Q. Wu et al., HIGH-PRESSURE SIMULATION EXPERIMENT ON CORIUM DISPERSION IN DIRECT CONTAINMENT HEATING, Nuclear Engineering and Design, 164(1-3), 1996, pp. 257-269
Purdue 1/10 scale direct containment heating separate effects experime
nts under a reactor vessel pressure up to 14.2 MPa are presented. With
the test facility scaled to the Zion PWR geometry, these tests are ma
inly focused on the cerium dispersion phenomenon in order to obtain a
better understanding of the dominant driving mechanisms. Water and woo
ds metal have been used separately to simulate the core melt, the reac
tor vessel being pressurized with nitrogen gas analogous to the steam
in the prototypic case. The entire test transient lasted for a few sec
onds, and the liquid dispersion in the test cavity occurred within onl
y 0.5 s. To synchronize the data acquisition and blowdown transient, t
he test initiation was triggered by breaking two rupture discs in the
liquid/gas delivery system. Parameters characterizing the liquid trans
port were obtained via various instruments. Important information abou
t the mean size and size distribution of the dispersed droplets in the
test cavity, the liquid film flow transient, the subcompartment trapp
ing, and the liquid carry-over to the containment has been obtained. T
hese results, along with data from a previous low pressure (1.4 MPa) e
xperiment carried out at Purdue University, form a solid database for
further theoretical analysis.