Influence of a non-condensable gas on mixing of a melt with water in a stratified configuration

Abstract

The influence of bubbles of hot non-condensable gas formed at the interface between the melt and water on the formation of a mixture of melt with water capable of producing steam explosions is considered. The dynamics of such a bubble in subcooled water is analyzed numerically in a one-dimensional spherically symmetric approximation. It is shown that with significant initial superheat of the bubble relative to the water, a rapid drop in pressure in the bubble occurs due to strong heat removal into the water. This leads to the collapse of the bubble and the appearance of an accompanying flow of water. The results obtained made it possible to approximately describe the stage of collapse of the bubble as the polytropic process and to determine its index. The axisymmetric problem of the impact of the water jet on the surface of a melt during collapse of a gas bubble near the interface between the melt and water is numerically investigated. In this case, the obtained polytropic process equation is used to determine the pressure in the bubble. It is found that the resulting impact on the melt is capable of knocking out melt droplets into the water to a height of several centimeters, which leads to the formation of a layer of water mixed with the melt droplets, which is capable of producing strong steam explosions.