considerations. The Group of Thermal Hydraulic Studies at Technical University of Catalonia has developed a scaling-up methodology (SCUP) for the qualification of full-scale nodalizations through a systematic procedure based on the extrapolation of post-test simulations of Integral Test Facility experiments. In the present work, the SCUP methodology will be employed to qualify the nodalization of the AscóNPP, a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR), for the reproduction of an important safety phenomenon which is the effectiveness of the Core Exit Temperature (CET) as an Accident Management (AM) indicator. Given the difficulties in placing measurements in the core region, CET measurements are used as a criterion for the initiation of safety operational procedures during accidental conditions in PWR. However, the CET response has some limitation in detecting inadequate core cooling simply because the measurement is not taken in the position where the cladding exposure occurs. In order to apply the SCUP methodology, the OECD/NEA ROSA-2 Test 3, an SBLOCA in the hot leg, has been selected as a starting point. This experiment was conducted at the Large Scale Test Facility (LSTF), a facility operated by the Japanese Atomic Energy Agency (JAEA) and was focused on the assessment of the effectiveness of AM actions triggered by CET measurements. The steps of the SCUP methodology are presented: post-test calculation, scaling effect analysis and design effect analysis. The AscóNPP nodalization has shown to be qualified for the simulation of the involved phenomenology. The final step of the work presented here was to adapt the boundary conditions to a more realistic situation taking place in the AscóNPP. CET and Peak Cladding Temperature (PCT) readings were seen to present large differences similarly as it occurred in the ROSA-2 Test 3. The PCT when all the CET readings were credited was 872 K, however, when only the minimum CET reading was credited the maximum temperature in the core rose to 1053 K.