What is the future for nuclear fission technology? A technical opinion from the Guest Editors of VSI NFT series and the Editor of the Journal Nuclear Engineering and Design

The Nuclear Fission Technology (NFT) series of Virtual Special Issues (VSIs) for the Journal Nuclear Engineering and Design (J NED) was proposed in 2023, including the request to potential authors of manuscript to address the following questions: o For how long will (water-cooling based) large size nuclear reactor survive? o Will water-technology based SMRs displace large reactors? o Will non-water-cooling technology SMRs and micro-reactors have an industrial deployment? o Will breeding technology, including thorium exploitation, have due relevance? o Will ‘nuclear infrastructure’ (fuel supply, financial framework, competence by regulators for new designs, waste management, etc.) remain or be sufficiently robust? Several dozen Guest Editors (GEs), i.e., the authors of the present document, managed the activity together with the Editor-in-Chief (EiC) of the journal. More than one thousand scientists contributed 470+ manuscripts, not evenly distributed among the geographical regions of the world and not necessarily addressing directly the bullet-questions, but certainly providing a view of current research being done. Key conclusions are as follows: (a) Large size reactors are necessary for a sustainable and safe exploitation of nuclear fission technology; (b) The burning of 233U (from thorium) and 239Pu (from uranium) is unavoidable, as well as recycling residual uranium currently part of waste; (c) Nuclear infrastructures in countries that currently use, or are entering the use of, fission energy for electricity production need a century planning; (d) The adoption of small reactors for commercial naval propulsion, hydrogen production and desalination is highly recommended

Probabilistic Assessment of Excessive Leakage Through Steam Generator Tube Degraded by Secodnary Side Corrosion

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Towards modelling intergranular stress-corrosion cracks using experimentally obtained grain topologies

Predicting the effects of material aging in view of development of intergranular damage is of particular importance in a number of nuclear installations and especially in structural integrity assessments of critical components in energy generating power plants. Since the damage is initialized on small length scales, detailed multiscale models should be employed to tackle the problem. However, the complexity of such models is high due to the need of incorporating micro structural features. In line of this the research group from Jožef Stefan Institute and The University of Manchester joined forces and knowledge in development of such detailed multiscale models. The basic idea was to pair the knowledge of advanced experimental techniques of The University of Manchester group with the knowledge of advanced microstructure modelling techniques of the group at Jožef Stefan Institute. The presented paper proposes a novel approach for intergranular crack modelling whereby a state-of-the-art X-ray diffraction contrast tomography technique is used to obtain 3D topologies and crystallographic orientations of individual grains in a stainless steel wire and intergranular stress corrosion cracks. As measured topologies and orientations of individual grains are then reconstructed within a finite element model and coupled with advanced constitutive material behaviour: anisotropic elasticity and crystal plasticity. Due to the extreme complexity of grain topologies, transferring this information into the finite element model presents a challenging task. The feasibility of the proposed approach is presented. Difficulties in building a finite element model are discussed. Preliminary results of the analyses are also given. Copyright © 2009 by ASME

Building a unique test section for local critical heat flux studies in light water reactor like accident conditions

Critical heat flux (CHF) has been studied for almost a century and yet there is no indisputable consensus reached on governing physical phenomena behind, not to mention, on modelling agreement of different correlations. When we are compelled to run our system at the safe distance from the CHF, and we can use all the accumulated knowledge so far, we will quite possibly cling to look-up tables delivered with that particular system. If this is not the case, than we will certainly stick to the system-specific correlation, which cannot be applied with confidence elsewhere. In the last two decades there were significant advancements applied both in numerical simulation capabilities and in unintrusive measuring techniques, which shed light on anticipated advancements in modelling the phenomenon. However, there are few reliable experimental measurements of instantaneous velocity and temperature fields in the wall boundary layer, and they are nil where local heat transfer coefficients are acquired. Therefore, at Reactor Engineering Division of Jožef Stefan Institute, a unique test section for local critical heat flux studies is under construction. The selected geometry and the test conditions will resemble light water reactor – like accident conditions. Moreover, to understand the phenomenon better, the design of the test section enables local measurements of heat transfer coefficients, and allows for control over the diabatic wall temperature. Measurements of single-phase convective heat transfer, conjugate heat transfer, flow boiling, convective condensation, and condensation-induced liquid hammer were all part of the test section’s design basis. In this context, the design and construction of the device is herein presented in considerable detail.Papers presented at the 13th International Conference on Heat Transfer, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Portoroz, Slovenia on 17-19 July 2017 .International centre for heat and mass transfer.American society of thermal and fluids engineers