NEED OF A NEXT GENERATION SEVERE ACCIDENT CODE

Abstract

Two international severe accident benchmark problems have been performed recently by using several existing parametric severe accident codes: The Benchmark Study of the Accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (BSAF) and the Benchmark of the In-Vessel Melt Retention (IVMR) Analysis of a VVER-1000 Nuclear Power Plant (NPP). The BSAF project was organized by the Nuclear Power Engineering Center (NUPEC) of the Institute of Applied Energy (IAE) in Japan for the three Boiling Water Reactors (BWRs) of the Fukushima NPP. The IVMR Project was organized by the Joint Research Center (JRC) of the European Commission (EC) in Holland (Europe) for a Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR). The obtained results of both projects have shown very large discrepancies between the used severe accident codes for both reactor types BWR and PWR. Consequently, the results for a real plant analysis by these integral codes, may not be correct after the beginning of core melt. Discrepancies of results of ex-vessel phenomena in the containment between the codes are in general larger. Therefore, there is a strong need for a reliable new generation mechanistic severe accident code which can simulate severe accident scenarios from an initiating event till containment failure with better accuracy not only for existing light water reactors but also for new generation IV reactor types. SAMPSON mechanistic ex-vessel modules coupled with SCDAPSIM and a new thermal-hydraulic module ASYST-ISA with particularly newly developed options for the reactor coolant system (RCS) and material properties applicable to new reactor deigns, is proposed as a best etimate new generation severe accident code for several reasons which are described in this paper.Keywords: Severe accident, SAMPSON, SCDAPSIM, ASYST-ISA, Steam explosion, Hydrogen detonation