Design and operation of the transparent integral effect test facility, URI-LO for nuclear innovation platform

Abstract

Conventional integral effect test facilities were constructed to enable the precise observation of thermal–hydraulic phenomena and reactor behaviors under postulated accident conditions to prove reactor safety. Although these facilities improved the understanding of thermal–hydraulic phenomena and reactor safety, applications of new technologies and their performance tests have been limited owing to the cost and large scale of the facilities. Various nuclear technologies converging 4th industrial revolution technologies such as artificial intelligence, drone, and 3D printing, are being developed to improve plant management strategies. Additionally, new conceptual passive safety systems are being developed to enhance reactor safety. A new integral effect test facility having a noticeable scaling ratio, i.e., the (UNIST reactor innovation loop (URI-LO), is designed and constructed to improve the technical quality of these technologies by performance and feasibility tests. In particular, the URI-LO, which is constructed using a transparent material, enables better visualization and provides physical insights on multidimensional phenomena inside the reactor system. The facility design based on three-level approach is qualitatively validated with preliminary analyses, and its functionality as a test facility is confirmed through a series of experiments. The design feature, design validation, functionality test, and future utilization of the URI-LO are introduced.