During severe core meltdown accidents of a light water reactor (LWR), the core melt (molten corium) may fall into a water pool, resulting in molten fuel coolant interactions (FCI). Quantitative understanding of FCI phenomena is paramount to corium risk assessment of LWRs such as Nordic boiling water reactors which employ reactor cavity flooding as severe accident management strategy (SAMS). Melt jet breakup and droplet fragmentation play an important role in FCI, affecting debris coolability and steam explosion energetics which are considered in ex-vessel corium risk assessment. The present study is concerned with numerical simulation of melt jet breakup in a water pool using a multiphase computational fluid dynamics (MCFD) approach where a coupled Level Set and Volume of Fluid (CLSVOF) method is used to capture melt-coolant interfaces. The focus is placed on the prediction of interface instabilities and jet breakup length, and their influential factors (melt materials, jet diameter, fall height, in-pool structures, multiple jets and pitch/diameter ratio). The simulation results are compared with the data of the DEFOR-M tests carried out at KTH. There is a good agreement between simulation and experiment, in terms of jet deformation pattern and jet breakup length. It is also found that the jet breakup length is different from the values predicted by well-known correlations (e.g., Taylor's, Epstein Fauske's and Matsuo's). Based on the experimental and numerical data, a new correlation for the jet breakup length is developed in the similar formula of the Satio's correlation.

An experimental study on multi-nozzle spray cooling of a downward-facing heater surface has been carried out in the SPAYCOR facility at KTH, to provide data assessing the feasibility of spray cooling for in-vessel melt retention (IVR) in light water reactors. To help understand the characteristics and influential factors of the liquid film formed on the heater surface in spray, a numerical study on the dynamics of an isothermal liquid film on the heater surface has also been performed by adopting the OpenFOAM platform, and Eulerian and Lagrangian methods for liquid film and droplets, respectively. The present study is an extension of the previous modeling from hydrodynamics to thermal-hydraulics of the spray cooling problem, via adding heat flux of the heater and two convective heat transfer models between the heater wall and the liquid film. Moreover, droplets-film interaction model is modified. The SPAYCOR experiment is simulated by the numerical models, and the simulation results show a good agreement between the numerical and experimental data, in particular when the modified droplets-film interaction model is applied. After the validation of the numerical models against the SPAYCOR experiment, the numerical models are employed to investigate influential factors on heat transfer, such as mass flux, nozzle-to-surface distance, and nozzle matrix layout. The results indicate that heat transfer is enhanced by increasing mass flux and decreasing nozzle-to-surface distance, and the change of nozzle matrix from inline to staggered layout has little impact on heat removal capacity or temperature distribution of the multi-nozzle spray cooling.

Motivated by the interest in steam explosion in chemical solutions and seawater, a series of tests were carried out in the MISTEE facility at KTH to investigate steam explosion characteristics as multiple molten droplets of tin were falling through a coolant pool containing deionized water, boric acid solution, neutral solution of boric acid and sodium phosphate, and seawater, separately. The experimental results revealed distinct and complex characteristics of steam explosion of multiple droplets, which were not observed in previous single-droplet steam explosion experiments. The tin melt samples of 5 g and 20 g were employed to formulate different numbers of multiple droplets. In the test with 5 g melt, steam explosion was more energetic at a deeper explosion location − a similar trend found in the single-droplet steam explosion test with 1 g melt. However, the test of 20 g melt did not show a clear trend in a wide range of explosion depth. The peak pressure and impulse increased with increasing mass of melt sample. The steam explosion occurred more closely to the coolant pool surfaces in the seawater and chemical solutions than in deionized water. Steam explosion intensity was significantly reduced in a neutral solution containing 1.2 wt.% boric acid and sodium phosphate. The influence of the chemical solutions on steam explosion was diminishing in the tests with multiple droplets.

In assessment of severe accident risk in light water reactors (LWRs), steam explosion is a nonnegligible phenomenon following a relocation of core melt (corium) into coolant, and thus various research efforts have been paid to steam explosion. There had been numerous studies showing that the occurrence of steam explosions is influenced by several factors such as melt and coolant temperatures, melt materials, non-condensable gasses, etc. However, most of the existing experiments used deionized (DI) water or tap water as coolant, with little consideration of the effect of chemicals (e.g. boric acid, sodium hydroxide, sodium phosphate) commonly applied in reactor coolant. To examine the effect of the chemical additives in coolant on steam explosion, the present study performs a series of molten Tin droplet-coolant interaction tests using DI water and different chemical solutions, including H3BO3 solutions, NaOH + H3BO3 neutral solutions, and Na3PO4 + H3BO3 neutral solutions. The experimental results show that adding NaOH and Na3PO4 in boric acid solution significantly affects the occurrence probability of spontaneous steam explosion, because of the presence of PO43− and H+ ions. When different solutions have equivalent concentrations of H3BO3, the peak pressure values of the spontaneous steam explosion of Sn droplets are similar among various solutions. Compared with those in DI water, steam explosion in the chemical solutions occurs predominantly within a narrow range of depth from 28 mm to 40 mm and produces a much higher peak pressure. This implies that more energetic steam explosions may occur in the chemical solutions.

The steam explosion plays an essential role in the safety analysis of light water reactors (LWRs). Some studies have demonstrated that the occurrence of steam explosions is dependent on many factors such as melt and coolant temperatures, melt and coolant properties, non -condensable gases, etc. After the Fukushima accident, seawater as an emergency coolant and its impact on fuel coolant interactions are receiving attention. However, there is still little knowledge on the impact of seawater on steam explosion. The present study is intended to examine the effect of coolant salinity on steam explosion through a series of tests with single molten droplet falling in different coolant pools (DI water, and seawater at different salinities from 7.7 g/kg to 35 g/kg). The experimental results reveal that the salinity of coolant significantly influences the probability of spontaneous steam explosion of molten tin droplets. The probability of steam explosion generally increases with increasing salinity from 0 to 17.5 g/kg. The molten droplet in seawater experiences more pronounced deformation at same depth before the vapor film of the droplet collapses. What's more, the peak pressure generated by steam explosion in seawater is notably higher than that in DI water. The fragmentation of molten tin droplet after the explosion is enhanced accordingly.

A new experimental study (aka SPAYCOR-S2) on multi-nozzle spray cooling of a downward-facing heater surface is conducted on the SPAYCOR facility at KTH, to provide data assessing the feasibility of spray cooling for in- vessel melt retention (IVR) in light water reactors. It is intended to investigate the potential for reducing the number of nozzles for spray cooling of an 80 mm x 120 mm surface, from the 2 x 3 nozzle array in the previous study (Bandaru, 2021) to a 2 x 2 nozzle array in the present study. Given the same heater surface, the pitch-to- diameter ratio is enlarged in a 2 x 2 nozzle array, resulting a partial coverage of the spray cones of four nozzles, in contrast with the 2 x 3 nozzle array where the heater surface was fully covered by six-nozzle spray. The tests focus on the cooling performance of such partial coverage of multi-nozzle spray and the effects of heater surface's inclination angle. The experimental results reveal that the inclination angle of the heat surface has a negligible impact on cooling capacity, although it is slightly higher on the surface inclined at 90 degrees degrees than on the surfaces inclined at 45 degrees degrees or 60 degrees. degrees . The maximum steady heat flux of the 2 x 2 nozzle array at its minimum spray flowrate is determined as 1.96 MW/m2. 2 . A numerical study on the spray cooling of the 2 x 2 nozzle array is also performed with models in OpenFOAM, which are extended from our previous development (Fang, 2023) by adding models for thin-film boiling and conjugate heat transfer in solid. For validation of the numerical study, the spray cooling of the heater surface inclined at various degrees is simulated, and the results are compared with those of experiment. The simulation generally shows good correspondence with experiments.

During a severe accident in light water reactors, the molten reactor core (corium) falls into a water pool in the form of a jet. Complex interactions may occur between the melt and coolant known as molten fuel-coolant interactions (FCI), including energetic coolant evaporation and metallic melt (e.g., Zr and Fe) oxidation. This may further lead to steam and hydrogen explosions, which are both substantial safety risks for nuclear power plants. The heat of reaction and hydrogen production during oxidation can influence the progress and severity of the accidents. For example, the reaction heat may prolong the liquid state of corium, potentially leading to highintensity explosions, whereas the generated hydrogen can create a combustible atmosphere, increasing the risk of hydrogen explosion. Therefore, this study evaluates the hydrogen production and oxidation degree of molten metallic droplets falling into a water pool to improve the FCI models for the risk evaluation of severe accident safety. The MISTEE-OX facility at KTH, which has been primarily built to study steam explosions is modified to investigate oxidation during FCI and provide experimental data on the oxidation behaviour of metallic droplets (Zr/Fe) quenched in a subcooled water pool. The dynamics of the falling droplets and generated bubbles are recorded using a high-speed camera, and the total volume of the bubbles is measured using a graduated cylinder. This study presents preliminary experimental results of the oxidation between Zr/Fe droplets and water, as well as recent improvements in measurement methods and facility upgrades. Our research findings are useful to enhance the knowledge of the oxidation process in FCI phenomena and validate the related mechanistic models in FCI codes.

In a consideration of spray cooling as the potential cooling mechanism for the in-vessel melt retention (IVR) strategy of nuclear reactors because of its superior heat removal efficiency, the SPAYCOR experiment has been conducted at KTH to investigate the spray cooling capacity of multiple nozzles applied to a downward-facing heated surface. In the present study, the dynamics of liquid film on the downward-facing surface resulting from the multi-nozzle spray are numerically simulated by using a coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian method implemented in the OpenFOAM platform. Prior to simulation of the SPAYCOR experiment, the numerical approach is used to calculate two theoretical setups which have known analytical solutions, with the objective to validate the models in predicting liquid film dynamics either in spray or on an inclined surface. In the simulation of the SPAYCOR experiment, the predicted film morphology shows a good agreement with the experimental observation. What's more, the influential factors, including the inclination of the downward-facing heater surface, the nozzle-to-surface distance as well as the nozzle-array layout, are also investigated numerically in the present study. The simulation results show that a decreasing nozzle-to-surface distance does not only lead to a thicker liquid film and a lower velocity in the vicinity of each spray coverage, but also increases non-uniformity of the liquid film. The nozzles-array layout has little influence on the average liquid film thickness and velocity, but significantly affects the film morphology.

The MISTEE facility at KTH was designed to investigate the process and phenomena of a molten droplet falling into a water pool that may be encountered in fuel-coolant interactions (FCI) during a severe accident of light water reactors. An aerodynamic levitation mechanism is proposed to hold the molten droplet during its preparation (melting and heating up to a prescribed temperature) in an induction furnace. The crucible is flushed with argon through an injection nozzle at the bottom to prevent the droplet from falling out of the crucible. A numerical simulation of the aerodynamic levitation system is performed in the present study with the objective of determining and optimizing the design. The problem was simplified as an isothermal two-phase flow in an axisymmetric geometry. The simulation is realized through ANSYS Fluent v17 platform, which employs the VOF method to track interfaces between two phases and the SST k-omega model to describe turbulence flow of argon gas. The numerical model is validated against tests performed in the MISTEE facility after mesh sensitivity study. It is then applied to investigate the impacts of various parameters on the facility levitation capability and the droplet stability. According to the simulation results, stable molten droplets can be obtained in the designed experimental setup. The simulation also provides the appropriate values of argon inlet velocity and sample mass at which a stable droplet can be obtained inside the crucible before its discharge. Either higher or lower inlet velocity will destabilize the formation of the droplet. Considering the temperature-dependent melt properties, both surface tension and viscosity affect the movement and deformation of the molten droplet. The wettability of melt on the crucible wall is critical to droplet formation, and it is found that a poor wettability can ensure the levitation of droplet.